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| Bishop Stokes (seated center-right) at the Diocesan Stations of Reparations Service, St. Peter's Episcopal Church, Freehold, New Jersey, March 25, 2023 (photo Jolyon Pruszinski) |
The Rt. Rev. William H. Stokes, recently retired Bishop of the Diocese of New Jersey, made it a special emphasis of the final years of his episcopate to highlight both the historic ties of the Diocese to slavery, and present racism that requires continued redress. His influential support for the work of identifying these problems, repenting, and working to repair them has led, in part, to the creation of the current Diocesan Reparations Commission and to the Diocese of New Jersey Racial Justice Review. Below are links to many of his public communications from the concluding years of his episcopate on these topics:
March 16, 2021: “New Jersey, it’s time to tell the truth” – NJ.com
June 25, 2021: "A Call for the Establishment of a Reparations Task Force in the State of New Jersey
Opening Remarks and Invocation" published in the “Bishop’s Weekly Message – June 25, 2021”
October 1, 2021: “House of Bishops, Reparations, and Racial Justice”
February 11, 2022: “Absalom Jones and the Legacy of Black Churches”
March 11, 2022: “Strengthening Disciples for the [God’s] Future (Bishop’s Address to the Diocesan Convention, March 5, 2022”
June 17, 2022: “June 17 – The Legacy of Juneteenth”
October 7, 2022: “Honoring Indigenous People’s Day”
October 14, 2022: “Affordable Housing is a Gospel Justice Issue”
October 21, 2022: “Oct. 21 – Faith Allies and Darnella Frazier”
February 3, 2023: “Black History Month & Jemar Tisby”
February 17, 2023: “Confronting the Church’s Complicity with Racism”
March 17, 2023: “Notes on the House of Bishops Meeting”
June 16, 2023: “Juneteenth Observances”
