Safety Net Made of People, Not Greenbacks

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ClJaritableh01Ce

Simple pragmatism tells us this holistic approach

is essential. (The problem of poverty is simply too

big and too complex to be abandoned to anyone of

us, regardless of how good a job we might do.)

So, too, does classic Christian theology. The state,

the Bible insists, must not be an impartial referee in

the marketplace, but an advocate in it-an activist

that aggressively seeks out justice for the oppressed,

the marginalized, the needy, and that shapes the

rules to ensure equal opportunity and the "release

of the captives:'

The third temptation is related to the second.

As the government becomes a benefactor to FBOs,

we may find ourselves hesitant to speak on behalf of

those we serve. In our desire to empower the needy

through our programs, a perverse funding equation

may tempt us to silence when the President or

Congress acts against their better interests. It will

take immense willpower, but we must be diligent toensure that Charitable Choice never becomes a

means by which the prophetic voice of the church is

silenced, even if it costs us our funding.I believe the ultimate test for faith communities

in this new era of Charitable Choice will be our abil

ity to adopt a model of neighborliness that insists on

justice and peace for the poor as well as simple

"concern" or charity. The faith community has much

to offer our culture as we seek to eliminate povertyin the United States and around the world.

Charitable Choice gives us the opportunity to lead,

both in the debate and on the ground. Pray we do

so faithfully .•

Dwight Ozard is the executive director of the

Evangelical Association for the Promotion of

Education/Tony Campolo Ministries.

For more on Charitable

Choice, see "In Good

Faith" on page 32.

The "In Good Faith" report

can be downloaded in

PDF format from the

Pew Forum on Religion

and Public Life website:

http://pewforum.org/press/rel

eas es/022701.php3

The

Safety Net:People, NotGreenbacks

BY TODD SVANOE

BASICTO THE GOVERNMENTAL GAMBLE

of the U.S. Congress when it revamped the

social welfare system in 1996 was the assump

tion that people of faith and good will would step in

to create a new social and economic safety net.

That expectation is formalized in the establishmentof the Bush administration's Office of Faith-based

Organizations (FBOs) and Community Initiatives,

and FBOs are responding in record numbers.

Who's jumping on the bandwagon?

In 1999, Dr. Amy Sherman of the Hudson Institute

reported 125 new church-state collaborations in

only nine states, many of them evangelical.More recently, an Independent Sector study indi

cated that 92 percent of the 353,000 religious con

gregations in the U.S. provide human services such

as day-care centers, food pantries and drug recovery

programs, and that the demand for such programs

was increasing. Moreover, 41 percent of those con

gregations have added social programs since 1996.

Yet scale says nothing of quality, and upstart

ministries may be headed for trouble, according to

Joy Skjegstad, author of a study of leaders from 50

churches and faith-based non-profits, who trains

FBO leaders. Watching the struggle of pastors and

faith leaders over the years to adjust from pulpit to

pavement, she says she's seen great vision, great tal

ent and great pain.

A ministry add-on or a second career?

Numerous faith leaders have "tremendous ministry

skills, are full of the zeal of the Lord, and are willing

to make the sacrifices necessary to make their mis

sions work;' but do not see the "20 steps" necessary

to establish a day care, an AIDS ministry or a pris-

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One of 180 students

is helped in

Urban Ventures

Learning Lab.

oner rehabilitation program, says Skjegstad.

"We work with people who are extremely visionary,"

she says. They have a picture of what their sports

program will look like, which gang members will turntheir lives around or what color a renovated home

will be. "It's amazing and very inspiring, but hard:'

Pastors often have dreams larger than their job

descriptions, says Skjegstad, pictures of ministry that

would take them beyond their church walls. The

idea of fulfilling those dreams through an affiliated

but distinct ministry is enticing. "But they often

don't know a thing about grant-writing, legally estab

lishing a nonprofit, human resources or setting up

an effective governing board:'

Former youth pastor Art Erickson has learned the

hard way. A vision to create a successful urban

community for youth and their families led him out

of church ministry and into vast and untried territory.

Despite painful staff turnover and a steep learning

curve over eight years, Erickson's Urban Ventures,now with a staff of 23, has transformed a wasteland

formerly known as "Crack Alley" in south Minneapolis

into a family haven, with two soccer fields, a

computer Learning Lab, a Center for Fathering,

Bible study and discipleship, and a free clothingand furniture store.

Yet Erickson is the exception. "In the 35 yearsI've been here, I've counted 62 church leaders who

have abandoned their posts in the city," he says.

The field of urban ministry, where many faith-based

initiatives are attempted, is scattered with vaporizedvisions and deflated dreams.

That's why Skjegstad created "Vision to Reality,"

an eight-week training program for leaders of FBOs,

sponsored by TURNNision Twin Cities and the

Center for Nonprofit Management at the University

of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. Each class in the 50-

hour curriculum addresses an area of organizational

capacity necessary to the success of faith-based pioneers. The last session introduces funders.

An FBO that is ill-prepared to use and effectively

manage funding could be a disaster, says Skjegstad.

"We need to build their capacity before we pump alot of money into them:'

Are you a Paul or a Barnabas?

Dr. Amy Sherman's phone has been ringing off the

hook with calls from evangelical leaders seeking

guidance, she says. A senior research fellow at the

Welfare Policy Center of the Hudson Institute,Sherman studies, visits and talks to hundreds of

FBOs each year. She profiles seven model FBOs in

her book Restorers of Hope (Crossway, 1997).

