Fall 2020 multiply.net
together that the world may know
Witness
Racial Justice and Mission Who is Welcome at the Table?
Introduction from Randy Due to recent events that have highlighted our world’s ongoing struggle with racial violence and injustice, we wanted to bring you a special edition of Witness that was dedicated to this theme. Clearly, this is not exclusively a North American problem, but a problem of the human heart. In fact, I would say that there is not a single place on this planet without a pre-existing struggle for racial justice. It’s everywhere. Everyone is affected. Everyone is responsible. No one is immune to the pain that exists when people harbour prejudice toward one another based on outward differences like skin color. This is a sin issue, and therefore, a global issue. At Multiply, in recent months, we organized a Racial Reconciliation Task Force to help us become aware of our own issues. We have people of color among our leadership and staff that needed to be heard. We are aware of White privilege within our organization and our churches, so we wanted to take some steps toward not only addressing the inequity but also relinquishing the privilege. We have embraced seven key recommendations from the task force to begin making changes. We realize that these issues can’t be solved overnight, but we are deeply committed to striving for sincerity, honesty and humility. One of the steps we decided to take was to invite our fellow Multiply workers, Jessica Garcia-Driedger and Joanna Chapa, to be the guest editors of this edition of Witness. As my dear sisters in Christ and co-workers in the Gospel, I deeply respect their faith, their giftedness and their unique perspectives on this struggle. Joanna is a long-term worker in Peru, while Jessica serves as our Short-Term Mission Coordinator in Western Canada. They are both of MexicanAmerican background and both serve on our Racial Reconciliation Task Force. Therefore, on behalf of our editorial team, I want to invite you to listen to their hearts and learn from their experience as they guide us through this edition of Witness. Let’s remember that racial justice is at the very heart of the Gospel of Jesus and at the very heart of our mission: together that the world may know. Randy Friesen President, Multiply Editor-in-Chief, Witness
Who is Welcome at the Table? Guest Editorial by Joanna Chapa and Jessica Garcia-Driedger Joanna One hot Sunday afternoon in Peru during a Kids Bible Club, I had the glorified job of being the keeper of the colored pencils. This meant kids would approach me and ask for whatever color they wanted to use. This was always a good opportunity to engage them in conversation and hopefully make them smile. But on that particular day, I left with sadness in my heart. “¿Me das Color Piel?” (“Can you give me Skin Color?”), the little girl asked me. I was taken aback. Skin color? Assuming she meant a color that reflected her dark skin, I was baffled when she pointed out there was a pencil labeled “Color Piel” (Skin Color). I was truly stunned. The stark contrast between her small dark hand and that white colored pencil will forever be embedded in my mind. She couldn’t see the injustice in that moment or the devaluation. Sadly, I knew this was just one of the ways that this little girl would forever be subjected to someone else’s standards of normality. Holding back tears, I stared at her big brown eyes and made sure she looked at mine. “But that’s not your skin color. The label on this pencil is wrong! There is more than one skin color! Your skin color is beautiful and I would choose to color my picture with this color.” I handed the little girl a dark brown colored pencil that captured the color of her skin, but she refused to accept it. “No, I want to color with Color Piel.” I thought back to racial injustices in my own childhood in Texas and how I came to believe the lie that White was superior. In elementary school, we were told that we weren’t allowed to speak Spanish, only English. For those of us who were trying to navigate a bicultural heritage, that was difficult. Later, as I stepped into “White spaces” outside of my Latin community, I continued to struggle to prove myself. There were many who questioned my presence and by their words made me feel unworthy to be there. No matter how hard I worked, my brownness would disqualify me.
Fortunately, there were others who spoke truth, affirmation and encouragement. I will never forget the words of a middleaged White man who said, “Joanna, you have three things going against you in our world: you’re young, you’re a woman, and you’re Hispanic. But know that I see you, I affirm you and I believe in you! I’d follow you any day!” Brought to tears, I understood what it meant to have an ally that day.
