Ashland Theological Seminary
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ASHLAND THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AN IMPACT STUDY ON AFROCENTRIC CHRISTIANITY A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF ASHLAND THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN CANDANCY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF MINISTRY BY MICHAEL C. ROBINSON ASHLAND, OHIO February 7, 2020 Copyright © 2019, by Michael C. Robinson All rights reserved DEDICATION To Erin, Alicia, Micah, Emiah, Phyllis, and Kendra Robinson and in loving memory of James Robinson and Anna Lee Fortson. You all have believed in me, encouraged me, and inspired me to accomplish this great task. My father and grandmother are not able to physically see this accomplishment, but I can feel your warm presence and approval. I could not even begin to express the love I have for each of you. Erin, my wife, you are incredible, without your love and support I would have fallen flat on my face. I owe you the world! EPIGRAPH My Ancestors voices echo throughout time, Lost across oceans, I will scramble to find. A sense of who I was, who I am, and who I will be, From the shores of Africa, a son of Royalty. A Faith that runs deep, its origin dark, That guides my path on journeys I embark. My savior, my color, my culture, my hue My people, your people, in all we have been through Reclaim your ancestry, its honor and pride, Realize the warrior you are inside! Michael C. Robinson APPROVAL PAGE Accepted by the faculty and the final demonstration examining committee of Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Ministry degree. ___________________________________ ________________ Academic Advisor Date ___________________________________ _________________ Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program Date ABSTRACT The purpose of my project is to impact the knowledge, attitudes, and actions of leaders regarding Afrocentrism at Total Grace Church, Lexington Kentucky through the participation of an eight-part workshop on Afrocentricity. The design of the project included the administration of pre-test and post-test surveys utilizing a five-point Likert Scale. The workshop results revealed that the participants knowledge, attitude, and actions were positively impacted. The greatest impact was seen regarding the participants knowledge of Dr. Asante’s teaching concerning Afrocentricity. This is evidence that the workshop improved the participant’s knowledge regarding Dr. Asante’s teachings. CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ……………………………………………………………….. viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ……………………………………………………. ix Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION AND PROJECT OVERVIEW …………………… 1 2. BIBLICAL, THEOLOGICAL, AND HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS …………………………………………………………. 10 3. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE …………………………...…………. 35 4. DESIGN, PROCEDURE, AND ASSESSMENT ……………………… 67 5. REPORTING THE RESULTS …………………………………………. 76 6. SUMMARY AND REFLECTIONS …………………………………….. 86 Appendix 1. PROPOSAL……………………….……………………………………… 99 2. ASSESSMENT TOOL ………………………………………………….. 119 REFERENCES ………………………………………………………………… 124 VII LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Knowledge Questions 1-8 (Goal #2) ………………………..………… 78 2. Attitude Questions 9-16 (Goal #3) ……………………………………. 80 3. Action Questions 17-24 (Goal #4) .……………………………………. 82 4. Evaluation Questions 1-6 (Goal #5) ………………………………… 84 VIII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This resource and dissertation have had critical contributions from many minds and hearts. I am extremely grateful to those mentioned below and more: To Dr. William H Myers whose teaching and counsel formed specific foundations of this resource. Your encouragement and expectations of excellence inspired me to complete this academic endeavor and made me believe that I had something positive and valuable to offer. To the faculty and staff at the McCreary Center, your due diligence and professionalism was instrumental in completing this resource. Thank you for being a place that is welcoming and inviting for students of color. To Dr. Lewis Brogdon whose scholarship and work ethic inspired me to embark on this journey. To Dr. R.A Vernon for being a spiritual guide in my life and for his own personal accomplishments of scholarship that modeled for me that it was possible. To Dr. Kristie Searcy whose editing expertise shaped the final product. To my church family who were patient with me as long days and night became a common theme. They supported me as this process at times consumed my life. To my amazing sister and mother who have always been over achievers and motivated me not to settle for less when the world has more to offer. To my three beautiful daughters who looks at me with a sense of pride to see their father pressing towards this academic accomplishment. To my amazing wife, some will never know the feeling of having someone love you unconditionally and supports you unwaveringly. As we pursue higher education together, lead a church congregation, run businesses, and raise our