Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

While at seminary, in a course on homiletics, I received a worksheet called "Troubling Texts." It was a short list of the hardest passages to preach on. At the top of the list was Jesus' line in the 26th chapter of Matthew, after the disciples complain about the costly gift made by the woman with the alabaster jar. "The poor will always be with you, but you will not always have me" Jesus responds, a phrase that has since been used to justify all kinds of inaction regarding poverty. This weekend, however, while attending the Diocese of Spokane’s Organizing for Mission training, I found myself reflecting on this line in new ways. (Organizing for Mission is a joint project of the Episcopal Diocese of Spokane, Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation, and the Episcopal Church Foundation.)

The Diocese of Spokane is engaged in a bold initiative, one that has the potential to reshape the entire diocese in a profound way. From now until Easter 2011, leaders in participating parishes will be personally inviting 100% of their membership to pledge 0.7% of their annual income toward the alleviation of domestic and international hunger. 

Far from being just a good intention, this goal is backed up by rigorous method. At a three-day training in which every minute counted, leaders of participating parishes learned how to build a team around a shared goal, how to make one-on-one invitations to their fellow parishioners, and how to craft a story that will mobilize their communities. As a facilitator at this event, I saw that much of what I’d learned at seminary and elsewhere about team building was clumsy at best, and that there are far better practices for organizing and drawing the best out of my community.

Of course, these kinds of training are not without cost; such events require a major commitment of the time, talent and treasure on the part of dioceses and other participating institutions. Knowing this, a frequent critique of leadership development echoes the words of the disciples who could only see waste. Why not simply make a donation of all the resources spent on this training? If the end goal is to feed the hungry, why not skip a step and write a check? 

In this context, Jesus' response feels more like a charge: there will always be poverty in the Diocese of Spokane, just as there will always be a need for faithful leaders who rise to the challenge; there will always be hunger at home and abroad, and so the world will always need leaders who can address this issue in creative and effective ways. Thanks be to God and the many people responsible for this training, there are now 75 such leaders in the Diocese of Spokane, Episcopalians who will continue to organize for mission long after this initial campaign concludes this Easter.