Striving for Justice
Haiti and Beyond
North Decatur Presbyterian Church
Winter-Spring, 2016
THE BIBLICAL MANDATE FOR JUSTICE
God looked over everything God had made: it was so good, so very good!
(Genesis 1:31, The Message)
Our Creator’s intent for this world and all its inhabitants is that it should be good. The land, the
sea, and the sky. Plants and fruit trees of every kind. The Sun, the Moon, the stars. The birds of
the air and the creatures of the waters. Creeping things and wild animals. And human beings. We
were all brought forth from the heart of God to live together according to a majestic plan of
universal harmony. It is so very good! This is God’s vision of justice.
We don’t have to look far to see how battered this vision has become.
The prophets of ancient Israel shouted from street corners: “They sell the righteous for silver,
and the needy for a pair of sandals— they trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth,
and push the afflicted out of the way!” (Amos 2.6). “Scoundrels are found among my people;
they take over the goods of others. … They have become great and rich, they have grown fat and
sleek. They know no limits in deeds of wickedness; they do not judge with justice the cause of
the orphan, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy” (Jeremiah 5.2628).
A quick read of today’s news shows the very same things happening in our own time. The
tapestry of God’s vision is faded and tattered.
So the prophets of our own time sound the trumpet of ancient Israel: “We are not satisfied, and
we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty
stream” (Martin Luther King, Jr, quoting Amos 5.24 in “I Have a Dream”).
Jesus gave renewed expression to God’s vision when he declared, I give you a new
commandment: that you love one another as I have loved you. This is justice: that we love. Love
God. Love our neighbor. Love our Earth. That we live up to what God means by good.
Furthermore, Jesus identifies with the poor, the dispossessed, the afflicted, the outcast, the
oppressed, with all who are broken:
Matthew 25:35-36 – I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me
clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.
The purpose of this course is for us to address the injustices that persist among us and work
together to discern better practices that would help us live according to our Creator’s vision:
“God has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God?” (Micah 6.8).
(See TOPICAL BIBLE RESOURCES, below)
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STRIVING FOR JUSTICE
Haiti and Beyond
Spring, 2016
PURPOSE
Striving for Justice: Haiti and Beyond will provide an us opportunity to deepen our
understanding of how we experience difference and how we engage with others in an
increasingly diverse culture. The series will draw from the We Welcome All conversations that
were held February 5th and 6th. A primary touchstone of course will be the experience of people
who are participating in the Haiti Social Justice and Service Learning Trip scheduled for
April 2-9, 2016. We are involved in a partnership there with MPP (Mouvman Peyizan Papay,
the Papaye Peasant Movement), an organization that strives for, among many things, food
sovereignty, decent jobs and education, and decent housing for all. The central question for us is,
“What does it mean to be an ally to the struggles we witness?” We will incorporate several forms
of media and reading materials, and we will learn to cultivate a simple spiritual practice for
developing qualities of self-awareness, patience and compassion.
SCHEDULE
Feb 7:
Feb 14:
Feb 21:
Feb 28:
Mar 5:
Mar 6:
Mar 13:
Mar 20:
Mar 27:
Apr 3:
April 10:
April 17:
April 24:
Overview, Introduction - Jen; Becky
Unit 1: Who Are You? - Rick; Gordon
Unit 2: Who We Are Together? - Amanda, Becky
Unit 3: Economic Justice - Gordon, Rick
A Taste of the Caribbean!
Unit 4: Crossing Boundaries - Gordon, Amanda
Unit 5: Bearing Witness - Becky, Rick
Unit 6: Struggle Against Injustice - Jennifer, Kara(?)
Easter [no class]
Tire Garden - Gordon, Bob Leslie
Unit 6 (continued) - Gordon, Jennifer
Unit 7: The Journey Home - Rick, Becky, Amanda
Unit 8: Bend the Arc Toward Justice - Becky, Amanda, Rick
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MISSION OF NORTH DECATUR PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
North Decatur Presbyterian Church is called by God to be a community of faith and worship,
dedicated to Christian Education and nurture so that we may go into the world to serve, work for
peace and justice, and share God’s love with all people.
From our Vision Poem
God calls us
− to witness to the love of Christ by serving our neighbors in need,
− to work for justice and be peacemakers in a chaotic world.
God is calling us to new places in faith and mission,
And to ministries not yet imagined.
We seek to follow Jesus Christ, Empowered by the Holy Spirit,
Emboldened by the love of God.
