African American religions online

"Church has been a safe place for us. It’s been a safe harbor. Now here we are faced with the inability to come together. The roots of the black church in America has always been an underground concept, whether it was to steal away on the plantation or to meet in the evenings to plan a strategy for the civil rights movement..... [T]he first-century person would not have had an idea of a concept of going to a place for church. Church was wherever the relationships were – where the people were. The coronavirus may be a gift [to help us get back to] the most authentic expression of church.”

- Paul J. James, pastor of CareView Community Church (in Andre Kimo Stone Guess, "In age of the coronavirus, touching and reaching souls is different now for the black church")

Articles on African American Churches and Mosques

Note: Some links may be paywalled.


Webinars/Online events

Center for Practical Ethics, Kansas City, “African American Religious and Spiritual Perspectives on COVID-19 Pandemic.”

7th District AME Church, “Creating Community Virtually,” Facebook Live, March 21, 2020. [Live discussion with Dr. Rikesha Fry Brown, Rev. Dr. Krystal Sears, Rev. Russell St. Bernard, Rev. Dr. Shakira Sanchez-Collins, Rev. Stephen Green, Rev. Walter S. Thomas, Jr., Rev. Lakesha Womack, Rev. Kaloma Smith, Rev. Dr. Dominique Robinson. Hosted by Rev. Samuel L. Green, Jr.],





UHDS Staff Group and Headshots 660.4967

Black Baptist Church Outreach Initiatives during the First Phase of COVID-19

Michael Cross

This paper, produced as the final project for AAS/REL 494, Religion and African American Culture in Spring 2020, highlights four Black Baptist churches in America and their community outreach efforts during the coronavirus pandemic. The churches discussed are Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church of Houston, TX; Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church of Chicago, IL; House of Hope Atlanta of Decatur, GA; and New Birth Missionary Baptist Church of Lithonia, GA.

Each church continued to engage in their typical ministry practices during the pandemic via their websites and social media pages. The churches live streamed Sunday morning worship, bible study, youth group meetings, and prayer calls. They also added to their regularly scheduled program with prayer calls with pastors around the country; virtual revival worship experiences streamed on television, radio, and church websites; financial stewardship classes; counseling; support groups for those affected by COVID-19; movie showings; and other activities.

This page also contains a list of a number of National Baptist Convention, Inc. USA/Black Baptist Churches with streaming services available.


African American religion online: Chicago and St. Louis

This chart includes information about online services and activities for African Methodist Episcopal, AME Zion, and CME services in the Chicago area.

African American Online Preaching during COVID-19 (forthcoming)

Lamart Hudson

This project (to be posted later) analyzes the online preaching of African American pastors Craig Groschel, Greg Laurie, and Mike Todd.


African American Christians and COVID-19 (forthcoming)

Cassie Richards

This project (to be posted later) will consider how the ingrained systems of racism and inequality throughout history in America relate to the higher rates of infection and death for COVID 19 in black communities. It will also discuss how religious communities provide social networks and resources for opportunities to black Americans who have otherwise been abused or neglected by public social systems.


African American Muslim organizations

Nation of Islam headquarters (Mosque Mariam, Chicago, Illinois):

Videos of mosque services, March 25, 2020 and April 1, 2020: https://www.noi.org/webcast-archive/