“For Christ Jesus is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.”                           

  — Ephesians 2:14

We, the undersigned clergy in downtown Salisbury, stand united in affirming the saving power of God’s love. Oct. 7 is World Communion Sunday, a day on which many Christians around the world will join together in celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in a sacred ritual known as eucharist or communion.

As Christians in every community gather for communion on Oct. 7, we pray that the grace of this holy meal transforms us to be a people united in love for the common good of our community. Even as the fabric of our society is strained by the sins of division, partisanship, and racism, in this sacred meal we put our whole trust in the reconciling, healing, and uniting grace of God.

Though we may have different interpretations of how this meal is conducted and what exactly it means, we are, nevertheless, united as members of the Body of Christ. As all people are created in the image of God, we know that there is a place for all people at the table. Gathering for communion demonstrates and reminds us that what we hold in common is greater than that which seeks to divide us. You are welcomed and invited to join us in the breaking of bread and sharing the cup of salvation on World Communion Sunday on Oct. 7.

In the peace of Christ,

— The Rev. Dr. Derrick Anderson

Soldiers Memorial AME Zion Church

— The Rev. Robert Black

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church

This letter was also signed by the Rev. Dr. Mark Conforti of First United Methodist, the Rev. Bonnie Duckworth of St. Luke’s Episcopal, the  Rev. Carol Hallman of First United of Salisbury, the Rev. Laura Henrick of St. John’s Lutheran, the Rev. Dr. Randy Kirby of First Presbyterian, the Rev. Stacey Lundy of First United Methodist, Pastor Kenneth Lance of First Baptist, the Rev. Josh Musser Gritter and the Rev. Lara Musser Gritter of First Presbyterian, and the Rev. Rhodes Woolly of St. John’s Lutheran.