Casey Church, Potawatomi,was a Sergeant E-5 in the United States Marine Corps from 1980 to 1986. He wears his military emblems with pride. His Native name is Ankwawango, which means "Hole in the Clouds."
Casey Church and his wife Lora, Navajo, have five children.
Several years ago I attended a small United Methodist church in Michigan. I had just begun my work in Native American ministry. During that time frame I had an experience that highlighted a mindset that still prevails among many Native and non-Native leaders serving Native American people.
My mother, Mary Church, was a highly-respected elder in our community and was one of those who continued our regional tradition of making corn soup. Her soup-making skills were well known throughout the community. She showed her generosity in many ways by volunteering at numerous Native conferences, potlucks, weddings, and anywhere else she was asked to bring her delicious soup. She also worked as a food vendor at three of our local powwows where she served a faithful clientele who made a point of eating at her stand. And she helped earn money for our family by canning her corn soup for customers to purchase and take home.
Her home church in Michigan had just received a new pastor-as many United Methodist churches do. The new pastor had asked to serve this congregation because his wife was Native. My mother had faithfully attended this church until then.
One Sunday my mother told the pastor that she and some of her children would not be at next week's service since she would be setting up her food vendor's stand at a local powwow. To her surprise, her pastor sternly told her that if she did go to this event-which she had done for years-she did not need to come back to this church again. Though shocked by the pastor's statement, my mother still decided to set up her stand. She never went back to her former home church, but instead attended a mostly Anglo farming-community church in a neighboring town.
As you can imagine, the pastor's ultimatum and my mother's decision not to return to her home church disrupted our entire family. The impact of her decision affects our family to this day.
I am a Pokagon Band Potawatomi Indian from southwest Lower Michigan. My Indian name is Ankwawango, which means "Hole in the Clouds."
I was born in Allegan, Michigan on April 2, 1957, the first son of the late Leonard and Mary Church of Dorr, Michigan. My parents were highly-respected community members, supporters and attendees of Salem Indian United Methodist Church. Most of who I am today reflects their Christian influence in my life. I am the middle child of seven siblings. I attended high school in a farming community and served as a Sergeant E-5 in the United States Marine Corps from 1980 to 1986.
I have been a motorcycle, auto and truck mechanic, a die-casting machine builder, jack-of-all-trades, tinker and a pastor. Since military service, I have maintained my physical conditioning as a (Tai Bo) fitness instructor, mid-distance triathlon competitor and teammate on the Prince Corporation running team in Holland, Michigan. I also enjoy running with my dog Makwa, "Bear," a year-and-a-half-old German Shepherd I call my "trainer."
Many Native American people have, to varying degrees, assimilated into white Western culture. This assimilation has changed how we minister to Native people living in two worlds-both Native and Western. I have lived in two worlds my whole life-the Native American traditional world and the Christian church world.
My personal background was God's way of preparing me to develop a culturally-relevant evangelism approach that can reach the unreached Native Americans among us. My personal life is also cross-cultural having married Lora Morgan, a Navajo from Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1990. Although we are both Native Americans, we come from two very different cultural traditions-Navajo and Potawatomi. We lived in Michigan for ten years and have now lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico since 2000. Our children are daughters Shandiin, 21; Alilee, 19; Nizhoni, 17; Deezbah, 14 and our son Bahozhoni, 10.
I grew up in a Native community in Lower Michigan and also attended Salem Indian Mission United Methodist Church. My Christian parents made church a priority in our family life. We always had a problem keeping our church life separate from our Native community life. My uncle, the Rev. Lewis White Eagle Church, was my pastor for most of my life. He too had to walk a delicate balance in our community in order to live in two worlds. I recognized this unnatural separation in our lives, but still felt a call to become involved in Native Christian ministry.
In 1988, while attending a meeting of the Indian Workers Conference (a group of the Ten Indian United Methodist Church in Michigan), I accepted God's call and dedicated my life to serving Him. Following this decision I made plans, as the disciples did, to "leave my nets and follow Jesus." This meant quitting my job, selling my home and seeking out a Bible college to prepare myself for ministry.
My calling was not the typical way of preparing for ministry. I prayed and sought God's guidance in order to learn about this new approach He was leading me into the way we can show how people can be truly Native and truly Christian. It was not until the spring of 1992, however, that God visited me in a dream/vision and helped bring internal unity to these two unique worlds I live in.
Since my dream, I have sought to develop culturally-appropriate methods of prayer and worship within a Native American worldview. Native American leaders, who are also Christians, have mentored me. With understanding from the Holy Spirit and from the mentoring I received, I became involved in helping to mentor future leaders and in planting culturally-relevant Native ministries. These ministries are places where God can be worshiped within the context and worldview of urban Native Americans.
I have also studied under Native elders, most importantly the late Rev. Jim McKinney, a Prairie Band Potawatomi from Kansas and ordained elder of the United Methodist Church. With his mentoring and encouragement, I furthered my education and began my studies by earning a degree in Anthropology from Grand Valley State University in Michigan. There I studied the cultures and religions of various Native tribes, especially those of my own Anishinaabe people of the Great Lakes region. After completing my undergraduate degree I continued my education by attending Grand Rapids Theological Seminary and later Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.
I am now seeking to further my calling by pursuing a Doctor of Missiology at Fuller Seminary's School of Intercultural Studies.
While working on my seminary degree, I have maintained a personal involvement with the Native American community in Albuquerque. Using what I have learned through experience and education, I hope to write more and develop materials from a Native American point of view. I also want to train and mentor the emerging generation of young Native American leaders brave enough to trust God and break with a longstanding, ineffective approach. Only five percent of Native Americans claim to be Christians. It is my heart's desire that the remaining 95 percent are ultimately reached for Christ by the new leaders. We want the new leaders to reap the fruits of our labor.
My wife Lora and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary last September 29th. My family are all powwow dancers and my wife and I are both artists. She creates our children's entire dance outfits and also creates some for friends. She makes women's northern traditional style regalia with intricate appliqué designs. I make traditional coil-built pottery with the thundercloud smoke design. Recently, some of my pottery is being used to decorate many tribal offices.
Lora and I both enjoy running. We have made raising and supporting our children a priority. Shandiin and Alilee are both in college, and Nizhoni is looking to start in the fall of 2015. It won't be long before Deezbah and Bahozhoni are heading that way as well.
Despite the many challenges, my wife and I are excited about the great opportunity that exists-the great potential to call out a new generation of young Native Americans leaders who will love and follow Jesus and share Him in such a way that many Native people will rise up and say, "This is good news!"
To that end we live and to that end we serve. Lora and I ask for your prayers as we serve our Native people and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Casey Church has recently been appointed Interim Director of Wiconi International. You can reach him via email: lchurch111@comcast.net or by calling Wiconi at 360-546-1867.
