I N D I G E N O U S
Prayer of a white settler on
National Indigenous Peoples Day June 21, 2020
from Shannon Neufeldt
Creator God,
I come to you with a humble heart,
So grateful for Your creation,
this place I am in.
The land is full of Your glory this solstice day.
Sunlight sparkles on fresh green leaves.
Bees buzz as trees burst into bloom.
Even as dew collects on dandelion leaves,
Or raindrops gather in boiling thunderclouds,
A morning sip of lifegiving water deepens my gratitude
for the life that teams across Turtle Island.
O Creator, perfect Host,
Your care and compassion were, and are,
echoed in the generous hospitality
of the original peoples - Indigenous peoples.
But the reciprocal relationships of host and guest
have been shattered.
And the pain continues.
For the death and destruction, I pour out my sorrow in lamentations.
It is for the sins of my own heart that I seek forgiveness.
Cleanse me of the thoughts and emotions
that keep those relationships from healing -
wash away the toxic entitlement, prejudiced assumptions, defensive disinterest.
O Creator, faithful Guide,
Show me the path towards right relations,
Shape not only my words and deeds,
but even more, my reactions and thoughts.
Open my heart to the wonder, the beauty, the gifts
of the person next to me,
the protester on the news,
the culture so different from my own.
Expose my racism,
Root out my deep-seated fear of change,
That I may be healed within,
even as I try to be part of the healing of Your world.
Amen.
National Indigenous Peoples Day June 21, 2020
from Shannon Neufeldt
Creator God,
I come to you with a humble heart,
So grateful for Your creation,
this place I am in.
The land is full of Your glory this solstice day.
Sunlight sparkles on fresh green leaves.
Bees buzz as trees burst into bloom.
Even as dew collects on dandelion leaves,
Or raindrops gather in boiling thunderclouds,
A morning sip of lifegiving water deepens my gratitude
for the life that teams across Turtle Island.
O Creator, perfect Host,
Your care and compassion were, and are,
echoed in the generous hospitality
of the original peoples - Indigenous peoples.
But the reciprocal relationships of host and guest
have been shattered.
And the pain continues.
For the death and destruction, I pour out my sorrow in lamentations.
It is for the sins of my own heart that I seek forgiveness.
Cleanse me of the thoughts and emotions
that keep those relationships from healing -
wash away the toxic entitlement, prejudiced assumptions, defensive disinterest.
O Creator, faithful Guide,
Show me the path towards right relations,
Shape not only my words and deeds,
but even more, my reactions and thoughts.
Open my heart to the wonder, the beauty, the gifts
of the person next to me,
the protester on the news,
the culture so different from my own.
Expose my racism,
Root out my deep-seated fear of change,
That I may be healed within,
even as I try to be part of the healing of Your world.
Amen.
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KAIROS -Canada - MISSION STATEMENT We are Indigenous, settlers and newcomers in Canada working with people of faith or conscience all over the world for ecological justice and human rights. KAIROS… Faithful action for justice and peace |
CBC MASSEY LECTURES
The 2018 CBC Massey Lectures:
All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward
CBC Radio · November 2018
In her 2018 CBC Massey Lectures series, titled All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward, prize-winning journalist Tanya Talaga (author of Seven Fallen Feathers) explores the legacy of cultural genocide against Indigenous peoples.
For Talaga, that cultural genocide has led to a forced disconnection from land and language by Indigenous peoples. The need now, she says, is for Indigenous self-determination in social, cultural and political arenas.
Many communities, in Canada and abroad, are finding that the road back to a relationship with land and language are keys to community healing — to what, in fact, it means to be Indigenous.
These are lectures about values for our times, and for all of us.
The book version of the lectures is published by House of Anansi Press.
The 2018 CBC Massey Lectures:
All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward
CBC Radio · November 2018
In her 2018 CBC Massey Lectures series, titled All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward, prize-winning journalist Tanya Talaga (author of Seven Fallen Feathers) explores the legacy of cultural genocide against Indigenous peoples.
For Talaga, that cultural genocide has led to a forced disconnection from land and language by Indigenous peoples. The need now, she says, is for Indigenous self-determination in social, cultural and political arenas.
Many communities, in Canada and abroad, are finding that the road back to a relationship with land and language are keys to community healing — to what, in fact, it means to be Indigenous.
These are lectures about values for our times, and for all of us.
The book version of the lectures is published by House of Anansi Press.
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