A Rising Tide for All Ships

I'm going to be specific and hit close to home with the following comments. I don't know how other communities are faring, but in West Plains, Missouri, we're navigating through some rough water these days: recent job losses with more on the horizon upon the closing of a local factory, the need for innovation and expansion of technology, West Plains R7 Schools facing decisions about how to accommodate elementary school kids, and Richards School putting a tax-levy issue before voters to build a new high school, just to name a few. We're seeing divisiveness in how to move forward. The situation is not bleak, but realistically, it's tough.

In traveling around in surrounding communities for my job and for other projects, people often ask me, "What's going on over in West Plains? Why can't you get along? What's wrong? You should be growing by leaps and bounds." We're viewed by many as struggling. We're widely seen as cliquish, especially unwilling to be open to outside ideas. Our neighbors point out specific organizations, businesses, individuals and entities and ask, "Why aren't they working together? Why aren't they pooling their resources?"

I see why they ask the questions. I don't know the answers, but as a start, we need to remember that we're all in this together, and it would be helpful if we acted like it. I've seen individuals who are on the same 'side' of particular issues find ways to disagree. There is often suspicion and mistrust even when it's unwarranted. Sometimes it feels like a competition rather than a community.

In some ways it's difficult to pin down exactly what the problem is, but at the heart of it, we're struggling for unity. It's bad enough that in larger circles we often allow our differences in opinions to spark rude comments on social media and even face to face with people who are supposedly our friends. Part of it is that the greater political issues we're facing as a country seem to be affecting attitudes at every level. We're allowing ourselves, as citizens, to be divided along political lines to our detriment.

In the context of the local community, there seems to be a certain kind of jealousy in hoarding ideas, not wanting to share those ideas if proper credit is not given. Rather than recognizing that a rising tide lifts all ships, we seem to be willing to retire to the swamp and sit there. I believe we have fallen into this pattern unintentionally, without realizing our flaws. As a native and lifelong resident of rural West Plains, I love my hometown. We are a generous, caring community with so much going for us. Maybe I'm overstating the problems when there are many positive points to be made, but we need to do better. And I know we can do better. I'm confident we will do better.

It's a rough stretch, but we'll get through it. Together.

Project 25

While the year is fresh and positive change is on the minds of many, now seems like the time to start working on some of the local solutions which are being discussed more and more by many in recent days. As a step forward, I propose a firming up of the “Project 25” idea suggested in December. The concept is to start a tradition of marking the 25th day of each month (or somewhere thereabouts as we might do with the observance of Christmas activities in December) as a day to do something extra-nice for someone, give a gift to someone in need, to volunteer somewhere or otherwise make an effort to have a positive impact on the community. Here are a couple of ideas to start.

After reading the initial post, my friend Michelle Cox who is an educator said, “I am the sponsor for a (school-based) service organization. I will present to the students the idea of doing a service project every month around the 25th. Simple things but hopefully will make a difference.”

My friend Connie Schachel, originally from Wisconsin, now living in Pomona, Mo., offers another idea. “Back 'north' when I was still a (member of a particular service organization), our club, along with the local building trades organizations sponsored Christmas in July. Residents could contact the city's social services department and fill out a request form and from these forms, a dozen projects would be chosen.

“The tradesmen headed each crew and volunteers from my club and other service clubs would spend the day doing service. We built wheel chair ramps, fixed crumbling porches, painted entire homes, replaced windows, even patched roofs. (A local beverage) distributor sent delivery vans around to the project site with soft drinks and (local pizza) delivery drivers brought pizza to feed the crews. It was astonishing what we could accomplish in one day by working together. Eventually we changed the date to April – Christmas in April – simply because it was too hot in July to be out working all day.”

Connie said there is a national organization associated with the concept, originally called “Christmas in April,” now rebuildingtogether.org, and there are several towns across the country which take part in Christmas in April activities. Can our individual communities take on such projects, maybe on a small scale to start? There are certainly many homes in the community where I live which could use some rehab.

I know many of us are busy, but civic and service organizations, church groups, Sunday School classes, business owners, what do you say? Even if we're not part of a group which might take on a bigger project, individually let's challenge ourselves on January 25 to take a few minutes and do something mindfully kind above and beyond what we might ordinarily do for someone else or for the greater good. There are so many possibilities and ways to make a difference. Doesn't it seem like an ongoing way to keep alive the spirit of good will brought to the world by the birth of Jesus?

Community Solutions

I continue to be amazed at the behavior in Washington DC of the 'Christian-values' members of Congress and how some still try to convince me we're a Christian nation. Compassion, love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (the fruits of the Spirit to be displayed by followers of Christ) are in short supply in the federal government. I don't even mean in the policies they're promoting, I mean in their everyday interactions with each other. What we see is plenty of hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy which are just some of the things not meant to be practiced by those who hope to "inherit the kingdom of God." (See Galatians chapter 5.) One might presume such deplorable behavior also wouldn't be part of a 'shining city upon a hill' which is the United States' alleged calling card. Christian nation, indeed.

Whatever happens in Washington DC – or doesn't happen – we would do well to recognize that local solutions can help turn our country from the path it's on. We can abandon the example we're seeing in Washington and make our own way forward. Communities working together is ultimately our best and greatest hope.