Jessica Wherever we go, Joanna and I keep hearing the same message loud and clear: White is better. Whether it’s in Peru or the Philippines (where we’ve served), or in Texas or California (where we grew up), the message has been the same: our brown skin color is somehow inferior. I grew up in a Latin neighborhood in the greater Los Angeles area, but I didn’t feel the prejudice of others towards me until I attended a predominantly White university. As an extremely outgoing and optimistic person, I never let my skin color, background or cultural differences disqualify me from opportunities as a student leader, mentee or employee. But I knew that if I wanted a seat at the table, I’d have to find that extra chair and stand on it until someone noticed me and allowed me to squeeze in. Unfortunately, pushing my way up to these tables of opportunity often meant leaving my best qualities at the door, much like what happened when my parents immigrated to the United States. It hurts to look back and think that my entire upbringing and culture was reduced to differences in food, language and skin color. There was so much more that made me special, including my parent’s values, their struggles and sacrifices as immigrants, their faith in Jesus, even the way our Latin church expressed worship and praise. All of these things made me truly different and gave me unique perspectives that could make me an integral part of any team. But instead, people often reduced the differences to tacos, Spanish and the ability to tan without using tanning lotions.
and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9). What a day to look forward to! All things will be reconciled to God, and we will all be reconciled to one another. Injustice will cease to exist, and God will reign in righteousness. Throughout the Bible, God is calling his people toward this vision of unity and equality. Even in the Old Testament law, God is sharing his heart for the vulnerable, the foreigner, the orphan, the widow, the marginalized. He is inviting his people to live according to mishpat (justice), which means taking action to correct injustice, and tsedaqah (righteousness), which means being in right relationship with each other despite differences. This is what the community of God’s people should look like. When Jesus began his public ministry, he said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come” (Luke 4:18-19). In God’s kingdom, all are welcome, all are seen, all are important. Every human being has value and is worthy of dignity, because each one of us bears God’s image. We are all welcome at his table. Are we willing to embrace our brothers and sisters at God’s table, whatever their skin color, whatever language they speak? In order to become the community that God intends us to be, we must be ready to reach out to the marginalized and oppressed that live among us. We must give up trying to change others into our own likeness and allow God to transform us into Christ-likeness.
I became weary of fighting for a seat at the table. The fact that I squeezed myself in meant that I could just as easily be squeezed out. The hope of opportunity was great, but so was the fear of rejection. I experienced something very different when Jesus invited me to sit at his table. Finally, I could bring all of who I was with me.
Joanna and Jessica In the last book of the Bible, there is a vision of a “vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe
Joanna and Jessica: Guest Editors multiply.net | 3
Overcoming Prejudice in Thailand An Interview with Pastor Naat, leader of the Thailand MB Conference By Louise Sinclair-Peters, global worker in Southeast Asia
Louise: Ajaan (Pastor) Naat, have you heard about the recent racial violence and the protests that are currently happening in North America? Naat: Yes, Thai people are shocked. They are following this story closely in the news. Louise: Ajaan, we have known each other for more than twenty years. We have built a lot of trust in our relationship. Would it be okay if we talked about racism in Thailand? This conversation might make you feel uncomfortable, but I don’t want you to feel any shame. I thought your own personal experience with racism might encourage our brothers and sisters in North America. Naat: Yes, it’s okay. Let’s talk honestly about this issue.
Louise: Ajaan, over thirty years ago, after you finished high school, you moved from the Isaan, the northeast part of Thailand, to find work in Bangkok. At that time, how did the central Thai people feel about people from the Isaan? Naat: Isaan culture and dialect are very different from central Thailand. Many Isaan people speak Thai poorly. When I started speaking, they knew exactly where I was from. When I started my first job in the factory, I would often hear Thai people gossip about Isaan people. They called us Lao or Ice-Siow, which means the “dirty and stupid people.” Louise: That must have been very difficult for you. Naat: Yes, it was. But can I share with you what was even more shameful? It was the way Thai men spoke about Isaan women. Men assumed that all Isaan women wanted to sell their bodies so that they could get rich. It’s true that we were desperate for work, so we agreed to do the lowest and dirtiest jobs. When I had a job as a housekeeper, the Thai owner treated me like a slave. One time I was so hungry I asked if I could eat the old food from the idol shelf. I felt so ashamed. Louise: I am so sorry you experienced that. How did it make you feel?
Louise and Naat, friends and co-workers 4 | witness
Naat: It really hurt. I had to fight so many negative thoughts and lies about my own self-worth. I often think, “If I had never heard about Jesus’ saving love,
where would I be today? How would I have been able to forgive all the people who mistreated me?” Louise: Yes, praise God for your friend who shared the Gospel with you! Naat: Yes, I ask myself, “If I hadn’t found the hope and dignity that Jesus died to give me, what would I have done to feed my children? Would I have sold my body to men just as was expected? Who can stand to see their children starve?” Every young woman in Isaan just wants to return to her home village and give her parents money. It’s the way we show love and honour to our parents. But for many women, this comes with a great cost and a terrible sense of shame.
