wfn.org | One miracle after another

[Daphne Mack <dmack@dfms.org>]

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99-124

One miracle after another

by Barbara Mraz

     (ENS) The connections between the American Indian community 
and the Episcopal Church in Minnesota are historic and run deep.

     When 38 Dakota were hanged in Mankato, Minnesota, the day 
after Christmas in 1862, the press reported that they sang an 
Indian death chant as they faced the gallows. Hardly. As they 
walked to their deaths, the Indians, many of whom had been 
converted to Christianity by Bishop Henry Whipple, were actually 
chanting a Native melody accompanied by the words of a hymn in 
the Dakota language, a witness to an unwavering faith in a loving 
God. Much later, this song became #385 in the Hymnal of 1982.

     These connections were incarnated in yet another form this 
summer as people from Region VIII of the Diocese of Minnesota, 
assisted by church members from Indianapolis, joined forces with 
the people of All Saints Mission in Minneapolis to revitalize a 
dying building and lay a foundation for an expanded ministry for 
the community. According to All Saints vicar, the Rev.  Melanie 
Spears, the project has been one miracle after another.

New beginnings

     In 1996, All Saints was in a grieving process. The previous 
vicar had left, the prospects for the future were unclear. A big 
problem was the building which was severely in need of repair and 
had poor access for elders. The parish also wanted to be able to 
serve the surrounding community in much-needed ways. As Spears, 
the first Dakota/Lakota woman to be ordained to the priesthood, 
puts it, "It's important for a poor community to be able to serve 
and not be in poverty forever." 

     People in Region VIII made a strong commitment to helping 
All Saints. The Rev.  Susan Moss stated, "This region is a family 
and we're going to take care of each other."

     Through the national "Paths Crossings" program, a large 
church in Indianapolis, St. Paul's, had also become interested in 
All Saints and formed a partnership. But the model was not 
strictly a "Habitat for Humanity" one. St. Paul's wanted to learn 
about Native culture and form a relationship with All Saints that 
would be one of mutual sharing. 

     The Rev. Jim Leland of St. Paul's says, "We felt that the 
Native American community was in some sense a forgotten minority 
and that we had many things to learn from them. "A series of 
exchange visits between the two parishes began. Relationships 
were formed, personal connections were made that were the basis 
of two work visits made by St. Paul's parishioners to All Saints 
to help them restore their church building.

     In 1998,  thirty people from Indianapolis spent two weeks in 
Minneapolis helping to install a new stone floor at All Saints, 
funded by St. Paul's.  This summer a group returned again: 
families, people in their 60s, some teenagers. They joined forces 
with workers from within and outside the region, and got to work 
on making a vision a reality. 

An evolving vision

     The plan for All Saints evolved in three stages. This summer 
Phase One has almost been completed. This included a complete 
renovation of the sanctuary. Phase Two will involve renovation of 
the offices and other areas of the building and installation of 
an elevator. And Phase Three will be the installation of 
facilities for a soup kitchen that will serve the community. 

     The Indianapolis church provided $40,000 for the project. 
Another $40,000 was received from a United Thank Offering grant 
and St. Mark's Cathedral in Minneapolis donated its Easter 
offering, totaling almost $8,000

     An intensive summer work schedule was set up involving the 
St. Paul's delegation; many volunteers from Minneapolis churches, 
including St. John's, St. Luke's, St.  James-on-the-Parkway, and 
St. Mark's Cathedral; and other regional and diocesan workers. 
The parishes of Region VIII served meals to the workers each day 
at St. James-on-the-Parkway.

Coming together

     Spears says that the project has been "a miracle of 
acceptance" and that "people can give the littlest things and 
still they're needed." Working side by side, often in 90 degree 
heat, has caused cultural barriers to come down and community to 
be forged. 

     Spears observes, "At one point we had some kids from Edina 
working here next to kids from the Bear Clan" (a gang-prevention 
program begun by Spears). Robert Looking Elk of All Saints notes, 
"It's kind of like dating.  Once you get past the niceties and 
initial discomfort, you get to know each other on a deeper level. 
You get past blame. Sometimes it becomes difficult and scarey, 
but you can learn a lot about people by holding a piece of 
sheetrock together." 

     Architect Kara Koffler, who completed the plans begun by an 
architect from Indianapolis, says that support has come from many 
places. "Dayton's Department Store gave us some very expensive 
carpeting for $2 a yard." 

     Rex McKee, who coordinated the local volunteer effort, says 
that response was good but "Next time I will be more aggressive 
about getting volunteers. Sometimes it's OK to be in someone's 
face...." 

Outreach redefined

     Before the Dakota were executed in Mankato, it is said that 
Bishop Whipple kept President Lincoln up half the night trying to 
convince him to rescue the condemned Indians. Because of his 
efforts, Lincoln agreed to reduce the number to be killed from 
over 300 to 38. 

     But the model of ministry at All Saints this summer is not 
one of rescuing the less fortunate. It is a model of cooperation, 
education, and friendship.

     Many of the people from Indianapolis speak of personal 
growth and the deeply spiritual nature of their experiences with 
the All Saints community as well as of a desire to return again. 
Connie Shea from Indianapolis says, "I work at a florist shop and 
I am using my vacation to be here. I'm well along in years and 
I'd never been up on a scaffold before I came here. I didn't know 
I could do it."

     Plasterers and painters -- white and Native American -- 
stand high on the scaffold at All Saints on a hot summer 
Saturday, finishing the upper walls of the sanctuary. A startling 
contrast to the scaffold at Mankato over a hundred years ago....

--The Rev. Barbara Mraz is deacon at St. John the Baptist in 
Minneapolis.