It all
started a few years ago, when Peg and I went to worship at Grace Episcopal
Cathedral in Charleston, South Carolina, and to our surprise we were privileged
to witness the commemoration of an Episcopal saint, a bishop, a witness for
racial equality and a martyr: Bishop William Alexander Guerry (July 7, 1861 –
June 9, 1928).
Guerry was a
South Carolinian and was consecrated bishop coadjutor on September 15, 1907 and
later became the eighth diocesan bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina on
April 22, 1908. Before that, he served as a parish priest and then as Chaplain
and Professor of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology at the University of the
South in Sewanee, Tennessee.
Despite the
fact that he spent his whole ministry, other than his training at the General
Theological Seminary in New York, in the South in an age of segregation, Bishop
Guerry came to believe that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was Good News for all
people, and this led him to believe that the Church must reflect the visible unity
of all God’s people in how we ordered our common life. So, in 1914, he proposed
that his Diocese should elect a black bishop suffragan for South Carolina to be
responsible for the ministry to African American Episcopalians. He wanted to ensure
that all people, regardless of race, were full participants in the community of
Christ’s people in the diocese.
While the
idea of a separate jurisdiction would sound regressive and divisive to our ears;
for its day, this was a radical proposition and was met with considerable opposition!
His proposal failed big time in the Diocesan Convention that year. Instead, the
majority white (and, of course, all male) convention chose instead to separate
the African American community of the Diocese into a “Missionary District for
Negroes,” which practically and effectively separated Black Episcopalians from
the rest of the diocesan community until the arrangement was abolished in the
mid-20th century.
But that is
not the end of the story.
On June 2,
1928, an Episcopal priest of that diocese, the Rev. J. H. Woodward,
entered Bishop Guerry’s office at St. Philip’s Church in Charleston, enraged at
the Bishop’s message of racial equality and reconciliation. He made an
appointment with the Bishop and during the conversation he pulled out a pistol
and shot Guerry in the chest, before killing himself.
Most of the
news reports of the day and the little bits of history written since then have described
the Rev. Woodward as “mentally deranged.” While that might have been the case,
it is equally clear that this priest had organized his “derangement” around the
idea of violently preserving white supremacy. Before the meeting, he had openly
and publicly attacked the bishop’s position on advancing racial equality in
South Carolina, and especially on his proposal to install a black suffragan
bishop in the diocese. Woodward wrote that the bishop, given his way, “would
root out the principle of white supremacy in the South” and clearly planned his
attack accordingly. Guerry is reported to have forgiven Woodward before he
died.
It's odd to
me that the martyrdom of Bishop Guerry is rarely talked about in the Episcopal
Church. June 7th is not an
official feast or commemoration in this church except in his own diocese, even
as Guerry has been listed by the Archbishop of Canterbury as one of the
church’s modern martyrs.
At the
Cathedral that day in 2018, the diocese dedicated a portrait and Chapel to
Bishop Guerry and the congregation sang this hymn:
(1) The
martyr’s song still sings every day, every day.
The martyr’s song still sings every day.
The martyr’s song still sings as heaven’s
echo rings
So none will miss the sound of that song
every day
So none will miss the sound of that song.
(2) Hate’s
raging ways live on, every night. Every night.
Hate’s raging ways live on, every night.
Hate’s raging way live on and kill the
prophet’s song.
Will we not right the wrong with our song,
with our song?
Will we not right the wrong with our song?
(3) The
Shepherd’s witness lives every night. Every day.
The Shepherd’s witness lives every day.
The Shepherd’s witness lives in all who
dare forgive.
Like One who long ago sent from heaven did
come down.
Now wears the martyr’s crown every day.
As a person
who has dedicated his life to doing public theology in the public square, as
well as pastoring and teaching faithful people in everyday living, I found
Bishop Guerry’s example and witness profoundly moving and humbling. And even
years later, I marvel at the holy coincidence of how I wandered into the
Cathedral “just” for Sunday worship and instead heard about his story for the
first time!
As I work
through the realities of the concurrent sins of racism, sexism, homophobia, and
classism, and confront my own tendencies towards these within myself, I am
guided by Guerry’s example.
