{"id":6331,"date":"2016-02-16T01:38:59","date_gmt":"2016-02-16T07:38:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/emergentvillage\/?p=6331"},"modified":"2016-02-16T01:38:59","modified_gmt":"2016-02-16T07:38:59","slug":"invite-the-misfits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/emergentvillage\/2016\/02\/invite-the-misfits\/","title":{"rendered":"Invite the misfits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u201cNext time you have the opportunity,\u201d Jesus taught, \u201cwhen you are having a dinner for friends,\u201d invite the misfits from the<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Jesus<\/a>
Jesus wanted the misfits to participate.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

wrong side of the tracks. You\u2019ll be a blessing, and you\u2019ll be blessed.\u201d (Luke 14:12-14, The Message<\/i>).<\/strong><\/p>\n

Who is invited to your church? Your first instinct might be to say, \u201cEveryone!\u201d<\/p>\n

But who\u2019s invited, welcome, is much more than who can come in theory.<\/p>\n

During winter holidays, I have the opportunity to visit a few churches that were new to me. I found that churches that use chairs and not pews were more likely than not to overlooking one simple thing to make room for wheelchairs, scooters, and mobility devices.<\/p>\n

They didn\u2019t make a few rows short to allow people in wheelchairs, for instance, to be able to come in and park without moving furniture. What\u2019s interesting is that this is a kind of access that doesn\u2019t cost money. It requires knowledge and willingness.<\/p>\n

So we should discuss it, out loud, with each other! In meeting rooms that have chairs and not pews, leaving out some chairs is an invitation to participate in the life of your church, and that participation was something precious to Jesus. They wanted everyone, even the misfits, to be able to participate. I don\u2019t equate being disabled with being a misfit in a negative way, but the embodiment of unique function calls for the members of Beloved Community to see what compassion and help they can provide those who need a boost to participate. Sometimes people resist by saying that they can\u2019t be all things to all people. in fact, we mean something much more specific \u2014 things like, being able to park in the sanctuary and reach necessary hymnals, and, of course, being able to use the restroom.<\/p>\n

This detail, almost literally, fulfills an aspect of hospitality that says, \u201cThere you are! We\u2019ve been waiting for you. See? We saved you a space.\u201d The people who come to your church are looking for this kind of welcome. They are hoping that their visit matters. It\u2019s a tough thing to make the effort to get to church and be met with unfortunate circumstances, being unable to fully participate or be comfortable. (This could be for any number of reasons, ranging from no large print hymnals to lack of amplification, microphones, two reason among many.) Is this the best we can possibly do? I assert that it is not. (Sample guidelines for how many chairs to leave out are here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

How a church deals with this specific issue is one of the ways that they demonstrate what their beliefs are about who is important. Jane Addams was a tireless advocate for women\u2019s right to vote and for international peace. She said that, \u201cAction indeed is the sole medium of expression for ethics.\u201d That is, hoping or wishing to be broadly welcoming is never going to be enough. Someone has to be the person who calls in the people who never get invited out, the misfits, the disabled. Someone has to tell them, \u201cFriend, there\u2019s a place for you at the dinner party. You\u2019ll be siting at the table of honor. Come celebrate with us. If you plan for them to attend, then, they will arrive.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cNext time you have the opportunity,\u201d Jesus taught, \u201cwhen you are having a dinner for friends,\u201d invite the misfits from the wrong side of the tracks. You\u2019ll be a blessing, and you\u2019ll be blessed.\u201d (Luke 14:12-14, The Message). Who is invited to your church? Your first instinct might be to say, \u201cEveryone!\u201d But who\u2019s invited, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2011,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nInvite the misfits<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"\u201cNext time you have the opportunity,\u201d Jesus taught, \u201cwhen you are having a dinner for friends,\u201d invite the misfits from the wrong side of the tracks.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/emergentvillage\/2016\/02\/invite-the-misfits\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" 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