with john perkins in town for the next couple of months (thanks to UPC), seattle has the privilege of hosting the focused consultation of the father of the christian community development movement. last friday i got to chat with dr. perkins in a small group and i asked him to share his thoughts about gentrification in my neighborhood and other problems associated with urban revitalization. he seemed convinced that in spite of its relevant issues, seattle’s embracing of diversity (not to mention new urbanism) is so far ahead of the curve (along with minneapolis) compared to other major US cities that we didn’t have a whole lot to worry about.
but it’s not that he didn’t have a message for my neighborhood- last night at a community church down the street, i heard dr. perkins preach for over an hour about all the problems with our perception of god and our abandoning of mission as the church’s greatest failures. he was firey and hilarious- and the organ, gospel choir, and call-and-response congregation made the evening an experience. john said we’ve turned god into our therapist, church into a charade of self-help prosperity, and that as we lose focus on our neighborhoods, we are not only losing our vision but also exploiting our neighbors. he called out white churches to acknowledge their “colonizing” ecclesiology and he urged everyone to remember that the heart of the gospel is a call to reconciliation and justice.
there is such beauty in the convicting words of truth that just hit you in your gut. and i’m reminded again that the church does not exist to stroke my ego, acquire assets for its own consumption, and uphold all the cultural barriers and socioeconomic stratifications that divide us. the church is only the church when it embraces its mission to combat individualism and consumerism, redistribute resources at the grassroots, and tear down the walls that sin has kept in place. the gospel calls into question our entire model of compartmentalized, consumer-driven, homogeneous, attractional, culturally-insular church. and it is endlessly frustrating to try to sort out all the pieces of what should be kept and what needs to be thrown out. i feel like i’ve been given a puzzle with all the wrong pieces and it just won’t go together… but i’m still trying.
so i finally got around to watching jesus camp, a haunting look into the evangelical subculture of conservative middle america. portrayed with a fair degree of accuracy and without (in my opinion) too much editorial bias, jesus camp primarily follows the pentecostal children’s ministry of becky fischer, and also highlights a few kids and their perspectives on god, america, and other items on the fundamentalist agenda like stopping abortion and teaching creationism in schools.
what first struck me about the documentary was the authenticity of the people (aside from Haggard)- they seemed genuinely convicted about their priorities and i could see how naturally an insular cultural enclave can work to shape the myopic worldview of simple people. but the more i watched, the more uncomfortable i felt with how easily and readily these adults were willing to blatantly indoctrinate the impressionable minds of children with half-truths, fear tactics, and emotional manipulation.
but i also felt torn because i couldn’t write them all off as deranged sociopaths (which would have been much easier)- they had simply taken something good (like jesus), twisted it to fit their agenda, and then fallen prey to their own self-deception. and so it is with those christians who have declared war on america’s secular culture- good intentions clouded by pharisaic moralism and corrupted with the appeal of theocratic power turn into cultural crusades with a republican bush/jesus-hybrid at the helm. secular infidels are the enemy, and somehow the cross is replaced with the sword.
in the end, the us-them culture war begun as a political tactic is spun to its logical end, republicans bolster their base, anti-intellectualism wins the day, and all the while evangelical christians who have been used and manipulated to make war and fund government kickbacks don’t have a clue. and all in the name of jesus… god help us.
Filed under: politics
please, watch this video. i am wholeheartedly in support of barack obama for the 2008 presidential bid. barack is the first politician in a long time that’s made me hopeful again- about america, about change, and even about politics. granted, there is a lot of hype surrounding obama, but bandwagon or not, you have to give him credit for both charisma and substance that has really brought people together.
unlike a lot of politicians out there, barack wasn’t handed the privilege and platform that comes with wealth and affluence. born to a kenyan immigrant father, his parents divorced when he was a baby and barack was raised primarily by his grandparents. working his way up on his own and against the odds, barack was a stellar performer in school, eventually becoming the first black president of the prestigious harvard law review. and though he certainly could have enjoyed his many accomplishments as a rags-to-riches story, his background in community organizing with the urban poor in the southside of chicago made him a passionate advocate for civil rights for the underprivileged and disenfranchised. barack’s time in the US Senate (particularly on the foreign relations committee) has shown that he has a backbone and a vision.
i appreciate that obama is vocal about his faith, but not in a divisive way- his record has shown that he is a team player, an aisle-crosser, a bridge-builder, a peacemaker, and the first fresh voice in american politics in a long time. on top of it all, barack just seems like a nice guy with a good sense of humor. his sense of earnestness and humility is not polished or postured- it’s just the authentic audacity of hope- hope that has made this often anti-american skeptic truly hopeful about america again.
