Contents Human Values • FALL 2012 • VOL. 18, NO. 03
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My Corner
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Interview_ BRUNO Serato
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ideas_ inspiration initiative first person
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INTERACT PERSPECTIVE NEWS BITES_ World culture faith work
dignity HIDDEN FROM VIOLENCE COOKING TO STAY CLEAN A THEOLOGY OF CARING MEET MAX DUNN A NEW ERA FOR ACTIVISM review resources
THE EQUALITY PARADOX
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Visit Caring online
THE HOLISTIC MINISTRY OF THE SALVATION ARMY FALL 2012, vol. 18, no. 03 ISSN 2164-5922
Caring is published quarterly by The Salvation Army and seeks to: Reclaim ‘acts of mercy’ as imperatives to holiness. Bring the Army’s ministries of evangelistic and social outreach into one holistic ministry. Describe exemplary programs seeking to integrate the goals of the Army’s holistic ministries. Foster innovation and the development of creative approaches to ministry. Edify, enlighten, enrich and stimulate discussion among Salvationists involved in caring ministries. Provide a forum for examination of critical social issues within the Army. Report on important and relevant research in areas of holistic ministry. Review critical contributions of scholars and writers within relevant fields of ministry. Examine The Salvation Army as an organization in respect to its history, purpose, mission and future. STAFF
Editor in Chief/Robert Docter, Ph.D. bob.docter@usw.salvationarmy.org Managing Editor/Christin Davis christin.davis@usw.salvationarmy.org Assistant Editor/Erica Andrews erica.andrews@usw.salvationarmy.org Contributing Editor/Karen Gleason karen.gleason@usw.salvationarmy.org Associate Editor/Buffy Lincoln buffy.lincoln@usw.salvationarmy.org Intern/Jared McKiernan jared.mckiernan@usw.salvationarmy.org Circulation/Arlene DeJesus arlene.dejesus@usw.salvationarmy.org
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Major Betty Israel/USA National Headquarters Maribeth Swanson/USA Central Territory Major Florence Townsend/USA Eastern Territory Major John Jordan/USA Southern Territory Major Lawrence Shiroma/USA Western Territory
LAYOUT & DESIGN
for daily doses of The Salvation Army’s holistic ministry. caringmagazine.org Like and Follow: facebook.com/caringmagazine @caringmagazine
Art Director/Kevin Dobruck kevin.dobruck@usw.salvationarmy.org Graphic Designer/Adriana Rivera adriana.rivera@usw.salvationarmy.org
ADVERTISING
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CIRCULATION
Send address changes to Caring, P.O. Box 22646, Long Beach, CA 90802 or caring@usw.salvationarmy.org. SALVATION ARMY USA WESTERN TERRITORIAL HEADQUARTERS Territorial Commander/Commissioner James Knaggs Chief Secretary/Colonel Dave Hudson P.O. Box 22646 180 East Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802 562/491-8723 • Fax 562/491-8791 e-mail: caring@usw.salvationarmy.org Facebook: CaringMagazine Twitter: @CaringMagazine Unless otherwise indicated, all contents copyright© 2012 by New Frontier Publications, The Salvation Army, USA Western Territory, 180 E. Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802 USA. If requested, permission to reproduce is usually freely granted. Please contact the publisher before reproducing.
Values imposition By Robert Docter
WE ARE IN THE VALUES
education business. Our goal is to teach people to live God’s way as revealed in the life of Jesus—the Christ. If we live God’s way: He brings gifts into our lives much the same way that fruit appears in the orchard— • things like affection for others, • exuberance about life, • serenity. • We develop a willingness to stick with things, • a sense of compassion in the heart, • a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. • We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, • not needing to force our way in life, • able to marshal and direct our energies wisely. Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way (Gal. 5:22-23 MSG). I like the line that says if we live God’s way, he brings gifts to our lives much the same way fruit appears in the orchard. That means we model positive interpersonal values. When we do, we find people feeling attracted to us. When we chastise, ridicule, judge worth, or condemn people for their behavior, we turn them away from finding a better way. But when we rely on “the better angels of our nature” they will find what we have desirable. It is not possible to impose val-
ues. People will accept a value if it satisfies a basic need like survival, safety, belonging or achievement. Fear does not work in religious persuasion. We can’t scare people into heaven any more than we can scare people into sobriety. They will move toward that which attracts them. Imposition describes an act by an authority figure to influence the actions of an individual judged as needing a new direction. Some Christians, having found a measure of peace in discovering a new way of life, begin to be increasingly aware of the misguided and inappropriate behavior of some people around them. They condemn them as sinners, find them outside the will of God, and seek to impose their belief system on them. The people refuse, and the intervener responds by seeking punishment of them. It seems to me that he has left Jesus out of the equation and has, therefore, reached an answer contrary to the teaching of Christ. This hyperbole simplifies a case rather heavily. Nevertheless, many Christians—I think many of us who call ourselves “evangelicals”—are prone to believe that we are “right” and others whose actions do not share our particular rules of conduct are not only “wrong,” but sinners. This requires considerable judgmentalism. I’ll never forget seeing for the first time a Catholic priest outside his church with a cigarette dangling from his lips. I was shocked. I was taught at age seven or eight in my Army Sunday school that smoking was wrong, sinful and was grease for a fast slide into hell. This belief system was imposed. As we internalize these kinds of rules as young children, we later began to form our own generalizations that allowed us to expand the rule to non-specific behaviors. Since then, I have maintained my almost zealous commitment
Connect with Bob website: caringmagazine.org facebook.com/CaringMagazine twitter @CaringMagazine email: bob.docter@usw.salvationarmy.org
to my personal rule of going through life without ever taking a puff on that filthy weed. In my maturity, however, I established a more honest rationale for that decision. Smoking is not a sin. It’s stupid. I choose to avoid as much stupidity as possible. Values are mostly learned through modeling. They can also be taught either through approach or avoidance strategies. The difference relates to the motivation selected—why someone would want to or not want to engage in some behavior. Approach communicates the advantages of certain types of behavior— the rationale for choosing it. It allows for freedom, and places responsibility directly on the individual. It reveals to the person how they might best “get along” in a group of individuals. Avoidance preaches the disadvantages and harms of a particular behavior choice. It relies heavily on implied punishment. It fails unless it can be reframed as movement toward a more desirable goal. Punishment fails completely as a method for changing behavior except when the threat of punishment is present. I pray Army programs will become an orchard where soldiers will bear fruit like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. I pray we will avoid judgmentalism or labeling. The goal is not to make people exactly like us, but to live our own lives in a manner that bears fruit. w
Robert Docter, Ph. D., is the editor in chief of New Frontier Publications.
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IN YOUR WORDS “A big congratulations on the wonderful issue of Caring featuring Kroc Centers in The Salvation Army. I have enjoyed every page in this magazine, with the many different angles to how the Kroc Centers have come about. A quality magazine that knows how to communicate powerfully what The Salvation Army is and what we do. I am so impressed.” —Vibeke Krommenhoek “This [issue] will be a great tool in a variety of ways. The overall look and the pieces I have read are excellent. The entire staff should be proud. I wish you all continued success.”—Steve Bireley “Thank you! Major brought one back from The Gathering. It’s beautiful.” —Maria Todaro Connect with Caring website: caringmagazine.org facebook.com/CaringMagazine twitter @CaringMagazine
To subscribe Phone: 562-491-8723 Email: caring@usw.salvationarmy.org Website: caringmagazine.org Rates: 1 year (4 issues) $15 U.S., $18 Canada and Mexico, $20 other countries. Contact us for bulk subscription discounts.
Following release of the summer issue, Caring was featured on The Salvation Army USA’s national blog! “The latest issue of Caring provides great insight into Mrs. Kroc’s life and vision for the future,” it reads. The post also included the inspiring letter Joan Kroc wrote to her granddaughter, Amanda: bit.ly/Lm3wR4.
Postcards (6x9-inches) of the Kroc Centers map are available, while supplies last, for the cost of shipping. Contact caring@usw. salvationarmy.org.
Guide to QR codes
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Download app: A QR code is a two-dimensional barcode that can be read by smart phone cameras. Search “QR code” to find a free downloadable app for your phone.
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Scan code: Hold your phone over a box. The app will use your camera to read the code. Explore: The code will direct your phone to a website, video, photo or something else to explore.
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Watch this Vintage clips of Joan Kroc and stories of how the first Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, located in San Diego, Calif., came to be: youtu.be/ fNpMowwn-1I.
