Written by: United Theological Seminary September 25, 2020

Cycles of Violence: On Breonna Taylor, the Verdict, and Sacred Protest

The following message comes from CARJ, United’s Committee Advocating for Racial Justice:

Above all else, our politics initially sprang from the shared belief that Black women are inherently valuable, that our liberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to somebody else’s but because of our need as human persons for autonomy.
-The Combahee River Collective, “A Black Feminist Statement”

God’s image is not monochromatic nor is God’s voice monotone. God is a colorful God who loves equally the many colors she creates. God speaks in tunes and tones that resonate with the oppressed and marginalized, particularly with the lived experiences of black women and other women of color.
– Mitzi J. Smith, I Found God in Me: A Womanist Biblical Hermeneutics Reader

On March 13, 2020, officers Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove of the Louisville Metro Police Department entered the home of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor and shot her to death. Yesterday, September 23, 2020, in a court of law, none of the officers were indicted for the killing. One officer, Brett Hankison, was charged with wanton endangerment in the first degree. This is to say, that an officer was charged with the lowest ranking, class D felony, for potentially harming someone for shooting recklessly, not for the actual death of Breonna Taylor brought about by all three officers’ actions. In the wake of the decision, protests rose across the country and continue today. Once again the law sides with white supremacy and wantonly cruel police officers and against justice. Against the right to live. Against the principle that Black Lives Matter.

For any United Student who has taken a Biblical Studies course with Professor Emerita Carolyn Pressler, we learn of a particular insight for reading The Book of Judges. The Book of Judges recounts cycles of violence in the Land of Israel. These cycles begin when, amidst each new era of suffering “the Israelites cried out to the Lord.” This is followed by the rising of a judge in the land to enact this justice, followed by a quieter era until the cycle continues to a new era of violence, crying out, and justice.

As Dr. Pressler has demonstrated in her classes, we can look to the treatment of women in the narrative to indicate how prosperous the land of Israel is. The Book of Judges begins with stories of Israelite tribes settling in the land and relays the story of Achsah, daughter of Caleb, being gifted a bounty of rivers and land. The Book of Judges continues with the story of the wise prophetess and judge Deborah and the actions of the heroic Jael. But as the narrative progresses we also find the stories of Jepthah murdering his daughter, and later of the womanizing Samson. Finally, the book ends with the horrible story of the Levite’s concubine who is raped, murdered and mutilated. In the beginning of Judges there is the promise of land and nation and prosperity. By the end, we are presented with a wilderness of war and iniquity. And the society’s sinfulness is measured by its treatment of women.

We find ourselves today, like in the Book of Judges, amidst cycles of violence and prophetic response. The sins of white supremacy, patriarchy, heterosexism, and economic inequality rupture in the murders of Black lives and in the violent suppression of protest in the murders’ wakes. The lives of Black women in particular, dually assaulted by racist and patriarchal attacks, are pushed to the periphery of our society, under the boot of our oppressive courts of law.

To understand what the state of our country is, we cannot simply ask “what is the state of women in our country?” because in America it is not the same for white women and Black women. The (non) indictment of Ms. Taylor’s killers echoes another story of racial horror in our country’s history. Exactly sixty-five years ago, on September 23, 1955, the men who lynched 14-year-old Emmett Till were found innocent by an all white jury. But the actions that predicated Till’s murder centered around an accusation from a white woman, Carolyn Bryant, who used her whiteness in congress with her femininity to play into the lethal myth of white innocence and Black guilt. In accusing the child of sexually looking at her, Bryant put a mark on Till. Her actions knowingly instigated the murderous actions of white men. White femininity, employed by white patriarchy, speaks to a level of privilege not afforded to the lives of Black women.

The courts of our country, among many other institutions, deny Black women their humanity and ignore their pain. America denies the value of Black lives in general and, we are reminded once again, of Black women’s lives. And yet it is the propheticism of Black women–from the abolition of Angela Davis, to the LGBT activism of Marsha P. Johnson, to the call of justice from the women leaders of the BLM movement–that is both crying for justice and is the ascension of our judges. Black women have always measured the state of our country. And what is the state of our country? Look to Breonna Taylor.

The Attorney General on the case called Breonna’s death a “tragedy.” “Tragedy” is the passive voice of the public commentary on racist violence. It removes the subjects who enact the “tragedy.” “Tragedy” erases the people who hold the guns, who make the decrees, and who militarize our police. Breonna’s killing is not a “tragedy.” It is the result of humans deciding, doing, acting, and then refusing to take responsibility.

As people of faith, we cannot settle for unjust laws and the unjust distribution of our laws. We cannot idolize peace and order if that order is predicated on the dehumanization of Black people. We cannot rely on the state disciplining our bodies and our homes but particularly Black bodies and Black homes. We cannot claim to believe in God’s presence if we do not see the divinity inherent to Black women. Our religions are a sham if we do not fight from a place of spiritual repentance and prophetic impulse for systemic, communal, and religious change. If we do not challenge the judicial authority, system of incarceration, legislation, and law enforcement of our country, then a cry will continue, again and again, to rise up in the land.

