Walking with Hello Kitty and other great adventures outside church walls

So I did it. It wasn’t easy—my hands shook a little. I spoke with my Barista asking her the questions about the challenges of our community. She was floored when I asked her my opening question. She took her break to sit down and talk to me. When I thanked her for her time, she said that she had many strong feelings about religion and church.

Here’s what I learned. My barista is from Peru. Her biggest concern was about human trafficking. She had a cousin that disappeared back home. She talked to me about domestic workers as well as prostitutes and how there is great exploitation that goes on. I mentioned to her that I’d be blogging our conversation and she asked me not to give her name. I didn’t ask her why. She was emphatic about this. So I honor that.

She didn’t think church people would care about such people. Church is for people that want to hide from life, she told me.

I told her about some church friends of mine that are deeply concerned about human trafficking. She was surprised that church people cared about human trafficking and she was also surprised that our church was supportive of LGBT people. “I didn’t know that was possible,” she said. “I meet lots of Christians that don’t care about others.”

And then my barista did something amazing. She turned the tables on me.

I know you are a pastor, she said. I see you here in your collar. What do you think is the greatest concern in our community and what are you doing about it.

Oh man, this is where the rubber hits the road.

I’m glad I didn’t hesitate. I took Hello Kitty with me on a walk recently.

I will admit I said this to her for effect—it was well worth it. You should have seen the look on her face! I then explained myself.

You see, I have a daughter that’s eight years old and I waited a long long time to have a child and my greatest challenge is not being scared out of my mind to drop her off at school everyday.

I’m scared because of all the random school shootings that seem like a regular everyday event. It scares me. Big time. Especially after what happened last year in Newtown.

I have to do something. So a couple weeks ago, I did my first 10 K walk and took Hello Kitty with me.

A pastor I know organized a 10 K walk to the capital in support of a legislation bill that supports universal background checks on people who want to purchase guns in our state. He invited pastors to walk with back packs to represent the 8 kids that are killed or injured daily by guns in our country. We walked in support of universal background checks on guns in our state.

The barista had to get back to work. Guns. She said. I don’t know if I agree with that. She told me but I’m glad I talked to you today. And I’m going to learn about this gun thing, she said. I don’t know about this. But I like Hello Kitty she then showed me her Hello Kitty Watch.

I couldn’t let go though… oh the preacher in me… One more thing, I said.

There are Christians who care deeply and go to church not because they are hiding but because it helps us remember who we are—it is a spiritual practice that centers us and helps us to go on in our work in the world. We work hard in the world to be the change we want to see —we do it because we want to be Good News in the world.

She looked at me suspiciously. Okay. She said. It was uncomfortable to end this way but not every conversation is perfect and neat. I know too that I will see her again. I will go in and have coffee. I know we will talk again.

In the meanwhile, there’s another adventure brewing for me, another conversation to have.

My next assignment for Outside Church Walls is having coffee with a theatre guy I met through a friend on facebook. He wants to have a conversation about Christian Privilege. I went to a workshop he did a few weeks ago on Christian Privilege and can hardly wait to talk!

George