Pan Dulce

“With Liberty and Justice for All”

Today, I have asked Jeff Jones to write about Justice and Liberty for All. Jeff is Director of Operational Effectiveness for Buckner Children and Family Services, Inc.

It’s such a familiar phrase. We all love that part of our Declaration of Independence. It really acts as a description of the freedom we enjoy in the United States of America. I wrestle with this often as I look around my immediate world. How well do we evidence a desire for all to experience liberty and justice? Do we find ourselves inadvertently thinking that people living in developed countries with power, wealth, and democracy, are more deserving of liberty and justice? Think about it.

These truths are not confined to our U.S. Constitution. Ideas of liberty and justice permeate the Word of God.  The prophet Micah explains what the Lord wants from His followers, “To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8).

A few weeks ago I experienced the joy of visiting the Holy Land. I stood on the hillside where it is believed Jesus spoke the Beatitudes to the crowd gathered near the Sea of Galilee. In Matthew 5:7 we find our Savior’s perspective on how we approach the subject, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Social justice did not originate in the hearts of our beloved “Millennials.” Many of these young people simply remind us of its importance.

Recently I watched one of my favorite films, “Braveheart”. As Sir William Wallace of Scotland is on the gauntlet for his execution and is being tortured, the last words he yells out with the only strength he can muster is “Freedom!” I take it for granted on a daily basis, the fact that I live in a free country where liberty is foundational and the rights of the People are paramount. Those who are suffering do not typically live with such certainty. Whether due to an authoritarian government or the fact that their own family has neglected them, they don’t know the peace of freedom and justice.

At Buckner, we meet children and adults who deserve to have justice served in their lives, but do not see it come to fruition. We are called to advocate for them when we are able. Often I am reminded that I can’t always right the wrongs, but I certainly can play a part in giving mercy to those who need it. Our Savior gifted us with eternal life that we don’t deserve (grace) and kept us from the punishment we do deserve (mercy).

As we discuss liberty and justice this week, so many children come to my mind. I guess the one thing I can provide in this blog is a first hand account of how this mercy is being given to kids who deserve justice and don’t typically find it. For example there is a girl who I met in Guatemala about a year ago. Julia (not her real name) had come to the orphanage after experiencing years of abuse. Men in her own family had taken advantage of her sexually for years and robbed her of the innocence God gave her. Emotionally battered, she hugged my wife who sat with her letting the tears stream down as Julia buried her face in Jenn’s shoulder . That day Julia was hopeless. She knew she had no power to bring justice to those who had hurt her and she wanted to die. I felt my own frustration rise as I felt powerless to help her. She couldn’t make sense out of the words my wife gently spoke to her, words of promise and hope in a Savior who loves her so very much.

I visited the orphanage again in October. Julia met me with a wonderful smile and opened arms. She remembered me and asked how my wife was doing. The mercy she had felt was evident. She had experienced love that was unconditional and began to understand hope could be found in her own life. I discussed her case with our director Chiqui, who informed me that Buckner was investigating the possibility of having Julia come and live in our transitional home. This spring, while I was at our management retreat, I was given the wonderful news that Julia was home! Since there is no one in her own family who will love her, I am so grateful she has a new Buckner family. The beginning of hope realized!

Though we cannot ensure that justice will be carried out in the lives of those we serve, we can play a part in giving mercy and love in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, in whom we find our ultimate justice and freedom.

The Voice of Justice

Today, I have asked Scott Collins to write about Justice and Liberty for All. Scott is Vice President of External Affairs for Buckner.

Buried near the end of the Declaration of Independence, long after the opening words so familiar to Americans, is one of the most severe grievances our forefathers had with the British crown. “They too have been deaf to the voice of justice…”

As citizens of this great country, we pause next week to remember July 4, 1776. It’s a time of food, fireworks and family. We celebrate the “self-evident” truth that in the eyes of God, we are all created equal and that among our rights are “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

And as the Declaration of Independence was intended to separate our nation from Great Britain, the Constitution was intended to unite us as a nation. The Preamble of the constitution lists six reasons for its writing. Second is to “establish justice.”

