easter between the two worlds

Christ is risen indeed!  Ok...now what?  What does that mean exactly?  During Lent, we acknowledge darkness and absence of hope.  The resurrection promise holds that new life, a better world is possible.  It opens the way for radical hope.  Easter worship at Arch St. Pres and BSM represent this claim in two differing ways.

Arch Street Presbyterian has been in the process of revitalization.  We have been building new ministry there in a congregation that was quite dim.  A congregation should never be defined by numbers, but new life is a valued commodity in a congregation void of such.  Therefore, when we had a 50% increase in people in worship, MOSTLY young adult couples, the vision of the resurrection promise became visible.  A church in the business district of the city can become a unique place for worship and mission.  New life can blow through an old place.

BSM is a church community to many of the city's most desolate people.  Holy Week took on such greater depth as it coincided with the annual closing of the 315 S. Homeless Cafe for the spring/summer/fall.  Basically, 300 people throughout the city were put back on the street after temporary housing for winter months came to an end and homeless shelters remained at capacity.  This Easter Sunday, BSM experienced the OPPOSITE of what usual "churches" experience on Easter Sunday.  There were noticeably LESS people in worship!  Although this may have been in large part to an evening service, you can't help but notice the absence of many of the usual Cafe guests.  During the months they stayed at BSM, they had a sense of ownership and empowerment in the place.  This is gone, for now.

This absence on Sunday, despite a wonderfully energetic, exciting, and moving service, was the reminder that the resurrection promise is not an end into itself.  The very poor and destitute people Christ lived among and promised a better world to are now back on the street.  This is a reminder of the stark world we live in and our calling from Christ to serve it faithfully.  The resurrection promise propels us forth to radically live out how Christ calls us to be.

The story goes on.

helpless

"Know what the sin of the Pharisees was?  They didn't take action."

This was an intial reaction to one of the most difficult situations I've found myself in since being in Philadelphia this year.  It happened on a trolley going towards West Philadelphia.  This week, I've been helping with a college group that has given up their spring break to volunteer at BSM and around the city.  The past few days we've been going to a rough elementary school to volunteer.  Stories to come about that experience later...

So anyway, THIS story takes place before we even get to the school today.  We're heading westward on the trolley when all of a sudden we all smell something that assails our nostrils in the worst way possible.  We soon realize that it's coming from a man who just entered the back door of the trolley, not paying the fare.  A group of 4-5 boys sitting in the back of the bus immediately get up and move towards the front.  The old man mumbles something unintelligible, though it sounds like he says something about "hurt my feelings."

After a couple more stops, the driver stops the trolley, stands up, looks towards the back and says "You gots to go!" Snickers erupt from the trolley.  The man continues to mumble, and is defiant about not getting off the trolley.  Another driver who was riding with us gets off the tram, yelling, "you stink" to the man from outside.  Another man on board gets very upset, saying that if the guy doesn't get off, he's going to make him get off.  Someone hails a nearby policeman, at which point the defiant man finally gets off the bus.  The riders hail insults at him as he gets off.  We continue to be glued to our seats, dead silent.

I check in with the group once we get off the trolley.  We're all a bit rattled after the horrible display of hate we just witnessed.  Despite the man's demeanor and appearance, there was NO reason for him to be treated the way he was.  And we felt crummy for not stepping up. We felt like those who passed by the guy attacked by robbers on the side of the road.  We did not take action, did not care for the least of these in that moment.

Situations like these are extremely complex.  A perfect response is impossible.  Intervening can only agitate already unstable people and make situations worse.  If we weren't in such shock, we could have engaged the defiant man and invited him to get off the trolley WITH us, lying down to suffer with those under ridicule and hate.

We're not perfect.  We do the best we can.  This is an unfortunate reminder of our human condition and our need for a deeper hope and love among one another.  Saying the right thing to do is easy.  But making it happen is so much more difficult.  We've all got a long way to go.

Shelter within the SNOWPOCALYPSE

I grew up in Georgia.  When magical white powder appeared from the sky every 2-3 years in a given summer, the city would SHUT DOWN.  We didn't even bother watching the news about school closings because we knew it was a given.  We would gather the next day at whatever hills we could find (In Augusta this usually equated to golf courses), bringing whatever pans and trash lids we had lying around the house (the kneeboard was often the best choice), and careen headfirst down the steepest looking snow covered hill we could find!

During my freshman year of college in South Carolina, we were graced with a very unusual blizzard-turned ice storm that basically froze the entire campus.  Carrying on the good southern tradition of reckless sledding, I joined several guys from my dorm that night for some improv bobsledding.  This equated to a coffee table face down in the middle of the road and a rope tied to a truck.  We would sit 4 deep on the table and get pulled across the road.  All was well until careening towards a road sign threw us off the road and into a ditch, the table busting in half upon impact.

