"I am writing you out of my heartfelt concern about St. Faith's. After having been there for almost two years now, I have come to the conclusion that this parish should not stay open. I say this because you have here, affluent, or at least comfortably off parishioners occupying huge multimillion dollar homes, while Vancouver is in a crisis of housing and homelessness. I am quite assured that if I were to become suddenly homeless, none of those people would probably take me in to stay even a few nights in one of their many spare bedrooms, as I have already experienced first hand how selfish these people are in other things. I have experienced couch-surfing homelessness, have and still work with vulnerable populations, and many of these people are homeless or housing insecure. Any Christian gathering worth its salt and light, at this time in this city, has to somehow address and pull out all stops to help relieve the misery of the many who are suffering on our streets and sidewalks. Community meals and giving to the foodbank are not enough, by the way. I do not plan to leave
st. Faith's, but this situation causes me a lot of anguish, especially given how obtuse and uninterested people have been when I have very gently raised the subject. I do seek your prayers. But I also hope that you will consider putting in motion the closure of this parish, unless we begin fulfilling our obligation to the Lord who became so very poor for us."
Of course she is not likely to dignify this with a reply, being of that class of persons herself, but I feel that I have to do my duty.
Here is the latest from my memorization attempt of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Sánish, with English translation
"Ustedes han oído que se dijo, ojo por ojo y diente por diente. Pero yo les digo, no resistan al que les hagan mal. Si alguien te da una bofetada en la mejilla derecha, vuélvele también la otra. Si alguien te pone pleito para quitar tu capa, déjele también tu camisa. Si alguien te obliga llevarle la carga un kilómetro, llévasela dos. Al que te pida dale, y al que quiera tomar de ti prestado, no vuelvas la espalda."
In English:
You have heard it said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I am telling you, don't resist those who cause you harm. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn him the other as well. If someone tries to defraud you of your coat, give him your shirt, as well. If someone forces you to carry a load for him for a mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks, and if someone wants to borrow from you, don't turn your back on them.
The message here is also my reason for not abandoning my church. Even if I feel personally insulted or excluded by some people there, I still feel a strong Christian obligation to be there, to befriend those who are open, and to take care not to judge too harshly. I am also quite aware that my ethical standards are very high, especially for other people, though I also try to keep them high for myself. (please, I do hope you are laughing right now, Gentle Reader!) It could well be that I might have a kind of death watch mission at St. Faith's, that this could be a dying parish and that I had might as well help make it as gentle and pleasant a demise as possible.
Yesterday, in the coffee shop, a woman said hi to me, as I was colouring something in my sketchbook, mentioning that she remembered me by my pencil sharpener. And I was hoping she was remembering my wonderful art instead. As long as I am not forgotten, I suppose. I think we all want to be remembered for something. We all have a legacy to leave, and if not my art, and if not for my blog, at least someone will retrain a memory of me by the kind of pencil sharperner that use. It is better than not being remembered at all.
"Ustedes han oído que se dijo, ojo por ojo y diente por diente. Pero yo les digo, no resistan al que les hagan mal. Si alguien te da una bofetada en la mejilla derecha, vuélvele también la otra. Si alguien te pone pleito para quitar tu capa, déjele también tu camisa. Si alguien te obliga llevarle la carga un kilómetro, llévasela dos. Al que te pida dale, y al que quiera tomar de ti prestado, no vuelvas la espalda."
In English:
You have heard it said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I am telling you, don't resist those who cause you harm. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn him the other as well. If someone tries to defraud you of your coat, give him your shirt, as well. If someone forces you to carry a load for him for a mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks, and if someone wants to borrow from you, don't turn your back on them.
The message here is also my reason for not abandoning my church. Even if I feel personally insulted or excluded by some people there, I still feel a strong Christian obligation to be there, to befriend those who are open, and to take care not to judge too harshly. I am also quite aware that my ethical standards are very high, especially for other people, though I also try to keep them high for myself. (please, I do hope you are laughing right now, Gentle Reader!) It could well be that I might have a kind of death watch mission at St. Faith's, that this could be a dying parish and that I had might as well help make it as gentle and pleasant a demise as possible.
Yesterday, in the coffee shop, a woman said hi to me, as I was colouring something in my sketchbook, mentioning that she remembered me by my pencil sharpener. And I was hoping she was remembering my wonderful art instead. As long as I am not forgotten, I suppose. I think we all want to be remembered for something. We all have a legacy to leave, and if not my art, and if not for my blog, at least someone will retrain a memory of me by the kind of pencil sharperner that use. It is better than not being remembered at all.
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