“When you embrace the truth, the truth will set you free.” — John 8:32
This week holds two significant midweek observances—each calling the Church to repentance for the sin of racism and to lament the violence it so often breeds.
On June 17, we commemorate the Emmanuel Nine, who were martyred ten years ago this week.
On a Wednesday evening in 2015, nine faithful souls gathered for Bible study at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. They welcomed a stranger with the warmth of Christian hospitality. In return, he murdered them in an act of racial terror.
The Emmanuel Nine—
Rev. Clementa Pinckney
Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton
Cynthia Hurd
Tywanza Sanders
Rev. Daniel Simmons
Rev. DePayne Middleton-Doctor
Myra Thompson
Susie Jackson
Ethel Lance
—are remembered as martyrs of faith and victims of hate.
Pastors Pinckney and Simmons were graduates of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. The perpetrator was raised in a Lutheran congregation. These connections should disturb us and deepen our resolve.
Their deaths are a stark reminder that racism is not merely a political problem—it is a spiritual crisis. Their faithful witness calls us to deeper discipleship, prophetic truth-telling, and holy resistance.
Today, June 19, we observe Juneteenth.
Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 when Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to enforce the end of slavery—two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation. It is a day of celebration, reflection, and lament.
As followers of Christ, we know that true freedom is more than a legal status. It is a calling. Jesus speaks of a deeper liberation—a truth that frees us from sin, fear, hatred, and the systems that uphold injustice.
Juneteenth invites us to remember a painful history, honor the resilience and faith of Black Americans, and recommit ourselves to God’s vision of justice, equity, and beloved community. It also teaches us that delayed freedom is still injustice—and that the Church must never be silent in the face of oppression.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded us:
“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
Change is slow. But it does come—especially when God’s people commit to bending that arc through courage, truth, and love.
So this week, as we lament the sin of racism and remember those who have suffered and died because of it, we also recommit ourselves to the long, sacred work of justice.
And we pray:
A Litany of Lament and Commitment
(from Lamenting Racism, SundaysandSeasons.com)
When one part of the body of Christ hurts, the whole body hurts.
As we listen to people who are harmed by racism,
we call to you: Open our hearts, O God.
As we reflect on our daily interactions with people and communities of color,
we call to you: Open our hearts, O God.
As we reconsider what we have been taught about race and racism,
we call to you: Open our hearts, O God.
As we contemplate what we have done and what we have left undone,
we call to you: Open our hearts, O God.
As we labor to create a loving and safe community for our siblings of color,
we call to you: Open our hearts, O God.
Holy and merciful God,
as your people, we recommit ourselves to loving one another
as you have loved us.
We pray in the name of the one who has made us one, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
* Prayers from “Lamenting Racism,” SundaysandSeasons.com. Copyright © 2025 Augsburg Fortress. Used with permission.
