The Sky Is Gray

Christian faith is a complicated facet of African American culture. On the one hand, the Black church, first formed on Southern plantations, fostered a sense of community and offered hope during the dark antebellum years. On the other hand, some Black activists have argued that faith in a Christian God both reinforces the dominance of their oppressor (Christianity was one of the tools of colonization and the forced assimilation of enslaved Africans into the plantation system) and encourages passivity in response to racism. During the Civil Rights Movement, during which the story takes place, there was a schism in Black communities. Some activists, notably Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., used the Christian church as a space in which to organize and relied on Christian faith as the inspiration for passive resistance. Others, such as Malcolm X, eschewed Christ in favor of the Muslim faith of their West African ancestors. Others still, such as the Black Panthers, focused more on social and political concerns with little interest in religion. 

In the story, the argument over the importance of faith between the preacher and the young man represents not only the schism between civil rights activists, but also between older generations, who often deemed faith foundational to moral integrity and hope, and the younger generation who, with their greater access to education and their impatience for change, believed that the Church was impeding progress and reaffirming an element of White supremacy.