When I heard Allison Mitchell speak earlier this year at her workshop “Engaging Homelessness,” I was struck by a portion of her talk entitled “What the Church is doing wrong.” Now, to be clear, Allison is not LDS, as many of our readers are, so she was not referring to what many Mormons consider “THE” church, but rather The Church as in organized Christianity. It was quite interesting to note my reaction to hearing the phrase- I guess I can only describe it as shock. I’m a bit embarrassed to say my gut quivered a bit. Here I was, sitting IN a church, hearing someone talk about what the church is doing wrong? Not a phrase Mormons are used to hearing.
So here are some of the approaches Allison considers unhelpful: preaching ; the “drop and run;” the use of tracts; and other ‘mission trip’-type initiatives fueled by superiority.
Homeless people are often targets of church-sponsored mission excursions. These trips often involve enthusiastic church groups who preach fire and brimstone in order to illicit repentance from the homeless, operating from a Calvinistic world view in which the homeless are that way because of sin or unworthiness. This isn’t far from the impression I’ve gotten from my own co-religionists when the topic has come up at church: you have to work hard to get ahead, don’t drink or you’ll become a wino under the bridge, you’ll be blessed if you do X; implying that everyone who is ‘blessed’ is that way because they made ‘good choices.’ Blessings being predicated upon obedience to the law, and all that.
Allison also warned against the ‘drop-and-run,’ in which food, clothing or other resources are basically ‘left out’ for the homeless like so many feral cats. These initiatives are short term and involve little, if any, humanizing contact- as if the homeless had a contagious disease. She told us of churches that sponsor sporadic ‘mission trips’ in which missionaries or church members hand out tracts and offer to pray with the homeless with out even first asking their names or telling them their own. This isn’t following the Golden Rule, or even following basic manners. People embracing this attitude treat homeless men and women as if they aren’t even worthy of the most basic of human interactions: the introduction. I’d like to explore the theme of the simple introduction in a later post.
For today, I’d like to hear from you what The Church is doing wrong, and if you think any of the things on Allison’s list are so bad. As a lifelong member of the LDS church, I’ve been involved in precious few activities serving the homeless so it seems sort of silly to be talking about what other churches are doing wrong. I’m personally guilty of several of them myself. In fact, the whole Twelve Lunches concept could be considered a ‘drop-and-run.’
Something’s better than nothing…. or is it?
It’s a hard problem. To try to help people without enabling them to continue in a path that might be detrimental to their own progression. It’s not easy to discern, who is needy and who is using the system. Personally, I’m scared when the people (who may or may not be homeless) approach me as I’m loading groceries, or going to the bank. Even when they offer to wash my window and hope for a tip – I have a hard time as a single woman thinking that it’s time to stop and exchange. I live in an urban area. There is not a network that helps you know if the person is actually someone in need in cities the measure people in millions. Frankly, it’s not safe to stop and engage with someone you don’t know.
As a teacher, I spend a lot of time and money on literacy for children and their parents. I’m pretty much sold on the importance of offering education to everyone. So many people are willing to attend English classes or school functions to help their families. Children have so many needs. I know my students well. I know if they need a backpack. I know if they need shoes. I know if their family needs food. Teaching someone to read – is priceless.
I don’t mean to be mean to anyone. I hope if someone is really in need they will seek out the appropriate resources and engage in a way to gain employment and housing. I know the mentally ill may not be able to help themselves. But frankly, I have 100s to serve that I know really need loving counsel and care. If you are scaring me in the parking lot, I’m going to pray you get help if you really need it but I cannot engage because it seems like it might waste resources I know children really need.
God holds us all in His hands. May those in need receive the appropriate help.
Angie, Thanks for your comment and sharing the ways in which you serve. In this column, I don’t want to imply that anyone who isn’t serving the homeless needs to repent to even reevaluate. There are SO many needs in the world to be filled, so many opportunities to do good. Sharing our talents can cause ripples that go on for generations.
Something is definitely better than nothing. For years, I’ve donated to local homeless shelters. Currently, once a week, I visit an area where I meet needy people. Inspired by your free lunch project. I’ve decided to put together bags of essential items (not food since I don’t always meet someone in need). I’m including bottled water, toilet paper, candy, and gloves in winter.
I know it’s not much, but it is something.
I know the LDS Church donates food to the homeless shelters in Utah. I think what churches could do that would be more than drop and run is to teach members to be more compassionate to the less fortunate. The phrase, “There but for the grace of God go I” comes to mind. None of us in good circumstances arrived there on our own.
I think it’s really hard for people to ‘put themselves in another’s shoes.” We just keep congratulating ourselves on all our good choices and hard work. I’ts not easy to see how our life circumstances have worked together with those choices to put us where we are today.
Perhaps we need to give up on this whole prosperity gospel business and make King Benjamin’s “are we not all beggars?” speech our mantra? I hear a lot of poor-people-just-need-to-work-harder, send-the-illegals-home crap at church (and elsewhere in my town and on FB and on FOX news and and and).
Amen. That would be tough to hear on a regular basis. I only get it occasionally, thank goodness. Are there any immigrants in your ward?