Needless to say, I have always equated snow days with reckless fun, taking advantage of any inclines and slopes around.

Little did I realize that my ONE year spent in the northeast would be the year I would encounter a RECORD snowfall!

Of course, my first instinct is always to go out and make the most of the situation.  Luckily, we had just the slope!

(I didn't make this btw.  Props to whoever did)
Twice I was able to sled down the infamous Rocky Steps.  It wasn't the steepest slope, but it was certainly iconic.  I experienced some wonderful Philadelphians who were partying and sliding down the steps on whatever they could find (sleds, lids, cardboard, air mattresses, skateboards, etc).  I even witnessed a defiant stand against some punks on ATVs who dangerously scaled the steps AS PEOPLE WERE SLEDDING.  Near the top, the drunken masses stood in their way and threw whatever they could at them, forcing them to drive around back towards the bottom in defeat.  Rocky would have been proud.

Here are a few iphone quality pics of our adventure teams:

Several days after the blizzard, the love affair with snow begins to fade.  Having to walk to work over sidewalks that have become solid ice starts to get old.  Being unable to park in many places gets frustrating.  What we get as "days off" in the south are merely "days" in places that expect the snow.

Reality sunk in even deeper when I walked through the midst of the blizzard to get to Broad Street Ministry on Wednesday night.  Although much of the city had shut down, the overnight cafe had remained open for the entirety of that day.  This means that many of the 50-75 homeless guests who stayed over Tuesday night were given a place to stay all day Wednesday and into that following overnight.  The snow I was beginning to see as a nuisance would be a massive issue for those who are stuck out in it all day.  

The cafe system at BSM is part of a larger system all over the city dedicated to providing shelter during the coldest months of the year to the "shelter-resistant" members of society.  This refers to those who are either unable or unwilling to sleep in a homeless shelter (they aren't the safest places and don't always have space for everyone!).  In response to the massive numbers of homeless who were ending up on the streets in the cold weather, a system evolved.  BSM is one of the many hosts of these government funded "cafes" which are set up to basically save lives.

http://www.broadstreetministry.org/programs/shelter315.php

I helped serve dinner and lead Bible study that Wednesday night to people who had for the most part, been in that building all day.  I began to think of the alternative they would be facing if it wasn't for the resolve and creativity of people in the city unwilling to let people suffer.  

We are approaching Lent, the time when many practice "giving something up" for a period of time.  Basically, they are submitting to mild suffering in order to get closer to God.  How about those already suffering?  Is it possible to take on some of their suffering instead of mildly inflicting pain on ourselves? (thanks for the concept DVH)

Where is our resolve and creativity this lenten season?  Are we wasting it all on reckless downhill slopes?

Breaking bread, loving baseball

In case you missed it, the Phillies just won the National League and on Wednesday, will play either the Yankees or Angels in the World Series.  I've never been in the midst of a city where a sports team has had a major win.  I had the exciting opportunity to watch the game last night at BSM, right in center city.  Upon their win, the city came alive as everyone rushed center city and preceded to cause mass chaos.  Although the World Series win is still around the corner and last year's playoff drought busting win was much greater, the experience was still pretty exciting!

Now don't get me wrong, I'm a born and bred Braves fan, which means I will cheer for them till the day I die.  However, I think any true national league fan would agree that come playoff season, whichever team can beat the Yankees is the team to cheer for (save perhaps the mets or marlins)!  Beyond this, there's just something about baseball to cheer for the home team (when they're not playing your team of course).

Now why have I been talking about Baseball for 2 paragraphs?  Because I have witnessed the effects of sports on the homeless community.  Not only is it a source of common conversation, it is also a source of hope for many.  There has been a lot of joy in Philadelphia lately due to the run of the Phillies.  Many of our homeless friends can't stop talking about it.  I had wondered where they have been able to experience these games, only to learn it is by crowding around a stereo or looking into store windows from the street!  This is dedication!

Breaking Bread is a weekly service provided at BSM.  Lunch is served, along with several services not often provided elsewhere.  Today, I assisted guests in our clothing closet, picking out donated items.  Then, I assisted in the therapeutic arts program for the day - decorating pumpkins.  Positive energy carried the day, as our guests helped each other pick out outfits and resort to the days of childhood arts class during the pumpkin decorating (picture below not from the actual event).

