[Episcopal News Service] Episcopal bishops are issuing statements calling for peace on Nov. 5, Election Day. Church leaders are planning various prayer vigils in the hours leading up to the polls closing. An ecumenical partnership in North Carolina has responded to this tense campaign season by buying billboard ads promoting unity.
And on Nov. 6, the day after the election, the Episcopal cathedrals in Washington, D.C., and New York have scheduled additional prayer vigils while the nation reacts to the result of this year’s close presidential race or awaits final word on the outcome.
Tourists gather in front of the White House in November 2018. Photo: David Paulsen/Episcopal News Service
At a time when the American electorate is starkly divided, Episcopalians and church leaders are responding to feelings of fear and anxiety by turning to their faith for solace – and to maintain hope for a future in which people of all political affiliations can come together.
“We are approaching the end of a contentious presidential election in a time when the country remains deeply divided and polarized,” Wisconsin Bishop Matthew Gunter said in an Oct. 24 message to his diocese. “It is understandable that many of us feel anxious. Christians are to be people of prayer in all times, but particularly in times of heightened anxiety.”
The Diocese of Maryland has alerted its members to at least two congregations offering prayer services timed to the week of the election: Christ Episcopal Church in Columbia at 6 p.m. Eastern Nov. 3 and Memorial Episcopal Church in Baltimore at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4.
In the Diocese of Arizona, Episcopalians are invited to a statewide interfaith prayer vigil at 6:30 p.m. Mountain Nov. 4 on Zoom. It is being organized by Arizona Faith Network to “offer prayers for peace, unity, healing and the well-being of our communities and nation,” the diocese said.
Churchwide efforts to support a fair and peaceful 2024 election coincide with The Episcopal Church’s broader goals of promoting civil discourse while encouraging Episcopalians to “vote faithfully” this year and every year.
The Episcopal Church does not endorse individual political candidates but rather encourages nonpartisan advocacy and political engagement as a way of witnessing Jesus’ Gospel message in today’s world. Its Washington-based Office of Government Relations has assembled various resources into an election engagement toolkit that includes ways of addressing misinformation, disinformation and political violence. Episcopalians also are encouraged to sign up to receive action alerts as part of the Episcopal Public Policy Network.
The Diocese of Missouri recently shared an online article about protecting democracy that was written by a member of Christ Church Cathedral in St. Louis who also is active in the local League of Women Voters branch.
“We want to live in a just society in which societal progress is a result of peaceful competition among different interests and ideas,” the cathedral member, Mary Karr, wrote. “The role of voters in electing representatives leads to greater respect for the laws their representatives enact. … When you vote this year, prayerfully consider whether your votes will strengthen or weaken our democracy.”
Voting booths are set up in the parish hall at Grace Episcopal Church in Newton, Massachusetts, on Nov. 3, 2020. Photo: Egan Millard/Episcopal News Service
Among the pre-election options for Episcopal engagement is an Oct. 30 webinar, “Leading with Our Values in the Public Square.” The event at 7 p.m. Eastern will be moderated by New York Bishop Matthew Heyd and will feature Washington Bishop Mariann Budde, Texas Bishop Andrew Doyle and Indianapolis Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows.
“The church has an opportunity to be a voice for justice, love, healing and hope for the whole world,” organizers say in their invitation to register. The webinar “will explore the opportunities and challenges of civil engagement during this election season.”
Los Angeles Bishop John Harvey Taylor echoed those themes in an Oct. 24 message to his Southern California diocese.
“We center our Christian and Episcopal identity in all we do in the public square. Stressful times are opportunities to rededicate ourselves to practices of private prayer and meditation,” Taylor said. “As Episcopalians, we have a charism of proclaiming equity for all God’s people as God had fashioned them in magnificent diversity, notwithstanding race and nation, orientation and identification. In our private and public discourse, we speak up in Christ’s name especially for those being scapegoated most ruthlessly such as our trans and immigrant worker siblings.”
On Nov. 5, the Office of Government Relations invites the public to join “Election Night Virtual Prayers” at 8 p.m. Eastern on Zoom and Facebook. The Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe, who takes office Nov. 1 as the church’s presiding bishop, will open the event with his reflections and prayer.
Washington National Cathedral, located in the nation’s capital, is planning a full-day prayer vigil on Election Day, followed by a second day of prayers for peace and unity after polls close. Then on Jan. 21, the day after the new president’s inauguration, an interfaith service at the cathedral will focus on “the need for healing and national unity.”
The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York also has scheduled a post-election vigil for 7 p.m. Eastern Nov. 6. The vigil, co-hosted by the Diocese of New York and Episcopal Divinity School, will be joined by Heyd, the New York bishop; Long Island Bishop Lawrence Provenzano; the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader; Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, Executive Director of the New York Board of Rabbis; and the Rev. Chloe Breyer, executive director of the Interfaith Center of New York.
“Across the diocese, our people will vote in different ways – but together we hold values of dignity, justice and peace. We can gather across difference to affirm the values we share,” Heyd said in his invitation to the vigil. “After a contentious election and in a polarized time, the service will be an opportunity for us to gather and to connect in our local communities across the diocese.”
And in North Carolina, an ecumenical partnership is trying another way of affirming shared values. Western North Carolina Bishop José McLoughlin and United Methodist Bishop Ken Carter have been working together in recent months on a campaign called “Hate Divides, Love Unites,” to encourage love and compassion during this election season.
Then a month ago, the deadly and devastating impact of Hurricane Helene further underscored the need to transcend the political, social and personal barriers that tend to divide people. The campaign now has posted two billboards in the region with the message of unity over hate, and that message is being amplified by the bishops and their faith communities.
“It is important, now more than ever, for people to know they are loved. Dividing, or othering, is not what Jesus teaches us, and it is important we let everyone know that if it is not about love, it is not about God,” McLoughlin said in a news release about the campaign. “As we rebuild from the damage left by Hurricane Helene, we are reminded that love and unity will help us overcome the challenges we face from natural disasters and as a nation.”
– David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.