Roxbury church provides relief
Baptist congregation gives $125G to ease virus’ strain
One by one, people came through the door of Twelfth Baptist Church in Roxbury on Tuesday, looking for something more than spiritual sustenance.
Mai Harley, 42, came for a bag of free groceries. She had been laid off from her job as an usher at the Strand Theater in March, and she has three children and herself to feed.
“It definitely would be a hardship without this,” she said.
Tuesday, the church’s leaders announced they were giving more than $125,000, including $25,000 from Uber, for food, rent relief and 1,000 free rides from the ridehailing service to people struggling financially because of the coronavirus.
“So many are hurting right now, and in the midst of this time, things seem desolate,” said the Rev. Jeffrey Brown, the church’s associate pastor for external affairs. “But we believe that in desolate times, God still delivers.”
Twelfth Baptist Church’s outreach came as the Greater Boston
Interfaith Organization and faith leaders from across the state met on Tuesday with Gov. Charlie Baker’s Reopening Advisory Board to address the eventual reopening of houses of worship during the pandemic.
“The infrastructure and services provided by faith communities and our institutions are part of the backbone of our Commonwealth” said Jeremy Burton, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston.
“As we work with, place our trust in and follow the guidance of our elected leadership, we are also telling them that faith institutions and our contributions will be essential to any successful re-opening and recovery for Massachusetts,” he added.
The Rev. Laura Everett, executive director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches, a statewide network of eighteen Protestant and Orthodox Christian denominations, encouraged the advisory board to prioritize the care and resourcing of communities hardest hit, especially since black, immigrant and unhoused churches often serve as multi-service providers, in addition to spiritual homes.
Terrence Donilon, a spokesman for the Boston Archdiocese, said it remains committed to working with public officials on the timing and conditions of reopening churches. In the meantime, he said, the archdiocese is developing a series of phase-in plans to implement when it will begin to resume public masses and other public gatherings.