In 1995, the Christian Ministers Alliance of the Pacific Southwest Region gathered to formally organize a regional convocation based upon the design of the National Convocation.
The stated purpose of the National Convocation is "to provide an instrumentality within the structure of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) as a forum for the discussion of pertinent issues related to the Black church in the context of total church life, for fellowship, program promotion, leadership training...".
Nearly two decades have passed since the formation of Pacific Southwest Regional expression of the African American Convocation.
The three-fold purposes of the Convocation are:
1 - To seek and discover ways to come together as one church, being to faithful to God’s clarion call to unity. The vision of unity is the heart of mission and ministry.
2 - To promote and support the development of leadership with the goal of transforming and building healthy, vital congregations.
3 - To proactively and productively respond to the pressing issues that face African American individuals, families, churches and the community-at-large.
Nine congregations in the Pacific Southwest Region
are affiliated with the African-American Convocation:
-Abundant Life Christian Church (Los Angeles)
-East 105th Street Christian Church (Los Angeles)
-Faith Christian Church (Los Angeles)
-First Christian Church of Lynwood (Lynwood)
-LIFE Ministries (Los Angeles)
-McCarty Memorial Christian Church (Los Angeles)
-United Christian Church (Los Angeles)
Click here for a resource pertaining to the African American Churches in the Pacific Southwest Region. We Hope you will find it to be helpful when learning about the ministries that labor among us!
Rev. Jo Ann Bynum is an Associate Regional Minister for the PSWR and serves as Director of African American Ministries. In this role, Bynum acts as a liaison between the above nine congregations affiliated with the African American Convocation and the Regional Church. She actively seeks out African American individuals interested in seeking Ministerial Standing with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), as well as seeks to identify and connect with new or existing congregations in order to bring them under care with the PSWR. To contact JoAnn Bynum, send her an email.