Darren Sands

The African Methodist Episcopal Church, one of largest Black Protestant denominations in the world, has been wrestling with whether to change a policy that threatens to punish any of its clergy who recognize same-sex marriages.

When the Black religious establishment arrived on the scene in Ferguson, Missouri, after the 2014 killing of Michael Brown Jr., protest organizer Brittany Packnett quickly realized something.

A Connecticut pastor will be the new president of the largest Black Protestant denomination in the U.S.

Black clergy who know Vice President Kamala Harris, now the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, marvel at the fusion of traditions and teachings that have molded her religious faith and social justice values. A Baptist married to a Jewish man, she’s inspired by work of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and influenced by the religious traditions of her mother’s native India as well as the Black Church. Religious leaders and theologians say Harris’ candidacy has special symbolic…

Pastors see a wariness among Black men to discuss abortion restrictions, which have become a key issue in the 2024 presidential campaign. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are wooing voters who support abortion rights, while former President Donald Trump and his surrogates pursue anti-abortion voters. The issue remains a critical concern, but after his dismal debate performance, Biden is now busy trying to shore up his loyal base, including Black men. Although Black men tradit…

New York’s historic Abyssinian Baptist Church has elected its new senior pastor, likely bringing an end to a national search to replace the late Rev. Calvin O.

Darren Sands, now a reporter for The Associated Press, was researching his family history three years ago when he found a riveting missing piece. He learned that his great-great-great-great grandfather _ Hewlett Sands _ was one of the more than 200,000 names listed on the African American Civil War Memorial in Washington, D.C. He was a soldier from New York who served in a United States Colored Troops regiment that fought for the Union – and for the freedom that American Americans still celebrat…

The Rev. Matthew L. Watley says it’s not happenstance his suburban Maryland congregation landed at the top of a list of the fastest-growing churches in America. Today, Kingdom Fellowship AME Church’s average weekly attendance is 2,500. In five years, overall membership has swelled from 3,000 people to nearly 8,000. All paths led to the pulpit — and eventually Kingdom Fellowship — for this son and grandson of AME ministers. Watley built a ministry through midday worship hours in D.C. for workers…

The Rev. Brandon Thomas Crowley had always loved the Black Church, and developed an ambition in his youth to become a pastor even as he realized he was gay. When he was offered a prestigious job as a minister at age 22, he decided to keep his sexual identity a secret. It took six more years before he stood before his congregation in a Boston suburb and came out. That revelation changed the trajectory of his career, and fueled a new book, called “Queering Black Churches.” he hopes it can serve as…

Throughout its long history, the Black Church in America has – for the most part – been a patriarchal institution, with men making up the vast majority of its ranks of clergy. These days, increasing numbers of Black women are attending seminary, and some women are carving out high-profile leadership roles. The African Methodist Episcopal Church says it has more than 1,000 female pastors. But obstacles remain. The founder of a group called Women of Color in Ministry estimates that less than one i…

A search committee previously sued for gender discrimination over its hiring process has announced its pick for the next senior pastor of a prominent New York City congregation. Kevin R. Johnson, founding pastor of Dare to Imagine Church in Philadelphia, will be recommended for the congregation’s approval to lead the more than 200-year-old Abyssinian Baptist Church. That’s according to an internal church memo obtained by The Associated Press. Church spokesperson LaToya Evans confirmed in a state…

Black pastors see popular Easter services as an opportunity to rebuild in-person worship attendance

As the national debate over Black history continues, one aspect of the legacy of race in America is undergoing something of a rebirth: Black cemeteries that were established in the era of segregation. Experts say these cemeteries -- located across the country -- tell the story of bygone days that capture the richness of the Black experience. And families say it’s essential to be able to pay their respects and connect with ancestors there. In recent years, increased attention has been drawn to th…

Hakeem Jeffries’ Black Baptist upbringing has shaped his role as House minority leader. Jeffries, a liberal Democrat, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, a conservative Republican, recently took turns reading Scripture at the National Prayer Breakfast. The politicians share a deep-rooted Christianity but differ in how they apply religion to politics. Jeffries spoke in depth with The Associated Press about his faith, which is rooted in the Black social gospel, inspired by civil rights leaders and cen…

A Yale professor has filed a federal gender discrimination lawsuit against a prominent Harlem church after it did not hire her for its senior pastor job. The suit brought by Eboni Marshall Turman accuses Abyssinian Baptist Church and the search committee chair of treating her unfairly because she is a woman. The church and the chair dispute these allegations and called the search process fair and rigorous. The church spokesperson said in a statement that Marshall Turman had an impressive backgro…

Before his peers would label him a heretic, the late Bishop Carlton D. Pearson was once one of the best known preachers in the United States.