ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The Rev. Gregory James Edwards sat in the basement of the 262-year-old Zion’s Reformed United Church of Christ on Thursday morning, talking passionately about the vital work yet to be done outside of it.
Edwards, founder and senior pastor of Resurrected Life Community Church U.C.C., did so while wearing a short-sleeved shirt.
Some might say the garment choice saves him time from having to roll up long sleeves to get down to the important work of helping underserved children and families in the heart of Allentown’s downtown district.
Edwards led Resurrected Life’s acquisition of the historic Zion’s Reformed Church on Hamilton Street last year when it closed in 2022 because of declining membership and financial problems stemming from the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.
This year, Resurrected Life invested $1 million to make those renovations to the 25,000-square-foot building — including a new slate roof, repointing the church’s brick facing, new flashing, new fixtures in all 15 bathrooms — including sinks and touchless faucets — and installation of a fire suppression system.
All of that work was to clear the way for Zion’s first worship service on Sunday morning.
A Juneteenth reopening
Not coincidentally, the official grand reopening of Zion’s Church is Wednesday, June 19 — or Juneteenth, the federal holiday commemorating the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States.
“We’ll also have some African dancers and drummers, some remarks by [Allentown] Mayor Matt Tuerk, Zion’s member Geoff Brace and other funders,” Edwards said.
“We’re also going to do the graduation service for the preschool children, a matriculation service for the James Lawson Freedom School.”
That evening, the reopening will be capped by a quartet jazz concert by internationally known Ruth Naomi Floyd, performing Frederick Douglass Jazz Works, honoring the enslaved African-American who escaped to freedom and became, among many things, a leading political activist, writer, theologian and abolitionist.
Edwards’ contextual approach to ministry — based upon the intersectionality of faith, education, economic self-sufficiency and public policy — led to the creation of the Resurrected Life Children’s Academy, the Lehigh Valley Freedom School Partnership and the James Lawson Freedom Schools — all initiatives of the Resurrected Community Development Corporation.
The relocation from Resurrected Life’s location at North Ninth Street to Zion’s Reformed U.C.C., and its renovation, will allow for the expansion of the ministry and addition of programs and activities, Edwards said.
The move to Zion’s church will further the organizations’ ability to serve more children, students and families in the area of the city with the highest concentration of poverty and lowest literacy levels for elementary students.
'That's what we can do here'
The work of the Church, Edwards stressed, is needed and reaches far beyond the pews.
“Census Tracts 18 and 20 in Allentown have the highest concentration of poverty in the Lehigh Valley,” Edwards said of the areas of the Low-Income Community Opportunity Zone that are 78% Black and Hispanic.
“Seventh-five percent of the children there in fourth grade cannot read at a third-grade level. That’s why we started the Resurrected Life Children’s Academy, and created the James Lawson Freedom School.
“One of our major ministries in the community is high-quality, early learning education as a tool for economic empowerment and resilience.”
“Until we as a nation understand that it’s all of us, then it’s none of us.”Rev. Dr. Gregory James Edwards, Zion's Reformed United Church of Christ
Edwards paused and removed his eyeglasses to reveal a steely eyed squint.
“We’ve got to teach our children how to fall in love with reading and learning,” he said. “That’s what we can do here.”
Edwards sat in the church basement talking about the importance outside the church walls.
To his right, near a far wall, stood a replica of the Liberty Bell, a full-sized duplicate of the actual bell that was housed there during the Revolutionary War to prevent it being confiscated by the British for its metals.
The church basement once housed the Liberty Bell Museum before it was relocated to the Lehigh County Historical Society.
“The replica bell is owned by the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission which has let us keep it, but not in perpetuity,” Edwards said.
“I think it's great that we still have it here. What we will do here is utilize it to have discussions about things in the city that affect our people.
"It’s a great place to do it — here, in the church.”
Edwards was asked what it means to be at this church at this location.
“It’s an opportunity for us here to be able to tell people, ‘Yes, this is your place, the city, and that we belong here,’” he said. “That as a matter of fact, everyone belongs here.
“Until we as a nation understand that it’s all of us, then it’s none of us.”
