The CSJ Community Garden and St. Kate’s/CSJ Food Access Hub are established, site-based examples of the CSJ commitment to ecological justice.

We are also exploring what the land can teach us through new initiatives such as conversation groups, learning labs, pilgrimages, and Land Justice Futures/Indigenous Awareness Conversation Group, a recently combined initiative bringing together the former Land Justice Futures Conversation Group and the Indigenous Awareness Working Group of the Justice Commission. The energy and care in these current efforts has roots in the previous Earth Partners Working Groups, Racial Justice actions and existing relationships with Native American/American Indian individuals and organizations in the Twin Cities. This conversation group focuses on education, advocacy, and action within the group and the larger community. Many in the group came together as participants in sessions with Land Justice Futures, an effort of religious communities to pursue land justice — centering racial repair, ecological healing, and community power into decisions about how land is loved and used (LAND JUSTICE FUTURES). This grew out of the national “Nuns and Nones” conversations. Our group is congregational and meets monthly via Zoom to check in on our learning on land and indigenous issues and consider actions we can take to build relationships in our local areas.

Some of the group’s past activities include a book discussion on This Land is Not Empty by Sarah Augustine and participating in a Lenten pipe ceremony at Gichitwaa Kateri Church in Minneapolis.

Although the Sisters of St. Joseph have a Land Acknowledgement, the challenge continues to be learning how to move forward with actions that spring from the acknowledgment and rooting those actions in relationship.

Our next action opportunity is a film screening of The Doctrine — at the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis on June 17. The film highlights Twin Cities Native American youth and their journey learning about the doctrine of discovery. The event is co-hosted by Creekside UCC and The Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery and will feature a talk back with youth involved. Learn more at csjstpaul.org/the-doctrine-film-screening.