The Rev. Dr. Mary Crist (Blackfeet)
Lord, I am yours. Let my words glorify your name.
Oki niksokowaks, nitannnikoo Piitaki. Nistoo Ampskapi
Pikanii. Apistootooki spomohkinahn, kitnastatstimaht nohkotohkinahn. Aiyo ninaa
natoosi, skomohkit kinaitapiwa.
Greetings, my relatives. I am known as Eagle Woman. I am
Southern Robe Indian (Blackfeet). Creator help us all. Hear our cry (prayer).
Listen father sun. Watch over all the people.
Samson Occom’s people were the Mohegans. In 1859, he was the
first indigenous person to be ordained a minister, a Presbyterian. A few years
later Enmegahbowh of the Ojibwa people was ordained the first indigenous
Episcopal priest.
Occom was also first American Indian to have his writing
published. He demonstrated courage, connection, and commitment, qualities that
continue to characterize many indigenous people in this church today. He
brought the light of Christ to many people.
The qualities of courage, connection, and commitment are the
backbone for small church ministry.
Luke’s gospel today bids us to make this work known. Let it
come to light. Celebrate it. Listen to it. In obedience to the gospel of Luke,
and in the Native tradition, I share a story of what can happen when we listen.
Shortly after my ordination to priesthood about six months
ago, my bishop told me that he was appointing me to serve in a church. I was so
excited! This was such good news.
The bad news was that my church had no congregation, no
budget, and no salary for the priest.
You see, the congregation at this church had come to the
point where as a traditional church it could no longer meet its expenses. This
happened even though the former clergy and a few of the faithful had worked
very hard and very faithfully. The church in its old form had died.
The faithful few grew a community garden, and it gave life
to ministry to the homeless and the hungry. They sponsored a pow wow with
the help of the priest and helped students in a local Native American boarding
school. They welcomed new groups to the land.
They listened to the Spirit, and they experienced new
resurrection.
Today the church building itself remains beautiful. Located
on four-and-one-half acres, it has an expensive pipe organ given by the
organ-builder, himself. Silk clergy vestments, beautiful choir robes, and
acolyte vestments hang neatly in the sacristy. Silver and gold chalices wait in
protective coverings. The brass is polished. The sanctuary light glows. The
large altar is covered in spotless linen and brocade. A life-size carved wooded
crucifix adorns the wall behind the altar. Sunlight cascades through glass
panes set in French doors. Flowering bushes and trees abound. One can almost
hear lusty strains of songs sung to a booming organ on a Sunday morning.
Yet, the Spirit called the people to ministry in the
community garden.
When the former priest, a Native American, moved away to take
care of a sick relative, the bishop appointed me. He asked that we feed the
poor, house the homeless, teach the children, and support those struggling with
substance abuse and other issues.
When I asked him for more details, he said the Holy Spirit
will help you figure it out.
In the first six months of small ministry, my own life has
been transformed as it was for Samson Occom. I have learned to listen to that
still small voice of the Spirit within, as Luke directs us…to listen deeply.
If you were to ask our community who is the leader, people
would say, “we are just following the Holy Spirit.” We pray and we plan as a
group. I work from within the circle of our ministry partners.
The church has three staff members. The church secretary, a
former Franciscan nun, takes on the toughest people and the most vulnerable
with equal grace. She is paid for 20 hours a week and works over 40 hours.
The second staff member, a plumber and welder, was losing
his health when he heard a call to take time off “to figure out what that
God-thing was all about”. He lived on the street for several months, he fell in
love with God. Although he can fix anything on our property, he says his
ministry is to the poor and those trying to escape substance abuse. He says he
speaks their language because he was on the street with them. He is unpaid.
The gardener/grounds-keeper/security officer also lived on
the street a few short months ago. He began to work in the garden. Today he is
healthy and a valued member of the community. His only compensation is a small
room where he sleeps at night.
One day I witnessed a woman leaning up against the wall
outside the office. She looked lonely, and I asked her if she would like to
help us hang some pictures. She now runs the office after the secretary leaves.
She is a new person. Her compensation is a monthly bus pass. Recently, she
began a new ministry to cook meals using fresh food from the garden. She
wanted to feed some of our homeless friends. “They can’t cook on the street,”
she said, and she responded.
Two Talking Circles for First Women of the Land established
many years ago are growing. The women come from many Native American Nations,
learning from one another. They reach out to students in a nearby Native
American boarding school.
Two Spanish-speaking evangelical congregations now worship
in our church building. Both are actively involved in developing our community.
Through our Second Harvest, we now distribute food five days
a week. We want to improve our kitchen to expand the cooking ministry. We
collaborate with the Women’s Sober Living House across the street.
A publicly-funded charter elementary school will open on our
property in September. It will develop math, science, and leadership skills for
inner-city children. The African- American school principal is also a member of
our Partners Planning Council.
In our last report to the bishop, we documented services to
more than 500 persons every week.
When I go to the new ministry center, I am filled with joy.
It comes from witnessing lives transformed. by people loving their neighbors as
themselves. From the many ministries, mission is being born. We are meeting the
Five Marks of Mission.
People ask us questions about what is happening at the
center, giving us a natural opportunity to speak about our relationship with a
loving God. Following the Great Commandment to love another naturally gives
rise to following the Great Commission, to share the good news of Christ. We
are preaching the gospel in the four directions through our words and actions.
Someone driving by the new ministry center today would
probably wonder who planned the signage? The answer is the Holy Spirit. It
looks a little bit like signage for a bazaar. One sign invites people to attend
Freedom Church. Another tells people about REACH Academy,
the new school. Yet another announces in Spanish a family festival that is
coming soon. And yes, the Episcopal Church Welcomes You sign is there,
too!
It all looks a bit messy. The signs are not
color-coordinated. They aren’t the same size or even the same style. All of
them are blowing in the wind. And yet, people tell me they are fascinated to
see what is coming next. I tell them we are listening to hear what the Holy
Spirit has planned for us. We know it will be filled with life, and it will be
filled with the love of Christ. We are becoming a new spiritual family –
brothers and sisters in the faith…we are the early church resurrected.
What I have learned from this experience is awesome. From
what people tell me, the Episcopal Church is dying, but from what I see, the
church is being reborn.
We are being called by the Spirit into something new.
I am standing in the middle of the whirlwind.
I can feel the wind on my face. It blows my hair around.
I can hear the Eagle’s call.
It is exhilarating.
It is unpredictable.
It is messy… yet it is God… and it is good.
Amen.
