Location

By Dante Mozie
Medill News Service

As a 7-year-old, Cinque Cullar loved to make desserts called mud pies. But the older kids in his neighborhood preferred sports and wanted Cullar to play with them outside.

He turned them down, choosing pie-making over basketball. Not happy with Cullar's decision, the kids began taunting him.

"So, I remember lying in the bed and saying, 'Why was I made like this?' And God said, 'I made you exactly like you are.' That's the first time I remember sensing a presence other than mine and understanding that it was real and not physical, in a sense."

"I'm a believer now," said Cullar, the youth minister at Chicago's St. Sabina Catholic Church, 1210 W. 78th Place.

His experience shows that religion is a vital part of life for many blacks. In fact, according to a study released late last month by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, 79% of blacks say religion plays a very important part of their lives, compared with 56% among all U.S. adults.

Even blacks who describe themselves as unaffiliated say religion matters: 72% of them said it plays a somewhat important role in their lives.

According to the study, 87% of blacks said they're affiliated with one religious group or another. The number for Hispanics is 85%. Among the general public, 83% said they're affiliated with a religion.

Elder Julius Jackson, associate minister of Chicago's Christian Tabernacle Church, 4712 S. Prairie Ave., said he expected blacks to have the strongest faith among other ethnic groups.
"We're used to hardship," Jackson said. "When we've had nothing else, we've always had God."

And giving thanks to God is more than just the sermon.

At St. Sabina, solemn hymns and organ music give way to shouts of praise, energetic homilies and uplifted hands, with keyboards and drums used as an important backdrop to the service.

African colors, figures and artwork are scattered throughout the Gothic-inspired church, from the pulpit made of African ebony and the detailed figurines in front of the altar, to the large mural of a black Jesus behind the choir loft.

Here, people aren't just parishioners. Instead, ministers ask the "family" to join them in singing praises.

After all, it's the "Faith Community of St. Sabina," not just St. Sabina Catholic Church. "We are a faith community," said Kimberly Lymore, an associate minister at St. Sabina's. "It's not only the faith community within this church, but the community at large."

St. Sabina and many other black churches contribute to the community in numerous ways, from senior citizen resources to helping those in need through food drives and donations.

And it's not just giving back to the black community, according to folksinger Ella Jenkins, whose annual musical performance at Beth Eden Baptist Church in Morgan Park draws audiences of all races and colors.

Jenkins recognizes other ethnic groups besides Africans in the annual celebration, saying that she's "conscious of Native Americans" as well.

Although she admits that the first year's performance was attended by a mostly black audience, subsequent celebrations have become more racially mixed.

Dr. Dwight Hopkins, professor of theology at the University of Chicago, said the trend of blacks having a strong faith in God goes as far back as the slavery period.

"The first institution [within] slavery in North America was the black church," he said. "The black church preceded the creation of the black family."

Hopkins added that the black church always has had a premiere position, as well as its influence through cultural rituals, leadership and economic development.

"The black church is a nation within a nation," he said.

It's also a nation dependent on attendance at services and donations, which isn't an easy task as the economy continues to worsen.

With more than 2,000 parishioners, St. Sabina's strong faith is reflected especially in offerings, according to Lymore. "We're self-sufficient," she said. "We don't owe anything to the archdiocese. We're in the black."

One main aspect of the strength of the black church is the interaction between the older and younger parishioners. Older black parishioners also pass their strong faith on to their children, hoping they'll pass it on to their kids someday.

Despite that, some black churches are facing the challenge of keeping young adults engaged and interested in worship.

At St. Sabina, Lymore said older members are grounded, but the young adults will go and come back. "We all go through that," she said. "But some are here because their parents make them come here."

To attract young adults, churches like St. Sabina say they are now using the popular hip-hop culture to their advantage, with programs like poetry slams and "stepping," an energetic dance form.

For some young adults, such as Tiffany Mangum, a parishioner at St. Sabina's who grew up in Washington, D.C., going to church and having a strong faith were givens. But Mangum said she wasn't sure what she had faith in.

As she read the Bible, she began to have faith in God and learned how He helps in personal situations. "We don't know what tomorrow might bring," Mangum said. "But having faith in God kind of brings a comfort, level of comfort for that.

And what makes the black church experience unique among others, Jones said, is that there's a passion there, a fire.

"It's an exciting spiritual experience," he said. "It's covering so many areas at one spot," adding the services influence parishioners with music, spirit, information and hope.