Description
The Service of Repentance & Healing is a corporate Christian gathering to mark the removal of the Confederate monuments in Richmond, VA and to repent of the complicity of the white Christian community in helping erect the monuments in the late 1800’s. It is also an opportunity for white Christians from Metro Richmond to repent of the sin of racism that kept the monuments in place for over a century. It is the organizers belief that such repentance will bring about new vision, genuine change, and ultimately healing in Metro Richmond.
2 Chronicles 7:14 says “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
On Sept. 8, 2021, the Robert E. Lee monument was removed from its pedestal on Monument Ave. in Richmond, Virginia. The removal of this particular monument was significant as it was the epicenter of the movements in the Summer of 2020 to remove Confederate monuments not only in Richmond but around the nation. The removal happened so quickly, in large part due to public safety concerns, that the Christian community was unable to gather publicly to mark this historic occasion. Specifically, we were unable to provide a liturgy to mark the occasion – an important moment to repent of the historic complicity of the white Christian community in erecting the monuments in the late 1800’s and for allowing them to stand as idols to white supremacy for over a century.
On September 10th, 2022, the first anniversary of the Lee monument’s removal, we will gather from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. for a Service of Repentance & Healing. This service will include a liturgy that names the specific ways in which individuals and churches helped erect the monument. For example, one church raised funds, advocated for and rallied on behalf of the Lee monument cause. When the time came to unveil the statue on May 29, 1890, a pastor offered prayers on that occasion. The Lee statue was erected on land west of downtown donated by a churchgoer, and a pastor gave its dedicatory invocation.
The gathering will also include prayer, worship, and communion as well as a public proclamation about the next steps white Christian leaders are taking in the work of repair, including the Clergy for Racial Reconciliation Conference this fall.
The specific location on Monument Ave. where this event is being held will be shared at a later date but seating will be limited, so we are asking those who plan to attend to register via Eventbrite.
As Pastor Alex Evans of Second Presbyterian has said, “White Christians worshipped and served with joy and privilege in the shadow of these monuments. The monuments stood for white supremacy and sought to preserve the 'lost cause' myth in very powerful ways in this city. We did not even see the pain, or appreciate the hurt and oppression caused by these images and structures. For me, it is not just about the erection of the monuments but the length of time that they dominated life in RVA, and the horrific messages they represented, and the hurt they caused, and how much all of us need to repent - turn and find a better way forward toward racial healing and wholesomeness.”
Metro Richmond churches have been working together to address the sin of racism in its various forms since the 2017 Unite the Right rally that prompted The Richmond Pastor’s Statement, which was signed by over 900 pastors and Christian leaders: