Jazz Dinner with the Rt. Rev. John Orina Omangi

Donations may be made via our PayPal donation link or at the door by cash or check. Suggested $30 donation per person to cover the cost of dinner. Also, a purse will be offered by UBE to Bishop Omangi to further ministry in this new Diocese of the Church. The PayPal link offers an option to include additional monies with the donation to go exclusively toward this purse.

National UBE Monthly Talk2Talk Virtual Gathering

Episcopalians for Positive Change

Sunday, September 15, 2024 4:00 p.m. EDT

Episcopalians for Positive Change

With the current and persistent wave of voter suppression, disenfranchisement, gerrymandering, and a conservative agenda in the form of Project 2025 that threatens to destroy democracy as we know it, this nonpartisan discussion aims to equip Episcopalians to become active agents in creating positive change this election season. Many are asking, “Where is the Church?” and “How can we become involved – legally and spiritually?” In a 1-hour session, members will be guided in the intricacies of a 501c3 and what chapters can and cannot do in this politically charged environment. Based on information gleaned prior to the session from UBE members, information will be shared on relevant sermon/forum topics, how to mount a registration drive in the parish, community, and on college campuses, and political engagement resources available through The Episcopal Church Office of Government Relations. Panelists include: The Rev. Kim L. Coleman, The Rev. Dr. Fayle Fisher-Stewart, Mr. Alan Yarborough, Roberta Todd and Carla Burns. Registration required. To register, click this link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMkcuitrDgtGtUtvtaFCwYgv-EaCOF0YeNW.

An October to Remember for UBE Arizona

It was a beautiful, blessed, and BUSY October for UBE Arizona. We invite you to see what our Chapter has been up to or to relive wonderful memories in this e-flipbook.

National UBE: Summit on Truth-telling and Reparations

Thursday, September 19-Saturday, September 21, 2024

A historic summit gathering for Episcopal lay, and clergy leaders engaged in reparations and truth-telling ministries sponsored by the church’s Office of African Descent Ministries and the Department of Reconciliation, Justice, and Creation Care.  This summit is a crucial gathering for Episcopal lay and clergy leaders engaged in reparations and truth-telling ministries to share strategy, best practices, resources, prayer, and encouragement with one another. If your diocese, congregation, or organization is in any way engaged in the work of racial truth-telling and reparations—unearthing and naming historic racial injustices, reckoning with systemic harm, discerning what constitutes healing and repair, and/or working toward concrete plans toward reparations and repair—please plan to gather your stories and resources and join the circle. The Summit (which begins on Thursday, September 19 at 4:00 pm and ends on Saturday, September 21 at 12:00 noon) takes place at Virginia Theological Seminary. For more information and to register, go to https://www.episcopalchurch.org/event/reparations-and-truth-telling-summit/.

National UBE: Honoring the Life and Legacy of Canon Ed Rodman

Wednesday, September 18, 2024 6:00 p.m. EDT

The Rev. Canon Ed Rodman was a civil rights activist, founder of the Union of Black Episcopalians, an esteemed professor at Episcopal Divinity School, and a driving force for justice in the Church. Join EDS for a screening of the short documentary about Canon Rodman’s life and ministry followed by a panel conversation with Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, Rev. Hershey Mallette Stephens, Dr. Deborah Harmon Hines, Katrina Browne, Bishop Mark Beckwith, and more about what we continue to learn from Canon Rodman and how we might carry forth his legacy. Click here for registration link and additional information:
https://eds.edu/programs/honoring-the-life-and-legacy-of-canon-ed-rodman

National UBE Seminar: Vote Faithfully: Episcopalians Engaging in the US Election

Wednesday, September 18, 2025 1:00 p.m. EDT

Join Presiding Bishop Michael Curry with guests from across the church exploring the meaning behind voting from a theological perspective that centers this civic action as one expression of caring for one another and God’s creation. Our panelists will offer framing for healthy, faith-based civic engagement from the theoretical to the tangible, including addressing why it is important for Episcopal churches to leverage our resources to help our broader communities vote. Come learn how to navigate challenges while remaining focused in our preparations to cast our votes in this fall’s election. Panelists include Michael Bruce Curry, Willie Bennett, Joyce Statz, Amy Coultas and Alan Yarborough. Click here to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_xEe8BIyGTlueaMbbrKUDfg#/registration.

UBE Sunday, September 8, 2024

On Sunday, September 8, the Union of Black Episcopalians celebrates the life and legacy of our notable saint, the Reverend Alexander Crummell, on his official feast day. Crummell was the personification of the will to overcome during the 19th century, successfully confronting and prevailing over barriers erected because of his race. According to A Great Cloud of Witnesses, “Crummell’s ministry spanned more than half a century and three continents. Everywhere, at all times, he labored to prepare black people and to build institutions that would serve them and provide scope for the exercise of their gifts in leadership and creativity. His faith in God, his perseverance in spite of repeated discouragement, his perception that the Church transcended the racism and limited vision of its leaders, and his unfailing belief in the goodness and greatness of black people are the legacy of this African American pioneer. He died in Red Bank, New Jersey, in 1898.”
UBE designates September 8, 2024, as UBE Sunday to commemorate the racial justice ministry of the Union which was an outgrowth of Father Crummell’s advocacy.

