This past month the AME church in Charleston, South Carolina proved it has become the church that love built. This 199-year-old house of worship exhibits a rich history. Founded in 1816, it is the oldest African Methodist Episcopal church in the South, and boasts the oldest historically black congregation south of Baltimore. It has lovingly been referred to as “Mother Emanuel.” However, this beautiful, white-steepled edifice houses something much richer than its significant history. As all of America grieved at the horrific racist massacre of nine black Christians as they studied the Bible, the relatives of those who died responded with forgiveness rather than hate.
Can I honestly say that would be my reaction if my own family had been murdered? Certainly not within the first 24 hours. I would have had to process my anger first. But these people immediately responded to a hate crime by offering love and forgiveness. This church is more than a pretty building; it is a group of people who teach one another how the King of Love, Jesus, acts toward his fellow man. These people have immersed themselves in the principles of the kingdom of God. Love your enemies. Do good to those who despitefully use you.
My historical novel for kids, Dark Enough to See the Stars, chronicles the escape of a twelve-year-old slave boy from his plantation in Maryland. I studied many slave biographies as I researched my book. Stories of the horrors of slavery abounded. But heroic accounts of people both black and white, who helped slaves escape, were hidden among the tragic tales. I chose to write about these heroes of the Underground Railroad.
Recently, I wrote a blog about the tragedy in Baltimore. I stated that we need to herald those who champion love over hate. I added that it’s high time we write and published the stories of those who diffuse racism, rather than of those who ignite it. These nine martyrs and their families championed love. And nothing unarms hate as convincingly as love.