Brian McLaren: Darfur and Africa and American Evangelicals
Last year, a group of us put together something we called “Worship in the Spirit of Justice.” We planned five weeks of outdoor public worship in Washington, D.C., to bring attention to the suffering in Darfur. We believe that worship is closely connected with protest: when we praise God as the One who loves the poor, oppressed, and forgotten, we are implicitly protesting people and structures that oppress, exclude, and forget. Worship in this way radicalizes all of us. It forms us as people who join God in God’s care for our world.
We chose five “prophetic locations.” The first week, we met at the Lincoln Memorial, recalling our history of racism and slavery – and realizing that, as the film Hotel Rwanda said so painfully and powerfully, the way the rest of the world neglects the deaths of millions in Africa must be attributed in part at least to racism. In succeeding weeks, we met in front of the Capitol building, calling Congress to action; we gathered across from the National Press Club, urging the news media to keep Darfur on the front page until our nation used its influence more effectively for the dying in Darfur; we met across from the Sudan Embassy, where we prayed for that nation’s rulers to change their ways; and finally, we met in front of the White House, where hundreds of us knelt in prayer for our nation’s leaders to take action.
Now, over a year later, a group of evangelical leaders have spoken out on behalf of Darfur. In a sign that more and more evangelical leaders are unwilling to be held hostage to a single political party or a too-limited moral agenda, a wide array of leaders have come together saying that for us, Darfur will be a front-page issue, a true moral issue, and we won’t forget the good our leaders do for Darfur – or fail to do – as we move forward.
It’s important to remember (as a recent Time magazine cover story and a recent CNN series made clear) that Darfur isn’t the only scene of tragedy in Africa. The Congo continues to be a nightmare of violence and chaos. And while Africa gets a bit more of the attention it deserves, we can’t forget the terrible suffering in Latin America (where I recently walked the streets of some of the worst slums in the world), in so many parts of Asia, and even in our own nation – whether we’re speaking of the Katrina-stricken Gulf Coast or the urban and rural poor who are neighbors to all of us.
I’m encouraged to see more and more Christian leaders in the U.S. not only caring about these places, but also visiting them – not just to bring aid or “do mission,” but equally important, perhaps more important, to listen and learn, to meet people, to build relationships so the poor become our neighbors, our friends indeed. (For example, consider the beautiful and historic work of Amahoro-africa.com in bringing emerging Christian leaders from the U.S. together with their counterparts across East Africa.)On December 10, thousands of churches will join together to “worship in the Spirit of justice.” Across our nation, they will praise God as the God of justice, the God who cares for the oppressed, the God who doesn’t play favorites, the God to whom a starving and frightened Muslim child in the Sudan is as precious as a Christian child in an affluent U.S. Sunday school. They will pray for Darfur, for the leaders of Sudan, for racism and genocide to be exposed and rejected, for rescue and reconciliation to be pursued. They will pray for our President and Congress not to let politics so preoccupy them that they forget justice and compassion.
I hope you’ll invite your church to practice “worship in the Spirit of justice” on December 10, and I hope that kind of worship becomes habitual for more and more of us, week after week, day by day.+ Click here for Dec. 10 worship resources from Sojourners/Call to Renewal
Brian McLaren is the author of Secret Message of Jesus, and board chair for Sojourners/Call to Renewal.
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Comments
Thank you Brian McLaren for speaking the radical truth of Jesus, no matter how much opposition from the hate-filled, fear-based Religious Elite.>
Posted by: Tenoch | October 20, 2006 10:47 PM
Thank you Brian McLaren for speaking the radical truth of Jesus.>
Posted by: Religious E. Lite | October 20, 2006 11:10 PM
Hmmm, Tenoch - what hate-filled, fear-based religious elite are you referring to?>
Posted by: Gordon | October 21, 2006 2:07 AM
Brian McLaren said, "..as the film Hotel Rwanda said so painfully and powerfully, the way the rest of the world neglects the deaths of millions in Africa must be attributed in part at least to racism."
How dare you accuse Bill Clinton of racism!>
Posted by: timks | October 21, 2006 5:13 AM
Thank you, Brian, for this word of encouragement. With so much suffering on earth, it can be easy to relegate the good news found in Jesus to a time-after-time, or a place-after-earth. As we rethink our eschatologies, however, we are seeing that maybe we are living in the firstfruits of the renewed heavens and earth now, and it behooves us as the manifesting daughters and sons of God to creatively rise to the challanges facing us in our communities and around the world.
