Land Acknowledgement 101

April 25, 2024

5:15pm in Fellowship Hall

In the past year our church body, the ELCA, has initiated the “Truth & Healing Movement” as an intentional opportunity for the church to increase it’s understanding of our colonizing impacts on Indigenous people in the past and present. The movement is focused on providing opportunities to learn the true, and largely ignored, history and current realities of Indigenous people with the hope that by listening and learning, these truths will bring healing for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people alike.

There are many aspects to this work, but one includes the commitment to creating a statement, known as a land acknowledgement, that formally acknowledges the original inhabitants of North America and their continued history with the land we now also call home. These acknowledgments, when intentionally written and used, can play a meaningful role in combating the erasure of Indigenous people and in showing gratitude and respect for our Indigenous neighbors.

For several years Immanuel has wrestled with the idea of creating a land acknowledgement here at Immanuel. However, we do not want this to simply be something we check off a list, but instead a process of learning together that helps us to engage in authentic relationship and healing with the Indigenous communities that steward the land we live on.

As we continue to discern what this statement might look like for our congregation, we invite you to join Deacon Savannah on April 24th to learn more about the process of writing a land acknowledgment, the “Truth & Healing Movement,” and how you can be involved.