Mayors Report on Hunger and Homelessness

On December 21, 2010 the U.S. Conference of Mayors released their annual report, the 2010 "Hunger and Homelessness Survey." For more than a quarter century, The Conference of Mayors has documented the magnitude of the issues of hunger and homelessness in our cities, as well as efforts cities are making to address these challenges. The report presents data collected on emergency food assistance and homelessness assistance services provided between September 1, 2009 and August 31, 2010.

Some Key findings:

• Every city surveyed reported that request for food assistance increased over the past year, and those requests increased by an average of 24 percent across the cities.
• Among those requesting food assistance, 56 percent were families.
• Unemployment led the list of causes of hunger cited by the survey, followed by high housing costs, low wages, poverty, and lack of access to SNAP/food stamps.
• Among households with children, unemployment led the list of causes for homelessness cited by city officials.
• Providing more mainstream assisted housing led the list of actions needed to reduce homelessness in the survey cities.
• Officials in 48 percent of the survey cities expect resources to provide emergency shelter to decrease over the next year.

New Staff

We are pleased to announce that we have hired Evette Pena for the staff position at the Urban Center. She is a local woman who is looking forward to sharing her experience and expertise in our ministry. She will be starting the week of January 10, 2011.

Kensington Neighborhood On Edge

Since November 3, three women have been murdered by strangulation and at least three others have been attacked. The police have a description of the man and this week they released surveillance video showing a man who allegedly assaulted a woman and may be responsible for the rape and strangulation of others. He has been dubbed by the media and on the street as the "Kensington Strangler."

Two events took place recently that has the community together. A couple of weeks ago a vigil was held at the intersection of Jasper and Cumberland Streets, where Nicole's body was found on November 13. With white candles in hand about 100 people huddled in the chill night in a vacant lot centered around a make-shift memorial to Nicole. The memorial had been set against a tree with her high school picture, candles, and a teddy bear. Follow the words of family members and community leaders, attendees solemnly marched down Jasper Street to Kensington Ave in a showing of neighborhood support.

Last Saturday a community meeting was held to give people a chance to express their concerns and feelings about the murders and violence in the neighborhood.

The incidences of violence that is connected to the Kensington Strangler has left a real void and a sense of fear in the neighborhood, especially as the perpetrator is still on the loose. While the strings of murders connected to the strangler have received a great deal of media attention, they are connected to deeper issues of drug abuse, prostitution and violence within our community that does not always receive adequate attention by the city, the media, and even the police.

"And it burns, burns, burns..."

The following is Fr. Michael Duffy's reflection on the excitement in our neighborhood this week...

10/25/10 Last night during Mass we heard fire engines, but that is not unusual. But they got louder and louder and there were more and more of them. After Mass we went outside and saw the end of Hagert St alive with fire engines, police cars, emergency vehicles and a huge orange glow with lots of smoke.... The former Cavco Co factory building, abandoned now, was ablaze, completely engulfed in flames and reaching 60 or 70 feet above the roof.

Soon the news helicopters arrived, hovering overhead.

All the houses were evacuated and all roads blocked off. The firemen told the people to evacuate but to leave their animals in their homes. "They'll be all right" they said. (I wonder what the SPCA would think of that?) I had to back three cars out of Hagert St so Katie Sullivan could get her car out which by now was surrounded by trucks and hoses. They hooked up to every hydrant within 3 blocks. All of Kensington was out watching the blaze. Huge billows of black smoke filled with glowing embers would shoot out from the building twisting like tornadoes at what seemed like a hundred miles an hour. Then all our houses and the Inn darkened as the power went out on all the streets. We stood watching for hours transfixed by the power and destructive force of such a huge inferno. Luckily the wind was blowing north. If it had shifter to the west, those embers would have fallen on the abandoned factory at the end our block next to Barbara and Karen's house. If that happened, our whole block would have gone up and we would have lost all our houses on the north side, including the Inn itself. It made us a little apprehensive.

Finally at about 10:30 we walked back to the house to find a channel 6 ABC reporter standing in front of our door. He shoved a mic in my face and asked questions. It was on the 11 o'clock news. But of course I didn't see it because we had no power. Today all our volunteers and many of our guests told me they saw it.

With no power, what do you do in the house at night? You can't read, you can't clean your room. You can't do your laundry. It was odd. I spent an hour with a flashlight crooked between my neck and shoulder and did desk work. Then I decided to take advantage of the situation and I went to bed at 11:30. Very early for me. I had to set my battery powered travel alarm to make sure I got up.

