United Methodists Debating Mandatory Land Acknowledgments at 2024 General Conference is Sad, Sad, Sad
At the General Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) on April 25, 2024, clergy and laity debated a procedural motion to delay a vote on mandatory land acknowledgments to allow more input from international conferences to craft the proposed rule.
While ‘land acknowledgments’ are part of the Holy Trinity of the United Methodist Church identity, alongside LGBTQ celebration an aversion to biblically sound men, they shouldn’t even be a thing, being thoroughly unbiblical and historically revisionist. Here is example of one:
Richfield United Methodist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota acknowledges that we gather
on the traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands of the Dakota People.
These lands hold historical, spiritual, and personal significance to the Dakota People. We are
grateful for Indigenous Nations and their continued stewardship of these lands and we appreciate
their perseverance and strength. The Dakota People were harmed by the United States government
through broken promises and unjust treaties, including the Cessation 289 Treaty of 1851 which names the Wahpeton and Sisseton Bands. These atrocities effectively stole this geographical area and
further harm and trauma have come through displacement, ethnic cleansing, and genocide. This
church formed in 1854 as one of the first institutions established by white settlers in this geographical
area and benefited directly from this harm inflicted upon the Dakota People.
Because the lot of this group is reminiscent of demons cosplaying Christianity, insisting on the exact opposite of things we should care about, that it would raise a few hackles amongst themselves should not surprise anyone.
h/t to Woke Preacher TV for the video and first paragraph summary.
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These lands, like pretty much all lands in the US, were occupied, then taken by force by various indigenous groups over the years. Claiming they belonged to whoever occupied them last essentially gives ownership to the present residents – a bunch of white people. Sorry.
Agreed!
Also, if these churches feel this way, why not sign the deeds for the properties over to those tribes and vacate their churches.