Appreciative Inquiry... Impacting Black Catholic Communities
The National Black Catholic Congress' Leadership Commissions
By Christopher Anne Easley, Ph.D.
(Article: Page 2 of 2)

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NBCC Special Report: A Proven Foundation For Fruitful Ministry ~ Congress X Plan of Action NBCC Special Report: A Report from the NBCC Commission on HIV and AIDS NBCC Special Report: Appreciative Inquiry: Impacting Black Catholic Communities NBCC Special Report: Blessings Received In Buffalo! NBCC Special Report: Crisis in Sudan: Ending the Violence NBCC Special Report: Pope Benedict XVI NBCC Special Report: Progress on First Year Goals of the Pastoral Plan of Action NBCC Special Report: Welcoming the G8 Commitments; Calling for Action

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To date, the commissions have been diligently working on identifying and communicating recommended models and resources. However, to ensure that they are obtaining and recommending best practices, there is a need to include additional representation from the Black Catholic community.

Your Invitation to Become Part of the Change Process

Our ability to implement change as identified in the Pastoral Plan of Action for the Eight Principles is critical. Our communities still struggle. It has been suggested that despite the perception of steady progress in our struggle for real freedom, justice and equality in the twentieth century, the twenty-first century offers no guarantee or similar progress because added to those struggles is now a struggle for mere survival (Ashby, 2003). Even in today's economic climate, we continue to see twenty percent of young black men neither in school or working. As we emerged into this century, we have continued to see major reforms in our social systems, attacks on affirmative action, and judicial decisions on voting rights that have moved us backwards from past progress (Ashby, 2003). Although there have been major advances in medical science, we are dying in epidemic proportions from a few illnesses and health-related conditions, many which can very easily can be tied to the impact of stress upon our spirits, minds and bodies... stress that emanates from just trying to survive it in this turbulent society (Ashby, 2003). Equally critical, our children are becoming increasingly at risk for HIV-AIDS. When you add the fact that homicide and HIV-AIDS are the two leading causes of death among blacks between the ages of 15-34, it is easy to understand why a call to action that drives critical change is imperative (Ashby, 2003).

We can not rely upon others to change our circumstances. Throughout our history, Black people in America have survived and thrived with a spirit of hope and determination since the beginning of slavery. Although we suffered two hundred plus years of slavery, 100 years of legal segregation, and decades of de facto oppression, we have held on and worked towards freedom....a resilience that has been passed from generation to generation (Hopkins, 2005). However, we must stop the cycle of loosing ground and restore our determination to build a better life for our future generations. We cannot kid ourselves that we have arrived. We have to turn to our past successes in order to restore hope for a better and sustaining future.

This need demonstrates why AI is so critical for our Black Catholic communities. The structure of the methodology forces us to remember and celebrate our past accomplishments in order to garner renewed resilience to meet today's challenges...despite how difficult they may be. And, we must continue to work as a collective unit. It is part of our African heritage...a collective phenomenon, which respects the uniqueness of the individual self as a component of the collectivity (Akbar, 2003). Therefore, over the next few months we are asking you, as part of our collective to utilize our website and post as well as discuss those strategies and models that are working well in your community as you implement the Pastoral Plan of Action. This forum will also serve as an opportunity to learn more about how Appreciative Inquiry can be infused into the life of all our Black Catholic communities.

To begin this open and international discussion, a sampling of the Leadership Commissions has provided you with information about the work that they are currently doing. The commissioners will continue to provide you with updates throughout the remainder of this year. We hope this information serves as a catalyst for your input and insights.

Please provide your input! If you have models, thoughts and reflections on, or activities associated with the implementation of the Pastoral Plan of Action as it pertains to the Eight Principles that you believe should be shared with others in our Black Catholic communities, post your information. We will be especially excited to hear about change initiatives that have a positive appreciative focus. We must continue uplifting our communities. God Bless

Christopher Anne Easley, Ph.D.

References

Akbar, N. (2003). Akbar Papers in African Psychology, Tallahassee: Mind productions.

Ashby, H. (2003). Our Home is Over Jordan: A Black Pastoral Theology, St. Louis: Chalice Press

Cooperrider, D. Cooperrider, D. (1986). Appreciative inquiry: Toward a methodology for understanding and enhancing organizational innovation. Unpublished dissertation, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland.

Hopkins, D. (2005). Black Theology of Liberation. New York: Orbis Books

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