“What do these stones mean?”  is the question that is placed in the mouths of the future children of Israel in the book of Joshua (4:6) and it is a question that remains important in our current moment of historical erasure. Telling full and true stories of our origins is necessary for creating a liberating future. So, what do we do with our religious origin stories that have been used for so much harm? In our sacred scriptures, the God who liberates in Exodus is the same God who instructs the Israelites to conquer the Canaanites in the books of Joshua and Judges. In this series, we will explore the stories we’d rather ignore or discard because it feels impossible to redeem them. We’ll wrestle with how they’ve led to harm - even created the religious rationale for genocide, what other origin narratives or counter-stories might be present we could lift up, and we will call forward other threads of our sacred scriptures that could help us to weave a more liberating social imagination.

During this series, Emmaus Way Youth (sixth through twelfth graders) are exploring their relationship with technology in different ways.. Emmaus Way Kids (preschool through fifth graders) are exploring stories from Exodus. If you have questions about the youth, kids, or preschool programs or how to get your child involved, please don't hesitate to reach out to us here.