What Does Frederick Douglass and Valentine's Day Have in Common?

By: Rev. Angela Lee Price

Abolitionist, orator, author, diplomat, politician and polemicist Frederick Douglass was born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey in Maryland in February in either 1817 or 1818. The exact date of his birth is unknown. However, he chose to celebrate his birthday on Valentine's Day, February 14th. Frederick Douglass was a courageous African American intellectual who escaped slavery, and through his life and literary works, provided hope for the future.

In his 1845 autobiographical book entitled Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave, Douglass eloquently articulated that hope as he reflected on his life as a slave in Maryland. Had Douglass not penned his autobiography, we would have never known the full scope of brutalities, injustices, hypocrisies and humiliations he endured in his quest from slavery to freedom nor would we have understood the level of brilliance, creativity and bravery required of him in order for him to teach himself, and other slaves, to read and write in a system that treated the American Negro as chattel.

Moreover, Douglass’ scathing condemnation of slave-holding Christianity provides hope today to seminarians and Christians currently grappling to understand and explain this nation’s racial divide.

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Here are excerpts from three of Frederick Douglass' speeches:
Church and Prejudice
Fighting Rebels With One Hand
What A Black Man Wants

"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love" 1 Corinthians 13:13.

Remember, There's only one way to eternal life. Jesus Saves!

Black History: Haste Has No Blessing

By: Rev. Angela Lee Price

Proverbs 2: 1-7 (V1) “My child, listen to me and treasure my instruction. (V2) Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. ( V3) Cry out for insight and understanding.
(V4) Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. (V5) Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. (V6) For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.
(V7) He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly.” (NLT)

Our society has become conditioned to want things quick, fast, and in a hurry. We give alittle and expect to receive a lot. However, an African proverb says,“Haste has no blessing.” Proverbs chapter 2 makes it clear that the“quick-fast-and-in-a-hurry” and the “give-a-little-receive-a lot” philosophies of life are not the ways of God.

Some things, such as gaining wisdom, knowledge, and understanding require considerable time, trust, prayer, and effort. In the opening verses of Proverbs chapter 2, we learn to “listen,” “treasure,” “tune,” “concentrate,” “cry out,” and “search,” for insight and understanding (vs. 1-4). We are to apply serious attention and devotion to the task. We are to give our all to knowing who God is. The Bible says when you do this, “then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. (V5)”

Are you giving more of yourself to the God who has given His all for you? Listen and treasure divine instruction. Tune your ears to wisdom. Concentrate on God’s Word. Cry out continually in prayer. Search the scriptures daily. The Lord grants knowledge, wisdom and understanding (V 6-7) to those who diligently search for it, and that is a treasure of good sense (V 7), a treasure worth seeking.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!

Celebrating Black History: What Real Hope Looks Like

Today, hope is under attack like never before -- terrorist attacks, violence increasing in our city streets, joblessness, with healthcare under seize  life-threatening illnesses are increasing, abuse, addictions and increase threats to our democracy.  We live in desperate and perilous times, filled with stresses and daunting challenges. Where is hope?

Have you ever wondered what hope looks like? The literary works by and about courageous people of color who overcame tremendous odds to trail blaze a brighter path forward for African Americans and for our nation is what real hope looks like.  The pages of Scripture give us hope, and point us to the source of our hope, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Hope looks like Lerone Bennett, Before the Mayflower; Cane Hope Felder, Stoney the Road We Trod, Alex Hailey, Roots; Cornel West, Hope on a Tightrope.  Hope looks like Renita Weems, Listening for God; Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God; Bishop Vashti McKenzie, Journey to the Well. Hope looks like Langston Hughes, "Mother to Son" because life ain't been no crystal stair.  Hope looks like The Color Purple, Alice Walker; the color black, A Black Theology of Liberation, James Cone; The Souls of Black Folk, W. E. B. DuBois.  Hope looks like Toni Morrison, Playing the Piano in the Dark, Harriet Tubman famously trudging through the dark conducting the Underground Railroad, and Maya Angelou daring to declare, And Still I Rise!  Our first African American president Barack Obama entered office with The Audacity of Hope, and left  with the "Reality of Hope".  The courage of our past gives us hope for the future!

There is often confusion about what hope looks like.  That is because hope, like faith and love, looks different in different situations.  Because real hope relies on the goodness and faithfulness of God, it has many faces to respond fully to the different experiences of life. One such face that peers back from the past is that of Jarena Lee (1783-1850), a preaching phenon not denied in her day, delayed yes, but not denied.  She traveled 2,325 miles and preached 178 sermons in one year as part of her crusade as a traveling minister.  Richard Allen of the AME Church had previously rejected Lee as a preacher, but he later changed his mind, believing she was indeed called to preach by God.  Lee faced many difficulties as an African American woman.  Nevertheless, she inspired thousands through her preaching and published autobiography. 

 
As believers we have one hope of our calling.  With hope, followers of Jesus Christ can confidently engage the world despite the obstacles they many face.   The Bible teaches us that we have a saving, living, secure, joyful, good, blessed, courageous, purifying and glorious hope!

