Wealth and Action in Church

I come from a “nice church.”  There are many very wealthy people in our congregation.  Our church has been where it stands for 150 years and it now rests on the border of downtown, some wealthy neighborhoods, and a neighborhood that is now home to many lower-income folks.  My church is struggling with how to engage this dichotomy with a “Local Outreach Task Force.”  This is a difficult task.  We don’t want to be the nice church situated in a bomb zone, but we also don’t want to be “those white people” who try to go in and “fix” things in a way that is condescending or oppressive.  We are trying to find ways to build relationships that are open and reciprocal.  It is difficult.  I think part of what is keeping us on that journey is that our church sees prophetic preaching quite often.  I think it keeps us from lapsing back into whatever comfortable patterns it’s easy for middle class and upper middle class folks to fall into.  If prophetic preaching is ill-received in one’s context, I guess I would ask, “why?”  It’s fair to point out that if a congregation leaves because you push too hard or fires you and hires a preacher that will give them what they want, we’re probably not being effective.  While I also don’t think there’s something inherently “wrong” with being middle class or belonging to a middle class church, I think there is a danger in too much comfort (perhaps that comfortable oppression).  There is a line somewhere; we need to challenge our communities to be more, but we can’t alienate them or present our challenges in ways that seem to beat them into the ground for not being good enough.

For our church to “only” address the issues of our own involvement in oppressive structures might lead to a congregation that considers “justice” to be “charity” or buying more “green” products and voting for immigration reform and thinking that’s an acceptable response to the call of God.  I feel like addressing our own involvement in oppressive systems necessitates working with folks from all walks of life and getting involved in what it means to be marginalized in ways that we might not personally be marginalized.  I don’t think that means treating places of marginalization like museums or “crashing” internal community groups, but I think to operate in isolation is problematic.  I never wish to get up in front of a marginalized group that I am not a part of and “preach” to them about how to make things better, but in a church like mine, it might need to be a privileged person like myself who brings light to those issues of marginalization.  I should talk about it in my church.  I think, however, that leads a void where an “action plan” should be.  I could get up and point out to my congregation how we contribute to economic injustices by virtue of our middle class, consumer lifestyle, but then what?  I don’t want our response to simply be a voting position or which brand of fabric softener to buy.

I think there can be common ground and that it’s important to act in concert with folks who come from different contexts.  I never want that interaction to be one of dominance/subordinance or oppressor/oppressed; maybe it is my position of privilege that allows me to think that I can have an interaction that isn’t that.  I don’t want to be part of a church that raises money for new stained glass while there are homeless people sleeping on our front steps.  It’s important for people of privilege to hear and speak to prophetic issues– but certainly not over the voices of the marginalized.

I don’t know that I’m getting anywhere with this subject.  I’m sorry if I just typed in circles; this is very lengthy.  It’s good to be thinking and challenged.