Nehemiah 4:6 So built we the wall…for the people had a mind to work.
Rev. Dr. Melinda Contreras-Byrd, Contributing Writer
The Nehemiah story tells of a group of Samarians led on by Sanballat, ridiculing and threatening the Jewish remnant who were determined to rebuild the wall that represented their faith and the legacy of their people. When their taunts didn’t work to dissuade them, the group took to arms to attack. Still determined, the Jewish remnant called on their God, and then continued to work, brick in one hand, gun in the other. Soon recognizing the enormity of the task, they became overwhelmed—fear and doubt began to set in. Nehemiah spoke to the people, “Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes…Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us!” According to the Bible, they built the wall because the people had a vision and the determination to continue the work!
As we approach this long-awaited General Conference, let us fix our hearts and minds on the history and meaning of the A.M.E. church. So that the meaning will not be lost in the preparation and celebration, let us begin our preparation with at least these two contexts in mind. We have made it through this unusually traumatic time, having been attacked by two formidable enemies—death and racism! As we select our outfits and our election playbooks, let us be ever mindful that we are at war! People of color and people of the African Diaspora are at war, and despite what it looks like it is a war of spiritual making. Our people—the children of Richard and Sarah Allen—are being stalked, attacked and killed on a weekly basis. If you are dedicated enough to be attending this General conference, then you are dedicated to being part of God’s kingdom warriors.
Under the authority of Bishop Anne Henning-Byfield, I recently ended 4 weeks of teaching our new church in Bahia, Brazil. In preparation I re-read from cover to cover, Richard Allen: Apostle of Freedom, the 2016 AME Discipline and the Catechism. It was sobering, empowering and joy producing! I was privileged to see the faces of our new members as they listened attentively, recognizing the miracle in the life of Richard Allen! The joy that erupted as we studied the polity, organization, and doctrinal affirmations of our church, was matched by my own as I began to gain a renewed understanding of the meaning and purposes of the AME Church for God’s Black and brown people.
In the war against racism, I believe that the AME Church stands as “Exhibit A” of how God has been miraculously active in the lives of people of the African Diaspora. Each general conference calls us to honor the Nehemiah vision, determination, and audacity of our ancestors. Beaten, overworked, castigated, kept from marriage, family formation, and even the right to learn to read and write— they gathered having seen in the Bible, what enslavers worked to keep them from seeing. From these revelations, they gained strength to form a church that today stands millions strong! Yes, from that group of homeless, fearful, uneducated formerly enslaved persons came a church that is present in over 40 countries, having built nineteen schools, colleges, and universities!
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Today, my brothers and sisters this is who we are, and our foundational goal is found in Jesus’ stated agenda in Luke 4:18 & 19. We come together every 4 years from all over the world—united in our vision and with the determination to continue to build and rebuild God’s African Methodist Episcopal Church, the symbol of our spiritual and cultural legacy. Slavery could not stop us. Jim Crow could not stop us. Burning crosses and hooded demons could not stop us. All over the world the Sanballats rose, in civil wars, in mass murders, in lynching, abductions and natural disasters. But the AME Church connected across the world, rebuilding, and supporting the vision! Organized racism, police backed violence and the devil’s demonic walk in Mother Emanuel couldn’t stop us. Millions strong we stood together, building our church.
It is July 2021. Please, set aside a few minutes during this conference to honor those who were the original builders, by praying that God’s spirit will fall with renewal power as our church once more gathers—unable to be stopped—building on the legacy!
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