“If I had never heard about Jesus’ saving love, where would I be today? How would I have been able to forgive all the people who mistreated me?” Louise: Yes, I hear you. I think this is why stereotyping people is so harsh. It doesn’t allow for compassion or help us realize that not everyone has the same opportunities to make wealth in this world. The prejudice you have experienced in your life makes me think of what our Myanmar brothers and sisters often experience living as migrant workers in Thailand. Naat: Oh my, yes. Now that I have an education and a stable income, I experience a lot of dignity in Thai society. But I have not forgotten where I came from. People from Myanmar still experience terrible hostility and prejudice while living in my country. Our school history books teach us that Myanmar people were the enemy. It’s not uncommon for Thai people to say, “You can’t trust a Myanmar person. They will cheat you. They will steal from you. If you hire them, they will murder you in your sleep!” So that’s what I used to believe. Louise: Unfortunately, that happens everywhere. We unknowingly change our beliefs and behaviours about someone we don’t know because we adopt the biased thinking of others, even if it is untrue. Naat: The first Myanmar person I ever met was a woman named Pen. She spoke Thai fluently. She was humble,
generous and so hungry to know God! After I led her to Christ, Pen asked me, “Would you please come with me and share this Good News with all my friends and family?” That was the beginning of our friendship. It was also the beginning of our Myanmar Mennonite Brethren churches! Louise: Ajaan Naat, I never knew that you experienced such a huge change of heart towards Myanmar people! All I remember is that ten years ago when Myanmar people started coming into our Thai church you spent a lot of your time helping them receive justice. Do you remember the time a Thai man took an axe and tried to kill Pastor Joshua, one of our Myanmar pastors? You went straight to the police station to report the crime. Another time, I remember you went to the hospital daily to pray for a young Myanmar boy in a coma. You advocated for him to get free medical care. On another occasion, I remember you advocated for Pastor Isaiah to receive a work permit through our Thai Foundation so that he could live in the country legally. Pastor Naat, why do you love Myanmar people so much, even though your own culture teaches you to hate them? Naat: Well, one day during worship, I opened my eyes and saw our Myanmar brothers and sisters worshipping God, singing passionately. Their sincere love for Jesus melted my heart. Then the Holy Spirit said to me, “You must help them!” Ever since that time, I understood the implications of believing Genesis 1:27, “So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them...” Louise, if God does not look down on me, if God does not treat me as a second-class citizen, how can I look down on my Myanmar brothers and sisters? Every people, every nation, every colour of skin is precious and of infinite worth in the eyes of God who made them.
PRAY Please pray for unity in the Church in Southeast Asia. Pray for more leaders like Pastor Naat who have the humility to engage their racial prejudices and to allow Jesus to overcome them for the sake of love, mission and the glory of God.
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The Table of Uncomfortableness By Nikki White
Since the pandemic began, Multiply staff and global workers have been meeting online weekly. When the conversation turned intentionally to the topic of racism, panel discussions were held to facilitate honest, organization-wide selfexamination. It was intense. With recent racial violence in mind, lament was expressed not only over the grief of the victimized, but over the grievousness of racism itself, perpetrated by the blindness that inevitably accompanies privilege. During one of the first video calls, John Johnstone, Multiply’s First Nations Ambassador for Western Canada, addressed racism from the perspective of his own cultural context. “It is not a matter of fixing what was broken,” he said, speaking of interactions between First Nations and those who trace their ancestry back to White, European settlers. “There was never any real relationship in the first place. We didn’t start out right, so we need to sit down, start over. We need to hear some hard things.” John’s words, though spoken with gentle restraint, were direct and weighty. “Welcome,” he said, “to the Table of Uncomfortableness.” Sitting at that Table, emotions were raw. Some shared painful stories about personal experiences of racism, both within the Church and within Multiply. Others voiced frustration over the mixed messaging of social media, judging all White people without acknowledging their attempts to set things right. John addressed that by saying, “When oppression has been going on for four hundred and fifty years, and the oppressor simply says sorry and expects to move on, I’m not sure how much he should be praised. Does this cause hurt feelings? Probably. Is that White fragility? Maybe. But 6 | witness
an apology without understanding is not enough. We can’t just check it off our list and move on. Repentance is one step, it’s not the end goal.” There were moments of clarity regarding White privilege and the tendency to want to fix problems quickly rather than submit to the pace of those who were processing their pain. This was not easy, when just being White could trigger that pain in others.
