Trying to follow

I saw Desmond Tutu speak the other day at a Peace Jam event. This is a short promo video for the 2006 event, but still a good clip to hear him in. If you don’t know who he is you should pick up his book.

Steve Connell “… why not wine coolers” (ht. Mark):

Now this is a little league game as it should be:

A trailer for a very interesting looking video, Lord Save Us From Your Followers (ht. lucas):

And one final sweet trailer, A Purple State of Mind (ht. TWotP):

At this point, I’m not sure there are many or any people from my neighborhood that read this, which isn’t a big deal, but it also mean this might not be that relevant here.
I think I’m going to start a Wiki for my neighborhood. Mostly, the benefit will be for myself, sort of an online notebook with entries pertaining to each and everything I can learn about the different businesses, organizations and initiatives going on around the neighborhood. From what I’ve seen there doesn’t appear to be anything like that, at least not in a truly condensed form, so this might prove useful to other community members as well. We’ll see. For those who don’t know what a Wiki is, check out Wikipedia, it’s basically an online encyclopedia. In the same way I’d love to see an Encyclopedia for North Minneapolis that would be able to provide detailed information about the neighborhood. And, the cool thing about a Wiki is anyone can edit it, so it can be a truly collaborative effort. For now though, it will just be my personal notebook of sorts on the neighborhood.

Anyone ever try and do something like this for their neighborhood, city or community?
Anyone know of a good Wiki Software or website to use for something like this?
Anyone interested in helping with this project?

Caring for the poor is not some unique passion of mine. My awareness of my need to care for the poor came during some of the more spiritual dark times of my life, when I picked up my Bible and starting reading the words of Jesus…

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)

“But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed.” (Luke 14:13)

‘Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

And then this one:

Luke 10:27-37
He answered: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins[e] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Today I have the opportunity to see and hear from Desmond Tutu. If you don’t know who Archbishop Desmond Tutu is you should pick up his book, No Future Without Forgiveness. Prior to reading the book, which I borrowed from a friend when I new Tutu would be visiting, I hadn’t know much about him either, only that he had been involved in ending the apartheid in South Africa and working on reconciliation afterwards. This book gives a phenomenal insight into the way South Africa worked through the healing process after years of terrible racial atrocities.

The first few chapters are a little difficult to get through. Tutu is a brilliant academic and tends to use large words that makes it difficult to read quickly. However, those beginning chapters carefully lay the groundwork of how the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was formed and what it set out to accomplish. It was an amazing task that they undertook. The goal being to bring truth and reconciliation to a broken country. The shift, when apartheid ended and Nelson Mendela became president in 1994, was monumental. You might compare it to when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed in the USA, ending Jim Crow segregation. In both of those situations there is still an ominous history that can not simply be swept away. I believe the racial tension experienced in the USA today has a lot to do with the fact that we never did anything to honestly address the injustice of racism and segregation.
In South Africa, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was set up to try and address that very dilemma. However, it was unique in that it was not a law-enforcing body, setting out to punish the wrong-doers, a task that would have been nearly impossible to really implement (How many here have been arrested or imprisoned for the lynchings, discrimination and harassments enacted before the Civil Rights Movement?). Instead, the TRC set about providing a forum for people to share their stories. Radio and Television gave special attention to the Commission, helping provide a national platform for sobering truth to be shared. Victims where provided opportunity to tell of the atrocities they or their family experienced, and there was healing in the sharing. Those who had committed crimes could apply for amnesty, provided they shared and gave full disclosure to all that they had done. The amnesty process was a controversial one, but I came to agree with Tutu’s perspective that it was the right thing to do. Many police, military and government officials came forward, sharing information that could have otherwise been kept secret for years to come. The sharing of truth provided closure for some many families who simply had know idea what had happened to their loved ones. The stories in the book are heartbreaking and yet the willingness of the victims to forgive and reconcile is profoundly moving.

If you haven’t read anything about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, you should pick up this book. I think it’s such a shining example of doing things differently than the retribution system we currently have in place. I’m not saying it’s necessarily going to be effective all the time, but it points to the human imagination, created by God to love one another far deeper and more creatively then racism, injustice and vengeance ever could.