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Notes from Episcopal Urban Ministries Forum Saturday September 16, 2006

"Don't tell me what you believe, tell me what difference your belief makes." Maureen Shea, Director of Government relations for the Episcopal Church quoting Verna Dozier, a celebrated lay leader in the Diocese of Washington and Episcopal Church, who passed away in August.

"It is one thing to say with the prophet Amos, 'Let justice roll down like mighty waters,' and quite another to work out the irrigation system. Clearly there is more certainty in the recognition of wrongs than there is in the prescription for their cure." -William Sloane Coffin

Many local Episcopalians who are eager to learn how to be more effective agents for justice and healing rolled into the Church of the Epiphany's forum on Urban Ministries on Saturday September 16, 2006. Representing The Church of the Redeemer at the forum were The Reverend Susan Burns, Gabrielle Herderschee-Hunter, and Chrissy De Fontenay.

The Episcopal Diocese of Washington Urban Ministry Committee was born five years ago after Bishop of Washington John Chane met with Bishop Barbara Harris to discuss how the church should respond to human suffering within the Diocese. Bishop Chane noted that social justice issues are often sidelined within the church by more controversial issues such as the ordination of homosexuals and women, even though public policy issues related to wide spread access to health care, quality education, and affordable housing are far more pertinent to the Christian call to reach out to the poor, the sick, and the bereaved.

Bishop Chane noted that Washington D.C. is a city with great problems such as very high rates of HIV infection, gun violence, and homelessness, and equally low levels of adult literacy and a failing public education system. The church is responding by focusing on issues of domestic relevance: (a) creating an Affordable Housing Committee that is exploring where the Diocese can make land available for affordable housing; (b) looking at urban ministries from the perspectives of Afro Anglican congregations and Hispanic immigrants; (c) developing an Episcopal school east of the Anacostia River; and (d) supporting voting rights for D.C. residents

There are at least four major dimensions to urban ministries, according to The Rev. Randolph Charles, Rector at the Church of the Epiphany:

1. Congregational Development (Focus session: February 24)
2. Community Connection (Focus session: April 21)
3. Service (Focus session: June 16)
4. Justice (Focus session: September 12)

Social justice work requires long-term vision and attention while staying grounded in the gospel, according to the keynote speaker Maureen Shea, Director of Government relations for Episcopal Church. "In real estate, it's all about location, location, location buturban ministry work is all about focus, focus, focus," Maureen contended. The forum participants brainstormed together to share their experiences and perceptions regarding relevant public policy issues, obstacles to effective justice work by churches, strengths of church-based justice workers, and advice to the Diocesan Committee on Urban Ministry.

Areas of public policy related to justice advocacy:

• Quality Education
• Living wage
• Safe affordable housing
• Health care
• Hunger
• Consumer spending patterns
• Community safety
• Immigration
• D.C. voting rights

Obstacles to effective justice advocacy work in church community (geographic area around church):

• Lack of responsiveness by churches to justice initiatives
• People too busy and distracted
• Motivation for justice needs to come from Gospel, but the Bible not specific enough and sometimes confusing
• Differing political views
• Feeling of being disenfranchised/not included in political process
• Mobility - people moving in and out of communities
• How to cross over bipartisan lines (religious and political) to do God's work as one? Ecumenical work - not powerful in public policy
• Need to unite to support good public policy
• Washington Interfaith Network and other networks - lack of knowledge of their existence
• Training in how political policy works
• Need to change own lifestyle dramatically (charity requires less change while true justice policy changes require deeper commitment to change)
• Lack of strong links with DC government
• Need for leadership
• Small congregations seeking to survive as congregation - limited resources
• Costs - not equipped to address cost issues
• Fear of offending important parishioners

What do parishioners interested in influencing public policy bring to the table?

• Patience and persistence
• Faith and values
• Experience
• Example of working in justice related fields over extended time
• Members of wider communities
• Witness
• Knowing how political processes works
• Passion and conviction
• Wealth (sometimes financial and always heavenly wealth)
• Moderate church voices who care as much about alleviating poverty as fundamentalists do about marginalizing gays
• Ability to communicate good ideas
• Participation in community meetings
• Looking for results

What help would social justice workers like from the Diocese of Washington Committee on Urban Ministries?

• Phone directory of people who attend meetings
• Communication with people doing urban ministries so committee understands the needs better and disseminates their information;
• To hear more from the disadvantaged such as the homeless, immigrants, etc.
• Resources for urban ministries and bibliography
• Identify issues of particular relevance to our church members
• E.g. fighting oil drilling in Artic Wildlife Refuge - work on issue because vast majority of native Indians in that area are Episcopalians
• Voice of leadership
• Co-sponsor conference on justice issues
• Develop Lambert Conference agenda to focus more on urban ministries
• Match up local churches that have compatible urban ministries
• List urban ministries that are working

Example of local social justice issue: D.C. Voting Rights

• D.C. residents are disenfranchised by the lack of representation in law-making bodies
  
  
• The Reverend Randolph Charles encouraged participants to nudge Bishop Chane to bring this issue to the Executive Council meeting in November
  
  
• D.C. Voting Rights is important because it is a stain on the whole nation that tax paying Americans are not given equal treatment under the law and one God.
  