UBE On The Road

Monthly meeting January 14, 2023
Peter’s Episcopal Church, Casa Grande, AZ

Absalom Jones Feast Day

Saturday, February 18, 2023
2:00 pm
Saint Barnabas Episcopal Church
6715 N Mockingbird Ln Scottsdale, AZ 85253

“What we do for the African American community benefits everybody. Anything that knocks down barriers is a good thing.” -Br. Lee Hughes OP

Watch the celebration

Saturday February 18 2:00 PM (MST) online at

https://saintbarnabas.org/jones-live/

Bl. (Blessed) Absalom Jones holds a special place in history as a pioneer in civil liberty and service. Born into slavery in Delaware in 1746, Jones purchased freedom for his family and began attending St. George’s Methodist Episcopal congregation which was, nominally, an interracial congregation. However, one Sunday, African American congregants were asked to move from their seats on the first floor to the upper balcony – where they would not be seen. Following this incident, Jones left the congregation but continued to be an active member of the Episcopal Church, going on to be ordained as the first African-American Episcopal priest.

Since his death on February 13, 1818, commemorating the Feast Day of Absalom Jones is one symbolic step we can take as a community toward ensuring that such treatment of African Americans – or any “other” group – is not only never repeated but that we proactively and continuously course-correct to avoid it, always striving to improve equality, fairness and representation for all people.

A celebration of Jones’s Feast Day will take place at Saint Barnabas Episcopal Church ,6715 N Mockingbird Ln Scottsdale, AZ 85253 Saturday, February 18, 2pm . The service of liturgy and Holy Eucharist is hosted by The Karl and Virginia Washington Arizona Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians, in partnership with the Episcopal Church’s Diocese of Arizona.

The Rt. Rev. Jennifer A. Reddall, sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Arizona, will preside over the service, with a message from guest preacher the Rev. Vanessa MacKenzie, who grew up in Johannesburg under apartheid. Music by Saint Barnabas featuring Ms. Jackie Island of All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Phoenix who will sing “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen.”

Questions? Contact Br. Lee Hughes, OP at hughes.lee.michael@gmail.com

All Are Welcome.

Civil Discourse: Bridging the Divide

Click HERE to register. Questions? Contact province8bam@gmail.com

UBE-AZ On The Road

On Saturday June 3, UBE-AZ held it’s first in-person meeting in over 2 years. Seven members from the Phoenix area made the trip to St. Philips In The Hills in Tucson while 4 others attended via Zoom.

Eucharist commemorating Bishop Barbara Harris

The Karl and Virginia Washington Arizona Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians announces that a Eucharist commemorating the life and witness of Bishop Barbara Harris will be held on Saturday, June 11, 2022, at 3:00 PM at Trinity Cathedral, 100 W Roosevelt St., Phoenix, AZ 85003, Bishop Shannon MacVean-Brown of the Diocese of Vermont preaching.

Civil Discourse UPDATE


The Karl and Virginia Washington Arizona Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians and the Daughters of the King regret to announce that due to issues with resources the upcoming Civil Discourse program has had to be postponed. New dates shall be announced in the coming weeks.

For questions, please email Cn. Judith Conley at judcon93@yahoo.com or to Br. Lee Hughes, OP at hughes.lee.michael@gmail.com

Lift Every Voice Video

Watch the February 19 celebration of Absalom Jones and Black History month.

Click  HERE to view the February 19 broadcast announcement and video with music, prayers, homily (The Rev. Dr. Mauricio Wilson, Western Region UBE Director and Rector of St. Paul’s, Oakland, CA.), and responses to the homily by Bishop Jennifer Reddall.

Go Fund Me

Help jump start the future of our youth by assisting the Arizona Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE) meet our 2021 goal of $9,000. Your donation will help assist two HBCU Episcopal Colleges  (St. Augustine’s University in NC and Voorhees College  in SC) and provide funds for a recipient of The Judith Conley Seminary Scholarship Fund. Our plans also include providing camperships for our church youth to attend Chapel Rock Camp in Prescott, AZ. Our UBE Chapter is dedicated to helping prepare our youth spiritually as well as intellectually for leadership positions in today’s changing world. 

Click HERE to donate at our Go Fund Me page.

Isn’t 400 Years Enough?

Every February, Americans are invited to think seriously about our nation’s history from the perspective of the African-American experience. Black history is profoundly illuminating: It produces a bright light by which we can make an honest assessment of how well our actions align with the ideals that have led us to proclaim that ours is a special nation. Black History Month is a time that dares us to think about the limitations of the Proud Boys’ white nationalism that excludes the diversity that is one of this country’s strengths. Similarly, it is a time that reminds us that the democratic ideals trumpeted by the 1776 Commission have not been applied equally.

–from New York Times opinion by Jonathan Holloway. Dr. Holloway is the president of Rutgers University, a historian and the author, most recently, of “The Cause of Freedom: A Concise History of African Americans.”

Internalized Oppression

Office of Black Ministries Internalized Oppression Retreats and Workshops
Through a series of modules, this internalized oppression curriculum educates participants about institutional, interpersonal, and internal oppression to facilitate a healing process that empowers people for transformational ministry in the name of Jesus.
Among the topics covered:

  • Shame = Silence + Secrecy + Judgment
  • The lies we’ve told and the new narratives we’re creating
  • Historical, theological, and social constructs of oppression

Participants are challenged to personally explore their life experiences through a didactic group process that invites them on a journey toward wholeness.
For more info click here.

February 21, 2021

In 1804, Absalom Jones was the first black priest ordained in the Episcopal Church. African Americans have belonged to and financially supported the Episcopal Church since its inception in 1789. Celebrate the contributions of African Americans with us on Sunday, February 21. Use the Contact page to receive an invitation to this Zoom celebration.