The Church in Sag Harbor will host two programs this weekend in conjunction with its current exhibition, “Eternal Testament,” which features works by Native artists from the East End and across the country.
The Rev. Holly Haile Thompson, the first Indigenous woman to become Minister of Word and Sacrament (or Teaching Elder) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), will be at The Church on Saturday at 4 p.m. for “Shinnecock 101.”
A blood member of the Shinnecock Nation, she will discuss the meaning behind words, dances, and music and create an environment of understanding, dispelling ignorance, and creating a bridge between cultures, according to The Church. She will invite audiences to consider “the lives, the humanity, the past” of the Shinnecock people and how they are “intrinsically related to anything that happens in our territory,” she has said. A question-and-answer session will follow her talk.
Reverend Thompson graduated from the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary and was ordained by the Presbytery of Western Colorado in 1986. She has served among several congregations; on national committees concerned with Native American justice, the Doctrine of Discovery, and racial equity with the Presbyterian Church, and with the United Methodist Church in its ongoing Act of Repentance in relation to Indigenous people, justice, and the church.
Tickets are $10, free for members who R.S.V.P.
Adrienne Terry, a visual artist, community advocate, and member of the Shinnecock Nation, is next up in The Church’s Insight Sunday series on Sunday at noon.
Ms. Terry will expand upon “Dreamcatcher,” a dreamcatcher that transcends the traditional and is included in “Eternal Testament.” Her intention is to reclaim the dreamcatcher from its commercialization in chic boutiques, where it has been stripped of its spiritual significance, according to The Church.
In “Dreamcatcher” (2024), an etching on leather featuring shells, feathers, and wampum pieces, she replaced the traditional spider web with the leather seal of the Shinnecock Nation. In her talk, she will elaborate on her choice of materials and examine the tools she has used and some she is experimenting with now. Her work challenges both the historical suppression of Native spirituality and its modern commodification, weaving together Shinnecock cosmology, resistance, and survival.
Tickets are $10, free for members who R.S.V.P.
