The Third Eye
January 18, 2000
Should We Kill The Preachers?
How negro ministers destroy the legacy of Dr. King and make
a mockery of Jesus the Christ
By Jeff Obafemi Carr <[log in to unmask]>
Nashville, Tennessee--Sitting in a folding chair on the
floor of the Gentry Center at Tennessee State University, I
almost double over in pain. The deep, piercing blows beat
steadily on the drum of my stomach, distributing the
resulting shock waves evenly through the rest of my body. I
wince, and as i raise my head to see the podium of people
several feet away from me, I have a sudden revelation:
Negroes make me sick to my stomach.
It's King-Day time in the year 2000 after the birth of Jesus
of Nazareth, also called the Christ. Once again in
Nashville, a few thousand well-meaning working class
people--mostly Black, some White--have marched from various
points in the city to convene on the campus of TSU for a
program commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Once again, the march has been led, in large part, by a
rag-tag group of con-men wolves, dressed in the friendly
sheep's clothing of ministers of the Gospel of Jesus the
Christ.
Once again, an opportunity to motivate, organize, and focus
the power of a collective community has been squandered,
replaced by a self-indulgent display of homeletics,
call-and-response preaching, and downright foolishness.
This is no unfamiliar scene when it comes to a certain breed
of Black clergymen that emerged onto the national scene
after the death of Dr. King: The Professional Preacher.
Armed with a warehouse of 4-button suits, a tractor-trailer
full of superfluous words, and one or more correspondance
course-level divinity degrees, the Professional Preachers
have wreaked havoc on our community, utilizing the dual
legacy of Dr. King and Jesus the Christ to lead us in the
polar opposite direction of both the literal and figurative
Promised Land.
It's sad to think of the current state of our so-called
community leadership in both the political and spiritual
arenas. Dr. King must be turning over in his grave,
wondering how in the world his comrades and their
descendants did such a magnificent job of dropping the
activism ball. And Jesus. Well, Jesus must be sitting on the
Right Hand with his head in his hands, repeating his
crucifixion words, "Father, forgive them, for they know not
what they do."
Now before I continue, I must say that I am not squaring the
blame for all the negatives in our community squarely on the
shoulders of the Black clergy. Nor am I criticizing the
many earnest, humble servants of The Creator who have been
called to minister to the sick, tired, and spiritually
deficient who, daily, show their calling through the union
of their talk and their walk. It would be unfair and
outright irresponsible to do so, especially when you take
into consideration the history of Afrikans' struggle for
freedom in America, and how that history is stocked full of
examples of strong leadership from the Black Clergy. In so
many instances, our struggle for liberation grew out of the
Black Church. If it hadn't been for people like Nat Turner,
Richard Allen, Vernon Johns, Martin Luther King, Jr., and
countless other spiritual freedom fighters, we wouldn't be
where we are today.
And who could argue with the fact that during and after
slavery, the church was the institution that did everything
from preserving our Afrikan spiritual rituals to keeping our
families and community's very sanity intact? There is a name
for that state of being. The elders call it "that old time
religion." Right now, however, we're living in a new age.
The tradition of strong leadership in the church is falling
away. Now, instead of politically involved, fearless men and
women of the cloth who were rooted in the community they
lived in and loved dearly, we have either the type "A" or
type "B" Professional Preacher, both of which are an affront
to the tradition of the Black Preachers like Dr. King, and
Jesus, whom they claim to represent.
The Type A Professional Preacher
Politically-manipulated, spineless preachers who spend all
their time telling stories about how they "marched with
King" and selling their congregation's votes to the white
politician who lies the best. Many of these individuals are
older and yes, did participate in "the movement." They
followed Dr. King with the enthusiam and admiration a
teen-aged girl has for a rock star. When King was killed,
they were afraid to step to the plate because, in their awe
of King's mastery of language, history, politics, and
philosophy, they failed to read and study--like King did;
They didn't travel to interact with statesmen in other
struggles--like King did; They didn't form an eclectic
philosophy based on human interaction through history--like
King did. They simply thought King would be around forever.
When King departed the earthly plane, this cadre of
clergymen shrank from the responsibility of leadership, and
instead, fell back on their ability to "pull it" (That's
preacher lingo for firing up people emotionally, also
referred to as "slaying" or "killing" a congregation).
You've seen this plenty of times when a preacher is in
church and it's obvious that they didn't prepare a sermon.
They fall back on one of their "horses" (an established text
or phrase that's proven to work) like, "He stayed in the
tomb all night Friday...Saturday...but then early...I said
EAAAARLLLY Sunday Mornin'..." You know the rest. These are
the type of empty, emotionally-charged rantings you
hear--and I heard--at King Day Celebrations nation-wide.
These preachers don't seem to get that being able to sound
like Dr. King isn't enough. You must have something to say.
And if you're going to take up the mantle of King, you're
going to have to also take up the work, not just the words.
As for Jesus, and his place in the world of the Type A
Professional Preacher, they claim to represent him and model
their lives on his example. But a cursory glance at Biblical
history will reveal that this can't be the case. Jesus was a
revolutionary; A fearless representative of the most High
God who challenged wrong-doing at every turn. For his
beliefs he was ostracized, shunned by the governing class,
and eventually, killed for what he represented.
