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| The Rev. Cn. Dr. Leroy Lyons of the Black Caucus (archival photo courtesy of the Diocese of New Jersey) |
After a series of controversial and highly criticized actions taken by the newly installed Bishop Doss, the Diocese of New Jersey
sought help from Peter Steinke, a Lutheran minister and consultant to troubled church communities. In May, after conducting more than 160 interviews with diocesan leaders and reading more than 100 letters and other submissions, he said he had found widespread mistrust and extensive criticism of the Bishop, including assertions that he “manipulates people,” is “arrogant” and “condescending,” and “doesn't consult others.”[1]
However, a number of early allegations against the Bishop involved charges of racism, and Steinke’s report resulting from his research[2] mentioned nothing whatsoever on that subject. As a result, on June 14, 1997 the Black Caucus published their own response to Steinke’s report entitled “A Response to the Steinke Report From the Black Caucus, The Diocese of New Jersey.”[3]
The response relies heavily on careful biblical exegesis, disputing the value of Steinke’s use of 1 Corinthians 1:10-13 as a relevant text and drawing instead on Paul’s letter to Philemon.[4] The Black Caucus response notes how Paul’s argumentation in Philemon requires that the previous relations of hierarchy and subjugation that had defined Philemon’s relationship to Onesimus be transcended by what should be their new relations of brotherhood in the family of faith, based on love (agapē).
The letter suggests that one of the shocking findings of the Steinke report is that none of those interviewed noted a gift of agapē in Bishop Doss. The Black Caucus claim that no repentance for wrongdoing leading to reconciliation is possible without agapē, and that, as such, the Bishop may not possess the necessary qualifications for his office.
The letter also notes that even as racism existed in the diocese before the Doss episcopate, they cannot in good conscience be “tolerant with racist behavior.” They write
We will not sit idly by and be passive or complacent about racism. Racism demeans us; it destroys our humanity; it is contrary to the will of God; it is very, very evil. No real fellowship can exist where racism abounds, for the power of the church is nullified and the Holy Spirit is spurned. If we are truly and fully committed to agapē, we will be fully committed to the eradication of racism. We are all victims of this deadly disease. The members of the Black Caucus stand ready to join with the bishop and the diocese to work together. We have expressed this sentiment before; we do it again. But we will not desist until our leaders, among whom we include the bishop, develop a passion and a conscience for this issue. To those well-meaning bigots who continue to attack us for withholding funds, but refuse to recognize the pain of racism and our desperate call for redress to this human tragedy, we point out that you continue to deepen the wounds and increase the pain that we daily endure.[5]
The letter ends with a commitment to engagement and a call to agapē for all involved, including, above all, Bishop Doss. Doss would not go on to win over those within the diocese who had viewed his leadership as too flawed to continue in office, and he would ultimately be removed as instances of inappropriate behavior continued to come to light. The full letter[6] from the Black Caucus responding to the Steinke report can be found below. It appears that the document was widely circulated within the Diocese of New Jersey at the time.
Reparations Commission Research Historian
Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey
[1] David M. Herszenhorn, “An Embattled Episcopal Bishop; His Ouster Is Sought by Leaders of the New Jersey Diocese,” New York Times (December 7, 1997): Section 1, page 45.
[2] Which he delivered to diocesan officials on May 16, 1997.
[3] MSS held in the private collection of Rev. Cn. Dr. Leroy Lyons, Plainfield, New Jersey.
[4] It is likely that the response of the Black Caucus was mostly authored by Rev. Cn. Dr. Leroy Lyons, as his doctoral dissertation was written on Philemon.
[5] The Black Caucus, “A Response to the Steinke Report From the Black Caucus, The Diocese of New Jersey,” 5.
[6] Courtesy of the Rev. Cn. Dr. Leroy Lyons.
