In 1999 a group of about 100 people of varying faiths and races walked the path of the Middle Passage. Since then they have formed an organization (Crossing the Waters, Institute for Cultural Change) that seeks to heal the wounds of slavery through interfaith, interracial conversation, music, theater, and continuing relationships with people in Africa. This Sunday we will be fortunate to participate in a ceremony of healing.
The ceremony will include prayer, song, storytelling, the calling of ancestors, and the sacred act of pouring libation. These traditions will create a reflective and healing space for participants to honor their ancestors and loved ones lost in the transatlantic slave trade.
This special ceremony will blend spiritual practices, cultural traditions, and storytelling to bring the voices of the past into the present. Through prayer and the calling of the ancestors, participants will engage in a collective remembrance and healing experience, while the pouring of libation will serve as a symbolic act of reverence and renewal.
Ingrid Askew, Executive Director of CTW and a leader of the Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage, a 13-month walk that retraced the journey of slavery, will lead the ceremony. “This ceremony is a call to remember and honor the spirits of our ancestors, to share their stories, and to pour libation for those who endured the horrors of slavery,” said Askew. “It is also a time for awakening, for acknowledging that healing is an ongoing process that begins with us.”