“We don’t want those people at our church.”
When people from the community began to walk through the doors on Sunday morning, I heard this grumbling from church members who had just participated in outreach to them.
Growing up, I spent many Saturdays passing out food at our church through a discount food distribution ministry. On Wednesdays, we were in the park down the road for community outreach. Thursdays were reserved for the food pantry my mom had started at our church.
“Those people” were my friends, my community and as Jesus refers to them, my neighbors. Sadly, these grumblings continue in many churches.
Many members’ lives are bifurcated. They write a check for the homeless mission down the road or pass out food at a weekday food pantry, but scoff when neighbors walk into the church doors and don’t look or smell the same way they do.
There is tension in the church between ministries that prioritize presenting the gospel and ones that only meet the material needs of others. Some say there is no place for social outreach, just sharing the gospel. Others say there is no room for the gospel when people are hurting.
This tension divides people, communities, and congregations as they wrestle with what God is calling them to.
Yet the scriptures are full of God’s people caring for the poor, uplifting them and calling for justice. We see this throughout the Year of Jubilee, the Sermon on the Mount, and in Acts 2..
In a biblical example of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Jesus fed a group of 5,000 before sharing the Sermon on the Mount. The crowd would not have been able to listen on empty stomachs. Here, Jesus gave us an example of what it looks like to be God’s people preaching the good news to all.
He does this in a way that honors and dignifies their humanity. He sees their needs, meets them where they are, and shares with them the good life he has called them to.
We, as followers of Jesus, are called to see people where they are, come alongside them in working towards wholeness, and share the good life Jesus calls them to.
So, what should churches do with this concept of justice? Too often, churches get stuck in what it means to “do justice” or serve the marginalized and don’t know what to do next.
Social work provides tools and frameworks the church can glean from as they process these questions. Social workers are uniquely trained and educated to help individuals, groups, and communities build their capacity and work toward flourishing.
Social workers can also work in and with churches. Even if they can’t afford to hire a congregational social worker, social work offers a few tools that churches can utilize.
Communal Visioning
It can be tempting to work in a vacuum, isolated from the community around you, or to shield the work you do from others in the community, protecting it from outside control or duplication. It can also be tempting to want to produce ideas you think will best solve the problems around you.
However, we have uniquely been created to live and work in a community. We are made to work alongside one another.
Instead of falling for our temptations to go it alone, churches should consider creating a diverse team to vision, dream, and pray with them. This could involve meeting with local non-profits and community organizations to learn about their good work. There are numerous collaboration opportunities, which is vital for loving the community well.
Strengths not Weaknesses
Often, we focus too much on our communities’ weaknesses. We want to know what is needed, missing, or going wrong. When we do this, we forget that people in the community are God’s image-bearers, created with innate value.
Looking at and building on what people can do, not what they can’t do, creates lasting change. This is not to say that we ignore injustice, but we must grow from a place of strength and assets.
When people come to you for help, instead of just asking what is going wrong, ask them what they are good at, what is going well, and who is supporting them. This begins the process of building capacity and recognizing the strengths in people.
Learners, not Experts
If we establish that each human is made in God’s image, we understand they are full of dignity and worth. The communities and people we serve deserve to be listened to and valued. The assumption that “fixing” is the first thing we must do removes the worth and dignity of the people we serve.
But if we sit with them, learn from them, and journey towards wholeness with them, we participate in kingdom transformation with them. We must first listen, then do.
Loving the community around you can feel daunting, especially when it is a new journey. But, as followers of Jesus, we are called to do just that.
Each community is filled with people who are made in God’s image. And though it seems daunting to love a whole community, with one person, one act of kindness, one conversation can begin a movement towards wholeness.
We are called to start with one small thing and see how God leads and guides us forward.
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Rebecca Meads is an MSW student at the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work at Baylor University. She has a passion for partnering with congregations in loving their communities well with the tools and skills of Social Work.
