On November 22, 2015, Dr. Brenda Salter McNeil preached at BelPres on the topic of "A Journey to Reconciliation and Racial Healing." The Holy Spirit was moving that day, and many people responded to a call to learn more. After studying Dr. McNeil's book Roadmap to Reconciliation, several people committed to forming a team focused on helping BelPres bring racial justice and healing to our community. The team has met monthly ever since.
In the early years, we focused on education, hosting book discussions and workshops like Frames and Filters led by Tali Hairston. Stories from our Church was another popular event featuring a panel of BelPres members sharing stories of how their racial identity impacts their daily lives. We also hosted a number of classes to help people understand what the Bible says about justice and racial reconciliation.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, we moved our meetings and classes online. In mid-2020, a number of unjust killings of Black Americans including Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd brought the nation to a point of reckoning with our history of racial injustice. The J&RR team organized "Together We Stand," an opportunity for the BelPres congregation to publicly show our commitment to racial justice and God's healing. Over 600 people lined the sidewalks along Bellevue Way bearing signs expressing God's heart for justice.
Throughout the pandemic, we continued to meet monthly and provide learning opportunities for the congregation and various ministries within BelPres.
In Spring 2023, the team assisted with the Just Neighbors sermon series, which examined how we can be healers of injustice in our communities, neighborhoods, and homes. As a congregation, we embarked on a discipleship initiative to be "Just Neighbors" in an effort to understand God's call to bring justice where we live. We looked at how we can use our property and land for his purposes and heal the spiritual and physical effects of redlining and racially restrictive covenants in Seattle and the Eastside.
We continue to meet on the 2nd Tuesday of each month from September through June from 7:00 – 8:30 pm. Our monthly meetings are a time for community building, training, and equipping to prepare us to act for racial justice in the name of Jesus.