The second chapter of the book of Acts gives an outline of how this looked in the early Church. “All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts.” (verses 44-46)

What could this kind of community living look like today? Simple steps can get us going in the right direction. “Shopping local,” supporting locally owned businesses could play an integral part. Online shopping via the Internet is convenient, but it's helping to wreck local economies. We need to spend our money where it can be kept circulating in the area economy, providing income for local business owners and their employees. Growing our own food or knowing our growers is another important part of living in community and growing our own businesses, too, creating jobs, manufacturing the things we need and want within the local region when possible. Forming co-ops for farmers and artisans, bartering, sharing and connecting with our neighbors are all just the beginning of how day-to-day living could be improved.

We've been led to believe it's impossible for communities to be more self-sufficient, but not so many years ago that's how we all lived. Local choices exist, more need to be created and those choices are crucial. Local solutions are also about all of us taking responsibility and helping to care for those in need in our own communities while contributing time and resources to build strong families along with more education and job opportunities. Other things to concentrate can include apprenticeships, child-care co-ops, mentoring young people so they can break free from generational cycles of poverty, and much more.

The future of our country is worth working for, but we must face the struggle with respect for others, integrity and a sense of responsibility for doing what is right. Because in the midst of the fight, we must not lose the heart and soul of what made our nation great and how Jesus called us to live. Our so-called leaders need to see a citizenry being civil to one another and working together in spite of differences.

Want to see change? It's time for us to be that change. It's how we can get through these rough times with hope for good things ahead. Have courage. Be kind to others but also question authority and hold those in power accountable for their actions. Just because I believe it's up to individuals to improve their own communities, it doesn't mean I'm ready to let Congress off the hook. They should be ashamed for their behavior, and we should demand better.

What Does Rebellion Look Like?

Two things to start:
1. Speaking out against injustice was at the heart of the message of Jesus.
2. Jesus openly promoted abiding by the law of the land, but subversively he worked to change the rules.

When people are treated unjustly/unfairly because of their station in life, when those who have plenty refuse to share with those who don't have enough and when those who use dishonest means to swindle others or in some way try to obtain personal gain, it is safe to say that Jesus is not pleased.

When he turned over the tables of the moneychangers in the temple and drove them out, it was because they were buying and selling in a place where such activity should not have been going on, and they were cheating those who came to worship. They were charging more to change money (from one currency to another) than the law allowed and they were selling sacrificial animals at more than the going rate. Jesus drove them out, at a basic level, because of greed and injustice.

You might say that Jesus was taking the law into his own hands, thereby giving his followers permission to do the same, but it is the context which is important. The moneychangers were defiling the sanctity of the house of God, and I have read some accounts that indicate the high priest at the temple would have been taking a cut of profits. Jesus is consistently seen to be openly angry throughout the New Testament at the religious people, the 'church people,' of his day, those who said one thing and did another, those who used God as an excuse to promote their own will, those who turned their backs on 'the least of these.'

It was within his authority to deal openly with those matters. Now it is time for all of us who are his disciples to hold houses of worship accountable for what they're doing (or not doing). For example, if churches want to promote politics, that's fine. Let them lose their nonprofit status. The non-charitable activities within the church should not be exempt.

Jesus expressed anger toward religious hypocrites, but his very existence was in opposition to Caesar because Caesar was considered to be divine by, well, mostly Caesar and everyone who wanted to stay alive/unharmed or who wanted to benefit materially from being in his favor.

Jesus lived within the realm of the ruling authorities of the day (Caesar and his representatives). While he was alive, the Jews in Israel were living under Roman occupation. The debt, impoverishment and hunger Jesus addressed in his teachings were a direct result of the policies of Caesar, including his over-taxation of the poor which led to the literal enslavement of many because of their indebtedness. 

What is recorded from the teachings of Jesus would seem to indicate he didn't care so much about the corruption of the Romans -- there was plenty of it -- as he did about the corruption of those who claimed to be religious. Thus came his oft-quoted command to "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's." But I believe that was only part of the picture. 

Jesus did not promote open rebellion, but clearly he was a threat to not only the religious leaders, but to the government. (There are many things in the New Testament viewed from our modern thinking which seem passive that are far more subversive than we've been taught in church through the years.) Remember, the Jewish hierarchy and Pontius Pilate representing Rome, teamed up to crucify Jesus. Pilate claims to have washed his hands in the death of Jesus, but he was the only one with real earthly power in the matter, so it would not have happened without his consent. 

Out of his great love for justice for all of humanity, Jesus was a revolutionary. He rebelled against 'the system' (religion, government, society's standards) there's no way to deny it. 

This is a much bigger topic than can be addressed in a short blog and all of it is not to get too deeply into the theology of the matter. It is to say that the kind of rebellion which follows closely to what Jesus taught is for religion to be pure and unadulterated -- without hypocrisy, always acting in love for the betterment of all -- and for believers to work cleverly and peacefully from within the system to change the system. It is the way forward which brings lasting and satisfying success.  

Demonizing any group because of the actions of few, promoting violence or being angry to the point of causing strife which leads to acts of evil are not paths to the kind of change which Jesus was born to bring. Jesus made it clear that we all matter and at the core of our being, we are all the same. When we allow ourselves to be divided into categories and start turning on one another, the spirit of Caesar wins. Working to make sure that doesn't happen should be the ultimate goal of us all.