After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.
Revelation 7:9
During his meditation on All Saints’ Day, November 5, 2023, the Reverend Ken Baily described his glimpse of the “beloved community” two days’ prior, when he had attended a fundraising dinner at Temple Shalom that featured Muslim speakers and a message about the problematic third verse of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” written by Francis Scott Key, a slave-owner with anti-abolitionist views.
At the dinner, the Reverend Baily presented a check from Newton Highlands Congregational Church (NHCC) for $2,250 to Temple Shalom to support their work to resettle an Afghan family. The funds, consisting of donations by NHCC members and friends, were allocated by the Mission Committee and the church Council.
The names of saints were read aloud during the service.
The service also included a moving postlude played by organist Yevgenia Semeina on the repaired pipe organ.
The service was followed by a Q&A hosted by new member Tann Scott with the Reverend Baily and Moderator Sally Brickell, both of whom just returned from a pilgrimage for racial justice in Alabama.