The Little Church on the Corner

History and Reconciliation

Over the past several years, we at St. George's have worked to preserve our history. We completed an oral history project that was submitted to the DC Public Library, and we have spent the last several years turning that work into a documentary film.

At the same time, clergy and parishioners of St. Columba’s Church in Tenleytown have been doing their own work. They looked closely at their historical relationship to St. George’s and how their parish benefited from the sale of St. George's Chapel in Washington's Reno City neighborhood almost 100 years ago. However, they did not stop with learning that history—they chose to act on it.

St. Columba’s has established a Beloved Community Fund, dedicated

to repairing harm and building new relationships. Through that fund, their vestry has approved a significant financial commitment to St. George’s as an act of reconciliation. Our church will receive $164,000 from the Beloved Community Fund in four annual installments. 

This work is about the mission of the Church, as our Catechism teaches on page 855 of the Book of Common Prayer: “The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.” And how does the Church pursue that mission? “As it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love.”

What is happening between St. George’s and St. Columba’s is exactly that—an act of justice, peace, and love.

It is the work of reconciliation within the Body of Christ. It honors who we are as a parish, and it opens the door to a new relationship between our two congregations. We will continue to share more about this new relationship.

In the meantime, please mark on your calendars the date April 19, 2026, when St. George's will host the premiere of The Little Church on the Corner at 2:30 p.m. We will be joined by Bishop Mariann Budde, St. Columba’s clergy and parishioners, diocesan leaders committed to Black ministries and racial justice, and many others from across the Diocese. This will be an important moment for us and for the Diocese. Hold this news with prayer and hope. God has been faithful to St. George’s for generations, and God continues to lead us forward.