​Sign up for Sacred Ground today: starts August 10

Please note this event counts as racism training required by the Diocese of Northern Ca. for leadership ministries.

Registration is now under way for a Napa County-based Sacred Ground Circle that begins Aug. 10, 2023. Most of the 11 bi-weekly sessions will be conducted by Zoom, but participants should be prepared to meet in person for the final session.

Sacred Ground is the Episcopal Church's work for racial reconciliation and healing. The program invites participants “to walk back through history in order to peel away the layers that brought us to today, reflecting on our family histories and stories, as well as important narratives that shape the collective American story.”

The series is built around documentaries and readings that focus on Indigenous-, Black-, Latino-, and Asian/Pacific Islander-American histories as they intersect with European American histories.

The program is challenging both in content and commitment. To prepare for discussions, each session requires several hours of homework, which includes videos and reading material. Participants also need access to two core books: “Waking Up White,” by Debby Irving, and “Jesus and the Disinherited,” by Howard Thurman. All other materials are available online, free of charge. More information about Sacred Ground is available here: www.episcopalchurch.org/sacred-ground/invitation.

The newly forming circle will meet by Zoom from 6 to 7:30 p.m. every other Thursday starting Aug. 10. The final session will be an in-person retreat on Jan. 13, 2024, in Napa. Facilitators are the Rev. Susan Napoliello ([email protected]), Kelly Towey ([email protected]), and the Rev. Robin Denney ([email protected]), and questions/comments may be directed to them.

Registration may be done online at https://forms.gle/4zhuENc3CXZ6kQMJA. Once registered, participants will receive a syllabus covering the entire series, including homework assignments and information on how to access online materials.