by Hayley Taylor & Wilson Whitaker

Location: Revolutionary Soup
Agenda: Celebrate our Two Week Anniversary of Togetherness

An auspicious beginning, to be sure. Yet this anniversary shadowed a different, though no less important, landmark in our year: we have now completed an entire five-day work week with our new employers.

While our soup was full of Revolutionary zeal, we discovered that many of our work lives bear little resemblance to the passionate longing many of us brought to the table only weeks ago: a hope to change the world, a longing to make a difference. Throughout our varied work experiences, one common thread emerged: making a difference is taking a different shape than what we once expected. Instead of idealistic activism, we begin to change the world each morning in front of a filing cabinet at 9 a.m. sharp.

But perhaps this is a chance to remember Who it is we are serving, in both the mundane and the adventureful — the ordinary and the breathtaking. Just perhaps this isn’t about the ideas we can generate or the policies we can revamp but about the people we can serve and the love that we can give. In fact, perhaps it’s not even about “we” or “me” but “Him” and “them.” Just perhaps.

Happy Anniversary.

by Reynolds Chapman

When I graduated from college I don’t think I fully grasped how much power had been given to me. In fact, since power was a negative concept in my mind, I probably played down my social, professional, political, and spiritual capacities out of some false humility. And although I had gained knowledge and tools to dive head-first into the “real world,” I lacked a robust framework for engaging with it as Christ would have me. As I reflect on the past year spent in the Trinity Fellows Program, I see how it helped me recognize the power I have been given, and how God is forming me to steward it for His Kingdom.

In his book Power and Passion, Samuel Wells says “…those in power do no good by failing to realize the power they have. Power is not wrong or bad or inherently corrupt; it is given for a purpose – to reflect the truth, to set people free – and only becomes sinister when it is not used for the purpose for which it has been given.” Perhaps one of the greatest challenges of the Church in America is our unwillingness to be honest about the influence and agency we have. We can understand why – a denial of power allows for a denial of responsibility. What the Fellows Program seeks to do is catch Christians at that fork in the road where they can either treat their gifts as inadequate, irrelevant, or even non-existent, or they can use them to engage God’s world.

This vision is built on a theological foundation established in the seminary classes we take. In our Biblical studies courses, the recurring theme of humiliation before exultation was implanted in our hearts and minds. Centered on Christ, who “made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant…becoming obedient unto death, even death on a cross,” we saw how our lives in the Church, our communities, our families, and at our jobs should take the form of service and humility. We saw that our power and privileges are not for our own personal peace and affluence, but are to be channeled as a blessing to the world in the name of Jesus Christ. In our cultural engagement courses we dug deeper into what the world looks like and the specifics about how theology translates into society. These classes challenged our assumptions, and helped transform us to view the world in a Christ-like manner.

Our discussions of theology and cultural engagement became practical in our workplace internships. One of the chief aims of the fellows program is bridging the divide between the sacred and secular – affirming that worship not only occurs when we gather together at the end of Fontaine Avenue, but also when we’ve been sitting at an office in front of a computer for three hours and we still have five hours to go. We saw that in God’s Kingdom, the value of someone who works in financial consulting, or someone who cleans houses for a living, is equal to a pastor or missionary. We were also able to engage our community by tutoring low-income students at Abundant Life, which allowed us a brief departure from our privileged lifestyle and granted us a snapshot into a community neglected and overlooked by most of Charlottesville.

As we affirmed the importance of engaging the world, it was indispensable to see that without the Church, any of our pursuits in this world are meaningless. In America, where we worship the gods of status, wealth, and security, the Church becomes an afterthought. We operate under the rule that when we’re working sixty hours a week, there’s just not time to go to a church prayer meeting or to pursue accountability with our brothers or sisters in Christ. But being plugged into the Church was invaluable this year, especially for many of us who are going into the marketplace. We were welcomed with open doors and open arms by our host families, who were willing to take a stranger into their home for a whole year. We had the opportunity to serve the youth in the Church, while being served in many ways by our mentors and the host of Church members and those on staff who spoke with us and prayed for us.

Before doing the Fellows Program, I would have asked “Wouldn’t a weekend-long conference on faith and work be sufficient and effective?” After doing the Fellows Program, I would answer no to this. This year has not taught me ideas, but has rather given me a community and experiences that have transformed me to see the purpose of the gifts God has given me. On behalf of the 2007-2008 class, thanks to Trinity Presbyterian Church, and may God bless the incoming fellows as they embark on this journey together.