We prepared breakfast at the Inn in the dark with candles all over. Once the sun rose it was easier. But how to prepare the dinner with no electricity? What of all the food in the freezer? We opened no refrigerator door nor did we enter the freezer lest we hasten the spoilage. We planned on giving all the meat away to the guests during the evening meal. Then at about noon the lights came on, power was restored, and so was our sanity.

But all day long the streets were hazy with smoke and the smell of the still burning building. Sometimes it would blow in a different direction and sometimes right up the street at us and into the Inn giving us curls of smoke clouds wafting through the dining room and kitchen. It is now 10:30 the next evening and the fire is still burning. Everything is hazy and the air is heavy with the fire smell. As I look down the street, the firemen are busy with "surround and drown" the term they use for placing fire trucks on all sides of the smoldering building and soaking it with the streams of water with their hoses to prevent "rekindle."

As if Hagert St. isn't exciting enough, the fire added to mix. We are grateful that no one was injured and no homes were lost (even though this morning a insurance adjustor shoved his business card in my hand asking me if I had any smoke damage!). Please be careful with fire. Change the batteries in your detectors and be safe!

As an addendum to this, it has now been a full 60 hours since the inferno first began and the streets are still closed down, fire trucks are still a constant presence, and smoke is still wafting out of the charred building. Demolition is supposedly set to start today.

Job Opening!

Your (somewhat) faithful, beloved blogger is moving on to warmer climates in a few weeks. The blog will remain, but with my leaving, there will be a vacancy that we are seeking to fill. In addition to putting oh-so-much time, effort and personality into this weekly blog, the main thrust of my work was in managing a supportive housing program for single mothers and their children. If you or someone you know are interested in this position, please view this link and follow the directions posted there. I'll be singing my swan song soon so keep an ear out!

The Feast of St. Francis!

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis! We can be grateful for the continued celebration of his life 800 years later and are truly humbled by those examples of humility, grace, and love of creation in our lives today.

Canticle of Creation:

O Most High, all-powerful, good Lord God,

to you belong praise, glory,

honour and all blessing.

Be praised, my Lord, for all your creation

and especially for our Brother Sun,

who brings us the day and the light;

he is strong and shines magnificently.

O Lord, we think of you when we look at him.

Be praised, my Lord, for Sister Moon,

and for the stars

which you have set shining and lovely

in the heavens.

Be praised, my Lord,

for our Brothers Wind and Air

and every kind of weather

by which you, Lord,

uphold life in all your creatures.

Be praised, my Lord, for Sister Water,

who is very useful to us,

and humble and precious and pure.

Be praised, my Lord, for Brother Fire,

through whom you give us light in the darkness:

he is bright and lively and strong.

Be praised, my Lord,

for Sister Earth, our Mother,

who nourishes us and sustains us,

bringing forth fruits and vegetables of many kinds

and flowers of many colours.

Be praised, my Lord,

for those who forgive for love of you;

and for those

who bear sickness and weakness

in peace and patience

- you will grant them a crown.

Be praised, my Lord, for our Sister Death,

whom we must all face.

I praise and bless you, Lord,

and I give thanks to you,

and I will serve you in all humility.

Health Care Reform TODAY!

Today, September 23, marks the start of the implementation of the Affordable Health Care Act. Six months ago, history was made as President Obama signed into action a step towards affordable, universal health care in the United States. This is the first of many installments that will promote general health welfare across the United States, helping to insure more people, to give people the safety net they need, and the opportunity to be advocates for themselves.

The first installment of the Affordable Health Care Act, starting today, will allow young people to remain on their parents’ insurance until age 26. It also prohibits employer plans from withholding health care from children under 18 with pre-existing conditions. Further, insurance companies will no longer be allowed to drop people when they get sick. It delineates that there will no longer be lifetime limits on coverage (though doesn’t, at this time, prevent annual limits), and new plans must offer free preventive care. Lastly, patients with new plans starting after 9/23 will be able to appeal decisions made by the health plan to a third party, giving patients more of a voice for themselves and advocating for their own well-being.

