Statement with sign on....

INTERNATIONAL SANCTUARY STATEMENT, November 30 2016

CALL FOR ENDORSERS:

principles of sanctuary in response to the global escalaton of displacement

We express our deep concern for the well-being of the refugee children, families and all migrants

currently arriving at our borders, as well as those struggling to live within our borders. In response to

the increased numbers of people around the world who are being forced to leave their home countries,

and the simultaneous increase in punitve enforcement in many receiving countries, we afrm the

following principles to guide and inspire our eforts to respond:



Compassionate Response:

We care deeply about refugee children, families and all migrants,

and we urge our countries to have open arms to protect them and preserve their human

dignity. We reject detenton of migrants as a violaton of human rights and dignity.



Due Process:

We advocate for fair and tmely legal proceedings,

competent legal

representaton,

and due process for children, asylum seekers, and all migrants.



Family Unity:

We uphold and respect the unit

y of families as a basic human right.



Restoratve Justce:

We desire revitalizaton and healing of our borderlands, not militarizaton.

The only long-term soluton is a holistc approach that prioritzes safety and opportunity for

migrants and addresses root causes.



Civil Initatve:

As long as our governments are not adequately addressing these huma

nitarian

crises, citzens have the right and responsibility to respond with an approach that follows the

mandat

e to provide sanctuary when needed and, above all, to love our neighbours.

Based on these principles, we covenant with one another to work together for just and humane

response to all migrants both at our borders and within our countries. We call on our governme

nts, and

the governments of all countries receiving migrants in response to the current and ongoing

internatonal humanitarian and refugee crisis

to embrace these principles.

Individual Signers:



Hanns Thomä, Asyl in der Kirche (Asylum in Church), Berlin, Germany,

hari.thomae@t-online.de



Rev. John Fyfe, No More Deaths, Arizona,

jffe666@aol.com



Rick Uford-Chase, co-moderator, rresbyterian reace Fellowship,

rickufordchase@gmail.com



Rev. Dr. Robert L. Brashear, rastor, West rark rresbyterian Church,

rlbrashear@gmail.com



Susan Smith, Community of Living Traditons at Stony roint Center, Muslim reace Fellowship,

susanhsmithmsed@gmail.com



Ulrich Sonn, Internatonaler Versoehnungsbund-Deutscher Zweig, Internatonal Fellowship of

ReconciliatonnGerman Branch,

ulisonn1@gmail.com

Organizatonal Endorsers:



Asylum in Church, Germany



No More Deaths, Arizona



Community of Living Traditons



rresbyterian Church USA

To endorse these principles as an individual or an organizaton, please email one of the above signers.

Online interface coming soon! 

Fortress Europe and USA: Migration and Justice

11/22

Fortress Europe and USA

On Tuesday, November 22nd, we gathered at Heilege-Kreuz Kirche for an evening devoted to just migration, "Festung: Europa und USA" (Fortress Europe and USA) (.http://www.festung-europa-usa.de) The main concern of the evening was to develop broader support for a joint statement on the issue developed by a work group from Germany and the United States which has since been officially approved by the Presbyterian Church (USA) meeting in Portland, Oregon in 2016.  We are specifically now seeking the approval of the Evangelical Synod of Berlin-Brandenberg.  The evening was intended intended to not only give background on the statement but to ring an update to the current situation. 

The panel

The panel

included Juergen Quandt, former Pastor of Heilege-Kreuz Kirche;

Juergen Quandt

Ute Gniewoss, current Heilege-Kreuz Kirche; Ulrike Trautwein, Vice Bishop of the  Synod of Berlin-Brandenberg; Asyl worker Bernard Fricke and H-P Buschheur of Sea Eye and myself, Robert Brashear.  Uli Sonn of the Fellowship of Reconciliation of Reconciliation

Uli Sonn

also participated and the  event  was moderated by Hans Thomae, former staf responsible for Migration and Integration of the EKBO.

The evening began with welcomes and then a video from No Mas Muertos in Arizona, The Desert Walkers. (https://vimeo.com/201505353)

The update was chilling. The once open and welcoming policy of Germany has changed radically. Asylum seekers are sent back to the first safe place of entry, but when that is a country lile Greece that automatically ships people  back, how can that be safe?  We saw photographs of Belarusian children turned away awaiting deportation that wee disturbingly reminiscent of photographs from the 1930's. We learned of countries flagrantly ignoring their EU agreed obligations and of the millions sent by the EU to Libya to stop people from coming north across the Mediterranean. Sea Eye showed us photos of the  ill equipped overburdened rafts used by people to cross the Mediterranean and  of their   efforts to provide just first level humanitarian assistance like life vests, technically forbidden to "pull people from the sea."  We also heard a moving story of an anti-immigration boat technician who got engaged and changed to being now  committed to  rescue. 

By the evening's end, The  Bishop had agreed to advocate to her Pastors to support the statement. Amy Dalton and Susan Smith representing the Community of Living Traditions of Stony Point, New York, quickly used their organizing skills to call together those who wanted to further the discussion and especially to share their experiences in multi faith organizing.  

