Becoming Beloved Community: The Racial Healing Ministry of St. John the Evangelist

Joint Statement of the Vestry and Becoming Beloved Community: The Racial Healing Ministry of The Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist

As Christians, we affirm that all humans are created in the image and likeness of God. We are bound by our baptismal covenant to respect the dignity of every human being. We are called to follow Jesus, who spoke for the marginalized and the oppressed, who shared God’s love and mercy. We are called to the way of love, as God first loved us. 

 We will embody and affirm St. John’s commitment to antiracism, both within our parish community and beyond. We are devoted to fostering honest conversations about race, systemic racism, white privilege, and indifference, and to identifying opportunities for us to put our faith into action. Our actions and words must reflect the truth that racism is a sin against God and humanity. As the First Letter of John urges, “[L]et us love not in word or speech, but in truth and action.” (1 John 3:18)

Adopted May 11, 2021 

OTHER RESOURCES

Indigenous Peoples Day Resources

As many states and cities commemorate Indigenous Peoples Day (including Boston, who signed an Executive Order in 2021), we wanted to share some resources for your reflection.

For Adults:

· An article from Smithsonian Magazine on Rethinking How We Celebrate American History

For Talking with Children:

· A resource from PBS on How to Honor Indigenous Peoples With Your Kids

· A resource from Education.com on Celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day with Young Children

Black History Month

To celebrate Black History Month, BBC shared book recommendations for readers of different ages each week throughout February. These selections were recommended and are great reads ANY time of the year!

Young Readers:

Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold

Little Leaders, Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison

Coretta Scott by Ntozake Shange

Who Was Rosa Parks by Yona Zeldis

Middle School/YA:

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

Darius & Twig by Walter Dean Myers

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Adults:

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

The Warmth Of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

I'm Still Here : Black Dignity In A World Made For Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein 

As a reminder, Frugal Bookstore in Roxbury is a Black-owned bookstore that carries these titles (and many others), so please consider them as a resource! Order online or call 617-541-1722). ARM also has several copies of Stamped, and we are more than happy to loan them out to anyone that is interested! Please contact Andrew Turner at agturner@gmail.com or 312-952-9089 if you'd like a copy.

BBC also encourages everyone to check out the Hingham Unity Council's Black History Timeline that highlights Black history specific to Hingham, and the World Next Door page that features a list of BIPOC-owned businesses on the South Shore.