The hope is that by expanding who will be covered and putting health care into the hands of those who need it, we will be moving towards a nation where everyone will be covered... eventually. It seems as if the full effects of the plan will not be realized until 2014, but the benefits to those who are currently uninsured and faced with mountains of bills are seeing glimmers of hope with the advent of this benchmark in Obama’s presidency.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

Shakespeare's musings in Romeo and Juliet offer quite a point of interest for those choosing a name for a child, a car, a pet, or, say, a supportive housing program. While we fully recognize that simply a name for the house will alter the outcome of the mothers in the program, as everything else owned by St. Francis Inn Ministries is named, we felt compelled to follow suit. Most of our houses are named after people (Juniper House, Mary House, Clare House, Jean Donovan House, etc), but we wanted to name the house after someone or something that could be accessible to the mothers living in the house. And thus, we've settled on St. Margaret House, after St. Margaret of Cortona.
We look to St. Margaret of Cortona as an example of integrity, conversion, hope and strength of character. When Margaret was just seventeen, she left her parents to follow a man who promised love and security. For ten years, she lived, unmarried, with the man who was one day mysteriously murdered, leaving her to raise their son alone.
After being abandoned and forced to raise her child alone, Margaret returned to the home of her father and stepmother, only to be rejected by her stepmother, forcing Margaret to seek refuge with the Franciscans in Cortona. It was here that Margaret began a life of penance, simplicity, and devotion to life in servitude of God.
St. Margaret of Cortona underwent a significant conversion experience from a life in pursuit of earthly things to a soul centered on the Divine. Her radical shift from self-indulgence to selfless love and commitment to something greater not only gives us hope for ourselves, but for the lives of those who will reside in St. Margaret House.
St. Margaret is the patron saint of single mothers, as well as many other patronages. But for many of the single mothers that will live here, their character imbued with the desire to pursue a life of virtue, with little guidance or conviction to follow through, is common. We hope that by looking to St. Margaret of Cortona, the women that participate in this supportive housing program will harness her strength and spirit to seek integrity, conversion, and hope within themselves and their families.

One of our guidelines for ministry here at St. Francis Inn Ministries is that “We seek to involve others in our ministry.” We typically have people calling, emailing, knocking on the door, sending text messages, asking if they can help, and often the requests far exceed the need. You wouldn’t think that to be the case with the ghost town that was Hagert Street this week!

Not only did we not have a week-long high school group (as is customary throughout the summer), we also suffered the blows of the last week of summer, drawing all of our regular volunteers out of the city and, presumably, to the shore. Furthermore, our normal Team of eight permanent staff members dropped down to just five this week with coinciding retreats, vacations, and side jobs taking them away from us! We were, however, blessed to have been able to call former Franciscan Volunteers and other long-time veteran volunteers of the Inn to offer their hands and hearts to us and our guests this week.

We’re looking forward to having everyone back, training the new FVMs, and the beginning of the school year, meaning the revitalization of our daily high school and college groups that assist us with serving the evening meal!

New faces, new energy, and the fulfillment of one of our guidelines for ministry!

Oh, Dorothy Day...

In a recent article posted on CNN.com, Target was spotlighted for their endorsement of an organization that backs a known anti-gay candidate. The Human Rights Campaign has resolved to boycott the national chain until they revoke their generous ($150,000) contribution to the organization or until Target makes a matching donation to a pro-gay organization. It has caused a national outcry from employees of Target, individuals, and other small human rights and gay rights organizations.

This all comes much to my own dismay. I should’ve moved in to Target, or at least bought stock in the company, for all the time and money I spend there. But this is not a blog designed to rally people to support gay people, or even to get people to boycott Target; it is intended to bring to light those systems, companies, institutions that oppress or exploit people.

So where do we turn when we’re faced with social injustice? Dorothy Day, of course! She challenges this blog, yet again, with the concept of nonparticipation...

“Love of brother means voluntary poverty, stripping one's self, putting off the old man, denying one's self. It also means nonparticipation in those comforts and luxuries which have been manufactured by the exploitation of others .... If our jobs do not contribute to the common good, we pray God for the grace to give them up .... This would exclude jobs in advertising, which only increases people's useless desires, and in insurance companies and banks, which are known to exploit the poor of this country and others. Whatever has contributed to the misery and degradation of the poor may be considered a bad job, and not to be worked at...” [Catholic Worker, December 1948]

When we take the time to research what companies we’re supporting by our patronage and consequently what we're endorsing, we too often find systems of exploitation of some group or another. It is our duty to stand up for those being oppressed and the most tangible way to do so is nonparticipation.