Where is the voice of justice today? What is it saying? As Americans, have we become deaf to the voice of justice?
 Listen to what it is saying:
* Half of the world’s population – nearly 3 billion people – lives on less than $2 a day.
* The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the poorest 48 nations is less than the wealth of the world’s three richest people combined.
* The world’s most developed nations consume 86 percent of the world’s goods.
* More than 30,000 children die every day because of poverty. That comes to 11 million children under the age of 5 each year.
* 17 million Africans have died from the AIDS pandemic.
* Another 25 million are infected with HIV with no hope of overcoming it.
* 15 million African children have already lost one or both parents due to AIDS.
* There are more than 740 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa and the average life expectancy is 46.2 years.
* Nearly 14 percent of all children in this region of the world die before reaching the age of 5.
* In the United States, half a million – 500,000 – boys and girls languish in our foster care system.
* In Texas, three children die from abuse every day.
* In 2007, 17,536 Texas children were removed from abusive homes. That’s 48 children every day; two an hour.

Where is the voice of justice for these? My fear is that if the rest of the world were to write a Declaration of Independence from the United States, they would accuse us of being “deaf to the voice of justice.” That would be unfortunate and unfair.

We live in the most giving nation on the planet and in history. Americans gave $307 billion to charity last year, according to Giving USA. Americans are born with the DNA to give. Some use it; others ignore it. Could we do more? Of course. But there is a growing spirit of getting involved and getting our hands dirty.

The voice of justice demands action. As an American citizen, I am compelled to respond because I believe there can be no “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” without justice.
When you hear the voice of justice calling out, try responding:
Get involved. Think globally, but start locally. There are multitudes of opportunity right where you are. And there are multitudes of organizations already at work, from churches to civic clubs and non-profit groups.
Expand your horizons. As you become involved locally, you will become more aware of needs beyond your geographical sphere of influence. Use that awareness to hear the voices around the globe crying out for justice.
Advocate. Awareness of the plight of the poor and disenfranchised leads to advocacy. Be a voice of justice for those who have no voice – especially orphans and at-risk children. There are 143 million orphans in our world today.

Every day, school children stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America. The final words that leave their lips offer a definition of our country – “with liberty and justice for all.” Justice demands we listen.

The Future of Convención: The Promise Land

(Today I have asked Rev. Rolando Rodriguez, Director of Hispanic Ministries for the BGCT to reflect on the future of the Hispanic Baptist Convention on the eve of the 99th annual meeting).

For Moses and the people of Israel, the Promised Land was a land that was richly blessed (Deuteronomy 8:7-10).  The Promised Land was a land where "milk and honey" flowed (Deuteronomy 11:9). God did not give them this land just because they were “God’s people”.  God demanded a lot from them (Deuteronomy 10:12-22).  Just like Moses and Israel we should ask ourselves: are we ready to enter the Promised Land? 

La Convencion Bautista Hispana de Texas (The Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas) will be celebrating 99 years of existence, here in Dallas at Park Cities Baptist Church. Next year will be our great celebration “The Centennial."

The question that many leaders throughout the state of Texas ask themselves is:  What is the vision of Convención for the following one hundred years?  Where are we going? Who will guide us?  I would like to share my perspective of the future of Convención.

How did the Promised Land look for Moses?  It was a land where "milk and honey" flowed.  How does the Promised Land look for Convención?  New churches!  Not just new churches but healthy churches.  Let me  describe to you a picture of a healthy church: a healthy church is a church that is reaching souls for Christ; it’s a church that is developing leaders that are willing to make a difference; it’s a church that is constantly baptizing people; it’s a church that supports their pastor in every sense of the Word; it’s a church that cares about the missionary work throughout the world; it’s a church that worries about the oppressed (Deuteronomy 10:18); it’s a church that gives in a sacrificial way; it’s a church that cooperates with other churches, associations, conventions and other institutions that want to serve those that are oppressed.  A healthy church is a church that is impacting its community, its city, the nation and the entire world.

 Churches like these can form a Great Convención.  A Convención that is going to build bridges.  A Convención that is ready to begin new institutions.  A Convención that is part of the Baptist World Alliance because they have so much to contribute.

Let me finish with a personal experience.  I remember as if it was yesterday that we were playing a championship soccer game.  In the last minutes of the game our team scored a goal.  We begin to celebrate because we knew we had the victory.  We celebrated so much that the other team came back and scored a goal.  In the end we lost the game and the championship.  I give thanks to God for a hundred years of our beloved Convención.  Let’s celebrate, yes, but let’s not put our guard down. Adelante Bautistas Hispanos  (Press on Hispanic Baptist!)