A good night

Amy, Susan and Uli

Following is my presentation:

In my presentation, I want to share with you  something of the origins of the  statement  we are exploring this evening and also some uodate on the current  the current situation on the US-Mexico border, the place which has so much  inspired our work together.

The origins of our joint statement go back to a meeting of visiting New York City clergy with Church Asylum workers here at Heilege-
Kreuz Church.  As we heard the stories of how their work had begun in response to Palestinian  refugees fleeing the civil war in Lebanon, we noticed the similarities between that work and work going on at the same time (1980’s) on the Arizona-Mexico borders with Central American refugees. The response was that was the inspiration for the Church Asyl work in Berlin.

The idea quickly developed that bringing together asylum workers  from the US and Germany to share experiences could be helpful to both.   A grant was secured and it was arranged to bring the workers from Germany to the US for a visit with their colleagues and then to bring the US workers to Europe, especially places like Malta where “border” issues are so dramatically visible. The colleagues were able to see first hand the realities  of the situation on our borders and the similarities  of the life threatening  realities of the Sonoran desert and Mediterranean Sea. This was the beginning  of our work together. 

Robert Brashear and PC(USA) World Mission  rep Burhardt Paetzold

In 2015 with a new crisis reality globally of migrants and refugees, with more people in motion globally than any other time in history, (so well documented by AI Wei Wei’s ‘Human Flow”) we renewed our work together and the statement that resulted was passed unanimously by the Presbyterian Church (USA) in 2016. 

My first visit to the border was in the 1980’s when Salvadoran  and Guatemalan refugees were crossing the US border. Despite the fact that both countries were "killing fields,"the US  government refused to recognize  them as refugees and the Sanctuary movement was born. I visited with refugees in a Mexican prision in Laredo and in an amazing coincidence met a man I had first met years earlier in a prison in El Salvador. The Sanctuary movement had begun when my friend John Fife simply answered,. At the door was a Salvadoran refugee. Sanctuary was offered and a movement begun..Soon a network of over 100 churches was created to help transport and protect refugees. He would be harassed by the government, even by agents infiltrating Bible Studies,  and was  ultimately convicted of violating immigration. laws and sentenced to 5 years probation. 

This original movement was the inspiration  for the’New Sanctuary” movement that has arisen in the US to provide shelter and security for refugees. Even whole cities like New York have declared themselves to be “Sanctuary Cities,” promising not to report persons without documentation who live and work in the city and use city services . Even in the face of President Trump's threat to  bock aid to the cities. 

Years later, I would  return to see the work of my friends along the border. I would see the imposing wall, so reminiscent of  the wall of separation between Israel and Palestine, that cuts through the city of Laredo. The towers on the US side with bright lights that shine down into Mexican homes. The raked sand on the US side to detect footprints. On the Mexican side, the US factories  and manufacturing facilities built there under provisions of the North American Free Trade (NAFTA) agreement, drawing people north, and the cardboard and scrap wood "shanty" towns that spring up virtually overnight. The shelters and comedores (soup kitchens) set up for detainees. 

The US government  policy of forcing people to the most dangerous parts of the desert has deadly consequences. Since 1982, official Border Patrol statistics report 6915 corpses found on the Mexico-Arizona border. The Pima County Medical Examiner's office says that this is "under reporting" and in their office …among four in border counties ..alone reports since 2002, an average of 170 corpses a year. A hospital official in Tucson says the medical health situation is “equivalent to having a passenger plane crash jn Tucson every year..”

There is a courageous network of ngo’s engaged in humanitarian work along the border. 

Humane Borders , e.g., provides 550 gallon (c. 1990 liters)  water storage containers. Water jugs are marked and placed where they will be safe. They also provide much needed medical supplies to desperately underresourced health workers on the Mexican side of the border.

Samaritans visit  people who have been apprehended and sent to detention centers to make sure that their rights are protected and to help them contact family. 

The Kino Border Initiative has set up shelters for deportees on the Mexican side. 

No Mas Metros (No More Deaths) provides a network of voluntary humanitarian work from  providing water to mapping travel routes of migrants, now with over 4800 kilometers of trails mapped. Most important is the emergency medical tent near Arivaca, Arizona where medical professionals, students and retirees provide first level medical care for migrants. Their  life saving work has now been interfered with by the Trump adminstration.

After years of a “positive working relationship” with the Border Patrol, a change has taken place. The Border Patrol, after tracking four migrants by helicopter to the medical tent, sent a team of 30 agents to raid  the camp and arrest the migrants. The fear  now is that if the tent is no longer considered “safe,” migrants  will not come to the tent and more lives will be lost in a desert where temperatures can reach over 42’ c.

