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Sr. Pastor Robert Kennedy and
his wife Mrs. Kennedy.
Pastor Kennedy's Biography
862-224-1097
drobertken@yahoo.com
Assistant Pastor Joseph Thelusca
Pastor Thelusca's Biography
973-493-5526
Thelus98@aol.com
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From the Pastor's Heart
Repairing Black History
I just returned from the funeral service for a young man who was killed last week. On the day of his death, he left the church building where he was attending classes, in spite of the counsel of the Program Coordinator not to leave. Within an hour of his leaving, the news came back that he was shot and killed. At the funeral service, the proceedings and the attendees were of great interest to me. Mournful and angry family members were there. Many community leaders, friends and supporters were there. A large group of high school students, other teenaged young men and women were also there. Many of the latter were present with explicit symbols that they belong to a culture on the fringe of the local social order - the gang. I listened with rapt attention as comforters appealed to the youth present, to transform their lives before they are cut down in the same way as this young man was. As I listened, I began to scan the crowd, wondering if the perpetrator of the crime might be present. Whatever else we might want to think, it is clear that this death is a powerful symbol of the wasted lives, especially in the Latino and Black communities. One person who spoke at the funeral said, “We are in a war- not a war against another nation but a war against ourselves.” The speaker who made this reference noted that in this case, “It is a war of blacks upon blacks.”
The latter is a rather significant observation, especially since we are beginning a month which is called Black History Month. It might seem frivolous, but the word “history” seems to take on new meaning. In reference to black young men or grown black men in America, their history means that they have passed (as dead). We can find them in the cemeteries, but not in schools. We can find them in jail but not as strong community leaders. We can find them in the corners where drugs are sold but not in the safety of their homes. I do not intend to be morose because I know that we have those we can speak of in business leadership and in church and so on, but the following statistics are still very revealing.
1. One 2005 study revealed that most black murder victims — 93 percent — were killed by other black people. About 85 percent of white victims were slain by other white people.
2. More than half of black murder victims — 51 percent — were in their late teens and twenties. Comparatively, just over a third — 37 percent — of white people murdered were between 17 and 29.
3. Unmarried black people were more likely than all other blacks to be victims of violence.
1. A 2008 research study revealed that among African American children, 1.2 million, or about 11 percent, had a parent incarcerated by 2008.
2. More than 4 in 10 fathers were black, about 3 in 10 were white, and about 2 in 10 were Hispanic. An estimated 1,559,200 children had a father in prison at midyear 2007; nearly half (46%) were children of black fathers.
3. In 2007 black men had an incarceration rate of 4,618 per 100,000 in the U.S.
These appalling statistics speak to us as Christian parents because our children are not immune to the ill effects of the contemporary world. We need to be on a rescue mission. We cannot sit comfortably by and say “these are the last days.” God expects us to work on behalf of the many. He is willing To help us but we must call upon him and take greater responsibilities for our families and stop denying the morbid realities that we are facing.
Last Modified: Friday February 4, 2011
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