Revised Common Lectionary
FEBRUARY 05, 2012 Psalm 25:1-10 1 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:9-15 |
2012 Celebrations and Media
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Activities for Children
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PAD Speakers for Black History Month
Contact the Office of Emerging Ministry for contact information for MCC PAD Clergy and other MCC PAD speakers who may be available to preach during February at VickeyGibbs@MCCchurch.net |
Books
Hidden Wholeness - An African American Spirituality for Individuals and Communities
By Michael I.N. Dash, Jonathan Jackson, and Stephen C. Rasor
The Recovery of Black Presence - An Interdisciplinary Exploration
By Randall C. Bailey and Jacquelyn Grant
Soul Stories - African American Christian Education
By Anne Streaty Wimberly
Fulfilling The Dream - Confronting the Challenge of Racism
By Ronice Branding
Not Without a Struggle - Leadership Development for African American Women in Ministry
By Vashti M. McKenzie I Want To Be Ready - Meditations Based on Quotes From Famous Black Persons
By Sheron C. Patterson My Rose - An African American Mother's Story of AIDS
By Geneva E. Bell
African American Christian Worship
By Melva Wilson Costen
African American Special Days - 15 Complete Worship Services
By Cheryl A. Kirk-Duggan
Praising in Black and White - Unity and Diversity in Christian Worship
By Brenda Eatman Aghahowa
Preaching For Black Self-Esteem
By Henry H. Mitchell & Emil M. Thomas
Sankofa - Celebrations for the African American Church
By Grenae D. Dudley & Gayle Fielding Stewart III
Songs of Zion- A Songbook From the Black Religious Tradition
Listening In - A Multicultural Reading of the Psalms
By Stephen Breck Reid
The Bush Was Blazing But Not Consumed
By Eric H.F. Law
Embracing Diversity - Leadership in Multicultural Congregations
By Charles R. Foster.
Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church By Mark DeYmaz |
Bulletin Inserts
Worship folder Inserts will be available soon. |
|  What Is Black History Month
Black History Month is an observance of the history of the African diaspora in a number of countries outside of Africa. Since 1976, it is observed annually in the United States and Canada in February, while in the United Kingdom it is observed in October. In the U.S., Black History Month is also referred to as African-American History Month. |
|  The History Of Black History Month
Americans have recognized black history annually since 1926, first as "Negro History Week" and later as "Black History Month." What you might not know is that black history had barely begun to be studied-or even documented-when the tradition originated. Although blacks have been in America at least as far back as colonial times, it was not until the 20th century that they gained a respectable presence in the history books. Blacks Absent from History Books We owe the celebration of Black History Month, and more importantly, the study of black history, to Dr. Carter G. Woodson. Born to parents who were former slaves, he spent his childhood working in the Kentucky coal mines and enrolled in high school at age twenty. He graduated within two years and later went on to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard. The scholar was disturbed to find in his studies that history books largely ignored the black American population-and when blacks did figure into the picture, it was generally in ways that reflected the inferior social position they were assigned at the time. Established Journal of Negro History Woodson, always one to act on his ambitions, decided to take on the challenge of writing black Americans into the nation's history. He established the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now called the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History) in 1915, and a year later founded the widely respected Journal of Negro History. In 1926, he launched Negro History Week as an initiative to bring national attention to the contributions of black people throughout American history. Woodson chose the second week of February for Negro History Week because it marks the birthdays of two men who greatly influenced the black American population, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Read more: |
 Worship Resources to Inspire Your Liturgy
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 Litany
One: I am Ashanti , Zulu, Yoruba, Nubian, Masai. All: I see you. One: I am King, Queen, Candace, Pharaoh, President. All: I see you. One: I am Healer, Priestess, Shaman, Pastor, Physician. All: I see you. One: I am Free, Captured, Enslaved, Transported, Transplanted. All: I see you. One: I am Slave, Beaten, Raped, Run away, Survivor. All: I see you. One: I am Baptist, AME (African Methodist Episcopal), Catholic, COGIC (Church of God in Christ), MCC. All: I see you. One: I am Wilberforce University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, Texas Southern University, Howard University. All: I see you. One: I am African chant, Slave song, Spiritual, Jazz, Rap. All: I see you. One: I am Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., The Little Rock Nine, Bayard Rustin, Barack Obama. All: I see you. One: I am Mother, Brother, Cousin, Lover, Friend. All: I see you. One: I am Family, Village, Community, Nation, Race. All: I see you. One: I am all this and much more. All: I see you. Written by Vickey Gibbs Office of Emerging Ministries. |
 Lift Every Voice and Sing
On February 12, 1900, 500 school children gathered at a segregated Stanton School, the principal at the time-James Weldon Johnson wrote a poem to welcome the guest speaker Booker T. Washington. It was called "Lift every voice and sing." What started as a poem ended as a song when Johnson's brother John Rosamond Johnson set it to music soon after. "Lift Every Voice And Sing" was labeled "The Black National Anthem" in 1919 by the NAACP and served as a liberty cry for abused African Americans everywhere! Lift every voice and sing, till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise, high as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea. Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on till victory is won. Stony the road we trod, bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet,
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered;
Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast. God of our weary years, God of our silent tears,
Thou Who hast brought us thus far on the way;
Thou Who hast by Thy might, led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray. Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee. Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee. Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land. Digital Sheet Music can be purchased here. Instrumental music can be downloaded from iTunes or other online music stores. |
Important Dates in February for African Americans
 February 12, 1809: Birth of Abraham Lincoln
February 14, 1818: Birth of Fredrick Douglass
February 23, 1868: , important civil rights leader and co-founder of the NAACP, was born.
February 3, 1870:The
February 25, 1870:The first black U.S. senator, Hiram R. Revels (1822-1901), took his oath of office.
milestone, a group of black Greensboro, N.C., college students began a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter.
February 21, 1965: Malcolm X, the militant leader who promoted Black Nationalism, was shot to death by three Black Muslims. February 07, 2012 - National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day |
 Organizations Supporting the Sharing of the History of African Americans
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The Office of Formation and Leadership Development is accepting applications for the second L.E.A.D. retreat, 17-20 February 2012. The L.E.A.D. Certificate Program provides MCC laity with an opportunity for spiritual growth and development of leadership skills. Persons who complete the L.E.A.D. Certificate will be placed on a Leadership List available to Elders, Senior Staff, and MCC Clergy for the purpose of creating a leadership pool from which to choose trained laity to serve in leadership positions in MCC at the local, denominational, and international levels.