1. One Hope.  Ephesians 4:3-6 states, "Make very effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all, and through all and in you all."
2. A saving hope.  Regarding our adoption as sons and daughters, the redemption of our bodies, Romans 8:24 states, "for in this hope we were saved."
3. A living hope.  1 Peter 1:3 states, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...."
4. A secure hope.  Hebrews 6:18 states,  "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." 
5. A joyful hope. Romans 5:3 states, "Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character, and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom he has given us."  Romans 12:12 states, "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
6. A good hope. 2 Thessalonians 2:16 states,  "May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word."
7. A blessed hope.  Titus 2:11-14 states, "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope - the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good" 
8. A courageous hope.  Hebrews 3:6 states,  "But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house.  And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast."  2 Corinthians 3:12 states, " Having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech."
9. A purifying hope.  1 John 2-3 states, "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known.  But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."
10. A glorious hope.  Colossians 1:27 states, "To them (the saints) God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."

The Bible tells us we ought to abound in hope because believers have been given the Spirit of God and the powerful hope that comes from Jesus.  We possess hope because we know that God is the source and reason for our hope.  Jesus died on the cross while we were dead in our sins, and He has promised never to leave us or forsake us!  The Spirit of the true and living God operating in our lives is what hope looks like. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13). Jesus saves!

WATCH: Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Dedicated in DC - BCNN1

President Barack Obama saluted Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sunday as a man who "stirred our conscience" and made the Union "more perfect," rejoicing in the dedication of a monument memorializing the slain civil rights leader's life and work.

 
"I know we will overcome," Obama proclaimed, standing the 30-foot granite monument to King on the National Mall. "I know this," the president said, "because of the man towering over us."

Obama and his wife, Michelle, and Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, joined a host of civil rights figures for the dedication on the sun-splashed Mall. Designed as what King described as a stone of hope hewn from a mountain of despair, the memorial is the first to a black man on the National Mall and its parks.

"He had faith in us," said Obama, who was 6 when King was assassinated in 1968. Obama told the crowd, "And that is why he belongs on this Mall: Because he saw what we might become."

The dedication has special meaning for the Obamas. The president credits King with paving his way to the White House. Before his remarks, he left signed copies of his inaugural speech and 2008 convention address in a time capsule at the monument site. The first couple and daughters Malia and Sasha made a more private visit to the site on Friday night, before the crowds and the cameras arrived.

In his talk, he focused on King's broad themes - equality, justice and peaceful resistance - as the nation confronts, 48 years later, some of the same issues of war, an economic crisis and a lingering distrust of government in some quarters.

WATCH: Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Dedicated in DC - BCNN1

MLK National Memorial Dedication and Online Ticket Lottery

Just in time for the Memorial Day weekend, the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation announced in this week's Louisville Defender Newspaper plans for the August 28^th dedication of the MLK National Memorial, in West Potomac Park, in Washington, D.C. The official dedication is set for Sunday, August 28, the 48^th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, and Dr. King’s historic “I Have a Dream” speech. The new Memorial, visually positioned between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, will feature more than a dozen King quotes in granite and four recurring themes of his legacy -- democracy, justice, hope, and love. I am not sure if this quote is there, but it is one of my favorites, "The church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state. It must be the guide and the critic of the state, and never its tool."

And as the tribute does for the men and women of the Bible who walked with God that is the Faith Hall of Fame in Hebrews, Chapter 11, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial will stand as a testament of the life of a mighty man of faith who trusted God, dreamed big, and changed the course of history. It, too, will serve as a reminder that King’s dream of freedom, equality and justice for all, the substance of things hoped for, was not fully realized in his lifetime.

If you'd like to receive tickets, you have until 11:59 on May 31st to place your name in the online lottery on the official website to receive up to six free tickets for special seating at the official dedication. Lottery winners will be notified by email on June 15th.  Faith-based groups may request tickets here.

Black History Month: This Week's Featured Louisville Area Authors

Win These Books This Month on the Jesus Saves Social Network:
Get Out of the Way! Claim God's Will for Your Marriage, Book Two, Hazel and Tony
By: Hazel Parrish

This is a real life story about two people struggling through life's challenges to allow God's will to be done in their lives. Two people from two very different backgrounds come together to prove the institution of marriage works when you trust God... When all of the couseling failed, friend's advice failed, self-help books, retreats, and religious jargon failed, Hazel tried one Godly principle (trust). A supernatural manifestation changed her unhealthy marriage to healthy, her unloveable ways to loveable, her hopeless heart ot hopeful, rejection to acceptance and hatred to love. Ultimately, Hazel learned to Get Out of the Way! Claim God's Will for Your Marriage.
You Are The One You're Looking For: Freedom From the Relationship Drama to an Empowered New You!
BY: Elayne Marchbanks

Have you found your needs, wants, feelings, and desires stifled or put on hold in your efforts to have a "good" relationship, or to find the 'perfect' mate? Our first and foremost love is the love we give ourselves.
You Are the One You're Looking For: Freedom From the Relationship Drama to an Empowered New You! is not a typical how-to-get-your-man book. Rather, it is a practical, holistic, and insightful work written fo the woman who is ready to Become a Woman On Purpose - By Design:...Indentify your gifts and purpose to evaluate who's right for You!
A Day At The Zoo
By: Brenda Harris

The book is about two very young children's excitement on taking a trip to the city's petty zoo. Seeing the visit through their eyes--- what's to do, what animals to see, and the family time together.

