Wade in the Water seeks to follow Christ’s example in challenging racism; building a community of faith that demands racial justice. We are cultivating a new generation of Christians to dismantle the racial hierarchies that pervade our society so that we may become Beloved Community. We humbly seek to model that community through leadership at Grace Church, in Montgomery County, and within the Episcopal Diocese of Washington.
Our Mission
We will:
- Deepen our connections and solidarity as a congregation across race and ethnicity;
- Raise awareness of and interrupt racism
- Take action on important causes related to racial justice within and beyond the Grace Church community
Our Vision
We follow Christ’s example in challenging racism: building a community of faith that demands racial justice.
We are cultivating a new generation of Christians to interrupt racism that pervades society. We humbly model that community through leadership at Grace Church, in Montgomery County, and within the Episcopal Diocese of Washington.
Our Name: Wade in the Water
The leadership of Grace Church chose to name our racial justice ministry after a slave spiritual with deep historical and Biblical relevance.
Challenging Racism: The lyrics of Wade in the Water contain coded instructions to escaping slaves about how to avoid being captured and was sung by Harriet Tubman and others in the Underground Railroad guiding enslaved people to liberation and freedom.
Healing: The spiritual verses also reflect the Israelites’ escape from Egypt as described in the Book of Exodus. The chorus refers to healing (John 5:4 NIV), “From time to time an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the waters. The first one into the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease they had.”‘
Contacts for this ministry