This past weekend a bunch of us hung out at Park Street Church, learned about toxic trash, learned how water's not to be trusted, cosmetics are scary, coffee farmers aren't paid enough, the oceans are rising, everything's a scam... a whole bunch of pretty damn awful stuff.
But despite all of this, we were asked to consider what our relationship to the environment would look like if it were rooted in gratitude to God, and if we, out of love for the God who exists in all of creation, every person, animal, and tree, began to practice resurrection in the broken and forgotten places: vacant lots, dying communities, wastelands and dumps, polluted streets...
Shane Claiborne knows a lot about practicing resurrection, or what he calls "holy mischief", and about following the ancient traditions of living in community and devotion. He made very clear that heaven and hell should be irrelevant because the kingdom of God is now. If there were no heaven and hell, would you still follow Jesus? he asked. Of course we would, of course we are, (of course you learned in bib lit that hell's not biblical anyway), of course that's what social justice is all about - practicing resurrection using a reckless imagination born out of a rage at the brokenness of creation... right? Oh boy, we may have a lot to consider. But how exciting, the chance to imagine and resurrect. :)
If there's one lesson from Shane that I would wish for all ssj'ers to remember, it is this: guilt doesn't motivate, but love does. Guilt may cause people to act, to give away some clothes or some food or some time, but it's a pretty shallow and unsustainable reason to hope for a just world. It's out of love we want a just world, right? And I would add that love is passionate and passion births things like hope and optimism and a vision for the future... the kingdom of God. What on earth (I really mean on earth) would that look like?
Oh my gosh, go crazy. :)
-Ashley
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