ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, June 8, 1996 TAG: 9606090008
SECTION: RELIGION PAGE: C-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RALEIGH, N.C.
SOURCE: GARY D. ROBERTSON ASSOCIATED PRESS
With 150,000 seats to fill and thousands of volunteers to enlist, an evangelical Christian men's group has a lot of work to do before putting on its largest conference to date.
But even more pressing to leaders of Promise Keepers is to make the crowds later this month at Charlotte Motor Speedway more than a sea of white, conservative men. Promise Keepers says it wants to broaden the range of the movement in North and South Carolina to other races.
The Rev. Garland Hunt, a minister of a predominantly black congregation in Raleigh, has urged local black ministers to back the effort as a way to bridge the gap between the races.
``We've required government for a long time to lead the way for integration,'' said Hunt, who hopes to bring up to 75 men from the Raleigh International Church. ``There is a real need in this country for Christians to model out racial reconciliation.''
Promise Keepers announced in January that it would hold one of its 22 national gatherings at Charlotte Motor Speedway on June 21-22. Up to 150,000 men may attend and 8,000 volunteers will be needed, officials said.
The group, founded by then-University of Colorado football Coach Bill McCartney to encourage men to become better husbands, fathers and church leaders, has taken off since 1990.
In 1995, more than 700,000 men filled stadiums in such cities such as Detroit, Los Angeles and Washington and vowed to live by standards of spiritual and moral purity. The men agree to seven ``promises,'' including a vow to ``reach beyond any racial and denominational barriers to demonstrate the power of biblical unity.''
There is singing, prayer, teaching and motivational preaching, often leading to a catharsis of hugs and tears among the men who attend.
Local Promise Keepers officials met with black church leaders in Charlotte to encourage participation in this month's conference. A conference for pastors by Promise Keepers in February also tried to allay suspicions.
So far, interest has been lukewarm.
``It was not as successful as we had liked, but we've felt like we've made some progress,'' said Jeff Flowers, a Promise Keepers volunteer in Charlotte and a development officer at Charlotte Country Day School.
Local leaders look to pockets of interest in the black community for hope. A predominantly black church sponsored a men's leadership seminar in Charlotte that drew 1,100 recently.
And men's groups at predominantly black Nations Ford Baptist Church in Charlotte and the white Carmel Baptist Church have agreed to work together in urging members to attend the conference. The two churches also hope to build five Habitat for Humanity houses this summer.
``We're willing to build a relationship with individuals within the various ethnic communities,'' said Jack Munday, a former airplane mechanic who now runs the Carolinas' office in Charlotte. ``It's building credibility to rise above the suspicion.''
Even tougher to measure than black participation is the interest among mainline denominations, whose theology often collides with the conservative interpretation of Scripture espoused by many at the conference. McCartney has spoken out against homosexual rights and abortion.
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