Sassy Discovers the AME Church

By B.A. Johnson

Young “Sassy” has always been proud to be AME, a member of her African Methodist Episcopal church, but why? Sassy enjoys learning during the Children’s Church group, but that new boy knows more about AME than she does! With the help of her grandmother, “Big Momma,” she discovers the real story behind the founding of AME. Along the way, she and her friends and her brother, Franklin, deal with bullying, kindness, death, grief, pride, forgiveness, and the very ideas of fairness and including others. They also confront the harsh reality of prejudice and hatred when a gunman attacks the Mother Emmanuel Church in Charleston. In Sassy Discovers the AME Church, one little girl embraces the idea of belonging to something so important, and of proudly sharing her faith with everyone she loves.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fresh Ink Group
• Release date: May 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781947893191

Book preview

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Preface

On the back of the pew, in most every African American church, you will find a church fan. Fans were necessary long ago when most churches were not-air conditioned and the congregation had to bear the burden of the hot, humid atmosphere during the grueling summer months. Most hand fans almost always had the picture of what appeared to be a very devout Christian family: a father, mother, son, and daughter. These hand fans were more than likely promotional apparatuses for some local business or neighborhood funeral home. My nine-year-old self often wondered, Who is this family? What is their name and where do they live? They surely are not members of my church, or rather I have never seen them before, and I am always at church.

Since their names were not listed under the picture, I decided to create a world for them. I gave them a name and an identity. They became the Fansons—Brock, Gloria, son Franklin, and daughter Mary Margaret—known affectionately as Sassy. They lived in the pew-storage unit with the Holy Bible and the AME Hymnal.

This story is about Sassy and how she discovers the rituals, traditions, and culture of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Part 1

Tell Me, Big Momma, about the AME Church

Chapter 1

My name is Mary Margaret Fanson. My grandmother, Big Momma, calls me Sassy because she says I’m precocious. You know, more mature than a nine-year-old should be, wiser than most little kids, an old soul, nine going on nineteen. I spend a lot of time with Big Momma because she lives with us. She moved in when her husband of 56 years died. Mommy and Daddy didn’t want her to be alone. And besides, I needed someone to be with me during the day because Mommy and Daddy work long hours.

Big Momma is not your typical grandmother. We call her Big Momma, not because of her size, but because she’s just older than my mother. Big Momma’s just the opposite. She’s small and petite. She’s a real fashionista—no thick black stockings for her. No long flowery-print ruffle dresses for my Big Momma. She’s trendy. She goes to yoga classes and wears leggings. She wears her hair in a low-cut natural and has it colored kinda light brown. On any given Sunday, you’ll find Big Momma in a stylish jacket dress with the most beautiful, thin, flowing organza chapeau you could imagine. Organza is like that, thin, flowy, whispery fabric, like the dress Glenda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz was wearing. That’s the kind of hat Big Momma likes to wear—and they’re quite fashionable, if I might say so myself. Chapeau is French for hat. I learned that word from watching the shopping channel with Big Momma.

Big Momma and I spend a lot of time together. She fixes my breakfast, helps me get dressed in the morning, and gets me off to school. When I return home in the evenings, Big Momma is the first person I see. She always has a snack for me, like popcorn or a peanut-butter sandwich. When I have homework, she sits with me and listens to me read or watches me do my math.

When Mom and Dad get home from work, dinner is already prepared. We can tell when Big Momma has been in the kitchen. The aroma of home cooking flows through the house. Hot fried chicken, creamy mashed potatoes, buttery Parker House Rolls, and green beans—and it’s not even Sunday! And she always surprises us with a dessert like peach cobbler or apple pie.

We sit at the table together and prepare to eat our meal. Daddy always says the blessing while we hold hands. Franklin is beside me, so we hold hands and squeeze each other’s fingers. Franklin and I snicker because when Dad lowers his head we can see his bald spot. He blesses the food and the hands that prepared it. Then we eat. We talk, laugh, and share what has happened during the day. Everyone has a chance to be part of the conversation, even Franklin when he’s not shoving food in his mouth.

This is the best part of my day.

Chapter 2

It’s Sunday and time for church. We go to church every Sunday. We get up early, dress, eat breakfast, and drive to Big Morning Star African Methodist Episcopal Church. We just call it Morning Star. Morning Star is not a big church like those big mega-churches, but it’s not a small church, either. I