Vashti McKenzie
Women at the first March on Washington: a secretary, a future bishop and a marshal
By Adelle M. Banks — August 17, 2023
(RNS) — ‘You wanted to present your best selves,’ recalled Bishop Vashti McKenzie, who was 16 at the time. ‘There was no one in jeans and T-shirts that I recall.’
Bishop Vashti McKenzie on leading National Council of Churches as it nears 75 years
By Adelle M. Banks — May 31, 2023
(RNS) — ‘I think that the difference, at this point, is that I am adding activism to advocacy,’ she said as she became NCC president after serving as interim leader.
Faith leaders ask Biden to mark Mother’s Day with prayer day against gun violence
By Adelle M. Banks — May 3, 2023
(RNS) — Fellowship of Reconciliation leaders, who organized the letter, also pointed out ties that have been found between Christian nationalism and opposition to gun control legislation.
60 years on, King’s ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’ relevant as ever, say faith leaders
By Adelle M. Banks — April 28, 2023
(RNS) — King’s response to white clergy critics endures as a ‘road map’ for those working on justice and equal rights.
Faith leaders urge Biden to sign executive order for reparations study by Juneteenth
By Adelle M. Banks — March 1, 2023
(RNS) — They urged Biden to base an order on the structure of H.R. 40, legislation proposed for decades that has yet to pass on Capitol Hill.
A new vision for the National Prayer Breakfast
By Paul Brandeis Raushenbush — February 2, 2023
(RNS) — Will the new organizers of this annual event embrace our founding principle of freedom of belief for all?
Tyre Nichols police beating video prompts faith leaders to react with grief, goals
By Adelle M. Banks — January 28, 2023
(RNS) — They expressed grief and prayers for Nichols’ family, as well as called for national and state legislation. Some questioned whether the video of the police beating of Nichols should be watched.
‘Blessing of Elders’ lauds 7 Black Christian luminaries at Museum of the Bible gala
By Adelle M. Banks — June 24, 2022
(RNS) — ‘I believe the 21st century will see the Black church lead the way to hope and healing in a deeply divided nation,’ said the Rev. A.R. Bernard.
Clergy of color face unprecedented mental health challenges
By Deepa Bharath and Adelle M. Banks — June 2, 2022
(AP/RNS) — Exhausted faith leaders are left with serious questions about how to care for their own physical and mental well-being while helping congregants in a meaningful way.
Bishop Vashti McKenzie to lead National Council of Churches for next two years
By Adelle M. Banks — May 10, 2022
(RNS) — McKenzie succeeds Jim Winkler, who left the ecumenical organization on Jan. 31.
Former NBA player Stan McKenzie, husband of first woman AME Church bishop, dead at 76
By Adelle M. Banks — July 21, 2021
(RNS) — Less than two weeks before, his wife — Bishop Vashti McKenzie — thanked her spouse as she made farewell remarks at the African Methodist Episcopal Church’s General Conference.
Retiring Bishop Vashti McKenzie, first AME Church woman prelate, reflects on a groundbreaking career
By Adelle M. Banks — July 16, 2021
(RNS) — ‘Do I think that women can do this? Yes,’ McKenzie said. ‘Do I think the women that have been elected in my denomination have done an exceptional job? Absolutely.’
The Obama presidency: ‘War on religion’ or ‘Amazing Grace’?
By Adelle M. Banks — January 9, 2017
WASHINGTON (RNS) A president who had been viewed as reticent about his faith wowed many when he sang ‘Amazing Grace’ at a funeral for a Charleston, S.C., shooting victim. But his record on issues that matter to faith groups was mixed.
#blacklivesmatter in Mark Burnett and Roma Downey’s ‘A.D.’
By Adelle M. Banks — April 1, 2015
(RNS) Mark Burnett and Roma Downey's "The Bible" miniseries was criticized as too white. Now they're back with "A.D.," and the cast is more multicultural than you might imagine.
Who should step in to pray at Obama’s inauguration?
By Kevin Eckstrom — January 11, 2013
Here's our list of (real and imagined) possibilities. Some are obvious, some less so. For our betting dollars, we're banking on someone in Louie Giglio's profile: unique but not necessarily a household name.
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