Decolonizing the Church: Canada's First Indigenous Female Church Moderator Speaks Out

She made history as Canada's first Indigenous female Moderator of the United Church of Canada — and her journey to get there was anything but easy. In this powerful conversation, Rev. Dr. Carmen Lansdowne opens up about her personal story: from struggles with substance use to answering a call to ministry. Her path is one of resilience, faith, and radical transformation — and it has everything to do with why she leads the way she does. She was the first Indigenous woman to serve as moderator of the United Church of Canada from 2002-2025. We dive into the ongoing struggles of First Nations peoples within the Church and in Canadian society at large — and what it truly means to decolonize a faith institution from the inside out. But this conversation goes beyond the church walls. Recorded during the second week of the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran, United Church members were actively writing to their government and encouraging them to uphold international human rights and humanitarian law. As many Canadians grow increasingly alarmed by the prospect of a military threat from the U.S., faith communities are finding their political voice in new and urgent ways. Rev. Lansdowne shares her exciting new project: “Church-y Conversations,” a Substack newsletter and a forthcoming podcast, “Church-y Conversations for People Who Know Things,” designed to be thoughtful resources for people navigating faith and social witness today. She is also the author of Wearing a Broken Indigene Heart on the Sleeves of Christian Mission.