Down at the Cross: A Reflection on the Importance of the Church

So much happened today, and there were a lot of things to process. We started off the morning by attending a service at the new Ebenezer Baptist Church, which was a really cool experience, obviously amplified by today being Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday. 

With an upbringing that did not incorporate much of any form of a structured religious experience, I always feel slightly out of my element when I step into a church. But sitting in that church pew today, being around Pastor Warnock and the many members of the congregation, I felt an incredible energy and positive spirit that I had not felt in any church before. I understood how the church could have played such a big role in the Civil Rights Movement, acting as a supportive community against the injustices in the world outside, and a means by which to channel frustration and call on people in masses to rise up. Pastor Warnock also acknowledged the current social and political landscape, and commented on the hypocrisy and ignorance of Donald Trump in his latest childish twitter rant: insulting John Lewis and calling him ineffective. I appreciated how the church sermon was very much tethered to, and conscious of, the reality outside of those walls, and I gained a better understanding of how the church could act as a positive mobilizing force, whether it be in the commonly labeled Civil Rights Movement of the 50's and 60's, or the movement and struggle which rolls on today. Because while it is hugely important to observe and learn from the movement and protesters of the past, it is essential to acknowledge that segregation and racism remain at large in the country today, whether it be through school systems that benefit the wealthy and white, law enforcement that seems more interested in murdering than protecting, a lack of representation of African Americans in prominent forms of media, or any number of other issues which remain alive and damaging today. The institutions that can promote solutions and act as supportive communities in the face of inequality need to be acknowledged, and today I gained a better appreciation of how specifically the church played, and continues to play, a hugely essential role in the fight for justice. 

There is so much more from today that I could write about, but for now I will hold back my thoughts for another time. I feel incredibly lucky to be on this trip right now, and I hope many more people will have this same opportunity for years to come.    

Pablo Richter, Baltimore City College