Social justice: speaking about motivation

I've been writing a fair bit on social justice issues, and that's something I have planned to write about a bit. Although there are lots of voices speaking out about issues of social justice, it's rare to hear evangelical Christians - who care deeply about the Bible and what God has revealed there - speaking  about these issues.

This seems really strange to me, since when I read the great story of the Bible, I see that God is concerned about poverty, oppression, alienation, refugees and more, from beginning to end. It's because of reading the Bible that I've developed an interest in these areas - I'm called outside of my own needs and concerns to care about the circumstances of others, some of whom I have never and will never meet.

There's lots of voices speaking only about justice, though, and just presuming that people will care because it is a 'good' or 'right' thing to do. I think that can be a bit naive, since a lot of people are selfish and need something more than that to persuade them to action (unfortunate, but true - it certainly was in my case).

My aim on this blog is so explore what it looks like to be following Jesus in an urban environment. But I'm planning, when I speak about justice, to always talk about motivation and why I think these things are important. 

Brunswick photo: Discarded TVs

On the way to school. During the last hard-waste collection, there were old TVs almost every 10 steps. It's not collection time at the moment. What will happen to them next?

Repentance and forgiveness

Last year, I wrote a theology essay on the relationship between repentance and forgiveness, and particularly our human repentance and God's forgiveness. I chose the topic for a number of reasons:

• Repentance and forgiveness are deeply significant for any relationship that includes an imperfect person, which is almost every relationship. The relationship between repentance and forgiveness determines how offenses are dealt with and how reconciliation is achieved. This is important for any relationship, and especially a relationship as important as the one between us and God.
• I've wanted to look more deeply at the topic of repentance for years, because I'm not convinced we use the language the way the Bible does.
• I'm often uncomfortable with our attitude in church to confession - both my own attitude (feeling like I need to dredge up sins to confess) and the perspective conveyed from the front - this topic has big implications for how we view confession.
• Lots of work on the relationship between repentance and forgiveness looks only at human-human relationships (e.g. Jewish and Christian responses to WW2, forgiveness in Rwanda, in South Africa after apartheid), but not nearly as much covers the dynamic between God and humans (surprisingly!).
• I wanted to think about how saying sorry and reconciliation work in my own family, because sometimes I wonder where the line between grace and justice is - how much do you insist that sorry is said after something wrong is done, how sincere does 'sorry' have to be, how do you measure sincerity anyway, when do we overlook an offense, etc.
• The topic has implications for urban culture, and especially urbanites who want to start following Jesus. Given the huge unpopularity of 'repentance' and even language about 'sin' in urban culture, it's not very attractive to call people to repent.

I really enjoyed the essay, and it's impacted my thinking a lot since. I thought I'd re-live the essay by blogging through it. I'll post the entire thing at the end, if you prefer reading a more academic version (with footnotes) or all in one hit.

History of street names

Recently, lots of these green signs have been appearing next to street signs around Brunswick, providing a few historical details about the streets the people were named after.

It's interesting to read about which people and positions were considered important, and when the streets around here were mapped out (or named, anyway). There seems to be a desire in Brunswick to remain connected to the history of the place - it's part of the identity.

I'm not sure this is something that all suburbs value - sometimes it seems like the 'new' steamrolls over the 'old' and after a few years, you can't even tell what used to be there. There's plenty of Brunswick's history that has been lost, but I like this move to retain at least some connection to the past.

Household rituals - cultivating generosity

Our family has a number of rituals that reflect and cement some of our most precious values. One of those rituals is being part of the TEAR 'Gift-a-month' program. We're trying to cultivate generosity in our family, because of the amazing generosity of God:

For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. (2 Cor 8:9)

We pay $40 a month, and TEAR uses that money to buy a monthly gift for poorer people in developing countries - goats and other animals, peace building, literary and education, leadership and human rights training, tree seedlings and other food producing items, toilets and other infrastructure.

TEAR provide us with an advent-style calendar that has a little flap for each month. Behind the flap is information about how the money is being spent that month. We also receive a monthly email letting us know more information about that month's gift.

It's become a fun thing in our family at the start of the month. Everyone has to try to guess what the gift will be - someone always guesses that it's a toilet, others vary our guesses based on what areas have been chosen lately.

