African American churches in the United States embody the union between the political and the sacred.
Its importance is linked to the harsh reality of a country that was segregated for decades and in which these congregations were the only space where the black community could debate freely.
Leaders such as the Reverend Martin Luther King turned to Baptist and Methodist churches to promote the civil rights movement and, now, the US president, Joe Biden, returns to them in search of the support necessary to defeat Donald in the November elections. Trump, favorite to be the Republican candidate.
In less than three weeks,
Biden has visited three African-American churches in South Carolina,
the state that will inaugurate the Democratic primary process this Saturday and where 60% of the voters are expected to be African-American.
The first temple he visited was Mother Emanuel in Charleston, the oldest African-American congregation in the southern United States and where on June 17, 2015, a white supremacist shot dead nine parishioners and wounded five.
Among the fatalities was Pastor Clementa C. Pinckney.
His successor, the Reverend Eric SC Manning, received EFE in his office, full of paintings, including the image of a white dove and another black one, united in a sign of reconciliation.
Before beginning the interview, he asked to read an excerpt from a sermon he delivered a week ago from the pulpit: "Today, as we approach a crucial election, it is more important than ever for the African-American church to be fervent and ready to vote. “By harnessing your collective power and influence, you can determine the future of our nation and ensure community voices are heard loud and clear.”
President Joe Biden, at a Baptist church in West Columbia, South Carolina, days ago.
Photo: REUTERS
Democracy at stake
The United States, in his opinion, is putting both its democracy and its freedom at risk in November.
Manning is concerned that images such as those of the 2021 assault on the Capitol will be repeated, in which Trump supporters broke into the parliamentary headquarters to prevent Biden's victory at the polls from being certified, causing the death of five people while four Police officers later committed suicide.
That mob
waved Confederate flags in Congress
, a symbol of racism and slavery in the Civil War.
The perpetrator of the shooting of Mother Emanuel resorted to that same symbol of the Confederacy, who took photographs of himself with that banner on numerous occasions and, before the crime, published a racist manifesto to justify her actions.
Two days after the attack, the victims' loved ones publicly forgave the perpetrator of the shooting, who was sentenced to life in prison.
Manning believes that all people "need grace, mercy and forgiveness," but he emphasizes the importance of there being a "time of repentance" and, so far, Trump has expressed no remorse for either the assault on the Capitol or the other crimes of those who are accused.
Biden's mourning
The reverend's view of Biden is very different.
The relationship between the current president and Mother Emanuel began in 2015 when the then president, Barack Obama (2009-2017), attended a religious service in memory of the victims of the shooting.
During that ceremony, Obama sang "Amazing Grace," bringing the entire congregation to their feet to transform pain into music.
Biden, present in the audience, was going through a particularly difficult time since she had just buried her son Beau, who died from a brain tumor.
"Biden was going through a period of grieving. His family came here at a time when they needed comfort. And he himself has said that he came looking to provide comfort and yet ended up receiving it. That's what made a connection with this church "Manning explained.
The president,
a Catholic who goes to mass every week,
has praised the role that African-American churches have historically played in politics and has asked them for help in confronting the "very dark" moment that the United States is experiencing.
"The truth is being attacked in the United States. Our freedoms, our democracy, are also being attacked," he said in his speech to Mother Emanuel three weeks ago.
"And - he emphasized - without light, there is no truth. Without truth there is no path that allows us to get out of the darkness."
Source: EFE
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02/02/13-20/24