Rarely, however, do local congregations join social justice movements and become front line outposts for social change. The obvious exceptions include the radical reformers of the Social Gospel movement prior to WWI, parts of the Civil Rights struggle in the 40-60s, the anti-war movement during the Vietnam years and our current concern for eco-justice. And I think there are three natural reasons why local churches rarely move beyond the very demanding level of sharing compassion:
+ The first has to do the fact that most social justice activity in the United States is related to legislation - not consciousness raising - and religious denominations have found it more effective and efficient to work directly with politicians and their staff. This is a functional reality tied to time and resources. To be sure, there are periodic grassroots campaigns - letters, phone calls and sometime human bodies directed towards our elected representatives - but usually the push for a change in legislation takes place through educational events, lobbying and small meetings. Local congregations can choose to keep abreast of the lobbying work their national offices are pursuing - and there are very insightful websites and church publications available - still the real work generally takes place at a macro level.
+ And the third reason that keeps local congregations more connected to compassion than social justice is relational: pastors and active church members have been charged to build up the body of Christ. We have not been called to change the world nor have we been empowered to give most of our energies to those beyond the faith community, right? There are some who have been ordained to do that - and they ofter do that with courage and deep conviction - but that is not the calling of those who serve God in a local church. We are to find ways of being faithful in community - and communities of faith are complex and nuanced. We rarely speak with one voice. We cherish being on the journey of faith together but know that this means differing levels of maturity and commitment. And we try to cultivate a way of living with others that honors different insights, too. The metaphor of the body is rich and asks us not to try to make everyone a tongue - or a heart - or a head. Rather, the body celebrates different gifts so that we might all move together in Christ.
+ Occupy Group Faults Church, a Onetime Ally (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/17/nyregion/church-that-aided-wall-st-protesters-is-now-their-target.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper) Here you can see how the very different perspectives collide in a local church that is being called to move beyond its comfort zone. I think Trinity Wall Street is missing the mark and should let the OWS set up camp on their vacant lot. Yes, this church is very used to being a source of doing the works of mercy; yes, it has been modestly supportive of the Occupy group when asked to help with gentle acts of compassion; but now they have an organic and immediate opportunity to link themselves with the most important grassroots social justice movement in America and... their vision is too narrow.
No wonder Archbishop Desmond Tutu - a man who helped his church move into action when the time was right to engage justice - wrote the following:
Sisters and Brothers, I greet you in the Name of Our Lord and in the bonds of common friendship and struggle from my homeland of South Africa. I know of your own challenges and of this appeal to Trinity Church for the shelter of a new home and I am with you! May God bless this appeal of yours and may the good people of that noble parish heed your plea, if not for ease of access, then at least for a stay on any violence or arrests.
Trinity Church is an esteemed and valued old friend of mine; from the earliest days when I was a young Deacon. Theirs was the consistent and supportive voice I heard when no one else supported me or our beloved brother Nelson Mandela. That is why it is especially painful for me to hear of the impasse you are experiencing with the parish. I appeal to them to find a way to help you. I appeal to them to embrace the higher calling of Our Lord Jesus Christ--which they live so well in all other ways--but now to do so in this instance...can we not rearrange our affairs for justice sake? Just as history watched as South Africa was reborn in promise and fairness so it is watching you now.
In closing, be assured of my thoughts and prayers, they are with you at this very hour.
God bless you,
+Desmond Tutu
Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town
+ A New Kind of Catholic (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/17/us/politics/newt-gingrich-represents-new-political-era-for-catholics.html?ref=todayspaper) This is a fascinating story that explores the spiritual journey of Newt Gingrich from Lutheran to Southern Baptist to Roman Catholic.
And herein lies the problem: if the direction of Newt's spiritual life had gone in the other direction - from Catholicism to the Southern Baptists - and the Baptists had insisted on rebaptizing him as a convert, my Roman Catholic sisters and brothers would be waving the bloody shirt screaming: there is only ONE baptism, ONE faith and ONE Lord our God, yes? What's more, if Newt had requested the rebaptism, why didn't the local priest and/or bishop explain that since the beginning of the church ALL baptisms are considered true and pure? (I won't even try to sort out how a twice married and divorced man is acceptable at the communion table and invited to a special audience with Pope Benedict, while Senator John Kerry or VP Joe Biden are officially prohibited from sharing Christ's grace at Holy Communion.)
Here is a whole other level of justice that rarely is discussed in any local church - respecting and honoring one an other's traditions - while engaged in honest theological debate. I have profound concerns about the unholy alliance crafted in the 1980s between the Roman Catholic bishops and the Right to Life evangelicals that are both theological and political. This cabal continues to generate social policy that weakens the common good. And given the directives of Rome, there is no place for people like me to explore these concerns with like minded Catholics. Consequently, in my town, ecumenical cooperation between Protestants and Catholics has atrophied.
