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[Back to index of Nov-Dec 2009 articles] Sierra Leonean Community Forms By Lucy Chumbley
Two Sierra Leonean priests came before the Diocesan Council on Oct. 13 to discuss their plans to create a Sierra Leonean worshipping community in the Diocese of Washington. The Rev. Canon Prince Decker, interim rector at Calvary, D.C., and the Rev. Canon Bill Lewis, rector of St. Philip's, Anacostia – also representing the Rev. Prince Williams – said the community would enable Sierra Leoneans to worship together and would foster unity and reconciliation among the various ethnic groups from the war-torn West African country. "Irrespective of how long a piece of wood stays in the water, it never becomes a crocodile," Decker said. "We don't lose identity when we move places." This area's Sierra Leoneans "have stayed like a piece of log. They have not become a crocodile." "There are thousands of us in the D.C. area," Lewis said, explaining that the new community "will provide a structure where Sierra Leoneans will express their faith in God in diverse ways, and where they will be able to use their gifts." The community, which will hold its inaugural service at 5 p.m. Dec. 6 at Our Saviour, Hillandale, is initially planning to hold a Sunday afternoon worship service every three months. The liturgy will be Episcopal, with Sierra Leonean culture reflected in the music and sermons. The organizers also hope to incorporate a fellowship hour after the service to discuss issues of concern to the community, such as immigration and health and wellness. "We're hopeful that it will be self sustaining," Lewis said, noting that the afternoon timeslot was deliberately chosen so as not to pull people from existing parishes where they are members. Governance Officer Ann Talty noted that the term "worshipping community" reflects the nature of the group, which will be a fellowship of likeminded people, not a parish or mission of the diocese. "The term is very important," council member Linda Freeman said. "We're not stealing sheep." "We have no intentions of moving people from their parishes," Decker said, explaining that the community will offer participants a chance to "sing songs in Krio, hear us preaching in Krio, be part of our culture, eat some of our food." "It's beneficial to the diocese," he added. "It shows that the diocese is being sensitive here, that we're making an attempt to integrate." Bishop John Bryson Chane pointed out that the priests were already ministering to the local Sierra Leonean community, and that this was merely an extension of their work. Several council members expressed their support for the initiative, and Freeman suggested that some kind of evaluation of how things are going might be appropriate at a future date. "I think it's very exciting to try these different models," Talty said, adding that the new community "is responding to a need that in some ways we may have overlooked." Similar local initiatives include the All Saints Igbo Language Anglican Church, a large group of mostly Nigerians who meet each Sunday; and the diocese's six Latino congregations, which are nested within existing congregations. None of these groups are independent parishes or missions of the diocese. On Oct. 3, the diocese's annual Latino Ministry Celebration was held at Washington National Cathedral for the first time, Chane said, drawing around 500 Spanish-speaking Episcopalians from area congregations. "They want to worship in their own language, out of their own cultural experience" he said, noting that the occasion was "a wonderful celebration of what it means to be church." "We have a richness of culture and talent from these countries," he said. "You've got to have a capacity and a willingness to imagine what we're going to look like in 15 to 20 years. It's not going to look like us today. The faces around this table are going to reflect the diversity of the Anglican Communion. If we're not able to deal with that now, then we won't be able to deal with it down the road." In other matters: The council is expected to vote on a resolution to establish a 3-year companion relationship with the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and the Middle East at its November meeting, Chane said. Chane is currently leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land (about 30 people from around the diocese) and will return Nov. 6. The Bishops of the Anglican Province of Southern Africa voted at a recent Synod to continue the companion relationship with this diocese in the countries of Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa, Chane reported. "Their committee will continue to work with the Southern Africa Partnership Committee here," he said. Lucy Chumbley is the editor of Washington Window, the newspaper of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. [Back to index of Nov-Dec 2009 articles]
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