4B
I Bible i Lesson I :
®l)e Charlotte
RELIGION
THURSDAY. JULY SO, SSm
Life 1B
Our efforts
Corinthian 9:24-27
1. What two athletic iUiis-
trations did Paul use to depict
the Christian life (1 Corinthi
ans 9:24)?
Since the Corinthians would
have been familiar wilh both
the andent Olympic and Isth
mian games that occurred in
Greece, Paul used illustra
tions from athletics to press
home his point. Although the
andent Greek games had few
events compared to the mod
em Olympics, races were
always prominent As in aU
races, there is only one runner
who receives the blue ribbon
or ihe gold medal. “So run,
that ye may obtain” (v. 24),
said Paul. In short, run to win!
All those entering the Chris
tian race should strive lo cross
the finish line. A similar
thought is found in PhUippi-
ans: “I press toward the mark
for the prhe of the hi^ calling
of God. in Christ Jesus” (3:14).
2. What are some examples
of modem “prizes” that we are
tempted to pursue that pale in
comparison with what is
available through Christ?
How do we keep a proper
focus?
Some people go to great
ler^ths in an effort to become
famous or evai merely popu
lar. Others are willing to pour
overwhelming energy into
their vocation in an effort to
obtain promotions or “self-ful-
fihment.” The pursuit of our
culture’s status symbols-big-
ger houses, luxury boats,
impressive cars, designer
dothing, and the latest elec
tronic gadgets-frequently
dominates even the lives of
God’s people. The pursuit of
ejqjertise in various hobbies
can essentially become the
piusuit of a fading crown. The
pursuit of certain relation
ships can fall into this catego
ry
Perspective is one key to
proper focus. For example, the
desire for a can
be examined with the prayer
ful question, “Why do I really
think I need a
?” Beware of the danger of
rationalizing!
3. How was an andent ath
lete “temperate” (v 25)?
As in modem sports, andent
athletes had to be “temperate”
(v. 25), or self-controlled, in
order to prepare for their cho
sen event. Those unwilling to
enter such strict training
would prove imsuccessful.
The ancient athlete was
willing to commit to such self-
disdpline for a mere earthly
reward, “a corruptible crown”
(v. 25). The winner was
awarded a simple wreath-
crown that would quickly fade
and become brittle. Even the
gold medal of the modem
Olympics will eventually be
bum^ up (2 Pet. 3:10).
As Christians, we are run
ning a race to receive an
“incormptible” crown (1 Cor.
9:25). As saints, our calling is
to “an inheritance incorrupt
ible, and undefiled, and that
fadeth not away, reserved in
heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4).
4. What are some additional
similarities between the
Please see TRUE/6B
PHOTO/UNC ARCHIVES
The 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., was a turning point in the U.S. civil
rights movement Four black girls were killed in the attack.
Renovation at Sixteenth Street
Baptist Church moves ahead
Birmingham church site of1963 bombing that killed 4 girls
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-With water
leaks sealed, a $3 million restoration
of the historic Sixteenth Street Bap
tist Chiuch moves into its next
phase.
The church had water seepir^ fixim
underground into the lower level of
the building. About $1 million has
been spent on the first phase of
repairs.
The Rev. Arthur Price, pastor of the
95-year-old church, said church offi
cials met architects and contractors
as the second phase of the work
b^ins. Workers will seal cracks in
_ the buildir^ and repair windows and
the fiont steps. Roof replacement
and plumbing repairs also are
planned.
The Birmingham church was des
ignated a national historic landmark
in February for its role in the civil
rights movement. Key civil rights
leaders, including the Rev. Martin
Luther King Jr., held rallies in its
pews. It is best known for the infa
mous Ku Klux Klan bomb blast that
lolled four girls in 1963.
The church has $3.3 million in
pledges fi-om individuals and corpo
rations, and all but $1 million has
been collected, Price said.
‘We know that those who made
their pledges will live up to their
obligations;” he said.
TOth its national landmark desig
nation, the project has to comply
with certain guidelines to keep the
church structure intact, Price said.