This reality has impact on US citizens as well. The current situation has turned towns like Arivaca, 11 miles from the border, into virtual police states. The government has created what the American Civil Liberties Union describes as a “100 mile constitution free zone”, i.e., within 161 kilometers  of the border, border patrols can function without regard to normal civil liberties, as if it were a port of entry. In Arivaca, e.g., residents must show i.ds to enter or leave the the town. Anyone fitting a definition of “reasonable suspicion” can be stopped and subjected to comprehensive search. And data shows that Hispanic citizens of Arivaca are 26 more times as likely to be stopped as whites. One resident has described it “like being a Palestinian trying to enter Israel from the West Bank.” In essence, The whole Town of Arvaca has been deemed “suspicious.”

The human cost is tragic. In Buenos Aires, I met a mother of two who had lived  in New Jersey for 22 years who had returned to Argentina for a medical procedure. Her attempt  to leave from Buenos Aires had been blocked so she travelled 8900 k to the US-Mexcio border and was stopped by US officials and sent back to Buenos Aires where she had not lived in decades and had no family. A church  is now providing her shelter and trying to find a way to help her quest to  return her children.

As one of his first acts, President Trump pardoned Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio who had been convicted  of ignoring court orders and enforcing a policy of detaining Hispanics “on suspicion” in what the court descorbed as “racist and illegal.” And what our  president described as “heroic.”

Walls will not stop migrants. A sign I saw in Hamburg read ‘If you don’t like migrants, stop creating them.” Our South American colleagues in refugee and migrant work are  very clear that it is the global policies of the US and Western Europe that create migrants and our refusal to welcome them is dishonest and immoral.

For those of us who are inspired by our faith, the Bible is clear from the Old Testament on..the stranger at our gate is to be treated as one of us. From the book of Exodus, Exodus 23:9 
“You shall not oppress a sojourner. You know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt" to Hebrews, 13:1-2 
Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.  The message is the same. 

This statement is a step in that direction. Let is work together for more just migration policies world wide.

And finally, here is the text of the joint statement:

From the borders of Europe to the USA: 
principles of sanctuary in response to the global escalation of displacement
June 2016

We, religious leaders and humanitarian groups from the European Union and the United States, who have practiced migrant and refugee hospitality for decades, express our deep concern for the well-being of the refugee children, families and all migrants currently arriving at the borders of Europe and the United States, as well as those struggling to live within our borders. In response to the increased numbers of people around the world who are being forced to leave their home countries, and the simultaneous increase in punitive enforcement in many receiving countries, our communities are working hard to support those in need with basic survival aid. But what is needed goes far beyond aid. What we desire is justice based on a recognition of the fundamental unity and interdependence of the human family.

Both in Europe and in the southern United States, the root causes of these migration trends include the economic and political priorities of the Global North. The wars, economic upheaval, and climate disasters befalling peoples of the Global South are more often than not driven by decisions and policies set in motion by the wealthiest nations in the world. As residents of these wealthy nations, our efforts to aid these migrants are carried out in recognition of this reality — in recognition of our role in their suffering — and in service of the “web of interdependence” which Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of. We know that our ability to live truly dignified lives is bound up in their ability to do the same.

In an ideal situation, it is the responsibility of our governments to respond to these needs — and some governmental response has indeed taken place. The recent attention on the plight of refugee children and families arriving at the borders of Europe and the Mediterranean has spurred interest and compassion across the world. This spotlight on the European refugee crisis is similar to that of the Central American refugee crisis that received attention in the summer of 2014. Unfortunately, when the immediate flurry of attention wanes, we have seen how policymakers use such crises to promote fear-based strategies to detain and deter migrants, and to further the militarization of our border regions. At the grassroots, this is a tragedy. At the grassroots, we need living compassion much longer than the press interest lasts. These transit and migration points into Europe and the US have been, and undoubtedly will continue to be, protracted humanitarian crises as long as the strategy of deterrence prevails with a border enforcement-only approach. We yearn for a new, restorative and compassionate response to these global humanitarian crises of mass displacement — and it is toward this vision that we continue to act on a day-to-day basis.

We are clergy, academics and leaders of faith-based organizations who have worked in Europe and the United States to protect refugee children, families and all migrants, and to defend their human rights. We have been in relationship with one another for three decades since declaring sanctuary for refugees threatened with deportation from the U.S. and Germany. We have exchanged delegations to witness the work being done by faith-based organizations on the Southwest border of the U.S. and in Malta, Germany and Italy. Now we join together because of the common crises of alarmingly increased numbers of people being forced by war and economic upheaval to flee the Middle East and Africa, and the equally alarming increased numbers of people fleeing drug wars, poverty, and gang violence in Central America and Mexico. We join in solidarity with these migrants and with one another in faith, to uphold the human rights of all and the mandates of our faiths.

The following principles (further elaborated below) unite and embolden us to work together toward these ends at the borders of the US and Europe:
• Compassionate Response: We care deeply about these refugee children, families and all migrants, and we urge our countries to have open arms to protect them and preserve their human dignity. We reject detention of migrants as a violation of human rights and dignity.
• Due Process: We advocate for fair and timely legal proceedings, competent legal representation, and due process for children, asylum seekers, and all migrants.
• Family Unity: We uphold and respect the unity of families as a basic human right.
• Restorative Justice: We desire revitalization and healing of our borderlands, not militarization. The only long-term solution is a holistic approach that prioritizes safety and opportunity for these migrants and addresses root causes.
• Civil Initiative: As long as our governments are not adequately addressing these humanitarian crises, citizens have the right and responsibility to respond with an approach that follows the mandate to provide sanctuary when needed and, above all, to love our neighbours. 

