In Matthew 25, Jesus makes clear where he is to be found here on earth, and the answer is in the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and those in prison.

Striving toward racial justice is one of the foundational pillars of the Episcopal Church. Indeed, the normative statement of what it means to follow Christ is imbued within the words of our baptismal covenant “Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” (Book of Common Prayer, p 304-305). The vestry of TFCE is committed to ensuring the congregation of the Falls Church Episcopal honors our baptismal covenant by creating a Racial Justice Roadmap. This roadmap will ensure that the quest for racial justice is continuously upheld by our congregation and honors our commitment to living as Christians and serving the world as Christ’s body, with God’s help.

 The vestry of the Falls Church Episcopal (TFCE) believes that racial justice is not a political or academic issue; there aren’t two sides. It is a fundamental disconnect in our society for which our faith compels us to act. We wish to be long suffering with this issue; this should be a long term, steady stream effort that becomes a part of our DNA at TFCE. The majority of our current efforts don’t address racial injustice specifically. Instead our current efforts deal with the intersectional issues of poverty, homelessness, and incarceration that disproportionally affect People of Color. We reach out locally because there is so much need but we should look to broaden our relationships beyond our own locality. Advocacy at the state and national levels will ultimately be the force that re-aligns our society toward equality for all.

 We need education, discernment, listening, and marching orders. We are comforted in the fact that we are not starting from scratch; People of Color have been advocating for change for decades. We shouldn’t seek to re-invent the wheel but instead amplify the good work that has already been done. In order to do this we should find Black leadership and amplify Black voices. Additionally, we would like to work with an organization(s) that tackles the issue of racial justice using a multi-faceted approach. We need to acknowledge our Black parishioners and ensure we are providing them a safe space to fully participate in Jesus’ love. This encompasses raising up the voices of our Black parishioners as we continually strive toward a more perfect expression of Jesus’ all-encompassing love in our congregational life.