Everyone seemed to sense the beauty and intimacy of the moment as an invitation into deeper vulnerability and trust. “I’m White, male and 54,” said Stephen Humber, Mission Mobilizer for Midwest USA, on a recent video call. “I am the poster child for the problem! I am so quick to ask, ’What can I do?’ when behind it I am really thinking, ‘How can I feel better as fast as I can?’ I am not proud of this.” In response, John invited action on two levels: “Just be quiet and listen. Don’t leave the Table just because you don’t like what is being said about you. Stay the course. But out there in the world, when you have the opportunity, speak up! Speak against racism, and don’t be silent!” As the eyes of staff and global workers were being opened to some of the subtler nuances of racism within our organization, John reluctantly shared a personal story: “When I was new to Multiply, I was invited to three days of meetings, all about new vision and direction. I saw the words ‘First Nations’ at the bottom of the list on the whiteboard.
That communicated a lot to me. No one even remembered it, until the last meeting when we were three minutes into overtime. I was invited to speak for two minutes. I just said, ‘Nope, four hundred and fifty years of hurt can’t be summed up in two minutes.’” On the last day of those same meetings, John was assigned to a small group and a man said to him, “Hey, we’ve been here three days and I don’t even know you!” As John recalled the experience, he fought back tears. “That broke me. I remember saying to myself, ‘Yeah, you’re right. You don’t know me. You don’t know me at all.’” As John shared this story on the video call, listeners fell silent. Some shared later that they felt the burden of conviction, but everyone seemed to sense the beauty and intimacy of the moment as an invitation into deeper vulnerability and trust.
his hands and blew his life into it. We came from the land, and the land was a beautiful gift—trees, rivers, birds—none of these things belonged to us. They were given to us to enjoy and to steward.” John paused, then reflected on the role of First Nations as stewards, “I think we did a pretty good job too, for a few thousand years.” He went on to explain how the First Nations still bring their children to the elders to learn how to give thanks for the land, for life, for everything. He said, “Thankfulness was the greatest single gift we had to offer when the settlers first came.”
If God wanted to use First Nations to teach thankfulness to settlers, it is a bitter irony that instead of being honored for this, they were systematically stripped of their connectedness to the land and their dignity as its stewards. Four hundred and fifty years later, they were left with Despite that earlier scant reason to feel experience at those thankful at all. Having meetings, John had their welcome John Johnstone (left) sits with local MB pastor, Duane Goerzen, and stayed at the Table, exploited, their wisdom discusses the Doctrine of Discovery and the tragedy of Indigenous children being torn from their families. believing that he ignored, and their and other First children torn from their Nations people had something important to impart. arms, many First Nations have gone from being thankful to being guarded and cynical. For him, it started with the story of creation: “In the beginning, God created the land, and it was kind of a big deal. Then “There is still hope,” John said. “We need to stop, wait, and the Creator put some people in that land first, for a reason. listen. We need to stay at the Table of Uncomfortableness.” Acts 17:26 says that God determines our set times and our Together with John, Multiply has resolved to stay at the place on this earth. That means that the First Nations had Table, with Jesus as our host. something important to give to the settlers who came later.” John continued, “We need to teach you how to be thankful.” According to John, too many people have treated the land like a hotel. “At a hotel, you just take what you want, without taking responsibility. You use the towels and throw them on the floor. You make a mess that someone else has to clean up. And you usually don’t say thank you.” However, John insisted that the creation story inspired something very different: “In the beginning, Creator reached down and carefully scraped together the best the land had to offer, the richest and most fertile topsoil. He cradled it in
ACT What is God asking of you in regard to nurturing honest and open relationships between the Church and First Nations (Canada) or Native Americans (USA)? Do you need God’s grace and strength to stay at the Table of Uncomfortableness? Is God asking you to go and build a better relationship with your neighbor? As we stop, wait and listen, we must be ready to act in faith and obedience. multiply.net | 7
Prayer of Acknowledgement Creator God, we acknowledge that all land and all people belong to you, as the Scriptures teach us: “the earth is the LORD’s and all it contains, the world and all who live in it” (Psalm 24:1). We also acknowledge the rightful place of Indigenous peoples in lands throughout the world, as the Scriptures teach us: “you determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live” (Acts 17:26). We also acknowledge that we have not always received the land with gratitude, nor have we treated the people of the land with respect. Therefore, we ask you, Creator, to help us be honest about the damage and pain we have caused. Where we have treated the land with ingratitude, carelessness, and contempt, forgive us, Lord, and help us to become the wise stewards of the land that you have called us to be. Where we have treated Indigenous peoples with disrespect, domination and cruelty, forgive us, Lord, and help us not only to seek wholeness in those relationships but also to begin building strong partnerships that will ensure peace and goodwill for generations to come. Amen.
