October 30thA weekend of unsettlement, learning and hope
We had the opportunity to attend the regional working group collaboration between Indigenous Relations and Creation Care Working Groups at a retreat centre near Winnipeg Manitoba.
This weekend was filled with sharing circles, discussion, song, and reflection. We both enjoyed finally connecting with people in person. As members of the Mennonite Church Alberta Creation Care Working Group, we meet every three months on zoom with all the other regional leaders to discuss the work we are doing. We both agreed that you can only learn so much over a computer screen. In person it felt we were able to truly understand people, feel their passions and feelings and have more authentic conversations. We were able to sing together on the land and feel Christ at the centre guiding our work.
We spent time as creation care working group members discussing the environmental sustainability report that was sent out to all churches. We looked at key differences between provinces and left space to ask, “What do these responses mean for us now as individuals and a collective?”
In Alberta, this means a couple different things. We hope to continue our conversations about the urgency of the climate crises and continue to hear from members of the congregations of their work, feelings, and concerns. It also means continuing to share at different churches about who we are and what creation care can look like individually and at a congregational level.
One area that moved us was the full circle picture this weekend painted for us. About a year and a half ago we started our creation care working group at the young adult Living Hope conference. Suzanne, Bill, and Ruth felt a similar calling this weekend and began the Indigenous Relations Working Group for MCA. It was life giving for us to see that God was still calling for action within Alberta. Their passion, love and care gave us the hope we needed to keep pushing for creation care efforts. They reignited some of the spark that felt like it was being bogged down by the lack of progress we were making, or the lack of change we had been able to create. They came with new ideas of rebuilding trust and connection. We spent time discussing a possible retreat at Camp Valaqua to bring the land, Indigenous relations, congregational members, creation care, and Jesus into one weekend to continue sharing and learning alongside one another.