A History of Advocacy in the Episcopal Church 1789 - 1997

1. A History of Advocacy in the Episcopal Church1789 - 1997

2. 1784 Samuel Seabury is consecrated as the 1st Bishop of the American Church by the non juring bishops in Scotland. In return, Bishop Seabury agrees that the American church will use the Scottish Prayer Book.

3. 1789 General Convention adopted the Constitution of the Protestant Episcopal Church in America.

4. 1794 Absalom Jones Organized the Free African Society First African-American Episcopal Priest, 1802 Commemorated on February 13

5. 1826 Sunday School Union Urged Sunday Schools to teach the beliefs of the Episcopal Church, using Bible The Book of Common Prayer Catechism

6. 1835 General Convention All Members are considered missionaries.

7. 1851 Thomas Gallaudet Bible class for deaf people at St. Stephen’s Church New York NY Commemorated on August 27

8. 1853 William Augustus Muhlenburg Muhlenburg Memorial Asks the Church to - Work with other denominations. - Present the Gospel in an American Context. Commemorated April 8

9. 1854 James Lloyd Beck “Apostle of the Wilderness” Worked among the Oneida, Chippewa & Ojibwa

10. 1858 The University of the South (Sewanee) is founded.

11. 1859 26th General Convention “Go among the poor, the outcasts, the unloved and the degraded.”

12. 1861 The first meeting of the General Council of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Confederate States of America. Although they never separated from the Church, they met three more times before 1865.

13. 1865 Phillips Brooks Popularly known for the lyrics to “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Wrote a sermon praising Lincoln and condemning slavery. Commemorated on January 23

14. Sister Constance & her Companions 1865 Formed the Sisterhood of St. Mary to minister to the sick and dying of the Memphis Yellow Fever Epidemic. The Martyrs of Memphis are remembered on September 9

15. 1866 Anna Julia Cooper was Christian educator and advocate for children who educated freed African-Americans after the Civil War.

16. 1871 General Convention Authorized the women of the church to organize the Auxiliary. In January of 1872, it began its work. Julia Chester Emory served as the General Secretary to the Board of Missions for forty years. She is commemorated on January 9

17. 1874 William D Wilson In his address “The Mutual Obligations of Capital and Labor” to the first Church Congress, said: To the poor Christ said, “Be content with your wages,” and to the rich, “Work with your own hands.”

18. 1876 Henry Winter Syle Ordained to the Diaconate making him the first deaf person to be ordained. Commemorated on August 27

19. Conference on the Relation of the Church to the Colored People 1883 Meeting at Sewanee, drafted a canon to separate Black Episcopalians into a non-geographical racial diocese.

20. 1883 Richard Hooker Wilmer The only bishop consecrated in the Confederate States. Did not support separate jurisdiction for Black Episcopalians.

21. 1889 United Offering Now known as the United Thank Offering, was established by the Women’s Auxiliary to the Board of Missions of the Episcopal Church.

22. 1907 The report recommended integration of Black Episcopalians into the Episcopal Church. Church Workers Among Colored People Opposed the 1883 Sewanee Conference’s proposal to have non geographical racial dioceses.

23. 1909 Charles D. Williams Fourth Bishop of Michigan Believed that labor was not a commodity. “The value of a man is more precious than a bale of cotton.”

24. 1916 William Lawrence Seventh Bishop of Massachusetts “We must turn our forces to give the children education through the home, the church and all the influences of life.” “The child develops in mind, body and spirit through our aid and leadership.”

25. 1917 Paul Jones Fourth Bishop of Utah Opposed America’s participation in World War I. Said, “War is Un-Christian.” And, was forced to resign. Commemorated on September 4

26. 1922 47th General Convention In response to World War I, the House of Bishops called for a “warless” world and a reduction of armaments.

27. 1929 Appalachian School at Penland Established by the United Thank Offering, in the Diocese of Western North Carolina, its community work has helped to reconnect the generations by serving as nurse, home and parent for boys and girls between the ages of 2 and 14.