So many food and service social programs seem to not give much attention to the mood of their guests.  Today, I witnessed what it means to do so.  People living on the margins carry a LOT with them, literally and figuratively.  Giving the opportunity for conversation and creative expression can go a LONG way to help them feel more human once again and give the positive energy needed to carry the day.  Let us never forget that Jesus was homeless and called us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  Cliche, yes, yet so vital and significant each time we hear it.  People deserve more that just a meal.  They deserve a chance to be human for a few hours.

Talking baseball with some homeless guys is very human indeed.  We can all unite around the joy of America's greatest pastime and the pride for a city that has loved its team (at least recently!).  I know this joy of sports is not always a given thing.  It's rare to be in a city that can celebrate sports.  Beyond this, we should always be wary of a theology of competition.  However, for our purposes at Broad Street, the ability to unite around a subject that gives us unity is a chance to be human together, as God created us.

Never thought I'd say this...but Go Phillies!  For this year at least...

Emerging?

There is a LOT of talk going around about what is known as the Emerging Church.  I have read some on it and have had some interest in the area.  Broad Street is considered by many to be an "emerging church."  However, I have noticed that many at Broad Street cringe when that word is even mentioned!

Interestingly enough, today a very nice religion professor came in to speak to Bill, the founding pastor, about his thoughts on this movement.  What ensued was a very enlightening conversation that helped set a lot of my thoughts on this movement in line.  I now share some of my thoughts post-that conversation.

I have taken a keen interest in "the emerging church" strictly on the basis of the grounds for conversation, which is: a conversation based on how the Spirit is calling the church to respond to the postmodern culture.  A common belief that I tend to resonate with is that the modern institutional church has grown stagnant in many areas, including, losing its prophetic voice to the world, losing the rich creativity and diversity once found in traditional worship, and its openness to be constantly transformed by the Spirit...to name a few.  I have heard it described as a means to balance the aims of the "contemporary church" movement with the roots of the "traditional church" founding.  So this is where the conversation starts.

If you haven't clicked the link to the wikipedia article above, please do so.  Understand it?  I can't either!  Just notice how many references there are!

Therein lies the problem and beauty with this conversation.  The problem is that many many pastors, authors, seminary students, and others have used this conversation as a chance to become experts on the "new thing." There are a lot of egos out there writing on this subject and telling people how they can create an "emerging church." Wait...wasn't this just a de-constructing conversation?  Since when did we start constructing again?  These writers have taken this in all different directions.  Don't get me wrong - there is beauty in this, as I mention.  The beauty is that people are openly talking about where they think the Spirit is calling the church.  Why aren't we doing this more often?  As we carry on with old traditions, we lose sight of new opportunities that arise.  We also turn away the people who are looking for a new prophetic word from God or a new way to connect to the needs of the community.

Another issue with this movement is something Bill has often mentioned.  The emergent church conversation is an ecclesiological movement (about how we do church) and not a theological movement (what we believe).  Now these two are very much related.  Of course there is theology to how we do church.  However, the point is that we should aim to keep our theological grounding in the reformed tradition.  The emergent church conversation aims to re-evaluate these deeply held beliefs to explore new ways of expression that better serve as a response to our postmodern culture.

So back to this whole cringing at the thought of Broad Street being an "emerging church."  I'm with them there.  There's no need to label ourselves here, especially as something that is meant to be deconstructive of such labels!  However, I do believe that Broad Street is faithfully attempting to answer the issues faced by the struggles and stagnancies of the greater church.  Please note that I'm not singling out one church, nor am I rejecting my upbringing in the traditional church.  But rather, I'm bringing up notions, as mentioned earlier of:  losing a prophetic voice to the world, losing a rich creativity and diversity once found in traditional worship, and an openness to be constantly transformed by the Spirit.  I recognize Broad Street is in a VERY unique situation, as a young church community with a very high ceiling for experiencing revolutionary experiments in being church.  However, this doesn't mean that we can't at least TALK about these things more in the institutional church!

I raise a few questions not to lead any sort of agenda or answer any questions, but rather to encourage dialogue.  These are questions that I wrestle with myself.
WHAT defines church?  WHAT is the point of having "members"?   WHAT defines a successful church?  HOW can a church be prophetic?  WHO is the church excluding?  WHY do we worship the way we do?  WHAT could be different?

These kind of questions could dumbfound a session..."WHY would you even ask these things!  We've been doing just fine.  We're growing in numbers and having very meaningful worship services, what else needs to be done?" Even talking about change is a difficult thing to do sometimes when it calls us to ask questions that aren't always so 'decent' or 'in order'.

Just remember, Jesus asked the hard questions too!  It's all about the conversation.


