b'Did MartinWhen you AllowThefirstBlackdenomination wascalledtheAfricanMethodist others to Label you,EpscopaChurch.Thesecond Luther KingwascalledtheAfricanMethodist EpiscopalZionChurch.Among you also Allow themthefirstBlackparachurchorga-Jr. changenizationswastheFreeAfrican to Define you Society.Othersfollowed.Clearly his mind onour African identity was an impor-from thetant issue. Integration?from AFRICANWhy was it important, It wasn\'t I D E N T I T Y Publisher\'sGoingGlobalbecauseAfricanAmericans from the book Death of aBeyondthe Library King by Tavis Smiley Boundaries bythought that Africa was the prefect Carl J. Ellis Jr. place. This identity was an appli-"Wedon\'thavetocationofRomans12:2"Donot argue with anybody," heWegener- conform any longer to the pattern says."Wedon\'thavetoallyassociateof this world, but be transformed curse and go around act- thesearchbytherenewingofyourmind. ing bad with our words,forAfricanThen you will be able to test and We don\'t need any bricksidentitywithapprovewhatGod\'swillis-his andbottles;wedon\'tCarl Ellis Jr.theBlackgood, pleasing and perfect will."needanyMolotovcock- ThenorthernBlackchurch tails.ConsciousnessMovementoftheknewthedominantculturehad Wejustneedtolate1960\'sandearly1970\'s.tagged us as Negroes. They knew goaroundtotheseHowever,thismovementwaswhenever you allow others to label MASSIVEINDUSTRIESbasedonfundamentalconceptsyou, you also allow them to define andsay,"Godsentusthat were themselves the fruit ofyou. Therefore, they said," We are heretosaythatyou\'rethe northern theology of empower- not going to accept what the larger nottreatingHispeoplement.culture is calling us or how they\'re right.Andwe\'vecometryingtodefineus.No,Goddid bytoaskyoutomakeForexample,intheeighteenthnot create us as Negroes; He cre-thefirstitemonyourand nineteenth centuries, we gen- atedusasAfricansAndweare agenda fair treatment.erally were referred to as "Negroes,"going to affirm what God created yet most of our early institutionsus to be."So the emphasis on our Nowifyou\'renotwere identified by the word African.African identity was, in essence, a preparedtodothat,Amongtheearlycongregationssubtle form of protest.wedohaveanagendafoundedunderBlackleadershipIf you look at this concept a little thatwemustfollow.was the African Baptist Church incloser, you discover this response AndouragendacallsSavannah, Georgia. The first Blackwas an early form of Afrocentrism. forWITHDRAWINGPresbyterian church was foundedAlthough many people don\'t real-ECONOMICSUPPORTin Philadelphia. It was called theize it, Afrocentrism was originally FROM YOU."First African Presbyterian Church.a Christian concept.BODY OF CHRIST NEWS FEBRUARY 2023 follow us onfacebook 17'