Learning to Live a Life of Dying Interview with Dr. Joseph Jones, President of Fresno Pacific University By Mark J.H. Klassen
Mark: Where are you from, Dr. Jones? Dr. Jones: I grew up in the South [USA] during the height of the civil rights movement. The high school I attended still segregated blacks from whites. I attended the marches. I saw the beatings. Discrimination was everywhere. But we were told that education was the only way out, so we studied hard, even if we had to use textbooks that were discarded by the white schools. When I graduated, I wanted to get away from the South, so I applied to Colby College in Maine. To my surprise, I was accepted. But when I got there, I was told that it was only because of affirmative action that I was admitted. I was also told that I probably would not graduate. But I did. Mark: How did you come to faith in Jesus? Dr. Jones: Even though I grew up in the church, my faith was not personal for me. But in my senior year of high school, I made a commitment to follow Christ, and that changed everything. My relationship with Jesus gave me the courage to overcome the obstacles that I would face. Mark: Can you give me an example of how your faith gave you courage? Dr Jones: After several fruitful years in student ministry and prison ministry, my wife and I were praying and asking God, “What else do you have for us?” I knew I wanted to pursue doctoral studies, but for some reason, I was stuck. I had not applied anywhere. One night, I felt like God was asking me a question, “Why are you afraid?” I knew I was afraid of applying to a PhD program, 10 | witness
because I was afraid of rejection. So I told God that if it was his will, then I needed to know for sure. I said I would apply to the top three programs in the country, and if I was accepted to one of them, I would go. So I got quick responses from the third top program and the second, both turning me down. But the top program in the country called me and invited me to come. So we sold everything and moved to Albany, New York. It was a door only God could open. Mark: How did you get involved in Christian higher education? Dr. Jones: During my doctoral studies, God opened a door for me to begin serving Christian colleges and universities, especially in their efforts to become more racially and culturally diverse. Through that, I realized that this was how I could multiply my influence, by developing students with hearts for God and sending them back into society to make an impact for the kingdom of God. For me, Christian higher education has always been about partnering with the church to serve society, to expand the impact of the Gospel. That’s been my calling. Mark: How did you end up in Pakistan? Dr. Jones: I had a very good position as the Provost at North Park University in Chicago. Then one day, I was reading the words of Jesus in the Gospel where he said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Mark 8:34). I told God, “That’s what I’ve been doing!” But I felt God was saying that he had more for us, and it
just kept coming to me, “Joe, you need to learn how to live a life of dying.” Mark: What did that mean for you, “to live a life of dying”? Dr. Jones: It meant obedience to Jesus, no matter what. After God spoke to me from that passage in the Gospel, I heard him say to me one day, “You need to resign.” There were so many reasons why I shouldn’t do that, but I kept hearing that question, “Are you willing to live a life of dying?” Leaving North Park was a huge risk for us in terms of our income and where we were at as a family. And I had no idea what was next. But we decided together as a couple that we would trust God and I would resign. We were just following Jesus. Mark: Then what happened? Dr. Jones: After much prayer, we heard about an opportunity at a place called Forman Christian College in Lahore, Pakistan. It was a college that had been taken over by the government but had recently been given back to the church. My wife and I decided to visit the college and we saw the need. The president and others from the Christian community said to us, “We’ve been praying for you for two years.” Despite all the obstacles in our way, the danger of the area, the persecution of Christians in the country, the need was the call for us. We couldn’t walk away from that opportunity. Mark: What did you learn in Pakistan? Dr. Jones: We saw a society there that was facing many of the same racial issues that America was facing. I realized in a new way that racial injustice was a global issue. It’s not unique to America. Really, it’s based on how people see God. We were given a unique opportunity in Pakistan to do something about these issues, to help train the next generation in that country—both Muslims and Christians—to be different, and to give a voice for Christians there. They are the minority, of course, and the poorest of the poor, but Forman is giving them a chance. For three academic years, we gave ourselves to that work. Mark: What about now as an African American educator in the US, how do you feel about the most recent cases of racial violence? Dr. Jones: This may sound strange, but I don’t feel any different about it. Because it’s not new, it’s ongoing. I’ve been facing this my whole life, and I’ve been speaking out about it and working on these issues my whole
“We need to focus more on loving our neighbors, no matter who they are.” ~ Dr. Joseph Jones
career. I’ve been teaching peacemaking and restorative justice for decades, but for me it’s all about Biblical justice. It all comes back to the command to love our neighbor as ourselves. This is the foundation of justice. If we respect our fellow human beings who are created in God’s image, we will work for justice. One of the problems our country is facing is that we focus too much on race and our differences. We talk too much about rights and about what’s best for this group or that. We need to focus more on loving our neighbors, no matter who they are. Mark: What is your message for the Church in America? Dr. Jones: My message for the Church is simple: repent and forgive. By repent, I don’t mean just saying sorry because you feel some sense of guilt for the way things are, but I mean turning around and doing something different. That means you have to look closely at how you’ve been doing things and then really start making changes. Forgiveness is essential because we’ve offended each other. As a follower of Christ, I must forgive. I don’t have a choice. We need to be humble and keep saying, “What can I learn? What can I do differently? Help me understand how I’ve contributed to the problem.” That kind of attitude will bring glory to Christ. During these days of uncertainty, we’ve all been reminded of how vulnerable we are. We can’t do this alone. We need to be humble and realize that other people have a lot to teach us. multiply.net | 11
A Call to Lament, Listen and Learn By Stephen Humber
Stephen Humber is Multiply’s Mission Mobilizer for the Midwest US. He formerly served as a Pastor and as a Naval Officer. He currently lives with his family in Denver, Colorado.