Based on these principles, we covenant with one another to work together for just and humane response to all migrants both at our borders and within our countries.

We ask our allies and supporters across Europe, the United States, and beyond to join us in this covenant, and in insisting that the above policies and principles serve as the basis for all countries receiving migrants in response to the current and ongoing international humanitarian and refugee crisis.

Church in Asylum, Germany
No More Deaths, Arizona 

----------------------

What these principles mean to us:

Compassionate Response: We care deeply about these refugee children, families and all migrants, and we urge our countries to have open arms to protect them and preserve their human dignity. We reject detention of migrants as a violation of human rights and dignity. Entering a country without documentation is not a crime if a refugee asks for asylum — the seeking of asylum should not be criminalized, and refugees should never be detained in prison-like conditions. In the US we oppose the proliferation of immigration detention centers maintained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and private prison corporations to hold captive immigrant men, women, and children. These detention centers are filled through national legislation mandating that 34,000 detention beds be filled at all times. This legislation creates demand for the policing and criminalization of immigrants for corporate profit.  The results are devastating as detained individuals are often held far from family and face frequent transfers, impossibly high bonds, a lack of legal resources, and deportation. We are especially concerned by the re-opening of family detention centres, proven to be harmful to the well-being of children and families, and we urge collaboration with community-based centres for shelter. In Europe, some refugees have to stay in detention camps (for example Malta, Poland, Hungary), and others can live in refugee-houses or private homes. The rising numbers of refugees in more and more countries in Europe tend to move to a more restrictive policy against refugees, which leaves us very concerned. Flight is not a crime; refugees should not be detained. This principle stems from the belief that every person who arrives at the borders of Europe and the US has unique and sacred dignity, which is not bestowed by governments or by laws or based upon their wealth or where they or their parents happen to be born.

Due Process: We advocate for fair and timely legal proceedings, competent legal representation, and due process for children, asylum seekers, and all migrants. 
Since the outpouring of support for the Central American and Mexican minors who arrived at the US–Mexico border in the summer of 2013, US Department of Homeland Security has introduced practices designed to expedite mass deportations that offend fundamental principles of due process and endanger mothers and children fleeing extreme violence, according to the CARA Project and Human Rights First. Violations of due process and unreasonable delays in legal proceedings are also rampant in ICE and privately run detention centers throughout the United States. In Europe more and more countries are defined as “sichere Herkunftsländer (ie. safe countries) — including Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Albania, Mazedonia — which means that refugees from there have the most restricted means to apply elsewhere for asylum and almost no chance for acceptance. In Germany there are discussions at the moment to declare Afghanistan a “safe country” — though currently 50% of all Afghani applicants to Germany are accepted for asylum under the Geneva Conventions — because the German government asserts that in some regions of Afghanistan, like Kundus, people are able to live peacefully. This is also happening with several countries in North Africa. In the US, we are also concerned with the due process of enforcement mechanisms such as the criminal prosecutions carried out by Operation Streamline. In Europe, more and more countries are implementing the policy of closing borders, even though it is arguably against EU policy. The EU Commission should challenge those countries, but because it is not seen as a “normal' situation, and because of the prevailing 'culture of intolerance' such actions are condoned. With the trauma that many of the migrants carry and their confusion about the immigration system, they should not have to defend themselves against a system stacked against them. We insist that the principles of due process and legal representation be upheld for these refugee families. We believe the justice system and the immigration system should not be used to criminalize or punish people who have had to migrate to feed, protect or re-join their families, or be used to expedite their removal.

Family Unity: We uphold and respect the unity of families as a basic human right. Many of the children and other migrants arriving at our borders, whether or not they have asylum or protection claims, are trying to unite with their parents or family members. We support this process for traditional nuclear families as well as non-traditional family units. In the US, we oppose the record number of deportations under the Obama Administration, and in Europe we are concerned about the practice of granting humanitarian status, a lower status which does not come with the right to family reunification. We oppose excessive time restrictions on reunification, and practices that link this right to costly monetary fees. We call for immigration policies that promote family unity and prioritize reunification. When families are travelling together, everything must be done to keep them together. We believe people have the right to migrate to sustain their lives and the lives of their families and that they should not have to choose between supporting their family and being with their family.

