Quote:
Originally Posted by Little32
I don't think that it is anything new either, but rather something that has had it's roots in the earliest experiences of African descended people in America. What is new, or at least in a new cycle is white America's most recent collective exposure to it. In a few years, when this comes up, again, people will pretend like they have never heard of it and don't understand it, again. You know this country loves its amnesia.
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Indeed.
This reminds me of how the Irish conveniently forget the history behind how hard they worked to be considered "white" and used the Catholic church, in addition to labor unions and the Democratic Party, to do so. Churches have always been used for purposes beyond religion, especially for minority groups (which includes the Irish when they were considered "white Negroes" before they assimilated into "whiteness") who needed a safe outlet and network source where none were available.
However, I feel that The Church's role in the Black Community has shifted as other outlets are available to us. It still has an important role but it's not as central to every aspect of our lives as it used to be. The role of the institution changed even if the role of spirituality hasn't. I have never attended a church that has beaten the congregation over the head with social issues and politics. The church I was raised in had some of the most influential blacks in the congregation, including politicians. We were told to vote and to serve the community. We had discussions of health issues and so forth. Never lectures on social issues like sexual orientation or speeches about politics beyond saying stuff like "pray for our country and for our President." The pastor assumed that an educated congregation with opportunities and access to information doesn't need the same guidance and resources that blacks have needed from The Church in the past.