P.S. one final critique about the most popular expressions of the "emergent church" movement that I have often heard and it has really rung true since I've been at Broad Street...have you ever noticed the demographic makeup of who these people are?  Hint: I fit the mold perfectly (minus a goatee):

fashioning a new church?

I had a very unique opportunity today to sit in on an administrative commission meeting set up to breathe new life into Arch Street Presbyterian Church. The commission spent a lot of time discussion “strategic imperatives,” or basically, what is it that this church should do to be what we hope it to be. In other words, they were discussing what the ideal situation for this church would be. (in case you missed the earlier post on what's going on, Arch Street Pres literally was dissolved after losing almost all its members amidst crumbling walls, a dissolved session, and a crumbling budget. This is a very sad situation, yet hopeful in that there are many who hope for a new life for this church. The administrative committee was set up by Presbytery to set up a new form for this church.)

This opportunity is very unique because most churches never take time to have these conversations about their hopes and dreams for what they can be. Often times churches are understandably unable to due to existing structures and customs that work well. Although you can’t always just fashion a new church from the ground up, you can at least have conversations about your hopes and dreams for the sake of community development and church growth.

This administrative commission roughly discussed the following imperatives in their discussion:
I. Honor our legacy
II. Re-Imagine our identity
III. Call the community together in a spirit of inclusion and social justice
IV. Raising Christians up in the church to be disciples.

What's exciting is being able to think of how these areas will manifest themselves in the future. Well...exciting for us church nerds at least haha. Particularly for Arch Street: being in the MIDDLE of the business district, sharing a wall with the tallest skyscraper in Philly, brings millions of exciting possibilities for people during the work week from all walks of life and situations.

Thus I pose the question: If you could fashion a church from the ground up...what would you want it to look like?

Getting into the thick of it!

It's been over a week since I've been here in Philly and I'm finally starting to get the hang of life around here.

Sunday evening was my second worship service at BSM. I had been asked to lead the passing of the peace. Apparently there is a distinct effort to get newcomers involved in participating in worship as soon as possible! There is always a wide variety of participation, of people of all races and socio-economic class...a cool thing to witness! Then there was the choir. wow. They ROCKED the house. Basically, this gospel choir sings every other week and sings a wide variety of songs (they closed this evening with "we are family"). My instruction with leading the passing of the peace was to encourage everyone that peace comes from Christ and not within ourselves, so when we do this act it is a reminder to one another of the peace Christ gives us. It's a very big deal at the end of the service to greet as many people as possible.

Monday was a long day of preparing for the upcoming Philadelphia Presbytery meeting that will be held at Broad Street. Amidst the usual docket is a small group session we are planning. The idea, brought up by Broad Street leadership and affirmed by Presbytery leadership, is for the elders and pastors to have conversation with one another regarding their vision of the church, what they need to work on, and ways they can support one another in said visions. This is something that is pretty rare with Presbytery meetings, so I'm pretty excited to see what happens. It's a reminder of what I keep mentioning about needing to "risk and trust." We are so afraid of talking and doing what really matters, and instead doing what is safe. The purpose of this discussion is not to say "we're doing it right, you're doing it wrong," but rather to get people to simply TALK to one another about their visions for the church, where the spirit is calling them, and to start to seek new ways to live out this call!

In closing, I'm posing lyrics to a recent song by Derek Webb that has brought up a LOT of controversy. When you read these lyrics you may wonder why. Perhaps it will help to know that Derek Webb has been on a Christian recording label. When they heard this song, they refused to release the album. Correct me if I'm wrong, but out of this he has had to release this album on his own. I find the lyrics to be convicting, timely, and very significant for an artist as himself. I'm often skeptical about a lot of Christian artists and I am quite proud of Derek for stepping out of the safe bubble many find themselves in. These lyrics once again remind us to "risk and trust" as a community of faith:

What Matters More, by Derek Webb

You say you always treat people like you like to be
I guess you love being hated for your sexuality
You love when people put words in your mouth
'Bout what you believe, make you sound like a freak

'Cause if you really believe what you say you believe
You wouldn't be so damn reckless with the words you speak
Wouldn't silently consent when the liars speak
Denyin' all the dyin' of the remedy

Tell me, brother, what matters more to you?
Tell me, sister, what matters more to you?

If I can tell what's in your heart by what comes out of your mouth
Then it sure looks to me like being straight is all it's about
It looks like being hated for all the wrong things
Like chasin' the wind while the pendulum swings

'Cause we can talk and debate until we're blue in the face
About the language and tradition that he's comin' to save
Meanwhile we sit just like we don't give a shit
About 50,000 people who are dyin' today

Tell me, brother, what matters more to you?
Tell me, sister, what matters more to you?