Funny, sounds a lot like the life of Dr. King, but nothing
like many of the preachers of today.
The Type B Professional Preacher
Super-smooth, articulate, prosperity preachers who drive the
most expensive cars, wear pin-stripe zoot suits with
cufflinks the size of doorknobs, and teach their followers
to give, give, and give again. This preacher is particularly
dangerous because his/her material motives play right into
the grand scheme of the institution of popular culture.
There is no delineation in their churches between the
spiritual world and the secular one. You see the same dances
in their churches that you see in the club. You even hear
the same music (with a few "God"s and "Jesus"' thrown in for
good measure).
The majority of their sermons are aimed at prospering in
this life, and they themselves are the examples of what God
can bless one with. Members who may live in public housing
or can barely pay their bills rejoice after giving their
tithes to this preacher, saying out loud things like, "Boy,
Pastor sho' is sharp today, ain't he?" The emphasis in the
church is on dramatic spectacle: a large choir--complete
with choreography, a full orchestra, dancers, step
teams--all of the elements that Grandmama would have cringed
at in that little old church off the dirt road where "The
Lord" was the focus of the pastorate, not the accumulation
of wealth.
As for their juxtaposition with Dr. King, they don't
resemble him in any shape, form or fashion. At least, not
directly. (They do, however, share a unique bloodlust for
money with Dr. King's living relatives, operating under the
dubious organization known as "The King Estate.")
Dr. King, a preacher cut from the old cloth of activism, did
not strive to amass a personal fortune. He spoke of economic
development and empowerment for all, but his focus was
communal, not individualistic. When King received over
$200,000.00 with his Nobel Peace Prize, he gave it to the
Southern Christian Leadership Conference. King moved his
family into a northern ghetto when he worked to organize
poor people. Although his church provided him with a
parsonage of sorts, which was their "reasonable sacrifice,"
it wasn't a mansion, and it didn't belong to him. It
belonged to the church and existed to house it's servant.
You cannot convince me that, if Dr. King had lived, he would
be wearing a bright red suit, promoting "Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr. Ministries" via Trinity Broadcasting Network,
sitting next to some negro with a conk and a ring that
looked like a memento from a superbowl championship. Nor can
you even conceive of Dr. King extolling the virtues of
building schools, homes, and businesses just for his
congregation's members alone. It just doesn't fit.
And let's not forget Jesus. Remember him? Jesus, who never
owned fancy clothes; Jesus, who criticized the Pharisees
(who were the educated, well-dressed, self-proclaimed
spiritual leaders) for their hypocrisy and wrong-doings;
Jesus, who went through the temple like Taz, driving out
people who dared SELL GOODS in his father's holy place, a
house of worship?
Who's trying to be like him?
You mean to tell me, if Jesus were here today, he'd have a
great big church with 5 to 10,000 members and 20 or 30
assistant disciple/pastors flanked around him like he was a
ghetto superstar? Or better, would he be standing before
you, telling you how to think prosperous, then directing you
into the lobby or the church bookstore to buy his latest
book or set of tapes? Can you see Jesus now, dressed like a
pimp, cruising around town in the latest Lexus, Mercedes, or
SUV with vanity plates that read, "GODSKID?"
Somehow, I just can't picture it. But there are many of
Jesus' so-called "followers" who fit the bill.
So What Now
I know that right now, there are many of you who are angered
beyond the ability you may have to express it. You feel as
if I've attacked God's chosen people. I'll get tons of
letters on this one, filled with all sorts of scriptures
that either justify the prosperity preacher, or condemn me
for what you perceive as my being judgmental. Countless
ministers will make this article the subject of their
sermons in the weeks to come. The ones who do will
undoubtedly be identifying themselves as the guilty ones.
Those erstwhile, honest sisters and brothers of the clergy
out there (and I know of some great ones) who are doing
higher work will continue to go about doing the work of God,
without seeking to show it to you in the way of the
Pharisee.
I will answer one question, though, that I know the
detractor is asking: "Why pick on the preachers? We've all
fallen short of the glory of God?"
I've analyzed certain members of the Black clergy because,
by virtue of the fact that they have publicly laid claim to
the mantle of leadership, they are responsible for what they
claim to represent.
One elder I spoke to a while back said that the types of
preachers i've written about today are the number one entity
holding our people back. He went on to say that, in a true
struggle for liberation, the first thing we'd have to do is
kill off "these Negro preachers."
I agree with him, at least in principle. That means that we
must kill the mentality that allows these venomous fakirs to
continue to make a living off keeping us mentally asleep.
Then, eventually, they will all die off, and the
Professional Preachers will become the dust upon which the
true servants of God and Humanity will trod.
No, they won't be perfect. They will be as flawed as every
other spirit that is trapped in a fragile, weak, human
shell. They will struggle with everything you and I struggle
with. But their hearts will be in the right place, and ours
will be as one with theirs.
And the great legacy of Dr. King, yes, even Jesus the
Christ, will once again be realized by all.
I, for one, look forward to the day when I can gather with
sisters and brothers to celebrate the life of Dr. King, and
get something that will feed me mentally, spiritually, and
economically; Something tangible that will fill me up.
Because I'm tired of getting stomach aches.
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