“Ain’t That Good News,” by Ciona D.Rouse (“The Lord is With You” issue, page 17) was originally written for The Africana Worship Book. which includes profound and grace-filled liturgies for prayers, calls to worship and giving, choral readings and creedal statements – all written by 16 African-American contributors to represent the rich worship cultural heritage of this community.
We asked associate editor, Safiyah Fosua, DMin, about the inception of the project. Here’s what she told us:
“The Africana Worship Book series began with an innocent question posed to a group of African-American church leaders that I had convened for discussion about worship: “Does the black (UMC) church have the kinds of resources needed for vital worship in its own context?” There were pastors and professors, directors from the General Board of Discipleship and United Methodist Publishing House, middle-aged adults, young people and not-so-young people gathered around a common table for a meal. They answered, almost in unison, with a resounding “No!”
Valerie Bridgeman, our facilitator and one of the editors of the series, began to pass out paper and pens and challenged each participant to “go, then, and write an example of what you need…” The results that evening were profound. Their litanies and calls to worship immediately transformed us from a “church meeting” into a worshipping community. That night, assignments were given to the group to write appropriate resources for the next 52 weeks of the Revised Common Lectionary. The resources we received were profound, provocative, and worship-inspiring begging to be shared with the Church – first online, then later in print as the Africana Worship Book series that includes all three years of the lectionary.
We are participants in an historic faith with historic liturgy that nurtures us and grounds us. But, we are also people of a right-now faith, needing to give voice to the realities, challenges and the celebrations of 21st century faith. I like to think of the Africana series as an ancient-future call to the Church, reminding her to keep one ear to the ground.”
Safiyah Fosua, DMin, is the Director of Preaching Ministries at General Board of Discipleship in Nashville, Tennessee, and a clergy member of the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Author of several books, Dr. Fosua is a poet, a preacher, and a devotional writer who writes weekly preaching and liturgical resources for the GBOD Worship website.
