From the RectorDear Parishioners and Friends, As we approach our newest federal holiday, Juneteenth National Independence Day, some historical context may be helpful for those who aren't familiar with the celebration. Growing up, I was taught that Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation--well, sort of. The real story is, as usual, much more complex. Lincoln's "Proclamation 95" was an executive order issued on January 1, 1863 in the midst of the American Civil War. It decreed that all people being held in slavery in states that were in rebellion to the US government were henceforth free. As you can imagine, enforcement was spotty at best. It wasn't until two and a half years later (June 19, 1865) that Major General Gordon Granger issued an order freeing the slaves in Texas--two months after the end of the war! Commemorative celebrations began the following year, and have continued ever since. Texas recognized the holiday in 1938, and it was not until 2021 that President Joe Biden signed the federal holiday into law. Juneteenth is even celebrated in parts of Mexico where escaped slaves settled in the 1850s, making it an international observance. Local celebrations vary widely, and include everything from poetry readings to beauty pageants. Here at St. Mary's, we will pray a special collect this Sunday that I have written at the conclusion of the prayers of the people, and on Monday, special music will be set to ring out on our carillon, including the hymn, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing!" Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart and especially the hearts of the people of this land, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. BCP 823 Blessings, Fr. Rick
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