Miami Dade College Joins Florida Humanities Council to Host Black Church Evolution
Event to feature discussions with local scholars and religious leaders
Dr. Dwight N. Hopkins from the University of Chicago Divinity School will lecture during the “Black Church Evolution” event on Saturday, Sept. 6, at the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center in Miami.
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Miami, Friday, August 29, 2008 - Thanks to a grant from the Florida Humanities Council, Miami Dade College (MDC) will participate in a one-day community cultural event designed to increase awareness and understanding of black church culture and its impact on socioeconomic issues, politics, and more. The event titled, the Black Church Evolution: Liberation Theology and its Appeal to Black Americans, will be held on Saturday, September 6, 2008 at 11 a.m., at the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center. The event is free and open to the public.
Organized by the college’s Carrie P. Meek Entrepreneurial Education Center, the program will feature a lecture from Master Theologian Dr. Dwight N. Hopkins from the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is a noted scholar on Liberation Theology, a prolific writer and expert on the works of James Cone, recognized as the founder of Black Theology. Also included in the program, a discussion with local pastor and MDC adjunct professor, Rev. Joaquin Willis of Church of the Open Door in Liberty City; Dr. Michelle Gonzalez Maldonado, University of Miami professor of religious studies; Rev. Dr. C.P. Preston, Jr., pastor of Peaceful Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Liberty City; and the Rev. Mark Gardner, of Northside Church of God in Miami. There will also be a concert featuring the Peaceful Zion Mass Choir, a soul food buffet, and a film screening of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “I Have a Dream” documentary in honor of the 45th anniversary of his famous speech during the March on Washington in 1963.
“We are delighted to have received support from the Florida Humanities Council to stage what we are sure will be a thoughtful and enriching discussion,” said Dr. José A. Vicente, MDC North Campus President. “We are always seeking to demonstrate the relevance of education in creating an informed and active citizenry.”
“Recent events this year have shed a national spotlight on Black church culture, preaching and theology and the College is using its role as an educational institution to capitalize on this teachable moment and make the public more aware of the connection between society and education and our role as knowledge purveyors,” said H. Leigh Toney, executive director of MDC’s Meek Entrepreneurial Education Center. “We have a unique ability to host events of this nature given our ability to draw upon the expertise of our faculty to inform and provoke discussion.”
The Florida Humanities Council funds academic and cultural events that spotlight varying topics related to humanities as a discipline.
- WHAT: “The Black Church Evolution: Liberation Theology and its Appeal to Black Americans,” event featuring discussions, a concert and film screening.
- WHEN: Saturday, Sep. 6, 11:00 AM - Monday, Sep. 29, 1:30 PM
- WHERE: African Heritage Cultural Arts Center, 6161 N.W. 22nd Avenue, Miami
- COST: Free
Media-only contacts:
Juan Mendieta, 305-237-7611, jmendiet@mdc.edu, MDC communications director
Tarnell Carroll, 305-237-3359, tcarroll@mdc.edu