From ENS-Was Robert E. Lee an American hero or a traitorous defender of slavery? The Confederate general has been called both in the ongoing debate over whether statues, monuments and plaques in his honor should be remain on display in public places, from parks to churches.
At least one aspect of Lee’s biography is undisputed: He was a prominent parishioner at the Episcopal church that now bears his name, R.E. Lee Memorial Church in Lexington, Virginia.
And that name now threatens to tear the congregation apart.
“Change is hard, and this is about change that goes right down to our identity,” vestry member Doug Cumming told Episcopal News Service. He supports removing Lee from the name of the church.
Turmoil has grown since 2015, when the vestry first considered but failed to approve a proposal to change the name back to the original Grace Episcopal Church. Members began leaving the congregation in protest, and such exits continued this year after the vestry in April chose not to act on a consultant’s recommendation for a name change.
More here-
http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2017/08/23/virginia-congregation-deeply-divide-over-churchs-name-honoring-robert-e-lee/
No comments:
Post a Comment