Restorative Justice: We desire revitalization and healing of our borderlands, not militarization. The residents, indigenous peoples, historical sites and wildlife of our borderlands feel the heavy impact of the migrations funnelled through them and the concentrated enforcement apparatus. We desire healing for all these communities and eco-systems. The plight of these vulnerable should not be used as an excuse to further promote fear of migrants and to militarize our borders. We believe that respect for basic human dignity, human and civil rights, as well as the restoration of environmental protections of public lands, must be prioritized. To achieve this, we must pursue more effective international cooperation. In Europe, the so-called “Dublin System” places the heaviest burden on the countries at the southern borders of Europe. In the southern US, it is the US-Mexico border that bears the burden of the migration from many Central American countries. We envision a system where every country is sharing equal responsibility, regardless of their proximity to the border. We suggest that refugees be registered near the countries from which they have to flee, and then be allowed to enter countries which will process their applications through safe corridors. Countries can decide about the number of refugees they will accept through this system. In Europe, those who are given a refugee status should be allowed to move freely within the EU and to choose the country in which they want to live. In the US, this vision implies cooperation between Canada, the US and Mexico. Refugees must take precedence — this will prevent family separation and deaths. The only long-term solution is a holistic approach that prioritizes safety and opportunity for these migrants and addresses root causes. 

Civil Initiative: As long as our governments are not adequately addressing these humanitarian crises, citizens have the right and responsibility to respond with an approach that follows the mandate to provide sanctuary when needed and, above all, to love our neighbours. While the specific ways we extend support will vary, we are united in our commitment to respond. We seek to understand and educate others on the root causes of migration. We mourn with the families whose loved ones have perished in the Arizona desert and Mediterranean sea or other land borders. We recognize that a border-enforcement approach to the refugee children and families and the ongoing humanitarian crises will lead to more deaths, violence, human rights abuses and human trafficking already faced by vulnerable migrant populations. We urge the creation of transparent independent oversight groups to review customs and immigration officers’ practices and investigate allegations of abuse. We hold the belief that building just relationships with our neighbours should guide our efforts as a community to respond.

On finishing our reading of the Torah

11/27

The final verses of the  Torah

 Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.
Deuteronomy 34:10

Well, we have finished. It took over 2 years,meeting every Monday night working our way through the Torah...the first five books fo the Bible...the Five Books of Moses  ....line by line. Some joined and  others left along the way but an intrepid crew saw it through. It is somewhat embarrassing to say that in over  40 years  of ministry , I've never read all these books  all the way  through. It was quite an adventure. Of course there's the story of Creation and the Patriarchs and the sojourn in Egypt and the Exodus and page after page of intricate descriptions of vestments and worship accoutrements and details of the ark and tons of acacia wood and enumerations of tribes and marching orders and long detailed laws covering every minute detail of life from eating to sex. 

Russ, Leila, Dion, and Marsha

The value of reading every word is allowing your head to swim. To get lost in the dance of detail. To ponder the unanswerable question as to why they wrote this book  this way when it was written centuries later to create a mythic history for a created people. Perhaps to convince a people to return to a land from which they had been taken away and from a land in which they ad now become comfortable. We  can understand it  as royal propaganda from the Solomon era empire. And we can see as we read the ongoing tension between what Wes Howard-Brook has called the two religions of the Bible, the religion of Covenant and Creation vs. the  religion of Empire. It's all there.

In the final chapters, we read Moses' farewell, And God's final words a  interaction  with Moses. Marsha points  out that after all Moses has gone through, after all he has done for God, it seems unfair for the sake of one relatively  minor  transgression (or even a big one) to not to be allowed to enter the Promised land. To have to be satisfied with just seeing it from the mountain top.

And it's easy to remember the words of Dr.KIng before his  assassination: 

Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!

There is something oh so common about getting a glimpse of the promised land and not being able to get there...

And we read of Moses' death and burial  in a place where no one would know...so it wouldn't become a shrine or a place  of pilgrimage or a place of violent contention like the tomb of the patriarchs in Hebron,. He belongs to the  mountains.

In the end, what have we learned from our journey?
1. We do not take this journey alone. It's not about rugged individualism and self-made men  and women. No Ayn Rand Atlas Shrigging. It's about community. And our interrelatedness and mutual accountability and obligation. I remembered Native American friends in Oklahoma talking about how hard it was to  adjust to white education where "being better than.." was encouraged instead of everyone helping each other. The life  of a faith community is a team sport.

2. In our communities, there is an absolute obligation to protect and defend "the widow, the orphan and the stranger at your gate..". That obligation is woven into the very fabric of our scripture, it's in the DNA of our faith. To ignore that is to deny how we were created. And the story is clear...the society that does his will be woven together tightly, the ones that do not will be weak and divided and vulnerable and will be easily taken over. And exiled. The warning should be clear.

3. The experience of the journey, of life itself, is inherently and unavoidably tragic. It doesn't matter if it makes sense or not, fair or not. It just is. As Rubem Alves has said, we need to e able to embrace life  in all its perplexity, paradox but most of all, profound  beauty.

4. Though we may not get to the Promised land, like Moses -- and Dr. King-- we know it's there. And  that what we do now helps us all move a little closer. And we can take comfort.. and even joy... in that knowledge. 

On Simchat Torah, our Jewish neighbors finish the last words of The Torah then open the scroll to the beginning  and start all over again. It's an unbroken cycle. The journey continues. And we are part of it. 

