From June 6-11, Bishop Folts visited our partner diocese, the Diocese of West Texas, on a speaking tour about our ministry in the nine reservations in the Diocese of South Dakota. He had four meetings with various leaders and participants of the mission teams who will visit the Cheyenne River Episcopal Mission this summer, and conducted three longer presentations in San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and Bulverde. Bishop Folts also participated in the Sidewalk Saturday food distribution ministry of Christ Church, San Antonio, celebrated the Eucharist at two of their Sunday services, presented a program during their Sunday School time, and commissioned many of the team members who will travel to our Diocese in July and September.
Teams from Christ Church, San Antonio, have made several trips to Cheyenne River Episcopal Mission before and are deeply grateful for the hospitality and teachings that have been offered by members of that mission. Their projects have included, but are not limited to, the refurbishing of the restrooms at St. John's, Eagle Butte; the offering of summer Bible camps; and the rebuilding of St. James, in Bear Creek, which reopened for services for the first time in years. Christ Church also has been a financial blessing for the support of the equine reparation ministry of the Cheyenne River Mission, and the Rev. Ellen Huber was invited to present their programs and preach at Christ Church on Mother's Day weekend.
The Bishop’s talk was entitled "God's Mission in Partnership: Come and See." He began by discussing the geographical context of our Diocese and then delved into the issue of mistrust prevalent in Native American communities and culture. “There is a big difference,” Bishop Folts said, “between ‘distrust’ and ‘mistrust.’ ‘Distrust’ is when we think we can’t trust a person or an entity. ‘Mistrust’ is when we know we can’t trust a person or an entity because of previous and ongoing experiences.”
The Bishop then traced the roots of mistrust back to the Doctrine of Discovery, which allowed for the taking of Native American lands and resources and the subjugation of their people in exchange for European culture and Christianity. He also spoke of broken promises and treaties, followed by a discussion on Native American / Indigenous boarding schools and children who died and never returned home. The Bishop highlighted how Native American children continued to be unjustly removed from their families and culture (especially in South Dakota), even though the Indigenous Child Welfare Act (ICWA) of 1978 was supposed to keep that from happening. He also mentioned a case where an evangelical couple from Fort Worth, Texas, was asking the Supreme Court to declare ICWA unconstitutional, believing that the culture they could provide a Native American child was superior to that of his people and, additionally, they could offer him Christianity. The Bishop emphasized that this lawsuit is evidence that the spirit of the Doctrine of Discovery is still living on, even after centuries have passed.
Bishop Folts then shifted to God's ongoing mission of restoring and reconciling a broken world. He emphasized that we want our Diocese to be a Church that defies negative stereotypes often associated with Christianity, especially in South Dakota. We want our members to be mindful of the history between the Church and Native Americans, acknowledge the broken promises and mistrust that have occurred, and be a Diocese known for being entirely different, fostering positive relationships with all people.
Bishop Folts ended his presentation by extending a warm invitation to everyone present, urging them to join their mission teams and come, visit, and learn from the Native Americans who live in our nine reservations – for in so doing, they will experience a transformative encounter with God. The Bishop likened this invitation to Nathanael's surprise in John's Gospel when Philip invited him to meet Jesus – and he encouraged attendees to be prepared for surprises as they participate with us in God's mission in South Dakota, working together to overcome mistrust and become the Church that defies expectations – to become the Church that many people don’t expect us to be.
(On the left is the Rt. Rev. David Reed, Bishop of the Diocese of West Texas. On the right is the Rev. David Read, Bishop Coadjudor-Elect of the Diocese of West Texas.)