From generations of spiritual leaders and community builders to countless congregants, the walls of Missionary Union Baptist Church hold more than a century of history.
Now the church is set to be a face of a statewide project aimed at photographing and documenting historic Black churches in Mississippi.
Vanessa Charlot, an assistant professor of media at University of Mississippi and the artist behind the “Sanctuaries of the Spirit” project, stood in the church Tuesday, admiring its stained glass windows and towering sanctuary.
“I’m walking around the church, and I’m looking at the windows and I’m thinking, who was here on the ground?” Charlot told The Dispatch. “… Who was the leadership in this space? Who are the members that we may never know their names? This is exactly what this project is about, where you come to these sanctuaries and spirits that are no longer (around) and spirits that still come in are present in this space.”
After moving to Mississippi in 2022, Charlot said it was important to her that her art focus on Black life in the state.
“And then understanding how deep the spiritual history of Mississippi is for Black folk, this was a project I always wanted to do,” she said.
For the next month, Charlot will be traveling throughout the state to visit 20 storied Black churches, four of which – including Missionary Union – will serve as the face of the project. Aiming to capture architectural beauty and lived experiences, the project includes photographs of the churches, portraits and interviews with congregants.
“There are certain churches where I feel like, if you’re gifted the opportunity to talk to the leadership, you’ve got to stop and have those conversations.”
Missionary Union, the oldest Black church in northeast Mississippi, was at the top of Charlot’s list.
Since Rev. Derrick Fields began preaching at Missionary Union in October, finding ways to document the history of the church has been a top priority, and Charlot’s project presented the perfect opportunity to do just that.
“This church historically is almost 200 years old, but when you think about (it), the church has always gone through turbulence, from the early church to even right now,” Fields said. “This church is not exempt from that, never been exempt from that. But (it’s) the resilience of the church (that allows it) to still be here and still be strong.”
‘Something powerful’
Charlot on Tuesday interviewed and photographed church elders Ezra Baker and Mary Wicks as part of the project. Along with their own lived experiences attending Missionary Union, Charlot asked about the church’s history and the legacy of leaders who helped shape both the congregation and the surrounding community.
Baker shared the history of several leaders that have come out of the church, from local dentist and civil rights activist Dr. Emmett J. Stringer to Robert Gleed, who served as a state senator and as a Columbus alderman.
Sharing that history, Baker told The Dispatch, is essential in understanding both the struggles and the progress of the community.
“To expose people to the trial and tribulation that we’ve gone through, to give us strength to try to unite and move forward through history,” he said. “That’s just what we need to make sure that everybody has a part, … regardless of race, ethnicity or whatever. We can be better when we’re together because we’re stronger.”
For Wicks, speaking for the project was an opportunity to share the central role church has played in her life and why preserving its story matters.
“It has just been a part of my life that I really, really enjoy, and I just feel that our young people are missing this,” Wicks told The Dispatch. “They are not concerned about each other. They’re just grasping for themselves.”
Charlot hopes “Sanctuaries of the Spirit” will not only preserve stories, like Baker’s and Wicks’, that hold strong roots in local Black churches but also bridge the knowledge gap between generations about the role Black churches have played throughout history.
“I think that there isn’t enough information for people to actually study this,” she said. “Even oral history, where you’re able to hear the voice of someone like Mrs. Wicks, who is 93 years old. She may bless us for another 10 years, but there may be some kids 30 years from now that (will hear her voice). … I expect for it to be something powerful.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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