The book is a learning book designed for the beginning reader. One syllable words, with no more than the letters per word, are used to make it easier for the beginner reader to sound out each letter to form words making reading enjoyable. The book has bright, colorful illustration; and rhyming, repetitive text to capture and hold the young reader's attention.

View Complete Book List in the Celebrating Black Histroy Group!

Celebrating Black History: This Week's Featured Authors!

President Barack Obama said in his State Of The Union address that just as we celebrate those going to the SuperBowl, we need to celebrate those going to science fairs. Jesus Saves Ministries is celebrating the mental acumen God has given people of color that is expressed in their creative writing abilities. So, make it a point to stop by this network during Black History Month.

Anytime you comment on any discussion this month, here or on the Jesus Saves Social Network, you will automatically be placed in our drawings to receive books by and about people of color. Louisville area authors have graciously contributed their works to bless God for His gifts, inform, encourage, and inspire a future generation of writers and promote reading among African Americans at large including Julia Royston, Dr. Dewey Clayton, Elayne Marchbanks, Karen O'Bannon, Hazel Parrish, Brenda Harris, Lonnie Clinkscale, and Charlene Hampton Holloway.

This Week's Featured Louisville Area Authors:

Win These Books This Month:
How Hot Is Your Love Life? Return to Your First Love
By: Julia Royston

God wants you to know that He loves you. l"How Hot Is Your Love Life? Return to your First Love?" is a book of 30 attributes and charactteristics of God demonstrating and reminding us of His great love toward each of us. Each devotional, song of the day, and simple prayer is designed to bring you closer to your first Love. Rekindle the flame of love. He's waiting.
The Presidential Campaign of Barack Obama
By: Dewey M. Clayton

"Clayton examines how race in American politics has changed over time and offers an explanation for why Obama’s candidacy offers a different roadmap for the future. The Presidential Campaign of Barack Obama provides students of politics, inside and outside of the classroom, a unique opportunity to explore the institutional and structural challenges an African American faces in becoming the president of the United States. This guide to major issues in Black politics and the ins and outs of the 2008 campaign provides the necessary contours for understanding how the highest elected African American official won office.”
Get Out of the Way! Claim God's Will for Your Marriage
By:  Hazel Parrish

This is a real life story about two people struggling through life's challenges to allow God's will to be done in their lives. Two people from two very different backgrounds come together to prove the institution of marriage works when you trust God... When all of the couseling failed, friend's advice failed, self-help books, retreats, and religious jargon failed, Hazel tried one Godly principle (trust). A supernatural manifestation changed her unhealthy marriage to healthy, her unloveable ways to loveable, her hopeless heart ot hopeful, rejection to acceptance and hatred to love. Ultimately, Hazel learned to Get Out of the Way! Claim God's Will for Your Marriage.


View Complete Book List in the Celebrating Black Histroy Group!

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E-mail: jesussaves1@insightbb.com

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Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!

Black History: The Reconciliation of Liberation

By: Rev. Angela Lee Price

An esteemed theologian and preeminent scholar, Rev. Dr. J. Deotis Roberts is best known as a founder of Black Theology or the Black Liberation Movement. Black Theology and Black Liberation reached its peak in America at the height of the Black Power Movement in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Its proponents sought to present Jesus Christ and Christian theology through the lenses of black culture and the black religious experience as a means to overcome the effects of slavery and institutional racism in order to liberate the minds and change the dire circumstances of oppressed people of color. Roberts, more so than James Cone, who is known as the father of Black Liberation Theology, offered a more biblical approach to black liberation by including reconciliation, a Biblical mandate, as a necessary component of liberation.

I conducted a brief radio interview with Dr. Roberts on 1350 WLOU the morning of May 17, 2007 wherein Roberts elaborated on the impact his travels abroad in the early 1960’s had on shaping his theological perspective on the reconciliation of liberation:

Angela: ...So, as you began to experience the diversities within cultures and the peoples that you came in contact with, that helped to shape and mold how you perceived theology…?

Dr. Roberts: Yes,…in the middle 1960’s I had a world tour of the religions in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. So, I knew about cultures other than my own long before the black theology movement emerged. For example, I was moved by my time in Japan. I spent two months in India in the middle ‘60’s and I saw the poverty and need there before I began to address the situation in the U.S.

I was drawn back to this country when I was studying abroad because Martin Luther King was beginning to address the civil rights problems we had, and I wanted to come back and join that movement. So, all that happened prior to the emergence of black power. That led into my position. I wanted to bring the King and Civil Rights Movement experience to the Black Power Movement. That was a dimension that I had because of my age and my involvement prior to the Black Power Movement. Both came together in my thoughts and that’s the reason why liberation and reconciliation were addressed. Cone addressed liberation, and I thought that was not sufficient because of my experience and knowledge, so I began to bring the two together. That’s the genesis of that dialogue.