Retreat, Re-negotiate, or Re-Affirm: The Future of La Convención

President Barack Obama (The first African American President in American history), in his first appointment to the Supreme Court, has chosen to nominate federal appellate judge Sonia Sotomayor (The first Hispana to be nominated for this position in the history of the United States). These headlines are key checkpoints that tell us we are watching history being re-written before our very eyes. The 99th Annual meeting of La Convención Bautista Hispana de Texas (Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas) will be held in Dallas at Park Cities Baptist Church this Sunday. This year’s annual meeting will most likely be marked by rumors and speculation of the future of HBCT. Some say it is time to retreat, some say it is time to re-negotiate, and some say it is time to re-affirm the 1963 Unification Agreement between the BGCT and the HBCT.

Retreat
Those that wish to see the HBCT separate from the BGCT claim that 1200 churches of the HBCT would be better off. After all over the past 99 years, the HBCT created three key institutions for education and human welfare and lost two them with Baptist University of the Américas as the only remaining institution devoted to ministry leadership development. Those of the retreat movement feel that autonomy would be the better route for this family of Baptists. I seriously doubt it. Motives exposed may reveal self-serving ambition. Are there things that need to improve related to Anglo and Hispanic Baptist relationships and other issues such as power, control, shared governance, and shared leadership in the BGCT and its institutions? Of course. Does that mean that retreating is the way to get this done? Obviously not.

Re-Negotiate
Some leaders say it is time to re-negotiate the terms of the Unification Agreement. Folks in this camp suggest that the Unification Agreement is out-dated and the terms have not been kept according to the spirit and intent of the agreement. Well, maybe not but I strongly believe that the goals of the Unification Agreement have been met. An effort to re-negotiate seems plausible if it appears that the Unification Agreement did not work. In the winter 2005 volume of the Baptist History and Heritage Journal (Volume XL, winter 2005, Number 1, page 44), I wrote an article entitled “Unification to Integration: A Brief History of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas.” The article was a brief recounting of the history of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas, (HBCT) since 1910. The article explored the Unification Agreement between the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the HBCT established in 1963 and explored the future of the HBCT. This article will demonstrate that an effort to re-negotiate is not the best use of time or effort.

Re-Affirm
Another group of Hispanic Baptist leaders suggest it is time to consider reaffirming the original Unification Agreement. I believe this is the most credible path. To affirm the original agreement is to affirm the faith, sacrifice, and boldness of those that came before us, both Mexican/Mexican-American and Anglo, and it is also to affirm the gains and progress Tejano Baptists have experienced as a result of Unification. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely. Baptist University of the Américas and Buckner are the only institutions of the 23 institutions affiliated with the BGCT that feature Hispanic executive leaders at the highest level of the institutional management structure. Bucker affirms a culturally diverse work-force and so does BUA, at all levels of the organization. The BGCT has also diversified it staff in non-executive level positions and 25% of its governing members are Hispanic as well. Is there room for improvement? Once again, yes, since the stated goal and standard is 30%. But remember, we are family and there is always room for improvement. I would rather work with the family to help it become its best for the Kingdom than retreat or re-negotiate. It is time to re-affirm the best in us that looks like the Kingdom and seek to improve in areas that have yet to demonstrate Kingdom ethics. It is time to celebrate 1910, not re-create it.

What does this have to do with social justice? Everything!

Social Justice and Convención

So how do you connect the topic of Social Justice and La Convención Bautista Hispana de Texas? It is actually pretty simple. I have asked friends and colleagues to write on the topic of social justice over the last two weeks. We had some awesome blogs related to the topic of social justice and what it meant to each of the writers. These writers also wrote to encourage you to focus on social justice and how it might intersect with your life. Topics included poverty, immigration, economics, personal relationships, stewardship, educational access and opportunity, the Middle East, adoption, human trafficking, loving neighbors as ourselves, and the history of social justice as found in Buckner’s history. These have been phenomenal, personal, and inspiring blogs with practical application and an invitation to engage your heart, soul, and mind in the things that matter to Jesus.

La Convención, approaching its 99th annual meeting has developed a place for Spanish-language and Hispanic culture churches and missions to gather for fellowship, inspiration, and encouragement but it has also focused on issues of social justice that concern the Hispanic community in the United States and in other countries. Several years ago the La Convención passed a resolution affirming ministry to the undocumented community in Texas and the USA. The same year, the BGCT also passed a resolution affirming the same concerns and encouraging churches to meet the needs of the undocumented in our communities. These resolutions prompted Buckner and the BGCT to establish the ISAAC program, a collaborative effort between the BGCT and Buckner to equip local congregations for accreditation with the Immigration Service to properly serve undocumented immigrants that qualify for legal residence and citizenship. While the ISAAC program is not limited to serving the Hispanic community, ISAAC provides services in Texas to support the needs of undocumented Hispanics throughout the state and country. Are the undocumented our neighbors too? What would social justice mean to those who are here without proper documentation that come to this country seeking the same opportunities we have? How do we balance the rule of law with biblical justice and righteousness?

