Charity and Justice 

by Ali McHodgins
 

            As a Global Studies student at Azusa Pacific University, the main theme that I have learned is to approach different cultures and people with an anthropological mindset. We should come into their community having shed off our own cultural mindset the best we can in order to learn their way of life without passing much judgment. This practice creates a mindset different from the norm about how we should do ministry around the world. Anthropological ministry goes into a place hoping to learn and become a part of that people’s way of life. The anthropologist learns it, embraces it, and works to not impose their own cultural ways on the native peoples in order to do the least amount of damage.

For example, the average mission’s organization will go into a community, conclude what they, as outsiders, think the people need, and then go to work on that project without much consultation with the natives. The anthropologist mission’s organization, on the other hand, will go into a community, consult the native people extensively on what the people believe are their own community needs, and based on all the responses, they will either help the people fix the problem or will help to organize the people to fix their own problem. The outsider may think the community is in need of more schools, but after talking with the people they may come to find out that what they actually need most is more food. The key factor to this is asking the natives what they think, instead of assuming what they need.

Having learned this extensively throughout my college career, it was finally made real to me when I was given the amazing opportunity to work alongside IESC (the Inland Empire Sponsoring Committee of IAF) and Rev. Bob Linthicum to learn more of how Community Organizing (anthropological ministry) can take place and the benefits of it in the church and on the street.

            The church usually uses the charity approach to serve people outside and inside the church. Charity can be good for the short term, but also damaging because it can create dependency. The approach that the church Bob Linthicum serves as pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Pomona (CA) takes to help people is through community organizing. Their approach, which they called the Iron Rule, was to “never do for people what they can do for themselves.” I found it interesting and intriguing that each Sunday the congregation talked about the many community projects taking place in the Pomona region of which they were a part: the Health Corridor, the stopping of a waste transfer station, the laying off of teachers, and more. Each topic was highlighted, telling the rest of the church what was happening, why action needed to take place, how it was going, and what more could be done.

For example, the proposal to build the 9^th Street Waste Transfer Station was something they were fighting against because it could cause many health hazards to the neighboring community according to the Environmental Impact Report, especially asthma and cancer.  It would mean 600 extra trash truck trips rolling past nine elementary schools each day.  To do something about this problem, the people in the church gathered members and neighbors in the community to fight against the waste transfer station coming into the city. They organized the sending of over 1,000 letters to the city government, and led a citywide action with over 150 present and generating 500 letters. This action is speaking volumes to the non-Christians in the area, as they see that the church really does care about the community.

I really like the approach of community organizing, especially when it is an active role the church is taking. It means that the church is actively out in the community seeking to make its presence and mission known rather than sitting by stagnantly waiting for people to come to it. They are fighting for justice, equality, and opportunity for their people - actions which show Christ’s love the best. Their actions are much like that of the great Martin Luther King Jr. or Gandhi, non-violent struggle against the powers in order to bring change. They are standing up for what they believe is right and noble, rather than taking the submissive approach that many of America’s churches are taking in current issues.

As a part of the internship with IESC, I attended a Pastors Conference IESC sponsored, which taught pastors and leaders of many churches to build their ministry on the Iron Rule and come into it agenda-less. One of the workshops started out with the idea of Shalom and how to work for it in each church’s city, then presented the Iron Rule, and ended with the biblical example of Nehemiah. Some of the pastors were a little hesitant with the approach and the rule. I could tell they had never thought of the consequences of the limitations of traditional charity, nor had they thought about doing ministry in this way. It seemed like something that would be totally separate from the church’s role. They probably thought about the verses that say to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and help the poor and took them literally as us doing it for them. Never had they thought about being able to do all this by organizing the people to actually fix their own problem. As the old Chinese proverb puts it, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” To the still unsure, the presenter said: “there is a profound difference between asking – ‘what can I do for you’ versus ‘what’s the problem, and how can we work through it together?’”

For the internship, we met with Bob Linthicum a couple of times to learn more about Community Organizing and to debrief what we had done, observed, and learned in the weeks prior to meeting. We were instructed to read parts of his book, Building A People of Power (Waynesboro, GA.: Authentic Press/World Vision Press, 2005) which was informative in the process of how to do community organizing. Within these months, the main focus and theme was individual meetings (one-on-ones). We learned the benefit of individual meetings – building community relationships, trust, and listening for what the perceived need, fear, or issue is in that community. This, we learned, was essential to organizing. One can’t organize for change without a focus and without people. In between the meetings we were instructed to practice this art form, in order to be comfortable for real future meetings in community organization. I enjoyed learning all of this, because it broke down the complexity and overwhelming nature of organizing. 

This internship has given me a new perspective about community organizing, especially from a Christian perspective. It has made the things that the legends – Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Nelson Mandela – did seem more doable.  With hope, effort, patience, perseverance, organization, non-violence and support, change can be realized. I am not as overwhelmed by the idea of organizing. Though I doubted it before, I now believe that it is something that I can do -  that anyone can do. I now desire to be a part of a big effort toward change in the near future, to fight the powers that be. I do not want to allow injustice, oppression, and marginalization to take place, but to stand up for what is right. I also desire to make God known in the world through this – to make it known that He is an active God, working in and through each community. Overall this was a great experience that left me wanting to learn, know, and do more.

Executive summary:

Community organizing is an approach that focuses on meeting peoples’ needs by organizing people together to create change. Many churches have used the traditional method of charity, but are not working for substantive change in their community. I believe that when the church uses community organizing as a tool, they actively get to know their neighborhood, to make their presence known, and are able to fight for the justice of the people – showing Christ’s love through their actions. This internship has given me a new perspective about community organizing, especially from a Christian perspective. I am not as overwhelmed by the idea of organizing. Though I doubted it before, I now believe that it is something that I can do - that anyone can do. I now desire to be a part of a big effort toward change in the near future; to fight the powers that be. I want to not allow injustice, oppression, and marginalization to take place, but to stand up for what is right. I also desire to make God known in the world through this – to make it known that He is an active God, working in and through each community. Overall this was a great experience that left me wanting to learn, know, and do more.

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