Signs of Hope, Practices of Love

Practice Justice in Your Community

(Note: this page will be developed once this initiative of the Signs of Hope campaign is launched.)

Each community faces its own unique set of justice and poverty issues. Coming to know and be involved in these issues is a great way to come to know your community and share God’s love. It is also one of the ways that we can live out our calling to be a church In Mission for Others.

The first step is to develop relationship with people in your community. You can begin by finding out who in your congregation lives in your church’s neighbourhood. Ask them to introduce you to other people they know who also live your in community and then take the time to get to know these people. Visit with them, find out about what their lives are about and what is going on both in their lives and their neighbourhood. Also, spend time in the places where your community gathers. It might be a local coffee shop, a mall, a restraint, a grocery store, library or bowling alley. Also, take the time to walk the streets of your community and greet the people you meet.

While you are doing this, listen. Learn what is going on, what people care about and what they are concerned about. Each congregation usually also has people who are already connected with and know many of the issues your community is facing, because they see its results every day. Teachers, nurses, doctors, social worker as well as your pastor are all key both because they can educate you about your community and direct you towards work that is already being done. It is also essential that congregations also listen to the people who live beyond our Church walls and may never enter our doors. This is why it is important to develop relationship with people and listen to them. Connect with your local It business and agencies that work in our communities. Visit the local restraint. Visit with people who work in your local social service agencies. Talk with the teachers in the schools. These are the people who often know best the challenges that your community faces.

Then out of all this relationship building and listening, discover what issues need to be addressed and bring people together to address them. If there is already work being done to address the issues of your community, join in with this work and discover what you can contribute.

If there is not yet anything developed to address the needs of your community begin by calling together the people of your community who care about this issues or who have a stake in it. Then start the conversation:

• Discover what you have that you can bring together to address the issue

• Find out what needs to be done to make a difference.

• Then ask for and develop commitment to the process that will make this difference.

For this is how people of faith have for years transformed and brought hope to their communities.

For additional ideas see:

• ELCA’s Faith Based Organizing Page
• Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF)

Or read:

• Organizing for Social Change: Midwest Academy Manual For Activists
• Rules for Radicals or Reveille for Radicals by Saul Alinsky
• Dry Bones Rattling: Community Building to Revitalize American Democracy by Mark Warren
• Promoting Community Change: Making It Happen In the Real World by Mark Homan
• Activism That Makes Sense: Congregations and Community Organization

How we can address the needs of our community is a topic that we will be working on more in the future as a church? Keep your eyes open to see how you can become involved in this initiative as it develops.

Learn more about how we can practice hospitality towards the poor and marginalized in your community.