To all people of grace and goodwill, greetings and blessings from the Apostolic Johannite Church:
All across the world, we continue to struggle with the legacies of hatred, structural racism and white supremacism. Despite the extraordinary strides that have been made, this fight is far from over. Each nation faces unique challenges in regards to the marginalisation and oppression of black and indigenous people of colour. In Canada, Australia, the United States, and elsewhere we continue to see the damage wrought by slavery and colonialism; black, aboriginal, and First Nations peoples pay the price for the mistakes of our history and the continuing mistakes of our institutions, leaders, fellow citizens, and ourselves.
The Johannite Statement of Principles specifically states, “We recognize the Sacred Flame to be present in all Beings…without discrimination on the basis of gender, race, social status or sexual orientation.” Nothing could be more clear. And yet we will say it again. The Apostolic Johannite Church recognises, stands with, and supports oppressed communities globally, and is dedicated to the principles of the universal presence of the Sacred Flame and the equality of all peoples without exception. We reject utterly the ideas of white supremacism and all other forms of hatred, exclusion, and oppression. We find these doctrines to be fundamentally incompatible with the teachings of the Christ and the Holy Gnosis.
We ask that you and all people of good will join us in combatting hatred in all its forms, by prayer, by speech, and by action. We pray to the Divine Beloved to heal our hearts and our lands, so that we may all be one even as the Beloved is one. We remain
Your devoted servants before the Sacred Flame:
+ The Most Rev. Shaun McCann, Ep.Gn.
Sovereign Pontiff of the Apostolic Johannite Church
Primate of Canada
+ The Most Rev. William Behun, Ph.D, Ep.Gn.
Primate of the United States
+ The Most Rev. Timothy Mansfield, Ph.D, Ep.Gn.
Bishop of New South Wales, Australia
Originally published at AJC Statement on Racism, 3 July 2020
Photo by Alex Holyoake on Unsplash