We recently hosted a roundtable discussion on race, justice, and social unrest. Over 300 people attended the webinar live, and the recording is now available for those who were not able to join us in real-time!
Archbishop Foley Beach has called the Anglican Church in North America to join him in prayer and fasting from Wednesday, June 3 to Wednesday, June 10.
Our various communities are experiencing so much heartache right now. In response to the death of George Floyd, several official statements have been released. Bishops Jim Hobby, Todd Hunter, Stewart Ruch, and Steve Wood issued A Letter Concerning the Death of George Floyd and So Many Others. The Archbishop commended it to all clergy in ACNA.
Here on Anglican Compass, we published A Letter to Fellow ACNA Clergy: On Anti-Racism and a More Diverse and Just Anglicanism. Over 400 clergy and over 400 laypersons and friends have signed it. A cursory review will show widespread participation across dioceses in our province.
How should we make sense of everything that’s going on? Our goal at Anglican Compass is to help you navigate the Anglican tradition with clarity and charity. To that end, we hosted a conversation on “Race, Justice, and Social Unrest in North America.”
Hosted and moderated by Greg Goebel and Daniel Adkinson, our roundtable featured the following panelists:
- Kimberly Deckel: Associate Pastor of All Souls, Phoenix, AZ; Member of the Leadership Team at The Surge Network.
- Jim Hobby: Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh and one of the authors of the Bishops letter listed above.
- Shawn McCain: Rector of Resurrection Anglican Church, Austin, TX, and one of the authors of the Clergy letter listed above.
- Esau McCaulley: Canon Theologian for C4SO, Assistant Professor of New Testament at Wheaton College, and Director of Next-Generation Leadership in the ACNA.
- Molly Ruch: Managing Director of Titus Institute of Always Forward and part of Church of the Cross, Hopkins, MN.
What were your top takeaways and highlights from the discussion? Please let us know in the comments below!
Anglican Compass is your guide to Anglican life. We’re here to help you navigate the Anglican tradition with clarity and charity.
It was excellent! Please do more.
Rev. M. Benay
Deacon
Anglican diocese of Edmonton Alberta Canada
I feel like I have been transported through time back to the 1970’s when we were working with American Friends Service Committee. So I feel sad and almost hopeless. Like then, church people are interested in discussion among ourselves. To be honest, I never learned much in groups that were predominantly White with a few token people of color. I have learned when I was the clear minority so that I experienced a bit of how POC are treated. I think that, if talk worked, this issue would have been resolved before 2000.
I suggest that we serve our communities as individuals or very small teams. Tutor children. Volunteer with Community Action or Catholic Charities. Be vulnerable one-on-one. Then LISTEN. What I have learned about Black people, immigrants and Native Americans , I learned FROM Black people, immigrants, and Native Americans.
I apologize for sounding negative. I am a 71-year-old-white woman. At this moment, I wonder if the efforts of my generation and even the generation before me made any real difference.
As someone pretty new to Anglicanism and watching the ACNA closely on this before we fully commit to the local Anglican church we have been attending here in Chicago – this was encouraging! It definitely felt like a “dip your toes in” starting point and I hope you’ll build on it.
The loudest takeaway that I’ve been mulling over since the panel was Esau’s comment about moving from guilt to conviction – I needed to hear that!