We are a small Episcopal Church on the banks of the Rappahannock in Port Royal, Virginia. We acknowledge that we gather on the traditional land of the first people of Port Royal, the Nandtaughtacund, and we respect and honor with gratitude the land itself, the legacy of the ancestors, and the life of the Rappahannock Tribe. Our mission statement is to do God’s Will in all that we do.

Sacred Ground

Photos, Patawomeck Village tour, Nov. 8, 2023, Sacred Ground

(full size gallery)

Tour notes are here

St. Peter’s Sacred Ground group had a wonderful fall tour of the Patawomeck Indian settlement just east of Fredericksburg on Route 17 on Nov. 8, 2023. The goal of the visit was to understand their history and culture as well as our role as well. They are one of 11 tribes recognized by Virginia.

There is the 1915 home originally owned by Duff Green that has two rooms of history plus an outside village that opened just this year in July. It is a “work in progress”. The tribe did most of the work to repair the house and create the village.

The tribe originally settled in North Stafford but moved south when Quantico took some of the land. The Indians played a major role in helping the Jamestown colony survive during the winter of 1609-1610 (“the starving time”). Unfortunately, the English did not return the favor but pushed them out. A group settled near us in Port Royal from 1750 to 1820 when they then moved to the Little Falls area of Stafford County and coalesced. There are 2,500 in the tribe today. Thanks to Brad Hatch, a member of tribe and Tribal Council for his tour. An excellent tour and definitely a site worth visiting!

What Does Ministry Look Like ?

This is a PowerPoint comprising a list and description of St. Peter’s ministries under four headings – internal, local partners, state and national partners and international partners. The internal are distinguished by parishioner involvement and are generally active yearly. The others may not be active every year.

Many of these ministries represent the day to day work of the church, both outreach into the world and inreach for those within the church. The church is more than just Sunday and the St. Peter’s building but is working in the world! They involve the both the clergy and parishioners in the church as well as others. Many of these ministries are historic (Bible Study is 20 years old) but some, like Sacred Ground were created in the last five years.

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Indigenous Peoples Day, From Oct. 9, 2023

The Second Monday in October is celebrated as Columbus Day but also more recently as Indigenous People’s Day. This is how St. Peter’s remembered the day in 2023. It is a holiday in the United States that celebrates and honors Indigenous American peoples and commemorates their histories and cultures

In recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Oct 9, 2023), today’s liturgy (Oct 8, 2023) contains Native American resources.  

Here are 4 parts of the service with themes and two videos (Communion Hymn, Prayers of the People, Blessing and Song of Praise):

Read more

Meyer Gallery trip for Sacred Ground

Sacred Ground will be going to the Meyer gallery in Fredericksburg on Tues Oct. 10, 10am to see the art works on display. Here is a video interview with Meyer.

The interest in Sacred Ground is Meyer’s resarch in connection with mid-19th century Afro-American artist Robert Duncanson, one of the leading landscape painters. The Free Lance-Star published a recent article on Mayer and Duncanson. Free Lance-Star article

Meyer believes “Duncanson’s works can be viewed as instruction manuals for enslaved Blacks attempting to escape north.” It might be a path and features to mark the path or obstacles to avoid. Meyer will have 40 of Duncanson’s paintings representing “the path to freedom” at his gallery at 1015 Caroline St. through Oct. 28.

Here is a Powerpoint of Duncanson’s life as well as 16 of his paintings as a warmup for the tour:

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More about the Sacred Ground Group

The Sacred Ground group was formed in 2020 to watch and discuss Sacred Ground: A Film Based Dialogue Series on Race and Faith in 2020. The 10 week study session was created by the Episcopal Church to explore the roots of racial conflict in the United States through the effects of race and racism throughout American history.

After completing the series, the group has continued reading various books to learn more about the impact of racism in the United States.  The group is currently reading  How we can win:  Race, History and Changing the Money Game that’s Rigged, by Kimberly Jones. 

The group has also set up a Sacred Ground Scholarship, a fund available to Black and Native American students,  as a way to combat the historical inequities in education caused by racism. 

In 2022, two young women from Caroline County High School received scholarships to attend Germanna Community College.  For the coming year, the group will be working with Germanna to help students who want to enter the various trade trainings, but do not have the downpayments to get started.  The cost for getting educated for a specific trade can be anywhere from $500 to $800.  Some of the programs have higher costs.  The group hopes to help several students during the school year. 

The group also hopes to visit the  Patawomeck Museum and Cultural Center in Stafford, which has recently opened.  This visit may take place in November. 

Consider joining the St Peter’s Sacred Ground Group.  All are welcome!

Sacred Ground resumes…

Please consider joining Sacred Ground, the group at St Peter’s working specifically for racial reconciliation in our lives, in our community, in our nation and in the world.  All are welcome.   We are meeting on Zoom on Sept. 12. 

Members of the group are coordinating with Germanna Community College Workforce to seek a recipient for the St Peter’s Sacred Ground Scholarship as we move forward.  

We are seeking information from the Diocese about the history of St Peter’s, so that we can understand our history more fully as we learn about how our past is intertwined with the institution of slavery.  

We hope to deepen understanding of the history and culture of the Native Americans of the Rappahannock and Patawomeck Tribes by planning a field trip to the Patawomeck Museum and Cultural Center in Stafford and working to establish a connection with the Rappahannock Tribe.

The group will also choose a book to read and to discuss as we  to continue increase the knowledge that will help us to improve our work for racial reconciliation. 

Join the meeting on Zoom,  7PM on Tuesday, September 12.  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85488115724?pwd=K0tJTTV1VTA4Z3RLUWhUZlUwdlkzdz09 Meeting ID: 854 8811 5724  Passcode: 539098