article_snippet: Most blacks identify as religious.
article_snippet: Belief in God is touted with pride, and the church is intricately tied to tradition, history and culture.
article_snippet: It is not uncommon to assume that I attend services as a black woman.
article_snippet: The question often isn't if I go to church -- it's where.
article_snippet: And even if one doesn't go to church, surely they still have faith -- because our people have endured and overcome so much hardship that it had to be the work of a god.
article_snippet: It can be extremely difficult to discuss religion objectively in the black community.
article_snippet: And they have done so bravely, defying the perception and expectation that all blacks blindly accept religion.
highlights_snippet: Most blacks, though, identify as religious, and the church is intricately tied to tradition, history and culture .