1. "They are stealing from hard working people"— Keeping one’s possessions secure They just want to take advantage of me
2. "They need to get a job"— They are just lazy
3. "I’m up to my eyeballs in debt."— I don’t have any extra
4. "My family comes first"—I need to care for my own first
5. "The poor will be with us always"—The need is so big, who can fix it?
6. "They’ll just use it for drugs and alcohol"— They will use what I give for evil purposes
7. "I worked for my money"—I can use my wealth as I please
8. "I need to be a good steward of God’s money"—Giving to the poor is a waste of resources
9. "Is it the right thing to do?" Money doesn’t really help them anyway
And the only real excuse that I've never heard:
10. It’s too much work to do it right
Monday, April 20, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Wealth and the Revolution
All institutions are based on wealth. The economics of the wealth—how the resources are moved and who controls them—change with the times and with each society. But wealth is instrumental to how institutions and powerful people operate. Ancient institutions we primarily about the collection of wealth and the distribution of it to the powerful. Nothing much has changed. As can be seen in any corporation or government, the bottom line is always about finances—who gets what wealth.
Revolution always promises to change the system of how wealth is distributed. And it always says that the lower classes will gain more wealth. And sometimes that is true. Until the lower classes become the upper classes and then suddenly they want to keep the newly-gained income they’ve achieved through their hard work. People are people, no matter which side of the tracks their on and they want to gain and keep as much wealth as they can.
Jesus is proposing a new system of distributing wealth.
The Revolution Jesus is proposing is prepared to punish anyone who uses their wealth strictly for their own gain and pleasure. In other words, anyone who has excess wealth—money or possessions that are not needed, possibly termed "disposable income"—and they use it for their own gain when there are those who have need, they will be punished. Those who keep resources for their own greed will not be accepted in a system that focuses on meeting the needs of everyone.
When the Revolution comes, they will first take all the "rich"—all those who used their disposable income for their own gain—and they will either punish or exile all of them. Then the Revolution will punish everyone who uses wealth in a way that harms those around them. These punishments will be quite severe, for the use of wealth and resources for everyone who has need is a basic tenant of the Revolution.
This does not mean that fun will not be had. Perhaps you think of the Revolution as a peasant revolution, where everyone is miserable and living on almost nothing. Just the opposite. The Revolution will be characterized by parties and feasts. The only difference between these parties and feasts and the ones you see now is that in the Revolution, the parties will not be exclusive. They are for everyone and all races, all languages, all kinds, all peoples will be involved in them.
And so, as an ethic in preparation for the coming Revolution, Jesus strongly recommends that you take any extra provision you have—any extra money or possession that you have—and use it for those who have need. Perhaps you will allow those who have need to use what you have through loans or shared use. Perhaps you will sell what you have and make the income available to those in need. Perhaps you will just give things away. But take care that you do not just collect and keep for yourself what is not necessary.
The Revolution is coming!
Revolution always promises to change the system of how wealth is distributed. And it always says that the lower classes will gain more wealth. And sometimes that is true. Until the lower classes become the upper classes and then suddenly they want to keep the newly-gained income they’ve achieved through their hard work. People are people, no matter which side of the tracks their on and they want to gain and keep as much wealth as they can.
Jesus is proposing a new system of distributing wealth.
The Revolution Jesus is proposing is prepared to punish anyone who uses their wealth strictly for their own gain and pleasure. In other words, anyone who has excess wealth—money or possessions that are not needed, possibly termed "disposable income"—and they use it for their own gain when there are those who have need, they will be punished. Those who keep resources for their own greed will not be accepted in a system that focuses on meeting the needs of everyone.
When the Revolution comes, they will first take all the "rich"—all those who used their disposable income for their own gain—and they will either punish or exile all of them. Then the Revolution will punish everyone who uses wealth in a way that harms those around them. These punishments will be quite severe, for the use of wealth and resources for everyone who has need is a basic tenant of the Revolution.
This does not mean that fun will not be had. Perhaps you think of the Revolution as a peasant revolution, where everyone is miserable and living on almost nothing. Just the opposite. The Revolution will be characterized by parties and feasts. The only difference between these parties and feasts and the ones you see now is that in the Revolution, the parties will not be exclusive. They are for everyone and all races, all languages, all kinds, all peoples will be involved in them.