28. 1934 Vida Scudder In The Spirit of Missions her article on social awareness and action, she writes: “The church advances toward triumph only if we, her children, march with the Cross of Christ before us.”

29. 1948 Seabury Curriculum Designed to bring the best of theory and practice to bear on present needs in Christian education.

30. 1948 Seabury Curriculum designated 5 major areas of Christian knowledge 1. God’s self-revelation are recorded in the Bible and in Christ’s life and teachings. 2. Historic life of the Church, including present day work. 3. The beliefs of the Church. 4. The Prayer Book, liturgy, and worship of the Church. 5. The world in which we live and the Christian’s duties, problems and opportunities in it.

31. 1952 Crisis at Sewanee Board of Trustees vote not to admit African Americans into its student body. 8 faculty resign.

32. 1955 General Convention In response to Brown v Board of Education of Topeka KS, passed a resolution calling for racial cooperation in the Episcopal Church.

33. 1961 John M. Gessell Education includes our real-life together, serving Christ in community. “The result of our education for religious life is that we are raising a generation of stillborn children.” The Urgency of the Church’s Educational Task

34. 1965 Jonathan Daniels He attended Holy Communion in Selma, Alabama, with some of his friends who were African-American. They weren’t welcome at the altar August 20th, he stepped into the pathway of a bullet intended for a 17 year old girl, and was killed. Commemorated on August 14

35. John Hines former Presiding Bishop 1967 In his sermon to the 67th Convention, called for a commitment to social justice. Commissioned the Bayne Report on the role of the church relative to social criticism.

36. 1968 The founding of the Union of Black Epsicopalians at St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh NC. Its mission: to combat racism in the life of the church and the larger community. Bishop Quinitor Ebenezer Primo was the first president.

37. 1968 Jenny Moore The People on Second Street Ministry This shared ministry brought together the people of Jersey City NJ and Grace Episcopal Church to work with the poor, hungry and rejected.

38. 1969 Judy Ward Lineback is the first woman to matriculate at the University of the South.

39. 1969 General Convention passes a resolution in opposition to the death penalty.

40. 1974 John Westerhoff Challenged the church to an educational revival. “We are to know ourselves as molders of history.”

41. 1974 Their ordinations were not validated until 1979. 11 Women are ordained irregularly in Philadelphia. Dubbed the Philadelphia Eleven.

42. Report of the Joint Committee of the Church and Human Affairs 1976 Affirmed the personhood of homosexuals and recognizes their contributions to the Church and to Society.

43. 1977 Ellen M. Barrett Was ordained by the Right Rev. Paul Moore, making her the first openly homosexual clergy person in the Episcopal Church.

44. 1979 General Convention authorizes an official church presence in Washington DC. The Washington Office, now called the Office of Government Relations, is the most recent mainline denominational office to open.

45. 1979 Journey Toward Justice Institutional racism is any policy or practice of an organization which benefits one race at the expense of other races. The report on the Institutional Racism Project in the Diocese of Southern Ohio. It is not the motivation of the institution or its members that counts. What counts are the results from the policies and practices.

46. 1982 Archbishop Desmond Tutu addresses General Convention in New Orleans. General Convention creates Jubilee Ministries and the Public Policy Network.

47. 1982 The Presiding Bishop’s Fund for World Relief celebrated its 50th anniversary.

48. 1985 “This Church of ours is open to all -- There will be no outcasts.” Address to General Convention Edmond Browning Former Presiding Bishop

49. 1990 Verna Dozier Adjunct faculty member at Virginia Theological Seminary. “...that, to me, is the possibility for a new humanity, every man, woman and child says yes to themselves and yes to every other human being.” Saying “Yes” in a “No” World, The Witness Photo by Bob Kinney

50. National Episcopal Children’s Advocacy Conference 1994 In Cincinnati OH, child advocates from across the country gathered to discuss ways to implement programs to advocate and minister for and with children and families in various ways.