children I am more grateful for you with each day that pass. IX CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND PROJECT OVERVIEW Throughout this project, I have periodically reference the animated movie, The Lion King. Skipping over a few details I discussed later within my project, let me introduce you to an important scene in the movie. Simba has run away from his homeland, family, and culture and has found himself in the wilderness. In the wilderness, Simba is learning how to survive in a place where he does not fit in. As a Lion, Simba is a carnivore, yet in the wilderness in order to be accepted in this foreign place, he is now eating bugs and worms. In his homeland, he was a prince, but in this strange place, he has no authority. As I observe and analyze this scene, I can’t help but imagine Simba's future if he stays in this foreign place. He would have children, and they would grow up also eating bugs and worms. What makes this scenario even worse is that Simba’s kids would believe that it was normal for them to eat bugs. They would have no knowledge of their ancestry; they would not know that their grandfather was a King and that their lineage is one of royalty. Although Simba's decision to leave his homeland was his own, I cannot help but see the similarities with the plight of the African American here in America. We, unlike Simba, were forcibly removed from our homeland and shipped as cargo to a foreign place. In this place, our culture and history were stripped away. As those displaced Africans had children and their children had children, they became further removed from the rich culture and history of their homeland. That which was done in America for survival became normative. Even 1 to this very day in this country, African Americans are far removed from the Land of their ancestors and the rich legacy they are a part of. This is the reason my project is so important as it will reconnect Simba’s children with the royal legacy of which they belong. The Statement of Purpose The purpose of my project is to impact the knowledge, attitudes, and actions of leaders at Total Grace Church, Lexington, Kentucky regarding Afrocentrism. The Research Question How much of the knowledge, attitudes, and actions of leaders at Total Grace Church changed regarding Afrocentrism as a result of this impact study? The Overview "Until lions start writing down their own stories, hunters will continue to be the heroes." ~ African Proverb As a young Pastor in an urban area densely populated by African Americans, I am often approached with questions concerning the authenticity of Christianity and its relationship with Africa. After not only hearing statements like, "Christianity is the white man's religion" and "Slavery is the only reason Black people are Christian," I have also witnessed people leave the faith because of them. I felt a true calling from God to become more equipped to deal with these questions and provide a sense of identity for African Americans in the Christian faith. I felt it necessary that these individuals seeking such answers should hear the Christian story told from the perspective of the lion instead of the hunter. As I have dedicated much time to reading and studying this topic, I have personally 2 been impacted by what I have learned, and I firmly believe that a greater understanding of Afrocentricity will impact others. The purpose of my project was to impact the knowledge, attitudes, and actions of leaders at Total Grace Church, Lexington, Kentucky regarding Afrocentrism. The focus of this dissertation was to evaluate the secondary literature on the subject matter. First, I administered a pre-test using a five-point Likert scale survey. After taking the participants through an eight-part workshop on Afrocentrism, I administered a post-test in order to assess the change in knowledge, attitudes, and actions regarding Afrocentrism. The participants consisted of 15 leaders of Total Grace Church. They were selected from a pool of thirty total leaders. The workshop focused on the biblical, theological, and historical aspects of Afrocentrism. Foundations Within this current climate of church, politics, and culture, I am seeing an increase in the number of questions I am receiving regarding Christianity and Black people. With the huge polarization of political parties during the Trump Era, the presidency of Donald Trump, the same polarization is occurring in the church community as well. Large numbers of white evangelicals are standing in support of Donald Trump despite what many minorities see as clear expressions of racism. Black churches, for the most part, are in solidarity with opposing the Trump presidency. This type of positioning continues to perpetuate the narrative that white evangelicals are not concerned with the plight of black people. If you couple this with the growing narrative that Christianity is a white man’s religion, it 3 is causing young black millennials and members of the conscious black community to grow increasingly skeptical of Christianity. We recently had a nationally reported public encounter that placed one of the leading voices of black nationalism to the forefront.