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Rooted and Grounded Conference on Land and Christian Discipleship

Theme | Pathways through Climate Doom: Resistance and Resilience

Rooted and Grounded was held Thursday, Sept. 28—Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023

Read about the 2023 conference: Rooted and Grounded speakers focus on resistance and resilience in the face of climate doom

Building on the five conferences held since 2014, Rooted & Grounded 2023 examined theological, biblical and pastoral care responses to climate doom. Rather than being stuck in despair, how do people of faith find ways to combine active engagement and deeply rooted hope?

All parts of the conference were available to in-person participants, and some elements  (all keynote sessions, worship times, and one paper/workshop option in each of the 5 time slots) were available to participants joining online.

The conference began at 4:30 p.m. EDT on Thursday and ended at noon EDT on Saturday. Participants could also register to join optional immersion experiences on Thursday afternoon.

All participants were welcome to stay Saturday afternoon and evening for additional meetings of , a grassroots gathering of Roman Catholics and Mennonites.

For more information, email rootedandgrounded@ambs.edu.

Keynote speakers

  • , a Potawatomi Christian author and speaker, will provide the Thursday evening keynote and a Friday morning workshop on “Resistance.”
  • Leah Thomas, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pastoral Care at AMBS, will provide a Friday afternoon workshop on “Resilience.”
  • Jackie Wyse-Rhodes, PhD, Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible at AMBS, will provide the Friday evening keynote on “Seeking Hope when the Path is Crooked: The Bible and Climate Change.”
Kaitlin Curtice
Leah Thomas
Leah Thomas
Jackie Wyse-Rhodes
Jackie Wyse-Rhodes

Papers and workshops

Paper presentations

  • Bennet Brabson, “The Fine Arts: A Powerful Expression of our Response to Climate Change”
  • Thomas Crotty, “Leading Our Way: Climate Apocalypse, Acceptance, Resilience, Hope Unseen” 
  • Isaiah Friesen, “Encountering Jesus, Joining Jubilee” 
  • Joseph Harder, “Towards a Mennonite Eco-Hymnody” 
  • Carl Helrich, “Hope in the face of a wicked problem”
  • Sheri Hostetler and Sarah Augustine, “So That We and Our Children May Live” 
  • Avery Davis Lamb, “Climate Hospitality: Making Room in the Anthropocene”
  • Douglas Kaufman, “Grounding Hope in Climate Doom” 
  • S. Roy Kaufman, “The Role of Agriculture and Agrarian Cultures in Addressing Climate Change” 
  • Joanne M. Moyer, “Mennonites Responding to Climate Change” 
  • Anika Reynar, “Mennonites, Maya, and Genetically Modified Seeds”
  • Michelle A. Stinson, “Reflections on the Psalters’ Three-Point Turn towards Agrarian Hope” 
  • Mary H. Schertz, “Maybe the Stars Did: A Path through Climate Doom” 

Workshops

  • Nicole Bauman, “Conflict as Generative: Empathy as a Tool” 
  • Trevor Bechtel, “Farmed Animal Welfare: The National Discussion” 
  • Jay Bergen, “Discerning Our Place in the Ecosystem of Change” 
  • Malinda Elizabeth Berry, “There is a Balm in Gilead” 
  • Laura Funk, “Building Resilience through Spiritual Self-Care Practices” 
  • Sharon Brugger Norton, “7-day Wild Church Eco-activism: an Artful Response” 
  • Michelle Sherman, Hazel Franco, and Savio Franco, “The Two Hands of Nonviolence” 
  • Jonathon Schramm and Merry Lea: “Paying Close Attention” 
  • Sarah Werner, “Radical Sabbath: Rest, Rootedness, and Resistance to Consumerism” 
  • Tim Wiebe-Neufeld, “Creation is Waiting: How Do We Live into God’s Hopeful Future?” 

Registration information and costs

• In-person registration, included three meals: $125 (student cost: $60)
If three or more undergraduate students registered from the same college or university to attend in person, their registration is free.
• Online registration, no meals: $60 (online student cost: $20)
• Keynote presentations only, in person or online: $10 each

Immersion experiences – FULL

These four options happened before the conference began. The cost was $50 (student cost: $20), which included a box lunch (picked up between 12:00 and 12:45 p.m.) and transportation. The groups left the AMBS campus at 1:00 pm and returned in time for supper at 5:00 pm. 

