THE CASE FOR RENEWING REFORMATION CHURCH-CHICAGO (Needed: A Key Reimagined African Descent Strategy Team Ministry) PART 1

"Lazarus (God has helped), come out...unbind him, and let him go."  -John 11:43b, 44b, NRSV- 

"Lazarus's (resurrection) ...one of the most important miracles performed by Christ.  The name in allusion signifies the miracle of resurrection."  -Dictionary of Classical, Biblical, & Literary Allusions-

"What we heard...the relationship between the African Descent strategy team and the African Descent Community is broken.  There is hurt in the community that also needs to be addressed."  -Report from Retreat with African-American and African Descent Leaders, September 21, 2015-

"In 1983, I decided to become a community organizer...When my classmates in college asked me just what it was that  community organizers did, I couldn't answer them directly.  Instead, I pronounced on the need for change...Change won't come from the top, I would say.  Change will come from the grassroots.  That's what I'll do, I'll organize black folks.  At the grassroots for change."  -Barack Obama, "Dreams from My Father" p. 133 (1995).

1. Rethinking Africana Strategies and Saving Historic Reformation-Chicago (Young Barack Obama's Community Organizing Sanctuary)

1.1 One of the best kept secrets of the Far South Side's Reformation Church-Chicago (MCS/ELCA) is the burning fact that from 1985 to 1988 plus, our historic African American Lutheran house of worship served as the community organizing sanctuary of young Mr. Barack Obama and his embryonic Developing Communities Project (DCP).

1.2  We supported young Obama and his project as an in-kind-contribution to his then employer, Calumet Community Religious Conference (CCRC)-to which we were members-and its then inner-city outreach arm, DCP-in which we were key participants.

1.3  Note: Contrary to popular belief, young Barack Obama migrates to Chicago, from the Northeast Corridor, not just once but twice.

1.4 The first time young Obama migrates to Chicago from New York City to serve, from 1985 to 1988 plus, as a grassroots community organizing employee of Calumet Community Religious Conference (CCRC) a predominantly Euro-American Roman Catholic-led  interfaith coalition of South Suburban and Far South Side churches formed based on Saul Alinsky community organizing principles.

1.5  Specifically, young Obama was tasked with organizing CCRC’s Developing Communities Project (DCP) as its predominantly African American faith-based outreach arm.  Reformation was both a member of CCRC as well as DCP.  Accordingly, young Obama worked out of our Church as an-in-kind contribution to both initiatives.  In fact, DCP’s first office, headed by young Obama, was housed at Reformation.

1.6  After further successfully organizing DCP as a fully independent, not-for-profit organization and becoming its first Executive Director, young Obama decided to leave Chicago to attend Harvard University Law School. 

1.7  Young Obama returns to Chicago in 1991, this time from the Boston area, professionally trained as a distinguished Harvard University Law School graduate, freelance writer, University of Chicago Law School Visiting Law and Government Fellow and voter registration Campaign Director of Illinois Project Vote.

1.8  Reformation’s Young Barack Obama Fellowship Hall for Racial and Social Justice (YOUNGSTICE)-dedicated by us during 2013 Kwanzaa holidays-naturally emphasizes the former young Obama period over the latter because of its organic relationship to our own journey story.  Accordingly, YOUNGSTICE is organized to serve as an ongoing institutional voice routinely trumpeting our legacy as young Obama's community organizing sanctuary to our constituency and the world. 

1.9  More, YOUNGSTICE is organized to serve as common ground for other young Obamas (chronologically and at heart) to engage in a continuing intergenerational discussion on the role of the Black Church (and other inner-city churches) in addressing ongoing and current critical issues confronting African Americans (and other inner-city communities) all for improving Black community engagement and the common good.

1.10  Heretofore, Reformation's clergy and lay leadership, although vaguely aware of the Congregation's Obama legacy, had been unable to articulate said legacy as a part of its core identity.  More, the old African American Strategy Team, absent Reformation's own much-needed new self-understanding, could not effectively imagine and incorporate Reformation's young Obama legacy into its own mission plan.

1.11  Now, finally, Reformation has firmly established its legacy and identity as young Mr. Obama's community organizing sanctuary.   It therefore follows that the way is finally open for Reformation-Chicago's clearly articulated identity, as a historic African American Lutheran Congregation and house of worship, to be incorporated into the new African Descent mission plan as work in progress. 

1.12  Clearly, the story of Reformation (rightly understood) stands as a valuable contribution to the  unfolding reimagined MCS/ELCA African Descent Strategy Team plan.  Our story is at once an African Descent Lutheran, Metro Chicago Synod, ELCA Church-Wide, and Lutheran World Federation story.  We therefore offer it to serve as an important plank in the born-again African Descent Strategy Team's outreach platform, locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. 

Respectfully submitted: Pastor Joel Washington (Khunanpu Sangoma) for Historic Reformation Church-Chicago, 11-5-15.