A diverse crowd gathered at Ebenezer Baptist Church on Tuesday evening for a panel discussion on faith, pluralism and what it means to be Black in America as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary.
"A Faithful Struggle: Historically Black Protestant Churches' Reflections at America's 250th," hosted by Interfaith America, a Chicago-based nonprofit, featured Rev. Dr. Gabby Cudjoe Wilkes of Double Love Experience Church in Brooklyn, Rev. Frederick Davie, senior executive vice president at Union Theological Seminary in New York, and Rev. Devon Jerome Crawford, senior pastor of Historic Third Baptist Church in San Francisco. Rev. Dr. John H. Vaughn, Ebenezer's executive pastor, moderated the discussion.
Vaughn opened with questions about pluralism that drew three distinct but complementary answers from the panelists.
For Davie, pluralism meant "active engagement." Wilkes articulated what many in the room appeared to be feeling: "It's not lost on me that approaching 250 years, we're still gathered in a church in the south having an important conversation about what's next."
Crawford offered a model of pluralism in practice. His church, one of the Bay Area's oldest Black congregations, has maintained an annual "congregational exchange" with a nearby synagogue.
"It was not based on how we felt at the time, but staying at the table even when it was hard," Crawford said.
Vaughn expanded the conversation to include audience members. When asked about celebrating Independence Day, Ethel Richards from iEatMorePlants said: "I have no intention of celebrating it." She invoked Frederick Douglass's 1852 speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" — grounding the contemporary moment in a longer historical line of Black critique.
Over 90 minutes, the panelists discussed recent Supreme Court rulings, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the rise of democratic socialism in American cities, and how Black churches can instill self-respect and dignity in young people.
Davie framed a recent Supreme Court decision as validation of participatory democracy: "The Supreme Court did something to affirm the fact that we are better off when we contribute to this thing called democracy."
As the evening concluded, each panelist offered parting thoughts.
Crawford urged attendees to continue showing up to conversations like this one. "That's what helps us build relationships that last past these moments," he said.
Wilkes, who delivered the closing prayer, encouraged people to continue documenting and celebrating moments of joy and humanity. His central message, however, carried an undertone of unflinching realism: "We are still in the fight of our lives."
Davie, who announced he was retiring from Union Theological Seminary that week, paid tribute to Ebenezer. Despite living in New York, he called it his church home, joining services through the congregation's online stream. "This place represents the best of America and the best of Black America," he said.
