D074 Renouncing the Theology of Slavery held by the Rev. James Craik, 11th President of the House of Deputies
The Episcopal Church continues to engage in our long-term commitment to work toward racial reconciliation, healing and justice guided by the framework laid out in “Becoming Beloved Community”. According to that framework, “Reconciliation, healing, and new life require telling the truth about The Episcopal Church’s racial composition and complicity in systems of racial justice and injustice – past and present.”
As a part of telling the truth, the Episcopal Church has a responsibility to publicly acknowledge how the complicity of our past leaders, including the Rev. James Craik, has shaped our Church’s governance, theology, and mission as well as the actions of General Convention.
As the Archives of the Episcopal Church noted in its 2022 report to General Convention, “Our historical records are part of a revered account of God’s acting within our branch of the Body of Christ. At the same time, the Body of Christ is also a flawed human institution that carries its past into every occasion. Just as Moses urged the ancient Hebrew people to choose to remember their past lest they forget, Episcopalians need the records of our history to be safely preserved for access so that they may guide us as we continue to adapt to new ways to serve and know God, and with new insights.”
Acknowledging the Rev. James Craik’s theological commitment to chattel slavery and including this information in public records of his ministry in the Church provides those seeking information a more full and transparent account of the full range of beliefs which animated his actions.
Explanation
The Episcopal Church continues to engage in our long-term commitment to work toward racial reconciliation, healing and justice guided by the framework laid out in “Becoming Beloved Community”. According to that framework, “Reconciliation, healing, and new life require telling the truth about The Episcopal Church’s racial composition and complicity in systems of racial justice and injustice – past and present.”
As a part of telling the truth, the Episcopal Church has a responsibility to publicly acknowledge how the complicity of our past leaders, including the Rev. James Craik, has shaped our Church’s governance, theology, and mission as well as the actions of General Convention.
As the Archives of the Episcopal Church noted in its 2022 report to General Convention, “Our historical records are part of a revered account of God’s acting within our branch of the Body of Christ. At the same time, the Body of Christ is also a flawed human institution that carries its past into every occasion. Just as Moses urged the ancient Hebrew people to choose to remember their past lest they forget, Episcopalians need the records of our history to be safely preserved for access so that they may guide us as we continue to adapt to new ways to serve and know God, and with new insights.”
Acknowledging the Rev. James Craik’s theological commitment to chattel slavery and including this information in public records of his ministry in the Church provides those seeking information a more full and transparent account of the full range of beliefs which animated his actions.