Delaware Church Leaders Protest Use of Force in Wilmington
Diocesan Press Service. December 10, 1968 [72-2]
WILMINGTON, Del. -- While National Guard convoys carried on their patrols of Wilmington's Negro neighborhoods for the eighth consecutive month, religious leaders met here early in December to plan a course of action for the churches to assure justice and human dignity for all citizens.
A joint statement issued by the clergymen asserted the churches' responsibility for involvement in the area's secular affairs and deplored "the failure of the community to deal with problems except by force."
"For the church to be silent in the face of need, injustice or exploitation, " the statement said, "would be to fail to receive and live by the Gospel."
Participating in the meeting were the following Church leaders:
Bishop William H. Mead, Episcopal Diocese of Delaware; Bishop Thomas J. Mardaga, Roman Catholic Diocese of Wilmington; Bishop John Wesley Lord, United Methodist Bishop for the Washington area; the Rev. William R. Phillippe, executive of the United Presbyterian Church, U.S. A., Synod of the Chesapeake; the Rev. Paul L. Buehrie, dean of the Delaware District, Lutheran Church of America.
Regular meetings will continue to be held in which they will seek to deal with the issues of housing, race relations, law enforcement, employment and education.
The statement made no direct reference to the governor of Delaware, Charles L. Terry, Jr. , who recently criticized the clergy as sponsoring "what to me is next door to revolution."
Governor Terry, who was narrowly defeated for re-election last month, declared that he would continue the National Guard's patrols as long as he held office. The local Methodist Action Program has issued a four-page pamphlet protesting the subversion of local authority, the repressive use of the Guard and its adverse effects on community relations.
The five church leaders have agreed to study and to address this specific issue before Christmas.