So does this mean I won’t be going to Target? Yikes, but yes. It’s not that I have a strong belief in or alliance with the LGBT population, but I do side with the oppression of any individual or group. Therefore, the red bullseye will not be receiving any of my money until a resolution has been reached.

The Feast of St. Clare of Assisi

We give thanks and praise today to Saint Clare of Assisi for the perpetuation of the Franciscan order after Francis’ death. If not for her devotion to and deep-rooted belief in the radical simplicity and corporate poverty of St. Francis, it is probable that the order would have died out. Below you’ll find a letter Clare wrote to her sister, Agnes; it is one of the few writings of Clare and continues to be a source of strength and support to those engaged in ministry.

What you hold, may you always hold.
What you do, may you always do and never abandon.
But with swift pace, light step,
and unswerving feet,
so that even your steps stir up no dust,
go forward securely, joyfully, swiftly,
on the path of prudent happiness,
believing nothing which would dissuade you from this resolution
or which would place a stumbling block for you on the way,
so that you may offer your vows to the Most High
in the pursuit of that perfection
to which the Spirit of the Lord has called you.

The cost of bread increases... now what?

CNN issued a report saying that the cost of wheat has increased by 80% and is at its highest cost over the past two years. It goes on to say though the United States produces enough wheat to sustain itself, if drought-ridden Russia cannot provide the grain for the rest of the world, as it is most accustomed, the United States will then have to begin exporting its products, causing a price increase for domestic consumers. CNN posits that if the price hike holds steady for more than 20-30 days, consumers across the world will experience an increase in the normal cost for wheat-containing products, such as bread and pastries, a staple in many Americans’ diets.
In Victorian-era England, a demand for a minimum wage was realized using the cost of wheat to determine how much is necessary to most basically live at that time. The Speenhamland System (crazy name, legendary concept) created a base of acceptable living conditions and subsequently provided relief to individuals and families whose earnings fell below the cost of wheat. Additionally, the System instituted that it was no longer up to individual townships or parishes to determine individual or family eligibility of relief, but became a nation-wide accepted implementation of a general welfare system. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
England’s “cost of bread” concept was adopted by the colonies upon their foundation and is still used today, though solely conceptually, using basic commodities as a means for determining purchasing power (aka, the cost of living).
If the "cost of bread goes up," will the minimum wage increase? Will general welfare and SNAP benefits increase? How will this price increase affect those who struggle to make ends meet with limited income?

Check out the article on CNN here for more information. And the Speenhamland System here.

The Feast of St. Martha

In light of the feast of St. Martha, Brother Lawrence, a lay Carmelite from the 17th century, offers a compromise between the busy-ness of service and ministry of Martha and the consuming attentiveness and awareness of God among us of Mary-

“Our sanctification does not depend upon changing our works. Instead, it depends on doing those things for God's sake which we commonly do for our own. Brother Lawrence thought it was lamentable to see how many people mistook the means for the end, addicting themselves to certain works which they performed very imperfectly because of their human or selfish regard. The most excellent method he found for going to God was that of doing our common business without any view of pleasing men but purely for the love of God.

Brother Lawrence felt it was a great delusion to think that the times of prayer ought to differ from other times. We are as strictly obliged to adhere to God by action in the time of action, as by prayer in its time. His own prayer was simply a sense of the presence of God, his soul being at that time aware of nothing other than Divine Love. When the appointed times of prayer were past, he found no difference, because he still continued with God, praising and thanking Him with all his might. Thus his life was a continual joy.”

-Fourth Conversation from "The Practice of the Presence of God" of Brother Lawrence and friends

Pax et bonum, 2009-2010 FVMs!

Summer is a crazy time at St. Francis Inn! Between our week-long high school groups, to the comings and goings of our interns, and the end of the Franciscan Volunteer Ministry year to the beginning of the new one, and the stale, humid heat, the only thing that keeps us sane is water ice (or if you’re a local, wooderice)!

This past week, the FVMs attended their closing retreat in Buzzards Bay, MA. They joined the other two FVM sites from Wilmington, DE and Camden, NJ for a time of reflection on their year of service and rest before venturing on to their next steps.

As they depart, Mary and Celia will return to the Franciscan Volunteer Ministry program (though their placement is as yet unknown), Leo will be teaching at St. Michael’s Indian School in Arizona, and Rory has returned home to New Hampshire.

We pray for their future endeavors and we give thanks for their gifts shared with our community!

