Dear Mount Olivet Community,
We are heartbroken and outraged by George Floyd’s death. We pray for his family and loved ones, we condemn the actions of the four Minneapolis police officers who took his life, and we listen to the voices of so many crying out in pain and rage at the daily injustices that weigh them down.
Amidst the unrest and uncertainty that has fallen over our city and nation this past week, what has been clear to us is that God is still with us, using this moment to invite us to join God’s work in the world.
This work begins with acknowledging that racism is a sin. Racism is more than acts of hatred, it is a skewed way of viewing and organizing the world so that some people are systematically devalued and denied resources. There is no one in America who is unaffected by racism; it is sinister enough to hide itself within us even when our intentions are noble. This goes for our church, too. Our relative silence has meant that racism has not been challenged by God’s healing and inclusive grace.
In the coming months, Mount Olivet will think and act to help our church become a place where we can begin to root out racism in ourselves and our communities. We know this will be difficult work for us. As Pastor Beth said in her sermon on Sunday, “I am aware that I am a white pastor preaching to a predominantly white community. There are obvious things that keep me and us from being able to speak into systemic racism in America. I also know there is no ‘perfect’ right now, no best case scenario, no time to prepare - we have been pushed to this place and this is where we begin.”
This work will take all of us with all our varied gifts and limitations, and we ask that you pray about how you might engage with it. The temptation for many of us will be to do what we know how to do – lend a hand to those in need, volunteer our time, donate money. Certainly these are all good things, and information on how to get involved is found in the Google Doc below. But what God may be asking of us here is to do something new – to listen to voices of people whose lives look different than our own, to learn and sit with the living history of racism, to look inside ourselves to see where racism may linger, and to get comfortable in the discomfort that this work brings.
The good news is that we do not do this work alone. We have one another, and we have the presence of God, who will equip us with what we need, forgive us when we err, and sustain us on the road ahead. This is what being church is all about.
When we baptize someone at Mount Olivet, we promise “to know and celebrate their call in the world.” We plan to help you know your own call in the broad movement to end racism so that we might more fully celebrate the call of black people, indigenous people, and all people of color in our state. This is the promise of baptism – that we are joined in a beloved community with the world that God loves, a world that longs to be freed from racism in all its forms.
You will hear more about these efforts as they develop, and if you have ideas or feedback, we encourage you to reach out to us. In the meantime, here are three things that we can offer you right now.
1. Many of you are asking about resources for understanding and talking about this moment in our country and how we got here, as well as where you can volunteer or make financial and in-kind donations. We have compiled an initial list of resources HERE, and encourage you to spend some time with them in the coming weeks.
2. Looking for next steps and feeling overwhelmed or stuck in a spiral of guilt? We can offer you one-on-one conversation. We would love to help you become curious about where you are and what might be next for you. Please email anyone on this list and we will set up a time for a conversation over the phone or Zoom.
a. Pastor Beth – bhorsch@moply.org
b. Pastor Joel – jbergeland@moply.org
c. Rich Holleque, Director of Youth and Family Faith Formation – rholleque@moply.org
d. Beth McGrew-King, Faith Community Coordinator – emcgrewking@moply.org
e. Lisa Hansen – nodakeric@aol.com
Lisa Hansen (MA, educational leadership, Luther Seminary), who has been involved in youth ministry and adult education at Mount Olivet for 20+ years and volunteers with a program serving children experiencing trauma from natural disasters, considers herself a "curious learner and listener" regarding racial equity and feels called to address the trauma to children impacted by both current events and years of systemic racism.
f. Tori Hansen – tori.hansen1@gmail.com
Tori Hansen, 27, has been an MO member since she was young, co-leads high school ministry, spent a year living in South Africa through the ELCA’s Young Adults in Global Mission program and currently works for a non-profit that equips individuals and corporations address the most pressing needs in our community.
3. If you are feeling a call to help lead our church into this work, we are forming a Racial Equity Team. Please email Pastor Beth (bhorsch@moply.org) and/or Pastor Joel (jbergeland@moply.org) if you’re interested.
God’s peace be with you,
Pastor Beth and Pastor Joel