And so, as an ethic in preparation for the coming Revolution, Jesus strongly recommends that you take any extra provision you have—any extra money or possession that you have—and use it for those who have need. Perhaps you will allow those who have need to use what you have through loans or shared use. Perhaps you will sell what you have and make the income available to those in need. Perhaps you will just give things away. But take care that you do not just collect and keep for yourself what is not necessary.
The Revolution is coming!
Parable of the Good Christian
Once there was a good Christian man who was wealthy. He would read his Bible daily, praise God every Sunday and he treated his family well. Every day he would walk to his office from his house.
One day, as he was walking to his office, he saw a man in disheveled, dirty clothes, holding a sign which said, "Homeless—anything will help." The disheveled man looked, pleading with the Christian with his eyes. The Christian turned his head, saying to himself, "He needs to get a job instead of bothering good people on the street."
The next day the Christian saw a filthy woman holding a sign which said, "Pregnant and homeless, please help." She asked him, "Could you spare a few dollars so I could get a motel room," he replied, "Isn’t there a shelter you could go to?" And he passed her by.
The next day the Christian saw a man with brown skin sitting on the sidewalk with one leg missing. The man asked with a deep accent, "Could you please assist me in any way?" The Christian became upset with all of these interruptions of his pleasant morning meditation, and he yelled, "Can’t you people just leave me alone? Why don’t you just go back where you came from?"
As he walked into his office on that third day, the Christian had a heart attack and died. The angels picked him up and delivered him immediately (or so it seemed to him) to the Father for judgment. The Father looked down at him and said, "This week you have been tested. I sent you three of my angels, to see how you would respond to them. I have brought them here to witness to your action."
The first angel, no longer disheveled, but wearing white robes said, "This Christian refused to help me." The second angel, no longer dirty, said, "He told me to find a shelter, but offered no help." The third angel, with his leg fully intact, said, "This Christian told me to go back where I came from. So I am here. He refused to help me." The Father looked at the man and judged: "You have done evil to your brothers and sisters. I gave you many blessings, and you refused to help those in need. You will be punished eternally."
As the enforcement officers came to take the Christian away, he called to the Father, "But Lord, Lord—what about my family? Shouldn’t they be given a chance? Please send one of these angels to them to explain to them their sin so they can repent." The Father replied, "Do they not read my Word daily? If they ignore the one who has been risen from the dead, they will not listen to an angel."
One day, as he was walking to his office, he saw a man in disheveled, dirty clothes, holding a sign which said, "Homeless—anything will help." The disheveled man looked, pleading with the Christian with his eyes. The Christian turned his head, saying to himself, "He needs to get a job instead of bothering good people on the street."
The next day the Christian saw a filthy woman holding a sign which said, "Pregnant and homeless, please help." She asked him, "Could you spare a few dollars so I could get a motel room," he replied, "Isn’t there a shelter you could go to?" And he passed her by.
The next day the Christian saw a man with brown skin sitting on the sidewalk with one leg missing. The man asked with a deep accent, "Could you please assist me in any way?" The Christian became upset with all of these interruptions of his pleasant morning meditation, and he yelled, "Can’t you people just leave me alone? Why don’t you just go back where you came from?"
As he walked into his office on that third day, the Christian had a heart attack and died. The angels picked him up and delivered him immediately (or so it seemed to him) to the Father for judgment. The Father looked down at him and said, "This week you have been tested. I sent you three of my angels, to see how you would respond to them. I have brought them here to witness to your action."
The first angel, no longer disheveled, but wearing white robes said, "This Christian refused to help me." The second angel, no longer dirty, said, "He told me to find a shelter, but offered no help." The third angel, with his leg fully intact, said, "This Christian told me to go back where I came from. So I am here. He refused to help me." The Father looked at the man and judged: "You have done evil to your brothers and sisters. I gave you many blessings, and you refused to help those in need. You will be punished eternally."
As the enforcement officers came to take the Christian away, he called to the Father, "But Lord, Lord—what about my family? Shouldn’t they be given a chance? Please send one of these angels to them to explain to them their sin so they can repent." The Father replied, "Do they not read my Word daily? If they ignore the one who has been risen from the dead, they will not listen to an angel."
Saturday, April 18, 2009
The Homeless Evicted
This is an article published on the End Homelessness site:
http://homelessness.change.org/blog/view/how_to_distmantle_a_tent_city
How to Distmantle a Tent City
by Shannon Moriarty
Published April 15, 2009 @ 06:55PM PST
It was a reporter's dream: a state with a Hollywood governor, a city with a former NBA star Mayor. In the shadows of that city's skyscrapers, along the banks of the River America, lay a modern day "Hooverville." In recent months, this tent city scituated on the outskirts of Sacramento attracted non-stop media attention- domestic, international, and Oprah- as the "face of the American economic crisis."
