Church Celebrates Its Worth St. Roots

By April Koral
POSTED JUNE 30, 2008

Stanley Cutchins, 68, from Yonkers, slowly surveyed the corner of Worth and Church Streets early one Saturday morning last month. In his mind’s eye this is what he saw.

“I can imagine a rural place,” he said, studying the drab city building on one corner and parking lot on the other. “A lot of trees and a small building. This was the beginning for us here, the birthplace of our church.”

Cutchins, along with more than 300 of his fellow parishioners, had come to 40 Worth Street on June 7 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Abyssinian Baptist Church, which had indeed started here, in a small wooden building  in 1811, 16 years before slavery was abolished in the city.

They gathered at 8 a.m. to unveil a small plaque on the building that commemorates the history of this prominent African American institution, then began an 11-mile walk to their present home on 135th Street in Harlem. Along the way, they would make two more stops at former homes of the church.

Charles Marche watched motionless, arms folded, as a dozen or so of his fellow congregants stretched in preparation for their long walk. Only a few hours before, he had stopped off for a quick nap at his home in Bloomfield, N.J., after a night shift for UPS. “This is a historical walk we’re taking here,” he said. “This is energy for the Lord.”

Although the walkers would be making their pilgrimage under a cloudless sky with the temperature reaching 90 degrees, everyone was in high spirits. 

“This is a great celebration,” said Barbara Bragg, who, along with the other congregants, wore a bright red t-shirt with the words “True to Our God, True to Our Native Land,” a quote from the Negro National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

“We’re retracing our steps for all our ancestors who were part of this church,” Bragg said.

According to Dr. Anita Underwood, the church, many of whose founders were merchants of Ethiopian (Abyssinian) descent, has always been interested in its history. “We talk about our former pastors, members and ministers,” she said. “We are standing on the shoulders of giants.”

Before the walk began, a microphone and small stage were set up in the building’s doorway and the Rev. Calvin Butts, the church’s prominent spiritual leader, spoke to the crowd.

“I think it’s prophetic that it will be hot today,” he said. “The sun will be scorching and it will be very humid, but that will remind us of what many of our ancestors had to go through. Their struggles in the heat of the day at work. Their blood, their sweat, their tears.”

Then came a song and prayer. “We’re on our way, “ he said, joining his flock. “Thank you and God bless you.”

And together, they set off up Church Street, following the footsteps of their history.

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