Dignity Is Inefficient
All organizations have values that shape their work. Not the nice-sounding platitudes that are quickly created in a conference room, hung on a plaque in the hallway and just as quickly forgotten. But the real ones, that actually animate everything you do. Things you’d bang the table for if they weren’t happening. Things you’d consider resigning over if not being pursued. Our network of churches believes true flourishing happens when our lives are most aligned with God’s design for us. Thus, our values are drawn from Jesus’ description of life in his kingdom, most famously summarized in his Sermon on the Mount.
This post features the first of our five values, Holistic Concern: “When Jesus declares that the poor in spirit, the mournful, the meek, etc. are blessed, he means that flourishing and wholeness are available to the vulnerable, for his kingdom has come. But blessing is not merely material abundance. And so simply providing physical resources without caring for underlying mental and spiritual needs is not true flourishing. God cares for every part of our lives, and so we are committed to serving the whole person, body, mind and spirit. (Mt. 5:1-12)”
Let’s unpack that. Jesus begins his Sermon on the Mount with some of the most well-known verses in all the Bible: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” And so on. Unfortunately, these words are often misunderstood, suggesting that the condition of being poor, mournful, meek, etc. in itself confers some sort of spiritual advantage: God loves you more because you are poor. In fact, you’re on the inside track to getting into heaven because of your poverty.
While God’s heart is clearly inclined to the poor (Lev 23:22, Gal 2:10, et al), he doesn’t love them any more because of their lack of material wealth. God does not show partiality—to the rich, the poor, or anyone else. Nor would it be of any comfort to tell an impoverished person, “Cheer up! Look how God has blessed you by your being poor!” That patronizing idea diminishes the very real hardship of material or spiritual poverty.
Instead, what Jesus is saying is that the poor and the meek are blessed because the kingdom has come for them, too. Talk about turning the tables! Then and now, popular convention said that suffering is a sign of God’s disfavor. The gods, or God, must be placated, satisfied, by our sacrifices of goods, behavior, time, devotion, etc. If not, they’ll subject us to poverty, heartache, and lowliness. It’s how things work in the real world. It makes perfect sense, and we attribute these earthly values to God and his ways.
Until along comes a peasant preacher, proclaiming a different set of values. The currency of his kingdom isn’t karma but grace. Jesus tells us that God loves people, regardless. He demonstrates that love by befriending the vulnerable and outcast. So those of you who are poor, mourning, or meek, consider yourself blessed because God’s kingdom is for you! You can’t do anything to earn God’s love or your dignity. And being rich, happy or haughty is not proof of God’s favor. . God’s kingdom is open to all. Now that is truly good news!
So what? For us, it means we don’t reduce flourishing to material abundance. The solution to poverty is not simply providing what is lacking, whether it’s food, clothing or education. It may include that, but it is not limited to it. Instead, true flourishing involves the entirety of one’s life or community, with each part cared for, interconnected and valued. Helping someone flourish means showing dignity by caring for the whole person, body, mind and spirit.
And so we’re working to ensure that every ministry addresses the whole person, body, mind and spirit. Our Care Coordinator, for example, not only helps immigrants understand lease agreements written in English, but also asks them about their circumstances, prays with and for them, and works to broaden their network of supportive relationships.
At our food pantry, clients aren’t just given food like at Halloween, but choose items they want from stocked shelves, more like shopping. Doing so treats them as individuals with dignity and preference—even in their choice of red or white kidney beans. Beyond that, clients help clean the pantry, greet clients and prepare the food. In these and other ways, we want to see the pantry run more like a co-op, where clients build relationships and invest in the food security of their community.
Caring for the whole person requires more of us, for dignity is inefficient. It means a greater investment of our time, compassion, and especially relationship. But that’s all part of the new kingdom, the new way of life, Jesus invites us into.