African American Ministries

On this auspicious occasion of remembering our Jewel of Hope, Brother Jewel Vertner Woodson Tandy, and as we dwell together at the physical Tandy home and fraternal house that Brother Jewels Callis, Chapman, Jones, Kelly, Murray, Ogle, and Tandy built, we invoke your presence on this holy ground!  You remind us that Faith is the assurance of things Hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  While it is easy to Hope in the daylight when one sees their destination before them, Hope has no physical manifestation.  There is no address to visit and look upon Hope.  It comes in the vision of a young Black boy whose once enslaved daddy stood up and showed him how to be a man so that he in turn would show many men how to stand and be men.  Lord, we pray that you will send us more men that will stand up and show little boys how to be men!

Hope is preceded by our Faith in You and the dreams and visions of architects like Brother Jewel Tandy.  For all of the boys and girls in the great City of Lexington, in the Commonwealth of Kentucky; for those youth who dare to march onward and upward to the light; for the Fraternal Spirit of Brotherhood amongst the men of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.; You provided us Hope through Brother Jewel Tandy.  We thank You for this Hope, Oh Lord!

You show us that faith is the predecessor of hope.  Faith in you serves as our moral compass to guide our character in times of conflict and confrontation as well as convenience.  Like Jewel Tandy an architect by trade and the architect of our dear Fraternity, we stand ready to move from our moral convictions to social justice in a society that still has not welcomed us with open arms.

If faith is the predecessor of hope, then Love is its true destination – the address where Hope resides.  We have faith in You and hope that the indigent children and youth of this city will live better lives even more prosperous than Brother Jewel Tandy.  We hope that even in the midst of the grave situations of homelessness, gang activity, poverty, drug addictions, and lawlessness, our children and youth would aspire to even greater heights.  Guide our actions as we guide others away from a cesspool of hopelessness and into your light.  We ask for your holy and anointed guidance this morning, Oh Lord!

Now, in the same faith that led to the hope of seven and manifested into love for all of humankind; in the same hope that led to the motto “First of All, Servants of All, We shall Transcend All;” we ask that “Oh Lord, May the true Spirit of Fraternity rule our hearts, guide our thoughts, and control our lives so that we may become through thee servants of all.  Amen!”