OUR WORK IN SOCIAL JUSTICE
From NDPC’s Story
“From the outset, North Decatur Presbyterian Church has cultivated an inclusive and
progressive theology, with members taking active roles in social causes such as the civil
rights movement, the antiwar and anti-nuclear movements, environmental awareness, and
equality for the LGBTQ community. Indeed, the willingness to go against the zeitgeist
and become a bellwether for social change is emblematic of a fundamental belief that
Christians are supposed to make the world a better place. A Christian life is a life of
service to others, especially with and for those who are vulnerable.”
NDPC Members’ Work in Haiti
NDPC Members who have been to Haiti have been involved in the creation of EcoVillages, where survivors of the 2010 earthquake have been building a community of
self-sufficient, small farmers. They will share some of their experiences with us,
providing us the opportunity to hear firsthand how our members engage in justice work.
For more information see
• Eco-Villages in Haiti: http://www.haitiecovillageschool.org/ecovillages
• MPP (Mouvman Peyizan Papay, the Papaye Peasant Movement):
http://www.mpphaiti.org/?lang=en
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TOPICAL BIBLE RESOURCES
Opening Session: Overview and Introduction
• Genesis 1:1 – 2:3 – God’s vision for a beautiful world
• Matthew 25:31-46 – I was hungry, and you gave me…
o Jesus identifies with the afflicted, the outcast, the dispossessed (see Isaiah 53)
o This story is the motivation for our involvement in Haiti.
• Micah 6:6-8 – Do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God
Unit 1: Who Are You? White Privilege
• Amos 6:1-8 — The voice of the prophet against those who abuse privilege
• Mark 9.35-37 – Whoever wants to be first must … be servant of all…
Unit 2: Who Are We Together?
• Matthew 25:35-36
• Micah 6:6-8
• Amos 5.24 – Let justice roll down like waters…
Unit 3: Economic Justice
• Amos 6:1-8 — The voice of the prophet against those who abuse privilege
• Amos 5.14-15 – A way of life, not death
Unit 4: Crossing Boundaries
• Genesis 12:1-3 – God sends Abraham and Sarah… somewhere
• Exodus 3:7-10 – God tells Moses to lead Israel to “a good and broad land”, which
happens to be already occupied
Unit 5: Bearing Witness
• Isaiah 53:1-9(-12) – Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases
• Matthew 25:31-46 – I was hungry…
Unit 6: Struggle Against Injustice
• Isaiah 4:1-4 – The servant establishes justice
• Micah 6:6-8 – Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with your God
• Acts 2:42-47 – They would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds
to all, as any had need
Unit 7: The Journey Home
• Genesis 32:24-31 – A strange being wrestles with Jacob on his way home
Unit 8: Bend the Arc Toward Justice
• Amos 5:14-15 – Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate
• Amos 5:24 – Let justice roll down like waters…
• Revelation 21:1-5a – Mourning and crying and pain will be no more…
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
A partial list
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Study Guide for Cross-Cultural Engagement – Unitarian Universalist College of Social
Justice (UUCSJ): http://uucsj.org/study-guide/
Eco-Villages in Haiti
o http://www.haitiecovillageschool.org/ecovillages
o http://www.haitiecovillageschool.org
Krik? Krak! by Edwige Dandicat, 1996. Stories of Haitian life.
History of MPP by Katherine Leader
o There is a brief history here: http://www.mpphaiti.org/History-of-MPP,27.html
The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a
Disaster, by Jonathan Katz, 2014
Confession of Belhar
o The Confession of Belhar emerged in South Africa during the years of Apartheid.
It is a statement that focuses on three themes, Unity, Reconciliation, and Justice.
Churches around the globe have recognized the power and theological insight of
Belhar as an expression of Scriptural truth for their own contexts. The PCUSA is
in the process of incorporating it into our Book of Confessions.
o Text of the Confession
https://www.pcusa.org/site_media/media/uploads/theologyandworship/pdf
s/belhar.pdf
o Four-Part Webinar to begin Feb 29
§ Hosted by Johnson C. Smith Seminary
§ http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=yhcaqvkab&oeidk
=a07ec4b4o0v60d329b0
o General Assembly 221 (2014) on the Confession of Belhar: Multi-media
resources
§ http://oga.pcusa.org/section/ga/ga221/ga221-belhar/
§ FAQ Brochure:
http://www.pcusa.org/site_media/media/uploads/oga/pdf/belharbrochure.p
df
America's Original Sin: Racism, White Privilege, and the Bridge to a New America, Jim
Wallace (2015, Sojourners)
The Confession of 1967 (In our Book of Confessions). Centers on the theme of
reconciliation.
