Religion

For decades, stigma and silence have complicated the relationship between faith communities and the HIV/AIDS epidemic. To effectively fight the ongoing health crisis, the Black Church must first confront its painful past to embrace a more inclusive, healing future.

Willie Pearl Mackey King transformed scattered scraps smuggled from a Birmingham jail cell into Dr. King's most famous letter. Sixty-three years later, a new foundation is making sure her pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement is finally getting its due.

As Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell's 2819 Church experiences rapid growth in Atlanta, a recent warning from prophet Joshua T. Giles has reignited a debate regarding celebrity and spiritual authority in the Black church.

Tamara Johnson-Shealey has launched White People School, a provocative new initiative by the nonprofit Reparations Sunday designed to help white Americans examine their understanding of Black history, systemic racism, and reparations through virtual lectures and field experiences.

Bishop William J. Barber II and a coalition of faith leaders have launched '100 Days; 1,000 Marches to the Polls,' a nationwide voter mobilization effort, following their arrests at the Hart Senate Office Building. This initiative marks a strategic shift for the Moral Mondays campaign, moving its focus from Washington D.C. to grassroots community engagement ahead of the midterm elections.

Rev. Joshua Thomas, son of Bishop Walter Scott Thomas Sr., has established Freedom Church in metro Atlanta, a rapidly growing congregation designed to address 'church hurt' and offer a contemporary approach to spiritual engagement.

Dr. Derren Thompson, Senior Pastor of More Than Conquerors Worship Center, advocates for a structured pastoral framework to address the often-unacknowledged crisis of divorce within Black churches, framing the experience as 'complicated grief' for congregants.

Myesha Chaney, former First Lady of Antioch Church of Long Beach, addresses the social stigma and isolation faced by divorced women within Black faith communities, drawing on her personal experience and new book to foster a broader dialogue on divorce and belonging.

Yale professor and theologian Rev. Dr. Eboni Marshall Turman has launched Harlem First, an emerging Christian fellowship in Harlem. The initiative seeks to establish an inclusive worship community by integrating Black culture, scholarship, and diverse leadership, welcoming all participants as essential.

Interviews with divorced church members, therapists, and ministry leaders reveal a troubling pattern where patriarchal traditions influence the perception of fault and congregational inclusion following marital dissolution, highlighting a critical need for religious institutions to enhance support systems and understanding for individuals navigating divorce.