Janet Elaine Guthrie shares about the influences that lead her to engage in the reparative action of donating her portion of the family farm, with the intent toward education and supporting Indigenous peoples. This blog is part of the ongoing Learn, Pray, Join: Climate Justice: Seeking Shalom series. Lea la versión en inglés aquí.
Janet Elaine Guthrie is a spiritual director and member of First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where she served as lead pastor from 2008-2016. She holds an Master of Divinity from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary.
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For four generations, beginning with my great-great grandparents through my father’s generation, Guthrie forebears farmed the rich prairie soil of east central Illinois. Although I grew up “in town,” we held a strong attachment to the family farm, and we visited often during my childhood.
After the deaths of my parents, I inherited a small share in the farm, as did my brothers and several cousins. Together, we leased the land for a number of years, then determined that the time had come to sell. I recognized this as the perfect opportunity to engage in reparative action.
Through our congregation’s involvement with the Repair Network of the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery and our hosting of Potawatomi Trail of Death pilgrims, I had become convicted that the path of reparative justice was calling me to direct the value of my farmland share to educational and restorative purposes.
This area was part of the 1819 cession by the Kickapoo of the Vermilion River. Settler farmers, like that of my ancestors, routinely found traces of displaced Indigenous peoples’ cultures. In his youth, my father collected a number of fine arrowheads. My cousin once plowed up a stone axe. Along a nearby creek, they discovered various stone tools, in what was likely a favorable campsite.
I had read of others who donated their farmlands back to the tribes, but I did not have that option because of the joint ownership of our acreage. Happily, I was able to chart a path to repair, with the cooperation of the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois and the blessing of my family.
In October 2022, I donated my portion of the undivided acreage to the Community Foundation. Shortly thereafter, the land sold at auction, and the cash proceeds established a philanthropic fund in my name.
In my gift agreement with the Community Foundation, I specified my intention: “The intention of the fund is to provide a measure of reparative justice and, thus, foster healing from historical amnesia, settler colonialism and ecological harm. The primary emphasis in grant giving shall be education and support for, and about, Indigenous peoples and the land.”
We have much to learn from Indigenous peoples, including wisdom about caring for the earth. The fruits of my philanthropy, to date, include the privilege of developing relationships with Indigenous leaders and organizations that are modeling faithful responses to the climate crisis.
The Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery channels support to several noteworthy Indigenous partners, including the Maya collective of land defenders and seed savers in Campeche, Mexico, and the Apache Stronghold, who are defending their sacred site of Chi’chil Biłdagoteel (Oak Flat) from destruction by a multinational copper mining company.
Supporting the Coalition benefits creation-care projects such as these, along with significant justice equipping and advocacy across the Christian church. The Coalition welcomes individual donors, as well as congregational members of its Repair Network. Coalition co-founders Sarah Augustine and Sheri Hostetler inspire me with their clarion call to decolonize and join with Indigenous peoples in humility and hope.
Last fall, First Mennonite Church of Champaign-Urbana (FMC) hosted Chief Henry Red Cloud (Oglala Lakota) from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. I had visited Chief Red Cloud several months earlier and had seen, up-close, the impressive work of his non-profit, Red Cloud Renewable, which is dedicated to developing renewable energy solutions that create jobs and address social problems. Their Lakota Thiyuha project will provide low-cost, innovative, energy-efficient dome houses for folks who are currently living in uninsulated trailers, old school buses, and other improvised and substandard housing on the reservation. Chief Red Cloud inspires me with his vision and resilience.
FMC has also been walking in friendship with a Native American church here, in central Illinois. When we visit and worship with them, we are reminded of how in tune they are with creation — how they honor the animals on their property with the first plate of food; how their worship space invites us to revel in the beauty of nature; how they honor the seasons and remind us; through storytelling, of Creator’s wise design; and how the drum echoes the heartbeat of life. We are blessed by this spiritual friendship and through their generous embodiment of Indigenous “Give-Away” faith.
“Give-Away” faith correlates with the Navajo saying, “You can’t get rich if you look after your relatives properly.” Who are our relatives? In the Indigenous context, and in the kingdom of heaven, we are all kin. Recognizing our kinship is key to forging a reparative path of economic justice. Those who relinquish possessions to walk “the good road” with Jesus will be provided for, and “they will become part of an even greater family, with many homes and lands” (Mark 10:29-30; First Nations Version).
What a joy it is to honor and learn from our Indigenous kin! Blessings flow from generosity, as Jesus teaches us; and creation grows stronger and more fruitful, when we mend and tend the web of life.
As followers of Jesus, we seek God’s dream of shalom for all people and all of creation, including our climate. Shalom requires that we seek justice and healing for our relationships with God, with one another and with the earth that sustains us.
You are invited to get involved with Learn, Pray, Join: Climate Justice: Seeking Shalom.
Support Mennonite Church USA’s Peace and Justice Initiatives by giving here.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog belong to the author and are not intended to represent the views of the MC USA Executive Board or staff.
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