Love as the cornerstone By Christin Davis
I spent a number of recent days in the hospital. Not for myself, but to support someone whom I love dearly—my grandfather. Between all the beeps and bustle of the critical care unit, our biggest care was his heart. It is in these moments of unconditional positive regard for another, when family drops daily duties and gathers, that priorities are made clear. It is a reminder that love never fails (1 Cor. 13:8a NIV). Love is a pure reaction from the heart, and the unseen undercurrent that binds together all other values. We are alive, even, as a manifestation of love. Human values often include peace, truth, right conduct, non-violence, with love as the cornerstone. Thinking with love is truth. Feeling with love is peace. Acting with love is right conduct. Understanding with love is non-violence. This virtue represents affection and compassion— “the unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another” by definition. In urging us to stick together, it aids our survival. We focus on three values spiritually: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love (13:13). Love is the foundation. Values have been long studied in sociology, anthropology, social psychology, and even business ethics. When we focus on our values, we are more likely to accomplish Christin what we consider most important. Davis is the managing In a long hallway inside the United editor of Nations headquarters in New York, New Frontier framed illustrations of each of the 30 Publications. articles in the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights (bit.ly/kOR28X)—human values— hangs boldly. Our standards for people determine our expectations and behavior, and much of our work in The Salvation Army. At Princeton, the University Center for Human Values “fosters ongoing inquiry into important ethical issues in private and public life and supports teaching, research and discussion of ethics and human values.” We have a similar ethos at Caring. This issue focuses on human values—our concern, care and love for others—from sheltering a person from domestic violence, to modifying church culture to make others comfortable, to preserving mangos to earn a sustainable living, to examining the theological breakdown of caring. Caring is intrinsic to love. “We in The Salvation Army find our identity in the expression of our care for others grown out of our love for the Lord,” Lt. Matthew Jensen writes in his article on page 34. Flaunt your values—your love. Tell it. Show it. Live it. w
Connect with Christin website: caringmagazine.org twitter @CaringMagazine facebook.com/CaringMagazine email: christin.davis@usw.salvationarmy.org
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Pass the torch Salvationists participated in the 2012 Olympic Torch Relay in preparation for the summer’s Olympic Games and special edition of The War Cry was distributed at Olympic events throughout the summer. “The special edition is an opportunity to ‘hand over’ the good news about the difference Jesus makes to life,” said Editor Major Nigel Bovey. “‘With thousands of people lining the streets to see the Olympic flame, this is an ideal opportunity for The Salvation Army to remind people about God’s love for the whole world.” Army celebrates Booth The United Kingdom Territory and the Republic of Ireland marked 100 years since Salvation Army Founder William Booth made his famous “I’ll Fight” speech on social injustice during an “I’ll Fight” Congress at the Royal Albert Hall in London. See more: salvationarmy.org.uk/ congress.
“While there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight.” – William Booth Declining demand Between 90-95 million low-skill workers—or 2.6 percent of the global workforce—will not be needed by employers by 2020 and will be vulnerable to permanent unemployment, according to a recent report released by the McKinsey Global Institute.
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Abuse Awareness Day The Salvation Army took part in recognizing Abused Women and Children’s Awareness Day on June 10, an opportunity to reflect on how we can stop the destruction that violence brings to homes all over the world and promote ways to aid victims.
Syrian violence The United Nations convened an international meeting in Geneva to move the Syrian political transition forward and stop the violence that has killed more than 10,000 people. Foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council (Britain, China, France, Russia, and the U.S.) were invited as well as the U.N. SecretaryGeneral, the head of the Arab League, and the foreign ministers of Turkey, Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar.
Army’s 75th annual Donut Day Krispy Kreme and Dunkin’ Donuts participated in The Salvation Army’s 75th annual Donut Day by giving away free doughnuts with a cup of coffee. Since World War I, the doughnut has become synonymous with The Salvation Army’s social services and continues to be a comfort food served by The Salvation Army to those in need during times of disaster.
Mending immigration The Obama administration announced it will not deport young illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children as long as they don’t have criminal records, a move that President Obama said would “mend” immigration policy. It will also allow this group of immigrants to obtain work permits.
Affordable care The Supreme Court ruled that the individual health insurance mandate is constitutional, upholding the central provision of President Barack Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act.
Marriage attitudes soften In 2001, Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a 57 percent to 35 percent margin. Today, the public is about evenly split, with 47 percent in favor and 43 percent opposed, according to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.
Millenials donate Roughly three in four young people who provided data for the 2012 Millennial Impact Report said they donated money to a nonprofit organization in 2011, while 70 percent said they helped solicit donations by encouraging others to support a cause.
Guiding the impaired OnTheBus, a new Android app, is a guide for people who need to get around big cities with public transportation, but unlike other GPS programs, the app uses gesture and voice recognition to be especially helpful for people with “visual, hearing, or cognitive impairments.”
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Millennials in doubt The percentage of Americans 30 or younger who have doubts about God’s existence appears to be rapidly increasing, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey. While most young Americans (68 percent) said they never doubt God’s existence, that’s down from 83 percent just five years ago.
South’s first black pastor More than 160 years after its founding as a pro-slavery church, the Southern Baptist Convention elected Fred Luter, Jr., president—the first African American pastor to lead the denomination.
Belief in creationism A new Gallup Poll measuring American belief in the origin of human beings found that 46 percent of Americans believe in creationism. Logan
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Most Christian state Researchers found Utah to be the most Christian state, with around 78 percent of the population identifying as Christian, according to a study by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies.
Religion in politics A survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life finds signs of public discomfort with the merging of religion and politics. Nearly 4 in 10 Americans (38 percent) now say political leaders have overemphasized religious faith and prayer.
Colorado wildfires Lightning struck June 9 in High Park, Co., causing the third largest wildfire in Colorado history, which was soon followed by the destructive Waldo Canyon Fire. The Salvation Army provided food, hydration and emotional and spiritual support to evacuees and those who lost homes.
Breaking the poverty cycle The new Pathway of Hope program at The Salvation Army in Kansas City is targeting families with children who are repeat emergency assistance applicants, providing long-term care toward financial stability. If successful, the goal is to initiate the Pathway of Hope in 30 additional corps throughout the coming year. Sharing with legislators The Salvation Army officers and staff from Aliquippa to York went to the state capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., to share with legislators the work The Salvation Army is doing to better the lives of thousands of Pennsylvanians every day.
Fed-Ex donates FedEx, in a recent display of its longstanding commitment to disaster relief efforts, donated a Disaster Response Unit (DRU) to The Salvation Army, the first vehicle of its kind to be used in San Francisco. The custom-designed unit features a full kitchen capable of feeding approximately 2,500 people per day. In the Golden State Division, San Francisco 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh presented the keys to Major Wayne Froderberg (Emergency Disaster Services coordinator), with Steve Seymour (managing director, FedEx Express) and Lt. Col. Steve Smith (divisional commander). Flood relief At least 350 families around Lagodekhi, Ga., lost crops and livestock after torrential rain caused flooding. The Salvation Army provided assistance to families affected by floods.
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Pasta with hope
Restaurateur feeds ‘motel kids’ and kick-starts family housing. By Erica Andrews
Bruno Serato
left Italy more than 30 years ago hoping to attain his version of the American Dream. Never one to settle, he promptly learned English and went from dishwasher to owner of the popular Anaheim White House restaurant, in Anaheim, Calif. He soon realized that not everyone was living the dream. In 2005, Serato and his mother, Caterina, visited the Boys and Girls Club of Anaheim, where his mother noticed a young boy eating potato chips for dinner. They learned the boy’s family couldn't afford to buy him a meal, and Caterina insisted that her son make pasta for the child. This situation is not uncommon in America where 1.6 million children are homeless, according to The National Center on Family Homelessness. More than 1,000 of these children live in Orange County motels. Erica To help combat this, Serato founded Caterina’s Club, and Andrews is the assistant began making pasta for 72 children five nights a week, which editor of expanded to 300 kids seven nights a week—a quarter of a Caring. million meals to date. Recently, Serato also started paying
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first and last months rent for families, helping them move out of the motels. Caring sat down with Serato to find out more about his foundation and how he’s helping families leave the motel life permanently. Has cooking and helping others always been your passion? Yeah—my passion is people. My mom and dad had a small restaurant in Italy and from 14-20 years old I worked with my mom in the kitchen. I’ve been in the restaurant business now for over 40 years.
Connect with Erica website: caringmagazine.org facebook.com/caringmagazine twitter: @caringmagazine email: erica.andrews@usw.salvationarmy.org Photos by Erica Andrews
When the economy was at its lowest point, did your restaurant struggle? We lost 30-40 percent of our business. It was extremely difficult. We refinanced the house and the restaurant in order to keep going. How were you able to still provide for the kids? The kids tripled in the worst moment of my business. I knew if I didn’t do it, a lot of those kids wouldn’t have dinner. They were in a worse situation than I was. I decided to keep going with the help of God. Your faith helped you during that difficult time? Faith will help you get through the worst situations in your life. When my business was doing much worse and the kids tripled, I just looked above my head and said, “God, I’m in your hands, do what you have to do.” And that’s what happened. If I didn’t have that, I probably wouldn’t be here today. Have you had any profound experiences with the children you’ve helped? One kid broke my heart this week because I’ve been feeding him for two to three years and he just moved with his family. I paid their first and last months rent, so their mom could move to a new home to be away from the drug dealers, addicts, and sexual predators that are in the motel area. I was sad because I probably won’t really see him again because now he’s in a different city.
Have you helped other families like his move? Moving families out is my new project for this year. I’ve been feeding kids for seven years, but there’s always a major sad feeling when we take them back to the motel. I kept thinking about what to do with the families and the children. I started to do new fundraisers to make money to pay for the first and last month’s rent. Some of those people lost their home, lost their job and their last chance is to be in a motel. After a couple of months, they find a job because they’re hardworking people—but when they find a job, they want to get back on their own feet. They want to go back to a regular apartment or home, but they have difficulty coming up with the $4,000 or $5,000 deposit. I pay that for people who qualify. They have to have two kids minimum, they have to be clean [not addicted to drugs], and hardworking. We stand behind them for 12 months to make sure they don’t fall back. If they can make it the first 12 months, they can make it forever. How many families have you helped so far? About 16. When did you start this portion of the foundation? In May, and it’s now a part of Caterina’s Club. I’m still feeding the kids because that’s my priority, but why not take those children away from a bad environment— that’s my new step. We’re moving families all over Orange County right now.
