Blake Speaks on the Black Church, Conservative Values

By John Jessup

CBN News Correspondent

August 28, 2008

CBNNews.com - Bishop Charles E. Blake spoke to CBN News about abortion, the relationship between the black church and the mainstream conservative church, and on Barack Obama's nomination. Read his comments below or click play to watch the interview:

Abortion:

As a churchman, as a Christian as a believer, as a preacher of the Gospel, I did not feel that I could have such a platform and speak in such a situation without saying something about one of the great tragedies that exist within the life of our nation. And that is the abortion of millions of children who cannot speak for themselves - cannot defend themselves.

It seems that there has just been a routine casual acceptance of this high rate of abortions in our nation and to have such a platform and be asked to speak -- they placed no restrictions upon me and so I place none upon myself.

I spoke very firmly from my heart regarding the fact that I think - number one - we must understand that there has to be a better way to operate as a nation. There has to be the presentation of alternatives and options to our nation, rather just routinely, haphazardly, carelessly moving into this level of abortions in our nation.

The Black Church and Conservative Values:

Blake: In the black church as a black church leader, there is a real dilemma that we face. The black church, of course, has been in the leadership of the whole civil rights movement and enhancement of black people in the United States. Thus, we have had to find partners who would walk with us on the road toward freedom and who would stand with us in the fight for civil rights and who would sympathize with the plight of African Americans in America, especially during those days when we could not eat at restaurants - could not live in hotels - could not go to integrated schools - we did not have the rights that citizens of the United States had.

And we had partners and unfortunately those of us who joined with us were individuals from more liberal traditions than from conservative traditions: the Unitarians, the liberal wings of the Methodist church and the Episcopal church and the Catholic church and a number of churches. But, the mainline conservative churches in the southern parts of our nation were on the other side of the issue and did not sympathize with our aspirations.

And so we had real relationships with liberal churches that did not believe the Bible like we believed it and did not believe the doctrines like we believed. And when we came to our biblical beliefs and our doctrines regarding the trinity, regarding heaven, regarding hell, regarding the integrity of the Bible then we found that our faith was most like some of the more conservative fundamentalists of the white Christian churches. And, even now, there is this kind of dilemma because we are very liberal socially, liberal economically, because this is where our freedom came from. But on the other hand, on abortion, on gay marriage, we have a conservative bent, but we have no close relationship with those who share these beliefs with us regarding the Bible and sin and righteousness. It's a dilemma.

Obama Nomination:

It causes me to be able to share with the people with whom I minister that the sky is the limit - there are no more boundaries. You're no longer restricted in terms of your potential, you're no longer restricted in terms of what you can be, what you can do, where you can go in life. We can just encourage young people, pull back the limits. Don't feel that because you're black, because you're a minority, because you're handicap in some way, because you are poor that you are not going to be able to reach the top. You can.

BACK TO MAIN ARTICLE:
Obama Nomination: MLK's Dream Fulfilled?