The Soul of Change: Black Churches in Lynchburg
By Austin Gaebe, Museum Experience Leader
“The Sabbath is not regarded by a large number of the slaves as a day of rest... Those who make no profession of religion, ~f the African Slave Trade and Slave Life in the Early African Diaspora. http www.slaveryimages.org s slaveryimages item 985
Starting in the 16th century, the Catholic Spaniards, Protestant Dutch, and Anglican British among others stole and purchased millions of Africans from their homelands to work in the Americas as enslaved laborers. On top of the unimaginable cost of human lives, the transatlantic slave trade severed the newly enslaved Africans from their ancestral cultures, forcing them to reconsider their spiritual practices in the New World.
This image, taken from the Illustrated London News in 1863 shows an enslaved preacher speaking to Black congregants ~the African Slave Trade and Slave Life in the Early African Diaspora, http www.slaveryimages.org s slaveryimages item 1853
Contrary to popular belief, new research shows that Christian missionary efforts by white enslavers and white supervision of enslaved religious activity did not begin in earnest until the early nineteenth century. In the previous decades of slavery in the United States, most enslavers did not consider the spiritual lives of those they enslaved too deeply because if those they enslaved followed Western Christianity, it may create an ethical dilemma for their Western Christian enslavers. And while eventually, white Christians created an entire body of literature defending the institution of slavery on religious grounds, in Lynchburg, Virginia, the Quakers recognized this inherent conflict fairly early. From the 1770s through the early nineteenth century, they emancipated many of the Africans they enslaved, and excommunicated members who continued to participate in the business of enslaving other human beings.
In the early 1800s, enslaved communities on plantations created spaces to express their faith which historians now call “invisible churches.” These churches often incorporated an amalgamation of the remnants of African religions, and Christian theology, but also served as centers for camaraderie and even organizing. In 1831, enslaved preacher Nat Turner planned his rebellion out of one of these invisible churches; the backlash after this deadly event included a concerted missionary effort from white enslavers. After seeing the violence and rage simmering among the enslaved populations, plantation owners and overseers across Virginia took great interest in the spiritual practice of enslaved people, quashing any hint of African paganism and replacing it with Eurocentric Christianity. Nat Turner’s Rebellion was a turning point in white people’s attitude toward Black religious practices.
Court Street Baptist Church exterior, 1967. Gift of Pamela Smith-Johnson and David A. Smith, 2014.59.303M
In 1843, Black congregants of the white-led First Baptist Church in Lynchburg broke away to establish the African Baptist Church. Due to the fear of another slave rebellion, independence from white congregation was not fully possible. For the African Baptist Church, their congregation still needed approval from the white-led denomination and a white minister had to be present for every sermon. Initially the white Baptists supported the idea of a separate, but serveilled house of worship. However, the tide began to turn on the newly independent Black congregation after the Civil War when they decided to construct their church in the affluent Court Street neighborhood.
Some white community members tried and failed to price out the burgeoning congregation from the site. Three decades later, Court Street Baptist Church was topped off at 167 feet, the tallest building in Lynchburg at the time. Today, the beautiful craftsmanship of Black carpenters, bricklayers, and stonemasons can be seen today and the congregation continues to impact the local Baptist community of Lynchburg.
Exterior of Jackson Street United Methodist Church, courtesy of Austin Gaebe
During the same post-war period, Black congregants of the various Methodist churches around Lynchburg placed the cornerstone for their own church on the corner of Jackson and Ninth Streets in 1866. In the spirit of Radical Reconstruction, the congregation partnered with the Freedmen's Bureau to improve the lives of the recently emancipated Black community of Lynchburg through new churches and schools. Jackson Street United Methodist Church (UMC) also owned and operated the city’s first Black cemetery in White Rock Hill.
Reconstruction efforts were short-lived, but the post-war population boom in Lynchburg also meant a proliferation of Black churches across the city. White Rock Chapel on Florida Avenue, the African Methodist Episcopal Church on Fillmore Street, Central Presbyterian on Clay Street, the St. Francis de Sales Catholic Mission on Twelfth Street, and others expanded opportunities for Black Christians to worship together. Diamond Hill Baptist Church boasts a long history of local civic engagement, community organizing, and charitable programs since its founding in 1872. In the 20th century, a series of ministers at Diamond Hill Baptist brought a radical sensibility to the congregation with a strong emphasis on civil rights. Reverend W. J. Hodge and his successor Rev. Virgil Wood used their nationwide connections to civil rights leaders to inspire their congregation and establish Diamond Hill as a hub for local activism.
Winston family wedding at Jackson Street United Methodist Church, c.mid-20th century Gift of Pamela Smith-Johnson and David A. Smith
Diamond Hill Baptist Church, interior, c. mid-20th century. Gift of Pamela Smith-Johnson and David A. Smith
Rev. Wood’s friendship with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was especially valuable to the congregation that courageously took a stand against segregation in Lynchburg. In 1960, an interracial group of college students met at Diamond Hill to organize a sit-in at the lunch counter at Patterson’s Drug Store on Main Street, directly inspired by the nonviolent activism of Dr. King. While local newspapers labeled him an “agitator” and claimed he was involved with Communist organizations, Dr. Wood remained a strong leader to both his congregation and the Black community, even after his tenure as minister of Diamond Hill came to an end in 1963.
Exterior of Diamond Hill Baptist Church, photograph taken by Austin Gaebe
Black churches now confront a host of challenges ranging from aging congregations, COVID-19 restrictions, increasingly expensive upkeep on historic structures, and income inequality in Black communities. We recognize the legacy of the Black church and appreciate how faith, advocacy, inner strength, or community fortify these congregations against such challenges even today.