Describe the motel area that these kids are living in. It’s scary. It scares me. There’s a family now that we’re moving out soon—they’ve been living there for 12 years. Some people get used to it, but now that the kids are growing they want to get out. They all have to live in one room, which is very sad. You have to see it to believe it. A lot of people are in denial in our country with the kind of problem we have. What would you say would be the best way to change that? Pool our resources together and move one family at a time. I do believe if you take children away from a bad environment, you’re making a better future. You received the CNN Hero Award in 2011 for the work you do with your foundation; congratulations. What was that experience like? The event was amazing, but the biggest reward was for the motel kids. I started receiving donations to my foundation after that. It helped make people around the world aware that there are innocent children in America who don’t eat. What can people do in their area to help? I think they should talk to their local restaurant or chef and reach out to the motel kids in the city. That’s the number one thing. Every time you drive somewhere and see a motel, think about how there could be a child living in that motel forever. The problem is everywhere. Your mother appears to have had a huge influence on your life and the foundation. Do you think without her prompting that this would have come to fruition? No, because honestly if she had never said, ‘give them pasta,’ the thought wouldn’t have occurred to me. Sometimes you need someone to click something in your mind to do something. I hope when people see this—something will click for them also. w
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A family feel at Church redesign mixes coffee shop and living room By Amanda Williams
Couches, coffee tables, state-of-the-art stage, art gallery and fair trade coffee bar—it sounds like the local coffee shop, but this is High Point Community Church. “High Point is comfortable,” said Barb Blenkin, a new member of the church. “People can feel at home and accepted whether or not they are a church member, Christian or anything.” High Point started prior to World War II as a Sunday school outreach— the Esquimalt Corps—in Esquimalt, Canada. The congregation moved to Victoria West in 1997 and changed its name to High Point, and just over a decade later began transforming into its current state. In a sense, the idea to change things originated from the early days of The Salvation Army, when we adapted our methods to local contexts and met in homes, bars and street corners. Here, we noticed that coffee shops provide gathering places that seem to disarm people and create a sense of community. Aesthetically, our space borrows from both traditional architecture and coffee shops, concert venues and your own living room. “Church often feels like you’re an invited guest at God’s formal dinner party, but not at High Point,” said Nathan Swartz, church attendee. “High Point feels like you’re part of God’s family and the sanctuary is his living room.” It is home to many walks of life, including those who moved with the
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High Point
corps from its former location, single parents, families, teens who have grown up within these walls, those who work in childcare, those assigned to the military base a few blocks away, and even those who live on the streets. “I love that our church embraces anyone who walks through the door; no matter age, status, or look,” said Amanda Swartz, church member. “That ease of comfort also comes from the fact that the environment of the church embodies the local relaxed, artistic feel of the community.” We believe in local sustainability focused on family and community. We love helping our neighbors and have two annual community events to enjoy and support each other. The art we sell is all done by locals and changes every month. High Point is also available for community shows and fundraisers, which provide opportunities for visitors and for us to get to know more people in our community. The relaxed atmosphere makes it easy to tell people about Jesus. The family feeling moves beyond the revamped space, as church members meet in each other’s living rooms once a week for a potluck dinner and Bible study. “You can come as you are here,” new member Blenkin said. “It feels like you're at a friend’s house.” w Amanda Williams handles communications for the High Point Community Church in Canada. Photos by Chris Loh Photography Connect with High Point website: pointful.ca facebook.com/HighPointChurch twitter @HighPointChurch email: info@poinful.ca
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Preserving fruit and transforming lives How World Harvest is creating an income generator for Somali refugees By John Mendez
A man living in Northern Uganda
has a mango tree that produces a rich supply of fruit twice a year—his main source of income. He peels and slices the mangoes, soaks them in syrup for six hours, dries the mangoes and finally packages them for sale. Through this process, the man is not only able to provide for his family but also contribute toward the wellbeing of those from his neighboring country, Somalia.
A patient at a hospital in Adjumani, Northern Uganda, waits outside for care.
diseases, including cholera. In July 2011, a team from World Harvest—an international humanitarian relief and development, faith-based non-profit organization—came across the dire situation in Somalia. World Harvest works in disaster relief around the world, including the earthquakes in Indonesia, Haiti and Japan, and built a plan to bring aid to the Somali refugees. It simultaneously worked with colleagues in Uganda who put a team of local doctors together and found locations near the border of Somalia to safely and effectively provide relief. As one aspect of this relief, a way for refugees to generate income, World Harvest is teaching people to preserve and package fruit that can be sold as snacks throughout the year.
Somalia and its people began a downward spiral in 2011 following a five-year drought that resulted in famine. Without a stable government and in the terrorizing presence of Al Shabab, one of Africa’s most feared Islamic militant groups, the famine claimed up to an estimated 100,000 lives over six months alone, according to Jerry John Rawlings, Africa Union High Representative for Somalia and former President of Ghana. According to Refugees International, 950,000 Somali refugees have fled to Kenya John Mendez directs public and and other neighboring countries. These indidonor relations for viduals walked hundreds of miles through unWorld Harvest. forgiving desert land, vulnerable to starvation and terrorist attacks, only to find themselves in overcrowded refugee camps crawling with Photos by Adri Krisnadi 14
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Assessing the crisis By late October 2011, World Harvest USA traveled to Kenya, near the border of Somalia. They brought two truck loads of food and a team of doctors, and provided food and medical relief to nearly 2,000 people.
“I’m proud to work for a nonprofit organization that puts a lot of effort in making lives better.” – Budijono Untung
Top: World Harvest team fills 135 prescriptions, gives 65 vaccinations and distributes food in Wajir, Kenya. Bottom: Rev. Daniel Hanafi encourages Christian leaders at a conference in Adjumani, Northern Uganda.
“The plight of these displaced people was unimaginable; they have traveled for weeks in the midst of parched wilderness when all their supplies ran out,” said World Harvest Vice Chairman Rev. Daniel Hanafi. “Weakened and unable to go any further, they found this patch of land that had a small spring, and have stayed there for three months, where at least they have a little water. But without food relief, starvation is lurking just around the corner. With no sanitation or any services, human waste quickly takes its toll on the people, especially children, as dysentery and cholera spread.” Short-term relief was necessary, but it wasn’t enough to reverse the situation in Somalia. Beginning January 4, Hanafi spoke in cities in Uganda, Kenya and South Sudan, challenging Christian leaders and confronting the underlying issues. Connect with John He asked them to let website: worldharvest.cc go of any bitterness facebook.com/WorldHarvest.cc email: jmendez@worldharvest.cc and act with love and
compassion. While traveling, the World Harvest team also provided food to 7,500 people and medical treatment to 400 people along the Somali border, even sending one child to a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, for kidney failure treatment. Working for self-sufficiency In Northern Uganda and South Sudan there is a bountiful mango harvest twice a year. So many mangoes emerge from the trees that rarely get eaten. By preserving the mangoes, World Harvest knew it could greatly increase annual income for people in the community, help people sustain themselves and enable them to become more involved in helping their Somali neighbors. “I’m proud to work for a non-profit organization that puts a lot of effort in making lives better,” said Budijono Untung, director of operations for World Harvest. “Our mission in Africa is not only to provide short-term solutions for Somali refugees but also to touch lives in the surrounding countries, Uganda and South Sudan.” World Harvest is currently sending dried mango samples to test the market and will provide equipment to more people living in South Sudan and Northern Uganda to make their own dried mango snacks. w
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Rooted in the capacity to give and receive love By James E. Read
It was a “self-evident” truth to Thomas Jefferson and the other founders of the United States that “all men are created equal.” In what way we are equal, the founders didn’t say. When it signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights about 150 years later, the United Nations declared human beings “equal in dignity and rights.” Christians should agree. Equality in dignity may not be self-evident to a lot of people today, but it is something that Christians should declare and show in how we behave. Dignity is a fundamental value, in some ways the pre-condition for all other ethical values, and it cries out for respect. Each and every human being has incommensurable value—a value not calculated in dollars and cents or productivity or sexiness. So what does human dignity consist of, if not wealth or power or fame? Eighteenth century philosopher Immanuel Kant zeroed in on the idea of humans made “in the image of God,” especially on “autonomy”—the capacity of individuals to set goals and act on them using their own rational powers. In Kantian terms, the fundamental sin is to “use” another person—to override or ignore their wishes in order to serve your own purposes, denying autonomy and assaulting their dignity as equals. Surely there is a really important insight here. The Salvation Army champions the anti-trafficking cause in large part because the people who are trafficked are being “used,” treated more like commodities than persons, sold as objects for others’ pleasure or profit. This is offensive in the extreme. Not because those who are trafficked are not going for fair market value, but because the force, coercion, manipulation and fraud used against them means they cannot really make choices. Their dignity as persons, God-like in their creation, is simply trashed. And as my friend Dianna (an anti-trafficking specialist) tells me, the horror is made worse when those who have been trafficked internalize the message and think they don’t deserve anything better. Autonomy is precious. We should fight to defend it for ourselves. We should fight to restore it to others. But autonomy is not the whole of human dignity, or even its heart. There are many people who cannot be self-determining, who have lost the capacity or never had it in the first place—the profoundly mentally disabled, for instance. Shall we say their lives lack dignity because they lack rational decision-making capacity? Faced with cognitive frailty, there are academics who will frankly deny that all people are equal or deny that the mentally disabled really James E. Read, are people. Christians need to stand firm against this. “Made in the Ph.D., is a senior image of God” does not equal “smart.” policy analyst for The Salvation Henri Nouwen powerfully narrates this lesson. A professor of Army Internationtheology at Harvard and Yale, Nouwen naturally prized intellecal Social Justice tual prowess. What a different space he found himself in, however, Commission, and when he joined the L’Arche Daybreak community in Toronto. He executive director was asked to work with Adam, a 24-year-old man who couldn’t of The Salvation
Each and every human being has incommensurable value— a value not calculated in dollars and cents or productivity or sexiness.
