09/01/2026
ARE THEY WORTH SAVING? | The Future of Black Denominations
For generations, Black conventions and denominations have helped educate our people, plant churches, support missions, develop leaders, fight for justice, and provide institutional strength to the Black Church.
But we have to ask a difficult question:
Are these institutions still relevant to the Black Church of today, or have they become relics of another era?
Pastor Isaiah sits down with Rev. Zion McGregor, newly appointed Director of Church Planting and Revitalization for the National Baptist Convention, USA, for an important conversation about the present condition and future possibilities of Black denominations.
Rev. McGregor recently wrote “The Artery: Reimagining the Work of the State Convention,” arguing that while our structures may need serious reconstruction, “the structures are not sacred; the mission is.”
We’re talking about the issues many younger pastors and leaders are already discussing privately: outdated structures, denominational politics, declining participation, generational disconnect, church planting, theological integrity, technology, leadership development, institutional reform, and whether a new generation should walk away from these institutions or stay and rebuild them.
Can institutions created to meet the challenges of the Black Church more than a century ago be reimagined for the challenges of the 21st century?
Should we abandon them? Reform them? Or build something entirely new?
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