“In my Lakota culture we have a word, “wolakota,” that refers to the state when all things are in right-relationship: when we are in right-relationship with ourselves, with each other, with the Creator, and with creation. It is through this cultural lens that I view our work toward becoming beloved community, our work toward justice, and our work toward reconciliation.”
The Reverend Shaneequa Brokenleg, Staff Officer for Racial Justice and Reconciliation at the Episcopal Church
The Reverend Brokenleg’s words offer a lens that is essential to the work of the Racial Justice ministry at Epiphany. Our work is communal, it requires that we connect with one another, with ourselves, with the larger world, and with God our Creator.
In June of 2020, after the murder of George Floyd, Epiphany shared a moment with the world, a moment when we were motivated to “do something” as a reaction to this horrible injustice. During that moment Epiphany began our journey with Sacred Ground, a film- and readings-based dialogue series on race, grounded in faith, and put together by the Episcopal Church’s ministry for racial reconciliation, healing and justice. Since June of 2020, seven groups of Epiphany members and community members have gone through the 10 part series. There is one group still in process and there are plans to form another group over the course of this winter. We hope to always have a group running at Epiphany. It is essential that we continue to do this work, to have conversations, and to seek right-relationship, even as the feeling of urgency has passed.
Going through the Sacred Ground curriculum has been a deeply moving experience for many. It has elicited deep feelings of grief, anger, disbelief, and lament. This is one reason why this work must be done in community. As a facilitator of Sacred Ground groups I have had the honor to walk alongside others as they deepened their understanding of the history of race and racism in the United States, and I have had the privilege to be held by members of my community as I have confronted this history myself. Many of us have finished the curriculum with a strengthened commitment to make changes in our world. We hope you will join us for a cycle of movement through Sacred Ground.
Anne Griffin, Sacred Ground Facilitator