But today, this encampment of 150 to 200-or-so homeless people (most of them chronically homeless) is gone. Mayor Kevin Johnson ordered its removal last Thursday. Today, the last of the people who called this tent city home have no choice but to move on.
Despite the media fascination with Sacramento's tent city, life for its residents has not been easy, according to the LA Times:
The tent city sprawls along the river in small clusters of ersatz neighborhoods. Walker and her neighbor, Charly Hine, 38, have pitched their tents at the distant edge to stay away from noise and trouble.
Gibson's tent is in a separate, small, neat grouping. One neighbor displays an American flag and a goose with the word "welcome" on its breast. It is a favorite subject, its owner says, of news photographers. Another has a mailbox and a gate.
The largest and most raucous neighborhood is composed of about 70 tents closest to the street.
Near noon, Tammie and Keith Day are drinking beer around a cold fire pit, worrying about how she'll get her diabetes medication and fretting about whether officials will shutter the tent city.
"We're homeless and being evicted?" Tammie fumes. "Now I've heard everything."
Clearly, the media glare has left Mayor Kevin Johnson uncomfortable and unsure of how to handle the situation. After an countless of meetings and summits, he announced that the current tent city would be closed. At the same time, he announced, the city is considering the feasibility of a permanent homeless encampment and looking to increase the number of city shelter beds.
Right. First clear out the tent city and then decide what you're going to do with the people. Makes perfect sense.
Suffice to say, Sacramento homeless advocates are not happy. In fact, things got heated today as the clearing out got underway, according to the Sacramento Bee:
Sister Libby Fernandez of Loaves & Fishes, which provides services to homeless men, women and children, led a group of advocates demanding a moratorium on camping citations and pushing for a place where people can camp legally and with basic services including toilets and garbage pickup.
"We've been campaigning for this for more than a year," she said. "Now we're back to square one again."
Fernandez and others said they will engage in nonviolent "civil disobedience" if campers are forced to leave, and will risk going to jail to make their point.
So the big question that remains is this: where are these evicted homeless campers going to live?
The answer? Another tent city, of course.
Most of the 150-200 campers are moving just a short walk down the American River levee to a growing tent city (Sacramento Tent City Version 2.0, we'll call it). Although the encampment is on private property, police stay it still violates the city's law against camping. Could this mean it's just a matter of time before these homeless people are evicted again?
You know what they say. You can take the people out of tent city, but you can't take the tent away from the people.
Stay tuned... this story isn't over yet.
http://homelessness.change.org/blog/view/how_to_distmantle_a_tent_city
How to Distmantle a Tent City
by Shannon Moriarty
Published April 15, 2009 @ 06:55PM PST
It was a reporter's dream: a state with a Hollywood governor, a city with a former NBA star Mayor. In the shadows of that city's skyscrapers, along the banks of the River America, lay a modern day "Hooverville." In recent months, this tent city scituated on the outskirts of Sacramento attracted non-stop media attention- domestic, international, and Oprah- as the "face of the American economic crisis."
But today, this encampment of 150 to 200-or-so homeless people (most of them chronically homeless) is gone. Mayor Kevin Johnson ordered its removal last Thursday. Today, the last of the people who called this tent city home have no choice but to move on.
Despite the media fascination with Sacramento's tent city, life for its residents has not been easy, according to the LA Times:
The tent city sprawls along the river in small clusters of ersatz neighborhoods. Walker and her neighbor, Charly Hine, 38, have pitched their tents at the distant edge to stay away from noise and trouble.
Gibson's tent is in a separate, small, neat grouping. One neighbor displays an American flag and a goose with the word "welcome" on its breast. It is a favorite subject, its owner says, of news photographers. Another has a mailbox and a gate.
The largest and most raucous neighborhood is composed of about 70 tents closest to the street.
Near noon, Tammie and Keith Day are drinking beer around a cold fire pit, worrying about how she'll get her diabetes medication and fretting about whether officials will shutter the tent city.
"We're homeless and being evicted?" Tammie fumes. "Now I've heard everything."
Clearly, the media glare has left Mayor Kevin Johnson uncomfortable and unsure of how to handle the situation. After an countless of meetings and summits, he announced that the current tent city would be closed. At the same time, he announced, the city is considering the feasibility of a permanent homeless encampment and looking to increase the number of city shelter beds.
