Call to a Movement

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." Jesus (Luke 4:18-19)

"Therefore any gospel preached that is not good news for the poor is not the gospel of Jesus Christ." Jim Wallis (my paraphrase from memories and jotted notes)

I had the privilege of hearing Jim Wallis, one of the main staff of Sojourners, speak in Pasadena this last Monday on some of the topics he covers in his new book The Great Awakening. He had a number of profound statements throughout the evening, but one of his trains of thought has particularly stuck with me as I've been anxiously following the election madness of the last two days. He talked about how no matter which candidate ends up being elected as president, our society will not change unless we come together in a movement. Without a movement of people to change the social pressures, politicians who want to make change will be unable to and politicians who don't want change will have no one forcing them to make it happen. Think M.L.K. and the civil rights movement--finally forcing the issues and changing the social atmosphere so that politicians had to change the legal aspects. I confess that I am tempted sometimes to place my hope in a candidate instead of realizing that whether my chosen candidate is elected or not, that doesn't take the responsibility off of me to become part of the movement for change. My part in pursuing a more just society is far more than casting my ballot for someone else at the voting booth.

To be clear, however, I firmly believe that doesn't mean that we disengage from politics (and Jim certainly didn't seem to be going in that direction either). The political realm has immense implications for how our schools and local, national and global economies are run; whether illegal immigrants' children or poor children can access health care or not; whether we invade other nations and where and how many people die. If I as a Christian care about justice in my neighborhood, if I care about the girls that I'm working with in Pasadena and the failing school system that they are in, if I care about the impact of American foreign policy on people in Thailand and the Gaza Strip, then I am compelled to address these issues both personally and on a social and systemic level. I believe that to only address one is to fail to accept the responsibility I have for whether my personal actions and relationships work for shalom or not, or to fail to accept the realities that 1) injustice is perpetuated through systems as well as individuals, and 2) I as an individual have a responsibility for how I interact with those systems and hold them accountable. "Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts," says the God I follow (Amos 5:15). Spirituality and social justice are social and communal as well as personal and individual, for "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?" (Isaiah 58:6 -- a wonderful passage, if you've never read it I highly recommend looking it up). I won't go into a whole study of what the Bible says about corporate justice and dealing with systemic injustice here, nor will I discuss anthropological and sociological perspectives of systems, but it's worth looking into with some friends if you've never read much about it. Let me be the first to acknowledge that I have a long way to go in terms of right living in relation to myself as an individual before God, within my immediate relationships, and in my interactions with systems. But I'm thankful that God keeps deepening and widening my understanding of justice and that he is faithful to keep me going along that journey even when it gets uncomfortable and I don't want to go.

In other news, our apartment does not seem to be a good place for plants. Dia and I appear to have killed one, unfortunately the one our neighbor gave us as a gift, and my dear plant that I've had since summer before my sophomore year of college is looking not-so-great. The leaves have a brownish tinge that I associate with being sun-scorched, but that isn't possible because our plants get almost no sun right now, if any, as they are inside in the dark all day while we are at work. Karen, the cactus you gave me is the only one that still looks ok, but maybe that's because it's a cactus and hasn't changed too much! I'm not quite sure what to do for them, as a neighbor told us that putting potted plants (at least flowering ones) outside is a sure way to get them stolen. One thing's for sure; it's going to be traumatic if my plant doesn't manage to survive and thrive here.

"Our mission is to articulate the biblical call to social justice, inspiring hope and building a movement to transform individuals, communities, the church, and the world." --Sojourners' posted mission on their website