Come to the Table
Invite your friends, pass the cookies, and dig into Sojourners. Table Talk discussion guides provide a bi-weekly gathering place for communities to discuss issues of faith, politics, and culture--local and global. Table Talk offers a smorgasbord of questions (enough for four sessions, if you want to arrange it that way), as well as resources for further study and suggestions for action. You bring dessert.
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Session I. From Conquistadors to Corporations
"The Roots of Globalization" (p. 20)
"Cuppa Joe, With a Twist" (p. 26)
Globalization didn't start with McDonald's and Microsoft, or even with the Industrial Revolution, and understanding its history is the first step to responding faithfully to its manifestations in the 21st century. Place yourself in the globalized world—how have you and your community been touched by the far-flung economy or the look-alike culture of globalization?
Questions to Consider
1. The Industrial Revolution was fueled by resources stolen from the poor. As Parker points out, this has never been reciprocated. How much was this reality covered in the history you learned? What do you think about restoring justice by paying reparations?
2. As people of faith we understand that death is an integral, even sacred part of life, but murder is not. What ethical standards should be used to deal with the fact that this year 50 million people will die of preventable disease or malnutrition?
3. How has "Europeanization" made or remade your world? How does your answer depend on your ethnicity?
4. Are you familiar with systems of thought different from those of Western Europe? If so, what do these systems have to say to Western culture?
5. Social entrepreneurships such as Pura Vida use the opportunities provided by globalization to address the injustices it causes. What are other creative ways to capitalize on globalization's opportunities?
Resources
No Logo, by Naomi Klein (Harper Collins, 2000; www.nologo.org). A thorough review of the anti-globalization movement and what it's fighting against—and for.
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, by Jared Diamond (Random House, 1997). A history of the "Europeanization" of the world.
Life and Debt (New Yorker Films, 2001). An independent film about Jamaican workers and farmers who see the effects of globalization from the ground up. (www.pbs.org/pov/lifeanddebt)
Session II. It's a Good Thing
"Martha Stewartship" (p. 36)
"Building Dreams" (p. 34)
What is good? In an age when answers are harder than ever to come by, Martha Stewart and her cohorts are marketing Good Things©. In contrast, Rural Studio, a project of Auburn University, builds dream houses for the poor in Alabama. How do you define what is good and beautiful?
Questions to Consider
1. Polter describes her working-class parents and their velvet paintings. What has influenced your standards of beauty or quality?
2. Can decorating a room or making a meal be a spiritual activity? When does remodeling a house cross the line from spiritual discipline to "bread and circuses"?
3. Memory and remembering are fundamental to the Judeo-Christian faith. It is "where we connect within the web of family, community, and creation." How is memory treated in your family or community? What legacy are you passing to the next generations?
4. In Maslow's hierarchy, physiological needs are much more important than aesthetic needs. Rural Studio, however, builds homes that are functional and beautiful. What has society taught us about the right—even the ability—of the poor to appreciate beauty?
Resources
Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee and an Architecture of Decency, by Andrea Oppenheimer Dean and Timothy Hursley (Princeton Architectural Press, 2001). The story of an architecture professor and his project for the poor.
On Beauty and Being Just, by Elaine Scarry (Princeton University Press, 1999). A lovely little book that argues that true beauty leads to greater concern for justice.
Alternatives for Simple Living. A nonprofit organization that equips people of faith to challenge consumerism, live justly, and celebrate responsibly. (www.simpleliving.org)
Session III. Hugging Trees for Jesus
"Preaching God's Green Gospel" (p. 30)
Say "environmentalist" and there aren't many who think "Christian." But Rev. Sally Bingham, an Episcopal priest, is at the forefront of California's alternative energy movement. Do you call yourself an environmentalist? Take inventory of today's actions and decisions—how have you affected the environment in the past 24 hours?
Questions to Consider
1. When was the last time you heard a sermon about the environment? Why has the church been silent on issues of environmental stewardship and justice?
2. What do you know about your bioregion? What is the narrative of the land on which you live?
3. Hazardous waste landfills, animal feedlots, and "dirty-burning power plants" are most often located in low-income communities. What would your community or church do if a landfill planned to locate to your area?
4. What would be involved in making your house of worship into a "zero-emissions" facility powered by green energy? What are the pros and cons of setting this as a priority?
Resources
Holy Ground: A Resource on Faith and the Environment, by the editors of Sojourners. This 66-page study guide for individual or group study is organized into four sessions. (www.sojo.net or 1-800-714-7474)
"Paradise Paved," by Lois Ann Lorentzen, Sojourners (November-December 2000). An encouraging article that looks at Christians' changing attitudes toward the environment. Find it online at www.sojo.net.
Evangelical Environmental Network. A network of individuals and nonprofits that offers worship resources, curricula and Creation Care magazine. (www.creationcare.org)
Session IV. Take It to the Bank
"You Are What You Owe" (p. 19)
It's only in the context of honest community that we can be held accountable for the way we spend our money and pay our debts. Who do you talk with about your budget, credit cards, and investment portfolio?
Questions to Consider
1. What attitudes toward money did you learn from your family? How have those attitudes changed?
2. How many credit cards do you have? Why did you acquire them? How difficult would it be for you to live without them?
3. How many dreams for meaningful activity have you deferred because you needed to pay the bills? Do you know anyone who has never acquired debt? What has he or she had to sacrifice?
4. Batstone writes that debt makes you spiritually vulnerable. Have you ever thought of financial management as a spiritual discipline? What would be left of the Bible if you cut out all references to money, the poor, and the rich?
Resources
Who is My Neighbor? Economics As If Values Matter, by the editors of Sojourners. This 180-page study guide for individual or group study is organized into nine chapters. (www.sojo.net or 1-800-714-7474)
Money & Faith Study Circle Handbook. This resource by the Ministry of Money helps Christians deal responsibly with wealth and debt. It includes guidelines for writing a money autobiography and for creating a values-and-spending comparison sheet. (www.ministryofmoney.org or 301-428-9560)
Jubilee USA Network. Formerly Jubilee 2000, an international campaign to decrease the burden of Third World debt. (www.jubileeusa.org)
SojoCircles
SojoCircles is a network of local groups that meet regularly to pray, dialogue, and build community in churches, families, and neighborhoods. Organized by Sojourners after Sept. 11 to discuss issues of peacemaking and social justice, SojoCircles includes groups from Australia to Wisconsin. Sojourners provides an organizers packet with tips on meeting facilitation, resources for publicity, and links to SojoCircles around the world. Want to join? Contact sojocircles@sojo.net or call 1-800-714-7474.
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