Written for Episcorific

Okay, so I wrote something for Episcorific, which is this "zine" for/by young adults in the Episcopal Church. It's pretty cool - I have been meaning to submit something to them since I first heard about it last year, but hadn't gotten around to it. In effort of my shameless promotion of my WCC project, I wrote something about Lent and violence. I thought I would share that with you. With no further ado:

I’ve been thinking about Lent 2010 for a long time. This is not a season that snuck up on me this year. The main reason is that I’m part of a team that is developing “Cries of Anguish, Stories of Hope: A Lenten study on the Worldwide Struggle to end Violence Against Women.” (You can check out the study http://women.overcomingviolence.org).

When I told some of my friends at Church here about this project, one quipped that “you’ve found a way to make Lent even more depressing.” Lent is depressing, but it’s depressing because our world is depressing. Lent is the time when we focus on the sins of this world. Lent is a time to understand our own complicity to these problems. Lent is a time where we look for Jesus’ love despite these problems. We look all the problems square in the eye and say “you cannot win.”

During my research and planning for this project I have learned about atrocities all over the world. Human trafficking is the most profitable black market industry in the world – with estimations going as high as $32 billion a year with over 27 million people currently enslaved. On average in South Africa a woman is raped every 26 seconds. In India, 21 women of the Dalit Caste (“untouchables”) are raped each week. In the UK, the police estimate that 95% of rapes are never even reported. In the US, it is estimated that between 2 and 4 million women are assaulted every year by their partners. I did this research – I found all this information, yet the image that I see when I close my eyes is a girl in a pink shirt playing in the dirt in front of her hut in the Democratic Republic of Congo while you can hear her father saying that she will have to be a prostitute because no man will want to marry someone who is tainted. She was raped while gathering firewood. Her attacker, while jailed for a few months, will go free. I see her face and her tears every time I close my eyes to think about violence against women. Hers is the story that I cannot forget.

Yet, as much as these stories are appalling what I am struggling with is my own place in the picture. What am I doing to contribute to or bring an end to violence against women? Am I ever complicit? I know I have thought, or even said that perhaps a woman could have done something to avoid being raped. As if she brought it on herself. I have believed that only “weak” women stay with abusers. If women were stronger they would just leave him. I have looked the other way when I see a girl being harassed on the street. I have failed to speak out when a man talks to me inappropriately in a bar, hoping he’ll just go away. My work to eliminate violence against women is a drop in the bucket. What am I doing in this depressing situation? Where is God in this?

Lent is the time that the Church sets aside for us to remember and focus on these tragedies. We do this, not because God is absent in all of this, but because these tragedies are precisely where God is. God’s love for people extends beyond the worst that can possibly happen. Jesus came into the world to give people the ability to live in hope despite our tragic circumstances. Despite all the facts that I listed above, God is here with us. God is giving us hope to face the terrible situations and make something better out of them.

If we lived in a rosy, perfect world we wouldn’t need Lent. If the only problems in our lives are who will organize the Parish Pot luck next week or where we’ll go on vacation next summer we would not need Lent. Lent is a time for us to look around us and look around the world at the serious problems. A time for us to understand the problems. A time for us to immerse ourselves in the problems. We have Lent to be depressed about the world.

Luckily, for us and the world, Lent is not the end, but only the beginning. We have Easter to live out the rest of the year. When we truly understand and relate to the seriously depressing situations in the world we can rejoice even more loudly that Jesus conquers all. Jesus is Lord.

Women

I am working on this project (http://women.overcomingviolence.org) with the World Council of Churches. As part of a Lenten study the site showcases different places around the world where people are working to eliminate violence against women. One of things that we are trying to do with this information is not to simply show what women in other parts of the world are doing, but to inspire women (and men) everywhere to work to eliminate violence against women in their context.

The first video that we have is about Dalit women in India. These women are part of the lowest caste in India and they have very few rights within their society, yet by working together they are being empowered to create change. Yet, the point of this video is not to see how amazing these women are over there. The point is to see that change is possible in any situation, no matter how dire it seems. Although this was our intention, I was not sure if was clear or not through our resources. However, today, after reading a review of the site that a friend of one of the coordinators wrote, I realize that our intention has come through.

