What our program participants are saying

It has been an honor to work with Rev. Kristin Dollar and the JustFaith Ministries Team to develop a module that boldly wades into the painful history of systemic racism. I sincerely believe the only way to build a better future is by creating partnerships across the lines of race that re-educate people about issues they were socialized to ignore. This module will provide what I call “new learning that transforms and informs” the kind of justice work that sets us on the path to healing and reconciliation.

“The Land is Not Our Own has allowed me the space to honor both my Christian faith and my indigeneity. I have gained a deeper understanding of how to communicate existing in both worlds by sharing with a faith-centered group that is open and empathetic. Our call as people of faith is to journey with the oppressed, and this [program] welcomed being witness to the beauty of indigenous culture and spirituality while also holding space to reckon with the horror experienced by indigenous peoples. We cannot build a better future and world without confronting the sin of genocide that continues to manifest in and through our current systems. This course fostered prayerful critique of history, as well as stoking creative solutions to how to repair the harms of colonization and assimilation, specifically as Christians, both individually and as a group. Together we felt the woundedness of genocide and violence, as well as the hope, creativity, and joyful resilience that indigenous people have carried, carry now, and will carry into future generations.”

As a Unitarian Universalist residing in the Bible Belt, I've become used to interfaith-based conversations that revolve around all the flavors of Christianity, so this course on Spiritual and Racial Equity surprised me as being true to its promise of welcoming and speaking to people of all faith traditions. My favorite part could be the guided meditations which were effective even over Zoom. I recommend this course for people who recognize that systemic racism in American makes individual relationships messy, complicated and nuanced - yet the participant is prepared to dig in anyway, willing to experience discomfort at times because, ultimately, the pavers on the pathway to justice we are laying down are comprised of joy, prophetic wisdom, empowerment, and good will, all of them being spiritually-centered attributes and pursuits that we may overlook. Engaging in the 'struggle' and the 'work' of anti-racism may be necessary labor but this program prepares participants' hearts and minds to be open to the beauty and transformation that are always within our reach along the way, no matter how distant we may be from the justice we seek.