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Serving Jesus among the Poor OR Serving the Poor in the Name of Jesus

written in 2018

Since its founding, the vision of Word Made Flesh (WMF) has been to serve (or discover) Jesus among the poorest of the poor. While we are more likely today to talk about “our friends” rather than “the poor” or about those experiencing poverty so as to not identify people with their need or exploitation, this vision has been a distinctive of WMF. (Of course, there are other organizations who share this vision – many from whom we continue to learn – but a major distinctive nonetheless.) This vision statement, while still being listed in print and digital literature about WMF, is not always named as the vision of each WMF community. Perhaps this shift is symptomatic of mission drift.

Mission drift is the slow shifting of an organization’s focus and culture, which eventually becomes something different and pursues a mission other than that for which the organization was initially created. While some shifts may be improvements, I would argue that a drift from WMF’s original vision is not. The case for holding on to our initial vision statement is not so that we maintain a strategic differentiation from other mission organizations. Rather, this vision has and continues to be a prophetic stance: every Christian is called in one way or another to serve Jesus among the poor (i.e., Luke 10:25-37; Galatians 2:10).

The fact that not all WMF communities hold to the same vision statement is not the only symptom of our possible mission drift. The reflections that our staff publish in prayer letters, social media posts, and the Cry journal depict fewer narrations about the life of those who are poor, the signs of the Divine revealed through them, and of our discipleship through them. Similarly, our plans and reports may speak of what we are doing for those who are poor, but less about faithful service to Jesus among the poor.

There may be justifiable causes for the drift. Our staff have less interaction with other organizations (be they Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox) that share our vision. Many former WMF staff would point to those experiences as being inspirational for their vocation. Many of these staff may have left WMF without ensuring that new staff understood WMF’s vision and ethos. We have also subsequently integrated other existing organizations into WMF who do not share WMF’s vision. In fact, many current staff have never visited another WMF community or like-minded organization.

So, it is not an unnatural step to be in locations with extreme need and to structure service in order to alleviate poverty. This tendency is perpetuated by funding that is designated to poverty alleviation and holistic development. Or, where WMF has set up local businesses, it is challenging to focus on our vision when most of our energy is spent trying to keep the business afloat. Thus, the drift is not always a conscious one, and some WMF communities may have experienced little drift while others more. Still, we must recognize the real possibility of drifting from serving Jesus among the poor to serving the poor in the name of Jesus.

Of course, there is something positive to be said for serving the poor in the name of Jesus. For instance, Jesus commends his disciples to give a cup of water to the vulnerable in his name (Matt. 10:42). This, however, is not enough.

There are significant problems with only serving others in the name of Jesus. First, it assumes power. I have something to give, and it feels good to be in the position of giver rather than the one in need. I give it in Jesus’ name. But does not all that I have already belong to Jesus? Am I not also receiving through the one I serve? Am I not also in need of the cup of water and called to bless those through whom Jesus meets my need?

Second, it tends to objectify the poor. By serving the poor in the name of Jesus, I make the poor the beneficiaries of my service. On the other hand, when I serve Jesus among the poor, I increase proximity and minimize distance with those who are poor, and I see myself as one among the poor rather than above or outside their ranks. Jesus and not the poor is the focus of my service, which instills a humility about what we can realistically accomplish for the poor and entrusts all of our actions of service to Jesus who alone can ultimately meet human need.

Third, when we serve the poor in the name of Jesus, our service may quickly become a job or a profession, and we give the poor our work hours. Contrarily, by serving Jesus among the poor, service is a vocation, and it is offered more through our lives than through our job descriptions.

What is worse than the problems mentioned here is the loss of all that the vision promises. While the oft-cited text from Matthew 25 about serving Jesus in “the least of these” inspires us to loving action, that pericope is first a call to faith. It summons us to faith that Jesus is actually identifying with those in need and rejected. We also act in faith that Jesus receives from us through our meager deeds. What is surprising is that when we walk by faith in serving Jesus among the least, God reveals more of the person of Christ, the character of the kingdom, and the intimacy with the Spirit. This means that I am not only trying to witness to the goodness of God through my act of service to those in need but that I am experiencing the revelation of Christ to me through those in need. I am being discipled and changed through those I’m called to serve among.

This step of faith is not easy. The WMF communities do not idealize those who are poor. In fact, we are profoundly aware of the hurt of those who have experienced rejection, exploitation, and neglect. Many also carry great potential to hurt others. Yet, precisely in these relationships we affirm the image of God in those who have suffered.

On my visit to Romania this past summer, I was reminded of this in my conversations with Loredana*, a young woman who grew up in our Community Center. Loredana has endured great difficulties: witnessing the drowning of her father in the Danube, wrestling with her sexual identity, rape, drug addiction, anxiety… The litany of hurt could go on. Loredana’s son is now part of the Community Center, and Loredana brings him and picks him up every day, demonstrating thoughtful and faithful motherly love. During my afternoons at the Center, we sat on the bench as she reminisced about her past with our community, recognizing how formative it was. She shares with me about how she prays and still sings the songs that she learned with us. Loredana also offers to help with any tasks that need to be done around the Center, finding peace, love, and stability in our presence.

I was struck by the presence of God active in the life of Loredana. While it is deeply encouraging to see the obvious work of the Spirit in Loredana, it is a temptation to identify the image of God in those in whom the signs of God’s work and life are present. Loredana continues to wrestle with anxiety, finds it difficult to be around strangers or to hold down a job. Her sexual identity provokes a reaction, especially in those who do not know her. Yet, the call is to see the image of God in those who are poor – precisely in the brokenness and barrenness and in those moments when one’s behavior is irritating, wrong, or even criminal. In nakedness, imprisonment, hunger – there Jesus says, “Clothe Me, visit Me, feed Me.” Can we see the image of Christ in those with profound and evident needs?

This is the direction in which the initial vision of WMF leads. And this is the gift. When serving Jesus among those who may be dirty, “misbehaving,” carrying parasites, earning money through immoral means, attracted to the “wrong” gender, self-medicating with drugs, and so on, we can begin to see the image of God in ourselves. We realize that it is not our “proper” behavior, our “positive” change, or our “spiritual” practices that form the image of God in us. The image is formed in us by God. We are God’s handiwork. We receive it in faith.

WMF staff continue to serve with great sacrifice in some of the hardest places in the world. Many staff continue to reaffirm their commitments to community and to a lifestyle that goes against the grain of the world. Over the years, Word Made Flesh communities have been bearers of this prophetic message. Perhaps today, however, we need to tune our hearts to hear it again for ourselves: to serve Jesus among those who are suffering from poverty and exploitation.

*Name is changed to protect identity.