Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Oct. 29, 1987, edition 1 / Page 19
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7age B1 1 I- . ...1 ^ — Winston-Salem Chronicle ’ c'. OCTOBER 29, 1987 Religion FOCUS Lovefeast ceremony marks 165th anniversary of St. Philips Moravian jyANGlE MARTIN ■hronicle Staff Writer The congregation of St. Philip' Moravian 'hurch gathered last weekend to celebrate what, indcrstated, can be called a mi'csionc. Young and old [like assembled to mark the s| eci il octa.'i: n of an .vent that happened 165 years ago, the founding of licir church. The church celebrated its 165th year anniver- ^ and the 20th year of its present location with a ipecial observance known to Moravians as the Love- Jeast ceremony, which is similar to communion. The *remony, according to Moravian teaching, rekindles ke missionary minded vision of the church. While there are not a large number of black Moravians in this area, the Rev. Cedric Rodney, pastor if St. Philips, says they have greatly influenced global nissionary work. It is a misconception, says Rodney, 0 believe there are only a few black Moravians world- vide who take part in the church’s uncomplicated but itructurcd form of worship. Some, he adds, consider ilack Moravians an "oddity." "In Jamaica, 11,000 (members), in South Amer ica, 47,000, in the West Indies, 16,000, in Honduras, 16,000," Rodney says, his speech garnished with his lative Guyanian accent. "That's a lot of Moravians." The Moravian influence in the Twin City is ibvious and dates to the founding of the city. Old Salem was founded by Moravian missionaries in 1822. That same year, the women's mission of the church opened St. Philips as the Negro Congregation, a small school and church for blacks. Safe within the sanctu ary's brick walls blacks were taught to read and write de.spitc laws prohibiting the practice. Rodney says that the worship practices of black Moravians do differ from their counterparts at the more maditional black churches. One difference, he says is that the flavor of the Moravian church is liturgical. "There is order. If you go to any other Moravian 'You see, the focus of the Moravian church is unity. We beiieve that Jesus Christ died for us -- that is the essential thing. We all are one ,from east to west and north and south. That is the essential thing." - - The Rev. Cedric Rodney church you'll find the same order," he says, reviewing a book which lists th ■ prc-schcdulcd Bible texts for the entire year. "You sec, the focus of the Moravian church is unity. Unity in the essentials, liberty in nonesscntials and charity in all things. We believe that Jesus Christ died for us - that is the essential thing. We all are one , from east to west and north and south. That is the essential thing." Another "essential" that Rodney has undertaken Church Celebration The Rev. Cedric Rodney, top photo, pastor of St. Philips Moravian Church, stands at the front of the present church building on Bon Air Avenue. The church recently celebrated its 165th anniversary. At left, the old church building stands in Old Salem (photos by Mike Cunningham). is the creation of a museum in the church's deserted building in Old Salem, which has stood as a silent tes timony of the black Moravian presence. Rodney, also an assistant professor of history at Winston-Salem State University, plans to preserve a portion of his church's legacy. He says he wants to convert the old building where the believers wor shiped until 1949. The congregation later moved to Happy Hills home and eventually to its current loca tion on Bon Air Avenue. The museum Rodney visualizes will be a place in Winston-Salem where blacks can experience a kind of kinship with the black Moravians of far away black homelands. "This is my dream," Rodney says. "I want to open the museum so people in Winston-Salem will see what people did in St. Thomas, in Tanzania, in South Africa...they believed like you believe. We have a rich heritage. We introduced music to the church, and we love to sing!" Although he has pastured St. Philips for nearly 20 years, he says the idea for the museum was not revealed to him until recently. "I feel in someway it mav be in God's plan for me to do this new," says Rodney "It never occured to me before, but then when I got into the building I felt committed to do something. I feel as though this is my burden." It will be a burden, indeed, to restore the old church building. Talks are underway with the Salem Congregation, a group of Moravian churches here, to help make the project a reality. Estimates for repair of the church will be about $21,165, Rodney says. Car pentry repairs, painting, window glass replacement, pest control and tree trimming will need to be handled. Then there are the artifacts to be collected. To Please see page B13 CHURCH CALENDAR SUNDAY NOV. 1 ■ White Rock Baptist Church will celebrate the 38lh anniversary of the Senior Usher Board, at 4 p.m. Dr. C. Y. Owens, pastor of First Mount Zion Baptist Church, will be the guest speaker. ■ The Winston-Salem State University Choir will be in concert at 5 p.m. at Hanes Memorial CME Church., 819 N. Highland Ave. The Rev, William S. Fails is host pastor. For more information call 724-7151. • St. Stephen Baptist Church will host its Annual Honor Day for Dea cons at 3 p.m. The event, sponored by the Pastor's Special Committee, will honor the Rev. Wendell A. Johnson of First Baptist Church as guest speaker. ' • The Class Leader of Goler Metropolitan AME Zion Church will present "The Seven Keys to Heaven" at 4 p.m. Ozie Clark is the leader and the Rev. Jerry A. Quick is host pastor. For more information call Bernice Davenport at 725-2654. • Union Baptist Church will celebrate its 47th Annual Men's Day and its 38th Women's Day observances at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., respectively. The Rev. Wallace F. Gaffney Jr., pastor