The Federal Strategic Plan To End Homelessness

By John Gill, ofm

On June 22, the Obama administration announced an ambitious plan to end homelessness among some of society’s most vulnerable groups within the next decade. The report was prepared by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. The full report, titled Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness is available at www.usich.gov. Opening Doors is the Obama Administration’s official policy position on homelessness. The plan has been shaped by the recommendations of state and regional interagency councils on homelessness, national and local advocacy groups, direct service providers, homeless people, and the general public.

The plan sets ambitious measurable goals that will be the key to driving progress. It articulates four major goals: 1) finish the job of ending chronic homelessness in five years, 2) prevent and end homelessness among veterans in five years, 3) prevent and end homelessness for all families, youth and children in 10 years, and 4) set a path toward ending all types of homelessness. The plan outlines 10 objectives and 52 strategies to accomplish these goals, and it provides an extensive overview of issues of homeless and all of the subpopulations who experience it.

Of course, plans are wonderful, but it is the implementation that will really make a difference. The Obama administration has already given some indication that it can and will make the necessary changes. It is good news having the federal government be an important player in the movement to end homelessness in our nation.

Ministry Update

On April 7, 2010, as all living things do, St. Francis Inn Ministries grew. Br. John and I (okay, mostly Br. John) developed a new idea for ministry. We were no longer satisfied with the stagnancy of the Urban Center ministry, feeling that we were not making any sort of long-term change with the work we were previously doing. If our goal was to break the cycle of poverty, it wasn’t going to happen within the existing framework.

Our ministerial venture was (is) overwhelming. In April, we signed papers for a 3-unit house with the hopeful vision to fill it with single mothers and their children. We had been planning for months; making forms, program-developing, doing some legal and logistical leg work, and anxiously awaiting the day that we could get in, get some work done, and get started.

Some major renovations had to take place, such as a rotted bathroom floor, new tile, new carpet, and twelve rooms to be painted. April 8, we were in the new house, assessing the work, making plans, and bracing ourselves for our new titles as contractors, homeowners, and handy-people.

We both got to work and now, three months later, putting the last mini-blind up and sweeping and mopping the third floor apartment, we are ready to start our supportive housing program. Supportive housing is defined as “a combination of housing and services intended as a cost-effective way to help people live more stable, productive lives.” Our target population is single mothers because we knew that by providing support and life skills to the mother, the child(ren) could be raised in a stable household, therefore breaking the cycle of poverty.

We’ve already begun this new ministerial venture with a mother and her 3-year-old son. We are all really excited to get to work; for me and John- to give this woman the tools she needs to make good choices in her life, and for her, to be in a safe, stable place for her and her son. Over the next couple of months we hope to fill the other two apartments and are energized by seeing our vision come to life!

Please say prayers for us and for our families!

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart."

I find sanctuary whenever I leave Kensington. I don’t expect to have to step over needles, see people passed-out drunk on the sidewalk, or break up a fight. And, gratefully, most of the time I am granted the reprieve. But the other day I was at Wawa (a Philadelphia-area convenience store) and greeted one of our regular guests who was sitting outside begging for money. He didn’t recognize me at first, but once I smiled, a big smile crossed his face along with a little wave.
I went in, got my Caffeine-Free Diet Coke and some cash from the ATM, and upon my exiting the store, I was instantly transported back to 2441 Kensington Avenue. John, the guest, was engaged in a tussle with another man who was taking swings. Amidst the blows, the Wawa customer was yelling profanities surrounding derogatory racist and homeless comments. To water it down, “This guy is always out here begging for money! Why doesn’t he just get a job!?” To be fair to the customer, John is always out there begging for money, but the violent reaction to a humble request for some spare change seemed unwarranted. This type of incident isn’t unusual, in fact, crimes against the homeless are on the rise, especially in our neighborhood. But I didn’t expect it outside of my community.
In typical St. Francis Inn fashion, I began calmly talking John out of the fight, hoping that I would be able to diffuse at least John’s defensive attack. Just as I started the intervention, a SWAT Team, along with 3 police officers (one of which that was undercover) came running outside and abrasively separated the two men. I snuck away, secretly grateful that I didn’t have to work through that fight on my own, but unsettled by the violent and harsh manner with which the situation was dealt. Suddenly I understood the value of a peaceful presence and the pacifistic way the Team handles such situations.
Maybe after 3 years, St. Francis has taught me something after all.

