Walk, Greet, Listen

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“Christ is the population of the world, and every object as well. 

There is no room for hypocrisy.

Why use bitter soup for healing when sweet water is everywhere?”

-Rumi (mid 13th Century)

If you have been reading along, you have probably by now noticed a theme: for the church to be vibrant and working towards neighborhood and community transformation and revitalization, it must be rooted in the local community. While this seems obvious, the more I learn about churches and faith communities, the more I realize that most Christian congregations that have been around for at least a few generations, especially smaller mission churches, are destinations for those who attend. Because families move and relocate, overtime churches loose their neighborhood identity.  What has been most surprising is learning that many of our larger resource congregations in more affluent communities are less likely to be destination churches and more connected with the communities where they are located. At this time, I am not going to speculate as to why this is.

So what can we do as members of faith communities to become more connected to the neighborhoods where our churches are located? I think the answer is much easier than we might assume, although it might be a little daunting. I wonder if the key to connectedness can be found in three simple words: walk, greet, and listen.    

Walk:  With spring weather just around the corner, I know I am eager to get out and wander the neighborhood. What if walking and wandering can become a spiritual practice and part of life in a church.  Even if we do not attend church in the neighborhood where we live, what if we arrived early, or stayed after services and took a walk around? Walking could become a practice of the faith community. We might begin to notice who lived in the neighborhood, or we might begin to recognize faces. We could see more fully where people gather. At the very least we would have a better understanding of our neighborhood context. 

Greet:  Walking is the easy part. The next logical step is to learn how to say hello. When I was a college student, I worked for the University calling hundreds of alumni each month to ask for money for different departments and programs. For me, the idea of asking for money is incredibly unnerving but having a script made it much easier. The same applies to learning to say hello to neighbors. “Hi. I am John. I just wanted to say hello. I am trying to learn more about the neighborhood.” Maybe as a faith community, we need to create a script to make this practice easier. Scripts work in my own Episcopal tradition as this is what it means to be a part of a liturgical tradition. 

Listen:  And now is a chance to step back. You may get a response. You might not.  At the very least, you will know someone’s name in order to say hello next time you are out and about. If you live in the neighborhood, you have begun the process of getting to know someone. If you don’t, chances are you did it at one time, so share that. “My family lived here years ago and much of this place still feels like home. I still go to church here and care deeply about this place.” Be honest. Who knows what will happen.  Your job is to listen.

Sometimes the hardest part of asking someone a question is designing the script.  Start small.  It all begins with a hello.  Remember, Christ is everywhere.


The next Diocesan Holy Currencies Workshop is Saturday, February 27th at St. Mary’s Cathedral from 10am – 4pm.