Humanity's pain and suffering still overwhelm me sometimes. But I am increasingly heartened that, on both global and local levels, God's called-out ones are extending their head, hearts and hands in poured-out love in working the gospel out in everyday life.>
Posted by: Mike Morrell | October 21, 2006 7:01 PM
Brian,
Are you calling for American troops on the ground in Sudan? If so, what is your exit strategy?
If you are not calling for troops on the ground, what was the message the politicians in Washington were supposed to understand from your demonstrations?
Please clarify your position for me because I'd really like to understand it.
--An Evangelical missionary in Africa>
Posted by: Babu | October 21, 2006 7:33 PM
How dare you accuse Bill Clinton of racism!
That's pretty dang funny.
.>
Posted by: HAC | October 21, 2006 8:58 PM
"...--An Evangelical missionary in Africa...".
Babu,
Where in Africa are you located, and can you tell us something about the conditions there?
Are local resources adequate for the persons living there?
If it is an area where assistance is necessary, does assistance provided by the wealthy parts of the world not arrive because militias intercept it, or does it reach the persons for whom it is intended?
Are persons safe in their communities?
Anything you can tell us would be helpful. News reports inform us, but personal accounts bring clarity that is not otherwise available.
Best wishes to you and to those who are important to you.>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 21, 2006 9:11 PM
Mike,
Uhh... Africa is a big place. I know you're well intentioned, but I think your concerns are misplaced. I've traveled a bit, and it seems to me that one of the unknown errors of many Americans is condescension disguised as care and concern. The whole, "you can't do it and need our help" attitude is insulting to many people around the world.>
Posted by: HAC | October 21, 2006 9:24 PM
The following are two prayers that are included in the packet in the link http://www.sojo.net/action/alerts/E4D_toolkit.pdf provided by Brian McLaren:
"Loving God, we know there are tremendous problems facing the world: natural disasters, civil wars, violence, disparities in resources, and sickness. We confess that there are days when we look the other way, change the channel, or pretend the problems don t exist. We say that the problem is someone else s concern or displace the blame. We are not confident that we can make an impact and we fear failure for ourselves and on behalf of others. We might even think that moving to make a difference will change us in ways we will not like or make us uncomfortable. Before we begin, we desire to give up on our opponents and on the victims. Forgive us for our faintheartedness and selfishness, for failing to love others as we should, and for failing to believe that you have empowered us to protect our brothers and sisters. Remind us, Holy One, that some faithful persons refused to give up on us, and that you have not given up on any of us. AMEN.
Merciful and compassionate Spirit
Be present to the suffering people of Sudan
Shelter the widows and the children
Comfort all who are weary and afraid
Bring relief to those who hunger and thirst
Center our thoughts with those who suffer in silence
Move us to recall our shared humanity
Unite us in our determination to respond to
injustice
May we never forget! May we never forget!
Hear our prayer. Make our action swift.
Amen.
(From the United Nations)"
I'm going to pass that along to our pastor. He may well be aware of the effort Evangelicals are making for that Sunday, but, if not, I think he will be pleased to know about it and mention it in his homily or ask us all to pray for the people of Sudan, in partnership with this effort.>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 21, 2006 9:31 PM
"...The whole, 'you can't do it and need our help' attitude is insulting to many people around the world...".
Babu,
The suggestion has been made (copy above) that my post may have been insulting, to you.
I understand that Africa is a very large and diverse area.
It was not clear to me from your post where you are located in Africa. If you are located in a poor area, please tell us about that.
That was the purpose of my post, on a blog topic which focuses on the circumstances of the people of Darfur.
My experience has been that a personal account of the experiences of persons in extremely poor areas is more effective than are news reports.
That was my impression, after listening to a student report to a group here in the US about their impressions after spending a summer in a poor area of Africa. The student described a circumstance in which a father of a young daughter infected with malaria was unable to obtain the necessary medicine, at a cost of $3.
I found that to be astonishing.
I think that kind of information puts a human face on the tragedy we here cannot otherwise comprehend.
I think that will help further "The End of Poverty".>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 22, 2006 5:24 AM
Brian,
I'd be interested in you addressing the following questions. (Maybe you have already, in another forum, and I just haven't seen it.)
