Close to 70 percent of Black children in America are born to unmarried parents. Nearly half live with a single mother. Both figures are significantly higher than the national average and reflect the steep decline in marriage among African Americans since the 1960s.

But two Black churches are showing the way to address the decline of fatherhood and family. Their insights have relevance far outside the Black community, given the steady increase in unmarried births to White and Hispanic mothers (around 1 in 4 White children are now born out of wedlock).

Pastor John K. Jenkins Sr. leads the First Baptist Church of Glenarden. Located in one of the wealthiest majority-Black counties in the nation and claiming 11,000 active members, it is the largest church in Maryland. Where other Black pastors stress political campaigns and social issues, Jenkins focuses on the family. Father’s Day is one of the biggest events on the church calendar.

I recently spoke to Jenkins, and he estimated that more than 800 couples are involved in ministries at his church related to marriage and family. These include offerings for newlyweds and blended families, date nights for couples and marriage-mentoring programs. The church teaches that men have the responsibility as husbands and fathers to provide financially—and lead spiritually—in their households. It has ministries for young men (18-35) to develop discipline and godly character, as well as classes for men over 60 to talk about family life.

>>> What’s Really Behind The Vanishing Black Family

When I asked Jenkins why his church is so invested in the health of the home, he said that marriage is designed to reflect the relationship between Christ and the church. In his words, “The purpose of marriage is to show the world how much God loves His people.”

My wife and I signed up for a marriage class at First Baptist in 2014, less than two years into our marriage and only three years after we first met. The lessons we learned about God’s design for marriage and the family, and the relationships we formed with other couples, helped prepare us to welcome our four children.

Jenkins knows that a stable marriage is the best way to ensure children have a father in their lives. In 1965, close to 60 percent of Black adults were married. Today, only 35 percent are. The decline of marriage has gone hand in hand with the increase of out-of-wedlock births.

Another leader who understands this connection is Tommy E. Quick, pastor of Promised Land Christian Discipleship Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and founder of Christian Families Against Destructive Decisions. The organization’s mission—“Rebuilding the Family, Restoring the Nation”—reflects Quick’s belief that communal improvement must begin at home, rather than in political organizing.

Quick works with a network of churches, mainly in the South, to strengthen families. His group offers online content, a marriage boot camp and a 30-day couples devotional. His church has also helped more than 10 cohabiting couples move to marriage in recent years, including one husband who was unsure he could fulfill his role as a provider because, in Quick’s words, his “money was funny.”

Jenkins and Quick stand out in the broader Black church, where many prominent preachers are focused on social justice and political activism. Jamal Bryant is the charismatic leader of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, a large and influential church outside of Atlanta. He was a vocal supporter of Vice President Kamala Harris when she ran for president in 2024. He has also been a consistent critic of the Trump administration and an opponent of Republican redistricting efforts that are expected to reduce the number of majority-minority congressional districts.

>>> The Costly Retreat from Marriage and Family

But it was Bryant’s reaction to the 2022 Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade that showed how activist preachers use their pulpits to promote progressive causes that are hostile to the family. The New Birth pastor criticized the court’s decision as a “war” on women and their “right to have authority over their body.” During the same service, he performed a baby dedication and declared “children are the future.”

Creating a culture of marriage in communities where one has not existed for decades will require churches dedicated to helping men and women sustain loving relationships and build stable families. That is the only way to ensure more Black children benefit from the ultimate privilege: growing up in a safe and secure home with a married mother and father.

The couple that led the marriage class I attended required every participant to memorize the first verse of Psalm 127: “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”

Those words give me hope that a revival of fatherhood and family is possible—for Americans of every race. But it will be made far more difficult if pastors care more about retaking the White House than about restoring the family.