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BY MAMIE ALETHIA WILLIAMS

In celebration of Black History Month, the Multiethnic Center for Ministry is hosting a 'Cross-Cultural Conversation on the Impact of Race on the Personal Faith Journey' Tuesday, Feb. 27, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Baltimore-Washington Conference Center in Columbia.

The panelists in this conversation will be the Rev. Chester R. Jones, general secretary, Commission on Religion & Race; Barbara R. Thompson, former general secretary, Commission on Religion & Race; the Rev. Yolanda Pupo-Ortiz, former associate general secretary, Commission on Religion & Race; Olivia Schwartz, member of the Multiethnic Center for Ministry board; the Rev. Howard O. Nash,

pastor of Gatch Memorial/St. John's of Hamilton Charge in Baltimore and Carl Snowden, director of Maryland Civil Rights Division in the Attorney General's Office

Memory is a sacred act as we celebrate Black History Month. Who we are, and who we might become, is shaped by our past.

When I look back on my personal journey, my mind goes back to my roots, my humble, poor beginnings in Sumter, S.C.

Remembering involves asking ourselves when was the first time we recall that we felt different? Remembering is asking how we handled those feelings. Was there any help available to make us feel whole and good about ourselves after that experience? How has that experience informed our choices, our lives?

It is most difficult to truly celebrate when there are memories that have brought us pain and darkness. But it is in remembering that we begin to grow and overcome the darkness that may have caught our attention. Looking back, we can see God?s hand at work in our lives and that insight enables us to remember who, and whose, we are.

None of us exists alone. Countless men and women, some famous, some infamous and others known only to us, have shaped the world and delivered potential and possibility to us.

We must give thanks for these people as we seek to build on their visions for our community, our country and our world.

As you celebrate, remember and act this Black History Month, I offer a few thoughts to gbwc_superusere you.

? Don?t forget your past. Go back sometimes and weep with joy over the road you?ve traveled from that place. Remember what principles sustained you, and hold onto those principles.

? It is never too late to turn our lives around and celebrate who we are becoming. Remember and share your memory with family and friends. God did not create us to exist in isolation. Where is your community, your village?

? Celebrate the joys and some of the losses that continue to sustain you. Celebrate with family and friends the pivotal moments in your life. Record them for future generations to read. Leave something for family and friends to celebrate and experience when life closes its door to you.

? Act responsibly, in the ways you have learned, when results of your actions are not good and not for good. Find someone who appears to have it all together; chat with them and seek their insights to help you find your way.

? Write and send letters to support or question causes. Let not your life slip away before you act as one who has a greater life-purpose than merely making money and living comfortably. Walk in a cause-related marathon, or visit people who need and wish to have visitors. Act as if you would want the same for yourself.

Do all of these things in the spirit of unity and service, and oh, what a good feeling you will have.

What are you doing to bring honor to the life to those who have come before us? What are you doing to travel the roads of life with purpose and to seek safety for fellow travelers? This Black History Month, let us remember; let us celebrate, let us act.

For more information on the Cultural Conversation on the Impact of Race on the Personal Faith Journey, call (800) 492-2525, Ext. 454.

The Rev. Mamie Alethia Williams is executive director of the MultiEthnic Center for Ministry of the Northeastern Jurisdiction, located at the Baltimore-Washington Conference Center.

New DVD honors the former all-black Washington Conference

Churches wanting to celebrate Black History Month or their Methodist heritage, can purchase a new DVD that honors the former Washington Conference, the all-black conference that preceded racial integration, merger and the birth of The United Methodist Church in 1968.

The racially segregated Washington Conference, from 1864 to 1965, grew to comprise thousands of black churches, clergy and laity, as well as mission institutions, throughout the Baltimore-Washington region. It was part of the all-black Central Jurisdiction from 1939 until its merger with the predominantly white Baltimore Annual Conference in 1965.

The DVD, titled 'Commemorating the Washington Conference of the Former Methodist and Methodist Episcopal Churches' contains three videos, each about 30 minutes in length.

The DVD can be purchased for $20 by sending orders to Joyce King at the Baltimore-Washington Conference, 7178 Columbia-Gateway Drive, Suite D, Columbia, MD 21046. For information, e-mail or call (410) 290-7311.