Dr. Dorothee Benz is a lifelong activist and organizer. Professionally, she has 25 years experience in social justice communications, and her writing and editing as a labor journalist have won numerous awards. She is currently the cirector of communications at The Center for Constitutional Rights. Benz has a Ph.D. from the City University of New York and her scholarly expertise is in social movements. She is a founding member and chair of Methodists in New Directions (MIND) and one of the architects of the current strategy to transcend the crisis caused by the UMC's discrimination against LGBTQ people by organizing networks of clergy and laity to extend their ministries to all couples, gay and straight, on an equal basis in defiance of the rules. She is the winner of the 2012 Gwen and C. Dale White Award from the NY Chapter of the Methodist Federation for Social Action, and served as the Theologian in Residence at FUMC Boulder in July 2013. In her spare time, she pumps iron, climbs mountains and builds sandcastles.
Recordings:
Rev. Tazvionepi Nyarota is an elder in the Zimbabwe East Conference of The United Methodist Church. She is currently serving four Zimbabwean United Methodist Churches in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. She has also served as District Superintendent of the Mutare District of the Zimbabwe East Conference.
Recording:
Rev. Lloyd Tichaenda Nyarota grew up in the brunt of the liberation struggle in Zimbabwe. A holder of several advanced degrees, Nyarota is an elder in the Zimbabwe East Conference of The United Methodist Church. He is currently serving as The Programme Director for the Chabadza Community Development Programs responsible for the Church's Community Development Programme to improve the lives of people in disadvantaged and underdeveloped communities in Zimbabwe. He is the author of Religious Leadership in National Political Conflict: Bishop Abel Muzorewa and the National Struggle against Colonial Rule in Zimbabwe, published by Wipf and Stock Publishers in 2013.
Recording:
Lloyd Nyarota: "Chabadza, Ubuntu, and Human Relationships" (27mB)
Reflection/Report 1 - by Johnson Reynolds
The STEPPING OUT IN FAITH Retreat had both Preachers and Presenters and Workshop Tracks addressing what it might mean to be a Church that took up substantive action on Social Justice and Full Inclusion.
On Friday night FRANK WULF preached on the Scripture of Peter Coming Out to Jesus Walking on the Water – Stepping Out in Faith, Being Helped by Jesus to Keep Faith. This had implications for us Risking Forth, Acting Forth Full Justice, Full Inclusion in Church and World.
LEVI BAUTISTA, on Saturday morning, spoke of CHURCH UNITY not as Homogeneity, Blended Melting Pot of Diversity, Multiculturalism but as LANGUAGE-CULTURE – and by extension, Racial-Ethnic, Gender, Ability, Sexuality, Age – PLURALISM. This had implication for WorldWideNatureUMC, with Local, Regional Autonomy in its various parts – in Europe, Africa, Philippines, United States.
On Saturday evening, DOROTHEE BENZ spoke to us of BREAKING THE RULES, BREAKING SOCIAL ETIQUETTE doing CIVIL, ECCLESIASTICAL DISOBEDIENCE to Challenge, Call for Change from Injustice, Exclusion continuing to happen in Our Society’s Social Institutions and Our Own Institutional Church.
LLOYD NYAROTA, Sunday morning, spoke to us of the African, Zimbabwe Ethic, Way UNHU or UBUTU, ‘I Am Because You Are,’’I Am Well If You Are Well,’ spoke of this ethic, way as applicable to Social Justice, Social Holiness in not only Africa but in places like Palestine-Israel – Zimbabwe officially recognizes Palestinian Statehood. He spoke of the need for not just Pretending Holy Conferencing but Authentic Doing of Holy Conferencing, addressing Wounded-nesses that are still with us, engaging in Deep Listening Across Differences before coming to conclusions, decisions. This speaking on UNHU/UBUTU and HOLY CONFERENCING had implications for us having conversations with people in church, world who disagree with us on matters of full inclusion, social justice, local/regional autonomy in the UMC.
TAZVIONEPE NYAROTA spoke with us Sunday evening of WOMEN IN AFRICA, IN ZIMBABWE Challenging often Male Church, Public School, Political Officials to be Compassionate, to not just Extend Benefits to Patrons but to Women, Children, People beyond Patrons, to All in Need.
KAREN OLIVETO Monday morning preached on EZEKIEL’S DRY BONES, Coming Together, Being Breathed into Life, into Vitality through Pastoral-Prophetic Partnership of Church (UMC) and its People Extending Themselves in Work of Full Inclusion and Social Justice.
