“Let us worship our Creator with minds open to the wisdom of all God’s people, remembering that once listening and respect once had no place in our society.” These were the opening words to the Call to Worship led by Elona Street-Stewart, executive of the Synod of Lakes and Prairies, as staff and guests celebrated Native American Day at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Center in Louisville on September 12.
“You cannot understand our history as a country until you understand the history of the church.” That’s how Mark Charles — a Navajo pastor, speaker and author — began his presentation to a room full of missionaries in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, gathered this summer for their annual meeting.
Native American women came together in Louisville on Aug. 2 for a pre-gathering event prior to the kickoff of the 2018 Churchwide Gathering of Presbyterian Women (PW). “Because of limited opportunity to come together nationally, Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries (RE&WIM) put together this event,” said Irv Porter, associate for Native American Intercultural Congregational Support. “This is also a time to celebrate together the goodness of God in the lives of native women,” added Rhashell Hunter, director of RE&WIM.
Representatives from four Columbia River Indian tribes in Oregon — Nez Perce, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation — invited more than two dozen Presbyterians this past fall to participate in a fire and water ceremony.
The Presbyterian Mission Agency Board (PMAB) opened its Friday meeting with a Native American Day Worship service led by Elona Street Stewart, executive for the Synod of the Lakes and Prairies, and board members Jason Chavez, Cecil Corbett and Buddy Monahan.
Calling on congregations to offer an educational event exploring The Doctrine of Discovery, the September edition of Facing Racism from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) asks participants to consider the history of exploitation of Indigenous Peoples in the United States.
More than 20 representatives from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) joined a 500-person-strong gathering of clergy and lay leaders at the Oceti Sakowin prayer camp yesterday, adding voices of solidarity to self-described “water protectors” at the site and taking part in a ceremony repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery.