FULL – Protected Farmland, Forests, and an Educational Farm — Led by Jon Zirkle

This excursion, led by current AMBS student Jon Zirkle took participants on visits to three private farms and forest sites in Elkhart and St. Joseph County, some of which have conservation easements placed on them with the help of land trust . A short tour was made at Bushelcraft Farm, an educational farm directed by Jon just three miles from AMBS. Participants talked with landowners about tending the land and how they chose to permanently protect land from future development as well as see and walk into fields and forests. The tour at Bushelcraft Farm showcased garden space tended by youth and community volunteers, cover crops and flowers growing, and young tree plantings for carbon sequestration and wildlife habitat. All locations were within 30 miles of AMBS. Limited to 6 participants unless someone was willing to take their own car. 

FULL Potawatomi-Miami Trail in Elkhart County — Led by Luke Gascho

A major transportation route of the Potawatomi and Miami People passed through the landscape of northern Indiana for centuries. This trail passes through land where AMBS is now situated. The immersion experience included walking the approximate route through the AMBS campus and surrounding area, acknowledging the impact and conflicts as settlers began using this trail, examining the processes used in identifying the trail, learning ways Indigenous people have been involved in the trail marking project, considering the ways marking this trail memorializes the Indigenous history and presence, and reflecting on how these learnings are part of reparative justice.

FULLPotawatomi Trail of Death — Led by Barry Johnson

In 1838, over 850 Potawatomi were forced from their homes in northern Indiana and moved over 660 miles to eastern Kansas. Visit the site of Chief Menominee’s chapel, where the Potawatomi were rounded up for the journey, and a nearby statue of Menominee, who refused to sell his tribe’s land to the state. Visit three more sites along the route as you hear about the hardships of the journey. (one hour van ride each way) Limited to 20 people. 

CANCELLED Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center — Led by Merry Lea Staff

Merry Lea is a nature sanctuary and learning center owned by Goshen College, with almost 1200 acres of wetland, prairie, savanna, and sustainable agriculture. This tour included a visit to Rieth Village, a small-scale sustainable farm (a teaching and producing farm) and ecological restoration projects. (one hour van ride each way) Limited to 14 people.

More information

What to expect

The three days weaved together worship, theology, biblical study and praxis. In addition to keynote presentations, papers and workshops, participants joined in several worship services.

Conference location

This year’s conference was offered in a hybrid format. Some elements were available only to in-person participants, and some were available to participants joining online.

The AMBS campus, in Elkhart, Indiana, with areas of native grass and wildflowers, rain gardens, a prayer labyrinth, a community garden and a walking path, provides opportunities for learning, recreation and meditation. Sessions were held in the AMBS Chapel of the Sermon on the Mount and in several classrooms. Meals were offered in the seminary dining hall.

Schedule

See the 2023 schedule here (subject to minor changes).

Bridgefolk Gathering

is an annual grassroots gathering of Roman Catholics and Mennonites. This year, their gathering included the Rooted and Grounded Conference and extend through Saturday evening. This was available online for participants at a distance. All who were interested were welcome to join them for worship, conversations, and a closing love feast. On the registration form, mark “Bridgefolk,” and the $25 will cover both lunch and supper on Saturday for those coming in person, or AV staff for those joining online.

Co-sponsors

  •  
  • of Goshen (Indiana) College

Contact us

For more information, email rootedandgrounded@ambs.edu.


Learn more about past gatherings

2023&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;Rooted and Grounded speakers focus on resistance and resilience in the face of climate doom

2021&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;Rooted and Grounded keynotes explore loss, connection and imagination

2018&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;Rooted and Grounded speakers call for changed value systems, worldviews

2017&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;Rooted and Grounded participants challenged to radical discipleship in caring for creation

2015&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş Rooted and Grounded conference yields hope for the future

2014&˛Ô˛ú˛ő±č;â–ş The Bible was central in Rooted and Grounded conference on land and discipleship