Racial Justice News and Upcoming Events:
Upcoming Fall Book Study: Starting in September, we are planning to discuss Rev. Tyler Sit’s book, Staying Awake: The Gospel for Changemakers. The teaser from the back of the book says, “Jesus asked his followers to stay awake, which begs the question: stay awake to what?” Rev. Tyler is a United Methodist pastor at New City Church in Minneapolis. If you are interested in obtaining a copy of the book for free or if you are interested in participating in one of these groups, please contact Karensa Fischer at patinapatina [AT] me [DOT] com. We are hoping to have more than one group so there are multiple scheduling options. The book can also be found here: https://bookshop.org/books/staying-awake-the-gospel-for-changemakers/9780827235526
Thank you, everyone, for your engagement with and commitment to the Racial Reconciling Covenant It is sacred work that God calls us to do and committing to this work is an important first step.
In the discussions over the last few months and in the all-church conference Tuesday June 15th, 2021, we recognize that we are all in different places in this journey and our team is committed to facilitating opportunities for all of us to grow in our understanding of racism and learn more ways for standing up for racial justice. Through this work, we can live up to the commitments we've made as members of the United Methodist Church and grow closer in our relationships with God and with each other.
Thank you again for your commitment as a congregation to racial justice.
Centennial for Racial Justice Team
A note from our Church Council: Centennial is now a part of the Racial Reconciling Movement in The United Methodist Church. The Racial Reconciling Covenant was approved at Centennial’s All-Church Conference on June 15th by a vote of 56 yes, 7 no, and 2 abstaining. You can read the Covenant, as before, at http://centennialumc.org/files/docs/RacialReconcilingCovenantUpdated.pdf. Thank you to the Centennial for Racial Justice team for their hard work and leadership on this, along with the many persons who participated in the All-Church Conference. The Covenant builds upon both our official church mission statement, approved in 2010, and our official Reconciling-Welcoming statement, approved in 2015.
Centennial for Racial Justice
At Centennial, we believe that God’s Kingdom is a kingdom of justice, unity and strength, and that all people are made in the image of God. To love Christ is to be actively opposing all forms of racism (explicit, implicit, systemic and individual) in pursuit of reparation, reconciliation and meaningful justice. (See Article V Racial Justice of of The United Methodist Book of Discipline)
The Centennial for Racial Justice team was formed to call our entire congregation into action to illuminate and dismantle racism within the culture of our church community and the communities in which we live. (See Centennial for Racial Justice Call to Action)
The United Methodist Church defines racism in our Social Principles
“Racism is the combination of the power to dominate by one race over other races and a value system that assumes that the dominant race is innately superior to the others. Racism includes both personal and institutional racism. Personal racism is manifested through the individual expressions, attitudes, and/or behaviors that accept the assumptions of a racist value system and that maintain the benefits of this system. Institutional racism is the established social pattern that supports implicitly or explicitly the racist value system. Racism, manifested as sin, plagues and hinders our relationship with Christ, inasmuch as it is antithetical to the gospel itself….”
Please join our Centennial for Racial Justice email list. Contact Karensa Fischer, patinapatina [AT] me [DOT] com or Julie Elholm jelholm [AT] centennialumc [DOT] org to get on that email list.
Find us on Facebook
For more information or to join our team, please contact any one of our team co-chairs:
Rachel Konzem, Church Council Rep | koanra99 [AT] gmail [DOT] com
Sara Metz, Education | snmetz [AT] msn [DOT] com
Karensa Fischer, Action | patinapatina [AT] me [DOT] com
Resources for the journey:
Resources for Responding to Systemic Racism
Staying Awake: The Gospel for Changemakers by Rev. Tyler Sit of New City UMC
How to Fight Racism: Courageous Christianity and the Journey toward Racial Justice by Rev. Jemar Tisby
Visit this website for a wide variety of resources about dismantling racism in your own life and in the world around you: https://www.dismantlingracism.org/
Video: "Marginalized Wisdom: Getting Beyond the Uncomfortable Part" by Dr. Bertice Berry. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv8JLlTMWCA
Learn about Police Accountability Bills
Click on this link to learn about a variety of police accountability bills in Minnesota and read the bills for yourself. If you agree and support these bills, you can add your name. https://action.cair.com/a/action-alert-mn-coalition-justice-george-floyd-and-all-stolen-lives-demands-police-reform