About
The Black Church plays a crucial role within the Christian witness in the United States, despite its continuing exclusion from the narrative.
The vitality of the Black Church is essential to the health of the Church of the United States. The Boston Black Church plays a pivotal role in demonstrating the power of Black Christian experiences from throughout the diaspora in holistic models of prophetic leadership, community care, spiritual formation and the pursuit of justice.
The Boston Black Church Vitality Project (BBCVP) is a multi-year study led by the Institute for the Study of the Black Christian Experience (ISBCE), the Black Ministerial Alliance of Greater Boston (BMA), the Emmanuel Gospel Center (EGC), Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary’s Boston Campus (CUME) Center for Urban Ministerial Education and Boston TenPoint Coalition.
To date, no comprehensive study of the Black Christian experience in Boston has been conducted on the scale of this project. Such a study will produce insights for addressing crucial questions including:
Why are some Black believers leaving the Christian Church? What does it take to bridge their daily concerns and struggles to the gospel?
How can traditional mainline churches and contemporary church plants that both cater to a Black context find common ground and mutually bolster one another’s biblical vitality?
How can seminaries and organizations support Black Christian leaders in responding to today's challenges?
“A successful completion of this study will tell us what we are doing right, what we are doing wrong, and what we need to do to make our ability to serve God and our community more effective. ”
How can you get involved?
Promote broad participation.
We are seeking churches/organizations to be Stakeholders and Christian leaders to be Champions of the Boston Black Church Vitality Project (BBCVP).
Stakeholders are Black churches and organizations that promote the BBCVP and mobilize their constituents as participants. Stakeholders also receive insider reports of our progress, challenges, and what we’re learning from our successes and failures.
Champions are committed community members who participate in and spread the word about the project.
Be a part of this story! Become a Black Church Vitality Stakeholder or Champion today!
Gather support from mission-minded Christians and churches.
Help us fund the staff needed to plan and organize town halls, interviews, surveys, and other ways to hear the voices of hundreds of Black Christian leaders.
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