Written by Jo Schonewolf for use at a service at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina.

Speaker 1: As we begin this service, we acknowledge that each of us brings sorrows and pain amongst the joy we share today. This is the way of life in this world, where injustice still abides.

We begin our time together by naming an injustice that we cannot set aside. We are gathered today on land stolen from the Cherokee people by colonizers from the United Kingdom and Europe. Many people from across this region who made this land their home and tended to it were removed by the United States government under the genocidal Indian Removal Policy.

Speaker 2: We mourn the lives lost. We mourn the way of life that was disrupted, uprooted, and threatened. We mourn the children who were taken from their families to residential schools. We mourn the betrayal of treaties, lives, and the land, all for profit and white supremacy. We mourn these choices, actions, and policies of our government and their on-going impact across the centuries, and the choices that are still made to this day.

Speaker 1: Take a moment to imagine this land before colonization. Imagine the bird song, the rustling of creatures, and the wind in the trees. Imagine the lake, gone, because it was made in the 20th century. What might have grown here? What might have flourished here? Who might have flourished here?

Speaker 2: We cannot undo what has been done. In this tragedy, as in every tragedy, each life lost is an unthinkable tragedy, a destructive quake that rattles family, friends, and community with aftershocks that never completely end. One life lost is too many. What we face is a heritage of unfathomable loss.

Speaker 1: No matter how much our hearts break, we cannot heal all the harm in the world. Not in our history, not in our present, not even for the future.

Speaker 2: And yet.

Speaker 1: And yet.

Speaker 2: And yet, there is hope. In this service, we have come together from across the United States to celebrate, ordain, and commission Jo. We have gathered in community. We will remember and mourn. We will remember and celebrate. We will commit to living lives that heal where we can and bring justice where we must. These actions and commitments bring hope.

Speaker 1: As you participate in the service today, consider how you can bring healing and justice, knowing what you know about this land and its people. It is not within our power to heal everything and bring justice everywhere. But there is still much we can do.

Speaker 2: We can learn.

Speaker 1: We can share what we learn.

Speaker 2: We can advocate for restoration.

Speaker 1: For land back.

Speaker 2: For reparations.

Speaker 1: For the respect of treaties and tribal sovereignty.

Speaker 2: For better care.

Speaker 1: For justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.

Speaker 2: For all Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives.

Speaker 1: We have gathered today in a beautiful place, full of history. We’re gathered here because Lake Junaluska is a special place to Jo, as it is to many. Our history does not negate that. It can’t. But it does contextualize it, and guide us forward.

Speaker 2: Imagine the beauty of restored people, restored land, and restored community. Imagine what could be. And then, commit to being a part of that restoration.

Would you breathe in with me? [Breathe in.] And out. [Breathe out.]

Speaker 1: Thank you for gathering with us today, friends.