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Presbytery team reaching out to reservations
YOUNGSTOWN — Inspiration sometimes springs from unlikely sources.
A few years ago, a Philippine pastor visiting Christ Church Presbyterian motivated the Rev. Bob Offerdahl, the pastor at the time, to realize his own desire to do mission work. He was further moved in that direction after attending a Promise Keepers conference in Phoenix, Ariz., that focused on racial and denominational reconciliation.
Hailing from South Dakota, the Rev. Mr. Offerdahl was not unfamiliar with American Indian culture. And though the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. has a worldwide mission outreach program, Mr. Offerdahl said he thought it was “important to stay in the United States.” He had learned through Presbytery information that American Indian churches were struggling.
The pieces came together and he approached Eastminster Presbytery to get funding for an exploratory trip to the Sisseton-Wahpeton reservation in South Dakota. In 2002, a Presbytery Mission Outreach team made up of Gladys Burnett of Butler Presbyterian Church, Donna Nagy of Girard Presbyterian Church, Al Zishka of Canfield Presbyterian Church and Thomas and Kathy McKee of Akron and led by Mr. Offerdahl visited the reservation.
“It was a ministry of presence,” said Mr. Offerdahl. “It was just being there and trying to interact with the people. We wanted to establish a relationship and address needs later.”
“I probably saw three dozen things that needed to be done,” Zishka said about maintenance and general upkeep of the churches there. The self-described handyman had to wait to tackle projects.
“It took time for them to realize we were sincere. We had to gain their trust,” Zishka said, noting that American Indian tribes have suffered and been treated unfairly by the federal government.
“There is some resentment of the government. We do owe them an apology,” Zishka said. But he also pointed out that the one-on-one interaction among team members and the church members on the reservations was a meaningful step. “They’re just like you and me ... trying to make a living. It takes time to get to know people and get trust. But politics aside, the team focuses on building relationships, offering help and bringing donations.”
Eight trips have been taken to the Spirit Lake Indian Reservation in North Dakota with some 5,300 tribe members, and the Sisseton-Wahpeton reservation with some 10,200 tribe members. These sites and three other reservations visited by the team are in the Dakota (Native American) Presbytery. The last trip, taken to Spirit Lake, took place in May and another is planned in September to Sisseton-Wahpeton.
Zishka, who was born and raised in Kansas, said he “had an interest in mission work” and that’s why he became involved. He’s participated in four trips to the reservations but also has been involved in worldwide mission work with trips to Russia, India, Thailand, Ethiopia, Brazil, El Salvadore and Mexico.
Ken Williams, also a member of Canfield Presbyterian, was a self-described “rookie” on the trip in the spring. Williams, who had served in the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in South Dakota, said he learned about the trip through a Presbyterian newsletter. “I thought I would tag along,” he said.
“These aren’t easy weekends,” Zishka said of the trips, where nearly every waking minute is filled with activity. “I do feel it’s a calling.”
Mr. Offerdahl described the team’s days from the most recent trip, which involved the Presbytery meeting. “When I go to events at Eastminster Presbytery churches, it’s at most an hour trip,” he said. “Their Presbytery covers a huge area, maybe 700 miles, so families come together and it’s kind of a reunion, too.”
One difference that struck the team participants about the Presbytery meeting was the inclusion of regular devotions and worship. “Ours are more like a regular meeting,” Mr. Offerdahl said. “It’s more like a family affair,” Williams said.
On its last trip, the team traveled to the reservation with a packed-to-the-brim storage trailer with nearly two tons of donations. Mr. Offerdahl said donations have included gently used clothes from area churches and junior league baseball hats and equipment. On the next trip, the team plans to take nonperishable foods, hymn books, Bible school resources and more clothes.
The reservations do have some light industry and other businesses; some operate casinos. Some home-based businesses sell American Indian beadwork. Mr. Offerdahl has brought some items home including a Dakota Presbytery symbol, a cross surrounded by teepees; a leather wall hanging and a beaded sun-catcher featuring an eagle. Quilts also are made and often given as gifts. “Many Native Americans are serving in the Armed Forces. At a recent funeral for a soldier killed in Iraq, each of the honor guard members received a quilt,” he said. The pastor likened the quilts, featuring the Dakota star design, to buffalo robes.
Though the Presbytery team is making inroads at the reservations, they are not, of course, the first Christians to come. More than a century ago, various denominations visited Indian tribes to establish mission churches, and that’s how the reservations came to have Presbyterian churches and others.
“Indian nations have a strong concept of the creator ... a great spirit,” Mr. Offerdahl said. “But a savior, they didn’t know that. Jesus is seen as the ‘risen warrior.’”
He also noted American Indians had another practice, called “smudging,” the burning of sage or sweet grass, which he likened to the burning of incense in the Catholic faith. Mr. Offerdahl said singing, drumming and dancing, which had been part of American Indian worship, was discouraged by Christian denominations. “Should they quit being an Indian to be a Christian?” he asked, noting that this is a divisive issue.
As times have changed, American Indian languages are being used, just like other ethnic languages, in worship. Mr. Offerdahl said he finds himself singing the doxology, “Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye Heavenly Host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost” in the Dakota language. “I was impressed with the singing in the native tongue,” Williams said, but noted he recognized the melody and could sing along. “You felt the presence of God ... the true meaning of Holy Spirit.”
But the more the team members learn about American Indian culture, the more they realize how much more there is to be appreciated and understood. Mr. Offerdahl said they’re not experts but students in this area.
For information, contact Mr. Offerdahl at (330) 792-1436 or send e-mail to pastorbobccp@yahoo.com.