Reverend Johnny Ray Youngblood on Translating Faith Into Action

Reverend Youngblood is the leader of St. Paul Community Baptist Church in one of Brooklyn's poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods. Youngblood came to the church and turned it around from a dying institution to a thriving center for religious and community activity. It has created a school and, through innovative programs, brought young black men back into the church. St. Paul's has also, as part of a coalition with other churches, built housing in the area and replaced brothels and numbers joints. "Upon This Rock: The Miracles of a Black Church" by Samuel G.

Of the Canaan AME church in Columbia, Tennessee, Pastor Dennis Lawson. In January last year the church was damaged when three local men erected a cross and threw fire bombs into the basement kitchen-area. In the last 18 months, over three dozen churches with predominantly black congregations have been destroyed or damaged in fires. LAWSON and other church leaders have joined forces to support each other in the wake of this crisis. Today, he discussed the epidemic in Washington with President Clinton, Vice President Gore, and members of the cabinet.

Michael Eric Dyson is considered one of our most important black intellectuals. He's also an ordained Baptist minister who once struggled as an 18-year old father in Detroit. His work has appeared in "The New York Times," "Rolling Stone," "Vibe" and other publications. His new book is "Between God and Gangsta Rap" (Oxford University Press) about contemporary Black culture. Dyson teaches at the University of North Carolina where he is a Professor of Communications Studies.