Watch Night or “Freedom's Eve,” marks when African Americans across the country watched and waited for the Emancipation Proclamation to take effect. Today, Watch Night service encourages reflection …

1 day ago · Remembering the history of Watch Night and the sacred memory of Southern Black life.

3 days ago · Watch Night, also known as Freedom’s Eve, is a sacred New Year’s Eve tradition in Black communities rooted in Christian worship and remembrance of Dec. 31, 1862, when enslaved and …

Watch Night service is rooted in African American religious traditions. During the first Watch Night, many enslaved African Americans gathered to pray, worship, sing, and dance. At the time, enslaved black …

Watch Night, Christian religious service held on New Year’s Eve and associated, in many African American churches, with a celebration and remembrance of the Emancipation Proclamation (enacted …

1 day ago · We’re looking at the history of watch night, a New Year’s Eve tradition for Black Americans that goes back to the Civil War.

Dec 31, 2024 · On New Year's Eve, Black and multiracial churches across the country will also celebrate Watch Night, a celebration that dates to the Civil War.

Dec 30, 2023 · Over its 160-year history, Watch Night has evolved into an annual New Year's Eve tradition — it not only commemorates freedom from slavery, but also celebrates the importance of …

Dec 31, 2024 · Learn about the history and significance of Watch Night, a New Year's Eve tradition in the Black community, symbolizing the end of slavery and a new beginning.

A watchnight service at a Lutheran Christian church on New Year's Eve (2014) A watchnight service (also called Watchnight Mass) is a late-night Christian church service. In many different Christian …