Fall 2021: Doing Good

 


Living our vision: Taking action for Creation Justice 


by Shirley Durr

      “Who will join me?” Cindy Saufferer, Minnesota Conference United Methodist Women President, asked in a Facebook post in May. She had attached a notice about the Treaty People Gathering scheduled for June 5-June 8.


      United Methodist Women was one of the sponsors to support this Stop Line 3 initiative as part of a grant UMW and Minneapolis Interfaith Power and Light (MNIPL) received from National UMW’s Just Energy 4 All campaign.

      Enbridge — a Canadian oil pipeline company — began construction in December 2020 of the controversial $9 billion Line 3 pipeline designed to carry 760,000 barrels of tar sands oil per day from Canada to the U.S. for refining so the oil company can export it. If construction is not halted, the pipeline will cross many waterways in northern Minnesota, as well as areas protected by the 1842, 1854, and 1855 treaties. 

      Knowing Cindy was going to the Gathering gave me the courage to join her on the journey. Because of our mutually busy schedules, we planned to go up on Sunday, June 5 and stay over at Star Lake Wilderness Camp with other members of the Faith Delegation until Monday. 

      Cindy also picked up at the airport a young man who is a member of Dayenu, a Jewish Call to Climate Action.

      We arrived at Star Lake ready to join other people of faith -- Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, and more -- from as far away as Alaska, California, and Puerto Rico in solidarity with indigenous people for education, training, and non-violent direct action related to Line 3.

      The Faith Delegation spent Sunday at Bliss Ranch where we learned songs and strategies to help us engage in Monday’s action. We also heard from local indigenous leaders including Nancy Beaulieu, a tribal member of the Leech Lake reservation. 

      She explained to us the environmental costs of the pipeline were a part of the larger issue of the violation of treaty rights. I hope we are able to invite Beaulieu to come to speak about treaty rights sometime in the Fall.

      Other Water Protectors made sure we understood what we were there to protect. This “replacement” pipeline takes an entirely new route through much of northern Minnesota, likely exposing new areas to oil pollution. 

      According to the Stop Line 3 fact sheet the new Line 3 will “cross more than 200 water ecosystems and tunnel under 20 rivers, including the Mississippi River — twice” (Stop Line 3 Fact Sheets).

      The project will threaten many of the wetlands where wild rice grows -- areas that are a “foundation for the Ojibwe people’s traditional way of life and spiritual practice” (Stop Line 3 Fact Sheets.)

      Enbridge promised the project would bring jobs to the area but many of the workers are not indigenous and not from Minnesota. 

      Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs told us since out-of-state workers arrived, there has been an exponential increase in the number of missing and murdered indigenous women and young girls in that area of Minnesota.

      The pipeline would also affect climate change. The Environmental Impact Statement estimates the social cost of carbon from this project at $287 billion dollars. Tar sands require more energy to extract and refine the oil, leading to greater greenhouse gas emissions than conventional crude oil.


      Singing the Nibi (Water) Song in Ojibwe with hundreds of others reinforced our mission to protect and honor the water as we marched and stood in solidarity with our indigenous neighbors as they led us.

      You can come to the front lines to support and bear witness. You can raise your voice by writing letters to government officials and politicians. You can sign up for alerts from MNIPL’s Action Alerts to stay informed (www.mnipl.org/take-action/pipelines/ ).

      MNIPL has pledged to “continue to draw courageously from our multiple spiritual traditions to resist, renew, and build community as we create a world where everyone can thrive.”

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

 

     Before planting a garden, before sowing seeds, you need to prepare the ground to enrich the soil and encourage a bountiful harvest.

      To prepare for the Fall, Epworth has been reorganizing spaces and clearing away the clutter of broken and unused items from the building to make room for new seed and new growth.


      Toys have been reduced in the Nursery to make sanitizing each week quicker and easier, and to make room for a quiet meditation space.

      The church office has been relocated from the basement to the Wesley Lounge, on the same level as the Pastor’s Office and the Sanctuary, to make the office more accessible to visitors and to improve communication.

     The library has been seriously downsized to make room for a stage to provide community events.

    What to do with all the books, extra furniture, out-of-date electronics, and other items that had been stored but not used in years?

      Two Summer events helped answer that question: UMW Rummage Sale and Holy Dumpster Day. 

 

 

 

      A bounty of books, a plethora of pictures and paintings, numerous household items, toys, furniture, clothes, and more were sold at the Summer Rummage Sale August 20-21 at “Gotta Go Giveaway” prices. 

      Some of the items had accumulated during the pandemic shutdown when our Annual United Methodist Women Fall and Spring Rummage Sales had to be cancelled, but a few were culled from still usable items that cluttered the church. The church could no longer use them, but other people could.

      Although we didn’t have as many customers as we have had in the past,” said UMW President Judy Ayers, “we still made over $600 that UMW will use for mission work.”

      All items are carefully examined by volunteers who set up the sale to maintain Epworth’s quality of standard for rummage sales.

      Judy expressed gratitude for “all who helped with set up, selling, helping in the kitchen, donating bars, and clean-up.”


     
In the span of just 2 hours, following a most uplifting sermon from Pastor Elizabeth -- telling us You Are Enough! Created in the Image of GOD! You are the Bloom of Christ! – the congregation filled a 20-cubic-yard dumpster with items that have grown to fill every spare corner of Epworth Church:

  • Old pews that were resting and praying spots for our ancestors - Thank you Tim, Aaron, and Dominik. 
  • Bookcases in disrepair that held our little library – Thank you Dominik and the sledgehammer. 
  • A broken throne chair from the original church – Thank you Don E.
  • The desk and all the trimmings where we worked to organize the church and connect with the neighborhood – Thank you Marcia, Judy, and team for their save/shred/throw expertise.
  • Remnants of craft projects from 20 years of VBS and Advent Workshops – Thank you Deb, Michelle, and all the children carrying bins
  • Folding tables too heavy or broken for any of our elders to handle – Thank you Cooper, Tim, and Don.


     Then there were the rescuers! “No! No! Don’t throw that! Recycle that! I’ll take that!”   


Andy could carry out this old
and worn couch but it didn’t fit
below the maximum line until ...

x

Mark and Tim make some 

adjustments. Yes! Mark climbed inside.


     We give thanks for the items that have served us well and we ask forgiveness for tossing items that held memories of times past. Those memories will last! They cannot be dumped. 

      We give thanks that in weeding out, we have made room for growth and the hope of fresh fruit! 

      Let the church say, “Amen and Amen!” 

Keys 4/4 Kids 

    The piano from the Sonshine Room (left) went  to Keys 4/4 Kids, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that re-purposes used, donated pianos in ways that promote a love of music in our community. They distribute pianos free of charge to struggling families or organizations that need a quality instrument. They also sell pianos to support a variety of music and arts endeavors in the Twin Cities area. 

  Their Pianos On Parade program places many brightly painted, working pianos onto street corners every summer in the metro area and beyond, working with cities, community organizations, schools, and private sponsors. These instruments are available for public use for everyone’s enjoyment.

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