Army Ethics Centre.
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speak, walk, dress or undress himself. The experience transformed Nouwen’s understanding of human dignity. “My whole life had been doing, so people would finally recognize that I am a worthwhile being,” he said. “Adam taught me that the heart is more important than the mind. If you’ve come from a university, that’s hard to learn. “Minds thinking, arguing, discussing, writing, doing—that is what a human being is,” Nouwen said. “Well, Adam didn’t think. Adam had a heart, a real human heart. I suddenly realized that what makes a human being human is the heart with which he can give and receive love. I suddenly realized that Adam was not just a disabled person, less human than me, but was a full human being.” Not the mind, but the heart. Not strength but vulnerability. Human dignity rooted in the capacity to give and receive love. What Nouwen says is profoundly Christian, and we need to hear it. If I were to quibble, it would be to warn about the risk of patronizing the Adams of the world. Nouwen may not have been guilty of this, but some of us have been. In fact it could be a risk to which Salvationists are especially
prone. When we are at our best, our hearts go out to “the vulnerable,” and the marginal—“to love the unloved in the legions of the lost.” We see those whom others don’t, we tell ourselves. And that may be true. But such attitudes can stoke pride and arrogance. Before long we find ourselves saying we are giving dignity to the world’s unfortunates. Which is nonsense, really. The dignity that people have, his or her fundamental worth, is inherent, and the best we can do is recognize what God put there. In Jesus’ parable, when the King commended those for what they did for “the least of these brothers and sisters of mine,” he was not emphasizing the leastness of those who were helped but the fact that they are his brothers and sisters. To be created in the image of God, therefore, is more about bearing a relationship than a resemblance. Dignity. Human dignity. Equal dignity. Rooted first of Connect with James all, not in our intellect website: salvationarmy.org/isjc nor in our vulnerability, salvationarmyethics.org but in the fact that God facebook.com/thesalvationarmyisjc calls us his kin. w email: james_read@can.salvationarmy.org
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HIDDEN from violence With no identifying signs and a large gate, a Florida domestic violence shelter helps people heal. By Dulcinea N. Cuellar
Sometimes people just snap. Zagorka, an immigrant from Yugoslavia, married in 1958 in a traditional Eastern Orthodox Christian ceremony in Macedonia. They had two sons, one now an electrical engineer in Massachusetts and the other a jeweler in Chicago. The family immigrated in 1982, first to Massachusetts and then to Florida. It’s hard for Zagorka, 76, to classify her 53 years of marriage as happy. Her husband threatened to kill her with a knife, violently shook her by her shoulders until she passed out, and sexually abused her. “When he loved me, he loved me to death,” she said. “But when he’d hit me, he’d hit me to near death.” She described her husband’s rage like a wild animal. “He’d get these tiger eyes,” she recalled. “Like the tiger ready to kill.” She blamed herself, always apologizing, saying she would try to be a better wife and mother. Finally, following dinner one evening, Zagorka had enough. That day, her husband had seen a lawyer to create a will. He wanted his ashes spread in Macedonia, by his mother. When the attorney asked if he had any relatives he said no—even though he had two sons and a wife of 50 years. Zagorka recalled, “He Dulcinea N. said, ‘I put on my Will Cuellar is the and Testament that I don’t divisional public relations have a wife, don’t have director in Florida.
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children, don’t have grandchildren,’ and I replied, ‘why have I stayed with you this long? Get out of my face. I’m getting a divorce.’” She made her way to The Salvation Army’s domestic violence shelter, where she peacefully slept for the first time in a long time. For 30 years, The Salvation Army’s domestic violence shelter in Pasco County, Fla., has been a safe place for women, men and children who have experienced abuse. Located on a rural stretch of road in the middle of nowhere, the shelter has a gate, security cameras, lights, a constant stream of police and no identifying signs. Since opening in April 1982, it has sheltered more than 10,000 men, women and children, serving 193 women and 178 children in 2011 alone. “It makes me sad to hear a young child saying, ‘this is the best place ever,’” said Program Director Lynn Needs. “No baby should have to be in the shelter.” For those who are, the staff works hard to make it feel like home. Not long after Elizabeth returned to the shelter, fleeing her boyfriend for the second time, her ex-husband died. She had six children, one a newborn, and was SallyAnnAd-Caring:Layout 1
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embarrassed to be there again. “When you think of a shelter you think of unwanted children and unwanted people,” she said. “That’s not what it is here.” Elizabeth and her family stayed in the program for 10 weeks, four weeks longer than the average stay, and get by on a small government check. She is close to finishing her degree, and hopes to work as a nurse. “In the end, I had to do what was best for my kids,” she said, “I don’t like begging for food, going to a food pantry or living in a shelter, but the people here have treated me so kind. They do all they can to help.” For Melynda, that help includes being shuttled to doctor’s appointments, MRI visits and court hearings. Her ex-boyfriend beat her with a metal pipe; she may never regain full sight in her left eye. “It’s a relief to be here...everyone Connect with Dulcinea knows what you are website: salvationarmyflorida.org facebook.com/DulcineaCuellar going through,” she twitter @salarmyfla said. “This is a place email: dulcinea.cuellar@uss.salvationarmy.org that helps people heal.” w
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The equality paradox The Salvation Army began with a desire to treat women equally, allowing them to teach, preach and minister just like men. Yet that equality had reservations, and the organization now aims to return to its intended egalitarian roots. By Christin Davis
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sleek campus in a suburban area outside of Chicago once served as the center of operations for an oil company, but now houses The Salvation Army’s Central Territorial Headquarters. Each morning, Carol Seiler drives into the underground parking lot and takes the stairs, passing the women’s ministries department and heading for the floor reserved for territorial leadership. Her office, a small space once used for traveling officers, is around the corner from the territorial commander.
Christin Davis is the managing editor of New Frontier Publications.
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Just over 5-feet-tall, Seiler is not an intimidating figHow did The Salvation Army get sidetracked? ure, but has a commanding presence that fits the selfThe 1900 edition of Orders and Regulations for selected location of her office. As we sit, she straight- Officers—“a manual of operations for furthering the ens the fitted blazer of her navy polyester pantsuit, her mission”—named gender equality as “one of the leadshoulders adorned with maroon velvet epaulets and a ing principles upon which the Army is based.” This silver Salvation Army crest—designating her as one of evangelical church ordains women and appoints them 10 commissioners, the rank just below the General, into positions throughout the nonprofit organization, in the United States. By regulation, the wife of the ter- including the April 2011 election of General Linda ritorial commander is appointed to lead the women’s Bond as the international leader, but the foundationministries department, but Seiler brought a different al progressive perspective was sidestepped along the background to the role. While she still holds that title way. The 1987 edition of officer regulations stated, by international regulation, “the nature of such service she created a position of her [for an ‘officer-wife’] will own: strategic mission plandepend largely upon her ning to keep the Army agile yet husband's appointment. In analytical in the Midwest. most appointments...an of“We have inherited a paraficer-wife should assist her dox in an organization that husband. He is of course cares about empowering womresponsible.” Not until the en in our programs, but uses 1997 edition did the idea gender and marital status to of “individual vocation and actually discriminate against mutual support” recognize officers who are married wominstead the distinctive role en,” Seiler said. “Even if it unof each officer. intentionally happens, having Finding a niche to fit her one spouse be an attachment skills was part of Seiler’s to the other, even though both strategy as a young officer. complete training college and Soon after receiving a mashold a rank, devalues the inditer’s degree in public health, – Carol Seiler viduals.” her husband became a fiThe Salvation Army began nance trainee and she was with a desire to treat womtasked with corps cadets, en equally, allowing them to a young adult Bible study teach, preach and minister just like men. In its first 50 program. “My previous work and education weren’t years in the United States, the Army often had wom- even factored into my role,” said Seiler, who is largely en leaders. Yet that equality had some reservations, responsible at that time for starting Bethesda House, a which William Booth, who started the Army with his shelter for homeless families affected by HIV/AIDS. “I wife, Catherine, told listeners at an 1888 meeting, as found ways to be fulfilled without fussing about it, but recorded in a May 1888 edition of The War Cry, “In when I became a divisional leader—and the divisional the way of our salaried officers we have a great dif- commander’s wife—I realized I needed to do more to ficulty to meet...the male officers are joined with the help other women,” she said. “Once you get into a pofemale officers, and then, by some strange mistake in sition of authority, you have to keep being a voice.” our organization, the woman doesn’t count (p.10).” In a 2011 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life Now, some men and women of The Salvation Army global survey of evangelical Protestant leaders, a third are trying to return the organization to its intended of worldwide leaders surveyed (33 percent) say they egalitarian roots—for all officers, married and single. agree that “women should stay at home and raise the
“We have inherited a paradox in an organization that cares about empowering women in our programs, but uses gender and marital status to actually discriminate against officers who are married women.”
