Reconciling the races: Special Feb. 10 service aims at overcoming racial boundaries through faith, fellowship
By DIONNE GLEATON, T&D Staff WriterFriday, February 01, 2008"My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ." -- Colossians 2:2
The Orangeburg-Calhoun Association of Clergy wants to unite all races in the spirit of faith and fellowship during a special Racial Reconciliation Service at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 10, at Stevenson Auditorium in Orangeburg.
"It's certainly fitting for us and what Orangeburg needs," said the Rev. Nate McMillan, pastor of Petra Ministries. "The whole message of unity based upon God's design is being able to connect across racial lines for the purpose of growth and development."
McMillan and the Rev. Jimmy Hanf, pastor of St. George Baptist Church, will be the featured speakers during the free event, sponsored by the Orangeburg-Calhoun Association of Clergy. Petra Ministries and St. George Baptist Church are among the approximately 43 churches included in the Orangeburg-Calhoun Baptist Association, which is part of the South Carolina Southern Baptist Convention.
McMillan said the Southern Baptist Convention has traditionally scheduled its own Racial Reconciliation Sunday among its members, but the idea was to take the message of how to overcome racial barriers to a larger audience with a community-wide service.
"We have to overcome, and we're doing some things to overcome it with our Community of Character and other organizations trying really hard to bridge some gaps," he said. "This is just another way of being able to expand those visions.
"Chapter Four of Ephesians lets us know that there's only one God, and he's the father of all. The whole purpose of that is for each person to ide.jpgy their individual gift and how it connects to the whole."
Individuals and choirs who will be sharing their gifts of song at the service include Claflin University Concert Choir, North Orangeburg United Methodist Church Choir and Ronda Smith, worship minister at St. Andrews United Methodist Church.
Orangeburg Mayor Paul Miller and the Rev. John Powell, pastor of First Church of the Nazarene and current president of the Orangeburg-Calhoun Association of Clergy, will render greetings.
"This is a step beyond the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast in May and the community prayer breakfast in November. I'm sure if they get the involvement they're looking for, it should be a roaring success," said Miller, noting that the service of unity is timely, as it comes on the heels of the 40th anniversary of what has become known as the Orangeburg Massacre.
On Feb. 8, 1968, after three nights of escalating racial tension over efforts by students of then-South Carolina State College and others to desegregate the local All-Star Triangle Bowl, three students were killed and 27 others were injured when South Carolina Highway Patrol troopers opened fire on a crowd of unarmed protesters at the head of the campus.
"It is our purpose to come together as a community to unite in the cause of Christ ... because one day, if you know Christ as your lord and savior, we'll all be together in heaven," Hanf said. "We have so many differences, but when it comes to Christ, we all have a united goal."
Powell said he is looking forward to breaking down the walls of division that often keep races from worshiping and living together in peace and harmony.
"Paul dealt with the division between Jews and Gentiles. That was their problem, but he said that Jesus Christ is our peace who has broken down the walls of division," Powell said. "As Christians, we need to emphasize our peace and that the walls are broken down. That's what I'm looking and praying for in this service. We encourage every Christian to come and be a part of it."
McMillan said while the event is free, a love offering will be collected. Part of the proceeds will be donated to the Claflin University Concert, which has been invited to be part of a choral salute at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, but must raise $170,000 for the trip.
"That's a powerful thing, for our area to be invited to go to the Olympics," McMillan said. "That's almost like winning the Heisman trophy."
T&D Staff Writer Dionne Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5534. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.