Right. First clear out the tent city and then decide what you're going to do with the people. Makes perfect sense.
Suffice to say, Sacramento homeless advocates are not happy. In fact, things got heated today as the clearing out got underway, according to the Sacramento Bee:
Sister Libby Fernandez of Loaves & Fishes, which provides services to homeless men, women and children, led a group of advocates demanding a moratorium on camping citations and pushing for a place where people can camp legally and with basic services including toilets and garbage pickup.
"We've been campaigning for this for more than a year," she said. "Now we're back to square one again."
Fernandez and others said they will engage in nonviolent "civil disobedience" if campers are forced to leave, and will risk going to jail to make their point.
So the big question that remains is this: where are these evicted homeless campers going to live?
The answer? Another tent city, of course.
Most of the 150-200 campers are moving just a short walk down the American River levee to a growing tent city (Sacramento Tent City Version 2.0, we'll call it). Although the encampment is on private property, police stay it still violates the city's law against camping. Could this mean it's just a matter of time before these homeless people are evicted again?
You know what they say. You can take the people out of tent city, but you can't take the tent away from the people.
Stay tuned... this story isn't over yet.
Monday, April 13, 2009
"Jesus Was A Bum" "Some thoughts on Homelessness"
Two excellent poems from Street Roots, a local street paper in Portland:
Jesus Was A Bum
by Tobiah Tillman
Where do we find Jesus son this cluttered earth?
AS a bastard child He was in His birth.
Born out of wedlock, (gasp) Oh my God!
Destined to be struck down by Satan's rod.
Who was this half man that you follow?
His flesh you eat and His blood you swallow.
Did you know He was homeless and dirty?
Did you you He didn't live much past thirty?
A man born a fugitive to a crazy empire.
He called himself lliving water not holy fire.
A man of love, not a man of hate.
Sacrifice and suffering was this man's fate.
He washed our feet, we spit in His face.
We erected a Wall-Mart in providence place.
We worship the offering and forget the Lord.
When I got to His house I fall asleep bored.
We worship a man who hung out with whores,
And kicked it with lepers, healing their sores.
Did you know Jesus was just a simple hobo?
Yeah? Well how many of them do you actually know?
"Some Thoughts On Homelessness"
by Gimel Gaiah
Why did that street kid call me family?
Why did the rich man just peel a 20 dollar bill and
give it to me out of his wallet?
Why is it hard to look people in the eyes why you
are a stranger to them?
Why did that lady just give me cookies?
Why did that lady give me clothes and a scarf?
Why did she give me such a sweet smile, and he?
I am homeless. Why is all this happening?
A man walks up with 2 huge bags, one full of shoes,
the other a tent, he asks if I am truly homeless and
would I like these items.
All my life I never imagined this.
Homelessness.
Love for a new family of understanding life.
I see the love everywhere, on all street corners.
Jesus Was A Bum
by Tobiah Tillman
Where do we find Jesus son this cluttered earth?
AS a bastard child He was in His birth.
Born out of wedlock, (gasp) Oh my God!
Destined to be struck down by Satan's rod.
Who was this half man that you follow?
His flesh you eat and His blood you swallow.
Did you know He was homeless and dirty?
Did you you He didn't live much past thirty?
A man born a fugitive to a crazy empire.
He called himself lliving water not holy fire.
A man of love, not a man of hate.
Sacrifice and suffering was this man's fate.
He washed our feet, we spit in His face.
We erected a Wall-Mart in providence place.
We worship the offering and forget the Lord.
When I got to His house I fall asleep bored.
We worship a man who hung out with whores,
And kicked it with lepers, healing their sores.
Did you know Jesus was just a simple hobo?
Yeah? Well how many of them do you actually know?
"Some Thoughts On Homelessness"
by Gimel Gaiah
Why did that street kid call me family?
Why did the rich man just peel a 20 dollar bill and
give it to me out of his wallet?
Why is it hard to look people in the eyes why you
are a stranger to them?
Why did that lady just give me cookies?
Why did that lady give me clothes and a scarf?
Why did she give me such a sweet smile, and he?
I am homeless. Why is all this happening?
A man walks up with 2 huge bags, one full of shoes,
the other a tent, he asks if I am truly homeless and
would I like these items.
All my life I never imagined this.
Homelessness.
Love for a new family of understanding life.