This year the Buckner will co-host an Education Banquet at the annual meeting of the HBCT focusing on developing programs that support the completion of high school for Hispanic youth. Dr. Gus Reyes, Consultant for Hispanic Education with the BGCT began a new assignment to improve the Hispanic high school completion rate among Hispanic Baptist youth this year. The HBCT will celebrate this effort and affirm support for this program that is designed to reverse the trend of a 50% drop out rate among Hispanic youth. Felipe Garza, Buckner Vice President for National Operations, served as Chair of the Hispanic Education Study Committee from 2005 through 2008 that brought forth the recommendation to hire a full time consultant to address the issue of educational success rates among Hispanic youth. We were ahead of the curve on this issue back in 2005 and continue to support this effort to make life better for Hispanic youth who face a life of minimum wages without a high school diploma or a college degree.

Dr. Karen Bullock, in her article on this blog dated June 1, 2009, helped us see that R.C. Buckner was way ahead of his time. He addressed social issues and concerns as a Baptist pastor before the movement was born. In a very deliberate way, R.C. Buckner went about pursuing the things that mattered to Jesus, like justice and righteousness for children and families 130 years ago. Buckner and La Convención are focused on these issues, seeking first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness.

Is the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas still needed?

In the Winter, 2005 volume of the Baptist History and Heritage Journal (Volume XL, Winter 2005, Number 1, page 44), I wrote an article entitled “Unification to Integration: A Brief History of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas.” The article was a brief recounting of the history of the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas, (HBCT) since 1910. The article explored the Unification Agreement between the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the HBCT established in 1963 and explored the future of the HBCT.

In short, I would say yes, the HBCT is still needed for several reasons. First, we have a wonderful heritage and 100 years of history to value and affirm. The history and the cause for the establishment of the HBCT is cause for reflection and consideration. Second, the HBCT is a fellowship of Baptist churches. Fellowship is good for like-minded churches, especially Hispanic churches. The HBCT is needed because it provides the larger Texas Baptist family with a cultural expression that connects to a growing segment of the Texas population, especially Hispanics who primarily speak Spanish. Furthermore, the BGCT needs the HBCT since its 1200 congregations comprise over 20% of its constituent congregations. If you add African American congregations affiliated with the BGCT (800), and Asian and Intercultural churches (400), about 44% of congregations affiliated with the BGCT would be made up of non-Anglo congregations. These congregations, like the HBCT, help diversify the Texas Baptist family of 5,500 churches and enhance our ability to connect with the broad Texas population. Third, as long as newcomers from south of our border continue to migrate the USA; we will need the HBCT to provide a familiar place to connect.

Buckner enjoys relationships with a growing number of churches, including Hispanic Baptist churches that seek to make a difference in the lives of at risk children, orphans, and families in Texas and around the world. Networks of Baptist churches have formed to impact lives across 93 cities worldwide and in 14 countries. We enjoy relationships with small and large churches making a huge difference in communities all across the globe. However, we also enjoy growing relationships with Church of Christ Churches, Assembly of God, United Methodist Churches, The Greek Orthodox Church of America, and churches from several other denominations who seek to serve children and families.

Two Hispanic Baptist churches have begun collaborative relationships with Buckner in Dallas and San Antonio. Primera Iglesia Bautista Mexicana of Dallas enjoys a growing collaboration with Buckner in North Dallas and South San Filadelfia Church in San Antonio, the first Hispanic Baptist church collaboration, enjoys a wonderful collaborative relationship with Buckner. Buckner staff will be participating in the annual meeting of the HBCT this coming Sunday because we value relationships with Texas Baptist churches and especially, Hispanic Baptist churches. We will be distributing our latest copy of “Nuestra Familia,” at the meeting at Park Cities Baptist Church. There are many more reasons to have a HBCT. I will share some of those thoughts on Wednesday.

La Convención Bautista Hispana de Texas

I am writing about two different subjects this week. The Hispanic Baptist Convención of Texas and Social Justice. These two very different subjects just may be related so stay tuned.

