Native InterVarsity

On this day in 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed, calling our ancestors “merciless Indian savages.”

While many celebrate freedom, Native peoples were never meant to be part of that promise. Citizenship did not come until 1924, and we still face the legacy of broken treaties and injustice.

But we hold to a greater truth.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.”
Galatians 5:1

Our freedom is not rooted in empire but in Jesus, a brown skinned man from an occupied land who came to set all people free.

Today we remember. We grieve. We hope.
And we walk in the freedom only Creator can give.

Read the full text of the Declaration of Independence on the National Archives website: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript

Today marks 101 years since Native people were granted U.S. citizenship.

But long before any government recognized our humanity, Creator had already spoken identity, worth, and belonging over us.

💬 “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.” — Philippians 3:20

For many of us, being Native and following Jesus means living in multiple worlds — tribal, national, and spiritual. We hold space for all of them, but we know where our truest home is.

We remember today not just as a legal milestone, but as a reminder that our identity isn’t defined by empire — it’s anchored in the kingdom of God.

📸 Image: President Calvin Coolidge with Native American individuals, possibly from the Plateau region, outside the White House, February 18, 1925.

This year's Would Jesus eat Frybread Conference offered a variety of invitations to every participant. Whether they are students, staff, community members, elders, or others, the invitation to trust in hearing Creator’s voice as the Good Shepherd invited students to keep asking questions among their peers & community. As we read John 10: 1-18, the main speaker, Renee Begay, invited every participant to take a breath and help understand that the Creator of the Universe has all the answers through creation and the Holy Spirit. She shared a powerful teaching in her story, and she quoted

"I'm not just a head separated from the body, it's a whole person. Everything that's a part of me is all connected. I don't have to disconnect any part of myself, any part of my identity, to follow Jesus & be Zuni and be proud of it. " -

She invited everyone to share their story and seek support in a spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical level. Her story invited Native students to trust in Creator’s voice and be who you are as they are created in Creator’s image.There were many stories shared from elders, seminar speakers, and students. Towards the end, we invited everyone to receive a blanket as it represents Creator’s love for every tongue & nation. The concert was a hit, and it ended the conference well. It was an honor to at the ancestral land of the 19 Pueblo Indians, Navajo Nation & Apache Nations. It was a privilege to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Thank you Good Medicine Way for hosting us! Stay tuned for more stories and photos from WJEF24.

We are excited to have many beautiful Indigenous faces join us this weekend and be in a space in hearing Creator’s voice. If you can't join us in person, then you can still join online through Discord or watch the online streaming this Friday. Scan the QR code, and we will see you soon! Please dont miss out on some good stories & wisdom. For more info, go to wjef.org.

🚨 ONLY 2 DAYS LEFT to give in our WJEF24 fundraising push! 💛💛💛

We are holding a month-long fundraiser called "224 for WJEF24" from now until October 9th (ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT!) to raise $25K for students who need financial assistance to attend WJEF24 😎 that's enough to fully sponsor 80 student!

Here's where we're at:
Overall Goal: $25,200
Gifts Given: $19,916 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Amount Left: $5,284 💛💛💛

Here's how you can help:
1. Go to tinyurl.com/224forwjef24 or use the QR code in this post to go to our fundraiser google doc.
2. Choose a still-available gift between $1 and $224 to give to the scholarship account.
3. Follow the instructions on the google doc to give to our scholarship account and mark your gift.
4. Share this post with a friend who might also give!

REGISTRATION IS OPEN at wjef.org 🎊🎉🎊🎉

WJEF is a place for Native college students to share their stories with others and meet like-minded friends who are also seeking to honor Jesus and their Native culture 💛💛💛

We are holding a month-long fundraiser called "224 for WJEF24" from now until October 9th (ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT!) to raise $25K for students who need financial assistance to attend WJEF24 😎 that's enough to fully sponsor 80 student!

Here's where we're at:
Overall Goal: $25,200
Gifts Given: $18,185 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Amount Left: $7,015 💛💛💛

Here's how you can help:
1. Go to tinyurl.com/224forwjef24 or use the QR code in this post to go to our fundraiser google doc.
2. Choose a still-available gift between $1 and $224 to give to the scholarship account.
3. Follow the instructions on the google doc to give to our scholarship account and mark your gift.
4. Share this post with a friend who might also give!

REGISTRATION IS OPEN at wjef.org 🎊🎉🎊🎉

WJEF offers students an opportunity to hear stories and connect with other tribes across Turtle Island, building their own sense of Creator's blessings in their own cultural background 💛💛💛

This year, WJEF will be hosted in Albuquerque, NM: the traditional lands of the Sandia pueblo people, one of the many pueblo communities across New Mexico. WJEF seeks to honor the hosts of the lands we gather on. We hope students join us in that honoring too 😊

We are holding a month-long fundraiser called "224 for WJEF24" from now until October 9th to raise $25K for students who need financial assistance to attend WJEF24 😎 that's enough to fully sponsor 80 student!

Here's where we're at:
Overall Goal: $25,200
Gifts Given: $17,151 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Amount Left: $8,049
🎉 MORE THAN HALF WAY THERE!! 💛

Here's how you can help:
1. Go to tinyurl.com/224forwjef24 or use the QR code in this post to go to our fundraiser google doc.
2. Choose a still-available gift between $1 and $224 to give to the scholarship account.
3. Follow the instructions on the google doc to give to our scholarship account and mark your gift.
4. Share this post with a friend who might also give!

REGISTRATION IS OPEN at wjef.org 🎊🎉🎊🎉