It achieves a few things:

• it encourages us in generosity as we see monthly that it's not so hard to give money away;
• it grows us to continue becoming like God as we reflect his generosity and concern for the less advantaged in our world;
• it's visible - the larger part of our giving is done through direct debit and 'invisible' to P, so it's good for some of it to be done in a way that she can appreciate;
• it grows in us a concern for those who are poorer than us - realising that our gift is primary schooling, seedlings or some chickens makes us realise that some people don't have them;
• it helps us realise how rich we are - because we do have all of these things;
• it's a fun family thing to do together - we enjoy guessing and having a sense that it's one of the things that makes our family what it is.

It's an good thing to think about what family/household rituals you have or want to have - and what values they reflect. I'd be interested to hear about other family/household rituals that cultivate an awareness of how rich we are as Westerners, and how to encourage generosity towards others.

Why "Urban Daughter"?

"Urban" because:

• I live in the inner city, and specificially in Brunswick;  
• I love this area and particularly love thinking about what makes it unique and what defines it;
• This blog is partly (mainly?) about what it looks like to follow Jesus in this place, rather than any other.

"Daughter" because:

• It's my identity - first and foremost, before anything else, I am God's daughter;
• It's relational - and I think relationships are the most important things in our lives, and also key to lots of what drives how I live;
• It's communal - being God's daughter means being part of his family and getting involved with the other members of his family.

Brunswick photo: fence weaving

Along the Upfield Bike Trail, near Safeway.

Our family's food priorities

When I first started exploring food priorities - other than 'cheapest is best' - I wrote these thoughts about what changes we were planning to make and why.

I have more thoughts than these now, about why each of these are important - but they're a good basic summary of what we're thinking about when we shop. And why in some cases, cheapest isn't necessarily the most ethical or godly choice.

I really wanted to bring it back to how these are relational issues, too, which is why put the reminder of the second commandment, 'Love your neighbour as yourself,' and also included the bits about who we were trying to love by making these choices. (And also remind us implicitly that there is a first commandment as well, to love God with every part of our lives.)

 

I wrote these mainly for our family, to avoid the activism fatigue I wrote about the other day - it's easier to establish new habits if I'm reminded of why we adopted them. Because they're stuck up in our kitchen, though, they've prompted a few interesting conversations with guests.

I'd be curious to hear about what food priorities your family/household use, and why.

Brunswick photos: Free speech monument

Outside the Mechanics Institute on Sydney Road. Historically a significant site for freedom of speech protests.

The resurgence of craft

Craft seems to be experiencing a new wave of popularity, especially around my area. I've been pondering why this is.

I think there's a number of features of craft that align with urban culture. Craft is:

• Unique - moving away from mass-produced items to hand-made, one-of-a-kind, with all the associated quirks;
• Creative - art and self-expression are so highly valued in this culture;
• Self-sufficient - being able to sew, knit, crochet, mend clothes, etc, means that you're not as reliant on others;
• Eco-friendly - if you are crafty, there's so much more potential to re-fashion old items of clothes, or recycle vintage bedsheets or op-shop finds;
• Genuine - that is, a hand-crafted present takes a lot more thought and time than a purchased one - it reflects an added level of investment;
• Productive - a way of resting that is still useful and has something to show - this can be problematic, if we think that rest is only justified by what is produces - but also fun and can bring a nice satisfaction in completing something;
• Fostering of community - lots of my craft enthusiasm has been inspired by others. Friends have taught me to knit and crochet, given me hand-crafted presents, shown bags, talked about sewing projects, and I've spent many enjoyable hours sitting around casually with friends while crafting. It facilitates casual, low intensity time together.

There's probably other things, too, but that's what I thought of while hanging out the washing. This scarf is my latest craft project, which I finished this morning.

The end is not the end

A postcard I found in a cafe today.

So many things that we use everyday will have a long life after we get rid of them. All our old clothes, mobile phones, other gadgets, toothbrushes, plastic containers, computers, papers, bags, couches, TVs, kitchenware, etc - and even ovens (as this picture points out).

Lots of them will end up in landfill, some will end up in the ocean, a few will be re-used or re-cycled.

We have been given responsibility for this earth, and responsible stewardship calls for us to consider the whole life-cycle of the items we use, and especially what happens to them after we decide they are obsolete.

Brunswick photo: Rest peacefully

A side street off Sydney Road.

Sustainable Table: What you can do

I posted last week about The Sustainable Table.

Here's their top 10 'What you can do' points:

1. Change the way you shop
2. Instigate household meat free days
3. Buy local, seasonal, certified organic produce
4. Reduce waste and buy a compost bin
5. Ethical and sustainable meat and seafood
6. Eat whole foods, not processed foods
7. Grow your own food
8. Avoid packaging
9. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
10. Ask questions

It can be hard to know what steps would make a difference, and which are the most significant ones. So I really appreciate lists like this, because it's really hard to find time to do all the reading and research myself. I like the look of what these guys are doing, and how they are thinking - lots of their arguments are backed up with stats and quotes from relevant organisations.