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October 9, 2026

Alums Homecoming News Releases

Rev. Dr. A. Leon (Lee) Tredwell (’06) Honored As a 2026 Distinguished Alum

United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities is excited to announce that Rev. A. Leon (Lee) Tredwell, PhD—who earned his MA in Theology and Biblical Interpretation from United in 2006—has been selected as a 2026 Distinguished Alum. An accomplished preacher, teacher, and published author, Dr. Tredwell has championed biblical narratives that affirm the divinity of all people, regardless of their race, creed, color, class, gender, or sexuality. Adopted at age four, Lee was raised in the Baptist faith and felt called to ministry as a child. Even so, after earning a degree in Political Science and Sociology at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, he spent the first ten years of his professional life as a grain trader for Cargill. After connecting with Drs. Ralph and Alika Galloway, Lee found United, and his call was reignited. He remembers Rev. Dr. Carolyn Pressler (Professor Emerita of Biblical Interpretation, 1990–2020) and Dean Richard Weis* with great affection. Both teachers, he observes, “taught us to wrestle with the biblical text until it opened up and spoke.” They also introduced Lee to Black and post-colonial hermeneutics, and Rev. Dr. Weis led him to passages in Jeremiah 38 (Hebrew Bible) that sparked his interest in learning more about a Black character named Ebed-Melech. Lee also cites the influence of Rev. Dr. Christine Smith’s (Professor Emerita of Preaching 1992–2013) preaching courses on his life. In Colorado, at the University of Denver and Iliff School of Theology, Lee completed a joint PhD program with a concentration in Religion and Social Change in 2017. Ronald Smith, a former United student who nominated Lee for this award, notes, “Dr. Tredwell has demonstrated that he is an innovator and compassionate leader who has served both inside the academy as a professor of African American Preaching at Iliff School of Theology, University of Colorado, Boulder, and in the larger community; he has served as [a] pastor, civil rights and human rights activist, and [a] chief executive officer in Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Minnesota, and Texas.” Lee’s new book—Black, Queer and Blessed: My Story and the Biblical Story Churches Don’t Teach—was published in June 2025. As the description reads, “For all who believe God-Yahweh is angry, mad, disgusted, and against LGBTQIA+ folx, regrettably, you been had, misled, took, hood-winked and bamboozled! Black, Queer and Blessed, through lived experience and the excavation of the subjugated biblical narrative of Ebed-Melech, demolishes society’s antiquated mores.” The book is part memoir and part theological reflection on the Ebed-Melech revelation. In addition to his roles as teacher, preacher, and author, Lee has specifically worked to promote adoption of Black children from foster care and create affordable housing. These days, he serves as the pastor of Theology and Community Engagement at Allendale United Methodist Church in St. Petersburg, Florida. As Ronald Smith asserts, “Dr. Tredwell is the embodiment and an exemplar of United Theological Seminary’s mission, vision, and values.” * of blessed memory About United Founded by the United Church of Christ (UCC) as a welcoming, ecumenical school that embraces all denominations and faith traditions, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities has been on the creative edge of progressive theological thought and leadership since it was established in 1962. Today, United continues to educate leaders who, through the eyes of faith, engage in the dismantling of systems of oppression, explore multi-faith spirituality, and push the boundaries of knowledge.

