Leisure in the Life of the 21st Century Black Church: Re-Thinking the Gift

Scholarship devoted to examining the role that leisure plays in the life of the Black Church is lacking. Leisure is an important facet of congregational life in African American churches and permeates congregational dynamics on multiple levels. The purpose of this essay is to examine leisure in the life of the Black Church and posit how a healthy, theologically accurate understanding of the value of leisure can help with health and wellness promotion, community-economic development and church growth. The Black Church is defined as the eight historically Black denominations: African Methodist Episcopal, African Methodist Episcopal Zion, Christian Methodist Episcopal, Church of God in Christ, National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., National Baptist Convention of America, National Missionary Baptist Convention, and Progressive National Baptist Convention. How the Black Church defines leisure philosophically and theologically continues to evolve. The focal points of discussion in this paper include: (1) the tension between religious tradition, leisure and the Black Church; (2) the value of leisure to the 21 century Black Church; (3) leisure as a catalyst for promoting physical activity in Black churches; and (4) social leisure as an important facet of congregational life and church growth. among African American churches. This essay also provides examples of how progressive Black churches across the United States have utilized leisure to develop health promotion programs, and to spur church growth. Finally, this paper calls for additional research specific to leisure and the Black Church along with the espousal of a meaningful theology of leisure by Black churches. There is a well documented history of predominately black churches utilizing leisure and recreation to create a sense of solidarity and community among African Americans (Mamiya 1990; Pinn, 2008). During tumultuous periods in U.S. history, the Black Church served as a safe haven for African Americans, creating opportunities for fun and fellowship despite the seriousness of the times. The constructive use of leisure became a mechanism for individual, familial and corporate resilience. Historically, African American churches have played a major role in shaping leisure attitudes and behaviors (Holland, 2002). Misguided doctrinal statements and religious tradition sometimes fueled the negative stigma attached to leisure. There are recorded instances in African American church history where specific leisure activities have been labeled as being “of the devil” or “ungodly” (Pinn, 2008; Sanders, 1996). The scholarly literature in recreation and leisure studies, religion or sociology does not chronicle the conceptual framework from which African Americans conceptualized or operationalized the term leisure. Over the span of time, these definitional and theological unclarities, created tension between the virtuous and that which is perceived to be vice-laden. Individual and corporate constraints to leisure became prevalent, particularly in the older predominately black denominations and their member churches (Waller, 2009).