Dr. J. Deotis Roberts set himself apart from black theologians by advocating reconciliation as a component of black liberation. The bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:18, “…God…has given us a ministry of reconciliation.” We are told in 2 Corinthians 5:19, “… in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.”

Roberts penned his best-known book, Liberation and Reconciliation: A Black Theology in 1971 in response to James Cone’s A Black Theology of Liberation, published in 1970. Roberts asserted that reconciliation was the “balancing” component of liberation. On the reconciliation of liberation, Roberts wrote in the preface of second edition of Liberation and Reconciliation: A Black Theology, page xiii:

"...the balance between liberation and reconciliation remains essential in our pluralistic society....Dr. King's warning, that we either learn to live together as friends or die as fools, is obvious for all thoughtful people. When reconciliation is elevated to its proper ethical level and Christian understanding, it requires serious attention to liberation from social injustices. It cannot be conceived as mere sentimentality or ‘cheap grace.’ Reconciliation requires repentance, forgiveness, and cross-bearing. Thus, I would opt for maintaining a balance between liberation and reconciliation."

Although an advocate for reconciliation, Roberts opposed integration as a goal. In chapter eight of Liberation and Reconciliation, he stated, “The slave-master, servant-boss, inferior-superior mentality underlie all integration schemes in which whites write the agenda. This is why I am against integration.” He advocated reconciliation with co-equal collaboration between races as the goal. On page 94, he wrote:

"Positively, it enables blacks to appreciate their own heritage to the extent that they consider it a worthy commodity to be shared with others. In this manner, liberation leads to reconciliation between equals. This position is productive for the psychological and sociological health of blacks. It is needed for a right perspective for better race relations. It is consistent with an understanding of God as lovingly just, the dignity of all persons, the sinfulness of all, and their reconciliation with God and with one another through Jesus Christ."

Cone, although more outspoken than Roberts, with his “by-any-means-necessary “ approach to Black Theology was a major catalyst for Black Theology’s thrust onto the world stage. He wrote on page 98 of A Black Theology of Liberation, “No black person will ever be good enough in the eyes of whites to merit equality. Therefore, if blacks are to have freedom, they must take it, by any means necessary.” However, he was less thorough and biblical in his critique in omitting the key biblical principle of reconciliation from his writings.

In summary, at the height of the Black Power Movement at a time when strong voices where needed to speak truth to power, the Lord put fire in the bones of black theologians J. Deotis Roberts, James Cone, Albert Cleage, Dwight Hopkins, Delores S. Williams, Gayraud Wilmore, Katie Cannon, Jacqueline Grant, Cornel West, and many other men and women of God. J. Deotis Roberts credits James Cone with the rediscovery of the black man’s religious genius in the late 1960’s on page 147 of his book, A Black Political Theology. And had it not been for the bold, in-your-face style of James Cone and his powerful book, A Black Theology of Liberation, I don’t know if I would have been as interested in the subject as I am. I had to admit to Dr. Roberts in my interview with him that I was not as familiar with his works as I was with those of Cone and others. However, after speaking with him and securing and perusing two of his books at length, I must say that I am blessed to have had corrected in my consciousness the oversight of his tremendous contribution to black theology and black liberation. I highly recommend adding to your library books on black liberation this Christmas season.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!

What Does Valentine's Day and Frederick Douglass Have In Common?

By: Min. Angela Lee Price

Abolitionist, orator, author, diplomat, politician and polemicist Frederick Douglass was born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey in Maryland in February in either 1817 or 1818. The exact date of his birth is unknown, however, he chose to celebrate his birthday on Valentine's Day, February 14th. Frederick Douglass was a courageous African American intellectual who escaped slavery, and through his life and literary works, provided hope for the future.

In his 1845 autobiographical book entitled Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave, Douglass eloquently articulated that hope as he reflected on his life as a slave in Maryland. Had Douglass not penned his autobiography, we would have never known the full scope of brutalities, injustices, hypocrisies and humiliations he endured in his quest from slavery to freedom nor would we have understood the level of brilliance, creativity and bravery required of him in order for him to teach himself, and other slaves, to read and write in a system that treated the American Negro as chattel.

Moreover, Douglass’ scathing condemnation of slave-holding Christianity provides hope today to seminarians and Christians currently grappling to understand and explain this nation’s racial divide.

---------------------
Here are excerpts from three of Frederick Douglass' speeches:
Church and Prejudice
Fighting Rebels With One Hand
What A Black Man Wants
"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love" 1 Corinthians 13:13.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!

Celebrating Black History: This Week's Featured Louisville Authors

President Barack Obama said in his State Of The Union address that just as we celebrate those going to the SuperBowl, we need to celebrate those going to science fairs. Jesus Saves Ministries is celebrating the mental acumen God has given people of color that is expressed in their creative writing abilities. So, make it a point to stop by this network during Black History Month.

