‘Be invitational in our desire to see change’
[image: As protests against anti-Black racism swept the world, the church began considering ways to integrate anti-racism into its work and ministry. Photo: Julian Wan/Unsplash]
Early in June, Archbishop and Primate Linda Nicholls described the COVID-19 pandemic as a “changed circumstance”: the latest in a long series of changes throughout the history of the Anglican Church of Canada that have periodically compelled the church to examine its past assumptions and “ways of being and doing.”
The primate’s statement was one of a series of open letters released by church leaders in recent months, which collectively spoke to a great deal of changed circumstances. In these letters, Anglican leaders spoke out against anti-Black racism; re-affirmed their commitment to reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples; opposed the Israeli government’s plans to annex Palestinian territories; and called on the Government of Canada to institute guaranteed basic income (GBI) for all.
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“As teachers of the gospel, we remind the world that Christ himself was crucified in part because of the threat he represented in standing with those who were marginalized,” the bishops wrote. “We re-commit ourselves and our Dioceses to confront the sin of racism in all its forms and the patterns of silence and self-congratulation, which have silenced the experiences of people of colour, First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples of this land.”
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“This is a long haul,” Nicholls says. “This is not ‘we’re going to fix racism overnight.’ This is generational work. So I hope people will be encouraged to engage in it; not be discouraged by the slowness of progress; and be gentle with themselves around the physical, emotional, spiritual, mental toll that all of the change we are experiencing is putting everyone under.
“Be gracious with one another. Be invitational in our desire to see change.”