of Green Creek Baptist Church in Spartanburg, S.C. will be the guest speaker for the Men’s Day pro“ gram. Carolyn Colemap of Greensboro will be guest speaker for tJte women's program. The Rev. Benjamin F. Daniels is host pastor. • The Voices of Deliverance Choir of Macedonia Holiness Church of God will observe its I3th choir anniversary at 4 p.m. The celebration is dedicated to Dr. Robert L. Wise, pastor and general overseer, for 21 years of broadcast ministry on WAAA radio. The master of cere monies will be Robert Wise Jr., minister of music at Macedonia. FRIDAY NOV. 6 m • Christ Rescue Temple Apostolic Church will fellowship with Mace donia Apostolic Church of Raleigh on their week of Pastor’s Apprecia tion service. Bishop Willie Davis Jr. will be the speaker with music,:, furnished by the CRT Mass Choir. Elder Tommie Smith is host pastor. • Bishop F. D. Patterson and the Ambassadors Cathedral Congrega-' tion will sponsor an appreciation ceremony for the Ambassadors for Christ Choir music director David L. Allen at 8 p.m. Pastor Robert Taylor of Fellowship Tabernacle in Philadelphia will be the guest, speaker. Detroit recording artist Thomas A. \yhitfield will be special musical guest For more information call 725-0901 or 723-1965., . F’lease sue page ni3 CHURCH NOTES George Gibson to deliver sermon at Galilee Baptist The Rev. George E. Gibson Jr, a 1977 Winston-Salem Stale Uni versity graduate, will deliver the 11 a.m. sermon at Galilee Baptist Church, 575 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, Nov. 1. Gibson received his B.A. degree from WSSU in intermediate education. He also holds the mas ter of divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary. Because of the athletic prowess he exhibited at WSSU, Gibson was chosen in the NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76crs. After attending camp, he decided to play for Athletes in Action, an international basketball league which is an extension of Campus Crusades for Christ. After returning to Philadelphia in 1978, he taught science and social studies at Gillespie Junior High School. After teaching for one year, Gibson accepted a position at the Institute for Scientific Information where he remained until December 1982, when he became a full-time minister. Gibson was ordained into the Baptist Ministry in 1983. He is currently a member of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Philadel phia and Vicinity, the Baptist Pas tors Missionary Conference of Philadelphia. He is also a member of the Executive Board of the Pennsylva nia Stale Convention and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. He is married to the former Frank! L. Reddick, a Temple Uni versity graduate and flight atten dant for United Airlines. Dr. Wamic C. Hay is the host pastor. Gibson Wise Voices of Deliverance to celebrate 13th anniversary at Macedonia Holiness The Voices of Deliverance Choir of Macedonia Holiness Church of God Inc. will celebrate its 13th choir anniversary on Sun day, Nov. 1. at 4 p.m. recognition of his broadcast min istry. Wise's radio ministry spans 21 years on WAAA radio. Robert Wise Jr is the minister of music at Macedonia. The celebration is being dedi cated to the pastor and general overseer. Dr. Robert L. Wise Sr. in U.S. black Catholics seek more decisi6n-*making roles The church is located at 4111 Whitfield Drive. BY STEPHEN R. WILSON Associated Press Writer VATICAN CITY -- A delcpiion of black Roman Catholics from the United States said Friday it told the worldwide synod of bishops the church should grant more decision making positions to "often ignored" black lay people. Also Friday, a U.S.-based group of conservative Catholic women presented a petition to the Vatican expressing support for the church ban on women priests, saying women were not meant to be ordained "just as men cannot be mothers." "Women for Faith and Family" presented a document to Cardinal Edouard Gagnon, president of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for the Family, and asked that he turn it over to Pope John Paul 11. The group said the document, called "Affirmation for Catholic Women," expresses backing for tra ditional church teaching on repro duction, marriage, the family and the role of men and women in church and society. The group, which is based in St. Louis, Mo., said the document was signed by 40,000 women from sev eral countries including the United States, Canada, and Aiistralia, It said Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the Nobel Peace Prize winning nun, was among those who signed. Waller Hubbard, chairman of the National Office for Black Catholics, said his group submitted a document to the bishop.s' synod that he hopes will raise awareness of the problems facing the 1.3 mil lion black American Catholics. The synod, an advi.sory body that counsels the pope on major issues facing the Roman Catholic Church, is examining the role of lay people in church and society. More than 200 bishops from around the world are attending the monthlong assem bly, which ends Oct. 30. The delegation's report said that black lay people will play an increasingly important role in the church since no significant increase is expected in the number of black clergy. Hubbard said there are about 300 black priests in the United States, with an average age of 45 to 50. There are 11 black bishops in the U.S, church. Only one. Bishop Joseph Howze of Biloxi, Miss., heads a diocese. "Our goal is the inclusion of black lay Catholics in responsible positions in church affairs," the report said. "Indeed, qualified lay people must be considered for responsible posi tions in the local church that are not only directly related to black affairs."
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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Oct. 29, 1987, edition 1
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