Anytime you comment on any discussion this month, here or on the Jesus Saves Social Network, you will automatically be placed in our drawings to receive books by and about people of color. Louisville area authors have graciously contributed their works to bless God for His gifts, inform, encourage, and inspire a future generation of writers and promote reading among African Americans at large including Julia Royston, Dr. Dewey Clayton, Elayne Marchbanks, Karen O'Bannon, Hazel Parrish, Brenda Harris, Lonnie Clinkscale, and Charlene Hampton Holloway.

This Week's Featured Louisville Area Authors:

Everyday Miracles
By: Julia Royston

When you think of a miracle, what comes to mind? Naturally, blinded eyes being opened, deaf ears unstopped and other medically unexplained healing come to mind. Whether you know it or not there are miracles happening all around you. See with your heart as well as your eyes. Open the book and see the miracles unfold every day of your life.

Julia Royston is a singer and songwriter, author, motivational speaker and Louisville, Kentucky native.  To her credity, she has written original music for four music CD and authored three books.  Julia is an editor of a monthly online newsletter, "A Jar In the Potter's Hands" which is designed to encourage, enlighten and empower people to live their destined, abundant life.  Julia is a teacherlibrarian by profession and married to Brian K. Royston. 

The Presidential Campaign of Barack Obama
By: Dewey M. Clayton

In the early twenty-first century, race still occupies a dominant role in American politics. Despite this truism, presidential candidate Barack Obama was uniquely poised to transcend both race and party as the first African American to have a realistic chance of winning the presidency. Previous contenders running in the traditional mode of the Civil Rights Movement based their appeal primarily on African American voters. Obama, on the other hand, ran a deracialized campaign in an effort to appeal to voters of different backgrounds and political parties.

Clayton examines how race in American politics has changed over time and offers an explanation for why Obama’s candidacy offers a different roadmap for the future. The Presidential Campaign of Barack Obama provides students of politics, inside and outside of the classroom, a unique opportunity to explore the institutional and structural challenges an African American faces in becoming the president of the United States. This guide to major issues in Black politics and the ins and outs of the 2008 campaign provides the necessary contours for understanding how the highest elected African American official won office.”

 

Dewey M. Clayton is Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Louisville.  He is author of African Americans and the Politics of Congressional Redistricting and numerous scholarly articles.

A Song For You: Parables and Pearls

By: Karen O'Bannon

Karen O'Bannon is a Dayton, Ohio native who resides in Louisville, Kentucky. In this revised edition biblical and life applicable commentary join the poetry to provide navigation to those who are seeking empowerment over the issues addressed in each story. It is already being said to be a great teaching tool and conversation starter for mothers and daughters.  

This book is divided into the following chapters:

Alter Call, which challenges women to rise to a higher standard

Love Me Knots, which examines the entanglement of love

Just Serious, which focuses on femal social issues

Personal Problems, which is a call to self-examination

Sincerely Yours, which recognizes higher love

View Complete Book List in the Celebrating Black History Group!

E-mail: jesussaves1@insightbb.com

Social Network: Jesus Saves Social Network

Blog: Jesus Saves Ministries Blog

YouTube: www.youtube.com/jesussaveslive

Facebook: facebook.com/jesussavesministries

Twitter: twitter.com/jesussaves838

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!

Carter G. Woodson, The Father of Black History

Carter Godwin Woodson Life Chronology

On December 19, 1875, Carter G. Woodson, known to many as The Father of Black History, was born in New Canton, Virginia. Had he not been sent to us, would we be recognizing the contributions African Americans have made to this country and to the world? We will never know. However, as insufficient as one month is, February, in celebrating the totality of Black contributions to society, we owe this formal time of reflection to God and Carter G. Woodson. As we celebrate our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, let us not forget our strong and noble heritage, and all that God has done through people of color like Carter G. Woodson.

In 2005, I was a recipient of the Simmons College of Kentucky Future African American Leaders Scholarship. The essay, The Courage of Our Past Gives Us Hope for the Future which recognized the accomplishments of Black intellectuals Frederick Douglass, Carter G. Woodson, and Langston Hughes was written initially to fulfill scholarship requirements. It was later published in the Spring 2006 edition of African American Journal.

Essay Excerpt:
Carter G. Woodson, the founder of Black History Week, which later became Black History Month, often called a man ahead of his time, is another African American intellectual who, through his classic literary works, courageously offered hope for the future.

In his works, The Education of the Negro Prior to 1861 published in 1915, and The Mis-Education of the Negro, published in 1933, Woodson gave diagnosis and prescription for that hope. Carter’s critique of white American institutions of higher learning as instruments of mis-education with regard to heritage and culture is powerful, and his 1933 remedies for correcting said educational injustices are relevant and worthy of 21st century consideration.

Throughout the book, The Mis-Education of the Negro, Woodson warned that African American attempts to imitate white American culture would harm them. Moreover, he emphasized that imitation would not only do harm, but ultimately lead to death.


Carter died in 1950, but left hope to present-day African Americans by encouraging them to learn their history, educate themselves through African American institutions of higher learning, own businesses, and give back to their communities.

