Marking the 400th Anniversary of the Slave Trade, Sun Aug 25, noon
At noon on Sunday, August 25th, St. Augustine's solemnly marks the 400th anniversary of the first transatlantic slave ship's arrival in America by ringing our church bells for 4 minutes. Our bells join with those resounding at the same time at the National Cathedral, at fellow Episcopal Churches and many other churches across the nation.
Our Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, invited The Episcopal Church to join in this commemoration "as part of our continued work of racial healing and reconciliation. At 3:00 pm [Eastern, 12:00pm Pacific] we join together with people of other Christian faiths and people of all faiths to remember those who came as enslaved, who came to a country that one day would proclaim liberty. And so we remember them and pray for a new future for us all.”
“With bells tolling across America, we pause to lament the centuries of suffering and wrenching grief of slavery and racism in our land,” said Mariann Edgar Budde, bishop diocesan of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. “The first slave trade ship to land 400 years ago planted the seed of sin that spread through the active participation and complicit passivity of nearly every American institution. As we grieve, may we dedicate ourselves to addressing systemic racism and the multi-generational impact of enslavement and discrimination faced by all of the African diaspora.”
Let us pray:
Almighty God, you created all humankind in your image. On this day when we commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first enslaved Africans arriving in Virginia, USA, we repent of not seeing all your people as made in your Holy Image. We ask you to uplift and support all the descendents of slaves and to help us work for a just economic and social system, especially for those most suffering today from the continued effects of slavery, Jim Crow laws, racially motivated violence, and mass incarceration. Create in us, your church, the ability to work toward New Life together for all of your beloved children. All this we pray in the name of your son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Tags: Serving Neighbors