‘We are going to make the outside
look the way it was in 1963,” he said.
‘We want to give people a feel of
what the church was like back then.”
The church aimuaUy attracts
tourists fiom all over the world.
Archbishop defied Vatican, tells TV he’s back
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
VATICAN CITY-An
African archbishop whose
2001 marriage caused a scan
dal in the Roman Catholic
Chruoh said in a TV inter
view broadcast Friday that he
is back with his wife and was
prepared to pay the conse
quences.
Archbishop Emmanuel
Miliugo, who disappeared
from his residence outside
Rome last month, resurfaced
at a news conference in Wash
ington, D.C., last week to
announce he was champi-
onir^ the cause of married
priests.
“Recently it wasn't possible
for me to have the freedom to
preach the Gospel,” he told
Italian state television when
asked why he left Italy
MUingo shocked the church
five years ago when he and a
South Korean acupxmcturist
Maria Sung were united in a
mass wedding presided over
by the Rev Sun Myung Moon
of the Unification Church He
later renoxmced his marriage
and returned to the fold, with
the Vatican dropping its
threat of ^communication.
In the TV interview, he said
he considered a marri^e was
for hfe so “my wife remains
my wife and I remain the hus
band.” He said he felt what he
had done was right “and for
this reason I am here (in the
United States) ready to suffer
whatever.”
The Vatican indicated
Thuieday that it was pre
pared to take action, saying
that “if the statements attrib
uted to him about priestly
celibacy were 'true there
woxild be no choice but to con
demn them,’ given the well-
known chmxh rules.”
At the news conference in
Washington, the Zambian
archbishop said his new goal
is to end the church’s celibacy
rule.
The Zambian prelate said
he “felt at home” among
Africans and African-Ameri
cans in the United States,
suggesting he had no inten-
Please see AFRICAN/5B
From New York pulpit, minister becomes force
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK-The Rev.
James A. Forbes Jr. stands
rigidly above the heads of
prophets carved into the pul
pit of Riverside Church.
He begins his sermon calm
ly enunciating every sjilable,
urging listeners to give up
blame as their Lenten sacri
fice.
Lately, within his liberal
Manhattan congregation, he
has been hearing a lot of ire
against Repubficans and fun
damentalists.
“In times of war and intense
conflict, the natural impulse
is to demonize the adversary,”
he says in a soft, resonant
voice. “Sometimes, we say,
when we see a pohtical drift
away from democracy, Tt’s
those ri^t-wing fundamen
talists, they are the devil of
the season.”’
Stop blaming them, he says.
Work for change.
This is the way Forbes
preaches. He starts out
slow-low key He is mindful
of his congregation in this
bastion of the establishment,
aware of the discomfort they
might feel with the energetic
preaching stjie he has inher
ited from generations of
Forbes pastors.
But then, “At some point, I
cut loose and forget all about
it,” he says.
He is a man with feet in two
worlds. He now preaches in a
cathedral-sized church built
by the Rockefellers, and there
he has become a leading—
and influential— voice for
religious progressives. Most
recently he has used that pul
pit to campaign gainst the
Iraq war and for causes rang
ing fixim gay rights to envi
ronmentalism.
He has emerged as a key
figure in a movement to rally
religious liberals and chal-
ler^ evangelical Christians
to reconsido- issues of poverty
and social justice, an effort to
shape the debate of the 2006
elections much as the reli
gious right did two years ago.
But he is also the product of
a conservative, evangehcal
upbringing in coimtry
cliurches in the Deep South
in the 1940s. He is the son of
a Pentecostal preacher in
Ralegh, North Carolina; his
grandfather and grandmoth
er also preached, as did three
uncles and an aunt.
In the summertime, his
grandfather would take the
young boy with him to coun-
New
Direction
finds its
way nicely
New Direction
Send The Praise
Jeral Gray and
Percy Gray, producers
GospoCentric Records
i-7 -Ar
Contemporary gospel can
be taxir^ at times, almost
fiaistrating because it blurs
the lines between secular and
sacred so blatantly
Few choirs strike the bal
ance of keeping it real and
real holy as well as New
Direction. This youthful
ensemble will keep its audi
ence dancing in the isles with
its urban beats and energized
performances. But it doesn’t
take a close hstoi to see the
group’s message is grounded
in ol’ school chxuxh.
