Our Staff
Rev. Pat Jackson
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Community
Justice
(Re)conciliation*
The road to here.
As I shared in The Interwoven Story, the seeds for my work in racial justice were planted in Kansas City during my nine year pastorate at Blue Ridge Presbyterian Church. Prior to ministry, I served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal, West Africa; and then worked in the U.S. to help people with low incomes and ex-offenders obtain and keep quality jobs. All of these pursuits culminate now in my ministry with Interwoven Congregations, and draw upon my passion for building community, seeking racial justice, and fostering (re)conciliation.*
(See note in Scriptures for Racial Justice about "reconcilation.")​​​​​
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After we launched Interwoven, my wife Janet and daughter Elyse returned to Groningen in the Netherlands where we had spent a year in 2018-19. Elyse was taking her junior year of high school there and my wife Janet secured a position with the University of Groningen. I stayed in Bethesda as we began building the Interwoven program, and traveled back and forth on occasion to spend time with my family.​
What was to be a one year separation turned into two as our daughter opted to finish high school in Groningen. When she then realized she wanted to go to university in the Netherlands as well, I made the move myself over to Groningen.
Covid was an epic tragedy, but it also made remote work feasible as everyone moved online. So I lead the work of Interwoven full-time from Groningen, matching online meetings with quarterly visits to the U.S. when I meet with faith communities and partners on the ground. I also continue to serve as parish associate at Bethesda Presbyterian Church and co-chair the Dismantling Racism Team for National Capital Presbytery.
While the foundation and chief focus of our work continues to be on congregations in the United States, I am taking advantage of my European base to engage faith communities in Groningen, Amsterdam and the U.K. cities of Manchester and Birmingham. And now, with the launch of the Interwoven Congregations Network, we have a platform where people across the globe can gather, access antiracism resources, and collaborate to advance the work of racial justice and healing.
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I hope you'll join us.