Lena K. Gardner (’15) Honored As a 2026 Distinguished Alum

[caption id="attachment_11955" align="alignnone" width="1920"] photo by Bethany Birnie[/caption] United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities is thrilled to announce that Lena K. Gardner—who graduated with an MA in Justice and Peace Studies in 2015—has been selected as one of our three 2026 Distinguished Alums. A highly respected social justice activist and community leader, Lena is the co-founder and executive director of Black Lives of Unitarian Universalism (BLUU), a nonprofit founded in 2015 that creates life-giving and life-saving opportunities for spiritual community and Black-centered organizing. According to Rev. Dr. Rebecca Voelkel (’13), Lena has “been a force in the Twin Cities’ religiously rooted justice ecosystem for the last 15 years.” Dr. Voelkel, Lena’s nominator, traces Lena’s justice-organizing acumen back to 2011, when she served on the Faith Organizing Roundtable—a body that coordinated religious communities’ opposition to the anti-marriage amendment. Lena went on to champion marriage equality in the 2012–2013 legislative session. After a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, shot and killed Michael Brown, Jr., an unarmed 18-year-old Black teen, in 2014, Lena played a key role in transforming the Faith Organizing Roundtable into the Multifaith Anti-Racism, Change & Healing or MARCH. “In that same period,” Voelkel notes, “Lena was a core team organizer of Black Lives Matter Minneapolis and served on its steering committee.” Lena was deeply involved, quoted in many national and local articles, and interviewed on Minnesota Public Radio after former police officer Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd in 2020. In April 2021, after a Brooklyn Center police officer killed Daunte Wright during a traffic stop, Lena co-wrote an article in the Sahan Journal demanding that Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecute the case, and that the Hennepin County attorney be removed. More recently, Lena embarked on another ambitious project. In May 2024, through the BLUU Cooperative Housing Initiative, she co-hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for an affordable housing complex for single parents in North Minneapolis. In a MinnPost article about the groundbreaking, Lena explained, “It’s really about trying to give back to one of the communities that made me…. We really see providing stable housing in a cooperative framework as one of the many paths to collective liberation and Black liberation. Ultimately, it’s about self-determination.” When Operation Metro Surge arrived in the Twin Cities in late 2025, Lena took action again. As Voelkel observes, she “returned to the MARCH steering committee…. When MARCH organized a clergy call (in five days) to which 700 clergy came, the ability to create and host such an amazing event owes part of its success to Lena’s relationships with communications specialists, graphic designers, and organizers.” Lena was also a driving force behind Neighbors Helping Neighbors (NHN), a mutual aid group she and Anna Stamborski founded in late 2025 to connect vulnerable ICE-targeted families with congregational networks whose members could provide shopping and transportation services. Through all of Lena’s indefatigable contributions to working for justice, Voelkel asserts, she “has focused on Black excellence, Black power, Black spiritual wholeness, Black beauty, and how non-Black folks can act in solidarity and followership of Black folks, particularly Black queer women. She has done so skillfully through building relationships across differences in ways that facilitate and deepen genuine relationships.”

Cori Berg (’98) Honored As a 2026 Distinguished Alum

United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities is elated to announce that Cori Berg (’98)—advocate, artist, and educator—is a 2026 Distinguished Alum. Cori earned her Master of Arts (MA) in Theology and the Arts in 1998, and for more than 27 years, she has integrated creativity, art, and spirituality into her field. Cori arrived at United in the 1990s, having majored in theater and minored in studio art during her undergraduate studies. “I knew I had an artistic voice,” she recalls, “but it didn’t make sense in any of the traditional contexts.” After seeing an advertisement for United’s Theology and the Arts program, Cori drove from Dallas to the Twin Cities to visit as a prospective student. A campus art exhibit by Merle Janis was all she needed to see—“this school had something I needed: strength, boldness, vulnerability.” For Cori, “life is liturgy.” She credits United with introducing her to “the freedom in a progressive faith.” At United, Cori learned to expand her creativity, which became a launching pad for a vibrant career. “United gave me a safe, nurturing space to explore, dream, and execute big things,” she writes. “I’ve continued that through the rest of my career as an artist, an educator, an administrator, and a speaker.” Art is central to Cori’s work and features prominently in her curriculum development for children. Her art was featured in the 2012 opening parade for the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge in Dallas, TX, a project that involved “seniors, children, and adults in all aspects” from a local Methodist community program. Ministry with Children and Spirituality, courses taught by Rev. Dr. Barbara Anne Keely (Professor Emerita, 1991–2015), were particularly formative for Cori’s future in education. “I remember she taught us to get on the floor and view the church nursery from a baby’s point of view,” Cori reflects. “I use this today over and over as I teach early childhood educators…. She introduced the idea of seeing oneself not as a separate body, mind, or spirit, but when one part of my being is suffering, to use the other parts to help lift that part.” More recently, Cori has been an active community member at Dallas Meditation Center, where she is known for her moving dharma talks that weave Buddhist themes into contemporary storytelling. In public schools and congregational settings, Cori has applied what she learned as a United student to the field of early childhood education, for which—nominator Rev. Jim Peck (’99) points out—she has become “one of the nation’s leading advocates.” When facing challenges in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cori leveraged her ingenuity and creative vision to support educators with online training resources. As a teacher and an administrator in spaces where lack of institutional funding and support are commonplace, Jim observes, “she uses her [United] education to work for justice and equity,” to “nurture relationships in the early childhood settings where she has served, with an expertise in working in settings in crisis to encourage recovery, healing, and new paths for serving the future.” In May 2026, Cori completed her MEd in Curriculum and Instruction at American College of Education, where she immediately enrolled to begin her EdD in Early Childhood Education. She serves as an executive director at the University of Kansas (KU) and anticipates returning to Dallas to live near her family at the end of the year while awaiting her next opportunity. We are delighted to celebrate Cori and her decades of faithful, innovative leadership in the field of early childhood education and art. About United Founded by the United Church of Christ (UCC) as a welcoming, ecumenical school that embraces all denominations and faith traditions, United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities has been on the creative edge of progressive theological thought and leadership since it was established in 1962. Today, United continues to educate leaders who, through the eyes of faith, engage in the dismantling of systems of oppression, explore multi-faith spirituality, and push the boundaries of knowledge.