Black faith-based organizations are renowned for their diverse ministries and auxiliary groups, which are groupings of members within the congregation that are focused on a particular need, interest, or region.
Youth ministries, new member ministries, couples ministries, etc., are typical in these religious communities. Why? because members’ and/or communities’ unique needs are met by various programs.
Nevertheless, there are other needs—needs and problems so significant that divine direction and support are essential—for which we might want to think about starting new ministries.
The following five ministries are ones that your spiritual community might want to add to its list of ministries.
CIVICS MINISTRY
Many churches engage in community service or social action ministry in one way or another. Very few have ministries devoted to civic participation education and preaching.
However, the outcomes of the 2024 election show how much this is needed.
Black individuals argued whether voting mattered or not, whereas white people voted as if their lives depended on it, which caused a difference in the outcome of the most recent election.
White evangelical churches started preaching that politics is sacred, which is one of the reasons why white voter turnout skyrocketed and has been rising steadily for years. With the ascent of Trump, this has escalated, having started in the 1980s and grown with the GOP’s Contract With America in the 1990s.
This is the story of the GOP’s deliberate investment to awaken a group of white evangelicals they believed to be sleeping giants, who were more focused on entering paradise after death than on material possessions.
They now see Donald Trump as God’s appointed tool to bring about the creation of a white heaven on earth. They therefore believed that it was their Christian duty to vote for Trump.
We have a long history of demonstrating our belief in politics through our deeds, with many Black churches being politically active, despite the fact that relatively few Black congregations preach that politics is sacred. However, that message isn’t being preached, received, or passed down as congregations get older and fewer young people attend.
One measure of civic engagement is the higher number of Black people who did not cast a ballot, as demonstrated by the results of the most recent election. We would have won every election if 60–70% of us had cast ballots. However, we need all hands on deck since anti-Black Christians are voting in unprecedented numbers. Additionally, it is crucial to have a civics ministry that emphasizes civic engagement through organizing, voting, holding elected officials accountable, issues education, and other means.
If we want to raise a new generation of politically aware youth, we need it.
ARTS MINISTRY
It has been empirically demonstrated that participation in the arts enhances brain function and pupils’ grades in a variety of academic areas, particularly arithmetic. Additionally, the arts help people become more compassionate and sympathetic toward one another and all of God’s creation. And in the current social and political environment, it is desperately required and lacking to be able to recognize people as fellow humans and as God’s creation. In addition, the arts—dance, poetry, painting, music, and drawing—are enjoyable.
OUTDOOR MINISTRY
Being outside is therapeutic. Numerous studies demonstrate that spending time in nature enhances our mood, concentration, and relaxation levels while lowering stress, cortisol levels, heart rates, and muscular tension—all of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Doctors also claim that vitamin D insufficiency is on the rise. Sunlight exposure can help raise such levels. Furthermore, socializing outside is considerably more restorative. This is most likely the reason why Black churches used to include church picnics and other outdoor gatherings on their yearly schedules. However, we’re so accustomed to staying indoors that we probably need a ministry that encourages people to venture outside occasionally.
READING MINISTRY
Historically, those who gain power and topple democracies to establish dictatorships do so by taking advantage of people’s ignorance and stupidity. Schools, the arts, and the media—organizations that provided us with information and pushed us to think and develop intellectually—were thus the first to be attacked and destroyed.
Books also appeal to tyrants who wish to rule over people and do as they like without restrictions or consequences. They despise them as well as the academics and creatives who produce them. So much so that the folks on the wrong side of history have been the ones who have burned books in every authoritarian movement our planet has ever witnessed. They fear that knowledge will expose the foolishness and danger of their sexist, racist, and ignorant ideas.
This is unacceptable to God’s people if they truly care about God’s people. While a reading ministry may not be able to address every problem relating to attacks on democracy, it will encourage people to learn and explore new concepts and perspectives.
SELF-DEFENSE MINISTRY
Self-defense—defending oneself, one’s family, one’s community, and oneself—is a prerequisite for self-love. Turning the other cheek does not entail letting people break your peace, treat your community disrespectfully, or physically abuse you or your loved ones. Our bodies should be protected if they are our temples, or sacred sites. Attacks will also increase as a result of people feeling free to act as wicked and bigoted as they like. Therefore, our religious organizations must also be dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of their members.
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