With thanks for the life and witness of Philip Newell

11/25

Philip Newell

I  got the news while standing in the security line in the Schoenfeld Airport in Berlin. My mentor and friend Philip Newell was dead at age 90. Objectively speaking, I probably learned more from Philip than anyone else in my life. Memories and sadness all at once.

Philip’s invaluable role as part of the logistical infrastructure of the Civil Rights movement and his quiet pastoral support of key leaders will likely be documented elsewhere. He could be the trusted friend of these leaders  because he never sought the spotlight for himself. When asked about those days, he would smile and say, "If everyone who said they were on the Pettit Bridge with Dr.King had actually been on it, it would have collapsed.”

When I first met him, 40 years ago,  as a young urban minister in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Philip was one of a vanishing, well, vanished, era of church bureaucrats who saw their work as seeing what was going on in church in the world and providing all the help possible. As Philip said it, “ If God wants something to be done in the world, it is already being done. My job is to find it and bring all the resources I can.” And he did. He knew how to find resources— and also preserve them so that they would be there for those who were really doing something. 

I was amazed how as a consultant, he could quickly gain the confidence of an interviewee and discover what mattered to them, what motivated them  and what they would commit to. ( That was a skill that worked equally well with restaurant servers. And there’s this: more than once on a trip we'd go to a sports arena and go to the Will Call window and ask for seats left for “Father Newell”. And look incredulous when there were none. Somehow seats always showed up. )

He would look at you and say ” I'm looking for the kind who of person who wakes up in the morning, hits the shower and says to himself ‘what can I do today to move the mission  for Gods people in this city forward?’ Are you that kind of person?” And you very much wanted to be and have him believe you were.

He was the church’s connection to organized labor and the network of community organizers around the country. He was equally at home with John Calvin and Karl Marx and a believer in the Gospel of Sol (Alinsky.) He taught me, as per Paulo Freire, that our call is to help others become “the subjects of their own history.” He introduced me to Ignacio Silone and Bread and Wine. As he read the passage where the father grieves his son just murdered by the fascists, Philip would choke up, tears in his voice and eyes.

He enjoyed a good meal, a good glass of wine and a good cigar. He was particular. The first time I ordered him a Corona and it arrived with a lime in it, he was very clear: “ I don’t want damned fruit in my beer,” He was comfortable at all levels of society. He had the height, the voice, the mien, to be a tall steeple preacher, but no desire. He preferred the small struggling churches, people at the grass roots. His greatest disdain was for those with self-inflated egos who sought the spotlight for themselves. 

He opened the national church to me. Brought me to New York twice, once as an interim consultant and once to the call at West Park that lasted 22 years. And he performed my marriage.  I kept at this work in part because I believe I owed him a debt. 

I learned from him: 

• Never trust liberals. They never count the votes. Which translated into never go into an important meeting without knowing the vote count going in. 
• Leaders are people with followers, it’s that simple. 
• Power is never the problem. The lack of power is. 
• Movements don't last. Organizations do. Organize. 
• In organizing, you can never skip a step. And relationships are everything.
• Organizations that are truly of their community don't depend on grants for their ongoing life, they live by serious money, locally raised.

It was a way of understanding the life of faith  that  shaped my own thinking. Those lessons prove true over and over, in both my successes and failures.

He was not always an easy man. And no stranger to tragedy. But truly  blessed by the  graces of a decades long marriage with Madeline Tram.

He was a man. A mentor. A friend. I loved him. And I will miss him. 

There is a Jewish tradition that the foundations of the world are held in place by a select number of hidden righteous that no one sees or knows. Today there is one less.

Thanks for your life and witness, Philip. RIP

Gettin' Ready

11/12

Good Shepherd Faith sanctuary

Finding myself back at Good Sheoehrd faith again. Here,they don't call it a sermon but a "prompting" with the inherent idea that the congregation will respond...and they always do..so here's the "prompting" from that Sunday...

So it’s Halloween night. I’m in the Village on a fire escape above 6th avenue ready for the parade to begin and as the dancing skeletons come out, I look out …and see... the Village Christmas snow flake lights have been lit up. And I think’WOW. Could they not have waited like 24 hours? I hate to be this kind of guy, but I remember when I was a kid…and not even that long ago…here in New York, it was part of what you looked forward to the day after Thanksgiving…the Christmas decorations  hitting the stores. I remember being downtown  late at night...you'd see them in shop windows, decorating their rees….this right after Halloween business used to really depress me…like no way I could ever be ready for the holidays anyways  and now ...can’t we just have November? 

But in recent years I’ve begun to notice something..not bad for someone who’s been in the business over 40 years…our pre-Christmas time is called Advent…and the last day of the old church year is  Reign of Christ or Christ the King) Sunday. And I now see that lectionary wise,  the last weeks of the old year begin to lean towards Advent…if Advent is about what is to come, if there is  something apocalyptic about Advent…then they’re giving us an Advent run up. This week we’ve got what they call “the little apocalypse of Matthew”….(one of four in the New Testament.) ..so it’s like they’re getting us ready…like they’re turning the lights on….

