Episcopal Church updates Sacred Ground curriculum for racial reconciliation work

The Episcopal Church released a revised version of Sacred Ground, its 11-session curriculum for small group discussion on racism and white supremacy in American history and the church's complicity in racist systems. Since its 2019 launch, an estimated 30,000 or more people have participated in Sacred Ground circles. The updated curriculum incorporates significant changes based on feedback from facilitators and participants. A new opening documentary, "Traces of the Trade" from 2008, produced by one of Sacred Ground's original developers Katrina Browne, now begins the discussion series. The core reading materials have been revised to offer flexibility: participants will continue reading Howard Thurman's "Jesus and the Disinherited" while choosing between Debby Irving's "Waking Up White" or Daniel Hill's "White Awake." The Rev. Valerie Mayo, a Black priest from North Carolina who served as a Sacred Ground strategic consultant, noted that revisions made the curriculum more accommodating for people of color participants and more reflective of contemporary political and social developments. The updated curriculum also provides additional context for Christians from other denominations, making it available for ecumenical and interfaith circle use. Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe will launch the new program year at an online event on September 15.

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Source: Episcopal News Service — https://episcopalnewsservice.org/2026/09/10/church-launches-revised-curriculum-for-sacred-ground-circles-engaging-with-legacy-of-racism/