The video of that police officer with his knee on the neck of an already subdued George Floyd jolted me, like a bolt of lightning. For me, it was a condensed symbol of hundreds and hundreds of years of oppression and injustice. The symbol evoked three very strong responses in me.
Humbled I was deeply humbled by how long it’s taken me to begin to understand what has been going on for so long. As we started hearing “Black lives matter” it was too easy at first to respond with “all lives matter.” Of course, all lives matter. But I have come to see that if Black lives don’t matter to so many of us, then it’s hypocritical to say that all lives matter. Because they clearly don’t, at least not yet. When two hurricanes crashed into the Gulf Coast of the US, there were calls to pray for Texas and Louisiana. Don’t all states matter? Of course, but we naturally and compassionately focus on the areas of greatest need. Get it?
Embarrassed I was embarrassed by the ways I have been complicit in the oppression of Blacks (and others) directly by my silence and indifference, and indirectly by my ignorance. I recognize now that I have an incomplete view of history that has influenced how I think and how I live. For example, in the Declaration of Independence it says, “all men are created equal.” But when that was written, Black people were not considered equal (and women were not even included!). How could there be so much 12 | witness
talk of freedom and independence, while so many people were still oppressed? Seventy-eight years later, the 13th Amendment outlawed slavery, but there was still a clause that allowed the government to treat criminals as “indentured servants” (another word for “slaves”). Until 1965, racial segregation was enforced by law. For nearly 200 years, Blacks and Whites couldn’t eat together, sit together, go to school or church together, enjoy movies or swim together, inter-marry and more. Despite new legislation that came during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, many hearts have remained unchanged in their attitudes toward race.
Ashamed Lastly, I am ashamed now by how many White Christians in the US, like me, have turned away from the trouble and ignored the cries of Black people for justice. I am even more ashamed of how so many of us have seemingly ignored God’s heart for his people to be unified. By and large, the Church in the U.S. is still segregated. I believe this grieves the heart of God. I am ashamed because, as the Church, we have abdicated our assignment. This is our battle—to show the power of God to bring different people together in love. But now there are stronger voices for racial justice outside of the Church. Either we have believed lies about race or we have become too weak to truly love. Have we lost our moral authority in society to speak and act into this problem?
Next Steps If we are to re-enter the public discourse about racial justice, we must come with a humble posture of repentance. We must acknowledge the problem. We must lament, listen and learn. We need to have real conversations with each other. With wisdom, courage and grace, we need to confront ignorance. We need to not be silent.
What Can We Do Together? By Terry Hunt
Terry Hunt is Conference Minister for the Eastern District of Mennonite Brethren Churches (USMB) and Pastor at The Life Center, a multicultural congregation in Lenoir, North Carolina.