READ IT
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The War Cry (May 1888) http://bit.ly/OAWhQ5
Global Survey of Evangelical Protestant Leaders (2011) http://bit.ly/M1nL1B
single officer I was valued and people knew I could think and contribute, but as a married officer I’m expected to coordinate parties and place uniform orders. I’m an expansive thinker, and I feel boxed into a role that I don’t fit into.” Despite this, it is women officers who are largely essential to the Army’s legacy, starting with its co-founder. Emerging from England’s working class, Catherine Mumford grew up in a world where all women worked and religion, specifically the local Wesleyan Methodist chapel, was at the center of the family. Women could not participate in decision-making bodies nor be ordained, but the theology did support women’s public minCommissioner Carol Seiler istry, according to Dr. Pamela Walker, a professor of history at Carleton University in Ottawa children in the family;” the number is higher among and the author of Pulling the Devil’s Kingdom Down on U.S. leaders with 44 percent agreeing women should The Salvation Army in Victorian Britain. stay at home. “The Army is a patriarchal organization, but it also The Salvation Army—an evangelical Protestant endorses women’ s authority,” Walker said of the Army church and international humanitarian organization at its beginning. “In that tension is the root of womcurrently operating in 125 countries and 175 languagen’ s position within the Army over the next hundred es—is rooted in Methodism. The Christian Mission, later re-named The Salvation Army, originated in Eng- years.” In Victorian Britain, most evangelicals understood land in 1865 with a Methodist minister and his wife— women to be “domestic, dependent, and submissive, William and Catherine Booth. Though Catherine was which necessarily precluded them from preaching or never ordained nor commissioned, in the Mission’s assuming positions of authority,” Walker said. When Foundation Deed the Booths included a provision that the minister of the Bethesda Free Church in Sunderwomen have the same rights to preach as men, and the land, Rev. A. A. Rees, published a pamphlet arguing organization has made women ministers ever since—a that Paul specifically and unequivocally forbade womremarkable advancement even today as just over half en to speak in church, and because of Eve’ s sin women of American Protestant denominations ordain women. were “under a denser cloud of suffering and humiliYet some see the opportunity given to married ation” and must remain in subjection to men, Cathwomen officers as less than what is offered to single erine Booth was enraged. She published her own pamwomen and male officers. “I was basically dismissed phlet, “Female Teaching,” arguing that God made man when I married,” said one female officer with roughly and woman together, and subordination occurred as 30 years of experience as both a single and a married a punishment for Eve’ s transgressions; the subjection officer, who asked that her name not be used. “As a
READ IT
The Christian Mission Foundation Deed (1878) http://bit.ly/NftcLk
“Female Teaching” by Catherine Booth (1861) http://bit.ly/LM0S0O
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was “neither natural nor eternal.” She wrote: “Will he inform us why women should be confined exclusively to the kitchen or the distaff, any more than man to the field and the workshop? Did not God, and has not nature, assigned to man his sphere of labor, ‘to till the ground, and to dress it?’ And, if Mr. Rees claims exemption from this kind of toil for one portion of his sex, on the ground of their possessing ability for intellectual pursuits, he must allow us the same privilege for women.” Because 19th-century British and American Protestants regarded women as passive and receptive by nature, Walker said the most innovative and ultimately significant aspect of Catherine Booth’s thinking was her assertion—radical at the time—that women could possess spiritual authority as women and could preach as a part of the natural order. She wrote to her mother, “I felt quite at home on the platform—far more than I do in the kitchen.” When William Booth became ill in 1860, Catherine Booth took his place in the Methodist New Connexion preaching circuit. The minutes contained no reference to her preaching, but the press did, including a Wesleyan Times article titled “A Minister’s Wife Preaching for Him!” She became well known for speaking and received many invitations to do so, often before wealthy crowds where she gained financial support for the ministry. When Catherine Booth—the “Army Mother”—died in 1890, 30,000 people lined the streets of East London to watch her funeral procession. She was called the “most famous and influential Christian woman of the generation.”
percent of middle-management positions, 28 percent of vice-president and senior-managerial roles, and 14 percent of seats on executive committees. According to McKinsey & Company analysis, the chances of women advancing are half of those for men. This is further complicated in The Salvation Army because for the most part a wife seems to have opportunities only as far as they relate to her husband’s appointments. All officers complete two years of training at one of four colleges across the nation; each fulfills the requirements, and is ordained and commissioned individually. Territorial leaders and personnel departments then appoint officers to positions in Salvation Army corps (churches) and divisional and territorial headquarters. A newly commissioned officer lieutenant is individually promoted in rank to captain after five years of service and to major after 15 years of service. Any rank beyond major, which couples then take together, is given with elevated position. For married women officers, the dilemma is not found as often at the corps level but in headquarters positions. Many headquarters (i.e. leadership) positions for a husband come with a “linked” appointment for his wife, generally in the women’s ministries department or as his assistant/ associate. Colonel Sharron Hudson is the territorial secretary for women’s ministries in the West and wife of the chief secretary. “It’s a Catch-22 really, because I feel valued in my ministry to women and always have; women’s programs have been the lifeblood of The Salvation Army,” she said. “But after 20 years of working together in a corps, when my husband was appointed a divisional secretary and the linked appointment for me was in League of Mercy I had a hard time at first. I joked with him—kind of joked—about him being in an office with a couch next to the divisional commander and me being down in a cubby hole.” However, Hudson, who is currently working toward
Of the 5,289 officers in the United States, 56 percent are women. Just two of 40 divisional commanders in the U.S. are women—both single.
The present tension In the United States, women account for roughly 53 percent of entry-level professional employees in the largest industrial corporations, yet they hold only 37
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a master’s in Christian leadership at Fuller Seminary, stresses that The Salvation Army does give her a position. “In most other churches, I would be a ‘pastor’s wife’ but in The Salvation Army I have my own appointment and title,” she said. “Even with its foibles, the Army is still radical in its use of women in leadership.” Western Territorial Commander Commissioner James Knaggs said a male-dominated way of thinking leads to the husband generally having the more dominant role in headquarters appointments. He believes it needs to change and appointed a married woman officer as the property secretary in the West. Yet Knaggs noted that a number of married women officers he has discussed promotions with said they did not want a position over their husbands. “They pleaded, ‘Don’t do this to our marriage,’” Knaggs said. “The Salvation Army’s early leaders stressed the creation account,” said Dr. Roger Green, professor and chair of Biblical Studies and Christian Ministries at Gordon College in Massachusetts and the son of Salvation Army officer parents, referencing Genesis 1:2728. Green said in this account, there is no gender distinction. “There is a oneness of purpose and jobs,” he said. “Following redemption in Christ there is no male nor female as we read in Galatians 3:28. Early Army leaders knew this applies primarily to salvation, but also to how we are intended to be in life and ministry—without gender hindrances.” Bold enough Some married women officers don’t see positions and titles as an issue at all, perhaps subscribing to the 1950s ideal of womanhood. “I personally wouldn’t want to be in charge,” said Major Sandra Turner, who served as a single officer in the Southern Territory for nine years before marrying; she recently moved to a corps appointment from the assistant secretary for program in the Central Territory’s Metropolitan Division under her husband. “I’m fine with the title of assistant. I had a big office when I was single and then when I got married I didn’t have an office at all.” When Turner married as a captain, she took on her husband’s title of lieutenant. “It didn’t bother me; I would much rather be known as Mrs. Turner,” she said.
