Wondermark has an interesting and funny commentary on how people think about homelessness: click here.
It's funny, but it's true - many people (me included) talk a lot about what needs to be done to "solve the problem of homelessness", but a lot of that talk (mine included) is just "smug ideas about stuff".
When S & G is operating at its best, it's about personal interaction with people, not about solving the problem. I think what we can offer to the people living on the streets is just that - we treat them as people, not as a problem.
Please don't misunderstand me, though - there are a lot of good people trying to solve this, and I would love for them to succeed. I think it would be wonderful to get to a point where nobody is homeless. I do not object to people or organizations working on getting us there.
I just don't think that this is the main focus of S & G - we are more about connecting with people where they are at, trying to provide a little help, since homelessness has not been solved yet.
This post seems a little bit unfocused, but I'm kind of thinking out loud here. What do you think? Does my description of S & G's raison d'être make sense? Does it match your idea?
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2 comments:
This statement about S & G does make sense to me. We do meet people where they are and treat them as people. Sometimes though really getting to know "the person" can be hard. It can be so much easier to just be on the other side (of the transaction) then to be right in there with them. We all do have different gifts and some can connect easier with others but we all do need to stretch ourselves. I myself also need to stop putting more value on the things then the person.
m
Ty, I think you're hitting at more of what Socks and Gloves is about. Mike, you're right that it's hard, especially when you first start with this kind of outreach to connect with people; but, with practice we improve. Another dynamic that add to the difficulty mix of these items is the fact that in the past year the homeless in the Sacramento area have been tossed around a lot. Their tent camp communities have been repeatedly rousted, several churches which used to allow them to sleep in their steps have pushed them off (for construction, neighborhood complaints, etc.) As a result I'm seeing an increased lack of trust and willingness to connect. 3 years ago you could go out and people would easily share their stories and welcome getting prayer. In keeping with human nature, many in the homeless community are less trusting and less willing to share in our Sacramento area. It is my prayer that S&G will continue to look for incarnational ways to bring relationship options onto the street to meet and bless the down and out of our community in many creative ways. People are made for relationship and S&G is focused on bringing that to the marginalized of our community.
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