Blacks with Power| Make America Great through Black Powe‪r‬ Fr. Jabriel Ballentine

The oldest and the most BELOVED institution in the Black community is the Black Church. Tuesday, February 16, 2021, PBS aired a documentary called “The Black Church.” 







One personal take-away of this documentary is that “white acceptance is something that Black people long for.” These words are from my personal tweet, @WWJimmieDo. Fr. Jabriel, @Jah_Bread, responded, “There’s a topic...lol.” 







Any good documentary should provoke an honest conversation. White acceptance is something that is longed for in our BELOVED Black Church. Because of this, we celebrate our tradition while negating the trail that we are blazing for the next generation to come.







What has the Black Church become? Is the Black Church moving our beloved community forward? Or, are we just simply celebrating the traditional heritage of the Black Church? 







This is our exploration on this episode of Blacks With Power. After viewing this episode, share your thoughts and comments. What are your thoughts when it comes to the heritage of the Black Church? We invite you to watch and share.







To ensure a deeper understanding of the Black Church, we offer the following resources:







* Black Church and Black Radicalism by Gayraud S. Wilmore* The Negro Church in America / The Black Church Since Frazier by E. Franklin Frazier and C. Eric Lincoln* David Walker’s Appeal by David Walker







Some additional sources to consider:







* The Black Church in the African American Experience by C. Eric Lincoln and Lawrence H. Mamiya* The Talking Book: African Americans and The Bible by Allen Dwight Callahan* Slave Religion by Albert J. Raboteau * The Black Church: Relevant or Irrelevant in the 21st Century? by Reginald F. Davis









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1EnpFLHzbk&sub_confirmation=1

Zora Neale Hurston penned, “All your skin folk ain’t your kinfolk.” There are “skin folk” who continue to project whiteness in families, churches, and other institutions that is part of our community. The projection of whiteness dismembers and distorts the memory, vision and mission of the beloved community. 







As we journey through Black History Month, we are constantly reminded of the terror of White Supremacy. From the period of Reconstruction to the Insurrection at the Capital Building, whiteness (White Supremacy) remains at the cultural center of our country, community, and companions (those who consider themselves kinfolk). 







What does it mean for us to remember, return, and reconnect to our being as the beloved community? How do we embark on this journey of reclaiming ourselves and our community?







This is our exploration on this episode of Blacks With Power. We are joined by Rev. Tyree Anderson, D.Min. He is the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Ensley, located in Birmingham, Alabama. He also hosts The Cutting Edge Clergy Podcast. After viewing this episode, share your thoughts and comments. What resonates with you as it pertains to reimagining ourselves free from the projection of whiteness?









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yF7BxIXLTrE&sub_confirmation=1

What is Black History Month?







What is its purpose? What should be its purpose? What is the best use of Black History, in these times?







What are we remembering? What does it mean to "re-member?"







As we enter Black History Month, in the wake of White Insurrection, it is time to reconsider our approach to our story and its usage. It might not be the best use of Black History as a means to "enrich American History."







Maybe it's better to focus Black History on enriching the devalued and dismembered Black American? Better to use Black History for enriching the devalued and dismembered African people of the world...







This is our exploration in this episode of Blacks with Power. After checking it out, what do you think? What needs to be remembered? Where should we be placing the emphasis of remembering and who should be most invested in this remembering?









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRUXABW8dsQ&sub_confirmation=1

With all the talk of unity and unifying America in the Post-Trump Era, the real question is this:







What do you mean by unity?







What definition of self are you using to determine what is meant by unity? What version of self are you presenting for unification with White America?







As a new Administration takes over and most folk prepare to go back to sleep, we wanted to explore these questions in this episode of Blacks with Power.









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAUyMdtBq6c&feature=youtu.be&sub_confirmation=1

Last week…as we were recording last week’s episode of Blacks with Power, vitriolic elements of White Power took the Capital by storm, resulting in five death, including a member of Law Enforcement. They violated and betrayed the Rule of Law, with the support of the President, Members of Congress and other Federal and State elected officials.







Now, we are witnessing the aftermath. How will genteel White Power respond? What will the Rule of Law mean in this instance?







All of it remains to be seen. But, will Black people be watching? Will you be paying attention? And for what will you be paying attention? What will you be looking to see and what will you do with what you see?







That’s our discussion on this episode, and we’d love to hear your response to our thoughts & challenges in the comments below. Or tweet us: @jahbread & @wwjimmiedo.









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b4NLItTvKg&feature=youtu.be&sub_confirmation=1

It’s wild…







We recorded this hours BEFORE the mayhem that unfolded in DC on January 6, 2021. It wasn’t developed with this in mind. However, this was clearly in the Spirit that came upon us as we start this New Years journey as Blacks with Power.







The Ancients would say: “A charge to keep I have…A God to glorify. A never-dying soul to save and fit it for the sky…”







What is the role of the Black Church in these times?







If we are indeed American like everyone else… If we indeed have a value to America that needs be appreciated…







And if America is really & truly to “heal…”







What is the Holy Call of the Black Church? And how do we cultivate the faith that would ensure the Mattering of Black Lives, such that our full Black selves might have efficacy in the transformation in the America unto A More Perfect Union?







What is the faith we must have…what is the faith that is becoming of Beloved Community?







Those are some of our questions in this episode of Blacks with Power. We’d love to hear your response to what we’ve presented!









https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUSqkLu-0hs&sub_confirmation=1