  
• Churches could help create this as a national issue. D.C. voting rights needs to become a national issue, as did Civil rights before it took off.
  
  
• Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton "representing the District of Columbia in Congress" is an Episcopalian with no vote except for president. The first step is to get D.C. politicians a vote in the House of Representatives.
  
  
• Be open to working with unlikely bedfellows who may join forces to help support this issue: (a) Locally based but influential institutions such as universities, think tanks and Smithsonian, (b) hospitality industry, (c) developers, (d) Fox news, and (e) Utah Mormons (because Utah, as a solid conservative state, would probably get an extra seat if Washington D.C., as a solid Democratic district, gets a seat in the House of Representatives)
  
  
• Encourage "Love they neighbor" mentality to encourage parishes in Maryland and Virginia to help residents in D.C. get equal representation
  
  
• D.C. residents come from all over country and could lobby their own states to support the issue.
  
  
• Episcopal Church could provide a toolkit for congregations to guide us as to how to help D.C. residents get voting rights.
  
  

Advice from local residents at Franklin Shelter, savefranklinshelter.com:

(See latest copy of Street Sense front-page article by Jesse Smith)

1. Lobby politicians to keep Franklin Shelter open. There is a threat for it to be shut down to sold cheaply to developers for up-market apartments when there is already an affordable housing crisis in D.C.
   
   
2. Donations could be more useful for homeless people going out to work during the day. Many residents have enough hygiene items and know where to find food -- such as steel-toed boots for construction workers, bagged lunches, bus tokens
   
   
3. Storage containers are important for the homeless as sometimes all their earthly belongings are thrown out when they are at work. There are some lockers at Franklin, but not at other shelters.
   
   
4. Rules need to be changed to encourage residents to be able to get full employment (i.e. Serve hot meals at dinner time and bagged lunches in the morning so they can to work on construction sites; allocate the beds later, provide storage space for placing belongings when the homeless work)
   
   
5. The Harriet Tubman Shelter for women and girls is in bad shape. It is in the old D.C. Hospital that was shut down. Everything is run down. This could be a good Habitat for Humanity project to help rebuild shelter.
   
   
6. Talk to Catholic Charities about certain injustices (e.g. non-blizzard shelter rules that require shelter residents to leave shelter early in morning in subfreezing temperatures).
   
   

Books to Read/Resources

1. "Transforming Congregational Culture" by Anthony B. Robinson
   
   
2. Guide on Episcopal Church Justice Work www.episcopalchurch.org/eppn. Web site - Advice such as appropriate focus, look for strange bedfellows e.g. conservative politicians, developers who may be allies on specific justice issues
   
   
3. Engage God's Mission: Policy for Action (The Social Policies of the Episcopal Church USA)
   
   
4. Capitol Hill Directory with list of politicians who are Episcopal (John McCain has changed form Episcopal to Baptist)
   
   
5. urbmin@edow.org (list serve for urban ministry ideas and initiatives in our Diocese)
   
   

Public Policy Networks

1. Email network - Diocesan Urban Ministry network (urbmin@edow.org)
2. Bishops Working for a Just Society
3. Interfaith Alliance: They provide a guide for avoiding problems by being too political and risk losing tax status. They indicate green, yellow and red lights for what religious organizations can do to influence public policy without losing religious tax status:
   
   
   • E.g. You can do voter registration drive as long as don't endorse particular candidates
   • E.g. You can have political people speak but need to invite different perspectives
   • E.g. You can conduct unbiased questionnaires

Urban Ministry Possibilities for Redeemer to consider:

1. Explore whether possible to facilitate Samaritan Ministries' Next Step Ministry helping at the Franklin Center to help homeless men there transition back into society and work life.
   
   
2. Consider whether Redeemer should join Action in Montgomery (AIM). Approx. 32 churches are already members of AIM. It costs approx. $1,000 to join. This discussion needs to be wider than Vestry.
   
   
3. Organize social justice activist Public speakers on a Sunday evening or after church
   
   
4. Annacostia River clean up twice a year and Saturday Tutoring Project - Rector Rev. Lewis who is an Episcopal priest in south east DC is interested in joining forces with Redeemer on some projects especially those involving quality education, tutoring and youth.
   
   

Gabrielle Herderschee-Hunter