So I have come to see "doing justice" work in the local church in a very different way: today I sense that the most effective way of doing justice is to help the local congregation come to embrace and trust the counter-cultural vision of Jesus. This is slow and deliberate work. As Peterson has noted, it is subversive work. It trusts God more than self and affirms that the Spirit is leading us in ways we cannot even imagine.
Three things are implicit in subversion: One, the status quo is wrong and must be overthrown if the world is going to be livable. It is so deeply wrong that repair work is futile... Two, there is another world aborning that is livable... And three, the usual means by which one kind is thrown out and another put in its place - military force or democratic elections - are not available... Consequently, prayer and parable are the tools of the subversive pastor...
For a clear articulation of WHY the OWS folk are the guiding heart of this generation's quest for justice, check out Bill Moyer's work @ http://www.alternet.org/story/153349/Moyers:_Why_'We_The_People'_Must_Triumph_Over_Corporate_Power/
And that is how I see justice work being done in the local church in the 21st century. Tomorrow we are blessed to welcome Amy-Jill Levine to our local church - one of the leading Jewish scholars of the New Testament - and co-editor of the brilliant Jewish Annotated New Testament. Her presence - and shared wisdom - is another aspect of having a new conversation about doing justice, too. If you are in town, please join us at 9:15 am.
This new/old conversation is grounded in community - not lone rangers or ideology - and requires a patience and commitment that is revolutionary. It has changed - and continues to change - my understanding of ministry.
1 comment:
Re Occupy & Trinity Church: You don’t need to be Christian, or even religious, to understand -and embrace- the idea that "Whatsoever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." But many of the 1%, in blind greed and endless schemes, have forgotten this. They have closed their eyes to what the word "society" should really mean, and what it can mean. But due to Occupy Wall Street, we are finally talking less about CUTS and more about BLEEDING. Instead of demanding m-o-r-e budget cuts -to be borne by the middle class and poor- we are FINALLY focusing on the shameful bleeding that the poor and middle class has endured, for all too long. Instead of talking about even m-o-r-e cuts in the taxes of millionaires....we are now talking about fairness and justice - about an economy and a political system that is increasingly run for the rich, and by the rich. Instead of talking about LESS government, we are talking about a government that WORKS FOR ALL OF US, not just a favored few. Thank you OWS, for reminding us that people -ordinary working people- really DO matter, and for helping open our eyes to what’s going on in this country, and why. The attempt by OWS to occupy Duarte Square (the empty lot owned by Trinity Church) is much more than a plea for sanctuary. For like Zuccotti Park, it’s an attempt to carve out a protected space, a living conscience for the city, amid the repression. A refuge...in a city where control-freaks would sweep us under the rug, and out of the way. In a city where they would pen us in, and try to permit us to death. In a city that tells us to “move on, move on”..... you don’t belong, you don’t count, you don’t have a right to be here...don’t assemble, don’t block the street, don’t trespass, don’t EXIST! They would deny us, deny our lives, deny our very futures. IF WE LET THEM. But OWS responds, both in word and in DEED: it says we’ve had ENOUGH - we BELONG, we STAND our ground, and we DO matter! This IS our land, and we want it BACK! The word OCCUPY...says it all! That’s why OWS has captured our imagination. That’s why a living breathing OCCUPIED public space is important for OWS. Like Lady Liberty’s never extinguished torch that burns in our harbor, OWS needs to have a concrete, persistent, in-your-face presence.. ..to continually remind us of what we’ve lost, of what we are, and what we can be; a protected place to affirm, illuminate, defy...and inspire. Trinity Church, with its oft-proclaimed ideals (and its huge land holdings), should look deep into its collective soul, do the right thing, and help OWS secure a sanctuary. Not merely a space of refuge, but an enclave of hope, of non-violent change, and compassion. And dare I say: a space of love - love of country, love of your fellow man and woman, love for the poor and oppressed. Can thoughtful Christians argue with these simple Christian / these simple HUMAN values? For if Christ were physically with us today, as He was 2000 years ago, He would be among the FIRST to climb those fences, and occupy Trinity’s Duarte Square. Of this I am certain. Let us hope and pray and plea...that Trinity Church -and others- hear the call, and respond. For the old ways are not working. Find a quiet place somewhere, and consider this: Each of us has only one brief life....one chance....one roll of the dice....and many choices. The time has come to choose....to risk...and to act. If not now...then when? If not you, then....who? You DO have the power my friend....and the choice IS yours. Don’t let your hopes and dreams die: LIVE YOUR IDEALS!
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