Then there were the RETREAT’S WORKSHOP TRACKS that had us taking up, taking up on Behalf of the Institutional UMC Doing Social Justice and Full Inclusion.
The Workshops on LIFE CHOICES addressed Making Reproductive Choice Decisions, Expressing the Full Range of Sexualities We Are, Making End of Life Decisions.
The Workshops on WHO IS OUR NEIGHBOR addressed how we continue to Make Our Churches (and perhaps by extension, our society) Fully Accessible and Welcoming to People of Physical, Mental and Mental Health Disabilities.
The Workshops on GLOBALIZATION (WAY IN A SHRINKING WORLD) had us Seeking Ways to Address Injustice Done to People, Environment, Migrant/Refugee People, Children by Multinational Corporations, Militarization, International Lending Institutions and Government Trade Policies.
The Workshops on STRUGGLES OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES had us Addressing Struggles of Indigenous Peoples in Philippines, in the United States, in Palestine and thinking together on what actions could be taken with and on behalf of these peoples – Stopping Killing, Violence, Exploitation, Occupation of Them and Their Lands, Speaking Truth to Power on Their Behalf, Calling for and Acting Forth Repentance and Providing Reparations for the Atrocities Powers-that-Be and We, out-and-out and in compliance with these powers, have done to these peoples, Hoping for Eventual Reconciliation with Them.
The Workshops on ORGANIZING FOR JUSTICE – I would say – gave Consciousness, Methods to Articulate, Story-Tell, Message to a Wider Audience our Social Justice Passions, to Identify Priorities and Focuses for our Social Justice and Full Inclusion Work, to Operate as More than Individual Activists but as Activist Teams, Task Forces, Action Networks, to include other Faith, Non-Faith Groups, Organizations with us, to Strategize Action Plans for Accomplishing our Work.
The Workshops on BIBLICAL OBEDIENCE had us considering how to proceed with Movement for Full Inclusion of GLBTQ People in the Full Life and Work of Society and Church and considering Engaging People in not Born-Again-ism but Following Jesus, to Reclaim Our UMC, to Bring it back to its Wesleyan, Biblical-Obedient Full-Inclusion, Full-Social-Justice Roots in 2016 and Beyond..
Johnson Reynolds
Reflection/Report 2 - by Johnson Reynolds
In ISIS we see that Extemism Kills, Genocide-ally Kills.
We have other forms of Ideology, Practice that are Extreme, that in various ways Kill, Oppress. Nations that Serve the Interests of Only Their Leaders not Their People. Corporations about Nothing but Profits. Government Policies that Serve the Needs/Interests of Profiteering Corporations, Power-Grabbing Government Leaders. And Congresses and Religious Bodies that will Not Budge from Narrow Interests.
WESTERN METHODIST JUSTICE MOVEMENT Retreat STEPPING OUT IN FAITH, at Lake Tahoe, Zephyr Point, Labor Day Weekend 2014 – With 100+ of us from Southern California, Northern California and Nevada, Oregon-Idaho, Arizona, Pacific Northwest, Upper New York, Northern Illinois, Canada, Africa – had us doing karaoke, singing with the Strathdees, doing Bible Study, speaking out for Alternatives to Extremism that Oppresses, that Kills:
Speaking for TRADE POLICIES, INTERNATIONAL POLICIES that forgo military might and police militarization, that address needs of people, workers, environment, that accommodate needs of people, workers who are migrants, refugees, im/migrants until conditions in their own countries of origin are more accommodating to them.
Speaking for POLICIES, ACTIONS FOR/WITH INDIGENOUS PEOPLES – in the Philippines, Palestine, the United States – that are in solidarity with these peoples in their struggles, that seek to put an end to violence against them and the lands where they live, to speak truth to the powers that continue to oppress them, to act forth repentance and provide reparations to them for the atrocities perpetrated against them – and then perhaps come to eventual reconciliation with them.
Speaking for Ways Forward to Honor LIFE CHOICES concerning Reproduction, Beginning of Life, Death, Dying, End of Life and Full Range of Sexualities we have Shown Up with.
Speaking for Ways Forward Accommodating the NEEDS OF PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT PHYSICAL, MENTAL, MENTAL HEALTH DISABILITIES in our public places, living places, places of worship.