Locavores

The average food commodity item travels 1,500 miles before it gets to your plate. From the bread you eat to the strawberries that top your shortcake, it is highly likely that, unless you went to your local farmer’s market, your “fresh” food traveled at least half way across the country to fill your belly.

There are many issues wrapped up in the way our food is grown, processed, managed and shipped. When we go to the grocery store, we don’t think about how, despite the foot of snow on the ground outside, we are still getting fresh strawberries or lettuce, or even though our local farmers haven’t even seen the ground since December. We neglect to consider the many additives that are included in our fresh foods to toughen them up for their journey, and we don’t realize that what we think are fresh apples or watermelon were actually harvested a minimum of five days before and are the social darwinism champions that have survived their journey across the country or ocean.

The “locavore” movement is designed to not only revitalize small farm owners and local businesses, but also to shed light on the plausibility of eating locally. Since the early 1990s, Americans have had the ability to get any type of fruit, vegetable, grain or meat whenever they wanted, regardless of the season. With efficient technology and transportation, we can obtain asparagus in November, fresh spinach in January, and green beans in February, even if it costs more. We’ve lost sight of patience and delayed gratification. Our sense of urgency and demand for satisfying our cravings is depleting our own bank accounts, but also the social capital of the United States. Our small farms are at risk of losing land and their livelihood; the carbon emissions from the distribution of produce are polluting the atmosphere; and the very soil we walk on is being compromised all for our taste buds.

For those with the patience to read, “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver is an excellent memoir of a family that chose to become locavores for a year. It is informative and anecdotal and provides some personal insight into a life shift that could replenish what has been lost.

If you don’t have the time or like to read, “Food, Inc.” is a film that, less endearingly but no less informatively, exposes the globalization of the food industry in the United States and across the world. It focuses primarily on the meat industry but the gut-wrenching command for change is the same.

This is simply a broad brush stroke of locavores and the movement to eat locally. Do some research, discover local farms and farmers markets in your area so you can contribute to your local economy. It’ll take time and patience, but the pay-off will be big.

My Trip to Jail

Visiting somebody in jail always has a sense of excitement and anxiety for me. Each of my experiences have been vastly different, ranging from an “official visit” where I was allowed a minimally invasive search, unlimited visiting time, and private space for the inmate and I to talk, to being rejected for the supposed presence of drugs on my body.

Last year, my first visit to the Philadelphia Correctional Facilities was marked by a feeling of loss of identity and individuality. I was treated like a number, shuffled through and processed, and expected to follow the same rules as the inmates. No crossing your legs, you must sit straight forward, no touching, no jewelry, closed-toed shoes only, no revealing clothing. You are invasively patted down (sometimes a few times), drug tested, sent through a metal detector, and are under the watchful eye of the guard as you sit in a large room with any other inmate receiving a visit and their guest. “1072984, 15 minutes... 1072984, 10 minutes... 1072984, 5 minutes...” are warning signs that I will soon leave the cinderblock-walled, stale room, back to my freedom and the inmate is ushered back to her cell, left to absorb the visit as I may be the only person that goes to visit her this week, this month, or at all. When I approach the locked door, I give the guard an anticipatory look, waiting for the loud buzz and click to permit me through, I am patted down again, retrieve my earrings, nose ring, watch, slips of paper, and even my belt from the locker, and get back into the inmate shuttle van that takes me back to my car.

I can’t help but think that if that is how the visitors are treated, how are the inmates treated? Like criminals? Well, I guess that’s probably expected. But what is the rationale behind our prison system? Punitive or Rehabilitative? There are two camps at work here, that people have done a crime, they should pay the time. Lock them away, deprive them of every luxury so as to deter them from ever committing another crime again. The other ideology is seen as rehabilitative, seeing the inherent potential for good in each inmate and providing them with the tools and training to make better decisions on the outside.

Given my de-humanizing experiences, I would venture to say that at least Philadelphia tends more towards the former, resulting in shockingly high recidivism rates, 68% of men and 58% of women re-committing the same crime that landed them in jail in the first place. We simply cannot expect people to make better choices if they are not educated and provided the opportunity to work through their issues in a most therapeutic and individualized manner.

This is Joan Chittister's modern-day version of the Apostle's Creed, re-vamped to appeal to who we are as Christians and what we are called to be. It's a bit long, but stick with it, it's really good!!!

I believe in one God

who made us all

and whose divinity infuses all of life

with the sacred.

