Episcopal Press and News
House of Bishops
Diocesan Press Service. September 3, 1963 [XIII-9]
TORONTO, --- The House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church at a special meeting Aug. 12 placed themselves squarely behind the August 28 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, unequivocally supported Presiding Bishop Lichtenberger's strong stand against racial segregation, and urged the United States Congress to speedily enact civil rights legislation.
Meeting in executive session at the Royal York Hotel the 116 American bishops encouraged the Episcopal Church's 3,500, 000 members to join in the Washington march, stating that participation in a "peaceful assemblage for the redress of grievances" is "a proper expression of Christian witness and obedience."
Here they added the prayer that citizens of all races would peacefully "bring before the government for appropriate and competent action the critical and agonizing problems" of America's racial crisis.
In a second resolution, the House of Bishops urged the United States Congress "to pass such civil rights legislation as shall fairly and effectively implement the established rights and needs of all minority groups in .education, voting rights, housing, employment opportunities, and access to places of public accommodation."
They also voiced their support of Bishop Lichtenberger's Whitsuntide message in which he urged all Episcopalians to actively involve themselves in the Negro's struggle for full human equality.
During the Congress general discussion period Aug. 15, there was vigorous disagreement on matters of racial policy. The Rev. C. Edward Crowther, clerical delegate from Capetown, said he had visited the southern United States where many. churchmen had suffered and had been imprisoned when they had stood up for the oppressed. He hoped that Congress would speak out to the downtrodden in both South Africa and the United States.
Charles P. Taft, lay delegate from Southern Ohio, said there had been too much emphasis on the large questions and not enough on the local ones, the real frontiers for most people.
Francis T. West, lay delegate from Southwestern Virginia, spoke of "the pathetic role in the whole dark tragedy of this race relations controversy. Nothing has exposed more clearly than this affair the general fuzziness of some clerics' minds-and their naivete - in areas of political and legal combat."
On Aug. 17, a statement from one of the Congress discussion groups was presented to the plenary session. It said "There is no place where sin is manifested more than in the area of race relations."
It was commented on by the Rt. Rev. Richard Emrich, Bishop of Michigan, and Dr. R. G. Jones, lay delegate from Arkansas.
Bishop Emrich concluded his statement with - "Some of us have inherited far deeper problems than others. Some of us will bear witness in relatively easy ways and others will be called upon to die for Christ's will. For, as over against all class, racial, or national divisions, we proclaim the oneness of mankind in Christ in the Holy Catholic Church. To fail in our witness in this regard is treason to Christ."
Dr. Jones said that his concern was not that Mr. West had spoken against integration but that members of the Congress should go away with the impression that that was the only voice from the southern United States.
"It is the hope of Southerners that we too will see and follow the purposes of God in society. You have seen our worst and before this thing is over you will see our best. It is the pride of a Southerner that our best is pretty good", Dr. Jones said.