Sherman is encouraged by the promise of newfaith-based ministries, but she warns of a frenetic

rush among leaders or funders who have not assessed

the field. "Everyone gravitates toward the ApostlePaul frontline, storefront ministry, but what we need

is more Barnabases. A Barnabas trains, encourages

and comes alongside faith-based leaders:'

TURN is one example of that, she says. TheCenter for Renewal in Houston and B.A.S.LC.S. in

Milwaukee are others. But individual Barnabases

are needed as well, who, instead of starting a new

FBO, play support roles to strengthen existing ones."Barnabas ministries (or individuals) ask, 'What

do you need?'" says Sherman. It may be business

expertise, but it may be a van or a facility, mentorsor tutors, or someone who can swing a hammer or

fix a computer.

There is a need for discernment, she says. Thequestion for potential FBO leaders is, "Am I a Paulor a Barnabas?"

The public barrier to faith is falling

FBOs come in all shapes, sizes and locations, from

church-affiliated to independent, from large to small,

from urban to rural and everything in betvveen. Their

mission may be one of bricks and mortar, like that of

Habitat for Humanity, or of transforming addictive

behaviors, like that of Teen Challenge.

Until recently, what it could not be, and still

receive secular funding, was evangelical, says Robert

Woodson, president of the National Center for

Neighborhood Enterprise. Yet there is "undeniable"

and "overwhelming" evidence that "the vast majority"

of the most effective social delivery systems are those

which combine community revitalization and per

sonal transformation pioneered by evangelical com

munity elders, says Woodson, who profiles numerous FBOs in The Triumphs of Joseph (Free Press,

1998). Still, society has not accepted social change

through "the transforming power of Christ:'

Woodson, along with William Schambra of the

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Bradley Foundation who writes the epilogue, said he

was not a "deeply religious" person when he beganto encounter these faith leaders. "I don't understand

how an FBO can reach into the heart of the most

severely damaged individual and transform him,"writes Woodson.

But he's listened to hundreds of testimonies, from

Native American reservations to Hispanic barrios,

he says. "What they told me was that faith works:'

"We should embrace and pursue this evidence

with the same hope and vigor with which we pursue

breakthroughs in the arenas of medicine or technol

ogy,"where the promise of cures to cancer or AIDS,

for example, elicits tremendous financial investment,

he says.

If these embers of social and spiritual renewal

can be fanned through public and private funding,

says Woodson, "the flames of revitalization will

become a brushfire that will sweep across the

nation, bringing life and hope where there is now

only cynicism, confusion and despair."

Yet the push for funding, whether public or

private, may put the cart before the horse. For the

safety net is not made of greenbacks, but people.

Safety nets need personal touch

Skjegstad, Sherman and Woodson agree that ulti

mately, the key to creating an effective new social

safety net is not government openness to FBOs, their

organizational capacity, or private financing. It's the

willingness of thousands of average citizens to invest

in new, fruitful and satisfying relationships.

George McNeal's experience illustrates this.

Were he still on traditional welfare, McNeal would

today likely be on the street, in a Milwaukee shelter

or in prison, out-of-sight and out-of-mind. Instead,

McNeal was hired out of welfare by the Electronic

Printing Systems, Ine. There he became one of a tight

group of co-workers, someone to stand by in times

of trouble. Employees saw the connection between

McNeal's home stability and work reliability, so they

paid his security deposit, helped him move into an

apartment and picked him up for work each day.

Inspired by this solidarity among his workers,

business owner Bob Kraft stepped in when McNeal

was thrown into prison on charges McNeal claimed

were false. Kraft paid his rent during the imprison

ment, traveled to Washington, D.C. to testify on hisbehalf, hired a lawyer to investigate his case, puthim up in a hotel after he was released and flew him

home to put him back on the payroll.

When stories such as these are brought to light,

says Woodson, we will begin to see that America

has a "natural immune system" that has long gone

untapped. Then, "we will begin to seek [FBOs] out

as a source of healing and a balm for our [nation's]most critical wounds:'

It's about you and me

The root of the problem with traditional welfare

entitlements, wrote Marvin Olasky in his book The

Tragedy of American Compassion, was that giving

became impersonal, indiscriminate and both geographically and empathetically distant.

In short, welfare reform sought to localize charity,

where greater accountability, discretion and personal

involvement are possible between giver and recipient.

By extension, the success of an FBO will be propor

tionate to its ability to facilitate and nurture personal

relationships.

"The single most important thing that an individ

ual needs to move out of poverty is a supportive,

caring friend," says Sherman. "I've interviewed one

welfare-to-work success story after another. When Iask for the reason for their success, so often it comesdown to that: 'I needed a friend.'''

The time is right for communities of faith to

mobilize, says Skjegstad. "We hear suburban

churches saying, 'We don't want to just sit out here

and write checks anymore. We want to be in rela

tionship. We want to better understand poverty.'' '

There's no better way to do that than to get

involved, says vVoodson. There have been enough

"failure studies" conducted and body-bag news

reports written about those in need.In the words of Mother Theresa, "It is fashion

able to talk about the poor. Unfortunately, it is not

fashionable to talk with them:' But only an intimate

and mutually satisfying relationship with the needy

can truly make a difference .•

Todd Svanoe is an urban publicist who is on a mission

to raise public awareness of creative, effective and

replicable faith-based initiatives. He can be reached

at [email protected].

Hundreds of kids

play soccer onKix Field, built

over dump land in

south Minneapolis,

fulfilling a dream

of former youth

pastor and Urban

Venture presidentArt Erickson.

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Safety Net Made of People, Not Greenbacks