Death, Growth or Life?

It's been a while since I've posted anything and let's face it things were crazy for a while between the end of the semester, the wedding, packing, moving, unpacking...you know all those great things that come with having tons of new life events all happening at once.  And since then, well I've been busy be-ing and settling into this new life. 

Three weeks ago I started my internship in Kittson County, MN which is the most North Westernly corner of the state.  This internship is unique as it is made of up 3 different parishes cooperating together which gives me a grand total of 3 pastors and 5 churches to work with, not to mention Frank's church's which both seem to claim me as well.  Despite all the differences I already have and am yet to encounter there seems to be one overarching theme they all have in common; death.  I'm not talking funerals, although those happen quite a bit.  I'm talking about the common held belief that they are all part of dying congregations.  Considering this area has seen drastic decline not only in church membership but in overall population over the past few decades this is a fair assessment.  Some of the towns in the area have simply ceased to be with only a handfull of houses and an old grain elevator sitting along the railroad tracks to remind us that hundreds of people once lived there.  It's a cold hard fact that some, if not many of these communities and churches will silently slip off our maps without much notice.  This fact does not worry me nearly as much  as the fact that these churches identify themselves in such a way.

So often I've heard that if a church isn't growing it's dying or at least has one foot in that direction.  Why is it that we are so fixated on growth.  Yes, growth is great and amazing but in a place that has fewer and fewer people every year is it really the goal?  I've only been at these churches for a few weeks and have barely brushed the surface of their depth and breadth and yet I've already gotten the feeling that they are in the same boat as many other churches across the country; in survival mode and wondering why it is they haven't seen a new face in their doors for a long long time.  I'd like to point out that this has nothing to do with hospitality but is very much a numbers game and the numbers are simply not in their favor.

With all these things working against them and with death staring them in the face, how do we encourage them to live?  How do we shift their focus from that of death to life?  How do we help them to see themselves as a vibrant, faithful community full of the life of Christ?  They may be dying but that doesn't mean they have to go quietly.  It doesn't mean they have to simply slip away with no legacy.  It doesn't mean there is no hope or that it's ok to simply give up and sustain.  How do we help them, and ourselves for that matter, to stop worrying about growth, embrace death and live?

The End

With this week comes the end of my 10 week experiment to eat as sustainably as possible.  There were times it was difficult and my cravings for bananas or off season produce won out, but overall I think I did pretty well.  I bought as much as I could that was organic and now that the farmer's markets are open I get to buy local as well.  It was certainly a hit on my finances as the organic section is a bit more expensive than the regular corporately grown section.  That being said though, I enjoyed my food more.  It just tasted better.  Seriously, organic sweet potatoes are the best things I've EVER eaten! 

When I entered into this experiment I did it because we were asked to as part of a class but I also chose this because of the readings I'd done about all the chemicals in our food.  I didn't want them in my body and I'd rather support farmer's who don't put them in the ground and in our water.  It was a very personal choice to try and be the best steward I could be of the Earth.  This was a decision of the mind and I didn't expect a bodily response and yet that is what sticks out to me the most at the end of these 10 weeks.  I still think about the planet and the chemicals and all that stuff but what I see and hold onto tightly is the change I've experienced within my body.  I have always had digestive troubles and took them to be a way of life.  Yet, as I sit here, 10 weeks after eating primarily organic foods, I feel amazing with very few of those troubles I've had for years.  I have more energy and more endurance throughout the day.  It is certainly true, that what we eat fuels our bodies and apparently cutting out many of those chemicals has allowed my body to heal in a lot of ways.  I'm not saying this is miraculous or that I was healed of some disease but I do feel better and feel as though my body is more in sync with itself than it's ever been before.  It's been an interesting 10 weeks and I'm not sure I can go back to what I ate before.

Farmer's Market Season is Here!

Well it's official, the farmer's markets are once again finding their full stride as the days get longer and the sun feels warmer!   I've been attending the St. Paul farmer's market on and off all winter to pick up some tasty treats from my favorite meat guys at Bar 5 Meats as well as other fabulous products such as honey, local goat cheese and even chocolate products but the season has finally warranted weekly trips.  This weekend I was delighted when I was able to buy asparagus, spinach, radishes, rhubarb, spring onions, oyster mushrooms, bacon, eggs, chicken breasts and some fabulous black pepper linguini!  I basically got what I needed for the week's lunches and dinners.  All this food is locally grown and although some of it is not "organic" most of it is "all natural" a distinction that I'm finding is rather silly.  The lovely people at Bar 5 rolled their eyes when I asked and said, "it's all natural" meaning it's organic without the government stamp of approval.  Either way it's tasty not to mention an adventure to come up with meals as you see what kinds of amazing produce you can find!

This week I've been having spinach salads or egg salad with lots of veggies for lunch and an amazing pasta dish with that black pepper linguini, chicken, spring onions, mushrooms and asparagus.

If you've never been to a farmer's market, you should take a half an hour to check one out.  They are full of amazingly tasty food and even more amazing people who have brought it to you.