However #1: It's never productive to feel overwhelmed and like that long list of things would take too much effort to ever implement in your shopping choices. Much better - and more gracious - to choose one new step at a time, implement those changes, and then come back when you're ready for another step. In the long-run, you're likely to make more progress than if you try to do them all at once and get exhausted.

However #2: I always feel slightly nervous taking any organisation's recommendations as true, and not looking into them for myself. My preference is to read a bit more broadly, listen to different views, and try to come to my own conclusion. I've said above why I think I like these guys, but I might not agree with everything they say. Taking one step at a time is good also because it allows you to research and become more informed about those issues. Organics and food ethics is an area where there is a lot of hype, and not always a lot of critical thinking - so I'd suggest that enthusiasm and careful evaluation of what actually makes a difference should go hand-in-hand.

That being said, I think these are really important issues and a significant way that our generation is responsible for stewarding this earth and loving future generations. So please let me encourage you to pick one of the areas above, become more informed, and implement some changes!

Sustainable Table

I'm really excited about this excellent new resource for thinking about food ethics:

http://www.sustainabletable.org.au/

There's a blog, book and website. I saw this book in a cafe over summer, and it's a recipe book with a summary of different food ethics issues at the back. I've already reserved the book at the library, and really looking forward to reading it.

The website has a wonderful section called 'Hungry for info'. They have information on the problems in our food system ('The coming famine), seasonal produce guide, info about meat, fish, eggs and chicken, as well as a section for sceptics.

The best bit, I think, is that this is an Australian resource. Praise God! So much of the information is designed for a UK/US audience, and our food system has different particularities. The issues and statistics used by these guys are all Australian.

Mary Maclane 4: Fascination with darkness

Following on from my first,  second and third post about The Story of Mary Maclane by Herself:

Mary Maclane is fascinated by darkness. She's almost ecstatic at the thought of suicide, giving herself up to the dark power of the devil and destruction. Darkness and destruction are alluring, the idea thrills her - and this is the area that she suddenly is uncomfortable with her level of self-disclosure and vulnerability. There's something that she finds difficult to share with others - not like sexual exploits, dismissal of social customs or her opinions about other people. It's this desire that she feels she needs to hide, although throughout the play it's the main place she looks for happiness.

Once again, I see reflections of high school - how attractive darkness can be. It wasn't uncommon for people I knew to be depressed, moody, bleak, withdrawing, even suicidal. There was something exciting, seductive about it. The imagery of moths drawn to a flame - almost unable to resist although it's so destructive. When we were in bleak moods, we didn't necessarily want to be out of them. There's a sense in which it was a rejection of shallowness, superficiality, that ignored the meaningless and pain of life. It felt real to feel these things - so much more deep and honest than drifting along without reflection, superior to getting caught up in mundane life and pretending everything was okay.

Unlike some of the other things that I've written about in Mary Maclane, I don't think that a fascination with darkness can be turned around to be healthy or good. There are very, very few things that I think need to be rejected outright - even the worst things in our world are usually distortions of good things, and there is something that can be affirmed. Evil and darkness as a power seem to lead only to destruction.

A fundamental part of following Jesus is to reject Satan and all evil. It is to choose life - real life, with all its pain, mess and need for forgiveness - rather than death and destruction. It's the choice put again and again through the Bible: 'life and death, blessings and curses' (Deut 30:19); wisdom and life, folly and death (Proverbs 1-9); light and darkness (John).


What I'm not saying is that I reject being honest, or dealing with the reality of how life is, or shallowness and superficiality. I still think those are terrible, and that the church hasn't always had a good history of avoiding those things. But I am saying that you don't need to hold on to destructiveness in order to be real or happy, and you can't follow Jesus and Satan.

Brunswick photo: "I thought of you"

Art from RMIT? At the train crossing near Brunswick Baths.

Activism fatigue

Sometimes I feel like it's just too much effort thinking about how all my choices impact others. Or there is so little understanding from others and so little attention given to these matters that I wonder if it really is as big a problem as I'd thought - and whether it is deserving of as many of my resources (time, money, energy, etc). 

Recently, I watched this video, and it was so refreshing for me. It was a resounding "YES, these issues are significant". I found it sobering, but also really motivating and renewed my enthusiasm for carefully considering my family's food choices particularly.


The global food crisis from SustainTable on Vimeo.