And ever
since, I’ve also been struck by the continued ugliness in much of our present public
discourse. The unrepentant coarseness emanating from the highest levels of leadership
dismays me. I expect our civic and religious leaders to call out the best in
us, instead many wish to cultivate the worst. It is awful enough when people
cheer on the bad behavior of a tv character, but when people—in my experience,
good ethical people of good character—line up behind these antics perpetrated
by an elected official, it makes me tired, sad, and worried, and as we run up
to elections on both the state and national level, I am seeing this kind of
rhetoric only ramp up, especially as we witness legislation enacted that bans
one kind of speech and encourages other kinds of speech designed to stir up
people’s anger and emotions.
I know I am
not alone. As I talk to people around the parish, around the City, and even
(on-line) from around the country, there is a growing anxiety about the growing
level of vitriol out there, and not only on the airwaves and internet, but in everyday
interactions. What’s an everyday Christian to do?
I am not
against debate or divergence about complex issues among people of good faith.
When deciding big things, disagreement, even passionate debate, ought to be
expected! But when the goal becomes “my side must win at all costs” and even
worse, when we believe that the only victory is to utterly “own” or destroy the
opposition and to leave them humiliated, then not a whole lot is going to get
done. And if we can’t disagree with civility, then we cannot compromise, and if
we can’t compromise then we are frozen, nothing gets done and then all we have
left is our frustration and our anger.
Christian
witness in this atmosphere does not arise from mimicking or blindly aligning
with the culture’s values. Mindless chants and only rooting for “our side” doesn’t
accomplish anything, except for maybe raising our blood pressure. Oddly, rage
can be addictive as it excites our endorphins and makes us want more to rage
about.
What’s the
answer?
Well, we can
start with the Apostle Paul’s reminder to the Christians in Rome to not be
conformed to the world and instead letting God’s Holy Spirit to transform our
minds (Romans 12:2).
The next thing
we can do in response to this tense and crazy season is to remain calm
even when the air is filled with cruel and fear-fueled words. And to do that,
we must pause. When you’re angry, pause. When you’re scared, pause. When
you’re tempted to join the angry mobs of people, even if it’s “only” on-line,
pause.
And as you
pause, pray. Give yourself a little bit of space to invite the Holy
Spirit into these very valid concerns that an election like this one will bring
up in our hearts and see what God would have us do. After we’ve prayed, then we
can begin to listen and embrace those around, especially those who disagree or
differ from us.
I found a
prayer by Pope Francis based on the famous prayer of St. Francis of Assisi to
be especially helpful. It was written for World Communications Day, which this
year is Sunday, May 29, 2022, just a few days before the anniversary of Bishop
Guerry’s death:
Lord, make us instruments of your
peace.
Help us to recognize the evil latent in a communication that does not build
communion.
Help us to remove the venom from our judgements.
Help us to speak about others as our brothers and sisters.
You are faithful and trustworthy; may our words be seeds of goodness for the
world:
where there is shouting, let us practice listening;
where there is confusion, let us inspire harmony;
where there is ambiguity, let us bring clarity;
where there is exclusion, let us offer solidarity;
where there is sensationalism, let us use sobriety;
where there is superficiality, let us raise real questions;
where there is prejudice, let us awaken trust;
where there is hostility, let us bring respect;
where there is falsehood, let us bring truth.
Amen.
It is important that we listen in our
hearts and minds to what is going around us and give to God what it stirs up in
us. It is equally important to know who has the power to bring peace and in
whose name we have been commissioned in Baptism to be peacemakers. Remember, no
human being anywhere—no cleric, no politician, no public figure, no celebrity, nor
anyone else on the media or in society—is the Messiah. Only Jesus is our Savior
and Messiah! No human leader will ever solve all our problems, but God is the
source of our hope and calling! And certainly, no human leader can give us
inner peace, that can only come through the grace of the Holy Spirit!
As Ambassadors of Reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:11-21), we are not passive by-standers. Jesus calls us to actively love the world, and to actively care for the sick, the wounded, the outcast, the lost, and the least. That neither begins nor ends at the ballot box nor with the talking head on tv. It begins at the foot of the cross, gathers us around the font and the Eucharistic table, and sends us into the world carrying Christ’s endless and never-failing love.
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