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March
2002
The
Episcopal Urban Caucus: stay in the city
Along
with six others from the Diocese of Newark, I attended the
annual assembly of the Episcopal Urban Caucus, this year held
in Los Angeles early in February.
Almost 200 people (including nine bishops) came from around
the country's urban centers to bear witness to the church's
commitment to stay in the city; to learn from each other by
sharing dreams and strategies and action plans; to worship
and pray together; and to do some essential networking around
the common ministry we share within an urban context.
Each morning began with activist, writer and teacher Ched
Myers providing a passionate look at scripture, which engendered
much thought and conversation and challenge for those present.
Author of "Binding the Strong Man," "Who Will
Roll Away the Stone?", and "Say to this Mountain,"
Ched Myers continues to passionately prod, pull, and poke
at the church, calling it to get on with the task of making
and sending disciples as we discover again the nature of the
discipleship to which we are being called.
Other important contributions to the conference included an
address by a long-time Methodist urban pastor, Jim Lawson,
a powerful dialogue presentation by the Rev. Anna Olson and
the Rev. Winnie Varghese, two young urban priests from Los
Angeles, and a wonderful sermon preached at the cathedral
by the Rev. Altagracia Perez.
Add to that a breakfast celebrating the work of economic
justice (chaired nationally by Geoff Curtiss, rector, All
Saints', Hoboken) which was held at St. Mary's Church in L.A.
St. Mary's is a predominately Japanese congregation, many
of whose elders were interred in camps during the Second World
War. Add to that a series of bus tours to various places where
effective urban ministry is happening, and the participation
of about 100 EUC members (including six bishops) in a union
picket demonstration for justice in the workplace. It was
a full and rewarding time.
The assembly ended at noon on Saturday, but I stayed to attend
the board meeting, as we began to plan for next year's assembly
in Chicago. As I reflect on this Urban Caucus experience,
three seemingly disparate pieces from Saturday continue to
dance together for me: In Saturday morning's bible teaching,
Ched Myers said, "There is no sense trying to decide
whether you are for or against multiculturalism or globalization.you
are too late.they are already happening. The real question
now is, how do we place ourselves within this struggle?"
Saturday afternoon I participated with more than one thousand
others in an outdoor ceremony to "seat" the Rt.
Rev. Jon Bruno as Bishop diocesan for the Diocese of Los Angeles.
We gathered in Echo Park, just below the cathedral grounds,
and after some brief speeches, joined hands as we stretched
ourselves to surround the lake, a very visible witness to
the unity of our diversity.young and old, black and brown
and yellow and red and white, every expression of human sexuality,
of abilities and disabilities, and of poverty and affluence.
At a climactic moment, the crates were opened, and 100 white
doves flew up into the blue sky over Echo Lake. My first response
was one of awe and excitement.my second response was, why
are we putting all white doves into the midst of a very multicultural
event?.but my third response, all in a matter of seconds,
was a big smile and a chuckle, as I watched the white doves
join the already circling pigeons and the many ducks on the
lake and a multitude of other birds not recognizable to this
set of non-bird watching eyes. The peaceable kingdom was all
around me. The question for us IS, as Ched framed it earlier,
" how do we place ourselves within this struggle?"
That warm and cozy image of the birds stayed with me through
the day. Later that evening, Bishop Wilfredo Ramos-Orench
of Connecticut and I were driven to a restaurant to have dinner
with Bishops Bruno and Talton of L.A. As we rounded a corner
in the city, we came upon 10 police cars stopped, officers
out of their cars, handguns and shotguns drawn and aimed at
a car filled with passengers. We quickly moved on, but the
now seemingly conflicting images remained for me to sort out.
The challenges for urban ministry are real and ought not
to be romanticized or sugar-coated or underestimated. But
Christ has called us to stay in the city, and to pray and
work for the peace and justice of the city, bringing together
the resources needed to accomplish this work.
Canon Carter Echols came out from Washington to join our
group at the Urban Caucus. She will officially begin her work
in the Diocese of Newark May 1, but has already submitted
a first draft for a congregational partnership program within
the diocese. Given the diversity we experience, we might do
well to consider developing companion relationships within
the diocese.
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