No. There’s a Spanish-speaking branch. Everywhere we go here, FOX news is on, though–oil change, car dealership, hair salon, you name it. I also “hear” those kinds of comments here on FB, although I hide FB “friends” that say crap like that. It’s easier to ignore it than take people like that on all the time.
Should be okay to ask this question — so long as we can get past the notion that to question the church is to question God.
But Claire, your thougts here reminded me of Joe Hill’s The Preacher and the Slave. Here’s the first verse + chorus:
Long-haired preachers come out every night,
Try to tell you what’s wrong and what’s right;
But when asked how ’bout something to eat
They will answer in voices so sweet
[Chorus]
You will eat, by and by,
In that glorious land above the sky;
Work and pray, live on hay,
You’ll get pie in the sky when you die
— —
An interesting aside, Joe Hill was executed in a Utah. Wikipedia has this:
“Hill was executed by firing squad on November 19, 1915, and his last word was “Fire!” Just prior to his execution, he had written to Bill Haywood, an IWW leader, saying, “Goodbye Bill. I die like a true blue rebel. Don’t waste any time in mourning. Organize… Could you arrange to have my body hauled to the state line to be buried? I don’t want to be found dead in Utah.””
YES to your first sentence. I think I’m there logically, but was very interested in my gut reaction to the phrase. This was about a year ago, so I’m hoping I’ve progressed since then.
LOVE the lyrics. Off to read up on Joe Hill….
I’ve always thought that serving in shelters and soup kitchens should be the go to service project for youth at church, but then I also really hate making any person a “project”. I’m sure there’s a way to do it that doesn’t reduce the humanity of anyone and teaches the value of personal connection in ANY circumstance, I’m just not sure how to get a trend like that going without direction from “on high”. But I think it would be worthwhile for the church to organize or at least mention more concrete ways to get involved and not just monetarily. I can understand the reason for vague and general advice to care for the less fortunate, but in my experience, the outcome of this is always too little direct contact and effort to sacrifice for what we share. So I just wish it was a higher priority topic in church dialogue.
In my sister’s ward, the YW visited a nursing home one Wednesday a month last year. They really got to know the residents, did Oriental Trading company crafts with them (which the residents apparently LOVED), played Scrabble with them, etc. My sister said it was the favorite thing of many of the YW–and the week they had the best attendance. They even invited some of their school friends, who also regularly came.
They also visited the Hospitality House–a home for families to stay for the day or two preceding the execution of a loved one. I’m guessing that’s an experience those girls (and the leaders) will never forget.
Really uplifting words in President Obama’s memorial speech this week:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20028366-503544.html
One of the things we do wrong is talk of “the world” as if everyone except LDS are basically evil. Even our explanation for the scriptures that refer to the natural man being an enemy to god-until he/she accepts the Gospel.
You may have seen on the news floods in Australa. I own a house right beside the river in Brisbane which was flooded. On Friday we went to see whether we would be able to get to it and see how high the water got. The water came about 700mm above the floor on the second level, so basically everything except things put up high on the second level is destroyed.
We got to the house Friday and there were 6 men from the electricity supply company pulling out damaged furniture and stacking it on the footpath. We were not dressed to work so came back on Saturday. Within 10 minutes of arriving we had 25 people ask if they could help and within 4 hours we had all the furniture fridge, freeezer, beds, and the carpets pulled out and stacked on the footpath for the council to collect. These volunteers then cleaned out most of the mud from both levels. We have gone as far as we can go until the insurance assessor has been.
None of these volunteers were LDS they were “the world” and there were over 60,000 of them spread throughout the flooded areas. If we had been in a Mormon area it would have been a manifestation of great spiritual power. It still was, but from those we despise as “the world”.
“If we had been in a Mormon area it would have been a manifestation of great spiritual power. It still was, but from those we despise as “the world”.”
Wow, Geoff-A, thanks so much for sharing. Welcome to D&S. Best wishes for you and your loved ones as you deal with the aftermath of the floods. Stay safe.
Wow is right. You are right that there’s way too much focus on “the world.” I bore my “testimony” (if you could call it that) about six months ago and said I hated it when people say “the world” and “non-members,” etc. I said that good abounds in the world and that we should embrace goodness and truth, regardless of their source.
Geoff, thanks for sharing. And I echo what Claire said–blessings to you and your family and friends and community members as you weather this storm (literally).
Sorry didn’t want to earn your sympathy, the house is an investment property that is rented and I have insurance so it shouldn’t be a problem.
It was interesting at church today the priesthood were taking details to organise workers (too late). Some members had joined the effort by themselves and like us were impressed with the wonderful spirit of giving and sharing. It really was like a zion society.
It was also revealing that the responses at church varied from one who didn’t need to participate because he paid fast offering, and others who seemed to think it would some how be more noble if it were done under priesthood direction, to others who had been involved and like us were impressed by “our world”. Only a few were willing to agree that we could just join in with the others and didn’t need to be separate, and some how superior.
Appearently some of the members that went out saw it as a missionary opportunity, and took signs saying they were mormons with helping hands.
I saw numerous non member young women, who normally you would expect to be immaculate, covered in mud, helping in any way they could, and young men too, but it was less of a departure from expectation for them, and people of all ages.