Posted by: Nick Norelli | May 6, 2008

Jakes on the Black Church

Michelle A. Vu of the Christian Post reports that T.D. Jakes believes that in light of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s public speeches, the Black Church has been unfairly portrayed in the media.  Read the full story here.

Issues like this are a mixed bag.  My church is a Black church, and they welcome everyone with open arms.  But my pastor left the Church of God in Christ because of their racism against Whites.  I don’t even consider Jakes a part of the Church (he’s a modalist), but I think he’s right to say that we can’t paint with a broad brush.  Evaluate each church on its own merit.

B”H

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Responses

Personally, I don’t think that Wright is racist against whites. I’ve lived downtown Chicago long enough to learn something about afro-american culture, not to mention preaching style. While I agree with you about the whole government apologizing thing, I thought that Wright, in his news interviews, was quite agreeable. Most people simply don’t understand the rhetorical style of black preaching.

By: Mike on May 6, 2008
at 4:16 pm

Mike: I don’t even really think it’s right to speak about “black preaching” or the “black church” as if they were monolithic. I’ve been worshipping in black churches of the Pentecostal tradition since I’ve been saved, and I’ve worshipped in black churches of the Baptist tradition as well, and there are some major differences in the emphasis of their messages, yet both represent “black preaching.”

From what I’ve heard from Wright, I find him more in line with speakers such as Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, and Louis Farrakhan (all of whom I prefer to Wright), than I do popular black Christian preachers. I don’t know that I’d consider him racist or hateful like some people are claiming, but he definitely has a sense of entitlement.

By: Nick Norelli on May 6, 2008
at 4:27 pm

“I don’t even consider Jakes a part of the Church (he’s a modalist), but I think he’s right to say that we can’t paint with a broad brush.”
There appears to be a certain contradiction in this statement

By: Doug Chaplin on May 6, 2008
at 5:05 pm

Doug: How’s that? If one accepts the creeds that I accept, then there is no way that Jakes is a part of the Church. He’s a modalist and modalism is heresy.

By: Nick Norelli on May 6, 2008
at 5:55 pm

And also, I’m speaking of one individual. I’m not judging his entire congregation or (non)denomination based on his personal modalistic conviction.

By: Nick Norelli on May 6, 2008
at 6:54 pm

I thought I had heard somewhere Jakes had recanted of his modalism, maybe I heard wrong.

By: brianfulthorp on May 6, 2008
at 7:17 pm

Brian: I don’t believe so, but I’m open to correction. His belief statement doesn’t give me any confidence that he has recnated, since his language aligns more with Oneness pentecostals than it does with Trinitarian pentecostals. I’m aware of his letter to Christianity Today in February of 2000 in which he assured everyone that he was not a modalist, yet never sufficiently demonstrated how exactly this was. Also, his aversion to identify himself with historic Christian thought as expressed in the ecumenical creeds raises more suspicion. He claims to base his beliefs solely on the Bible, but that’s what all heretics claim, isn’t it? The debates are over exactly what the language in the Bible means, and that requires the use of non-biblical language.

By: Nick Norelli on May 6, 2008
at 7:35 pm

Nick, I was only pulling the the phrase black church from your post title. I agree that there is diversity. But my point still stands that African Americans generally use a unique rhetorical style distinct from that of the typical white middle class church - a style that could easily be misunderstood (and it has been) by the rest of the population.

By: Mike on May 6, 2008
at 7:59 pm

I agree Mike, I don’t think the distinct preaching style can be doubted at all. And I do think at certain times it could be misunderstood by outsiders not used to it. And btw Wright doesn’t only preach angry and loud and controversial. He’s also soft spoken, articulate and profound in his sermons (the ones I have heard).

Bryan

By: Bryan L on May 6, 2008
at 8:34 pm

Mike: My statement was more general, but could you elaborate on how or why you think this unique style is or can be misunderstood and what exactly this unique style is (I’m not sure that when you say “unique rhetorical style” that we’re thinking of the same thing). Thanks.

Bryan: If we’re all talking about the same thing (and I’m not sure that we are) then one could argue that the style of preaching generally associated with the black church (i.e., hooping and hollering) is more appropriately attributed to the Southern church. When I hear Paula White, Perry Stone, Rod Parsley, Tommy Bates, or Ron Phillips preach, I don’t think automatically think “black,” I think “Southern.”

If we’re talking about “content” as opposed to “form” (and I don’t think that we are, but we might be), then I’d align the little I heard from Wright more with Black Muslims (i.e. the NOI) than with the Black Church (within which I’ve fellowshipped for the last 6 years). But I’m sure there’s much more to Wright than the 10 minutes I saw in your post.

By: Nick Norelli on May 6, 2008
at 8:56 pm

everything i’ve seen of wright preaching doesn’t seem to me like he’s a pastor at all… he’s more just a motivational speaker… and weird…

but yea… i’d say he’s unfairly portraying the black church in the media…

By: Roger Mugs on May 7, 2008
at 11:14 am

Roger: Yeah, I only saw a few minutes of his answering questions on CNN (or C-Span, I can’t remember), and if I didn’t know better, I would have thought he was a minister in the Nation of Islam.

By: Nick Norelli on May 7, 2008
at 11:21 pm

what you can do?

By: Roger Mugs on May 7, 2008
at 11:28 pm

My experience in Chicago has been that Afro-American rhetoric (in the technical sense of rhetoric) is generally much more hyperbolic than what the typical middle class white person is use to or comfortable with. I can’t speak for every black church or pastor, though, just from my experience.

By: Mike on May 7, 2008
at 11:39 pm

Mike: That’s all any of us can do.

By: Nick Norelli on May 7, 2008
at 11:40 pm

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