Dear Northwest Region,
 
Last week I wrote to you about Earth Day, since the missive went out on Earth Day itself, and I truly love the yearly reminder to care for God’s Creation.
 
But we remain in the wake of the Derek Chauvin conviction for the murder of George Floyd, as well as reports of continued killings of black people at the hands of police, and that part of Creation is crying out in pain.
 
Much has been said about the difference between justice and accountability. Much is being proposed in terms of police reform. But, in the spirit of the questions that I am asking every Search Committee to ponder and live into as they write their local church profiles:
 
Who are we? Who is our neighbor? Who is God calling us to become?
 
To think about how we answer this moment through our collective ministries, I share with you the words of Rev. Shari Prestemon, Conference Minister for the Minnesota Conference. She and countless clergy and church folk in her state have been turning out to stand in solidarity with communities rocked by police violence, disproportionately impacting black bodies. She writes:
 
On Tuesday, April 20, deep into our Easter season, a welcome sign of Resurrection hope showed up. Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, was found guilty on all three counts in the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020.
 
Across the Twin Cities, and indeed across the nation, there was a palpable sigh of relief and cries of thanksgiving. Finally, an officer who needlessly killed a person of color was held accountable. The jury’s decision simply shined a light on what we already knew: George Floyd’s black life mattered. George Floyd was a precious Child of God whose dignity and worth should never have been in question.
 
While we rejoice in this one verdict in this one case about this one precious life, we must also remember that far too many other lives have been similarly taken with no accountability that followed. Daunte Wright’s death in Brooklyn Center at the hands of a police officer on April 11 leaves no room for doubt that this centuries-long pattern of violence against persons of color will continue until and unless substantive, transformational change comes. Racism will continue to rear its ugly head until we who have white privilege face hard truths and do the work needed in our own lives and communities to dismantle racism in all its forms.
 
We know from our own faith’s story that after the Resurrection, the work of the emerging Church began in earnest. It was then that all who claimed Christ as their cornerstone had to enflesh his message and ministry in their own daily lives. It was in that post-Easter season that the Church was commissioned to build beloved community and step into its calling as disciples of Jesus Christ.
 
We are in that season now, beloved Church. We have still more work to do to create a just and loving world for all. And that work must be done by all of us: in rural places and cities, in small churches and big ones, from north to south and east to west. All of us.
 
What will you do where you are to share in this ministry to which all of us are called? Let us not grow weary in witnessing to the extravagant love and bold justice of the God who created us and calls us to faithful ministry rooted in Easter Hope1
 
May we all grow more deeply into God’s call to us to witness and be present to our neighbors—all of them.
  
Easter Blessings,
Rev. Terry Yasuko Ogawa
Area Conference Minister, NW Region

CTS ANNOUNCES SPRING AWARDS

APRIL 20, 2021 Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS) is proud to announce the Rev. Dr. G. Campbell Morgan Award for excellence in preaching 2021 recipients: JULIE BRITTON AND TIMOTHY DOTSON
The G. Campbell Morgan Award in Preaching honors a current Chicago Theological Seminary student. Submissions will be judged anonymously based on excellence of biblical, theological, and social reflection. The cash prize of $1,000 for the G. Campbell Morgan Preaching Award is made possible by an endowment gift from Dr. Morgan’s grandchildren.
We are also proud to announce the 2021 Sanderson Award for women in leadership is being awarded to: MICHELE CARR
The Sanderson Award for Women in Leadership was established in 2006 by Howard C. Morgan in memory of Judith Parks Sanderson who died in 2004 after a courageous battle with Ovarian Cancer. A fund of $25,000 was created at CTS from gifts of career colleagues, family and friends. It was decided by the family to use the income from this endowment annually as a cash award of $1,000  to an outstanding woman candidate to assist in furthering her career.
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