In The Salvation Army, according to 2011 statistics from International Headquarters, women account for 57 percent of 26,254 active and retired officers around the world. The international leader (the General) is a single woman (the third single woman of 19 Generals in Salvation Army history). Nine of 61 territorial/ regional commanders are female—all single and also appointed the territorial president of women’s ministries. Of the 5,289 officers in the United States, 56 percent are women. The vast majority of U.S. officers (82 percent) are married, 15 percent are single women and 3 percent are single men. Just two of 40 divisional commanders in the U.S. are women—both single. William Booth wrote in a letter to Catherine before they married, “I would not stop a woman preaching on any account. I would not encourage one to begin.” Seiler says the same applies now. “[Catherine] was bold enough to take the first step; the boldness to start had to be hers,” she said. “This is not uncommon today. There are a lot of men who say they wouldn’t stop someone, but they also won’t encourage it. It takes individual initiative and boldness.” The organization reportedly discussed appointments for married women officers at the 2011 High Council, the closed-door meeting of international commissioners that elects the Army’s worldwide leader. It was the largest ever High Council with 109 members. For the first time, more attendees were women than men (57 to 52) due to a vote to include officers holding the appointment of territorial president of women’s ministries—generally the wife of the territorial commander. “Some worry about how it would work if the husband was subordinate; it’s curious though that we don’t even think about it the other way around,” National Commander Commissioner William Roberts said. “If I can have any influence on [recognizing the place of married women in Army leadership], I will. We need to explore it further.” One facet of concern For those married women officers in the U.S. who feel devalued by the organization, the method of compensation and its result on Social Security considerations is a tangible illustration. According to Seiler’s monthly statement from the
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Social Security Administration, she has no work history; a long list of zeros fills her income record for 31 years with the organization. The Army utilizes its prerogative as a religious institution to determine how it will compensate its workers. The officers are not employees but are members of clergy, and as such fall under Social Security publication 517 that says “if a husband and wife are both duly ordained, commissioned or licensed ministers of a church and have an agreement that each will perform specific services for which they are paid jointly or separately, they must divide the self-employment income according to the agreement.” It is this “ministerial exception” that protects the organization from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Equal Pay Act that requires men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work, as well as from discrimination lawsuits. The Salvation Army won a case filed in 1972 by a disgruntled ex-officer, who claimed she was discriminated against in appointments on the basis of her sex, on the grounds that relations between a church and its ministers were exempt from the relevant provisions of the Civil Rights Act. This clause was affirmed with the January 2012 Supreme Court ruling in the Hosanna-Tabor case that ministers may not bring employment discrimination suits against their churches. In the Army’s case, the agreement for compensation is that the officer allowance be paid jointly to the husband—the check is written in his name. Officially, the wife is a “worker without expectation of remuneration,” and her husband receives 40 percent more of an allowance as a married man than he would as a single man. Social Security benefits following retirement include a non-worker benefit of 50 percent of the working spouse’s income, but this is complicated in times of divorce or early death. If the Army were to begin paying all officers individually, a couple’s Social Security benefit would be reduced. Outside analysis determined that to make up the difference in retirement, each territory would need to begin to set aside $4 million annually. “Do I think my wife should be paid for her work? Absolutely,” said Colonel Dave Hudson, chief secretary in the Western Territory. “But it’s not as easy to
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answer when you explain that it will cost the Army significant dollars a year to get what we are getting now. We have yet to come up with a format and price tag that is manageable.” From separate pay to time spent on the job to the titles gained, the value an individual feels is the core of the issue. “Everything comes down to that, and everybody receives value differently than others,” Hudson said. “We need to look at what the best needs are for the organization, the individual and the family and try to meld them all together. Every officer should be utilized to the fullest extent of his or her abilities and skills.” The march forward Despite The Salvation Army’s obligations and structures—a maturity that Booth wasn’t bound by—“We have to think about the issues of today and apply the elements of Booth: creativity, willingness to take on new things, and care for mission,” Seiler said. Commissioner Nancy Roberts, national president of women’s ministries, who holds a master’s degree in counseling and guidance, agrees. “I’ll stand behind women who are speaking up and support and encourage the use of an individual’s strengths and gifts beyond just the traditional roles,” she said. This is happening internationally, specifically with the first appointment of a married woman as chief secretary in June 2011. In the Germany and Lithuania Territory, Major Marsha-Jean Bowles was promoted from personnel and candidates secretary to chief secretary with the rank of Lt. Colonel. Her husband remained in his position as territorial youth secretary but also received the rank of Lt. Colonel. “Women officers—married or single—should not be ‘lost’ to the Army, but valued equally,” Seiler said. “The Salvation Army was considered radical and progressive in its early years. We’re in the aging stage of an organization now and can affect how the future will look, but we have to Connect with Christin website: caringmagazine.org break some old facebook.com/caringmagazine habits and be twitter @caringmagazine intentional.” w
email: christin.davis@usw.salvationarmy.org
Cooking to stay clean Helping former addicts prepare for employment By Ted Van Alen
In Lodi, Calif., a spot in the kitchen is helping to ensure Hope Harbor and Stockton Adult Rehabilitation Center (ARC) graduates’ sobriety. When the corps’ advisory board recognized a lack of employment opportunities five years ago for these graduates, it produced a vision, spearheaded by Linda Greenle, for a training program. With a small grant, a committee of advisory board members secured the assistance of Chef John Britto, former instructor of the Culinary Arts School at Delta Community College in Stockton, Calif. He prepared an extensive curriculum for a 16-week training program, including plans for the necessary capital and annual operating budget. In January 2008, the Culinary Arts Training Program (CATP) for the Lodi Salvation Army began with Britto as the instructor. Twice a year, it offers up to 10 participants the opportunity to develop kitchen skills to support and retain employment. This professionalism instills confidence and dignity.
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“Once our culinary arts training program class started, I knew I wanted to make cooking my career,” said John Haviland, a graduate of the program who later became head chef at the Loel Center and Gardens. “I am now able to support a family, and I have a car. I never thought I would be in this position.” With eight program graduates, the inaugural class was a success. “I never knew what a ‘Roux’ was or what it meant to cook in large volumes, for a group of over 200 people,” said Laurie Keff, a graduate of the first class. “I am now working for Wine & Roses cooking in the cellar room, for small parties on my own, and in the banquet kitchen. I was even named the Employee of the Month for June 2010!” Also from this class, under the guidance of Britto, former Hope Harbor and Stockton ARC graduate Barry Crall took over the direction and instruction of CATP. With over 25 years of culinary experience himself, Chef Crall has taken the curriculum to a new level. In his classes, students are also trained in food safety in order to pass the ServSafe food handling test. The CATP recently graduated its ninth class for a total of 53 students. w
Above: Culinary students plate food for the Fiesta Della Donna event in Acampo, Calif. Right: Steven Senth, culinary student, prepares the main course for the event.
Ted Van Alen is the business administrator of the Lodi Corps in Lodi, Calif.
Connect with Lodi website: salvationarmylodi.com facebook.com/salvationarmylodi email: barry.crall@usw.salvationarmy.org
Photos by Ted Van Alen
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A theology of caring By Matthew Jensen
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Care: (n.) a strong positive emotion of regard and affection;
(v.) to be concerned or solicitous; have thought or regard;
Caring. What is it, really?
(adj.) feeling and exhibiting concern and empathy for others.
Sure, we see outward expressions of caring all around us, but what motivates these? What is this thing that pushes us to take others into account, and ultimately drives us to roll up our sleeves and serve in Jesus’ name? We must first note that ever since the breath of God said “let there be” (Gen. 1:3), existence has been a steady movement of events falling like dominoes to the final victory of every knee bowing before the throne of God (Phil. 2:10). Like crisp autumn leaves being blown in gentle succession as the afternoon’s breeze travels along the length of the branch, so too does this fleeting life dance to the breath of God’s will. Therefore all movement can be traced back to the Lord (Neh. 9:6; Rev. 4:11). Just as ultimate truth is traced back to around us with that same theology of caring that he’s the God who is truth, and true love is traced back to the God shown us (1 Jn. 4:19-21; Js. 1:27). who is love, so too is the ultimate definition of caring traced Caring and perfect love back to the God who cares perfectly. Authentic caring is a We can now build from the foundation that auclean mirror to the image of God. And because we see that thentic caring comes from God alone. Since then it’s he takes humanity into account, even while we consider the an attribute from God and thus from his image, allowsheer vastness of all that he has made, we know that God ing his care to flow through us is dependent upon our cares (Ps. 8:3-5). progress in sanctification (Rom. 6:19) and holiness (1 If he didn’t care then there wouldn’t be a plan, and Christ Thess. 4:7-8). This is what John Wesley and Samuel wouldn’t have fulfilled any prophecies let alone come at all. Logan Brengle were getting at in their teachings on The autumn breeze would never have hit the first leaf. But the perfect love. Lord said, “let there be,” because he cared. To love perfectly is to be the best image of God that Scripture is very blunt about that fact, and then not only we possibly can be while in these flawed bodies of instructs us to cast our burdens to him because of the ours. Ultimately, it has very little to do simple truth that he cares with us and all to do with how much for us (1 Pet. 5:7), but of God we’re allowing to be expressed Lt. Matthew we’re then given the comJensen is the corps through us today (Phil. 2:12-13; Eph. officer of the Ventura mission to care for others 4:15-16). In contrast to this, according
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
– Dr. Seuss
Corps and Transitional Living Center in Ventura, Calif., with his wife, Lt. Vanessa Jensen.
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to C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity, enmity with God and others is grown from the great sin of pride. It is that one foundational sin that so many other sins are nourished within, but whose absence opens the floodgate to living the theology of caring. Lewis writes, “The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object. It is better to forget about yourself altogether.” There’s a reason the theme of selfGod (Rom. 8:16), who alone “do the lessness permemost good” through his people (Phil. ates every page of 2:13). Scripture (Phil. Until we know how Jesus cares for 2:4; Jn. 15:12-14; us, our caring for others will always Gal. 5:14). have an element of superficiality to Now couple it. Sincerity of outward application that thought with spawns from an authenticity of devowhat Thomas tion to the heart of Christ (Eph. 3:17Merton wrote in 19). – John Wesley New Seeds of ConFrom our personal submission templation: “As to this identity and to the depths of long as we are not Christ, the Holy Spirit sanctifies us for purified by the the spiritual regeneration of the larger love of God and community. We see it in Leviticus (Lev. transformed into him in the union of pure sanctity, we 19-20, 20:7-8), in the group dynamics of the disciples will remain apart from one another, opposed to one (Acts 2), and in the future kingdom that awaits us at another, and union among us will be a precarious and the close of the age (Rev. 19:6-8). painful thing, full of labor and sorrow and without When all is said and done, a biblical theology of lasting cohesion.” caring will be one that points to the creator and
“Christianity is a social religion; and to turn it into a solitary one is to destroy it.”
