The African American Congregational Support Office
Our mission
'Spiritual Vitamin'
Read the words three times and let them feed your soul and inspire you for the work of ministry.
Ephesians 3:20-21
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. AmenThe African American Congregational Support Office assists the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in addressing the needs of African American Congregations. It works in partnership with Mid Councils to nurture conversations and facilitate ministries that will transform African American congregations into a more vibrant and healthier congregation.
The office emphasizes principles that will encourage, nurture, support, motivate, equip and empower leaders and disciples of Jesus Christ, to become more intentional about engaging in spiritual practice that nurtures a transformational spirituality and leads towards transforming communities and the world, The Beloved Community or The Realm of God on Earth.
What is God up to?
Find out “what God is up to” in Presbyterian African American Congregations across the United Sates. Experience and share the stories, history, and good work of Christ’s words in action through our most vibrant churches.
We also invite you to share the stories within YOUR own congregation as we come together to celebrate the joy of knowing and experiencing God’s love.
Isaiah 26: 4-6
"Extending the Legacy"
African American mentoring event focuses on developing church leaders through effective mentoring relationships
“Some of us have been looking forward to this day for years,” the Rev. Dr. Rhashell D. Hunter told those gathered for the opening session of the African American Mentoring Event on April 21. “To identify and equip African American women and men who might serve in the future as heads of staff or in executive leadership has long been a dream for many of us.”
The African American Mentoring Event—the fourth leadership institute offered by the Racial Ethnic & Women’s Ministries/Presbyterian Women (RE&WM/PW) ministry area of the Presbyterian Mission Agency—brought some 30 African American pastors and leaders from across the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) together at Montreat Conference Center from April 21 to 24. Its purpose—in addition to identifying and developing teaching elders with strong potential for future leadership in the church—is also to support African American congregations by resourcing them with a pool of strong candidates to serve healthy congregations. Continue reading
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Latest news
Save the Dates -- July 29, to August 3, 2013
July 29 - 30, 2013 -- Black Pastor's Conference -- Sponsored by the Office of African American Congregational Support, Racial Ethnic Ministries Unit
Begins Monday, July 29 at 9 AM till 2 PM, Tuesday, August 30
July 30 - August 1 -- Nationl Black Presbyterian Caucus Convention -- Sponsored by the National Black Presbyterian Caucus (Opening Plenary at 2 PM on Tuesday, July 30th and ends with lunch on Thursday, August 1st
BIG TENT -- Begins August 1 -3, 2013 to be held in Louisville KY
Please come and join us. Registration to begin after March 19, 2013.
Black History Observance
Oh God, you have heard the anguished cries of our ancestors. Their sounds echo and penetrate time to remind us of our foreparents who were brutally captured and forcibly enslaved, as they left the peaceful womb of their African homeland.
"Stony the road we trod."
Oh God, you have seen the millions of dark bodies buried beneath the tumultuous waves of the deep. Bodies of African men and women who held the seeds of greatness. You have seen women's dreams for a united family vanish as they were sold at auction blocks. You have seen the legacy of the African American Family decimated and demeaned by those who have attempted to control our destiny.
"Bitter the chastening rod, felt in the days when hope unborn had died."
Oh God, you; have ignited the sparks within us into a blazing demand for freedom, equality and justice. This quest cost Harriet Tubman sleepless nights, as she led her people to freedom; it was an equality that Rosa parks and civil rights activists fought for and gave their lives for; it was a justice that Martin Luther King, Jr. stood for, as thousands stood with him at the Lincoln Memorial.
"Yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet, come to the place for which our fathers sighed?"
Oh God, you have seen our tears. You have been pained by the evil of human hearts. Yet you loved humanity enough that you sent your only Son to identify with the outcast, marginalized and rejected. As the cries of Jesus pierced your heart, so have the cries of your people -- cries from different cultures and in different languages.
"God of our weary years, God of our silent tears."
O God, you answered us during our exodus from Africa. You wiped every teardrop during our exile in captivity. Our foreparents dared to dream that one day, on these shores, we would become politicians, preachers, educators, doctors, writers, scientists, artists, and so much more.
"Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee."
Our ancestors' hard work, their courage, their convictions, and their belief in you paved the way for our emancipation and education. But it is clear, you have liberated us. You have set us free. "Free at last, free at last, than God Almighty, I'm free at last!"
"Lest our hearts drunk with the wine of the world we forget Thee. Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand. True to our God and true to our native land."
The African American Heritage Hymnal (GIA)
