2021 DMin Symposium

When Did We See You Hungry: Saving the Church by Serving the World

Time: 2:00-2:50 p.m.

Abstract

Predominantly white churches tend to engage in transactional ministry with people living in poverty; giving food, clothing, bus passes, and Christmas presents, or paying utility bills from the confines of their church buildings. At the same time churches are taking this transactional approach, “none” is the fastest growing religion in the United States marking the church’s ongoing decline. In this work we: a) hear from predominantly white congregations’ leaders in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania about how they and their congregations see their work with people living in poverty, b) engage in a theological dialogue with multiple researchers on what the Bible has to say about poverty in Deuteronomy, Ruth, the Prophets, and the Parables of Jesus, c) examine two current movements to get congregations out of their buildings and into their communities, d) look at the relational models that have influenced my secular work in poverty, and e) hear from two leaders in African American and Latino churches about how they engage with people living in poverty. Finally, incorporating elements from all these touchpoints, I lay out a path for church leaders to move their churches to relational models with people living in poverty, not to play the role of “Good Samaritan,” but because the church itself is in need of saving and has much to learn in and from the neighborhoods and communities it generally avoids.