Racial Reconciliation
Brotherhood of St Andrew Commission on Racial Reconciliation Vision Statement
Vision Statement:
Because racism works against our baptismal call to love others in the power of the spirit and to strive for justice and peace among all people, The Brotherhood of St Andrew hereby seeks to heal this chronic illness in our faith community through education, developing greater awareness of its existence in our ongoing spiritual formation. We will use prayer, intentional action, continued dialogue and the sharing of our personal and collective stories to help in facilitating the healing, transformation and reconciliation that will make it possible for us to truly see the face of God in all others.
Rationale For Vision Statement:
The recent events across our country make it clear that a new conversation on race is much needed and they should be enough to silence anyone who wants to argue that such conversation is no longer needed. While most of us wish that we could move on to some of the other many social challenges facing us, race continues to be the text and the subtext of almost every other social challenge before us and will not allow us to put it aside.
Racism is an issue that has to be faced in a straightforward and courageous manner and what better place for this work to occur than in the Brotherhood Of St Andrew, where we all share a commitment to someone larger than ourselves who can help us find the courage to travel on the road to racial healing and reconciliation.
We as Brothers Andrew, representing the Anglican Episcopal Men’s Ministry, condemn the racism, xenophobia, misogyny, and violence that we have witnessed across our country, particularly, against our Asian American Pacific Island (AAPI) brothers and sisters.
In our baptismal covenant, we pledge to respect the dignity of every human being. Each of us has the power to make a positive, constructive difference in the lives of others, and a responsibility to speak up in the face of bigotry and oppression. We therefore stand united in deploring the “othering” of any of God’s children.
There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal 3:28)
Webinar from the 2021 Triennial Convention
Racial Reconciliation Resources
The links below include racial reconciliation/anti-racism training organizations and resources known to have been used by those in The Episcopal Church for developing and delivering training.
Becoming Beloved Community represents not so much a set of programs as a journey, a set of interrelated commitments around which Episcopalians may organize our many efforts to respond to racial injustice and grow a community of reconcilers, justice-makers, and healers.
Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing
The Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing, founded by Dr. Catherine Meeks, provides programs and resources to promote racial reconciliation.
Crossroads Antiracism Organizing and Training
Recognizing that racism goes beyond personal prejudice, Crossroads offers a distinctive Power Analysis of how racism functions in institutions, and offers tools to create antiracist transformation.
“Sacred Ground” is a Film-Based Dialogue Series on Race & Faith created by Episcopal Church staff led by film director Katrina Brown. This set of videos and workbooks can be used to facilitate conversations on racism and reconciliation.
Seeing the Face of God in Each Other
Developed by staff of The Episcopal Church in the early 2000s, this curriculum focuses on anti-racism and can be used to develop customized training to be supplemented with content that follows the Anti-Racism/Reconciliation Framework described above.
The Center for Reconciliation at Duke Divinity School
Reconciliation is a collaborative process. The Center for Reconciliation at Duke Divinity works to collaborate both locally and globally by stimulating a growing network of reconciliation scholars and practitioners as well as offering robust resources for reconciliation.
The Kaleidoscope Institute provides resources to equip church leaders to create sustainable churches and communities. It’s training programs incorporate concepts defined by the Framework.
The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond
The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond focuses on understanding what racism is, where it comes from, how it functions, why it persists and how it can be undone.
Our vision is to be a catalyst for a more equitable world where differences are valued and used for the benefit of all.
A Conversation with the Police – Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man
Emmanuel Acho sits down with police officers from the Petaluma Police Department in Petaluma, CA. They discuss polarizing topics like defunding the police, Black Lives Matter, and accountability in the police force surrounding the tragic deaths of black civilians. This is not a conversation you want to skip!
A Listening Circle; Voices in the Wilderness
Hosted by the Ethnic Ministries Circles of Color, this panel discussion facilitated by the Rev. Terry Kyllo during the 2020 Diocesan Convention featured members of the Circles of Color sharing their experiences pain and perseverance in the Diocese of Olympia and the wider Episcopal Church.
The Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey Anti-Racism Ministry invites you to participate in 20 hours of virtual Anti-Racism Training streamed to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. During the last year, the response to the Diocese’s Online Anti-Racism Training has been astounding, but there is still much work to be done.The training takes a historical approach to help participants understand systemic racism and empower them to confront and organize against racism, inequality, and injustice. Lecture and discussion topics include “What is Race?”, “Systemic Racism and White Privilege,” “Internalized Racism,” “The Role of the Church,” “Settler Colonialism,” “Racism in Immigration and Naturalization Legislation,” and “The Prison Industrial Complex.” The course takes place over four Friday evenings, with a follow up session on October 15th. Registration is open until August 12th. More info contact Mary Anne Clisham at info@dioceseofnj.org
Contact Us
For more information on Racial Reconciliation contact Rory Smith at
racial.rec@brothersandrew.net