In 2016,
I began a series of interviews with African American Orthodox Christians in
four regions of the United States. An
integral component of a wider ethnographic research project (one combining
participant observation and digital research) personal narratives offer a
necessary depth of insight into an Orthodox community which still remains
relatively unfamiliar to many.
While the
number of African American Orthodox Christians appears to be growing, research
on this particular group remains scant.
Focused either on historical figures like Fr. Raphael Morgan, the first
African American Orthodox priest— or on narratives gleaned from a “community of
elders,” the most prominent exemplary African American Orthodox Christians,
existing research can sometimes convey a single-story narrative, one not
entirely untrue—but incomplete. There
remains, therefore, much to be learned at the intersection of Orthodox
Christianity and African American culture.
Over the
course of 400 years, the shared experiences of African Americans have helped to
create a uniquely American notion of blackness. The community we now refer to
as the African American community is in fact comprised of genetically diverse
individuals—possessing varying degrees of African ancestry. Ideas like “the one
drop rule” (still prevalent in America) helped to facilitate the construction
of a racial category encompassing of a diverse and heterogenous group of
people.
Inherent
cultural complexities are further complicated, by attitudinal differences between
generations. While older African Americans may lament the disappearance of a
community cohesiveness characteristic of days gone by, other African Americans
may readily embrace a notion of post blackness—acknowledging African descent
yet resisting all previously constructed social boundaries and cultural
markers. Varying notions of blackness exist side by side and often in tension
with each other. It is safe to say that regarding African American identity,
there is no single story. In 2017, there are many ways to be black.
The wider
African American community, an amalgamation of diverse subcultures, has been
influenced by various strands of black intellectual thought. The teachings of
W.E.B. Dubois, Booker T. Washington and Martin Luther King Jr. find modern
expression in diverse subcultural contexts.
The Harlem Renaissance and Negritude movements brought together a
diverse group of blacks from Francophone African nations and the Americas.
Today, we see a similar cross-fertilization of ideas taking place between
African American Orthodox Christians and the Patriarchate of Alexandria and All
Africa.
It is
from this rich, dynamic and multifaceted community that African American
Orthodox Christians have come. The former Buddhist attracted to monastic piety,
the former Baptist preacher, the second-generation Orthodox military veteran
and the artist turned clergyman—have all found a home in the Orthodox
Church. Some were drawn to the faith
after visiting a parish and having a mystical experience during the service. Others connected spiritually to Orthodox
aesthetics—beautiful iconography adorning a church. For some, it was the study of scripture and
church history that led them to Orthodoxy and for others it was the search for
an alternative Christianity, one not affiliated with the Transatlantic Slave
Trade.
Given the
multicity of narratives, one might be tempted to conclude that African American
Orthodox Christians share no common values. This, however, would be an
erroneous assumption. Current ethnographic research seems to suggest that a set
of core values is indeed emerging from within this growing community.
Acceptance of these values appears to be relatively consistent regardless of
age, gender, socio economic status or geographic location.
One
foundational assumption to emerge from collected narratives is the belief that
over the span of two generations, something has changed (for the worse) in
inner-city communities. This belief is
held by those residing in the inner-city, those living in suburbs and those
living in rural areas. Additionally, there is a belief that negative change has
occurred in historically black churches—the most negative being the growing
influence of prosperity theology. The
invitation to Orthodox Christianity, therefore, is seen as a call to a holy way
of life, a way of life that sustained prior generations. It involves a
reclamation of an identity that has been hijacked by “worldliness.”
Undergirded
by the aforementioned assumptions, the following core ideas/values emerge from
the African American Orthodox Christian community:
1. The Belief in a God Given Right to the
Orthodox Faith — Orthodox Christianity is not proprietary to any one ethnicity,
culture or nation. Becoming Orthodox, therefore, does not require the
abandonment of one’s ethnic identity. One can be African American and as
Orthodox as anyone with ethnic roots in a traditionally Orthodox country. This
is of particular importance, given that most African American Orthodox
Christians are one of a few (if not the only) African Americans in their
parish.
2. Striving for Holiness is Paramount — This
commitment is expressed in the frequent reading of scripture, attendance at
divine liturgy, the saying of daily prayers and participation in works of
mercy. It is accompanied by the complete rejection of prosperity theology and
“evangelical lite” Christianity. Instead, the Desert Fathers and Mothers are
examples of “true Christianity.”
3. High Regard for Father Involvement and
Preservation of the “Traditional Family” Structure — Appealing to statistics
regarding female-headed households and absentee fathers, African American
Orthodox Christians place a high value on father involvement and family
preservation. Committed mothers and fathers are seen as the key to raising
faith-filled future generations.
4. Black Life Matters — Though related, this idea
is not to be confused with the movement Black Lives Matter. For African
American Orthodox Christians, a commitment to life means protection of the
unborn, protection from police brutality and protection from white nationalist
factions that have found a home in the Orthodox Church.
5. Orthodox Parishes Should Be Missional — True
faith requires a commitment to community outreach, particularly to the poor,
marginalized and vulnerable. The idea that one’s personal salvation is
inextricably bound to one’s faithful sharing of the gospel features strongly in
African American Orthodox narratives.
Historical
narratives, cultural traditions and various strands of intellectual thought
have shaped and continue to shape African American identities. Though comprised
of diverse individuals, the African American Orthodox Christian Community has
produced a set of core ideals and values reflective of a unique history and
American experience.
By Lydia Kemi Ingram
Source: https://publicorthodoxy.org/tag/lydia-kemi-ingram/
CONVERSATION