I see the love everywhere, on all street corners.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Meet Tony
Please watch this short video of Tony as he explains how he needs to panhandle to make ends meet.
http://homelessness.change.org/blog/view/real_stories_meet_tony
Many people say that panhandlers only are after drugs or alcohol. But that simply isn't true. A job isn't always the best option for everyone (even if you could get one). Many people who struggle with alcoholism or drug abuse, if they get a job, they have a lot of money in their pocket and 40 hours of stress a week-- a recipe for relapse, if there ever was one!
Tony works when he can, panhandles when he must. He explains how much he might get and how the economy effects the amount.
http://homelessness.change.org/blog/view/real_stories_meet_tony
Many people say that panhandlers only are after drugs or alcohol. But that simply isn't true. A job isn't always the best option for everyone (even if you could get one). Many people who struggle with alcoholism or drug abuse, if they get a job, they have a lot of money in their pocket and 40 hours of stress a week-- a recipe for relapse, if there ever was one!
Tony works when he can, panhandles when he must. He explains how much he might get and how the economy effects the amount.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Should This Man Be Head of ANY Church?
I originally posted this at YAR-- http://young.anabaptistradicals.org/2009/04/09/a-platform-for-mcusa/
I have been involved in some pretty strange things—a church planter of an all-homeless/mentally ill congregation; encouraging leaders of a mosque in Bangladesh to re-think Jesus; dumpster diving for Jesus, and so recently becoming the poster child for dumpster diving in Portland (Check out http://www.portlandmonthlymag.com/issues/archives/articles/0409-holy-diver/ and read a recent article about me—heck, just look at the pics!). Stuff like that. But when I got a call from MCUSA a week ago, that took the cake.
Someone nominated me to be the Executive Director of MCUSA.
At first I figured it must be a joke. Who would, in their right mind, think that I—radical pastor who has to bite his tongue every time he speaks to a middle class person—would make a good Executive Director? Someone just did it for a lark, I thought. Or perhaps I was recommended by someone who just wanted to shake things up. Well, that would do it. Me as taking Jim Schrag’s place? Just unthinkable.
But some of my friends weren’t so sure. They thought it was not such a crazy idea after all, but fascinating. My wife looked over the qualifications in the packet I received and she said, “Actually, you pretty much qualify for the position.” Scary. And perhaps MCUSA needs a little shaking up. And it isn’t like I wouldn’t work with whomever God gave me.
In thinking about it, I thought about the things I could stir up, changes I might be able to initiate in the church:
1. While continuing the focus of antiracism, I could also encourage MCUSA to welcome another significant group that are without a voice in MCUSA: the lower class. For many different reasons, those who are poor or uneducated aren’t given an equal opportunity to speak out in the Church, conferences or in most congregations. I would want to champion their cause, to allow them to have a voice where they currently have no voice.
2. I would want to service agencies to be more missional and missional agencies to be more service-oriented.
3. As an aspect of following Jesus, I could encourage the following programs:
-A church-wide memorization program of Jesus’ words
-Discussion groups on Jesus’ words and life, investigating the meaning of Jesus’ words and pursuing the living of them out
4. I could invite leaders from the Mennonite church all around the world—for instance, Columbia, Vietnam, India, Congo, Ethiopia, and Germany— to talk in our churches and to our conferences. We can only become a world-wide church if we participate in and interact with the world.
5. I could try to help us balance our church and conference budgets by encouraging volunteerism, discouraging restructuring, and using technology to try to reduce costs.
6. I would directly challenge MCUSA and its congregations to be less nationalistic. This could mean a name change for the Church, as well as seeking out means to be politically involved that does not involve partisan dichotomies.
7. Encourage educational opportunities that teach how to create peace and love. I would encourage the Mennonite schools to have outreach courses not taught by professionals, but by those who have been involved in ongoing acts of love in challenging areas. For instance we can have an MCCer teach about cross cultural communication in an urban setting; a CPTer teaching about how to deal with an angry person; and perhaps someone who has been working with the homeless teaching about how a church can begin to be pastoral to the poor, etc.
8. I would want to encourage the development of new monastic-type communities, who could then become full members of every conference.
9. I would attempt to create contexts in which the church can openly talk about controversial issues, like LGTBQ
10. I would want to introduce the idea of stewardship as being giving to people’s needs in a way that creates relationship, instead of money being a replacement for relationship.
One thing is certain: I never lack for new ideas.
However, as tempting as it would be, I think it would be wrong for me to apply for the position.
