Loading Events

Sacred Sites Tour: Dakota Land

Education Event

About This Event

Bethlehem is hosting a Sacred Sites tour led by Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs and Kelly Shermon Conroy. The tour presents Minnesota history from a Native perspective by visiting 3-4 sites near the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers, or 'Bdota' as it's known by Dakota people.

Location:

Offsite

Date:

June 11, 2023 @ 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Age:

9th-12th Grade
Adult

Event Information:

REGISTRATION IS FULL - please contact Pastor Kris if you would like to join the Waitlist.

Members and friends of Bethlehem are invited together for a tour of sites that honor the layers of sacred stories and land of Indigenous people. Led by Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs and Kelly Sherman Conroy, the tour offers an opportunity to learn about Minnesota history from a Native perspective through story-telling and experiencing the sites in silence/meditation/reflection.

The group will meet at Church of St. Peter in Mendota Heights, then carpool to additional sites located around the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers, known by the Dakota people as Bdote, or “meeting place of rivers,” including:

Fort Snelling State Park
Dakota Internment Camp following the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862
Pilot Knob Hill, a traditional burial ground

As the topics are quite serious, the tour is considered age appropriate for high school age or older. Detailed information, including opportunities to carpool, will be sent in advance of the tour. There is a registration fee of $10 per person (payable to Bethlehem Lutheran Church Twin Cities) to offset the full cost of this tour. Feel free to invite a friend! 

Learn more about the MN Council of Churches “Healing MN Stories” project as you anticipate this unique experience. 

You are also encouraged to explore the ELCA’s recent Truth and Healing Movement intended to increase our understanding of the impact of colonization on indigenous people. Several "Indian 101" classes are being offered online at no charge in April, so check it out.