I was born sixty years ago in the United States of America, “the land of the free and the home of the brave.” In our Declaration of Independence, it says, “all men are created equal.” But in my childhood, I saw the opposite. My parents were both African American, but my mother was so fair skinned that she could easily pass for a White woman all day long. Mother would share stories with me from the 50s and 60s of how she would frequent a local drug store that served lunch. In those days, Black folks were not allowed to be served at the counter or sit at a table. But she looked so white that they never asked her if she was Black. Another time, Mom and her sister (my aunt) went to a restaurant and seated themselves in the “Colored Section.” Immediately, the waitress came over and told them that they were in the wrong section and asked them to move to the section for “Whites Only.” As a child, I went to school by bus and I remember passing by two White schools that were close to our home, but we kept driving for seventeen miles until we reached an all-Black school. When our schools were desegregated in 1968, I was bussed to the closest school. But all of the Black students sat at the back of the bus. The first year our schools were integrated, over fifty percent of the Black students were held back and asked to repeat the year. In part, it was due to the outdated schoolbooks that we were given to use. One of my schoolbooks had my mother’s name in it! She is twenty-four years older than me, so that would tell you how far behind the Black schools were. Later we learned that some of the White teachers didn’t really want the integration policies to be successful, so by not promoting Black students it gave them the right to say, “I told you so.”
By the mid 70s when I was in high school, most of my closest friends were White and I didn’t feel much racial tension. From time to time, I would hear my parents talk about inequality in the workplace and how it was extremely hard for people of color to advance. Growing up, they used to tell us that we needed to work twice as hard as White people in order to have a chance at a decent life. Other people said that we already had two strikes against us: we were poor and we were Black. As a teenager, that was a big pill to swallow because I knew that in baseball you only had three strikes and you were out. But despite that, God allowed my three siblings and me to become productive citizens. I have spent the last thirty-six years as a pastor, half of those as bi-vocational and fifteen of those as the Conference Minister of the Eastern District of US Mennonite Brethren Churches. Other than my devotion to Christ and my family, my passion now is to engage with Christians about what I feel is the number one cause of disunity in our churches and nation: racial injustice. The American church should be the voice of Jesus in every situation and should be the one embracing God’s plan for the Church as revealed in Revelation 7:9, “a great multitude… from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” The Christlike church should be leading the charge and not following a particular political party or movement. There are so many things to divide churches in America today, from denominations to worship styles. In terms of race, the Church is still the most segregated institution in America on Sunday mornings. I often ask myself, why is that? I invite you to ask yourself the same question as you think about the make up of your local church. I would also invite you to begin praying with me and asking God to look deep into your heart and to oust anything that is keeping our churches from reflecting his plans for his Church. May I encourage you to make friends with people who do not look like you and learn to listen to their stories as you share your own. What can we do together?
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Displaced by the Pandemic: Global Workers in North America Due to COVID-19 By Mark J.H. Klassen
“It’s hard,” said Cecil Ramos, from his temporary home in California, “because we’re constantly dealing with mixed emotions. We want to be at home in Thailand, but we’re here in the States with friends and family.” Cecil and his wife Tracy, along with their two sons, have been serving as Multiply long-term workers in Thailand since 2013. They returned to California in late 2019 for a routine season of ministry in North America to visit churches and supporters, but their time away from Thailand was extended indefinitely because of COVID-19. “We are now planning to return to Thailand in January 2021,” said Cecil. “But we know that planning during a pandemic is difficult. We are hoping and praying. That’s all we can do.” “It’s been heart wrenching,” said Bonnie Esau, who normally lives and serves in northern Thailand with her husband Jon and their four children. They had planned a routine trip to Canada in Spring 2020, but as borders began to close they made the trip earlier than expected and haven’t been able to return. “Out of our four kids, three were born in Thailand, so it’s been devastating for them to be away this long. Our kids love their family in Canada, but they are very eager to get home.” For other long-term global workers like Joanna Chapa and her teammate, Stacy Kuhns, the pandemic hit them hard in the midst of their ministry overseas. “We were still in Peru when COVID restrictions began,” she explained. “We couldn’t leave the house for almost two-and-a-half months. The government in Peru declared a state of emergency and the military enforced a nationwide quarantine.”
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After urgent prayer and discernment with their families back in the US, with Multiply leadership, and with church leaders in Peru, Joanna and Stacy made the difficult decision to take a repatriation flight back to the US. “We left Peru on May 13 with the idea that we’d be gone until things got better. We didn’t expect it would be this long.” Joanna is currently living with family in south Texas, while Stacy is in Kansas. Both of them feel the pain of being away from Peru. “It feels wrong, heavy and saddening,” said Joanna. “Peru has one of the highest mortality rates in the world due to COVID, so our churches are suffering. The virus has taken the lives of several church members, so it’s hard to be away from those congregations in the midst of their struggles.” However, the reality for Joanna and Stacy is that even if they were in Peru, they wouldn’t actually be able to be faceto-face with their brothers and sisters there because of the heavy pandemic restrictions. Another grim reality for Joanna is that the region where her parents live in south Texas has had one of the highest mortality rates in the US during the past few months. “In our small community, there are three to four people every week dying because of COVID,” explained Joanna. “It’s traumatic for my family, so it has felt right and timely for me to be here with my parents as they grieve.” For Cecil Ramos, there’s been another reason to embrace this opportunity to be back in the United States. “We came back to a country in turmoil. The racial violence here during the past few months has been very upsetting for me, but I have also felt like I’m here for such a time as this.”