I believe in the multiple revelations

of that God

alive in every human heart,

expressed in every culture,

and found in all the wisdoms

of the world.

I believe

that Jesus Christ,

the unique son of God,

is the face of God

on earth

in whom we see best

the divine justice,

divine mercy,

and divine compassion

to which we are called.

I believe in the Christ

who is One in being with the Creator

and who shows us the presence of God

in everything that is

and calls out the sacred in ourselves.

I believe in Jesus, the Christ,

who leads us to the fullness

of human stature,

to what we were meant to become

before all time

and for all other things that were made.

Through Christ

we become new people,

called beyond the consequences

of our brokenness

and lifted to the fullness of life.

By the power of the Holy Spirit

he was born of the woman Mary,

pure in soul

and single-hearted--

a sign to the ages

of the exalted place

of womankind

in the divine plan

of human salvation.

He grew as we grow

through all the stages of life.

He lived as we live

prey to the pressures of evil

and intent on the good.

He broke no bonds with the world

to which we was bound,

He sinned not.

He never strayed from the mind of God.

He showed us the Way,

lived it for us,

suffered from it,

and died because of it

so that we might live

with new heart,

new mind,

and new strength

despite all the death

to which we are daily subjected.

For our sake

and for the sake of eternal Truth

he was hounded

harassed

and executed

by those

who were their own gods

and who valued the sacred

in no other.

He suffered so that we might realize

that the spirit in us

can never be killed

whatever price we have to pay

for staying true to the mind of God.

He died

but did not die

because he lives in us

still.

“On the third day” in the tomb

he rose again

in those he left behind

and in each of us as well

to live in hearts

that will not succumb

to the enemies of life.

He changed all of life

for all of us thereafter.

He ascended into the life of God

and waits there

for our own ascension

to the life beyond life.

He waits there,

judging what has gone before

and what is yet to come

against unending values

and, in behalf of eternal virtue,

for the time when all of life

will be gathered into God,

full of life and light,

steeped in truth.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the breath of God

on earth,

who keeps the Christ vision present

to souls yet in darkness,

gives life

even to hearts now blind.

Infuses energy

into spirits yet weary, isolated,

searching and confused.

The spirit has spoken

to the human heart

through the prophets

and gives me meaning

to the Word

throughout time.

I believe in one

holy and universal church.

Bound together by the holiness of creation

and the holiness of hearts forever true.

I acknowledge the need

to be freed from the compulsions

of my disordered life

and my need for forgiveness

in face of frailty.

I look for life eternal

in ways I cannot dream

and trust

that creation goes on creating

in this world

and in us

forever.

Amen.

Amen to creation, to the God who is life, to courage, to hope, to the spirit of truth, to nature, to happiness, to wholeness, to the place of women in the plan of God, to the Christ who calls us beyond the boundaries of ourselves, to forgiveness, to everything that makes living the first step in the stretching of the heart to the dimensions of God. Amen. Amen. Amen. In all of this we can surely believe. As God has.

In Search of Belief, Joan Chittister

“They didn’t have much to give except the name of Jesus.”

Pentecost

There’s so much to be celebrated about this day... the feast of the Holy Trinity, the birthday of the Church, the adoption of the Sinai covenant for the Jewish people under the Prophet Moses. This day, when the Holy Spirit descended from Heaven, it was made known that there was to be an all-encompassing and constant presence of God among His people. At a time when Jesus’ disciples and Apostles were still feeling the pain of Jesus' crucifixion, God had become present yet again in their midst. It was from this point that these men began their ministry, preaching the Gospel to everyone that would listen.

This same Spirit that ignited the Apostles ignites us as well. It is with the same blessing that we, today, are given gifts that will further God’s kingdom on Earth. It is easy to lose sight of that. We are so heavily laden with the guilt of our sins that we find it easy to create a chasm between us and Jesus and the first disciples. We think that God is working less in us than He did in the founders of our Church.

But Pentecost, 2000 years ago and today, is the day when the Holy Spirit descends upon God’s people and, with “tongues as of fire,” we are gifted with the burning passion to spread the Gospel according to the gifts we’ve been given. So today, the Christian Church is born; the founders of our faith tradition began evangelizing the love and grace of God. And we, as followers of Christ, are reminded to carry the torch of our founders and use the fire of the Holy Spirit to spread the Gospel today.

“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, ‘Abba, Father!’” Rom. 8:15