Stephanie MacGregor, member of St John’s,
Born 1911 in Kingston, Jamaica
Died 1936 in Edinburgh
I have to admit, it doesn’t happen every day that as a priest in the Church of God one receives a request to do a memorial service for somebody who died 79 years ago. In fact, in 16 years of ordained ministry, it was the first time, I had received such a request a few months ago. No wonder then, that it did raise an eyebrow, when I first heard about it. When I then realised that we Episcopalians don’t have a liturgy for such a celebration and I didn’t know where to turn to find proper formulary, panic struck…
But this was followed quickly with raising the other eyebrow, because my curiosity was tweaked. Why would somebody come from the United States to Scotland to organise such an unusual service for a Jamaican relative? What had happened? And what was it about the person to be remembered that justified such a celebration.
Of course, the last of these queries is a false question. In the end, I had to eat my own words: at every funeral I remind the congregation that God has not forgotten those, who have died and never will. No, they rest in God’s bosom, cherished and loved as before, but safe from any terror of the night, any pain and illness, any strife and tears. And one day, when our Lord Jesus will return in glory they will rise to new life on a new earth, where sin and death will be no more, where weeping and crying will be no more, and where we will be united with those we love, but see no more. So, yes, even 79 years on, Stephanie MacGregor is precious to God – and will remain precious to God forever more. Even without Stephanie’s curious and mind-blowing story, it is good to remember a precious and beloved child of God – whether they died 79 minutes, 79, days, 79 years, or 79 centuries ago. In God’s economy time plays no role. God’s love is stronger than death. Or to put it into the words of the Apostle Paul: Love never ends.
But, there is also Stephanie’s life-story.
And what a story it is. What a life well lived it was.
Stephanie must have been quite women to set sails from sunny Jamaica to come to rainy Scotland. In the end, it is probably what killed her. Her body, used to sun and warm Caribbean winds, could not deal with the coldness and dampness of a dreich Scottish winter.
She had come to Edinburgh in the early 1930s to study Medicine, to be helpful for people in pain and misery. Together with three other bright Jamaicans (all men!) she had been sent on a mission: As a daughter of her country she came to Edinburgh University to study, in order to serve the people of her island nations. Yet, she would never return, but find an eternal resting place at Piershill Cemetary.
And, still, despite of her untimely death, Jamaica can be proud of her. And not just Jamaica. Her academic achievements were outstanding and she was posthumously awarded her medical degree on 4 July 2015 – hence the request to do another memorial service.
I will leave the academic laudatio to people at the University, who are the experts in this field, but I would like to share a few thoughts why not just Jamaicans should be proud of Stephanie MacGregor.
First of all, Stephanie’s memorial on 3 July 2015 brought together people from the Jamaica, Scotland, England, the United States, and Germany. From far and not so-far people came together. This beautiful young woman at whose grave we stood bridged huge distances and gathered “rainbow people of God”, as another Anglican, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, would call it. And what a beautiful thing it was! It celebrated the strength of the human spirit that can overcome adversity and distance – and this was Stephanie’s gift for us. In her own live she probably had to do this over and over and over again - overcome adversity and distance, and she is even doing it in her death.
When Stephanie came to Scotland, the British Empire was still functioning quite well and race played a different role in the minds of people. Even in post-Enlightenment Scotland, black people’s place and also the place of women was not necessarily at the same, or even at an equal table as that of the white colonial masters… Slavery had been abolished in the British Empire for quite a while, yet, the legacy of that evil and the not-so-subtle injustice of colonial imperialism affected peoples’ life even in the 1930s. And I wonder how Stephanie was able to cope with it all. It is indeed a testament to her strength and her character – and a testament of her faith that good will conquer evil, that life is stronger than death, that injustice and oppression will be conquered, and that the God of love, who created us all in Her image regardless of our gender, race, nationality or other identity will have the final word. And we all have a part to play in establishing justice and equality for all, in ensuring that all have access to such basic rights as health services, and in working for an end to oppression and exploitation for those who come to our shores – even today.
St John’s, Stephanie’s chose congregation in Edinburgh, has for the past decades tried to claim all this. Advocacy on behalf of those who have no voice is very much at the centre of our identity and we now more than ever understand that justice is a Gospel-imperative.
But it’s not always been this way.
When St John’s was founded, large donations were given from people who had become rich in the African-Caribbean slave trade. It is an evil that sits at the foundation of our church-community.
One could argue that Stephanie’s membership at St John’s therefore was ironic. But I believe it was probably providential – and maybe it was even God’s plan to send Stephanie as a prophetic voice to the sometimes stuffy and ignorant establishment of Edinburgh of the time. She might have lived shortly, but she touched hearts and opened ears and eyes – and opened even minds and hearts.
And this is why commemorating her memory was indeed a good thing.
Barack Obama recently at the funeral of those martyred at Emanuel Church in Charleston, SC spoke a lot of “grace.” I believe that Stephanie was gifted with the kind of grace the U.S. President spoke about. It was grace the infused her life and that impacted the lives around her. She never made it back to the shores of her native land to be a servant to those in need. But I do not think that her life was wasted. It just impacted the people of Jamaica and many others differently.
Eternal Father bless Jamaica.
Guard her with Thy mighty hand
Keep her free from evil powers
Be her light through countless hours
To her leaders, Great Defender,
Grant true wisdom from above
Justice, truth be hers forever
Jamaica, land you love.
Amen
Adapted from words of the Jamaican national anthem
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