Disciple: Mission Endowment Spotlight: Deepening a Relationship to Open New Doors
By Christine McTaggart
Why is all of the race-related violence we see on the news happening? Where is the anger coming from? Isn’t racism over? What is white privilege? What does it really mean? Racism is clearly still a problem, but what do we do about it? How do we have conversations about it?
These were the questions being asked by parishioners of St. Mark’s, Huntersville, in early 2016 when they decided to dedicate seven weeks of their adult formation classes to studying racism in America, including its history and current state. The offering drew more attendees than any other topic had, and, from the start, participants were on the edge of their seats, hearing things they’d never heard before and learning much they did not know. At the end of the seven weeks, there was a clear consensus among the class that they were hungry to know more, to have more discussions and truly to learn from a different perspective what it means to be black in America.
WANTING TO UNDERSTAND
“There is so much we don’t understand about being part of America, yet feeling marginalized, disenfranchised and not being heard,” said the Rev. Sarah Hollar, rector of St. Mark’s. “But if we’re going to be followers of Jesus Christ, we can no longer be deliberately oblivious to strife and misunderstanding and the divide over race in America.”
St. Mark’s is a predominantly white congregation, but it is active in its work with intercultural activities. It is the home of one of the area’s La Escualita preschools, and the church also supports the Episcopal Farmworker Ministry. In wanting to know more about people of color and what their lives truly look like in this country, the congregation “understands that if you are going to follow Jesus, part of that is being connected and being an advocate,” said Hollar. “It may not be comfortable, and sometimes we’ll do it well, and sometimes we’ll do it less well, but that’s what we’re going to do.”
In discussing how to continue what was started in the formation series, it was suggested to Hollar there was funding available through the Mission Funding Consortium in the form of Mission Endowment Grants. Considering how that might be used to facilitate ongoing education and conversation, an idea formed that would not only deepen a long-standing relationship but might also afford the opportunity to learn about those already on church grounds.
DEEPENING A RELATIONSHIP
St. Mark’s has been a faith partner of Ranson IB Middle School for 15 years. Parishioners have done backpack supplies drives and collected money for uniforms, and they continue to feed 15 students with weekend backpack meals and attend school events. In past years there have been Thanksgiving dinners, angel trees and camp scholarships, a program that continues with the local YMCA today.
Ranson is a school whose student body is 95 percent children of color. With a long-standing relationship and level of trust in place, Hollar wondered if the school’s parents, staff and faculty would be willing to deepen the relationship and take the journey of discussing racism together.
She called Erica Jordan-Thomas, principal of Ranson IB Middle School, and Jon Rochester, the school’s social worker, to share her thoughts and extend an invitation to be a partner in it. They were immediately interested.
“The opportunity to do this aligned really well with my goals for the school,” said Jordan-Thomas. “[Most of] our students are students of color, and they are very aware of the messages around them whether we agree with those messages or not. As educators, we have to be aware of the national conversation and be ready to leverage opportunities to have conversations with our kids to help them process what’s going on and paint a new narrative.
“Educators and teachers are not exempt from having biases,” she continued. “So an opportunity like this gives faculty a chance to explore their own journey of what this means for themselves — what their own personal experience and impact with race and socioeconomic class means to them, where they are in their journey in being a truly culturally competent leader, and how it’s showing up in the classroom and supporting children and learning.”
Jordan-Thomas knew Hollar’s proposal wasn’t simply talk. She attended one of St. Mark’s formation sessions, and found herself the only person of color in the room. Yet as she sat and listened, she found her “heart filled with so much joy to be sitting in a room with folks I’d never met, who did not identify as people of color, and truly having a conversation around sharing their experience and wanting to grow and learn and understand what racism looks like from the perspectives of other people.”
Jordan-Thomas and Rochester suggested hosting the meetings at the school. It is the central site of St. Mark’s and Ranson IB’s established relationship, and, as such, it offers a neutral, non-threatening environment. It was decided meetings would be held on Wednesday evenings and begin with a shared meal followed by discussions, each of which would be hosted by an outside facilitator with experience and knowledge in the area of race relations. Among those who have already agreed to take part are Mike Wiley, well-known to the Diocese through his work with the Lift Every Voice program, and Steve Crump, noted broadcast journalist with WBTV in Charlotte. The curator from the Museum of the New South will facilitate a discussion, and conversations are taking place to have a local chief of police share perspectives and answer questions.
The hope and goal of the series is to provide those who participate with opportunities to explore not only their own perspectives and beliefs, but also the chance to gain insight on what systemic racism really means.
“[This] starts from within,” said Rochester. “If white folks have a better understanding of privilege and what it means in terms of what they might have in relation to people of color, they might be better able to understand the systematic oppression that occurs in our society.”
“Systems are people,” added Jordan-Thomas. “When you talk about institutional or systemic racism, those are people who create it and perpetuate it. You can’t break a system without first doing the individual work within yourself.”
REVISTING THE PAST
With the $8,000 Mission Endowment Grant awarded in the Spring 2016 cycle, the partnership series between St. Mark’s and Ranson IB Middle School will begin in January 2017. Part of the funding will cover the cost of the series, but the rest will be put toward a very special project.
St. Mark’s is the caretaker of a slave cemetery. Because of the lack of headstones and markers, only two of the 25 to 50 people buried there are known. In an act of respect and recognition of the benefit the church has had from wealth resulting from slavery, the hope of St. Mark’s is to use some of the Mission Endowment funding to utilize thermal imaging to determine exactly how many people are buried on the grounds. Once determined, they then want to engage a genealogist to assist in determining the names of those buried and locating any living
relatives.
“The dead deserve the dignity of having their name acknowledged at their burial site, and their relatives deserve the opportunity to know where their ancestors are buried,” said Hollar.
YOU ARE INVITED
It is hoped that those who participate in the series will attend all seven weeks, but folks can certainly come to whatever sessions work for their schedules. All are welcome, as there is plenty of room for anyone wanting to take part in this eye-opening process.
None of the series organizers are sure where this offering will lead, though all agree the path will be discovered through the cycle of conversation. Said Hollar, “We know what’s in the minds of those at St. Mark’s, but we don’t know what’s in the minds of conversation partners. It will be revealed, and we will have to listen to find out.”
HAVE A GREAT IDEA
The application deadline for 2017 Mission Endowment Grants is November 30, 2016. Learn more and apply.
Christine McTaggart is the communications director for the Diocese of North Carolina.
Tags: North Carolina Disciple
