Spirituality is the foundation of our Rites of Passage program. Each Service
of Imani lasts for one hour at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church - 5828
NE 8th Avenue - Portland, OR 97211. Prospective Gents and Imminent Ladies are
expected to arrive 30 minutes prior to the start of service for meditation and
directions. Following each Service a communal meal is prepared by the parents
of Prospective Gents and Imminent Ladies. Parents are responsible for cooking,
serving and cleaning up afterwards.
In the United States where church and state are separated, the idea of infusing
spirituality with any youth development program is taboo. In Africa, however,
where religion permeates throughout their daily life, young people are raised
with the virtues of understanding their connection to nature, community, and
human beings. Warfield-Coppock (1992) discusses how the Afrocentric education
model differs from the European-Centered philosophy in that African spiritual
laws permeate the
students’ training.
The Holy Bible (Mark 8:36-37) asks "for what shall it profit a man, if he shall
gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange
for his soul?" Similarly like Christians are charged, so are males and females seeking passage. Regardless of their religious affiliation, they must prove an integration of the ten virtues of Kemetic Spiritual Attainment in their lives:
1. Control of thought
2. Control of action
3. Devotion to purpose
4. Faith in the Master’s ability to teach the truth
5. Faith in one’s ability to assimilate the truth
6. Faith in one’s self to wield the truth
7. Freedom from resentment under persecution
8. Freedom from resentment under wrong
9. The ability to distinguish between right and wrong
10. The ability to distinguish the real from the unreal
The Bridge Builders realizes that religion and spirituality are not the same. Religion refers to a practice while spirituality deals more with recognizing your relationship with God and fulfilling your purpose. The spiritual process will include:
• Participant believing in a Higher Power
• Participant finding a purpose in their life and living to fulfill that purpose
• Embracing his or her talents, gifts, strengths and life’s passion
• Attending the monthly Service of Imani and participating in the rap session
• Cultural Team performances
• Rap Sessions to discuss issues and life
• African and African-American history
• Participant is an active member of a church, mosque, temple, hall, etc.
Individually each participant is required to self author a Life Book, which parallels his or her own Holy Book. This four year project is done under the guidance of a spiritual mentor, which is selected by the Prospective Gent or Imminent Lady and their family. The spiritual mentor assists the prospect in this process by attending the Service of Imani and prompting the writing by giving more information and sharing their own personal story.