I hope that if people choose to use this as their Lenten study that women will be inspired by these stories from around the world to create change in their communities, whatever the context. Inspiration for hope and change is the point of this study. I think that is the point of Lent too. We use the 40 days before Easter as a time to remember Jesus' suffering and the hopelessness that he experienced in the desert as a time to become fully aware of the suffering in our world, but then to see all of that through the lens of the Cross. The hope that comes from having a God that loves the world so much he suffers with us. Yet suffering is not the end. Far from it. Jesus' resurrection points to hope. To hope of a new way that is possible. Hope and inspiration.

Leaving

I sat down yesterday with my boss to plan for my final month of work. He counted. I have 18 working days left. 18 days. Then he told me about the myriad of events that I did not know I would be attending/organizing in these 18 days. Then we talked about the other work that we're doing. Then I reminded him I'm only working 50% for him. (I am working 50% on another project with the World Council of Churches about Eliminating Violence Against Women). I guess the good thing is that I feel like I know what I need to be doing. For my first few months (ie. six months) I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing most of the time. I ran from task to task with no overall vision for what my job was. Now, I know what I need to be doing - but it seems like more than I can possibly get done in 18 days. 18 days. (9 days if you really count me as half time!)

I am also leaving this afternoon to go to Cannes. I lived in Cannes, France (Le Cannet if you want to be technical) for one year. I am going back there to see my friends and celebrate a birthday. Of course my friends decided that they want to have the party at a Swiss Restaurant! Ah, the irony. I am leaving my friends here to go to my friends there. I am excited about that. I also just love that part of the world. It is beautiful, good weather, and beautiful. Switzerland is beautiful too - but it is beautiful in a different way.

I also feel like I'm getting a grip on my project with the WCC. Our website actually has some content on it! I can't give you the link yet - but once we have the test week up and running, hopefully by next week - I will give a link so that you can see what we're trying to do. It is so exciting! I hope that this will be a project that really helps women feel inspired and make a change in their lives. Lent, is after all, a season of reflection and change.

Unexpected Graces

I have been feeling a little down recently. Not really sure what to do next. If you've been following my posts you can see how I've been feeling a little down.

I'm still a little unsure but on Saturday I got a few big surprises. My money I had raised more than doubled overnight. A woman from St. James, who had promised to donate, sent a letter to my parents explaining that she actually had donated to the NY offices. She donated $500.00. Plus she pledged an extra $500.00 three more times in the year. That is $2,000.00. As much money as I had already raised, plus some. Then my sister-in-law's parents gave me money, plus pledged to send money every month!

The total that I now have, between what I have been given and what has been donated/pledged in my name to the NY office total $5,064.63. I am so in awe! That does not include the price of the plane ticket that is being given to me.

I still have one more Sunday at St. James. Ryan, is going to tell the 10:15 service that he is donating to me. Hopefully, I some more money will come out of that. I am so excited about this mission. I really want St. James to be involved in what I'm doing, I know that the work the WSCF does is the work that they want to be supporting in the world.

I am also going to call All Saints in Pasadena, where I used to go to Church. I have been too shy or nervous or something to call the priests there. Yet, I know that the people there will be supportive of me.

On a more spiritual note, I have been thinking about Lent. Lent is the season in the church where we remember Jesus' 40 days and 40 nights spent in the desert before he began his ministry. This is a serendipitous time for me because Lent happens to be just before I am leaving to begin a new ministry. I am not sure what I am going to do for this season. I will pray about it. I will also fast about it. I am fasting on Wednesday, which is the first day of Lent. If anyone would like to join me in this fast, please feel free. We can pray together. At the end of the day some of my friends from Church and I are going to break the fast together. Perhaps something will come to me during that day. I will update on here as I decide more.

I am off to write Thank-You notes. I have been neglectful in thanking those that have given me money.