The Poor People’s Campaign, co-chaired by Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) pastor and theologian the Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, took to the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., recently to release a detailed report connecting information about Covid deaths to demographic characteristics including income, race, health insurance status and more.
Much has been learned from the Minister Survey. Researchers and leaders will continue to explore the data over the next year and look to how the information can be shared with leadership, seminaries and ministers so that they can begin the work of encouraging what is helpful and addressing concerns. So, what are the key takeaways from this work? What is promising? What needs addressing?
In the Minister Survey conducted by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Research Services, Ministers of the Word and Sacrament were asked about their experiences with discrimination, opportunities and leadership struggles. Their answers form the basis for the Discrimination, Opportunity, and Struggles of Leadership Report, available in English, Spanish, and Korean.
Not one day goes by that I am not misgendered in some way.
Sometimes it is intentional. Most often it is just a mistake. Either way, it is a micro-aggression that I have learned will probably be a part of my journey for the rest of my life.
Every year since 1865, there has been one day that most Black people have held as a celebratory occurrence. On June 19, 1865, the last of the Black Americans who were in the condition of chattel servitude were freed. Texas, the last state to hold out on the edict of the Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln more than two years prior, had finally been forced into compliance. And so, it is this date in June that many Black Americans consider to be Independence Day and thus a cause for annual jubilation that we have titled Juneteenth.
In the late ‘80s, my spouse Loyda and I, originally from Cuba, moved to Louisville with our small children to attend seminary. A fellow white Anglo student tried to say Loyda’s name but kept mispronouncing it. He finally asked, “Why don’t you change your name?” My wife replied, “If I have to learn how to pronounce yours, you better learn how to pronounce mine.”
During the final worship service at the recent Vital Congregations virtual gathering, the Rev. Shanea Leonard challenged nearly 100 participants to become co-conspirators in the work of the gospel.
COVID-19 has us all rethinking the way we do ministry. And now, as churches ponder reopening, what will worship service look like? Will the new model of online worship service become the new normal?
After a successful first outing looking at the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus pandemic on communities of people who are Black, the “COVID at the Margins” series returned May 18 with a look at a community experiencing overt racism due to the virus: people who are Asian and Asian-American.