it was way too cold and windy to be marching outside, but the people didn’t seem bothered by the weather. as we walked up rainier ave and looped around to MLK way, the enormous crowd of men, women, and children chanted various protest standards- “the people- united- can never be defeated!” some defiantly declared, “what do we want? JUSTICE! when do we want it? NOW!” others quietly sang “we shall overcome…”
i saw a lot of neighbors and at least half a dozen questers, which was encouraging. onlookers seemed fascinated by the march, some scrambling out of their businesses to watch the festivities- more of a justice parade than a protest. cars and trucks honked in support as the police escorts protected our wide marching path.
at the rally, ehren watada got a long standing ovation, and various speakers recalled the words of dr. king with passion and conviction. we were reminded again and again that the declaration of peace and justice for all is not a one day event, but a lifelong struggle. and though the march is over, the cries of the people are still echoing in my head. i wonder why it took me so long to learn how to listen.
having spent some time living pretty much right on MLK way in south seattle, i’ve noticed a couple of things: (1) the street looks like a construction war zone, and (2) i consistenly get funny looks from people when i tell them where i live. the former is because of the incoming mass transit system, and the latter is because there are really two different seattles- one north of downtown and one south of downtown.
i hate to over-generalize, but the census demographics are pretty clear- ‘north’ seattle is where the white people reside, and ’south’ seattle is where the colored folks are. ethnic segregation in urban areas is nothing new, but i have to wonder what sort of prophetic vocation i’m called to as an educated, affluent (relatively speaking), community-minded citizen of columbia city. what does it really mean to love my neighbors here?
today is the annual MLK seattle celebration rally & march for peace, human rights, and economic justice, held about a mile from my front door at franklin high school. as we honor and remember dr. king, i pray we will not forget that the struggle is far from over. it is merely less visible to those of us who have chosen to look the other way…
Filed under: random updates
after a quick 2.5 day trip to pasadena to meet with my doctoral committee at fuller, i returned to seattle to discover another occurrence of our bizarro weather this winter. this is my car covered in a pretty solid 4″ blanket of snow and ice. seattle seemed especially cold since the LA weather was a warm 78 degrees when we arrived on tuesday. climate change is only going to make the seasons more extreme… and if that doesn’t concern you, then you haven’t been paying attention to al.
anyway, it was a very productive visit and my ‘research proposal consultation pre-defense’ (or whatever they call it) went pretty well. i was able to spend some time with my supervisor who is the LA director of innerchange, a christian order among the poor around the world.
since i’m still waiting for my car to defrost, i guess i have lots of time to think about the urban missiology literature review tutorial i’ll be doing for the next 3 months… good stuff.
Filed under: culture
chris and i had the opportunity to see the dead sea scrolls today at the pacific science center, which was- much to our surprise- packed out even in the middle of a weekday afternoon. apparently, the scrolls are the first exhibit ever to completely sell out in the entire history of the pacific science center. in seattle!? go figure. i had initially assumed that the widely acknowledged and pervasive secularity of seattle wouldn’t have generated much interest in these primarily “religious” artifacts, but i guess the scrolls have a broader appeal than i thought.
the exhibit was comprehensive and intriguing in its presentation, and though a few tidbits were slightly sensationalized for perhaps a greater “wow” factor, the scholarship seemed balanced and first rate (from what i could tell with my limited memory of first century jewish sects and textual criticism). the crowd there was mixed, though there appeared to be (of course) an unusual number of christians and/or people who had studied biblical hebrew. unfortunately, my time studying languages at regent was brief and only involved greek, so my staring at the actual hebrew on the scroll fragments was pretty puzzling.
but what i found most powerful about the dead sea scrolls was not necessarily the privilege of seeing these first century artifacts up close or even the reading of God’s inspired words in their original language; instead, i was most personally impacted by the anthropological questions- what posessed this monastic community of scribes to so carefully and deliberately preserve these documents with such discipline and reverence? with very limited resources and in the midst of what was historically a time of political and social upheaval, how did they manage to guard these manuscripts with such care? i was blown away at how exactingly precise a passage of isaiah 54 was copied two thousand years ago- almost to the letter identical to what i read yesterday in my rhythm reading. these people were so captivated by the importance of the scrolls that it seemed to be the very center of their lives and culture. but why would they so commit themselves to what seems like merely ancient literature to an “enlightened” 21st century audience?
my hope is that these questions would linger with people who go to the exhibit simply to appreciate the archaeological and scientific significance of the scrolls. as i reflect on their theological value, i see not only the wonder of history, but also the amazing beauty of what happens when divine revelation captures the heart of humanity through words of life spoken to people in search of truth and meaning- words of creation and design and ultimately, grace- that is revealed to you and i because long ago, it was first recorded by those who came before us.
