Environment

A reflection from Formed Magazine from St. Vincent Pallotti Center board member, Jill Rauh:


From Warm and Fuzzy to Transformational: Taking service projects to the next level.

“The Eucharist commits us to the poor. To receive in truth the Body and Blood of Christ given up for us, we must recognize Christ in the poorest, his brethren” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1397). How’s that for a powerful reminder that our commitment to the poor and vulnerable is a reflection of our commitment to the living face of Christ in the world?

Yet, against a crowded backdrop of activities and program requirements, it is often the case that we see service and justice as expendable “extras” in our programs. We have a tendency to view service projects as isolated events that start when we arrive at the service site and end when we leave. They are events that are good for bringing out the warm fuzzies, but never reach their full potential as truly transformational for both our young people and the people served. Interested in how to make service transformational? Then keep reading. The good news is that there’s a tried and true process which, when implemented, has the potential to “rock the world” of any young person who has the slightest interest in the Church’s role in addressing suffering in our broken world. The process, which is described more thoroughly in a helpful resource manual called In the Footsteps of Jesus: Catholic Social Teaching at Work Today (USCCB, 2004), includes three elements: Act, Reflect, and Transform.


Act

"Act" refers to the charitable works that young people engage in while performing service projects. The setting for this action can make or break a service project. The ideal service project will provide an opportunity for face to face interaction with members of the human family who are in need. While cleaning up litter or sorting food at the local pantry may ensure that no one is forced to leave his or her comfort zone, these types of projects offer little potential for true transformation. The truth is that nothing can replace the experience of interacting and relating with real, living human beings. For any young person, it is easier to see the “face of Christ” in an actual homeless family at a soup kitchen or a child at a tutoring program than in beneficiaries who are never met or even seen.

A second consideration in planning the “action” of service is to choose a service project that leads to the empowerment of those served, with an emphasis on doing with and walking alongside instead of doing for. In other words, choose a service project that affirms the dignity of those being served, and that does not encourage an “us vs. them” mentality. The groups that are funded by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (www.usccb.org/cchd) make excellent service sites because of their emphasis on the empowerment of poor and low-income people to make a difference in their own communities.

Third, the service project should include structured opportunities for being as well as doing. At a homeless shelter, youth might be responsible for preparing and serving meals. Paired with this “doing” part of the project, there should also be time for the young people to sit down at the table like Christ and eat and converse with those in need. For example, upon advance request, the director of the shelter may be able to arrange a structured opportunity for youth to hear the stories of some of the homeless individuals. The experience is sure to be meaningful for all parties involved.


Reflect

Many people have the mistaken impression that service ends after leaving the service site. This is far from the truth! Failing to follow up with reflection after service is one of the most common lost opportunities in service.

First, we must remember that service, as everything we do, must be rooted in prayer. Prayer is essential for many reasons. The most obvious is because we believe that God will be able to make a difference in the lives of those served. It also provides a powerful reflective space to help youth begin to process their experience and listen for the response to which they may be called.

A second essential part of the “reflect” element of service is to facilitate asking about the causes of the problems confronted during the service. Why do people become homeless? Why aren’t children in some parts of the city receiving an adequate education? This part of reflection includes questions and discussion about the underlying causes of unjust situations, human relationships, beliefs and values, and about personal and social responsibility.

Our job as youth workers is, first, to help youth ask these questions, and then to suggest how Scripture and the Church’s teachings shine a unique light on the issues. We can begin by asking simple questions like “Where is God present?” or “Where is the face of Christ present?” Stopping here, though, is insufficient. As youth workers, we must introduce youth to Catholic social teachings, an essential part of any service program. Often called the “best kept secret” of the Church, many youth go through religious education programs not knowing that the Church possesses a rich body of teachings that shine an “unchanging light” on the “new problems that are constantly emerging” in our world (Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate, no. 12). Youth workers can learn more about the social teachings of the Church by visiting the website of the USCCB Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development (www.usccb.org/jphd).

Ideally, reflection around service projects is not the first time that youth should be hearing about Catholic social teaching, since acting for justice is a “constitutive dimension” of our faith. Service is the ideal place for this teaching to take wings, but it is only the starting point. The reflection that follows, ideally in a facilitated, small-group setting, is what takes the person-to-person interactions during service to the next level, offering the opportunity for critical reflection in the light of our faith. Such reflection is essential to the formation of life-long, faithful citizens.


Transform

The third step of the model is “Transform.” Interactions with the vulnerable through service followed by new questions and learning during reflection must lead to work to transform all of society.

The ideal service project will be paired with opportunities for advocacy and efforts to transform unjust structures. This includes considering what action is needed to address the root causes of the situation encountered during service. Action for transformation aims to address systemic, structural injustice, and tries to change values and policies that are in need of transformation or renewal.

The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, published by the Vatican in 2004, reminds us that “it is undoubtedly an act of love, the work of mercy by which one responds here and now to a real and impelling need of one's neighbor, but it is an equally indispensable act of love to strive to organize and structure society so that one's neighbor will not find himself in poverty” (no. 208). The first step of the model, “Act,” focuses on responding to the “here and now” needs, while the third step, “Transform,” tries to reorganize society.

An essential distinction for any youth worker to keep in mind is the difference between “Charitable Works” and “Social Justice,” called the “Two Feet of Social Action.” Works, such as those performed by young people during, help individuals meet their immediate needs. When we serve in soup kitchens, donate food, clothing or money, tutor or mentor children, or sponsor a refugee family, we are performing charitable works. The second “foot” of social action, Social Justice, aims to correct long-term problems in communities, for just public policies and becoming involved in community self-help projects are examples of Justice.

Both feet of social action are needed: Pope Pius XI highlighted the distinction between the two feet of social action over 70 years ago: "Charity will never be true charity unless it takes justice into account ... Let no one attempt with small gifts of charity to exempt himself from the great duties imposed by justice" (Divini Redemptoris, 49).

Thus, service projects must lead youth, in this final step, to consider their role in transforming society. This must be done with the intent to eliminate the causes of injustice, to end the need for soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and tutoring programs.

In this part of the model, youth should create a plan to help transform the world for justice. For example, they could write letters to their congresspersons, educate others, or join a local advocacy effort related to the issues addressed in service. So, to address homelessness, youth might advocate in support of funding for job training programs or affordable housing for low-income people.

True interaction with the face of Christ in those in need should also leave every young person transformed on the personal level. In addition to taking action to help transform society, youth should also be encouraged to identify changes they can make in their lifestyles, daily decisions, and world-views in order to live out their faith day-to-day through greater solidarity with others in their communities and the world.

“Act, Reflect, Transform” is a simple process that, when implemented, has the potential to take service from being a warm, fuzzy, isolated action, to a real commitment to live one’s faith and work for the transformation of the world. The model is flexible enough to be implemented in a variety of ways. A youth worker organizing a service project for a group of students can bring students together afterwards for a period of reflection and transformation. In a situation where individual youths are completing service projects on their own in order to fulfill a requirement, the model can still be implemented through a reflection day or evening when everyone gathers to “reflect” together on their service experiences, learn about Catholic Social Teaching, ask the “why” questions, and consider how they might be called to “transform” our world into a more just place.
 
http://www.formedmag.com/index.cfm?load=page&page=160