Data News Weekly

Cover Story
www.ladatanews.com June 8 - June 14, 2024
Page 3
Cover Story, Continued from page 2.
“We just held the 155th Annual
Session of the Freedmen Association
in its 156 years of existence.
The purpose of the organization
is to “serve congregations.” The
association is made up of pastors
and congregants of local Baptist
Churches. While each church is
autonomous, Freedmen serves
as an arm to facilitate conflicts
with the church, Christian education
opportunities, peer support
groups, and knowledge-based
learning such as financial literacy,”
says President and Moderator
Dr. Mitchell Stevens.
A Profile in Courage
They have a long and storied history
of courage and resilience. In
their literature, it is described as:
The long night of national perplexity
was ending. Nearly six or
seven years had passed from the
War Between the States (Civil
War). The awful noise from cannons
and guns had been silenced,
but the miserable scars made
upon the backs, wrists, and ankles
of the slaves had not completely
healed, and the innocent blood
on the battlefields had not been
dried. The founding fathers of
Rev. Dr. Robert Meyers, Vice President of the National Missionary Baptist Convention, and Rev. Dr. Mitchell
J. Stevens, President/Moderator of the LFMBGA during the opening processional of President’s Night at the
155th Annual Session.
this organization were homeless,
yet in their hearts, they had a
burning desire and an undying
hope for freedom for themselves
and their children. So this ardent
group of men assembled themselves
to chart the way wherein
they would maintain the enjoyment
of “freedom.” They selected
God’s word for their doctrine and
Christ’s teaching for their way of
life. They chose the name Louisiana
Freedmen Missionary Baptist
Association with delicate tact
which they knew would reflect
their aspirations.
“Our mission is to empower
congregations to serve their
communities through community
service, such as feeding the
homeless and elderly, evangelism
through teaching and preaching
the Word of God to help individuals
establish a relationship with
God, and home and foreign missions
to help the less fortunate,”
remarks Stevens.
The Power of the Collective
The Louisiana Freedmen Missionary
Baptist General Association
is a strong institution that stands
with a purpose of faith and fellowship.
For the past 156 years displaying
the love and hope of Christ,
equipping Pastors and Churches
where they can effectively bring
positive change and necessities to
their local communities.
Freedmen are comprised of
49 churches that encompass the
Greater New Orleans area and as
far as Napoleonville, Donaldsonville,
and Gonzales. During their
recent Annual Session, they gathered
at the Greater King Solomon
Missionary Baptist Church, where
Reverend John T. White serves as
Pastor, to exhibit faith and enjoy the
fellowship of our fellow members.
The week was filled with challenging
and informative preaching and
teaching, and information concerning
our local and statewide governments.
Each one of our Presidents
gave inspiring messages on why we
should conduct ourselves with the
attitude of love.
Cover Story, Continued
on page 6.