Beyoncé Mass Comes to Spelman College
Beyoncé and historically Black colleges and university students are coming together once again, even if unlike at Coachella the legendary singer won’t actually be in attendance for this special event.
The Grammy-winning singer’s music will reportedly be part of a special mass service to be held at Spelman College.
Rev. Yolanda M. Norton, the H. Eugene Farlough Chair of Black Church Studies at San Francisco Theological Seminary, created the services in 2018. Her work explores how Scripture treats women and it’s “led to the oppression of women of color,” according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In March, the first “Beyoncé Mass” will be held in Atlanta. And while the Grammy-winning singer is not slated to be on campus, her award-winning music will be the soundtrack for the service.
“The first question I get when we talk about this worship service is are you worshipping Beyoncé’?” Neichelle Guidry, dean of Sisters Chapel, the college’s religious and spiritual center, said in an interview with the AJC. “It is a clear and unequivocal ‘no’ to that question.”
The worship service at Spelman will reportedly be performed by a choir, including singers and musicians who travel with the performance and local students to back them up.
The worship service, which will reportedly include prayer, preaching and communion through Beyonce’s musical catalog, will be held at 7 p.m. on March 2 at Sisters Chapel. Admission is free as long as attendees register beforehand.
“It’s a Christian liturgical experience that is a womanist experience,” Guidry told the AJC. “It centralizes the voices, perspectives and living experiences of Black women.”