How we Mend

A Book Review of Mend: An Invitation from Jesus to Return to Land-Based Repair

We can learn a great deal about ourselves by considering the characters in the Bible with whom we do not identify.

We like to identify with the heroes or the story.

Most sermons position us as the good guys: Israelites fleeing Egypt or a disciple of Jesus who must choose to trust Him. Most of us have a basic understanding that we live and thrive in nations built on a foundation of conquest, a context very different from the heroes of these ancient stories in the Bible. I'm not the first person to point this out, but as a Western culture and society, we have a lot in common with the Egyptians of the Exodus story, and we share characteristics and motivations with the ancient Roman Empire. Sadly, many are not willing to cultivate an imagination that creates space for a perspective that highlights the power dynamic between our cultures and those we currently and historically have marginalized.

We rarely identify with Zachaeus, a wealthy tax collector who used the system to steal from his neighbors. After reading Mend: An Invitation from Jesus to Return to Land-Based Repair by Jodi Spargur, I’ll forever see a parallel story of Zachaesus and modern settler Canadians. The story of his redemption could serve as a template for us in our own repentance as a country and in mending the relationship with the First Peoples of the land. The insight is brilliant.

Many of us feel sorrowful for the legacy of colonialism that we see every day, but moving beyond a feeling of guilt requires work, resulting in tangible results. In the Bible, Zachaesus makes the radical decision to repay those who had robbed him and restore those whom he had taken advantage of. The radical change in his heart was paired with a radical change in his bank account. When I use the word radical, I mean a transformation that can’t be reversed and has fundamentally altered someone or something. I’ll borrow a scientific term here: a radical change is like a chemical change.

Mend is an excellent read that paints a picture of how the church can play a vital role in Canada's Truth and Reconciliation process. I found value in highlighting the actions churches can take to restore stolen land in our country. In the book, Spargur provides practical examples of what churches around the world have done. It's not a long read, but I appreciated the distilled focus on land justice.

I have no expectations of easy solutions when it comes to the restoration work required for Truth and Reconciliation. Easy solutions have been tried before and have failed. I know churches have offered many well-intentioned prayers, but prayer alone is only one aspect of true repentance. Those of us in the church need to build and maintain an understanding that a change of heart must result in making things right in broken relationships.

I'm ready to engage with strategies that involve hard work, even if they are challenging. In the book Mend: An invitation from Jesus to Return to Land-Based Repair, by Jodi Spargur, we find a practical guide to the arduous work the church must do to restore the relationship between settler Canadians and the First peoples of this land. An appropriate book for people of faith and church leaders who hold the vision of peace and justice for Canada in their hearts. The work of repentance is never easy, but nothing of value truly is.

I have accepted this invitation to do the work here in Canada, and I hope you have as well.

Please pick up the book and give it a read!

Notes:

For more information on the book, click here. Over the last few years, I’ve come to appreciate the work that New Leaf Network has done to bring a Canadian perspective to issues of faith north of the 49º parallel. Check out their other books and other resources while you’re there.