5 Small Loaves
Mark Charles
A “Common Memory” Conference
Georges Erasmus, a respected Aboriginal leader from Canada, said, “Where common memory is lacking, where people do not share in the same past, there can be no real community. Where community is to be formed, common memory must be created.” If you look at the extent of our racial problems, especially in places like Baltimore, … Continue reading
Speaker links use of Native mascots in pro sports to dehumanizing references found in the Declaration of Independence
Nashville, TN – March 18, 2015 – Did you know that the Declaration of Independence refers to Native Americans as “merciless Indian Savages?” If you are like the vast majority of audiences Mark Charles has spoken to throughout the country the answer is “No.”
At 10 AM on Wednesday, March 18, Mark Charles (Navajo) will speak on the topic of Native American Mascots in professional sports at the College of Theology and Christian Ministry at Belmont University. Continue reading
A transition from Lament and Critique to a voice of Vision and Leadership
Ya’at’eeh. I recently changed the financial goal of our Crowd Funding Campaign from $170K to $500K. That is quite a big jump, and I thought it would be good to share with you why I raised it. For the past decade, we have been living on the Navajo reservation, and I have been writing and … Continue reading
5 Bucks and 2 Shares. That’s all.
Just like you climb a long flight of stairs by taking one step at a time, I sincerely believe that the ideal way to fund an educational project on a topic as unknown and controversial as the Doctrine of Discovery is by simply asking people for 5 Bucks and 2 Shares. Recently, in an article published … Continue reading
The vision of 5 Small Loaves: Education / Conversation / Action
Recent events, such as the shooting in Ferguson, MO and the “Trail of Tears” banner displayed at an OSU football game, have demonstrated how much ground our nation has yet to cover in the area of race relations. Race, diversity and reconciliation is where 5 Small Loaves strives to be a source of education and … Continue reading
The Blanket Exercise: An Invitation to Lament
This week I had the privilege of working with some partners from the Christian Reformed Church to edit the script for the blanket exercise, a participatory exercise to expose churches and congregations to the history of injustice and racism against Native Americans. One crucial item we added to the exercise this week is a component … Continue reading
Why Crowdfunding? : Because it’s not that easy to submit an invoice for a live sheep.
One of the projects that 5 Small Loaves is involved with is the planning of a Native American Student Conference called “Would Jesus Eat Frybread?” (WJEF?) This is a conference that is primarily for the Native Student ministries of CRU (formally Campus Crusade) and InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. We have hosted this conference twice so far. … Continue reading
Ministry Update – June 2014
Ya’at’eeh my friends. I (Mark Charles) wanted to give you a short update on the latest happenings for 5 Small Loaves. Last week, in Washington DC, I presented at a conference for Sojourners called the Summit for Change. This was a gathering of about 300 Christian leaders from around the country to dialogue about national … Continue reading
NAIITS Symposium 2014 Summary
Last week I had the privilege of attending the 11th annual Symposium of the North American Institute for Indigenous Theological Studies (NAIITS) at George Fox University near Portland OR. This is the third time I have attended a NAIITS Symposium and while I do not consider myself an academic, I have to admit I really … Continue reading
Nurturing a new conversation
Last week I was on a conference call with some colleagues from a Christian organization that I partner with. We were discussing an educational project we are working on regarding the long history of injustice against Native Americans by the United States government and the Christian church. During the discussion it became clear that some … Continue reading
To support the work of the Common Memory Project…
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