For the past four years, Cecil has been studying racial reconciliation, and then suddenly, during this season, he was thrown into so many meaningful and fruitful conversations. “People are looking for counsel,” he said. “I’ve been able to help them navigate some difficult waters. As a MexicanAmerican, this has been a time for me to speak up.”
wants to use every one of us in whatever context he’s put us in,” said Bonnie Esau, “and so we want to be faithful to the call, regardless of where we are. We don’t need to be in Thailand to do ministry. We just need to keep our ears and eyes open to what God has for us, and be obedient to that no matter what.”
Cecil is hopeful the Church will be the Church in the midst of the chaos of racial injustice and the global pandemic. “My heart would be that our loyalties and lordship would be focused on Jesus, and that our view of the world would reflect his priorities. We can’t put our hope in political solutions. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus.”
The lessons being learned by these global workers who are temporarily stuck in North America are profound. “We’ve been reminding our kids of the fact that none of this is a surprise to Jesus,” said Bonnie. “Home can be wherever we are together, and Jesus is with us there, so we need not worry.”
Joanna is sending the same message as she converses online with her church family in Peru. “We are telling each other, ‘I miss you. I’m praying for you. Please take care of yourselves. Keep your eyes on Jesus!’” Despite COVID, churches in places like Peru and Thailand are not only surviving, in many cases they are thriving. “Ministry in Thailand is advancing quite well under the leadership of national workers,” said Cecil.
For Cecil, the most important message he’s been hearing from God during COVID-19 is this: “Stay connected to the Vine. Remain in him. When it comes right down to it, my first priority is to stay close to Jesus.”
Cecil and Tracy Ramos in Bakersfield, California, away from their home in Thailand
“Another church has just been planted since we left,” said Jon Esau. “I’m really excited and proud of the posture and response that our missional leaders took to this situation, seeing it as a great opportunity to serve and love their communities.” The Church in Thailand continues to multiply, grow and mature while foreigners like the Esaus remain in North America. “Our ministry partners in Thailand appreciate us and our role,” said Jon, “but we all know that God’s work there is not dependent on our presence. They welcome our partnership, but they aren’t distraught in our absence.” Jon misses his co-workers in Thailand, but he also admires their maturity and their dependency on Jesus during this season: “Above all else, they have a heart for the kingdom of God and it shows in their zeal for ministry and their missional lifestyle.” Whether in Thailand, Peru or North America, the Church is living on mission, even in the face of a pandemic. “God
For Joanna, this challenge has clarified her calling: “Ministry is not solely what one does, but also who one is. What we do overflows from who we are. I’m learning that my greatest ministry as a disciple of Jesus is being more like him to those around me.”
The faithfulness of these workers is an encouragement to many. Whether comforting family members, serving local churches, speaking out about important issues, or staying in touch with churches overseas, God is making them a blessing to others even as they keep their eyes on him and as they adjust to the new realities of life during a pandemic.
PRAY Please pray for the global workers who remain in North America due to COVID-19. Pray for effective communication with their partners overseas, as well as strengthened relationships with churches in North America. Pray also for open doors in the future, so they can return to their countries of service. If you would like to receive our Daily Prayer Guide with updated prayer requests from our workers, please go to: multiply.net/dpg multiply.net | 15
Witness Fall 2020 Contents Who is Welcome at the Table?......................... 2 Overcoming Prejudice in Thailand................4 The Table of Uncomfortableness..................6 Prayer of Acknowledgement............................8 Learning to Live a Life of Dying....................10 A Call to Lament, Listen and Learn............ 12
TREK in Kansas January 2021
What Can We Do Together?............................ 13 Displaced by the Pandemic.............................14
Staff Guest Editor.............Jessica Garcia-Driedger Guest Editor...................................Joanna Chapa Editor-in-Chief..............................Randy Friesen Managing Editor..................Mark J.H. Klassen Layout & Design..........................Darcy Scholes Illustration & Design..................... Colton Floris Writing & Prayer Mobilization.......Nikki White Media Director................................ Daniel Lichty Circulation & Administration.........Kyle Hendy
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