First of all, my own church, Anawim, is not yet ready to stand without me, because of inadequate leadership (although in another year, it may be.) Also, I couldn’t in good conscience put my name forward as long as a woman has not yet been moderator of MCUSA.
But most of all, I do not actually represent MCUSA, nor, I think, could I ever (unless it changes considerably). The Executive Director position is as much as anything supposed to be the voice and face of MCUSA. Even if I got a haircut, I don’t think I fit the bill. Finally, I am more of a prophetic, even challenging voice, and the members of the church are much more used to leaders who are conciliatory. I don’t think MCUSA is ready for me. Maybe next time around, eh?
I still think it sounds funny.
I have been involved in some pretty strange things—a church planter of an all-homeless/mentally ill congregation; encouraging leaders of a mosque in Bangladesh to re-think Jesus; dumpster diving for Jesus, and so recently becoming the poster child for dumpster diving in Portland (Check out http://www.portlandmonthlymag.com/issues/archives/articles/0409-holy-diver/ and read a recent article about me—heck, just look at the pics!). Stuff like that. But when I got a call from MCUSA a week ago, that took the cake.
Someone nominated me to be the Executive Director of MCUSA.
At first I figured it must be a joke. Who would, in their right mind, think that I—radical pastor who has to bite his tongue every time he speaks to a middle class person—would make a good Executive Director? Someone just did it for a lark, I thought. Or perhaps I was recommended by someone who just wanted to shake things up. Well, that would do it. Me as taking Jim Schrag’s place? Just unthinkable.
But some of my friends weren’t so sure. They thought it was not such a crazy idea after all, but fascinating. My wife looked over the qualifications in the packet I received and she said, “Actually, you pretty much qualify for the position.” Scary. And perhaps MCUSA needs a little shaking up. And it isn’t like I wouldn’t work with whomever God gave me.
In thinking about it, I thought about the things I could stir up, changes I might be able to initiate in the church:
1. While continuing the focus of antiracism, I could also encourage MCUSA to welcome another significant group that are without a voice in MCUSA: the lower class. For many different reasons, those who are poor or uneducated aren’t given an equal opportunity to speak out in the Church, conferences or in most congregations. I would want to champion their cause, to allow them to have a voice where they currently have no voice.
2. I would want to service agencies to be more missional and missional agencies to be more service-oriented.
3. As an aspect of following Jesus, I could encourage the following programs:
-A church-wide memorization program of Jesus’ words
-Discussion groups on Jesus’ words and life, investigating the meaning of Jesus’ words and pursuing the living of them out
4. I could invite leaders from the Mennonite church all around the world—for instance, Columbia, Vietnam, India, Congo, Ethiopia, and Germany— to talk in our churches and to our conferences. We can only become a world-wide church if we participate in and interact with the world.
5. I could try to help us balance our church and conference budgets by encouraging volunteerism, discouraging restructuring, and using technology to try to reduce costs.
6. I would directly challenge MCUSA and its congregations to be less nationalistic. This could mean a name change for the Church, as well as seeking out means to be politically involved that does not involve partisan dichotomies.
7. Encourage educational opportunities that teach how to create peace and love. I would encourage the Mennonite schools to have outreach courses not taught by professionals, but by those who have been involved in ongoing acts of love in challenging areas. For instance we can have an MCCer teach about cross cultural communication in an urban setting; a CPTer teaching about how to deal with an angry person; and perhaps someone who has been working with the homeless teaching about how a church can begin to be pastoral to the poor, etc.
8. I would want to encourage the development of new monastic-type communities, who could then become full members of every conference.
9. I would attempt to create contexts in which the church can openly talk about controversial issues, like LGTBQ
10. I would want to introduce the idea of stewardship as being giving to people’s needs in a way that creates relationship, instead of money being a replacement for relationship.
One thing is certain: I never lack for new ideas.
However, as tempting as it would be, I think it would be wrong for me to apply for the position.
First of all, my own church, Anawim, is not yet ready to stand without me, because of inadequate leadership (although in another year, it may be.) Also, I couldn’t in good conscience put my name forward as long as a woman has not yet been moderator of MCUSA.
But most of all, I do not actually represent MCUSA, nor, I think, could I ever (unless it changes considerably). The Executive Director position is as much as anything supposed to be the voice and face of MCUSA. Even if I got a haircut, I don’t think I fit the bill. Finally, I am more of a prophetic, even challenging voice, and the members of the church are much more used to leaders who are conciliatory. I don’t think MCUSA is ready for me. Maybe next time around, eh?
I still think it sounds funny.
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