Just what is the Convención? The Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas (Convención) is a fellowship of about 1200 churches affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), a fellowship of 5,500 churches that cooperate to focus on missions and evangelism, education and discipleship, and human welfare and advocacy in the state of Texas and beyond. The BGCT, and therefore, the Convención, does these ministries through 5,500 churches, 23 institutions (Hospitals, universities, and children’s services), facilitated by executive board staff. The current emphasis for the BGCT is Hope 2010, an effort to share, care, and pray across the state. The Convención, is a fellowship of sister churches, affiliated with the BGCT, their respective associations, and compañerismos (Hispanic local fellowships) to encourage one another in ministry.

Why am I writing about this today? The Convención will gather for its 99th annual meeting this week in Dallas at Park Cities Baptist Church, where I am a member with my family. The meeting will start on Sunday and end on Tuesday morning. There will be auxiliary groups meeting such as Texas Baptist Men, Texas WMU, Sunday School, Minister’s Conference, Minister’s Wives Conference, a Youth Conference, and Day Camp for children. Officers of the Convención will preside over business sessions, worship services, and elections during the three day meeting. Attendance usually ranges between 1,800 and 2,500 during the three day meeting.

La Convención, originally named Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, was formed in 1910 in San Antonio, Texas with 24 churches and 36 messengers represented. At that time the HBCT was an independent convention of churches and was not part of the BGCT. La Convención operated independently and met annually to elect officers, approve a budget and begin its institutions for 50 years until 1960 when the HBCT began to discuss with the BGCT about the possibility of uniting these two conventions into one. This idea later became known as “Unification.” The Unification Agreement was approved in 1962 and ratified in 1963 (Same year that the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message was affirmed by the SBC).

The meeting of La Convención is very important for several reasons: First, this year marks the eve of the 100th celebration of the beginning of Convención, also called the Centenario! Second, it is time to elect a new slate of officers. The new president will most likely preside over the Centenario in San Antonio next year. This is an honor and privilege as we will be celebrating 100 years of Convención history. Third, if Unification is to be revisited after 47 years of existence, this year would be a good year. Fourth, by 2010 Dallas will be home to more Hispanics than San Antonio. Demographics continue to change our state and it may be time to reconsider our convention structure and budget in order more accurately reflect the future of Baptist work in Texas. Fifth, the significance of institutions formed by La Convención is of vital importance. These institutions include Baptist University of the Americas (formerly, the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute), Valley Baptist Academy (now called Valley Baptist Missions Education Center) and the Mexican Baptist Children’s Home (now called Baptist Child and Family Services). More about La Convención and how this fellowship relates to Buckner and Social Justice to come. Stay tuned.

For the Kingdom: Social Justice and the Point of Departure

This week I have been reflecting some on social justice after two weeks of featuring invited guests to write on my blog on this topic. One of the guest writers, Katie Kilpatrick (a staff member with Buckner Foundation), referred me to another blog that seemed to intersect with the issue I have been raising. The website is called “For the Kingdom”.  The writer suggests that Jesus did not do social justice, he is social justice. He suggests that the point of departure for social justice is Jesus himself as opposed to doing social justice and then looking for ways Jesus agrees with our cause (sort of like doing social justice isogetically rather than exegetically).

I could not agree more. The idea of social justice began to swell up in my soul the year I was elected as president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas in 2005. I began reading the inaugural sermon of Jesus found in Luke 4 and could not put it down, could not get away from it, could not read it and move on without considering the implications of what Jesus was saying his agenda would be in his 1,000 day ministry: preaching good news to the poor, giving sight to the blind, freedom for the prisoners, liberty to the oppressed, and proclaiming the acceptable year of our Lord’s favor. I encouraged members of the BGCT Executive Board to make the Jesus Agenda our agenda for that year and to find ways we could do what Jesus was recommending in his inaugural speech. Remember, this was the first time he would preach in public. So, if you only had 1,000 days to do your ministry what would you say in your first sermon?