Caring and our identity We in The Salvation Army find our identity in the expression of our care for others grown out of our love for the Lord. Because we know who God is, we know whom we are and what we need to do as we look out into the world from Christ’s vantage point. The quality of our relationship with the Lord is directly connected to our self-perception. We are children of the living
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not to the created. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in Ethics, “What is of ultimate importance is now no longer that I should become good, or that the condition of the world should be made better by my action, but that the reality of God should show itself everywhere to Connect with Matthew be the ultimate facebook.com/Modern.Berean reality.” w
twitter @ModernBerean email: matthew.jensen@usw.salvationarmy.org
Meet Max Dunn Mentor of men By Debra Celovsky
A resident of The Salvation Army Lytton Springs Adult Rehabilitation Center (ARC) in Healdsburg, Calif., enters a small office and closes the door. Behind the desk a sturdy, white-haired man stands and greets him with a firm handshake and a smile, “Hey, Jesse, how’re you doing?” For the next 40 minutes, the resident, a recovering addict, will have the undivided attention of this counselor, mentor and prayer partner— someone deeply invested in his successful recovery. The counselor is Max Dunn. He is 90 years old. Dunn’s involvement here began in 2006 when the program director asked him to join a group of volunteer counselors who meet weekly with beneficiaries. Dunn found, quite unwittingly, a place where his own life experience and heart for ministry could bless men with difficult backgrounds. His resume details a long business career in Southern California. After retiring, Dunn and his wife, Carolyn, both entered Fuller Seminary to pursue graduate degrees. He received a master’s degree in world missions in 1987, traveling to over 15 countries on shortterm missions trips during that time. “We saw miracles in some very dark places,” Dunn said of those trips. He and Carolyn relocated to Healdsburg, Calif., in 1991, and he became deeply involved in building a much needed new medical center in town, serving as CEO for 15 years. Then came the invitation to Lytton Springs ARC. Over the years, Dunn’s counseling load has increased. During the course of a month, he sees 36 men—about half of the total beneficiary population. Tom, who is going through the program for a second
time, said, “His effort here is enormous. We’re in awe of what he does, and he’s doing it for free! This place would not be the same without him.” In addition to counseling, Dunn teaches an anger management course once a week, which every resident is required to attend. According to Dunn, this eight-week course comes up in almost every conversation with the men who appreciate the instruction on passive/aggressive behavior. One beneficiary would, in his words, “beat myself up” after angry episodes. He carefully repeats the steps he’s now learned: “Write out the situation, recognize that you’re angry, communicate what you’re thinking, and recognize that you are not abnormal.” Dunn also encourages beneficiaries to write letters of forgiveness and has seen estranged relationships mended. Upon graduating from the program, Dunn gives each man Debra Celovsky an olive wood cross. Patrick, tall is a writer and and ponytailed, said, “He gives pastor at Christ love and sincerity. He means Tabernacle in Santa Rosa, Calif.
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“He gives love and sincerity. He means what he says. He’s honest.”
what he says. He’s honest. The men who receive the crosses never lose them.” Dunn’s concern for the men post-program is just as strong. “The most important thing for a graduate to have is a job,” Dunn said. – Patrick “The enemy of the graduate is idle time.” He helps the men look for work, encouraging many to write resumes. He then collects the resumes, puts them in a binder, and approaches businesses on their behalf. Dunn often gives his phone number to recently graduated beneficiaries with instruction to call anytime. “His experience, dedication, and availability to the men support his work with them,” said Captain Jonathan Russell, who oversees the Lytton ARC. “The response is enormous respect. The men look at me in my uniform and think, here’s a man who does what he’s supposed to do. They look at Dunn and think, here’s a man who chooses to be here with us.” One beneficiary, Mark, was especially impacted. “I just completed Connect with Debra the anger management class. At the end, everyone expressed how they website: debracelovsky.wordpress.com facebook.com/debracelovsky felt about Max. I shared how, after a few sessions, he asked me, ‘Do you twitter @DebraCelovsky know what’s going to make you relapse?’ I thought it would be anger or guilt. “He tore off a piece of paper and handed it to me. It read, ‘Nothing,’” Photos by Mark said. “I keep it in my wallet.” w Michael Lux and Ronaldus Hadiputra
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The Center for Public Scholarship at The New School presents the 28nd Social Research conference
Giving: Caring for the Needs of Strangers December 6, 7, and 8, 2012, in NYC What beliefs inspire generosity? Is there a biological and/or evolutionary basis for altruism? Can generosity and caring be taught? What is the impact of giving on the giver and the receiver? Can philanthropy foster sustainable communities? What is the future of philanthropy? Program topics and their speakers The Need for Giving, a keynote panel discussion among three major U.S. philanthropists Religious and Philosophical Grounds for Giving Amy Singer, Diana Eck, Peter Singer, and others The Development and Psychology of Altruism Felix Warneken, and others Giving and the State: Legal, Political and Economic Perspectives Rob Reich, Lew Daly, James Allen Smith, and Jon Bakija Solving Public Problems through Private Means Helmut Anheier, Matthew Bishop, and Tina Rosenberg The Impact of Giving on the Receipt Joanne Barkan and others More information To review the complete program, speaker bios, and to register, please visit www.newschool.edu/cps/giving or contact us at 212-229-5776 x3 or cps@newschool.edu. Published proceedings Edited conference papers will be published in a forthcoming issue of Social Research: An International Quarterly. Prepublication price is $15. Tickets $40 for the full conference; $12 for single sessions Free for all full time students Free for New School faculty, staff and alumni Location The New School, John Tishman Auditorium, 66 West 12 Street, NYC
The conference is made possible by generous support from the John Templeton Foundation and the Rockefeller Archive Center. FALL 2012/CARING
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“What mattered most in 2011 for social media” 02.11.11
Arab Spring. Though it officially started at the end of 2010, the Arab Spring spread like wildfire thanks to social media sites.
03.11.11
Japan disaster. Aid organizations use social media for donations and resources. The Salvation Army raised over $9.6 million from U.S. donors alone. Google set up the People Finder app, which received 7,000 entries in its first week.
04.29.11
05.02.11
06.28.11
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Royal wedding. Nearly 1 million tweets related to the event are tweeted in the month leading to the nuptials.
Osama bin Laden. News of Osama bin Laden’s death generates highest number of tweets per second to date: 3,400 tps.
Google+ launches. Google launches social network Google+, reaching 10 million users in 16 days.
Occupy Wall Street. The #OccupyWallStreet hashtag is first used, marking a relationship between social media and subsequent capaigns.
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A new era for activism Online communities spur offline action By Jared McKiernan
The Egyptian people used it to spark a domino effect of democratic revolution. Invisible Children uses it to increase international efforts to arrest the world’s most-wanted fugitive. Millions of Americans used it to unite and speak out against Wall Street. charity: water uses it to provide clean drinking water to people in developing nations. Caine Monroy used it to remind the world of unbridled creativity and limitless imagination. Individuals and organizations all around the globe are learning to harness the power of social media and use it as a launching pad to share values. As much as these movements document the power of the people tweet by tweet, they reaffirm the status of social media as a game-changer, a sparkplug for social activism. It has given people a highly accessible platform to voice their views on issues and an unprecedented level of connectivity with like-minded individuals. Small-scale activism The Arab Spring forever stretched the boundaries of social media and impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands of individuals. Yet cyberactivism doesn't have to occur on such a large scale to positively impact social issues. Sometimes the right message and medium can inspire a large group of people to bring change to a single individual. In one 10-minute video, bus monitor KarJared McKiernan en Klein, 68, was verbally berated by middle is an intern with schoolers on the way home from school in New Frontier Publications. New York. In the midst of their foul language, the kids’ bullying brings Klein to tears. In response to the video, which went viral almost immediately, two teenagers launched
a campaign on indiegogo.com, an online crowdfunding platform, to give Klein an unforgettable vacation and perhaps an early retirement. “The world has never seen such a convergence of social media, communication, transparency, and connection,” Slava Rubin, cofounder of IndieGoGo, told The Christian Science Monitor. The implications of the campaign go beyond the more than $600,000 raised for Klein. Because of these online platforms, many eyes saw the harm that bullying causes. “Social media enables individuals a toolset that only organizations had previously,” said Allison Fine, co-author of The Networked Nonprofit. Individuals easily connect with one another on Facebook and Twitter. According to Fine, that is a key advantage individuals hold over nonprofits. “Nonprofits have to unlearn lessons from last century,” Fine said. “Social media only works well person-to person. They need to relearn how to have conversations with people...Connections to people are the essence of our humanness." The Army’s presence Social media has had a big impact on human values and action, but the blueprint for how nonprofits can best utilize these tools is still developing. Kathy Lovin, public affairs and communications manager in The Salvation Army Western Territory, believes helping the Army establish a solid presence on social media was a no-brainer. “If people are spending an overwhelming amount of time on social media, we realized we probably should too,” Lovin said. While the Army uses social media to promote and share the work of its ministries and relief efforts, Lovin said the Army’s social media activity ultimately aims to inspire action. “I’ve seen a lot of people get involved in our causes through social media,” Lovin said. “A great example is our online Red Kettle program. It allows you to be a virtual bellringer. People can post on their Twitter and Facebook, ‘I’m short of my goal, please donate.’”
