By Angela Bronner, BlackVoices.com

LaJoyce Brookshire has certainly been through the fire, but thanks to her unrelenting faith, came out unscathed.

The former power publicist turned author (she novelized the black film classic Soul Food and also wrote Web of Deception), ordained minister and doctor of Naturopathy, recently released a powerful piece of non-fiction -- a deeply disturbing, though increasingly common story, about courage, AIDS, marriage, deception and ultimately, redemption.

In Faith Under Fire: Betrayed By a Thing Called Love, Brookshire shares the riveting true-life account of marrying a man with full blown AIDS, and using her rock of Gibraltar faith to get through an ordeal which would have broken most. Brookshire opens up with BlackVoices.com.

What was your process in coming to write the memoir?

I wrote 'Faith Under Fire' primarily because the statistics for HIV infections were continuing to rise. And I heard my story over and over more times than I even cared to. So it was time that I broke the silence and stopped trying to keep the privacy of a dead man, and let people know some information that could possibly save their lives; because for the people who are most at risk, I have the most information.

And who are the people most at risk, black women, married?

Black women are highly at risk, yes . And heterosexual women of all walks of life are highly at risk.

How did you maintain your Christian faith when you knew that this man knowingly had AIDS and still slept with you?

The Democratic presidential nomination battle is growing increasingly personal.

At the same time, the racial waters boiled over following a report of incendiary remarks by the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., Barack Obama's former pastor. Wright is being criticized for past racially charged statements such as calling America the "U.S. of K.K.K.A."

By Bishop Keith Butler, StreamingFaith.com

Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. 2 Corinthians 2:11 (KJV)

There are three areas to pay particular attention to if you are thinking about marrying. These are the three most common pitfalls for marital break-up. If you know what they are in advance, you can avoid them and live a successful happy life in your marriage union before God.

One of the first things that cause marital break up is lack of communication. So single people have to learn how to be able to communicate with the other sex. The only way you are going to learn how to communicate with others is to be honest with yourself. The ability to communicate successfully (where we both parties hear, both understand the message conveyed, and both receive from each other) is fundamentally key. You must communicate. You must be willing to talk and to listen, because communication is not just talking.

Article courtesy of StreamingFaith.com

Dr. Alveda King, Pastoral Associate of Priests for Life and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., recently decried Planned Parenthood's use of her uncle's image and words on its website.

By Karu F. Daniels, BlackVoices.com

Smokie Norful is up for a Grammy Award during the Recording Academy's 50th annual ceremony, which takes place Feb. 10 in Los Angeles -- but win, lose or draw he won't be there to relish in any of the hysteria of what is being labeled as "the music industry's biggest night."

Instead, the chart-topping gospel music maestro, who already is an esteemed Grammy recipient, will be in the midst of headlining the second annual McDonald's "Inspiration Celebration Gospel Tour," which kicked off in Philadelphia Feb. 7.

"I've got a lot going on," the Little Rock, Arkansas native told The BV Newswire last night at the City of Brotherly Love's super-sized Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church.

By Michelle Vu, courtesy of StreamingFaith.com


The politically ignited violence in Kenya is obstructing aid to needy citizens suffering from the tribal conflict, said a frustrated Christian aid worker in January of 2008.

Insecurity on the streets of Nairobi has confined aid workers to their houses, making it impossible for them to distribute desperately needed food, medication and shelter to Kenyans who have fled the conflict and left everything they own behind.

"I feel very frustrated and disappointed that we cannot carry out our work," said Peter Njuguna, project manager of St. John's Community Center, a partner of U.K.-based Tearfund working in Nairobi's slum.

"The situation is very volatile here. I can hear gunshots from our office and the roads are blocked," he said.

A political dispute about the Dec. 27 election between incumbent President Mwai Kibaki and opposition candidate Raila Odinga has led to an outbreak of violence in the once stable and prosperous democratic country.

By Angela Bronner, BlackVoices.com

Terrie Williams is the high powered publicist and rainmaker who has represented everyone from Eddie Murphy and Miles Davis to Johnnie Cochran and Janet Jackson.

In Williams' line of business, it's all about relationships; in her new book, 'Black Pain: It Just Looks Like We're Not Hurting,' (Scribner), she not only outlines her battle with depression but coralles regular folks and celebrities alike to talk how mental illness has affected their lives.

Black folk, especially, says Williams, have a specific historical context which makes our relationship with mental illness unique:

"Can you imagine how heavy the weight of all that trauma must have been in the hearts, minds, and souls of our ancestors? She asks. "They had no outlet in which to express it and no proper means of processing it. Instead of airing our dirty laundry and getting help for our issues we engage in behaviors that are harmful to ourselves or others such as crime, violence, promiscuous sex, eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, workaholism, shopaholism, gambling, in order to cope, and it's killing us," says Williams.

