The nation’s three largest Black Methodist denominations, the African Methodist Episcopal (headquarters in Philadelphia, PA), African Methodist Episcopal Zion (headquarters in Charlotte, NC) and Christian Methodist Episcopal (based in Memphis, TN) Churches, with combined memberships of more than 5 million, will convene at a historic gathering next month in Columbia, S. C. The ultimate goal of the gathering is to “address the plight of the African-American male and his critical role in America’s families and communities.”

Under the chairmanship of Rev. Dr. Staccato Powell, pastor of the Grace AME Zion Church in Raleigh, NC, this strategic summit has been titled the “Great Gathering” and will be held March 1-3 at the Carolina Coliseum in Columbia. It is the first meeting of the AME, AME Zion and CME churches in more than 45 years.

According to Bishop John R. Bryant, Senior Bishop for the AME Church, the motivation for the Great Gathering was to “send an image and model of unity. Together, all our denominations represent a people and a community with many ills and problems…but we feel strongly that we can overcome all that might separate our churches so we can all focus collectively on what we can do to make things better for our people.”

Adds Bishop George W.C. Walker, Sr., Senior Bishop for the AME Zion Church, “The African-American male is noticeably absent in the church. He is also absent in the home. If we can find answers to what is happening with the Black male in this country, these solutions will have a positive impact on Black family life in this nation.”

Says Bishop William H. Graves, Senior Bishop for the CME Church, “We have the collective resources within our own denominations to address the problems in our communities…We can’t look for the government or other agencies to do this for us. We can do it ourselves.”

Thus, the “Great Gathering” in Columbia, S.C., will bring together the Senior Bishops of the three Black Methodist denominations, politicians, church leaders, civic leaders, educators and others to develop initiatives to combat the problems facing the Black community, with a special focus on African American males ages 12-25.

The “Great Gathering” in Columbia will attract 12,000 attendees of the three African American Methodist denominations whose collective histories date back more than 215 years.  Despite the ascendancy of an African-American male to the position of President of the United States, Black men in this nation continue to be much maligned.  The large number of Black men who are incarcerated as opposed those attending institutions of higher learning; Black-on-Black crime; poverty; unemployment; fatherhood avoidance; and self-esteem issues are but a few of the myriad of problems African American men must face on a daily basis.  There are a number of national mentoring and self-help programs designed to assist and motivate African-American males.  There are also a litany of programs and initiatives aimed at turning Black youth around.

However, to date, there has not been a nationwide effort created and implemented by one of the most influential and powerful segments of the African-American community, the Church.  Such a movement to address the many issues affecting and influencing Black men would indeed have a major impact.