Together for Hope
Native American pastor shares development dream for Navajo reservation By Katelyn McWilliams
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according to Long. He noted that both cultures have a shared history of oppression and genocide, loss of land, loss of language and loss of culture. Long and Selah Congregation have identified with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship since the church’s founding in 2010. This identification with CBF has been strengthened through Long’s relationship with Glen Foster, coordinator of CBF West, the regional body of CBF that encompasses 13 states. Foster’s congregation, Pantano Baptist Church of Tucson, Ariz., ordained Long to Christian ministry in March 2010. “In 2002, I made acquaintance with Glen Foster, and I haven’t looked back,” Long said. “Glen has become a great friend and brother in the Lord.” Foster recently had an opportunity to worship with Long and Selah Congregation in the home of new church members. “It was exciting to see a vibrant congregation that is growing and reaching young families,” Foster said. “Greg is
lacount anDerson anD GreG lonG photos
hen sharing the Baptist story, historians often neglect Native Americans. But, the Baptist narrative is full of courageous, missionsminded Native Americans who offered a faithful Baptist witness in the United States for several centuries, from Jesse Bushyhead to John Jumper to Almon C. Bacone. Greg Long is another Native American Baptist worth knowing. And he’s living out the Baptist story as the pastor of Selah Congregation in Flagstaff, Ariz., in the Navajo Nation, the largest Native American-governed territory within the United States. Born and raised on the Navajo reservation, Long left his home in north central Arizona for Waco, Texas, to attend seminary. In 2000, Long became the first Navajo student to graduate from
Baylor University’s George W. Truett Theological Seminary. Following graduation, Long returned to the Navajo Nation and later started Selah Congregation, a multicultural fellowship proud of its ethnic diversity, including both Navajo and Jewish peoples, with a unique multilingual worship service held every Saturday. “The worship style is based on Jewish liturgical traditions, incorporating both Baptist and Na-Dené distinctives to produce a vibrant, nourishing worship experience,” Long explained. The worship format found at Selah Congregation emphasizes the seasons of worship found in the Torah: Shabbat, the Spring Festival Cycle (Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of First Fruits and the Feast of Weeks) and the Fall Festival Cycle (Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement and the Feast of Booths). Selah Congregation’s worship style reflects the multitude of parallels between historic Navajo and Jewish cultures,
(left) Greg long, pastor of Selah Congregation in flagstaff, ariz., shares the story of his church with Cbf executive Coordinator Suzii paynter at the together for hope annual meeting in September. (Center) the worship style of Selah Congregation is based on Jewish liturgical traditions. (right) long dreamed to foster a multicultural and ethnically diverse congregation.
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December 2013/January 2014