Excerpts from http://www.cleveland.com/religion/index.ssf/2008/10/black_churches_in_cleveland.html

Forward on faith: The black church in the city
by David Briggs/Plain Dealer Religion Reporter
Saturday October 11, 2008, 8:00 PM

…"'We've got to quit looking back'

Sunlight streams through the stained-glass windows facing East 79th Street as soloist Evelyn Davis moves back and forth singing, "He's an on-time God. Yes, he is." The women's choir seamlessly blends in with the powerful affirmation, "On-time God. Yes, he is."

One by one, congregation members rise, and sway and clap with the music. Choir director Anita Caswell, who can be a flurry of raised arms and pumping fists when she feels more energy is needed, is beaming, moving in sync with the singers and the congregation.

She does not have to turn around to see the response from the pews. This morning, she knows the Holy Spirit is here.

These are the moments congregations like Emmanuel cherish, spirit-stirring worship that replenishes the pool of faith, which gives members the strength for daily living. It is the source they draw on for the volunteer effort to keep a church tradition in the city alive and to serve the neighborhood with programs from a weekly meal for the needy to computer literacy classes for youth.

Yet as the black church faces the challenges of the 21st century, tradition can be a stumbling block, observers say.

A generation raised on computers, iPods and video games expects more compelling musical and dramatic presentations. They demand the relaxed dress codes they find at work and public places such as theaters and restaurants.

…In the past, "No matter what happens, you went to mama's church. . . . Now mama and grandma are dying and the kids are gone," says the Rev. R.A. Vernon, pastor of The Word Church, a megachurch in Warrensville Heights. "Any church that doesn't catch the switch and make the shift is going to die."

For Emmanuel, making the shift could involve anything from welcoming young people in T-shirts to providing more preaching opportunities for women to offering more contemporary music.

Traditions die hard, however.

When Cobb came to Emmanuel, he replaced the Rev. Sterling Glover, who retired in 2006 after 42 years. The congregation skews dramatically older, with many members in their 60s, 70s and 80s.

Some of his first changes were cosmetic: painting the walls, polishing the pews and installing new lights to brighten the place.

Other changes, such as music programs that appeal to youth and a different dress code so newcomers will not feel like outsiders, will take time, he and church members acknowledge.

Janette Holland, who joined Emanuel in 1926 at age 10, still wears a hat and dress to Sunday worship because "I'm bringing my best to the master." But she, like other members, backs Cobb's efforts.

"We older women have to learn to accept the change. That's the hardest part," Holland says. "We've got to quit looking back." …