Preaching on America’s Birthday – The 4th of July for Black Americans

Racism is ever-present, but it is not all-powerful

Every year, the Sunday before the Fourth of July, I stood in the pulpit and felt the same knot in my stomach. The flags were up. The choir was not singing anything patriotic. They never did. They sang the rousing gospel songs, full of hope, the kind that make a congregation stand up whether they meant to or not. And I knew the congregation was waiting t…