Moving forward NOT SIMPLY as INDIVIDUAL ACTIVISTS but as MEMBERS OF ACTIVIST TEAMS and NOT COVERING UP but ADDRESSING WOUNDED-NESSES, doing DEEP LISTENING to one another and PRACTICING AUTHENTIC HOLY CONFERENCING with one another around issues of difference according to an ethic of ‘I am because you are,’ ‘I am well if you are well.’
Moving forward with STRATEGIES that are BIBLICALLY OBEDIENT, WESLEYAN, that challenge society, nation, world, church to stop, move away from policies, practices that are killing, oppressing to policies and practices that seek to bring abundance, inclusion, justice to all.
Two Take-Aways: LETTER TO UM COUNCIL OF BISHOPS to as Council speak out prophetically and pastorally on issues at hand in Ferguson, at our Southern Border, in Gaza. Possibility of a PEOPLES GENERAL CONFERENCE in 2016 that has us – grassroots lay and clergy from Western Methodist Justice Movement, from U.S. Northeast, North Central, Europe, Philippines, Africa as well as other parts of the UMC – taking actions, showing forth taking action on Biblically Obedient, Wesleyan Inclusion and Social Justice and inviting the Institutional UMC to join us.
Johnson Reynolds
Reflection/Report 3 by Johnson Reynolds
Western Methodist Justice Movement (WMJM) at STEPPING OUT IN FAITH Retreat put forth a Framework for an Institutional UMC being more solidly about Social Justice and Full Inclusion in Itself and in the World:
CONFRONTING GLOBALIZED ECONOMICS AND MILITARIZATION that Exploit People and Environment.
BEING IN SOLIDARITY WITH INDIGENOUS AND MARGINALIZED PEOPLE(S), seeking to bring an End to Violence Against Them and the Lands, Places Where They Live, Speaking Forth Truth and Acting, Showing Forth Repentance for the Atrocities Committed Against Them, Hoping for Eventual Reconciliation with Them.
WELCOMING AND PROVIDING EGALITARIAN VENUE FOR ALL PERSONS, whatever their abilities, ages, economic circumstances, languages-cultures, races-ethnicities, genders, gender identities, sexual orientations may be – particularly Welcoming and Providing Egalitarian Venue to GLBTQ People within Itself.
GIVING VENUE FOR PEOPLE TO TALK, THINK, PRAY THROUGH on Beginning of Life and Reproductive Choice Issues, Decisions, Sexualities they Have Shown Up With, End of Life Issues, Decisions.
DOING AUTHENTIC HOLY CONFERENCING, DEEP LISTENING with People Across Differences Before Making Decisions.
UNIFYING ITSELF, CONNECTING ITSELF AROUND ITS PLURALISM and Structuring Itself Around Regional Autonomy in the Various Geographies Where It is Located.
BEING A CHURCH THAT ORGANIZES, STRATEGIZES, MOBILIZES for Accomplishing Its Social Justice and Full Inclusion Work.
Johnson Reynolds
A shout out to all attendees at WMJM Labor Day Retreat:
From Johnson Reynolds
It’s been a couple days since the retreat.
I have written, you may have already seen my 3 blogs on the retreat posted under Events at the WMJM website (1 2 3).
The first blog is my rendition of retreat content. The second is how I see the retreat offering alternatives to the extremism we see going on around us. The third states the framework for social justice and full inclusion work I see the retreat having provided us and our UMC going forward.
These blogs are intended as points of departure for us thinking about, coming to our own views on ourselves and our church moving forward on the work of social justice and full inclusion.
I would like to also encourage us to continue doing what we may already be doing – utilizing retreat recordings of presentations and sermons, descriptions of workshops and written materials related to these workshops, write-ups on the retreat beyond my own, other information, write-ups, and materials on the website to do at our churches, at our church circuit gatherings, the gatherings of the annual conference organizations we’re involved with presentations, series on WMJM, on what WMJM has to offer us, our UMC.
I would like to encourage us as well to sign up for participation with one or more of the current WMJM Action Networks, listed here on the website and/or convene our own action network beyond those already listed – on environment, racism, women’s issues, Native-American issues, war and peace, economic justice for instance. For now you may check with Richard Bentley, to get involved with an action network.
Finally, I would suggest you put on your calendar January 14-19, 2015 in Seattle: this is the time and place for the next UM Western Jurisdiction Team meeting. WMJM plans (as it has done in the past) to have its own gathering before/during/after this January 2015 meeting of Western Jurisdiction Team.
--Johnson Reynolds