Why Do Jesus' People Celebrate Juneteenth?

By Bonnie Overcott

Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”  Do you know who Opal Lee is?  In 2016, at the age of 89, Opal Lee walked 1,400 miles from her home in Texas to Washington, D.C. to get Juneteenth recognized as a national holiday. She succeeded. Juneteenth, June 19th, 1865, is the day slaves in Galveston, Texas learned they were free (two-and-a-half years after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation). Juneteenth, June 19, became a federal holiday like Memorial Day, Labor Day, Independence Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day in 2021.



Crosstown is joining the Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, 2600 East 38th Street in Minneapolis to celebrate Juneteenth on Wednesday, June 19th at 7 p.m.  Fourteen congregations are participating and following a worship service, there’ll be refreshments and a social time.  It’s an opportunity to bring your family and learn more about this new national holiday as well as celebrate it with the Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church.  Further information is available at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lq8TNKZVEWs

Sorrow and Sympathy

Crosstown has learned that our dear friend, Jim Martin, passed away on June 1, 2024 from a heart attack.  Jim’s sister, Ellie, has passed along this sad news.  She wants to thank all of those who befriended Jim in 2023 when he was a regular Crosstown attender.  Let us thank God for Jim’s friendship with us and pray for his sister and family.  No arrangements have been made at this time.