Spotify launches. Spotify hits the U.S. music scene, later combining forces with Facebook.
07.14.11
08.06.11
London riots. With social grievances, youth rioters hit the streets of London. Social media triggered more attention to the conflict.
09.22.11
Timeline. Facebook announces newest redesign, Timeline, that displays content in a new way.
09.27.11
Winning. Charlie Sheen breaks world record for fastest person to reach 1 million followers; #winning hashtag is born.
Groupon IPO. Groupon becomes the largest IPO by a U.S. Internet company since Google in 2004.
Instagram. Instagram reaches 13 million users 13 months after its launch.
11.04.11
11.18.11
12.22.11
Hanes. Hanes donates 250,000 pairs of socks to The Salvation Army in its third annual Virtual Sock Drive. – With info by Flowtown
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The Army’s corporate partners also help drive action through social media, including a virtual sock drive The Salvation Army hosts in partnership with Hanes. For every “like” on its Facebook page during the campaign, Hanes donates a pair of socks to the Army for its work with homeless individuals. In late 2011, the third virtual sock drive generated 250,000 pairs of socks. Beyond inspiring donations, Lovin said social media is also useful for the organization when followers connect with one another. “It’s great when we have people in groups all in recovery connecting,” Lovin said. “They use social media as a means to build each other up. We love having it to build people up and let them encourage each other.” Meaningfully connected Social media is still relatively new. Facebook launched in 2004, Youtube in 2005 and Twitter in 2006. Between 2010-2011, online media experienced a 17 percent increase in audience, according to Nielsen Media Research. Americans spend more time on Facebook than the next four largest web brands—roughly seven hours a month. Though not as widely used as Facebook (901 million worldwide users as of March 2012), Twitter (175 million users) offers a place for free-form, serendipitous chatter that in turn gauges the global consciousness by measuring human
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events in tweets per second. The Digital Future Project at the University of Southern California found that 56 percent of people online are actively involved in online communities on a daily basis; 50 percent meet in person with other members; 79 percent participate in social causes new to them since joining; and 32 percent take offline social action at least once a month. Whether it’s to inspire change, to unite people based on common interests and goals, share events and updates, or a combination of each, the power of social media lies in the hands of its users. We network in person by connecting with individuals through conversation, wherever they might be. The brilliance of social media is that it conveniently centralizes unquantifiable amounts of information—and people. The main challenge for the Army lies in keeping up with the hashtags and split-second trends, and sifting through frivolous Facebook status updates to meaningfully connect with others in making a positive impact on society. "Since millions of people spend more of their lives online, we need to be there too,” Lovin said. “There we can encourage them with Connect with Jared the Gospel or connect website: caringmagazine.org them to financial givfacebook.com/CaringMagazine ing and service opportwitter @CaringMagazine tunities." w email: jared.mckiernan@usw.salvationarmy.org
Keeping Faith in Faith-Based Organizations: A Practical Theology of Salvation Army Health Ministry By Carol Seiler
In his recent book, Keeping Faith in Faith-Based Organizations: A Practical Theology of Salvation Army Health Ministry (Wipf & Stock Publishers 2012), Salvation Army International Health Secretary Major Dean Pallant provides a tremendous amount of research and in-the-field observation on the topic. The book offers a formidable bibliography and vocabulary, and the reader must be prepared to spend time chewing the material. With significant insight due to experience, the focus on India and Africa study the complexity of transitioning from hospitals to primary care approaches. In reading through the economic analysis and discussion of the perils of professionalization of health services driven by western funders, I had to wonder why professional health care brought to Zambia “under the guise of western donor pressure” would be so much less desirable than church volunteers building relationships, especially when looking for responses to the health needs of the poor. My own filters as a nurse from North America FurnitureConcepts:Layout 1 4/12/12 6:38worldviews. PM Page 1 As an offiresisted the negative sense of western
cer, I have served as a health volunteer in low income or free clinics, including at Adult Rehabilitation Centers. I carry a bias for healing health care practices and for bringing knowledge and skill to improve wellness. While I agree that focusing on “survival of the fittest” and “market driven exploitation” of the poor are not healthy, in reading I also sensed a strong anti-entrepreneurial perspective. Without giving away the ending and recommendations, Pallant leans heavily on the value of congregations and social capital that “moves beyond the hospital and biomedical framework.” Having the time and skills to engage in “deep listening” is not to put aside medical expertise, but to prevent further exploitation of the poor as a commodity in a competitive setting. Then, access to real healing can occur. Understanding that this is a role for the faith-based organization in health ministry, I see the principles in my own experience in frontline primary care response in Salvation Army programs in North America. As a whole, it reinforced my conviction about the incredible value of being The Salvation Army—a faith-based organization engaged in health ministries. w Commissioner Carol Seiler is the Central territorial coordinator for strategic mission planning and the chairperson of the National Kroc Task Force.
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TO VIEW IN PRINT THE LAST HUNGER SEASON: A Year in an African Farm Community on the Brink of Change by Roger Thurow (PublicAffairs, 2012) Award-winning author Thurow spent a year with four smallholder farmers in Africa to chronicle their lives. He illuminates the profound challenges these farmers and their families face, and a new social enterprise organization called One Acre Fund, which could help to alleviate their dire situation. GODSPEED: Making Christ’s Mission Your Own by Britt Merrick (David C. Cook, 2012) asserts that there is no divide between the sacred and the secular. He reminds readers that they have a higher calling at work,
at home and at play—that they were born for a greater purpose. REBORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY by Logan MehlLaituri (IVP Books, 2012) tells the story of Mehl-Laituri’s, veteran of the Iraq war, dramatic rebirth. The book lays bare the cost of war to military personnel and Christians off the battlefield. DROP DEAD HEALTHY: One Man’s Humble Quest for Bodily Perfection by A.J. Jacobs (Thorndike Press, 2012) is a hilarious account of one man’s painful journey from slob to superman, and a fascinating and eye-opening examination of what it really means to be healthy, revealing the ugly truth about the assumptions and obsessions we have about our bodies.
EMERGENCE CHRISTIANITY: What It Is, Where It Is Going, and Why It Matters by Phyllis Tickle (Baker Books, 2012) reveals fascinating insights into concerns, organizational patterns, theology, and pressing questions on the “emergence church.” It is a thorough and well-written account of where things are and where they are going. THE EXPLICIT GOSPEL by Matt Chandler (Crossway, 2012) is inspired by the needs of both the over churched and the unchurched, and bolstered by the common neglect of the explicit gospel within Christianity. Pastor Chandler writes this punchy treatise to remind us what is of first and utmost importance—the gospel.
ON THE WEB deidox.com—Features five-minute films that document the faith and true stories of everyday people. See what some are calling the “best Christian films” to watch online. junkycarclub.com—An official car club whose members are learning to live with less so they can give more. Members are encouraged to drive older vehicles that are paid for, so that they can give money to those in need. facebook.com/ExpectChange— The Salvation Army’s Expect Change blog launched a project to feature video testimonies of redemtion, courage and love from people whose lives have been changed through the Army. The videos are hosted on YouTube and posted to Facebook to promote sharing.
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Innocence Abandoned: Street Kids of Haiti documents a 10-year human saga through the story of the young Wilner St. Fort and his fellow street kids in Port-AuPrince. It is heart wrenching, and full of moral dilemmas and explosive revelations. Watch the trailer at innocenceabandoned. com.
The Mill & The Cross is a film by Polish visual artist Lech Majewski based on a 1564 painting by Pieter Bruegel, “The Way to Calvary,” from the scene of Jesus’ crucifixion. The film, layered with 40-147 computergenerated graphics from the painting, restages a dozen of the 500 characters depicted in the painting. Watch the trailer at themillandthecross.com. The Interrupters tells the stories of “violence interrupters” who aim to protect the Chicago communities from the violence they once employed. Its main subjects work for CeaseFire, founded by an epidemiologist who believes the spread of violence mimics that of infectious diseases. The treatment is similar: stop the infection at its source. Watch the trailer at interrupters. kartemquin.com/trailer. special jury award
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Kartemquin Films presents for WGBH/Frontline and the independent television service (ItVs) In assocIatIon WItH rise Films a Kartemquin Films productIon a fIlm By steve James and alex Kotlowitz tHe Interrupters eddie Bocanegra tio hardiman ameena matthews gary slutKin ricardo “coBe” williams musIc superVIsor linda cohen musIc composer Joshua aBrams assIstant edItor nora gully edIted By aaron wicKenden and steve James sound recordIst zaK piper executIVe producers for Kartemquin Films Justine nagan executIVe producers for rise Films teddy leiFer paul taylor executIVe producers for Frontline david Fanning miKe sullivan executIVe producer for itvs sally Jo FiFer co-produced By zaK piper produced By alex Kotlowitz and steve James pHotoGrapHed and dIrected By steve James a cinema guild release www.theinterrupters.com
gordon quinn