Episcopal Church Foundation Vital Practices

by Richelle Thompson on August 17, 2011

It’s not loaves and fishes. But considering that some Episcopalians regard coffee hour as the eighth sacrament, this is close.

An entrepreneur, Jonathan Stark wasn’t planning an experiment about the kindness of strangers. He was exploring “broadcast mobile currency—how to transfer money or pay for goods with your phone. He wondered if he could share his Starbucks account just by sharing the image.” (Check out the whole story here)

He loaded $30 on his Starbucks card and posted the image online to see if friends could use it. The idea was that they would download the image, take it to Starbucks and see if they could purchase their favorite grande beverage using their mobile phone. It worked – and within a few hours, Stark reloaded the card.

Here comes the fascinating part: this time, it didn’t run out. As word spread on the Internet, more and more people downloaded the image and used it as currency at Starbucks. But instead of draining the card, about half of the people voluntarily reloaded it – put more money on it so that others could use it as well.

Earlier this month, more than $3,500 passed through the card in just 48 hours.

The website, www.good.is, talked with Stark.

“As Stark points out, it's "kind of silly to give people who can afford an iPhone a free $5 coffee," but this can lead to something better. "I would like to see something like this around a CVS pharmacy to share money... [something that lets people] donate in an ad hoc way instead of going through large organizations" to help seniors or even fellow pet owners pay for necessities, he suggests.”

How can we translate this experience of a benevolent social contract into our churches? And what are the implications of this for direct ministry in our communities? Could we launch a drugstore card that allows people to help in paying for prescriptions or a Wal-Mart card for back-to-school supplies?

This is such an exciting concept to me -- let’s brainstorm together! Share your ideas here.