This volume presents key insights and information from a special Conference on Grantmakers and Black Churches that took place at Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington, DC in May 1989.  Hosted by the Council on Foundations, with support from Lilly Endowment, Inc. and the Ford Foundation, the conference brought together more than 50 leaders of Black churches and grantmaking institutions to learn about opportunities for collaboration between their organizations. Included in the collection are edited versions of addresses by key figures at the conference, as well as summaries of research projects about Black giving and Black church philanthropy across the centuries.  

For years, most grantmaking institutions had avoided working with Black churches, pointing to institutional policies against funding religious activity. Arguing for a new approach and era of partnership, conference speakers at the conference noted that grantmakers and Black churches have what the volume’s editor Alicia Byrd called “parallel interests in community welfare and revitalization.” (xii) 

Introducing this remarkable collection, James A. Joseph (who was then president of the Council on Foundations, and later Ambassador to South Africa) wrote, “The speeches and reports in this volume make the case that, at least for black churches, religious and social responsibilities cannot be separated. Grantmakers will only put stumbling blocks in the way of social change if they place too much emphasis on keeping faith and good works separate.” (v) 

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