Delaware Open House Policy Praised
Diocesan Press Service. May 6, 1964 [XXI-6]
Delaware churchgoers heard their religious leaders praise the open housing policy announced Wednesday, March 18, by the Homebuilders Association of Delaware and the Greater Wilmington Board of Realtors.
Palm Sunday, Episcopalians heard a pastoral letter from Bishop Mosley, who called the new policy "a new chance to practice what we preach."
He further stated that this development in race relations meant that "a step has been taken toward the securing of a new freedom in Delaware, the freedom of a man to establish his home without restrictions based on his race, his color, his creed or his national origin."
He continued, "This policy of the builders and realtors is a welcome manifestation of the convictions of the Episcopal Church. These convictions, often expressed clearly and officially, are well-known. ... Racial discrimination is wrong."
At the same time, a letter from the Most Rev. Michael W. Hyle, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Delaware, which termed the move a "great step forward in the cause of humanity," was read at all masses. Presbyterian ministers were urged by the General Council of the New Castle Presbytery to emphasize the significance of the new policy to their congregations. The Delaware District of the Lutheran Church also commended the action in its monthly newsletter which went out the same week. A statement by the Rabbinical Association of Delaware, and the Council of Churches of Wilmington and New Castle added to the ecumenical scope of the reaction.