|
—Continued
from the previous page.
.
...shared that once youth begin to use
rap in a positive and constructive way, the leaders will see the impact
and be moved to support this type of ministry.
 |
But
while Christian Hip-Hop is a seemingly natural approach to minister
to the youth on the reservations, there are challenges unique from
the typical urban mission field.
Apart
from the obvious cultural and historical issues, reservations lack
even the basic recreational activities/spaces. Compounding that are
the above average death rates due to suicide and alcohol. In 1996,
it was reported that Pine Ridge had an alcoholism-related death rate
2 times the average for reservations and 9 times the national
average. The average life expectancy now for a male is 43-45. |
“In
a two week period, we had 6 suicide attempts and one was successful,”
stated Leon Matthews, a local Native leader.
 |
“Hearing
the testimony of one of the young ladies, it was clear to me that
the primary cause of suicide is largely due to depression and
unemployment, “
recalls Phanatik. “T |
However,
Phanatik firmly believes that so long as the community and churches are
strategically working hand in hand, successfully evangelizing to Native
Americans on the reservation is certainly not an impossible task.
|
“We
would need to approach this slowly…have some serious
brainstorming,” he
adds.
“One
tills, one plants, one waters, another builds a fence…then we all
trust in God for the increase. Use
the method to open the door, but put the weight on the message. ”
“It
is imperative that Christian rappers who are serious about their
commitment to advance the mission, use this (hip-hop) culture to
advance it here too. Pine Ridge is a good and important challenge
for all of us,”
stresses Phanatik.
“For
me it was a privilege to hear and learn all that I did. It helped me
develop an appreciation for their history and culture.” |
“The
young people were surprised and excited to have Phanatik come so far to
Pine Ridge to just talk and listen to what was on their hearts,” said
Matthews. “They really relate to rappers and they told me later how much
they liked the Cross Movement CDs that he left behind. We hope Cross
Movement and ABS will come out soon because I know the kids will respond
to them and we need whatever help we can get to reach these youth.”
The
mission of Elementz of Life™ is to assist and provide the church and
parachurch groups with faith-based programs and Scripture resources that
present the Gospel in formats relevant to youth and young adults affected
by contemporary urban culture. It is only through the collective support
of churches, community leaders, and committed Christian Hip-Hop artists,
that the Elementz of Life™ program will be able to overcome the
challenges and inject hope and healing back into the lives of our urban
youth and communities.
Cross
Movement is currently working with ABS to assist Native leaders at Pine
Ridge and in Rapid City to carefully begin laying the proper foundation
needed to train and empower leaders and youth in implementing an Elementz
program in the future.
The
End
For
more information about the Elementz of Life program, click
here.
Related
Article:
CM & ABS Producing Urban
Hip-Hop
Evangelistic
Tools |