1. If the Sudanese government will not allow UN peacekeepers to go in, should UN troops go in by force? (They've done it before--Korea.)
2. If the UN cannot or will not send in a credible force, should the US send a force unilaterally, with or without the permission of the Sudanese government?
3. Should whatever force goes in engage in combat, or just stand around while people are murdered (as the UN is famous for doing)?
4. Should such a force seek to create a semi-autonomous Darfur, much as the US created a Kurdistan in Northern Iraq after the Gulf War?
5. If such a force is attacked by the Sudanese government or its affiliates, should it (and its contributor/s) respond with force and seek to defeat and topple the Sudanese government?
6. Do you feel that using force against Sudan will attract Islamic jihadists to that country, too?>
Posted by: Jonathan | October 22, 2006 7:29 AM
Why are we surprised about what is happening in Sudan, when this has been going on in Southern Sudan for at least twenty years and has lead to somewhere about a million deaths and another million being sold into slavery? Another thing is what is being done about the fact that the Arabs have again began their slave trade again in North Africa. I know that this is not pc to think about but places like Saudi Arabia, Europe and the US are again the buyers.>
Posted by: Rev. Dave | October 23, 2006 11:55 PM
"...Another thing is what is being done about the fact that the Arabs have again began their slave trade again in North Africa. I know that this is not pc to think about but places like Saudi Arabia, Europe and the US are again the buyers...".
Rev. Dave,
How does the (I assume indirect) buying of slaves by western nations occur?
Are the slaves producing products and services destined for western nations?
Has someone conducted a study of this, in whatever way it occurs?>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 24, 2006 2:43 PM
Through the illegal black market or in Muslim nations directly from the slave traders, since it is not legal there. And yes, products produced by slaves are being sold here.>
Posted by: Rev. Dave | October 24, 2006 9:46 PM
Sorry, I meant not illegal there.>
Posted by: Rev. Dave | October 24, 2006 9:46 PM
"Through the illegal black market or in Muslim nations directly from the slave traders, since it is not illegal there. And yes, products produced by slaves are being sold here."
Rev. Dave,
Is there a difference in legality of slave trade among Muslim countries... do some allow it and others not? Are there companies in the US that consistently market products produced by slaves, here?>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 24, 2006 11:05 PM
Mike,
Great questions. For info on the modern slave movement please check out this site.
www.freetheslaves.net/
p>
Posted by: Payshun | October 24, 2006 11:13 PM
http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/10/24/girl.enslaved.ap/index.html indicates that slavery can happen even here. From the headlione, I was expecting to read about the 10 year old girl being held in slavery elsewhere, but it is in Santa Ana, California!
Thanks also for the link to the Free the Slaves website, Payshun.>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 25, 2006 12:17 AM
Free the Slaves is the site Payshun recommended. It is at http://freetheslaves.net/
It offers a contrast with slavery in the nineteenth century:
"...An average slave in the American South in 1850 cost the equivalent of $40,000 in today s money; today a slave costs an average of $90...".>
Posted by: Mike Hayes 2 | October 25, 2006 2:53 AM
That stat that free the slave mentions depends on several factors. The first is region and time. One will find that African slaves varied in cost ranging from $100 to a few thousand dollars depending on where and when they were sold. Gender is also a big factor that influenced price.
I love free the slaves but I was an African-American Studies major so I know a little bit more about the American slave trade. But they are a great resource for examining the global slave trade.
There are over 27 million slaves in the world right now. That's more than any time in world history. Learning about modern slavery has changed my perspective a great deal.
The crazy thing is that our government has given monies to certain corrupt folks in Iraq. This flow of cash increased slavery there. Check out www.warslavery.org/ and examine the trail of human suffering for yourself.
p>
Posted by: Payshun | October 25, 2006 7:03 PM
Darfur exhibits a test of our will as a nation (world) to whether or not we truly believe what our faith(s) admonish. The problem of poverty and want feels overwhelming. It always has. But what if the wealthy nations of our world focused their venerable resources on these issues instead of self-serving interests. Could we not end a large degree of suffering and at the same time create a safer world? How about waging peace? What if we sent hundreds of thousands of skilled civilians to teach and lend a hand instead of soldiers in the service of violence and enforcement to countries desperate for help? I'll bet we'd create a much different world than the one we are experiencing today.>
Posted by: Kevin K | October 27, 2006 7:00 PM
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