Second Baptist Church

On Sunday, four of us white women attended a large all-Black Baptist Church service at Second Baptist--an invitation from one of the church's trustees who was among our photo subjects last week.
We enjoyed it enough to stay for four hours!

It was the 137th anniversary of the church--so after music and a rousing sermon, we stayed for chicken and dressing and a full lunch in their social hall.  Church included amazing music by their choir and a dance in the aisle by a group of women.  The sermon was delivered by a guest speaker,  president of the Progressive Baptist Association.  Although built upon a parable, the sermon was not overtly religious--it was a call to action for church people to get out on the streets and find the children of the Black community who are in trouble.

He began speaking in a quiet voice--I had to lean forward to hear.  He was so calm and soft-spoken I wondered how he was president of such a large body of churches.  His text was the parable of the one lost sheep.  The opening pattern was contrasting "this  generation" and the "previous generation" --in which parents were boss and everyone was part of a flock. With lively metaphors and examples, his voice grew louder and more musical.  "This is a dangerous world for lost sheep!" he shouted.  "Sheep need green pastures, not being left out there all alone with the wolves!"

By the end of his sermon, he was sweating profusely and the sermon had become almost a song, entreating his congregation to get up out of their churchy seats and go out where the lost sheep boys and girls are and bring them in.  The congregation was "Amen"ing and clapping and cheering him on.   It was--like Black Baptist sermons often are--cadenced and entertaining from start to finish, growing louder with each point.

The Christmas music portion of the service (including some of the songs I've recently complained about being piped into every store from auto parts to nail salons to grocery stores) was beautiful in church, and there were also many multi-verse songs I had never heard before.

Two among us were members of Temple Beth-El; one of us a former Baptist, the other a former Baptist-Catholic.  "You don't have a church?  Then this is your church now!" the regular pastor told us at lunch.

We felt at home there, welcomed warmly by seemingly every member of the church.