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Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!

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Celebrating Black History: Don't Miss Your Crowning Moment!

By: Min. Angela Lee Price

"Now, if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may share in his glory” Romans 8:17.

All I have is this black and white photo now, and the memories the accompany it, of a time long since past when my name once appeared in lights on the marquee of this Holiday Inn. It was in 1974, 37 years ago to be exact, when I was crowned "Miss Teen Queen," Junior Division, in a beauty pageant held in this very hotel in downtown Louisville. Joetta Thomas was crowned "Miss Teen Queen,” Senior Division, and Gayle Kelcy, her runner-up in a tightly contested competition of African American young women, mostly older than me, who were, as I saw it, poised, sophisticated, and glamorous.

"What in the world am I doing here?," I kept asking myself as the older women tried to teach me to walk, and talk, and turn on the runway. I was not nearly as poised as Joetta and the rest of the contestants. “How could I possibly win?,” I said.

But somehow, something kept edging me forward, a "Yes, you can!" spirit. It took me to that crowning moment, a moment that is forever cemented in my mind. It was the spirit of my middle school counselor, a pretty black woman, and my elementary school teachers, especially Ms. Sexton, my math teacher, who taught me and mentored me and told me I was somebody. It was the spirit of my mother, and my mother's mother before her, queens in their own right, who seriously insisted that you just didn’t leave the house dressed any kind of way.

I think about that picture when I see young girls degrading themselves and living beneath what God has for them. I think about this picture, too, when I see African American girls looking at girls of other hues thinking they don’t measure up. I tell them, “Honey, you measure up. You are a queen fit for a king. You are a royal priesthood.”

And now that I am older, I am able to look back across the pages of time and see that it was the Holy Spirit at work in my life all along, as it was in this same year, 1974, when He saved me, called me into His glorious kingdom, and truly made me a queen, a co-heir with Jesus Christ. Now, that was my crowning moment indeed!

Do not miss your crowning moment!  It is a moment that will go down in history, and be written in the Lambs Book of Life.  If you are not saved, repent of your sins,  accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and be baptized.  He promises to forgive your sins and give you eternal life (John 3:16, Acts 4:12, Romans 10:9, Acts 2:38). He will make you, a queen or a king, a royal priesthood, a co-heir in His marvelous Kingdom. 

If you are saved, we invite you to share your crowning moments with us, and help us lift up Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords during Black History Month. Post your comments here, or on the Jesus Saves Social Network. We are giving away books in weekly drawings all month by and about African Americans who have help make this country great. Also, we are showcasing Louisville-area authors who want to honor God, and so they have graciously donated their recently release works to our Celebrating Black History Book Give-Away. If you are not saved, but desire a relationship with Jesus Christ, we invite you to join our network and learn more about Him.

Celebrating Black History: Haste Has No Blessing

By: Rev. Angela Lee Price

(V1) “My child, listen to me and treasure my instruction. (V2) Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. ( V3) Cry out for insight and understanding.


(V4) Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. (V5) Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. (V6) For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.


(V7) He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly.” (NLT)  Proverbs 2: 1-7

Our society has become conditioned to want things quick, fast, and in a hurry. We give a little and expect to receive a lot. However, an African proverb says,“Haste has no blessing.” Proverbs chapter 2 makes it clear that the“quick-fast-and-in-a-hurry” and the “give-a-little-receive-a lot” philosophies of life are not the ways of God.

Some things, such as gaining wisdom, knowledge, and understanding require considerable time, trust, prayer, and effort. In the opening verses of Proverbs chapter 2, we learn to “listen,” “treasure,” “tune,” “concentrate,” “cry out,” and “search,” for insight and understanding (vs. 1-4). We are to apply serious attention and devotion to the task. We are to give our all to knowing who God is. The Bible says when you do this, “then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. (V5)”

Are you giving more of yourself to the God who has given His all for you? Listen and treasure divine instruction. Tune your ears to wisdom. Concentrate on God’s Word. Cry out continually in prayer. Search the scriptures daily. The Lord grants knowledge, wisdom and understanding (V 6-7) to those who diligently search for it, and that is a treasure of good sense (V 7), a treasure worth seeking.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus saves!
Join our Celebrating Black History discussions on the Jesus Saves Social Network, and automatically be included in weekly drawings to win books by and about African and African Americans who have lead in the struggle for freedom and equality to make this country great.  Also, we are showcasing the newly released works of Louisville-area authors. 

