“Too often ‘reconciliation’ is used merely to reach some political accommodation that does not address the critical questions of justice, equality and dignity. Such political arrangements invariably favor the rich and powerful but deprive the powerless of justice and dignity. This we call ‘political pietism.’ When Christians discover what is happening and refuse to run the risk and challenge of prophetic truth-telling, we become complicit. This we call ‘Christian quietism.’”
These words were jointly penned by the Rev. Dr. Allan Aubrey Boesak, a founder of the United Democratic Front that led the fight against apartheid in South Africa, and the Rev. Dr. Curtiss DeYoung, whose Community Renewal Society is organizing people of faith to combat a culture of violence in Chicago.
They describe the distractions 1,700 people gathered at the Beloved Community Conference this weekend are working to avoid. With teaching and preaching from this global champion and national leader in reconciliation studies, between Thursday, October 29 and Sunday, November 1, citizens of the St. Louis region modeled the work and opportunity for true reconciliation during the seventh annual convening hosted by Saint John’s Church (The Beloved Community).
Seven local congregations partnered to host ecumenical and interfaith worship services, while a table of nine community organizing and advocacy groups joined to coordinate issue-area caucuses, workshops and a public accountability meeting. Together, these efforts strengthened the base for positive policy change in St. Louis and Missouri by grounding it in deeper institutional relations, shared language and common values.
While, in the interest of accountability, many will focus on the empty chairs set for those called to be public servants, I’m inspired by the witness of those who sat together for months and made what should have been the real news on Sunday.
In August, after the Ferguson Commission released its preliminary list of what was then more than 200 calls-to-action, organizers began to meet weekly to vet and assess alignment with their respective campaigns. By the time the Forward Through Ferguson Report was released on September 14, they had already set and allowed me to announce the November 1 public meeting date.
On Friday and Saturday of the conference, a little less than 300 people met for all-day work sessions. As we engaged in conversation with Boesak and DeYoung about making justice a criteria for reconciliation in international and urban organizing, we received the news of our state’s highest-ranking law enforcement officer’s Sunday “campaign conflict.” (Attorney General Chris Koster is campaigning for governor as a Democrat.) With principles of reconciliation and accountability in mind, the group mobilized to flood his office with calls of renewed invitation and initiated a Twitter storm.
The morning case study generously offered up by the attorney general set the stage for the afternoon conversation about working together to move progressive policy change in Missouri by building capacity, sharing communications infrastructure and moving together at the grassroots. With detailed presentations based on months of research on the political environment, state policy and assessment of the network’s strength, participants identified areas of opportunity for building the will and skills for positive change.
On Saturday morning, Bethany Johnson-Javois, the Ferguson Commission’s managing director, presented the commission’s findings and called everyone in the room to find their purpose and place on the path toward racial equity called for in the report. Then residents broke into caucuses to enlist in the work led by local organizers. This is where reconciliation is happening for our region.
This is the real headline from Sunday’s culminating accountability meeting: The conference chairs filled in rooms since August. The pews filled in our sanctuary for joint worship this weekend. The folding chairs in the basement organized in circles for conversation. The 1,000 banquet chairs filled at Saint Louis University. The places warmed by leaders of Civic Progress, the Regional Chamber, the House minority leader, state senators and representatives, an innovating city treasurer, a reforming school superintendent, and a progressive alderwoman who expressed public commitment to building a better region.
These far outweigh and will ultimately overwhelm the empty chairs on the stage. The real news is that the people who filled the room literally signed their names on the dotted line to work, organize and learn together on the path to true reconciliation, marked by justice and equity. Nine powerful organizations have joined to set a unified table to guide them. It’s time to take a seat.
The community organizations partnering to advance Ferguson Commission recommendations together are: Arch City Defenders, Coalition Against Police Crimes and Repression, Empower Missouri, Metropolitan Congregations United, Missouri Jobs with Justice, Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment, Organization for Black Struggle, St. Louis Graduates and Students 4 Change.
Rev. Starsky Wilson is president/CEO of Deaconess Foundation, pastor of Saint John’s Church (The Beloved Community) and co-chair of the Ferguson Commission. Follow @revstarsky.
