Storytelling is an ancient, but unique concept that has laid the foundation for African-American culture. It is more than just an easy way to put children to sleep at night. Storytelling is used to pass down memories and customs, inspire others, encourage laughter, or as a tool for healing. Also, storytelling is a uniting force that can bring people together culturally or spiritually.
The religious aspect of storytelling was perhaps the most interesting portion of this article to me. I never thought of the impact that the stories of the bible have on African-Americans. The article describes how Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would utilize storytelling in his sermons. These stories always start with an everyday problem and end by giving the audience the best way to go about that situation. It gives individuals good advice to carry them through the week. Dr. King used the story of the Good Samaritan from the bible and made it so that everyone could relate to it. This reminded me of the minister at my church. He always adds a humorous story to his sermon. It was not until I read this section of this article that I realized that this is a common approach among African-American preachers. Why is that?
This is probably true because “Many older African-Americans identified with the suffering of Christ, the stories of Moses and the Israelites, and other biblical characters” (Franklin & Dowdy 127). That was the one aspect of life that was easily relatable for most Blacks. Also, religion has always played a big part in the lifestyle of African-Americans, so combining an everyday problem with a biblical solution is very logical. These beliefs and traditions are still alive today, thus these practices are still implemented by Black preachers.
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