Mennonites and Catholics in Dialogue
“Standing at the Crossroads”
St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville, MN
July 21-24
Click here for press release summarizing the conference
The prophet Jeremiah said: “Thus says the Lord: Stand at the crossroads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls” (6:16). As Bridgefolk marked its 20th anniversary of summer conferences, the 2022 gathering offered the opportunity to stand at the crossroads, looking back in gratitude and forward as participants discerned a future path for Mennonite-Catholic dialogue and peacemaking.
Additionally, this conference continued the ongoing exploration of what it means for Mennonites and Catholics who seek a Just Peace to address issues of racial justice, which it began at its 2018 Conference. The current crossroads in this work finds Mennonites and Catholics engaging with indigenous communities, acknowledging the legacy of injustice and harm done by the historic removal of indigenous communities from traditional homelands by European settlers and the forced attendance of indigenous children at residential schools. The 2022 conference featured stories, including indigenous voices, of this work of repair and healing at the institutional, community, and personal levels.
We invite you to linger prayerfully at the crossroads by sharing videos of the conference sessions in parish or congregational settings and discussing how you and your community are called to respond. The discussion prompts used at the conference are available here.
To stream videos click on the titles below:
Session 1: Situating the Conference within 20 Years of Bridgefolk History
Abbot John Klassen OSB and former Bridgefolk co-chair Marlene Kropf introduce the conference by reviewing the trajectory of Bridgefolk, and the shared commitment of Catholic and Mennonite participants to the work of just peacemaking.
Session 2: Reckoning with Industrial and Residential Boarding Schools
Sr. Pat Kennedy, OSB, Saint Benedict’s Monastery, and Jaime Arsenault, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the White Earth Nation in northern Minnesota, share the story of their communities’ collaborative project to reckon with the history of the industrial and mission boarding schools (1878-1945) which the Sisters of Saint Benedict operated on three sites, including the monastery, White Earth and Red Lake Reservations, beginning in 1884.
Session 3: How does a Tradition Repent?
Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs and Dr. Jeremy Bergen offer theological reflections on “How Does a Tradition Repent?” Jacobs is Co-Director for Racial Justice, Minnesota Council of Churches and a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation. He helps lead Sacred Site Tours in an effort to create understanding and healing between Native American and non-Native people. Bergen teaches at Conrad Grebel University College in Ontario. Author of Ecclesial Repentance: The Churches Confront Their Sinful Pasts (T&T Clark, 2011), his research interests include church apologies for historical wrongs.
Session 4: The ‘Doctrine of Discovery’ and the Work of Repair
Erica Littlewolf, Indigenous Visioning Circle Program Coordinator, Mennonite Central Committee-Central States and member of the Northern Cheyenne Nation, and John Stoesz, former Executive Director of Mennonite Central Committee-Central States and advocate for indigenous land recovery, share about work among Mennonites in the United States to raise awareness and action regarding the Doctrine of Discovery and the history of Indigenous removal from lands settled by European immigrants.
Session 5: 20th Anniversary Panel with Founding Members
Bridgefolk 20th Anniversary Panel presentation and discussion with founding members Marlene Kropf, Weldon Nisly, and Gerald Schlabach, along with Abbot John Klassen, followed by table discussions and online break-out groups to elicit feedback and explore future directions for the Bridgefolk movement.