How Racism Has Impacted My Life, Willie Hinton, ed., 2004 (Presby of Greater Atl)
“Privilege can be a hard thing to talk about.” (Comic strip.)
o Upworthy.com
o http://www.upworthy.com/a-short-comic-gives-the-simplest-most-perfectexplanation-of-privilege-ive-ever-seen?g=2
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A FEW TEXTS ON JUSTICE
“Justice” occurs 139 times in NRSV (Oremus Bible Browser, http://bible.oremus.org). The list
below is merely a brief sampling.
•
Ministry of Jesus
o The Nativity stories tell us that Jesus entered the world as an outcast.
o Luke 4 – (Isaiah 61:1-2) “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…”
o The Great Commandment: Love – Mk 12.29-31 (Dt 6.4-5)
o The New Commandment
§ Jn 13.34 “I give you a new commandment: that you love one another as I
have loved you.”
§ Jn 14.12-14 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I
have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life
for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
o The Rich Young Man (Mk 10.17-22/Lk 18.18-30/Mt 19.16-30)
“What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“Go, and sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will
have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he
was shocked, and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
o Servant of all
§ Mk 9.35-37 “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of
all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his
arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name
welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one
who sent me.”
o Jesus identifies with the poor, the dispossessed, the afflicted, the outcast, the
oppressed, with all who are broken:
§ Mt 25:35-36
I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked
and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in
prison and you visited me.
§ See Isaiah 53.3-5
•
Torah
o Genesis 1
§ “God saw everything that God had made, and indeed, it was very good.”
(Gen 1.31)
§ See Psalm 24:1 – “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world,
and those who live in it.”
o The Ten Commandments contain a few(!) clues about God’s vision for justice in
the community of faith.
o Dt 6.4-5 – The first commandment is love
o Deuteronomy 10.18: …who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and
who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing.
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•
Wisdom Literature
o Psalm 140.12: I know that the Lord maintains the cause of the needy, and
executes justice for the poor. (One of dozens of examples)
o Psalm 82.3: Give justice to the weak and the orphan; maintain the right of the
lowly and the destitute.
o Psalm 89.14: Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
•
Prophets
o Amos: The entire book is a cry for justice, filled with outrage against a well-to-do
and complacent society.
§ Amos 2:4-8 – Sell the righteous… the poor… trample the head of the poor
into the dust of the earth… Push the afflicted out of the way…
§ Amos 5.18-19 – Alas for you who desire the day of the Lord!
§ Amos 5.14-15 – A way of life, not death
Seek good and not evil,
that you may live;
and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you,
just as you have said.
Hate evil and love good,
and establish justice in the gate;
it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,
will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
§ Amos 5.21-24
I hate, I despise your festivals,
and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
Even though you offer me your burnt-offerings and grain-offerings,
I will not accept them;
and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals
I will not look upon.
Take away from me the noise of your songs;
I will not listen to the melody of your harps.
But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
§ Amos 5.24: But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an
everflowing stream.
§ Amos 6:1-8 — The voice of the prophet against those who abuse privilege
• Alas for you that are at ease in Zion…
• Who lie on beds of ivory…
• I abhor the pride of Jacob
§ Amos 8.4-6, 9-10
• Hear this, you who trample on the needy…
• Buying the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals…
o Isaiah 42:1-4 (The 1st Servant Song) – The Servant establishes justice
Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
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o
o
o
o
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my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
have put my spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his teaching.
Isaiah 1.17: learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the
orphan, plead for the widow.
Isaiah 52.13 – 53.12 (The 4th Servant Song) – The Servant identifies with the
afflicted
He was despised and rejected by others;
a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity;
and as one from whom others hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him of no account.
Surely he has borne our infirmities
and carried our diseases;
yet we accounted him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions,
crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the punishment that made us whole,
and by his bruises we are healed.
Jeremiah 22.3: Thus says the Lord: Act with justice and righteousness, and
deliver from the hand of the oppressor anyone who has been robbed. And do no
wrong or violence to the alien, the orphan, and the widow, or shed innocent blood
in this place.
Micah 6.8: God has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord
require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with
your God?
Epistles
o This is surprising! The word appears only three times: twice in Romans (3.5 and
9.14) and once in Hebrews (11.33). In Romans the word is used in discussions
about the propriety of God’s anger over sinfulness, not social justice.
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