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Decolonizing the Body: Our Continued Journey with Dr. Christena Cleveland
Dear Friends,
Our work of following the way of Jesus by confronting white supremacy culture and anti-black bias in ourselves, our Church and broader community is a lifetime work, and I am delighted to share that Dr. Christena Cleveland will continue to support this Gospel work in 2023. Our theme will be Decolonizing the Body, a six-month journey, beginning and ending with retreats at Camp Washington in March and August, and interval evening meetings at Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford.
Many of us desire to be agents of renewal who can skillfully and couragiously participate in the renewal of the Church, our communities, and our world. Yet, as people who have been unconsciously conditioned by colonialism, renewal must begin with us. Indeed, colonialism and its two powerful collaborators, white supremacy and patriarchy, have compromised our sacred connection to our own bodies, to the divine personhood of Jesus Christ, and to the larger Body of Christ. During this transformational journey, we will reclaim our sacred connection as we examine our mind-body-spirit relationships to time, power, perfection, tradition, and intellectualism. In a welcoming and ease-full environment, we will engage with joyful movement, memorable stories, social science research, evocative art, theologies from the margins, child-like play, rest, and contemplation to uncover the ways in which we have been held hostage by colonialism. Supported by an engaging mix of interactive teaching, affinity group conversations and supplemental learning materials, together we will develop individual and collective spiritual practices to set us free.
This work is done in collaboration with the Racial Healing, Justice and Reconciliation Ministry Network and Christ Church Cathedral.
Dates and Details
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March 3-4: Returning to Eden: Communing with God by communing with our bodies
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April 20: Decolonizing the Person of Jesus: An Embodied Journey toward BIPOC, Feminist and Queer Spiritualities
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May 18: The Last Shall Be First: Embodied Pathways to Liberation for BIPOC People
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June 22: The First Shall Be Last: Embodied Pathways to Liberation for White People
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July 20: Decolonizing the Body of Christ: Power, Spirituality and the Collective
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August 25-26: Embodying Eden
* Attendees will need to commit to all six sessions; the sessions are not offered individually.
Registration information will be available soon. We look forward to sharing our continued journey with you!
In Peace,
Canon Ranjit