By Nicole Smith, BDO Staff Writer



Have you heard the saying "The family that prays together stays together?" Well, the same can saying can apply to the family that eats together. When was the last time your family sat down and enjoyed dinner together? With music lessons, ball practice, play rehearsal, and work schedules, it can be tough. Rounding up the troops for an evening meal can be almost impossible! However, research is beginning to show that eating as a family has great benefits for your children and teenagers. Here are 8 more reasons why you should try to sit down together 5-6 times a week, whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

As told to Denver Louis, BlackVoices.com

With thirteen albums under his belt, Brooklyn native Will Downing has been one of the most consistent names in R&B, with a career than spans back to the '80s. Over the decades, the soulful jazz crooner has maintained a strong and steady fan base and after being just on the cusp of mainstream success, the Grammy-nominated singer finally scored a #1 debut with his latest album, 'After Tonight.'

Downing's success comes despite being diagnosed with the debilitating condition Polymyositis in 2006. Polymyositis, which is an inflammation of the muscle fibers, weakened him to the point where he was confined to a wheelchair and could no longer complete many everyday tasks. Yet, despite this major setback, Downing has made considerable progress and is determined to continue making music and beating the odds by performing in 2008.

By Angela Bronner, Blackvoices.com

Felicia "Snoop" Pearson is one of the most riveting characters on television today, a straight up killer on the HBO series, 'The Wire,' a fierce and unflinching story of urban America from the perspective of all of its denizens.

Snoop began her life as a cross-eyed, three pound crack baby who grew up in foster care and spent eight years of her adolescence in jail for killing a woman.

At 27, Snoop recently released her memoir, 'Grace After Midnight' (written with noted biographer David Ritz) which chronicles her tumultuous life on the hard edged streets of Baltimore and her seemingly divine path to where she stands today.

By Ethan Cole

Aynsley Floyd, AP

Senator Barack Obama's campaign unveiled recently a new committee featuring top African-American religious leaders supporting the presidential contender's bid for the Democratic nomination.

By Clay Cane, Special to AOL Black Voices

Jesus is one of the most profitable figures in the entertainment industry. What better way to rejuvenate a once massive career than by having your new manager, publicist and fan base all named "Jesus"? The Lord Almighty is that ace in the hole when record sales are low, tours aren't as packed and the fickle public has moved on to the next best thing.

It is always problematic when celebrities reject the life that made them but still willfully profit by mixing their entertainment career with Christ. If you truly feel you have found Christ and your previous life was sinful, why continue to capitalize from it in reality shows, tell-all books, or films?

The most recent addition to the "celebrities who found Jesus camp" is Cheryl Wray, otherwise known as Salt from the legendary hip-hop group Salt-N-Pepa. In the duo's VH-1 reality show the former "Push It" diva declares, "I let God into my life and everything has changed!" Salt has become an adamant Christian who is hell-bent on converting an "ungodly" Pepa to Christ.

Now, Salt stresses how the songs were too sexual and demanded lyric changes in the ode to good men "Whatta Man" on their recently aired VH-1 reality TV show, "The Salt-N-Pepa Show." Next to the Fresh Prince, Will Smith, Salt-N-Pepa is probably the most non-threatening hip-hop group in history. Songs like "Express Yourself," "Shake Your Thang" and the public service announcement "Let's Talk About Sex" were far from risqué. Finding God or any form of spirituality is a blessing. However, is it impossible in Salt's world to be artistic, edgy and still have Christ in your life?

As told to Angela Bronner, AOL Black Voices

Veteran New York television newscaster Dominic Carter has been on the local station NY1 for more than 25 years. As host of the nightly show 'Inside City Hall,' he has grilled local politicians, many of whom have national stature, including New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, current Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the Rev. Al Sharpton. He has also covered national and international leaders including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and former South African President Nelson Mandela. His book 'No Momma's Boy' takes on two volatile topics at once -- how he survived physical and sexual abuse at the hands of his mother and how her mental illness shaped his life.

In terms of every strike that society could throw against you, I had it -- black male, no father, poor, in the projects. I go on to make it, and do exceptionally well against the odds and make it in television, to the top of an all-white arena -- political reporting.

But at the same time, my secret was at 7 years old, my mom sexually abused me. Prior to this, my mom wasn't around for months at a time, sometimes years at a time. My grandmother raised me. I had family members who really did not want me to write ['No Momma's Boy']. They just wanted Dominic Carter, the positive newscaster who made it.