Written by: Mariko Schaper

Every Thursday we go to Johnson Elementary school. We go there to participate with Abundant Life Ministries. It’s an after school program that provides tutoring for kids among other things. The majority of the kids that go to Johnson Elementary are from the Prospect Ave neighborhood and Blue Ridge Common Apartments. Some of the students come from some really great families, but some come from broken homes. One of the boys was telling me about him hanging out with his father, who is out of jail for the 4th time; another said he’s never seen his father, while another said that their family is moving because they are scared to go outside due to the shootings that happen in the neighborhood. Despite what the students’ family lives are like, they all have something in common…they need lovin’ from us.

The boy that I tutor is 8 years old and his name is Ahmad. He is in the second grade. I remember the first couple of weeks that we started tutoring. The first day he was so apathetic and bragging about not caring whether or not he repeated the 2nd grade. He had to be pulled aside over and over to be talked to by Miss Kerra, one of the directors. But he just didn’t care. Anytime that he wouldn’t want to do something, he would totally and completely shut down. He wouldn’t do his work, he wouldn’t listen to anything that I would say or respond in any way. All he would do was sit there staring at the wall and ignore me. Some of the women running the program were talking about whether or not Ahmad could stay in the program because he wasn’t doing anything or making any progress.

…but that was in the beginning.

Now, he has been doing absolutely awesome. Ahmad wants to do his homework and the enrichment activities. They make him feel good about himself because he does well and learns from them. He talks to me about his weekend, about school, about lots of things. The kids got their report cards a couple weeks ago, and he was so excited to show me his. He got all really exceptional marks, they don’t do the whole A,B,C thing, like back in my day…haha I sound old. But anyways…he showed me his report card…and then Ahmad said something with such enthusiasm that almost made me cry in front of him…

“I’m going to the 3rd grade.”

He continued to say that after that he’s going to go to 4th then 5th, then middle school. He was so excited he hopped out of his chair, ran over to his cousin and said the same thing.

It has been so amazing tutoring him and spending time with the Abundant Life kids. I love going early and just running around and playing with them. The girls are hilarious playing tag and I just love dancing around with them. They are some of the most affectionate kids as well. They always want you to catch them, hug them, hang on your back or shoulders, jump on you…hold their hands. We took them for pizza and ice skating a while ago, and it was interesting to see their vulnerability especially on the ice. Though they were on the ice, their hard exteriors and the walls that they had up began melting away as they needed us and trusted us to help them.

I definitely have seen redemption in all of this and so much of God’s grace and love. It has been such a blessing to be able to be in these kids’ lives. To be able to let them know that they don’t have to be angry all the time; that people care about them; that doing well and working hard is awesome. The banquet that was held for them was quite stellar. They were brought into a room filled with several hundreds of people clapping and cheering for them for doing well. They were all dressed up and sang some Christmas carols after dinner and it was adorable. We were so blessed to be able to see them there and to serve them.

“The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus” – 1 Timothy 1:14 …for this I am ridiculously thankful, but because it was poured out abundantly, means it should overflow into the lives of others around me.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” – John 10:10…Jesus came so we could have life, despite the fact that we so do not deserve it…freakin awesome!

These kids are meant to have a life abundant because of Jesus. It is amazing to think that we’ve had the blessing to be a little tiny part in that by just sharing God’s love with them.

Written by: Tripp Purks

Perhaps the most constant and stable thing in the life of a Fellow (other than certain exhaustion and deep conversation) is that fact that every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday we will be at our jobs along with the rest of the working world. The job-experience element of the program is indeed one of the cornerstones in the Fellow’s foundation. The opportunity to be immersed in and contributing to the daily movement of an organization is extremely valuable to formation, and the part-time work hours certainly are a welcome relief to juggling the other aspects of the program. Though Fellows often work at entry level positions their presence is (hopefully) associated with hard work, pleasant dispositions, and a servant’s attitude, thus bringing an invaluable contribution to their respective companies.

As for me, I’ve found that my time at work has been quite an experience. Though it is certainly not always exciting, or incredibly inspiring, I usually am able to see the value of the work that I do. The role of an intern is a funny thing, I often feel that I am held in this tension of doing things that are seemingly imperative to the company, but but are things that no one else would ever do. So I’m necessary and invisible simultaneously? Possibly. But the beautiful thing about the humbleness of my role (and often the role of other Fellows in their job-sites) is that it pushes me to labor outside of my own gain. Thus, the job experience becomes less about the work that I must do, but rather how I complete it. The beauty of this situation is that God works amazing things with a servants heart, and his movement in my heart while at work has certainly begun to bridge the gap between the tasks that I have to complete and the ways in which I am called to exist and behave at work. The cool thing is that when God helps me understand that work is serving well where I am called to be in that moment, stuffing 85 mailboxes seems more redemptive than I once thought.