Simpler Living

This is a must read book or at the very least a book to make sure is on your shelf to pull out from time to time.  This is a book that is full of essays from amazing writers and advocates for a different way of living.  They bring up topics that will challenge the way you live, how you view time, how and what you eat and pretty much how our culture is.  It is not easy to read at times because it challenges the very heart of our being.  I will admit that I still haven't finished reading this book for this very reason.  I have needed time to struggle with these topics and decide how I will respond to them.  In a previous post I mentioned how I was startled by a section on time and had to put the book down and stop exhausting myself in my endeavor to get one more class assignment done.

Since I have been focusing on my food choices for this class, I skipped ahead to a section on the social and environmental impact of our every day food choices.  In this section Wendell Berry speaks to readers as victims of the corporate food industry, held captive by our food choices and our unquestioning and uncritical passiveness when it comes to what we buy, eat and put into our bodies.  He makes this claim based on our distance from our food, we no longer know where it comes from, how it's grown, or how it has come to be on our plate.  Berry also asks us to examine what we consider "quality life."  Do we view quality as the amount of things we participate in and what we're able to do?  This constant busyness often causes us to stop and grab whatever "quick" food we can so that we can keep up our pace and our "quality" of life.  Or do we slow down and enjoy all that life has to offer, eating things that will prolong our lives and help to fuel our bodies, not to mention things that we actually enjoy eating as we go about the activities that we love?

Even if you don't agree with Wendell Berry's agrarian perspective and you couldn't fathom participating and learning about  the food system, this article will make you stop, think and assess what it is that's important to you and how you live.

A Trip Outside the City Gate

This past weekend we had the opportunity to visit Shalom Hill Farms in SW Minnesota.  It's an amazing place where they raise chickens and lambs, have a great garden, live as closely to the land as they can and teach people about their options.  While there we had the opportunity to visit two very different farmers; one a traditional cattle producer who raises beef cattle in a feed lot and the other who is an organic farmer and grows a variety of foods as well as cares for a small herd of beef cattle, chickens and other various animals that are raised organically.  Both these men were passionate about what they do, how they do it and what it means for their families.  It was amazing to see their passion and dedication play out in such a tangible way and it was even better to see where our food comes from.

Amidst this great experience was the opportunity to talk with classmates about food sustainability and how other students want to eat and live.  I was amazed at the number of my companions who feel the same way I do, wanting to know where their food comes from, be connected to the land and to care for and steward the creation in a very tangible way.  Many of us talked about wanting to one day have a large garden or small farm as well as wanting to raise animals.  To me, it appears that this is not the norm, especially for 20 somethings.  But then again maybe it is.  Maybe more people than we think are trapped in cities and suburbs craving something more; a connection to the land and a desire to care for all of creation.  Or maybe people don't think about this until confronted by the land itself, hearing its story and finding this deep desire to be a part of it.

Catholics and Jews Coming Together

My review of the ELCA statement on the environment was a bit criticle, but I'm criticle about most of the ELCA social statements as they never seem to say anything of substance and instead stay on neutral ground, fearful of rocking the boat.

I felt exactly opposite about the International Catholic-Jewish Liaison Committee's "A Common Declaration on the Environment." A Common Declaration on the Environment

This document was short and to the point and simply by its existence pointed to dire need we are in.  Catholics and Jews came together to make a statement on the environment, putting aside their religious differences and focusing instead on what they agree on and what needs to be done.  Although they do not give any concrete ways to "fix" any of the problems faced by the world, they do passionately remind us that we must do something and take action.  They say, "The human person has an immense responsibility, that of caring for all of creation.  No person or group can use the resources of this earth as proprietor, but only as God's steward who destined these goods for all.  Assuring that individuals and communities have access to what is necessary to sustain life in dignity is an expression of this stewardship, as is the reverent and moderate use of created goods."  It is short, sweet, to the point and reminds us of both what we can and cannot do.

ELCA and Their "Statement" on the Environment

Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope and Justice

Oh, the ELCA has produced yet another pointless social statement that says nothing.  Maybe this is a little harsh but after reading such passionate books and articles about why we need to be protecting this world and all that is in it, as well as ways in which we can actively participate in such things, I find this statement to be verbose, lacking passion, drive or anything resembling a call to action.  This document is also almost 9 years old and is in need of some drastic revision, facts and figures to bolster their position and a way to call to attention the extent to which we truly need to be "Caring for Creation."

Although I agree with many of the points made in this statement, I feel they are lacking in a nuanced view of things like stewardship and shalom, not to mention the focus on social justice rather than ecology.  I felt that much of the statement let me, as well as the rest of the world, off the hook by talking about the hope we have in God to restore the Earth rather than a focusing on our actions and inaction to care for this planet which belongs to God.  As I neared the end of the article I found myself irritated at the use of the phrases: "We of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America answer the call," "We celebrate the vision," "As members of this church, we commit ourselves," "We challenge ourselves," and countless others.  Who the hell is this we?  It certainly is not the general population of the ELCA considering I've heard of very few responses and actions of congregations to do the things mentioned.  Until I went searching, I did not even know we had such a document and yet I'm apparently being challenged to do nothing except study, learn and tithe to reduce my waste by 10%, which although a start is not nearly enough.  Not to mention, this document, although challenging us to reduce our waste does not give us any concrete ways to go about it nor links or references to other documents that might help us move in this direction.  It is my firm opinion that people want to make a difference but don't know where to start.  And so, ELCA, if you're going to challenge people you must give examples of response, not to mention letting people know in an active way that they are being challenged in the first place.