Civil Rights Pioneer John Hope Franklin Dies At 94

Civil Rights pioneer, professor and historian John Hope Franklin died Wednesday of congestive heart failure. He was 94. Scripture shows us that names are significant to a person. It is no accident then that God put "Hope" in the middle of his identity. At our church, hope stands for having only positive expectations. John Hope Franklin had positive expectations not only for himself, but for all African Americans and for race relations in America. I am so grateful he lived and wasn't afraid to be himself, a black man filled with hope. He brought dignity to the African American experience in countless ways and has given us all hope for the future.
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RALEIGH, N.C. (AP)-John Hope Franklin, a towering scholar and pioneer of African-American studies who wrote the seminal text on the black experience in the U.S. and worked on the landmark Supreme Court case that outlawed public school segregation, died Wednesday. He was 94.
David Jarmul, a spokesman at Duke University, where Franklin taught for a decade and was professor emeritus of history, said he died of congestive heart failure at the school's hospital in Durham.
Born and raised in an all-black community in Oklahoma where he was often subjected to humiliating racism, Franklin was later instrumental in bringing down the legal and historical validations of such a world.
As an author, his book "From Slavery to Freedom" was a landmark integration of black history into American history that remains relevant more than 60 years after being published. As a scholar, his research helped Thurgood Marshall and his team at the NAACP win Brown v. Board of Education, the 1954 case that barred the doctrine of "separate but equal" in the nation's public schools.
Pioneering historian John Hope Franklin dies at 94

Book Review: If I Only Could Write A Line

By: Min. Angela Lee Price

Louisville attorney Charles C. Hagan, Jr. handed me a copy of this newly released book from Millennium Vision Press just yesterday, and it has truly blessed my soul. If I Could Only Write A Line - The Religious and Inspirational Poetry of Mary Southers is a book of 197 original and authentic poems, all written in the 1930's and 1940's by his great-grandmother, Mary Southers, a former resident of Louisville, and a past member of Lampton Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

"These poems and another 55 were hidden away in an old trunk belonging to Mary Southers's oldest son, Christopher M. Parker. They were not discovered until after his death in 1984. These poems have never been published or seen the light of day, except some were often read at church, and many were sent to friends, neighbors, and relatives as Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, and on other special days and occasions," says editor Charles C. Hagan, Jr., Mary's great-grandson.

Ms. Souther's love for the Lord is apparent on every page of poetry in poems like, Just Took A Little Walk With the Lord, I Know Jesus And He Knows Me, He Has Risen, O, We Of Little Faith, The Power of God, and her first poem, Happy At Last. Especially beautiful to me, being that today, March 16th is my birthday, is the poem on page 97 written June 13, 1948 entitled, Happy Birthday:

On this another birthday my dear

I've just a few words to you to say

May all the peace and happiness be yours

On this your birthday.

The Lord has been with you all the way

And has led you another mile

May he in his mercy forever keep you

As a good father does his child.

May the Lord lead and guide you

As you travel through this unfriendly world

And may you give Him the glory and thanks

And let his banner be unfurled.

and this one on page 96 entitled, On Your Birthday:

Beloved of my heart
Until death I shall pray
That you walk down the years
In God's gracious way.

That the lily which now
In your young heart enshrined
With the rays of his love
May forever be enshrined.

To Jesus whose beauty
Through the ages has shown
And which gleams in its whiteness
Before God's bright throne.

I give you in trust
You are young and sweet
May he keep you my darling
And guide your dear feet.

Selected and edited by Charles C. Hagan, Jr., If I Could Only Write A Line will bless and encourage you in your walk with Jesus Christ. This book certainly demonstrates that this unknown poet, and housekeeper by trade, Mary Southers had an extraordinary gift for writing a line.

Take The Black History Quiz

By: Min. Angela Lee Price

How well do you know your history? Take a Black History Quiz and find out just what you know and don't know about African Americans who have made this country great. I must warn you. These quizzes are hard!

Take the quiz in one or all of the following categories: Unsung Heroes, Little Known Facts, Women in History, and Black Oscars. I took the quiz over the weekend and scored a 7 of 10 in the Unsung Heroes category.

Win Black History Prize Package!
If you get a 7 of 10 or better in at least one category, contact this ministry and I will enter you in a drawing for a Black History Prize Package consisting of the book, Obama: From Promise to Power by David Mendell, an African American Heritage Calendar, Mary Mary's award-winning CD, "The Sound", an ESV New Testament Bible, and a "He's Leading You On - Hebrews 12:2" t-shirt (Large and X-Large only).

Send your name, e-mail address, and phone number to me at www.jesussaves838@yahoo.com. One entry per person per e-mail address, please. The drawing will be held Thursday, February 26th at 12:00 Noon (Eastern). Sorry, no international entries accepted.

"We mut keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete" Hebrews 12:2.

Another Jesus Saves Ministries promotion in conjunction with Better Days West Records, Lyles Mall, 2600 West Broadway, Louisville, KY.

Min. Angela Lee Price, Founder
Jesus Saves Ministries
P.O. Box 1284
Louisville, Kentucky 40201
E-Mail: http://www.jesussaves838@yahoo.com/
Blog: http://www.jesussavesministries.blogspot.com/
Celebrating three years of lifting up Jesus Christ!

Heiress: Crowning Moments In Black History

By: Min. Angela Lee Price

"Now, if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may share in his glory” Romans 8:17.

All I have is this black and white photo now, and the memories the accompany it, of a time long since past when my name once appeared in lights on the marquee of this Holiday Inn. It was in 1974, 35 years ago to be exact, when I was crowned "Miss Teen Queen," Junior Division, in a beauty pageant held in this very hotel in downtown Louisville. Joetta Thomas was crowned "Miss Teen Queen,” Senior Division, and Gayle Kelcy, her runner-up in a tightly contested competition of African American young women, mostly older than me, who were, as I saw it, poised, sophisticated, and glamorous.