For more updates on my life as a Fellow at the Federal Executive Institute. Start here and follow along in my blog

During the last week of February the Fellows and Dottie went up to New York City for a three day conference hosted by the International Arts Movement

A few snapshots of our time…

Click the pictures to see full size.

Mike and Sean. No explanation needed.

Group shot

Headed home

A few pictures from the Fellows/RUF trip down to New Orleans.

Click on the picture for the full size image.

Group Picture at Musicians Village (MV)

Habitat work site at MV

Completed MV houses

Work site candid

Lewis is ready to crush some nails

Dennis, Elizabeth, and David

Kelly and Sarah

Isaiah + power tools = major productivity

Another group shot at MV

By: Reynolds Chapman

Two and a half years ago, Hurricane Katrina submerged the city of New Orleans beneath 12 feet of water. Most of us remember the horror of the media reports, hearing accounts from shocked survivors and watching the number of deaths climb steadily by the hour. Katrina was one of the most destructive and deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States, leaving a debt of over $81 billion and an estimated death toll of 1,836. After the waters cleared, tens of thousands of residents were displaced. When the storm hit, it stole the attention of America as it stole the homes of those who lived in the city.

Last month, about a dozen Trinity Fellows and about a dozen Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) students from the University of Virginia had the opportunity to represent Trinity in serving New Orleans by working on building a house in the St. Bernard district. Many of us had seen the city since the storm hit—some multiple times—and some of us, such as myself, were visiting the city for the first time. As I was preparing for the trip and during the 18-hour drive from Charlottesville, I wondered what kind of significance such a trip, almost three years after the storm, might have for each of us, for New Orleans and for the people of Trinity and Charlottesville to whom we would tell stories upon our return.

The impression New Orleans left on us can be summed up in an insight we heard from Ray Cannata, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church of New Orleans, where we worshiped during our stay. Pastor Cannata said, “In New Orleans, on the one hand you see a vivid picture of the Fall, and on the other hand you see a clear picture of Redemption.” One can see the brokenness in a variety of forms, such as with the memory of when Katrina hit, a time filled with fear, desperation and loss. Although it has receded in our memories for the most part, it is not as easy to forget for those from the city—those who lost their homes or loved ones, or who drive every day through the wreckage that remains to be rebuilt. Most residents know someone who was killed in the storm, and many are waiting for their friends and family to return to the city.

We also see a picture of the Fall in the apathy that has left much of the city and people still abandoned, particularly the poor. Driving through the lower Ninth Ward, seeing uninhabited houses with yards overgrown and boards on the doors and windows, was unnerving and elicited feelings of anger and disappointment as we imagined the families that once lived there. For us, just one week in a place where the memories and aftermath of the storm are experienced on a daily basis was eye opening—it took us out of our world and put us in theirs. I realized the people who looked Katrina in the eye have a greater understanding than I do of the reality that, as theologian Cornelius Plantinga puts it, “The world is not the way it’s supposed to be.”

After spending a week in New Orleans, I realized that when Pastor Ray Cannata said New Orleans presents a lucid portrait of redemption, it wasn’t a sentimental “looking on the bright side.” We were able to truly experience the vibe of hope in the city. When we arrived, both the church and the Habitat for Humanity camp where we stayed received us as though we were their first visitors, thanking us incessantly and taking a sincere interest in our own stories. If “The Big Easy” had arms, they would be wide open. It seemed that feasting and socializing were the two main activities for the people there. From potlucks at people’s houses, to restaurants in the French Quarter, to music and dancing on Frenchman Street, many of us found New Orleans to be one of the most people-oriented, vibrant, culturally rich communities we’ve ever visited. Ray Cannata told us the hurricane did not take away from the sense of community in the city, but rather heightened everyone’s appreciation for one another and brought people together.

The rebuilding efforts have also been a sign of hope in the city. There has been a consistent flow of volunteers since the hurricane hit, and it was exciting for us to be able to lend a hand by working with Habitat for Humanity on a house-building project. It took some of us a few crooked nails and bruised thumbs to get our hammer skills down, but we had fun getting our hands dirty. We stayed at Camp Hope, where we ate meals and shared conversations with people from many walks of life, all coming to help out. It was a great opportunity to testify that Christ was our reason for being there. And perhaps one of the most encouraging statistics I heard was that 80-90 percent of the rebuilding efforts were done by churches. The kingdom of God is indeed at work.

