Black Church Health Advocacy: Tradition & Inspiration for Re-Enchantment
Kirk Johnson, Doctorate, Adjunct Professor, Berkeley College
Since its inception, the black church has been a spiritual, social, and political resource for minority communities. The spiritual discipline of black theology can be used to empower particular concerns for justice in medical care. Such theology contributes to re-enchantment indicating the need for the voice, participation, and interdependence of minorities. Black theology can be used as a tool of healing and empowerment for health equity and awareness by exploring black theology’s response to the challenges of medicine. Inhumane racial history created health inequities and disparaging factors that influenced minority communities’ social determinants of health. In response, the black church has evolved into a resource of health advocacy. The black church has progressively gotten better incorporating health education, literacy, and health partnerships within its congregations. Current black church health movements continue the advancement for health equity in communities of color. The black church has a unique position creating dialogue in medical, religious, and theological settings on how health disparities affect minority communities and exploring ways it can respond through biblical inspiration and advocacy. However, there is still more work for the black church to do. This paper presentation is a reflection of past black church health advocacy movements with suggestions on how current black church health advocacy can re-enchant medicine in minority communities.
Since its inception, the black church has been a spiritual, social, and political resource for minority communities. The spiritual discipline of black theology can be used to empower particular concerns for justice in medical care. Such theology contributes to re-enchantment indicating the need for the voice, participation, and interdependence of minorities. Black theology can be used as a tool of healing and empowerment for health equity and awareness by exploring black theology’s response to the challenges of medicine. Inhumane racial history created health inequities and disparaging factors that influenced minority communities’ social determinants of health. In response, the black church has evolved into a resource of health advocacy. The black church has progressively gotten better incorporating health education, literacy, and health partnerships within its congregations. Current black church health movements continue the advancement for health equity in communities of color. The black church has a unique position creating dialogue in medical, religious, and theological settings on how health disparities affect minority communities and exploring ways it can respond through biblical inspiration and advocacy. However, there is still more work for the black church to do. This paper presentation is a reflection of past black church health advocacy movements with suggestions on how current black church health advocacy can re-enchant medicine in minority communities.