Sunday Worship Services

Go down Moses
Way down in Egypt land
Tell old Pharaoh
To let my people go!
Oh when Israel was in Egypt land
Let my people go!
Oppressed so hard, they could not stand
Let my people go!

-African American Spiritual

Sunday Worship Services Streaming at: https://www.facebook.com/firstafrikan/

The lyrics of the spiritual “Go Down Moses” were used by Harriet Tubman and other conductors of the Underground Railroad to help enslaved Africans in the American South to navigate towards Northern cities safely in hopes of obtaining freedom from bondage. The song is a musical retelling of the events found in the Book of Exodus in which Moses, under the direction of Yahweh, leads the Hebrews out of Egypt, where they found themselves under the yoke of slavery. As African Americans adopted the Biblical text into their sacred ontology, they became the embodiment of the Biblical Hebrews. The ‘South’ was their ‘Egypt’ and the ‘North’ was their ‘Promised Land’ which was flowing with milk and honey. Most importantly, God was seen as the one orchestrating their liberation.

This is not to say that the acknowledgement of God was ushered into the African psyche through the Biblical text or any of the religions that Africans came into contact with outside of their indigenous religious identities. To the contrary, Africans already had an understanding of the Creator, which was syncretized with new nuances but yet continued to undergird their theology. Therefore, God was merely ‘re-imagined’ in the lives of Africans as opposed to being introduced. For Vincent Wimbush and Theophus Smith, Africans understood the text within this perspective. So even a text that was meant to further oppress, was interpreted as a paradigm for liberation.

The message of liberation is still prevalent today depending on how one chooses to read it. As we celebrate the triumphs of African Americans at First African Church, we continue to read the text from the perspective of liberation and acknowledging the God within us before captivity. We will examine the Exodus event and explicate the motifs of freedom and what that looks like in the modern era.

Some Womanist theologians have helped us to see how the plight of Women is usually left out of this discourse and also how while celebrating the liberation of the Israelites, there is a celebration of the subjugation of others. We will, in the spirit of inclusivity also discuss the acts of Women in the text without whom liberation would not be possible. This will be explored especially in the month of March which is Women’s History Month.

We will also highlight themes of the text that help to portray the text as an ‘African’ text which is inherently what it is. Scholars such as Edward Bruce Bynum, Gary Greenberg and Sigmund Freud have argued for an African origin of the Israelites and when the text is read with an African lens, spiritual and religious ideas from Kemetic Culture are realized. More importantly, liberation will be seen as an act of God. The call to Moses to go tell Pharaoh ‘let my people go’ has not changed. God calls us to the same mission today. We are God’s children. Actually, ALL human beings are made in the image and likeness of God.

Sermon Scripture:

Sunday, March 3

Biblical Text: Exodus 2:5-10

Sunday, March 10

Biblical Text: Numbers 12:1-15

Sunday, March 17

Biblical Text: 2 Kings 22:11-20

Sunday, March 24

Biblical Text: Judges 4:4-10

Sunday, March 31

Biblical Text: Mark 15:40 and 16:8