{"id":842,"date":"2014-03-10T21:38:00","date_gmt":"2014-03-10T21:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2014\/03\/the-struggle-and-the-full-armor-of-god.html"},"modified":"2014-03-10T21:38:00","modified_gmt":"2014-03-10T21:38:00","slug":"the-struggle-and-the-full-armor-of-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2014\/03\/the-struggle-and-the-full-armor-of-god.html","title":{"rendered":"The Struggle and the Full Armor of God"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
by\u00a0Peter Gathje<\/a><\/span>
R3 Contributor<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span>\n
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<\/span>*First posted at the Radical Hospitality<\/a> Blog<\/span>

<\/span>I was going to write today about Loeb Properties and their decision to festoon the businesses in Overton Square with \u201cNo Panhandling\u201d signs.\u00a0 I am angry and disappointed by this decision, and I don\u2019t believe the corporate-speak that promises that panhandlers will be directed to helpful services and not be arrested or otherwise hassled.\u00a0 I will continue to boycott all the businesses in Overton Square until the signs come down.\u00a0 This will probably mean I won\u2019t be going to those businesses ever again.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n


<\/span><\/div>\n
But instead of focusing on Loeb Properties and their racist and classist ugliness, I want to focus on the beauty and goodness of the guests who come to\u00a0Manna House<\/a>.\u00a0 Today was a typical\u00a0Monday<\/span><\/span>\u00a0morning at Manna House.\u00a0 We offered showers for men.\u00a0 Twenty three men took showers and left wearing clean and well-fitting clothes.\u00a0 Another fifty-one men and women came into the clothing room for \u201csocks and hygiene.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
Meanwhile, a hundred or more came through the house and were served coffee, took the time to read the paper, or talk with friends, or play scrabble, or catch a quick nap on one of the couches.\u00a0 They were people from a variety of places and backgrounds, some white, some black.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t all perfect, some used bad language on the front porch and had to be told to stop, some were a little impatient making their way through the crowded house.\u00a0 But nobody acted like a jerk or got violent or even raised their voice in anger.\u00a0 And this is the way things usually go.\u00a0 Our guests, as Kathleen says, \u201cgive us their best.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
At various times in the morning a completely new guest came in, looking lost, and asking for either Pete or Kathleen (word on the streets lets people know who to ask for).\u00a0 One needed a pair of shoes (which he got).\u00a0 One needed a complete change of clothes (which he got).\u00a0 Another just needed a pair of socks (which he got).\u00a0 From time to time we \u201ctranscend the rules\u201d to welcome somebody new, and then we tell the guest how Manna House typically operates so if they need something in the future, they need to \u201cget on the list\u201d for either a shower or socks and hygiene.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
As the morning progressed I was asked for \u201cthe word for the day.\u201d\u00a0 The word for the day came from Ephesians 6:10-13:<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

\u201cFinally, be strong in the Lord\u00a0and in the Lord\u2019s mighty power.\u00a0Put on the full armor of God,\u00a0so that you can take your stand against the devil\u2019s schemes.\u00a0For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,\u00a0but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers\u00a0of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.\u00a0Therefore put on the full armor of God,\u00a0so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
The responses to the reading from guests:\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cI know about those powers.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cI need that strength.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cThe devil is alive and well, for sure.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cThat armor sounds good.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
And though I\u2019m not writing about Loeb Properties, I couldn\u2019t help but think of the legacy of \u201cNo Panhandling\u201d signs that have been part of the vagrancy laws that came into being following slavery. Vagrancy laws were directed at freed slaves and poor whites, both of whom were out of work and relied upon handouts to survive.\u00a0 Vagrancy
\n laws sought to either move them along or criminalize them. The struggle truly is \u201cagainst the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.\u201d\u00a0 And it is the beauty and goodness of our guests that affirms where God stands in that struggle.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>

<\/span><\/span>Follow Pete on Facebook<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by\u00a0Peter GathjeR3 Contributor *First posted at the Radical Hospitality BlogI was going to write today about Loeb Properties and their decision to festoon the businesses in Overton Square with \u201cNo Panhandling\u201d signs.\u00a0 I am angry and disappointed by this decision, and I don\u2019t believe the corporate-speak that promises that panhandlers will be directed to helpful […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Struggle and the Full Armor of God<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"by Peter GathjeR3 Contributor*First posted at the Radical Hospitality BlogI was going to write today about Loeb Properties and their decision to\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" 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