Keasler is right on target. If you want to do social justice, start with Jesus. Do what he did and you will find yourself in the middle of bringing the Kingdom near. Doing what Jesus did forces us to consider the issues of poverty and economics, sickness and healing as well as prevention of diseases, criminals and prisoners, any system that is oppressive, and of course, speaking of the Lord’s favor like the angels announced…Peace on earth, good will toward men upon whom his favor rests…”

As I think about the future of Buckner, I am taken immediately to the inaugural sermon to ponder how we can accelerate its energy toward living out the Jesus Agenda among children at risk, orphans, and families. We will need the best business minds available to us to create economic systems and infrastructures to reverse poverty where we have influence. We will need to collaborate with medical professionals who know how to bring about healing.  We will need to consider how we can serve the needs of families of prisoners wherever possible, and we need to consider systems of oppression that keep the poor and the powerless in vulnerable situations. We will need management, pastoral, missional, and social service professionals to help with healing as we bring the Kingdom near.

Reflecting on these issues will be challenging and require a systemic and personal response. The good news is that Buckner is already doing many of these things by impacting lives everyday through family programs, community programs, empowerment programs, and aid programs. We are looking for churches, pastors, and leaders to collaborate with us in order to do social justice in an incarnational way, just like Jesus.

Social Justice and Kingdom Ethics

In the past few weeks I have asked a number of friends to write on the subject of Social Justice. I started with Dr. Karen Bullock and then invited several Buckner Staff to write on the subject. It has been fascinating to hear the voices of those who have written on the subject.

Today, I would like to reflect on what Glen Stassen and David Gushee say about justice in their book entitled “Kingdom Ethics: Following Jesus in Contemporary Context. In their chapter on Justice, Stassen and Gushee contend that there are four words for “justice” in the Bible: two in Hebrew and two in Greek. These words account for 1,060 references to the issue of justice. Few other concepts or themes get that much coverage in the Bible. Gushee and Stassen say that by contrast the words used for “sexual sin” are mentioned a mere 90 times. They report that Jesus was seriously concerned about justice issues.

Gushee and Stassen suggest that justice has four dimensions: deliverance of the poor and the powerless from the injustice that they regularly experience; lifting the foot of domineering power off the neck of the dominated and oppressed; stopping the violence and establishing peace; and restoring the outcasts, the excluded, the Gentiles, the exiles and the refugees to community.

The work of Buckner and our varied ministries that impact 500,000 lives across 93 cities worldwide intersects with several of these four dimensions. My burden for what mattered to Jesus is as heavy as it ever has been. Whether we are serving children at risk, orphans, families, undocumented residents, the poor, the powerless, and other people who suffer from oppression, we seek to bring healing and restoration to the least of these.

When Gushee and Stassen write the section on Justice and Love, they deal with subjects like Truth telling, Race, Economics, and Care of the Creation. I will write more on that in the coming days and weeks.

What does Social Justice mean to you? What does it have to do with Jesus followers in the 21st century?

It’s the Relationship

        Today, I have asked Dan Freemyer, Director of Community Ministries for the collaboration between Buckner and Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth. Please take a moment to read what Dan has to say on Social Justice and feel free to leave a comment or a question.

        I was first drawn to church social work because I wanted to help individuals. In the process of earning two degrees in social work and one in divinity, I was confronted with injustices in all the systems that control how people relate to each other within families, within our economy, and within society in general. After eight years of studying social justice, I was convinced that the only way to deal with injustices was from the top—by addressing the big issues. Fifteen years after the last degree, I’ve come full circle to believe that the most effective tool in promoting social justice is an individual relationship between two persons of different socioeconomic status.

        Bob became friends with Larry through a homeless ministry at church. Bob didn’t mind helping women and children who were homeless, but he never really cared about homeless men—everyone knows that they are just too lazy to stick with a job. Bob learned that Larry was in college when his mental illness first showed itself. He lost his wife, alienated his parents, and had cycled in an out of hospitals ever since. Bob not only opened his heart to a new friend, but opened his mind to realize that his assumptions about other people are often mistaken.

        Greg and Lisa are close with their daughter’s birth mother. They find out that Kristie owes money because she took out a loan to cover rent when she missed a paycheck. Greg calculates that Kristie’s paying over 500% interest and now owes even more than she borrowed in the first place, without ever missing a payment. Greg helped Kristie map a way to get out of her hole. Lisa talked with friends in her Sunday School class, which decided to start lobbying for reform of predatory lending practices.

        Developing real relationships across socioeconomic boundaries creates awareness about social injustices that are otherwise hidden. It not only makes people aware, but also gives them a reason to care. Finally those relationships begin chipping away at the elitism and ignorance that allowed the social injustice to develop in the first place.

        Probably the most effective way I can address social justice as a church social worker is to foster opportunities where relationships like these can develop. The evil will show itself through the relationships.