Not too long ago Jesse Zink asked this question in his blog: Can a Starbucks barista find a place in the Episcopal Church? (http://jessezink.com/2014/08/20/can-a-starbucks-barista-find-a-place-in-the-episcopal-church). Would this mythical Starbucks barista, working multiple jobs and caring for kids, be comfortable in our churches? Zink concludes that she just may not be, and blames our vague focus on mission and “do goodism.” It is hard, he observes, to live a “life in constant chaos” and do all the volunteer work expected in some of our churches.
This article got me thinking. First, I do know plenty of working class people making low wages who go to our churches (I’ve been one of them). Second, I wonder about how we assume that "working for change" "social justice" and all these other words we use in progressive churches means soup kitchens and charity work or other volunteer work. I am not opposed to this work. But it in itself is the problem, in many cases. Zink’s Starbucks barista may not be Episcopal because she doesn't have time to volunteer; but just as likely she is not coming to volunteer at your soup kitchen or food bank because she's probably going to one. And she’s embarrassed. She’s embarrassed, not because she should be, but because so often our churches adopt our culture’s attitude toward success.
Most people I work alongside wouldn't walk into a church, not because the service is strange or they are asked to do something, but because they are either treated as charity cases or intruders. It is all about how well you can pass--as middle class, put together, and stable. And that is exhausting.
This, I think, is what my friend was getting at. Our churches are way too often places to pass, places where a certain amount of respectability is required. Places to pretend that being Christian means dressing up on Sunday and volunteering in the community and tithing a respectable amount of money. A place we never talk about poverty and are embarrassed to admit we are experiencing it.
It gets to the question of why we are Christians. The question of what Jesus was all about. If church is about philanthropy and charity, about volunteering and a vague "making the world a better place," about social cliques and passing as middle class, then maybe there is no place for people struggling to survive, except as the recipient of our paternalistic care.
Now, if the church is about a Jesus who preaches "good news to the poor and setting the oppressed free," about "finding rest" in a world of chaos and struggle, about having "life and having it more abundantly," about organizing a movement of people who resisted imperial culture by loving each other, supporting each others' need to survive, and struggling for liberation-- well, then, the church might just be centered around the needs of the many who are struggling to survive after all.
Sarah
Sarah, I have a story about this. Someone once made a stewardship presentation at a church I have attended. This individual encouraged folks to give up one latte a week and to contribute the saved amount as a pledge, or part of a pledge, to the church. This did not work well for one of the listeners, who said later that s/he did not have even enough money to buy one latte a week. This person has since left that congregation and worships with another, but regularly attends a once-a-month dinner for all-comers at that same church. The well-meaning speaker made an assumption about income and it really made this individual feel unworthy. Important, I think, when we talk about stewardship, to not make assumptions that everyone can "afford the price of a latte".
ReplyDeleteMindy, Yes, it is really important not to assume that you know about people's lives, in the pews. There is so much shame around poverty in the U.S., so much shaming of people that are poor, that we are afraid to admit our own struggles. We ought to be talking about this a lot more. After all, Jesus talks an awful lot about it. I wrote a blog post about my own struggle with shame and poverty: http://awanderingminister.blogspot.com/2014/08/rejecting-shame.html.
ReplyDeleteI have enough money to meet my expenses, to volunteer and to give a small offering each month. However, church is just too expensive for me. I cannot afford to participate in the dinners, trips, building funds, book and tape sales etc... I just believe that Jesus doesn't intend for church to be too expensive to attend.
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