History
Beginning with the establishment of the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas by Absalom Jones in 1792 in the city of Philadelphia, through the appointment and election of more than 35 Black Bishops, there has always been a strong corps of Black leaders in the Episcopal Church. People like James Holly, Henry Delaney, Alexander Crummel, to name a few.
Organized in 1968 as the Union of Black Clergy and Laity, the Union is the proud inheritor of the work of these people and earlier organizations such as the Convocation of Colored Clergy, the Conference of Church Workers Among Colored People.The name was later changed to the Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE).
The evangelism of the UBE consists of four goals:
Evangelism
Encouraging greater participation of Blacks in the life of the Church at the Parish, Diocesan, Provincial and National Church levels. Communication – information gathering and dissemination designed to educate our members, prepare them for access to ministries in the wider church and create opportunities for them to gain access.
Advocacy
Against racism and on issues which effect Black Episcopalians.
Developing Resources
Including training, anti-racism training, chapter development, and program initiation and implementation.
Lobbying
For and encouraging continued support for the Bishop John T. Walker School for Boys in Washington D.C. and the three predominantly Episcopal Colleges; St. Paul’s, St. Augustine’s, and Voorhees.
The Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE) stands in the continuing tradition of more than 200 years of Black Leadership fighting racism in the Episcopal Church. UBE’s goal is to eradicate racism by encouraging the involvement of Black people in the total life of the Church – on every level and in every way – stewardship, evangelism, education, leadership, governance and politics. The union is committed to translating these words, our ministry, into Christian action for all Episcopalians and at all levels of the church.