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Worship | Adult | Youth | REPAIR | Book Group | Beatles | Giving | Connect
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What Mulberry Street was and Snitches Teaches
I was surprised this week by the announcement that six Dr. Seuss titles are being withdrawn from publication, chief among them, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street. As a good liberal, albeit with an antiquarian bent, I felt upset given that my children are being raised on a literary diet consisting of a large dollop of Dr. Seuss, including this title. The justification given for withdrawing
Mulberry Street was straightforward enough: it depicts a stereotype of an Asian man with slits for eyes running down Mulberry Street while eating a bowl of rice. In 1937, when Theodor Seuss Geisel penned his prose, racial stereotypes were as commonplace as the casual racism that fueled them. Fast forward to the moment we find ourselves in, with attacks against Asian-Americans on the rise nationwide, it makes sense to withdraw from sale children's storybooks that contain offensive and hurtful stereotypes.
That said, I do not see myself needing to absolve Theodor Geisel of his unconscious or conscious racial bias given his abhorrence of Nazism, anti-Semitism and American Isolationism. However, I would not want to live on his evocation of Mulberry Street; nor would I want my children to imagine themselves living there either. Just yesterday, my middle child was horrified as he read aloud, Ruby Bridges Goes to School, in which white parents jeered at Ruby, the little black first-grader, as she was escorted into school by federal marshals. After finishing the book he said that, if he had been in that school, he would never have met his best friend who is black. No doubt, Theodor Geisel would have affirmed my son's sense of horror and sadness and encouraged him to reread, The Sneetches. It's a wonderfully absurd story about diversity in which the citizens of Sneetchville coexist peacefully, despite superficial differences, once they learn to treat each other as they themselves would like to be treated.
Onward in tolerance, Gareth
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WORSHIP
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SERVICE OF THE HOLY EUCHARIST
Worship Online
Please join us for a virtual service at
*** Virtual Coffee Hour Immediately following the service
Meeting ID: 336 690 2686 / Password: 10533
In-person services continue to be suspended.
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Lent: Holy Eucharist at 10AM on Sundays
Palm Sunday: Holy Eucharist on March 28 at 10AM
Maundy Thursday: Holy Eucharist on April 1 at 7:30PM (no foot washing)
Good Friday: The Seven Last Words from the Cross at Noon and
Holy Eucharist at 7:30PM on April 2
Easter Day: Holy Eucharist on April 4 at 10AM
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ADULT FORMATION
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The Bible Project
Morning Bible Study - Gareth leads Bible Study sessions three mornings a week using The Bible Project materials. You're welcome to join the meeting anytime.
Tuesdays/Wednesdays/Thursdays, 9:30AM - 10:00AM
Meeting ID: 336 690 2686 Passcode: 10533
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YOUTH FORMATION
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St. Barnabas Youth Group
We hope you will join our next Zoom meeting!
Sunday, March 14 at 3:00PM
Zoom Meeting ID: 899 0383 0783, Passcode: 1Dx9zG
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Rivertowns Episcopal Parishes Action on Inclusion and Race (REPAIR)
Wednesday, March 24, 2021
7:30PM to 9:00PM via Zoom
One man's shocking discovery of his family's racist legacy. How would you respond?
In 2008, poet and essayist J. Chester Johnson was asked to write the Litany of Offense and Apology for a National Day of Repentance when the Episcopal Church formally apologized for its role in transatlantic slavery. In his research, he learned about the 1919 Elaine Massacre, in which more than 100 African-American men, women, and children were killed by white vigilantes and federal troops. Then, digging further, Johnson discovered that his beloved grandfather, who'd raised him during his Arkansas boyhood, had participated in the Massacre.
Join us for our next meeting of REPAIR on Wednesday evening, March 24. You'll meet Chester Johnson, author of Damaged Heritage, and hear about how he came to terms with a life-shattering revelation, including the relationship he eventually forged with Sheila L. Walker, a descendant of several victims of the Elaine Massacre. It's a story of guilt, pain, and reconciliation that offers lessons for an entire nation grappling with a history of racism.
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St. Barnabas Book Group
The next meeting of the Saint Barnabas Book Group will take place at 7:30 on Tuesday, April 27 on Zoom. We will be discussing Annabel, a novel by Kathleen Winter. It's 464 pages, but apparently they go by fast.
All are welcome. If you have any questions, would like to be added to the Group list, or would just like the Zoom link for this meeting, please contact Lea Carmichael Richardson at [email protected].
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HOW THE BEATLES RELATE TO THE GOSPELS
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How The Beatles Relate to the Gospels
Episode 2
"Help!" and "Let it Be"
Both the rector and our new intern, Hope Durot, have a love and appreciation for The Beatles. In a new series of video podcasts, they explore the deeper meaning behind some of these famous songs.
This week's episode focuses on "Let it Be" and "Help!" in light of how these relate to the anxiety and dislocation that many of us feel in our current Covid environment. Click YouTube to watch!
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We hope you will keep St. Barnabas strong and resilient financially, as we navigate the ongoing challenges of the current environment. Please continue to make your pledges or contributions. Online payments may be made by clicking here, on our website under the "Give" section, or by mailing your check to St. Barnabas Church, 15 N Broadway, Irvington, NY 10533.
How to Fulfill Your Pledge with Securities or Wire Transfer
Please contact Cynthia Ferguson if you would like to pledge stock as your financial contribution. Cynthia is also able to guide you through the process of wiring funds.
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To schedule a meeting with the rector, call the Parish Office at (914) 591-8194.
Office hours are Wednesdays, 1:00pm-3:30pm
The rector's Sabbath (day off) is Friday.
For pastoral emergencies, call Gareth directly, at (617) 930-3728
If you have announcements to include in the InCommon weekly newsletter, please email the information by noon on Tuesdays to Hope Durot.
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