In a defiant appearance before the Washington media, Rev. Jeremiah Wright said Monday that criticism surrounding his fiery sermons is an attack on the black church and rejected those who have labelled him unpatriotic.

"I served six years in the military," Barack Obama's longtime pastor said. "Does that make me patriotic? How many years did (Vice-President Dick) Cheney serve?"

Wright spoke at the National Press Club before the Washington media and a supportive audience of black church leaders beginning a two-day symposium.

He said the black church tradition is not bombastic or controversial, but different and misunderstood by the "dominant culture" in the United States.

What is the BLACK CHURCH?

The term black church or African American church refers to predominantly African American Christian churches that minister to predominantly black communities in the United States. While some groups of black churches, such as African Methodist Episcopal Churches, belong to predominantly black denominations, many black churches are part of predominantly white denominations.Historically, after Emancipation blacks established separate churches to create their own communities, escape white control, and worship in in their own culturally distinct ways. They had already created a unique and empowering form of Christianity that creolized African spiritual traditions, a Christian tradition which developed more fully during the late 19th century. Within the black churches, they built strong community organizations and held positions of spiritual and political leadership. In addition, African American churches have long been the centers of communities, serving as schools in the early years after the Civil War, taking up social welfare functions, such as providing for the indigent, and going on to establish schools and orphanages.

Because of Christian churches' complicated relationship with slavery, when ministers in the South tried to use religion to keep slaves "in their places", some question whether African Americans should continue with Christianity. Many African-Americans are turning to spiritual systems and religions including Orisha, etc, which preceded the American religious movements.

.....so all blacks R instructed 'to DAMN' America....

Why don't 'they' just go BACK if they're so dissatisfied?

Here's a picture of the black church:

Attached Images