SO what d we have here in this little apocalypse?  Another one of those Jesus stories that at first glance you go, ok, I’ve got this…but the more you mull it over, it’s like a many faceted gem stone and you begin to realize it’s not so clear after all. We’ve got “wise and foolish “ bridesmaids…5 of each…5 took oil…the others none.  The groom is delayed…they fall asleep..word goes out that he’s coming..the 5 without oil panic…..the prepared ones are asked to share and don’t…the foolish ones run out to buy more..(like where?  A deli? 7-11?  And while they’re out, the groom comes, they go to the banquet and the door is locked…and the groom won’t open the door…and it ends "keep awake, for you know not the day nor the hour”…Simple enough, no?   You don’t know when he’s coming so get ready or you’ll lose out…

BUT…

First of all, why is he delayed?  Was this written to explain Jesus’ not coming back so fast?  Friends, we’re into our 3rd millennium of waiting…can you blame some of us for getting sleepy?

What’s wrong with sharing? Aren’t we supposed to share?

And the shut door….the "I don’t know you…”. I like the Catholics’ purgatory better than that…there’s at least chance there..I saw a painting in the Lima Cathedral of Mary visiting the souls in purgatory to cheer them up…

See? It’s not so easy…

So clearly we’re supposed to start getting ready..get those boxes of decorations down…make your lists, get shopping list out…Paul Simon’s got it right…

From early in November to the last week of December
I got money matters weighing me down
Oh the music may be merry, but it's only temporary
I know Santa Claus is coming to town
In the days I work my day job, in the nights I work my night
But it all comes down to working man's pay
Getting ready, I'm getting ready, ready for Christmas Day
(Getting ready for Christmas Day
And let me tell you, namely, the undertaker, he's getting ready for your body
Not only that, the jailer he's getting ready for you
Christmas Day. Hmm? And not only the jailer, but the lawyer, the police force
Now getting ready for Christmas Day, and I want you to bear it in mind)
I got a nephew in Iraq it's his third time back
But it's ending up the way it began
With the luck of a beginner he'll be eating turkey dinner
On some mountain top in Pakistan
Getting ready, oh we're getting ready
For the power and the glory
And the story of
Christmas Day
(Getting ready, for Christmas Day
Done made it up in your mind that I'm going, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago
I'm going, on a trip, getting ready, for Christmas Day
But when Christmas come, nobody knows where you'll be
You might ask me. I may be layin' in some lonesome grave
Getting ready, for Christmas Day)
Getting ready, oh we're getting ready
For the power and the glory and the story of the
Christmas Day
Yes, we're getting ready
(Getting ready, ready for your prayers,
"I'm going and see my relatives in a distant land"
Getting ready, getting ready for Christmas Day)
If I could tell my Mom and Dad that the things we never had
Never mattered we were always okay
Getting ready, oh ready, ready for Christmas Day
Ready, getting ready
For the power and the glory and the story of the
Christmas Day

But what does that mean?
There’s a phrase they use these days “Stay WOKE”…it refers to what  you didn’t see and then you  do see the and once you do, things can’t ever  be the same again …

Like the revelatory gate that the Harvey Weinstein story opened up…all the “me too’s”….
A week ort so ago, I saw a ne production of Euripedes ' Trojan Women. The issue at hand is how will the women of Troy survive following the defeat of Troy by the Greeks? The text in powerful and passionate language describes the fate of women in wartime. It is profoundly disturbing to hear how contemporary the words sound. Equally disturbing is the fact that though these words relate to a war time situation, the idea of women as “prizes” and their experience of men could equally be relevant to what we are learning about the experiences of women at the hands of Harvey Weinstein …and others…in the Hollywood establishment. (Which we know is not limited to Hollywood…it’s a cultural problem from the President on…).  And we should know, it’s not about sex, it’s about power...

Once we’ve become “woke” to this, we can’t go back….

After that horrendous shooting in a Texas church, clergy mail boxes were filled with communications former denominations, invitations to webinars on safety and security….what do we need, metal detectors? Armed pastors? Someone suggest4\ed the organist might be the best…we have 4.4 % of the world’s population and own 44% of the guns…one idiot tries to take a bomb on a plane in his shoes and now millions of people are taking their shoes off daily…but how many mass shootings? Can you keep track? And we've still got our shoes on...

So….gettin ready….there was a story I liked…a student once asked his rabbi if it was important to ask for forgivenesss every day. And the  rabbi said, No, only the day before you die…and the student thought and  said but how willI know? And the rabbi smiled…

SO….I think the emphasis is  wrong here…we need KNOWLEDGE, FAITH and LOVE as tool for living on THIS SIDE of ETERNITY,not  tools for trying to gain  entry into it…Take care of living now and you won’t be running out  to 7-11 at midnight…looking for oil

And maybe one more pop culture reference….it's the one  year anniversary of Leonard Cohen’s death…..as part of his last words to say top us, he said this  about things not being perfect...