The opening song, “You’re
Welcome,” is more Calypso
than anything else. It’s cer
tainly an inviting way to
draw you into the CD. ‘T
Came Tb Jesus” is as churchy
as it is contemporary The
lead vocalist giv^ the song a
rousing workout, stirring
choir members and the St.
Mark Missionary Baptist
Church Cathedral into a fren
zy Yet, neither tiiis scaog nor
the rest of the CD gets so
funky that you want to holler
“whoa.”
Credit goes to Jeral and
Percy Gray the producers
and writers of the project.
They keep this youthful
bmich centered, keeping their
eyes on Christ, the center of
the message and the music.
That’s not to say things
don’t get a bit showy The
blaring horns and strings are
a p^e straight' out of the
Sanchez Harley production
book. Some of the choir’s
vocal arrangements border
on gunmicky And at 10 songs
and one bonus track, this CD
is kind of short.
Yet, the CD never gets out
of hand and remains ergoy-
able thmiighrmt New Direc
tion never seems to stray
fixim its intended direction
and that’s pointing toward
Zion.
try churches near a tobacco
farm where he worked.
Once, his grandfather relat
ed the story of how Mary told
Joseph that' they needed to
find a place she could give
birth. Gfandaddy stepped
do-wn fixim the pulpit holding
his belly beneath his blade
robe and became Mary
“He was saying ‘Joseph, Tm
hurting. Tm hurting,”’ Forb^
remembers. “And I was
scared to death that the baby
was going to fall out firom
under my grandfather’s robe,
and the water would break
right there. He made it that
real.”
Later in his seimon, Forbes
analyzes a literal reading of
the Bible. Did Jesus actually
meet Ihe devil in the 'wilder
ness as Matthew and Mark
Please see NEW YORK/5B
Ratiii^
’U ■^
Endkoi.
Good
Why?
No stars-
Axa^
Church News
The deadline to have church announcements added
to the calendar is noon on Fridays. Fax to (704) 342-
2160 or e-mail cheris.hodges@thecharlottepostcom.
Please put “church news ” in the subject line.
July 20
The CHOSEN Youth/Yout^ Adult Depart
ment of the New St. Luke Holy Baptist Church
of God will host the NuNation Youth Convoca
tion. Theme: Generation X - Marked for
Greatness!; Times; 21&22 at 7:45pmand23 at
Ham and 5;30pm. Location: 910 Wmchester
Ave. Monroe. For more information call
Prophet Lorenzo A. Moore at (704) 605-5112 or
church at (704) 218-3662
• The New Bethlehem FBH Church, 421 E.
IStii St. will host a youth revival. Services
begin at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call
(704) 596-3630
♦New St. John Baptist Church will celebrate
their pastor’s 40th anniversary tiirough July
23. The church will have First Lady night at 7
p.m. Friday, there wUl be a pastoral banquet
and musical tributes on Saturday and Sunday
July 22
New St. Luke Holy Baptist Chmch of God
in'vites you to Unity in Praise Community Fes
tival. This event will convene in the Parking
lot at 910 'Winchester Ave., Monroe. Clothes
giveaway carnival games, food, m'usic and fun
for the family Looking for step team, youth
choirs, gospd hip-hop artist, mime teams to
participate. Tb participate and for more infor
mation call Prophet Lorenzo Moore at (704)
oo
605-5112
• United Baptist/March of Faith Ministry,
1115 Hawthcone Lane, will host the Unit«i
■Voices second anniversary at 4 p.m.
• The United House of Prayer, 1019 South
Mint St., will host a Chinese auction at 2 p.m.
The donation is $5.
• Bishop Queen E. Thompson and the Power
of Prayer Tbam wfll present a community love
feast at 3308 Sutttm Drive at 11 a m.
Please see REVIVAL/5B