The Black Megachurch: Theology, Gender, and the Politics of Public Engagement

INDEX

239 INDEX abolition movement, 9 abortion, attitudes toward, 57, 85, 167, 171, 172, 173 Abundant Life Cathedral, Houston, 87, 90–91, 92–93 Abyssinian Baptist Church, New York; commercial development projects, 37, 116, 130, 170; community development projects, 7, 103–5, 115–16; founding of, 26, 104; location of, 26; mission statement, 103, 115–16 Abyssinian Development Corporation, 38, 104–5, 115–16, 131, 170 activist churches: age of, 112; appeal of, 49, 160; black politics influenced by, 200n34; community development organizations of, 112–13, 115–16, 125, 126–27; faith-based initiatives and, 170–71; public engagement of, 4, 5, 19, 51–52, 104–6, 126–27, 161, 162; theological orientation of, 53–56; Note: Page numbers in italics refer to illustrations, those followed by a t indicate a table, and those followed by fig. indicate a figure. view of “other” in, 54; “Wright effect” and, 195–96 Adventists, 55 affirmative action, 183 African American Catholic Church, 198n19 African emigration, 9 African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, 23, 168; black megachurch congregations, 31, 32t; founding of, 9–10; neo-Pentecostalism in churches, 62; public engagement of, 86; women ministers in, 141, 144; women’s leadership roles in, 138–39, 146; worship styles, 48 African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) Church, 23, 141, 146, 168 African politics, intervention in, 172 Afrocentric churches, 49, 70, 160 AIDS. See HIV and AIDS Alinsky, Saul, 65–66, 109, 123–24 240 INDEX Allen, Richard (Bishop), 9–10 Allen AME Church, Queens: commercial development projects, 37, 212n42; faith-based initiatives program and, 168; holistic approach of, 79; mission statement , 79, 81 Allen AME Neighborhood Preservation Development Corporation, 168, 212n42 Angel Food network, 65 anonymity, black megachurches and, 43, 48 Antioch Baptist Church, Brooklyn, 25 Antioch Baptist Church North, Atlanta, 69 antislavery societies, 149 Apostolic Church of God, Chicago, 65–66, 109, 124, 192; mission statement, 81 Apostolic churches, 31, 32t, 59 architecture of megachurches, 22, 25, 43–44, 159–60, 203n35 Assemblies of God, 31t, 32t Atlanta area, black megachurches in, 30, 45–46, 47, 163–65. See also specific churches attitudinal aspect of religiosity, 57, 199n28, 205n27 Baer, Hans A.: African-American Religion in the Twentieth Century (with Singer), 13, 205n23; “The Limited Empowerment of Women in Black Spiritual Churches,” 214n25 Baker, Ella, 124, 140 Baldwin, Lewis, “Revisiting the ‘All Comprehending Institution,’” 199n22 Baltimore area, black megachurches in, 21–22, 212n54. See also specific churches Baptists: black congregations, 59; black megachurch congregations, 31–32; neoPentecostalism in churches, 62; public engagement of, 85, 86, 100; women ministers in, 141, 143–44, 147–48. See also specific conventions Barnett, Bernice McNair: “Invisible Southern Black Women Leaders in the Civil Rights Movement,” 214n20 Barry, Marion, 128–29 Baskin, Billy (Bishop), 146 Baskin, Catherine (Bishop), 146 Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation , Brooklyn, 106–7 Ben Hill United Methodist Church, Atlanta, 79 Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, Baltimore, 26, 62, 119; mission statement, 81; relocation plans of, 212n54 Bethel AME Outreach Center, Baltimore, 152 Bethel Free African Society, 119 Bethel Outreach Center (BOC), Baltimore, 119–20 Beyerlein, Kraig, “From Pews to Participation ” (with Hipp), 15 Bible: “inspired” vs. “inerrant” views of, 55, 56; passages used to justify slavery, 8–9, 135–36; passages used to justify social services, 207n57; passages used to justify women’s subordination, 134–36, 144, 156 Bible Way Church, 31t, 148t, 215n34 Bible Way Church of Atlas Road, Columbia , SC, 177–78 Bible Way Temple, Washington, D.C., 65, 66, 70, 141 Billingsley, Andrew: Mighty Like a River, 7, 201n59 black church in public life: antebellum period, 8–10, 13, 149; central position of, 14; Civil Rights Movement, 11–12, 200n34; commonality and unity stressed in, 205n23; dialectical tensions, 13; dialogic relationship, 14; disposition toward community development, 211n28; dual gendered spheres in, 138–48; duality of, 13–14; factors determining engagement, 15–16, 206nn31–32; frame for understanding , 16–18; government funding and, 170; independence of, 10–11; King’s views on, 1–2, 3; means, motive, and opportunity, 53–54, 57; militancy and, 199n28; multiple dimensions of, 14–15; nuances of, 160–62, 205n23; “opiate” critique , 11–14, 18, 161, 199n31; organizational style, 12; post-Reconstruction era, 10–11, 149; Reconstruction era, 10, 149; INDEX 241 sex and sexuality issues, 173–74; sexism and patriarchy in, 133–37, 140–41, 156, 161–62, 173, 214n17, 216n42; theological orientations and, 56–59; white congregations compared with, 201n67 “Black Contract with America on Moral Values...