Ring the bells (ring the bells) that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything (there is a crack in everything)
That's how the light gets in

Let those with ears  to hear….

Leonards's words got the most response. And much  of the congregation  still seems dumbfounded by what to make of our current president. As are we all...

At Good Shepherd Faith

(full lyrics)

The birds they sang
At the break of day
Start again
I heard them say
Don't dwell on what
Has passed away
Or what is yet to be
Yeah the wars they will
Be fought again
The holy dove
She will be caught again
Bought and sold
And bought again
The dove is never free

We asked for signs
The signs were sent
The birth betrayed
The marriage spent
Yeah the widowhood
Of every government
Signs for all to see

I can't run no more
With that lawless crowd
While the killers in high places
Say their prayers out loud
But they've summoned, they've summoned up
A thundercloud
And they're going to hear from me

Ring the…

Urban Church, Global City: Parana

10/14/17

Gathering in Parana

Parana, Argentina is the provincial capital of Entre Rios, that land between the Parana and Rio Plate rivers. One of the oldest Argentine cities with  a colonial feel and a still strong manufacturing center as well as a valuable port. Both Parana and its cross river neighbor Santa Fe  have active Waldensian congregations.

We gather at a community house, a kind of an intentional community. 
Pictures of Che Guevara ...still very present on the 50th anniversary of his death, and the ubiquitous Santiago Maldonado are on the walls. 

Che

The community that gathers, though small, is very vibrant and alive.  And diverse. The living room is filled with the sound and energy of playing children, the most we've seen yet. 

Gathering at Parana

There is a good number of young adults. With strong theological and philosophical convictions and a probing interest and curiosity. They challenge both church and society. And several are new to the family and tradition. In planning for the future, it's really important to know what attracted  these young people. Friends, relationships for sure. Old summer camp relationships contribute here as they do elsehwhere. And also the opportunity to be in a faith community with other families with small children.  And the core Waldensian values that seem to connect so well with young, passionate educated people who want to make a difference. And like the similar Flores community,  the Parana worshipping community ,is not burdened by a building and shares  in space use (and mission) with the nearby Methodist Church 

And the night turns into  a good party with food and guitars and songs being shared 

Sharing music

another song

and celebrating the recent ordination  of one of the church's newest pastors.  In typical Argentine style, the party continues into the night....

Celebrating ordination

                                                                        ****

Parana is where we gather for day long  conversation about urban ministry with representatives from all the communities. There were two key questions:
* What are the basic dynamics and demands of urban ministry?
* Given a still overwhelming Roman Catholic majority with a rising tide of Pentecostal churches, what is the unique role of an historic church within the Reformed  tradition?

• 

  Sharing in conversation

  
  

  

  Where do we go next?

To begin to answer these questions, we looked at the current  trends in urban ministry globally, e.g.: 
* The collapse of sustainable rural life due to mono crop farming and international agribusiness and resulting movement to the cities
* The flow of refugees and migrants around the world
* The impact of gentrification
* The conflict between economic austerity  and justice

They  discussed which were relevant to their contexts and which were  not. While gentrification has not had much impact here, on the other hand there is  the phenomenon of shanty towns that is not common in the Global North.   The migrant and refugee issues in South America has historically been an internal one shifting and changing with the politics..

We then  worked further  on context and defined  the unique characteristic  of each congregation.  We sought to discern what the passions were within the communities. Having discovered that needs assessments tend to discourage and disempower, we being by doing a capacities, or assets, assessment. In this we seek  to discover what the unique gifts of of each group are to bring to the unique work to which God calls us.....

Gifts that were discerned included:
* Being a celebrating community
* Willingness to search for meaning
* Serving older people

* Sunday school and work with children
*  Interfaith commitments and involvements
*   Public demonstrations

      *Especially a march against femicide

What would come next would be to agree on projects that would be:

.* Defineable
* Achievable
* Measurable and
*Verifiable

We finished our day of work by breaking bread together.

                                                     #####

Columbus Day has long  been  a controversial subject  in. South America. Whereas in the United States it has been a celebration of Italian culture, in South America it's long been known as el  dia de la raza because the vast majority of South Americans are mestizos, especially poor campisions, who are descendants  of Europe coming to the Americas .  In recent times we have become more aware that in many cases that encounter led to genocide of indigenous peoples so in some places the day has become more a day celebrating their story of courage and survival in the face of hostility and their continuing reality..  Parana has become the location for an annual popular Anti -dia de la Raza fiesta. The Parana fiesta has a unique character in that it consciously recalls and celebrates an all but forgotten and now rediscovered Afro-Argentine community that lived in the very streets where the fiesta takes place. 

Celebrating the indigenous people

Anti-Dia de la Raza fiesta

One of the guitar players in our party was playing  in one of the bands so we all came to downtown to  a sector where a historic blask community once lived, for a celebration of music and dance, candumble drumming and  even hip hop. It was a great way to end our time together. And the Argentina part of my journey. 

Many big thanks to Dennis, Carola, Alfredo and Yani for all their work....

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