In its 60th Anniversary Forum Series The Bay State Banner presented on February 12, “The State of Black America.” Two open forums complemented the newspaper’s special essay section to commemorate Boston and black history. WGBH sponsored mid-day talks at the Boston Public Library moderated by the Banner’s editor Ron Mitchell. Panelists included Dr. Noelle Trent, executive director of the Museum of African American History of Boston & Nantucket, who spoke about the effort to restore last year’s funding cuts from the Institute of Library and Museum Services. Because black museums are grassroots efforts, the funding has been crucial to the health of the organization. With the community activated an appeal was filed, which resulted in an injunction and restoration of funding. She also elaborated on how other American black museums have contributed to laying the foundation for African American museum scholarship. Continue reading
Author Archives: Mary Blocher
“What is your hand in this?”
Commemorative concerts for America’s 250th anniversary will be dotting the musical landscape in 2026. An inventive program that may prove to be one of the most challenging for audiences has been launched by Davóne Tines and Ruckus, “a shapeshifting, collaborative, baroque ensemble with a visceral and playful approach to early music.” Sanders Theater hosted them on January 31, 2026, as part of their ten-cities tour.
Created by bass-baritone Davóne Tines, bassist Douglas Adam August Balliett, and Clay Zeller-Townson, founder of Ruckus, the program called “What is your hand in this?” recasts “Colonial and Revolutionary-era hymns, ballads, and Baroque compositions, on a musical journey that weaves through the pre-Civil War period, the Civil Rights era, and into the present day.” (Everyone 250 Continue reading
Honoring Absalom Jones
Known as the “Black Bishop of the Episcopal Church,” Absalom Jones’s feast day is February 13. Following tradition, numerous Episcopal churches and dioceses are holding commemorative services. The Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston announced that our diocese’s celebration would be held at 4pm on February 14, 2026, with the Rt. Rev. Julia E. Whitworth presiding and the Rev. Canon Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas preaching. Continue reading
The Fierce Urgency of Now
On Monday, January 19th, 2026, the 56th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast will be held in Boston.
The MLK Breakfast Memorial Committee is comprised of representatives from St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church and Union United Methodist Church. The event is the longest-running celebration of its kind in the U.S.; scholarships are provided each year to students from nine Boston public high schools.
Love & Justice: Quotes for the New Year
We write today with two inspiring texts in mind, our reverend Pam’s Christmas Eve sermon, and Coretta Scott King’s words displayed in the 1965 Freedom Plaza surrounding our city’s Embrace statue.
From The Rev. Pam Werntz’ sermon, December 24, 2025, on light and darkness, grace and love, and the hope we need in our world:
The light doesn’t eliminate the darkness; it shines in the darkness. It offers orientation, direction, hope, and the possibility of seeing differently, of finding a way forward.…And this light not abstract or distant….This light has pitched a tent among us, has taken up residence in our neighborhoods, in our world, in our lives, in our hearts. Continue reading
An Artist’s Sketchbook of the South End
Church of St. Augustine & St. Martin on Lenox St. in Boston’s South End by AR Crite
For a respite from the bustle of the holidays, a visit to the Gardner Museum was in order. There, in the exhibit Allan Rohan Crite: Urban Glory, we learned of the project that Crite completed as an artist in residence at the Museum of African American History on Beacon Hill. Continue reading
Reparations Summit III, November 8, 2025
Over 80 people attended the Reparations Summit. The Episcopal City Mission (ECM) issued its message of gratitude to all who made the gathering possible.
On behalf of ECM, Christ Church Cambridge, and the Reparations Summit Planning Team, which was made up of clergy and lay leaders from across Massachusetts, they extended deep appreciation to all who joined in providing dedicated support, thoughtful contributions, and the logistical care that helped make the Summit a successful gathering. They are hoping to build a movement of faith toward liberation and reparations — a movement grounded in truth-telling, community, and courageous love. Continue reading
Work of Allan Rohan Crite on View in Boston
Cover of A.R.C. Neighborhood Liturgy (Princeton U. Press, 2025)
The Gardner Museum and the Boston Athenaeum are hosting exhibitions of the work of Allan Rohan Crite, artist and chronicler of life in Boston’s Lower Roxbury and South End neighborhoods. Both shows opened on October 23, 2025. Allan Rohan Crite: Urban Glory and Allan Rohan Crite: Griot of Boston are creating a resurgence of interest in the work of Crite (1910-2007), who was known as a civic leader, storyteller, and community activist. Influenced by his lifelong devotion to his faith and to local Episcopal churches he supported and loved, his work is again in our midst.
Virginia Theological Institute’s Reparations
Our Racial Justice Working Group follows the news of ongoing reparations processes as they unfold in institutions of The Episcopal Church. One of TEC’s oldest seminaries, the Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS), recently announced the next phase of its historical research and monetary reparations: “VTS breaks ground on reparations memorial honoring at least 557 African American laborers.” —Episcopal News Service, September 26, 2025 Continue reading
Parish Meeting on Creating a Culture of Repair & Other Events
We were delighted to have over 30 parishioners join in our October 5, 2025, parish meeting on creating a culture of repair at Emmanuel Church. The prompt for small-group discussion was: “What does it mean for Emmanuel Church to become a parish doing reparations?” A summary will be forthcoming from this Vestry-sponsored event. For now, we note that we are building on much good work done in our community in years past; and the work continues. Continue reading