"What in the world am I doing here?," I kept asking myself as the older women tried to teach me to walk, and talk, and turn on the runway. I was not nearly as poised as Joetta and the rest of the contestants. “How could I possibly win?,” I said.

But somehow, something kept edging me forward, a "Yes, you can!" spirit. It took me to that crowning moment, a moment that is forever cemented in my mind. It was the spirit of my middle school counselor, a pretty black woman, and my elementary school teachers, especially Ms. Sexton, my math teacher, who taught me and mentored me and told me I was somebody. It was the spirit of my mother, and my mother's mother before her, queens in their own right, who seriously insisted that you just didn’t leave the house dressed any kind of way.

I think about that picture when I see young girls degrading themselves and living beneath what God has for them. I that about this picture, too, when I see African American girls looking at girls of other hues thinking they don’t measure up. I tell them, “Honey, you measure up. You are a queen fit for a king. You are a royal priesthood.”

And now that I am older, I am able to look back across the pages of time and see that it was the Holy Spirit at work in my life all along, as it was in this same year, 1974, when He saved me, called me into His glorious kingdom, and truly made me a queen, a co-heir with Jesus Christ. Now, that was a crowning moment indeed!

Are You in the Bible?

By: Rev. Angela Lee Price

Quick, can you name three black people in the Bible? Are You in the Bible? You will never know if you are not in it daily - reading it, that is. Exploring the Black presence in the Bible is important today like never before. Many African Americans don’t know the truth of their heritage. They think the Bible is a “white man’s book” due primarily to erroneous all-white depictions of Bible stories in some Bibles, and on television, and our failure to counter those errors with the truth of Scripture.

The Lord says my people perish for lack of knowledge. Far too many African Americans are perishing because they do not know who they are and from whence they came. They don’t know that the origins of civilization began in Africa, that Egypt is in Africa, and that science, geometry, and astronomy originated in Africa. Many people believe Jesus was a white man with blue eyes and long, blond hair. A pervasive lack of knowledge about self, heritage and history, is having an extremely damaging psychological impact upon the psyche of our people.

While the goal should not to romanticize the black presence in the Bible, I believe exploring the black presence in the Word of God to be of paramount importance to the spiritual well being of people of color. It helps us in our quest to grow in spiritual maturity and learn about Jesus. It helps us to better relate to Africans from the Motherland and become more sensitive to the plight of people of African descent. It helps us explain with dignity our heritage to other cultures of the world. Finally, it gives us life more abundantly.

In the pictures seated from left to right is the leadership team of my Sunday school class, Learning About Jesus. Seated from left to right: Sylvia Harper, the Missions/Ministry Coordinator; Marilyn Swinney, Class Administrator; Mattie Smith, Evangelism Coordinator; and standing left to right: me, Teacher; Karen Martin, Co-teacher; and Adrianne Braxton, Activities Coordinator, and Cozett Benson-Curry, Prayer Leader (not pictured). We cordially invite you to attend our class. Bring your Bibles and break the Bread of Life with us as we learn about Jesus, share testimonies, and grow in the Christian faith Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. at St. Stephen Church, 1018 South 15th Street, Louisville, KY.

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!

Mary Church Terrell and Deltas Credited with Founding Negro Achievement Week

By: Cindy Leise
As we celebrate Black History Month, historians say we should thank Mary Church Terrell, a pioneering black leader who graduated from Oberlin College in 1884 and was active in civil rights until her death in 1954 at the age of 90.

Terrell’s friend, Carter G. Woodson, generally gets most of the credit for founding Negro Achievement Week, which led to Black History Month, said Lenworth Gunther, a retired professor now living in New Jersey.

But it was Terrell and her sorority that began it all by honoring Abraham Lincoln on his birthday, Feb. 12, and Frederick Douglas on his birthday, Feb. 14, said Gunther, who lectures on Woodson and Terrell. More
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Postscript by Min. Angela Lee Price

As a minister and member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Louisville Alumnae Chapter, we bless our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for Mary Church Terrell and so many women like her as we celebrate black history. The book, In Search of Sisterhood: Delta Sigma Theta and the Challenge of the Black Sorority Movement by Paula Giddings is a good source for more information on her life, her involvement in women's suffrage, in social justice, and in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Although "her sorority" is not named in the article above by Cindy Leise, Soror Mary Church Terrell was one of the first honorary members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and author of the official Delta Oath in 1914 (Giddings, pgs 56-57). She also lead the Deltas "in their first public act as an organization: marching down Washington's Pennsylvania Avenue (with the Delta banner aloft) in the famous woman suffrage demonstration on the eve of Woodrow Wilson's inauguration" (page 15). The march took place on March 3, 1913, less than two months after Delta's founding on January 13, 1913 at Howard University (page 57).

Remember, it is not Mohammad, Buddha, Confucius, nor New Age that saves. Jesus Saves!