Chicago's April Prayer Breakfast was held in True Light Baptist Church, the home church of Chicago's Co-Convener, Dr. A. Harold White. Acting like a host and an MC in his own home Dr. White guided Chicago's ACLC membership through a spiritual, fulfilling morning. It was Pastor LaRue Kidd's first time to host our monthly prayer breakfast, although Dr. Kidd is a veteran of our Middle East pilgrimage. He has taken over the pastoring duties since Dr. White was elevated to Senior Pastor status. The core group of ACLC pastors was in full attendance. These included Dr. Paul Swanson, Rev. A.I. Dunlap, Rev. Franklin Morris, and Operation Push's Ms. Fannie Smith, who each joined Bishop Kim and Dr. Hycel Taylor at the head table. Rev. W.L. Mobley offered a stirring testimony and along with Dr. White appealed to the assembled body to take membership in Chicago's chapter of the ACLC.

After a delicious breakfast was consumed and all business was taken care of, Bishop Kim introduced Dr. Taylor as our keynote speaker. Dr. Taylor delivers what he calls 'prectures" which are half preaching and half lecture. Today's particular precture would bring the congregation to its feet on several occasions. Dr. Taylor has just returned from the most recent Middle East pilgrimage. He spoke of "The landscape of Israel: the perfect paradigm for bringing peace to the Middle East." He talked of his incredible experience atop Mt. Nebo, where all became one at many different levels. He talked of how he is embracing his African-Americanism and how he feeling more and more that African-Americans must take responsibility for their own race. He talked about how prestige and titles were meaningless if, like Ezekiel, pastors could not bring "Life to dead bones."

Dr. Taylor shared a little bit of his life history. He has been a seminary professor, a pastor, and he even succeeded the Rev. Jesse Jackson as President of Operation PUSH.

His daughter is a graduate of Vanderbilt Divinity School (as is Dr. Hendricks) where his son is now currently a student. Dr. Taylor also shared that he has been the teacher for many of Chicago's most prominent pastors.

Dr. Taylor spoke from Isaiah and from the book of Luke, about "the voice crying out in the wilderness" He said that he is tired of seeing us wandering in the wilderness. He noted that although Moses was able to get the people out of Egypt, it was much more difficult for him to get Egypt out of the people. He challenged us to not repeat the mistakes of the past and he expressed his hope that it would not take us 40 years to cross the desert this time around.

He said that he is tired of doing things that he knows will not work. As he spoke about his experience atop Mt. Nebo, where, he said, he began to feel like Moses (and at this point he began to cry). He challenged the congregation, saying, "African-Americans must become the paradigm for how people can get together. If we can do it, anyone can do it."

And we cannot do it as long as we are divided by doctrine, by economics, by race, by belief system or by anything. We don't want to take 40 years after we leave Egypt."

Our challenge is to realize that the real enemy is within. We must take responsibility for this and bring true unity between our minds and our bodies."

Dr. Taylor left the podium to a standing ovation. Then Chicago's own, Ki Hoon Kim, took the stage. Bishop Kim was fresh from a weekend experience in New York with our True Parents. He shared about how True Parents have challenged him to speak publicly more and more and he gave a short history of our True Parents' most recent projects in Korea.

As always, we adjourned promptly at 11:00 am, but as has become the custom, the informal fellowship would continue for some time afterward.

Now we march into springtime with great hope for the future, following our successful 49 day-condition in America.

God Bless you America.

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