jerad's blog

[Crossposted from the Healing Minnesota Stories blog]

In this post:

What follows is a press release from three congregations - ELCA, UCC and Catholic - announcing their partnership in New Branches, a church building they have renovated for shared use to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God in their Minneapolis mission field. 

Now you can revisit the powerful presentations and amazing panel discussion from Minnesota's Racial Legacy, the first event of Minnesota Council of Churches' Vision for Truth and Reparations program. 

On the event page find:

A video recording of the keynote from Christine Diindiisi McCleave, then-executive director of the Natinoal Native American Boarding Schools Healing Coalition.

No more words …

A young Black man, Amir Locke, was killed by Minneapolis police on Wednesday morning, February 2, 2022. Reminiscent of Breonna Taylor, Minneapolis police used a no-knock warrant to silently enter the private residence where he was asleep and they shot and killed Amir. They were looking for someone else.

(Cross-posted from Healing Minnesota Stories blog)

Part II in a series on Restorative Actions

It all started with a conversation during a two-and-a-half hour car ride in the winter of 2016. Rev. Anthony Jermaine Ross-Allam and Jim Koon were driving to a men’s retreat for members of Oak Grove Presbyterian, a predominantly white church in Bloomington, and talking about things they cared about.

(Cross-posted from the Healing Minnesota Stories blog)

Part I in a series on Restorative Actions

There’s a growing understanding and desire among mainline U.S. Protestant churches to make repairs – acts that go beyond mere words – for their role in the theft of Indigenous lands and the stolen labor of African slaves.

Today follows the end of Christmastide, a season that began with a choir of angels singing about peace on earth. Yet last year on this date you might recall feeling that the future held anything but. On January 6, 2021, we watched a thousand people who believed they were following righteous orders when they assaulted police officers at the U.S. Capitol.

Reject division, white supremacy; return to community, simplicity

The Rt. Rev. Craig Loya, Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Minnesota, said the Episcopal church has been dying for more than 50 years. It needs to die and return to its roots in Jesus’ teachings.

The church, he said, has been co-opted by the state.