December 12–19, 1996

cover story|sidebar

In God's Name

Rev. Benjamin Smith ignores politics to save spirits and lives.

A drive through the wasted areas of North Philly reveals block after block of burnt-out row homes, street corner upon street corner of idle black men, and the unshakable feeling that things are getting worse.

Hit the intersection of West Lehigh and 21st Street, though, and painful images give way to a shining ray of hope. On the lot where the Phillies often choked on good fortune, a legendary minister erected Deliverance Evangelistic Church, a monument to the idea that God really can save.

Rev. Benjamin Smith, at 82, stands among Philadelphia's most successful clergymen, black or white. Though never a member of the Black Clergy of Philadelphia, Smith can thank the 10,000 Baptists in his congregation and the God who inspired a $17 million, 165,000-square-foot facility.

Deliverance's new home, which opened in August 1992 complete with a Bible study complex, library, day care center and 5,100-seat sanctuary, is more than a building. It's proof positive that an inner-city church can spearhead a neighborhood's economic rebirth.

Deliverance raised $8 million — roughly half of the construction cost — through a non-profit corporation and gifts from congregants. The bulk of funds stemmed from Deliverance's Hope Plaza, an 80,000-square-foot mall which opened in 1986.

Today, the mall employs over 200 full-time employees and boasts a full-service Thriftway supermarket, a two-story McDonald's, a Rite Aid pharmacy, a Payless Shoes outlet, plus clothing and bargain stores. In an area sorely lacking commercial amenities, the center provides jobs, goods and something more.

"People need hope," says Smith. "While [Hope Plaza] is limited in its ability to help people, it is something. This was God, the thing he was asking us to do."

Smith also knows the church and its neighboring mall is a symbol of possibilities.

"This was our thinking, that this would be an inspiration to other Christian churches," says Smith. "This is still our hope."

Smith's success is steeped in the Bible. Jesus has a plan, explains Smith, and the Bible shows the way. And in Smith's "holistic ministry," one based on the precept that holiness must join with pragmatism to tackle need and distress, there's no time for fighting City Hall.

"Our calling is more spiritual than political," explains Smith, who prays two hours each day and fasts once per week. "I don't have time to get involved in politics."

— Scott Farmelant