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A Night For Watching The New And Old Blend

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 31, 2008

Watch Night services are about as old as black churches in America.

Maybe that's why many people mistake it for a religious service.

Actually, the tradition dates back to Dec. 31, 1862. Black slaves gathered in churches to pray and await word of their freedom, promised on Jan. 1, 1863, by President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.

They were excited about the hope of for freedom. You can say it was political. Blacks had been lied to and betrayed so many times, it was hard to take anyone at his word - even the president. Those slaves were not dumb. The church service was often used to disguise their true intentions. The slaves did not want to tip off their masters that they had freedom on their minds.

They had every reason to be cautious. This was long before cable television, text messaging, e-mail, cell phones and the other forms of modern technology that connect us around the globe in mere seconds. History teaches us that not all slaves participated in Watch Night services in 1862 because some did not receive word of their emancipation until much later.

A second possible reason for the New Year's Eve tradition, according to former journalist Charyn Sutton, is more painful. During slavery, families were broken up like livestock to settle debts, and most debts were settled around the first of the year.

Local Watch Night services generally don't reflect the origins of the tradition, though.

"Only few people are aware of the history," said the Rev. Donald Smith, senior pastor at Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Lacoochee. "I have never attended a Watch Night where time was set aside to teach the history."

Today, Watch Night services are strictly about singing, preaching and making New Year's resolutions. In many ways, they are no different from other special church programs, such as anniversaries, men's and women's programs, family and friend days, etc.

I don't expect this year's service to mark the return of an activist-minded church. But with President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration on the horizon, there will be calls to the most high to send his success, protection and good will to the nation's first black president. Overall, the black church is ecstatic about Obama. The common language in the church is that his victory is God's answer to prayers a long time in the making. If you are looking for something to do on New Year's Eve, you might consider taking in a Watch Night service.

Several local churches typically join together to celebrate Watch Night. At Mount Moriah, for example, the congregation will be joined by First Mount Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church, Mount Zion, Mount Olive and New Bethel AME churches. St. John Missionary Baptist Church and the Church of the Living God will come to St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in Dade City.

Both those services start at 10 p.m.

Even though history isn't a big part of local Watch Night services, it's important. We must teach our children their history, so they can gain a better perspective of their status in the world. People have a tendency to follow tradition without asking why. Perhaps that's what led Malcolm X to say, "Of all of our studies, history is best prepared to reward our research." There are not many who knew the importance of history better than Malcolm X.

Imani Asukile is a longtime Dade City resident and a founder of the African American Heritage Society of East Pasco County. To suggest a future column, e-mail idasukile@yahoo.com.

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