Author Archives: Mary Blocher

Interview with Rev. Jarrett-Schell on Church Reparations

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The text used by our vestry for an introduction to church reparations was written by the Reverend Peter Jarrett-Schell, Rector of Calvary Episcopal Church, Washington, DC. Entitled Reparations: A Plan for Churches, the book draws upon Jarrett-Schell’s experience with draws on his experience as a member of the Reparations Committee in the Diocese of Washington, DC and as Rector of Calvary Episcopal Church, a historically Black church in the diocese.

We discovered an interview with Reverend Jarrett-Schell that was hosted by the Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE) in their series of monthly virtual talks (scroll down to the last talk): We’re Talking Now: Reparations: A Plan for Churches (November 19, 2023). In it, Jarrett-Schell explains his recommendations for church reparations processes. He tells us that while reluctant to write the book on his own, he decided to do so only with the advice and counsel of prominent Black leaders and in dialogue with them. In this talk, he gives two examples of churches who are moving along in very different approaches to repair and reparations. Continue reading →

Martin Luther King and Prophecy

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“As a young man, with most of my life ahead of me, I decided early to give myself to something eternal and absolute. Not to those little gods that are here today and gone tomorrow. But to God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
–Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr., chapter 4

As commemorations for Martin Luther King, Jr. take place in various venues this month, we reflect on his prophetic voice, prompted by Pam’s sermon on the Second Sunday after the Epiphany. Pam spoke about the work of “connecting the dots” in scripture and sacred stories. By listening closely to the messengers of God who link the human and the divine, we deepen our understanding of these narratives–these “pieces of the fabric of community.” Continue reading →

“The Cost of Inheritance”

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“The Cost of Inheritance,” a documentary that explores reparations in America, was aired this week on PBS. It is now available for viewing via PBS’s YouTube channel. Part of the series, America Reframed, the film adopts “a thoughtful approach to History, historical injustices, systemic inequities, and critical dialog on racial conciliation.”

Viewers hear the thoughts and feelings of individuals and members of groups who are seeking to heal racial wounds. The dilemmas of inheritance are explored and reimagined as people develop relationships, share family stories, memories, and documentation, and make amends that are mutually agreed upon. A range of efforts are described. We meet the founders of Reparations4slavery.com and members of Coming to the Table, a network of groups of descendants of enslavers and enslaved who are seeking to repair racial disparities.

There is also coverage of more sweeping efforts including Georgetown University’s reparations work, the National Black Farmers Association/USDA settlement, and the Quarterman and Keller Social Justice Scholarships at Spelman College.

—Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church Jan. 11, 2024

Pauli Murray’s Legacy

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Following Emmanuel’s July 2023 dedication of the Pauli Murray statue that graces our pulpit, we have some related news from her niece, Rosita Stevens-Holsey, and officially, from the U.S. Mint. The Reverend Dr, Pauli Murray Quarter was released on January 2, 2024 as one of the new set of American Women Quarters. The design and significance of the coin are described here.

We have also learned that Pauli Murray scholarship is continuing apace. A recent
collection has been published, To Speak a Defiant Word: Sermons and Speeches on Justice and Transformation. Edited by Anthony B. Pinn, this work builds on Pinn’s previous research and includes sermons, lectures, and speeches.

Lastly, of interest to us is the growing list of recipients of the annual Pauli Murray Book Prize for the best book in Black intellectual history. Sponsored by the African American Intellectual History Society, and first awarded in 2018, the list of recipients includes authors writing on Black history, Black internationalism and environmental Justice, and Black politics and activism. The winners also write a series of posts on the Society’s blog, Black Perspectives which is a global forum for news and public scholarship.

–Mary Beth Clack, Cindy Coldren, Pat Krol
–Published in This Week @Emmanuel Church Jan. 3, 2024

Meditation on Gaudete Sunday

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In this week’s sermon on the meaning of Gaudete (rejoice) Sunday, Pam encouraged us to eschew despair in times when our hearts are understandably heavy. As we enter into the week before Christmas, she suggested that we look for small instances of joy, in which we find evidence love’s power to redeem.

Howard Thurman, author, minister, civil-rights leader, and educator, inspired many civil-rights advocates in his time and ours. It is said that his well-known work Jesus and the Disinherited was deeply influential on Martin Luther King’s thought and preaching, and that MLK carried a well-worn copy of it during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas invokes Thurman when she speaks about going beyond charity to engage in changing the conditions that allow inequality and injustice to prevail. Continue reading →

“In Christ, Called to Collaborate”

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The theme of our October Diocesan Convention was “In Christ, Called to Collaborate.” Several of the sessions were recorded and can be viewed here.  In summary:

Clergy and delegates of eastern Massachusetts Episcopal congregations, gathered in Diocesan Convention last month, adopted measures to advance ongoing racial justice work in the diocese as well as congregational health and wellness, and they expanded organizational procedures in the diocesan canons to allow for a new category of ‘intentional Episcopal communities.’ Continue reading →

The Rev. Dr. Martha Tucker’s Meditation on Repair

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If you remove the yoke from among you, the accusing finger, and malicious speech;
If you lavish your food on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted;
Then your light shall rise in the darkness, and your gloom shall become like midday….
“Repairer of the breach,” they shall call you, “Restorer of ruined dwellings.”                                        —Isaiah 58:9–10, 12

So many prophets radically and poetically call us to participate in a sacred restoration of wholeness, to be “restorers of the breach”. I believe that this is a valuable lens through which to gain perspective on the concept of reparations. Continue reading →