I have just about finished my summer of camp life. Wow, has it been an incredible experience in so many ways. I was made an honorary Oregonian, so I think I’ve hit my prime. I think I summarized in my last post the importance of this internship to my personal growth, so I'll leave it at that.
Before I end my time as a peace intern, I wanted to touch on one justice issue that came up at one of my camps: how we do mission, as Disciples of Christ, as Christians, and as human beings who honestly care about others. I apologize if this is totally an opinionated rant, but I think we all need to re-evaluate our reasoning and motivations when doing mission.
Why do we do mission? Well, mission in terms of global outreach in the DOC church is done through Global Ministries, whose mission statement is "to receive and share the Good News of Jesus Christ by joining with global and local partners to work for justice, reconciliation, and peace." What do we mean by sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ? I feel like this is a theological question that can be taken in so many different ways. To some people this literally means going to other countries and telling people about God. To others, and to me, it means acting the way that Jesus would by valuing individuals and recognizing the worth in each person. From what I've heard and experienced, DOC does a good job of doing mission through working toward peace, justice and relationship. However, this does not always translate to everyone's view of mission. I think we sometimes inaccurately picture a missionary as a white US citizen going into a third world country and "saving" people- which completely devalues those individuals, made in God's image. I think we also have a definition of success, without realizing there can be other definitions. Can you honestly say there is an exact right way to live, other than just loving each other? If you can, you should probably re-evaluate how much you think you know about the universe. At a camp this summer, I watched a video of an indigenous person describe being handed a mirror by a white man, told he was dirty and was living in sin, told to clean himself and then given a t-shirt and a bible and suddenly he was "saved." This is not mission. This is forcing western values onto people that never asked to have their lives disrupted.
Instead of believing that we know the right way and that God is limited to our knowledge, let us learn from people who are different than us. Mission at its worst can be a way for rich, white Americans to go see the world and pity “the other” all the while building their nationalism and feeling like some sort of savior that deserves all that God has to offer. On the other hand, mission at its best can be connection, love, and relationship. Let us recognize the presence of God when we are CONNECTED to people and when I say connected, I mean we have listened to them. Tell me about your problems and I’ll tell you about mine. Tell me what you love to do and I’ll tell you what I love to do. Let me meet your family and learn what you’re afraid of. I can feel God swelling with pride and happiness to see Her unique children coming together in the name of love.
All this to say that I think Global Ministries does a great job, as indicated by their values- community, mutuality, justice, peace, and presence. And also- take a moment to think critically about the missions you support- are they motivated by intentional relationships and true compassion or by the need to feel powerful? Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.
Love,
Peace Intern Grace