Pastor Ray Cannata mentioned that the good and the bad of New Orleans were certainly present three years ago—the storm just exposed them. This reminded me that the effects of the Fall and the Redemption of Christ are present in every city. If there’s anything to take home from New Orleans to Charlottesville, it is this clear picture of Christ entering into a broken world to redeem it. So we thank God that while we were able to contribute to the rebuilding efforts in New Orleans, we also left with a challenge to be the Church who enters in, and brings redemption through Christ, to the broken areas in our home, the city of Charlottesville. We thank God that Trinity Presbyterian Church cares enough to enter into the brokenness of the world, New Orleans and our own backyards, and we pray that He would continue challenging us to meet this call.

Should you wish to hear more about the New Orleans trip or other service opportunities the Fellows are involved in please email me at reynoldschapman@gmail.com

by Andrew Kean

Jesus Himself said it: “For whoever
wants to save his life will lose it, but
whoever loses his life for Me will find
it” (Mat-thew 16:25). It is to us all that
Jesus speaks these very words, without
exception. It is with His words in mind
that I write to you, Fellows. And it is
with His words in mind that I hope you,
Trinity Church, will eavesdrop on this
farewell address.

Dear Fellows,

Just nine months ago, the 13 of you were
anonymous to the majority of Trinity
Church. You were simply another group
of “young adults” who might be considered
a hard generation of folks to understand.
But between then and now, you
have become members of our Family,
examples to our children, servants of others,
studiers of God’s Word, prayers for
God’s will, thoughtful searchers, wise
answerers, marketplace-faithful, community
builders, eager anticipators of the
King’s return. In sum, you have tasted the
beautiful fruit of the Truest Paradox:
through giving your lives to Jesus, you
are beginning to find them.
It has been at once painful and joyful,
confusing and clear. Yet, through it all,
with the Spirit strengthening you, you
have proved faithful. Let me, on behalf of
Trinity Church and Charlottesville say,
“Thank you.”

Soon you will be sent out by Trinity
Presbyterian Church. Out into the world,
into new vocations, into new relationships,
into new needs, into new dreams.
Don’t look back in a wistful way; look
forward, applying all that you have
learned. Motivated by our King’s love for
us, seek the hard places, seek the places
of discomfort in others’ lives (and your
own), love boldly, aim to be men and
women of prayer, and above all, worship
the King.

Fare well, Fellows.
And remember, your life is not your
own.

Grace and Peace,
Andrew Kean

by Ebony Walden

I returned to my car after my first Abundant Life Ministries tutoring session utterly defeated. The frustration of feeling ineffective had overcome me and I remember thinking, “How will I do this for another nine months?”

Earlier that same afternoon, I had felt more than equipped to begin tutoring. I had gone through the tutor training and I had years of tutoring experience under my belt. I thought, “This is going to be a breeze.” However, on the very first day I was challenged by the wit and energy of my tutee. I had too easily forgotten what it is like to interact with highly vocal and energetic 2nd graders. Since I have been used to talking with adults, it was hard to even communicate in language that a 7-year-old would understand. I knew the answer to the math problems and how to sound out difficult words perfectly; I had been doing that for years. What I had forgotten was the challenge and technique involved in conveying these unfamiliar details to my tutee. After a couple of weeks, this became easier. I was able to come down to the level of a second grader in order to use my knowledge and wit to challenge her and further her skill levels.

[My tutee] has grown in her confidence and skill in a matter of weeks. These have been great rewards.

What’s helped me the most for my service at Abundant Life has been the structured order of the afternoon–and the notebooks that are used to record and track the progress of tutees. Though we only have an hour and a half, we are able to do homework, read, complete an enrichment activity, and work on the computers. This provides the kids with variety and prevents them from getting bored and restless. In addition, we are able to communicate with the staff about the progress of the kids by keeping a log of work and activities in their notebook. This is a good way to look back and see how the participants have grown over time, which may be less apparent in the day-to-day interactions.

Over the course of my seven months as an Abundant Life tutor, I have witnessed growth in myself, seen the skills of my tutees’ improve, and built great relationships with the participants. I have been able to work on my own skills and teaching techniques as I tutored two little girls who are very different. The first was so bright that she did not need to attend tutoring twice a week anymore, which was great. The latter, though she has more academic challenges, has grown in her confidence and skill in a matter of weeks. These have been great rewards. The best part about tutoring, though, is building relationships with the participants who are full of energy and spirit. When I look back on my time at Abundant Life, it has been hard. But the experience of having all the kids run up to my car upon arrival, full of joy and laughter–and the look on my tutee’s face when she has figured out a hard problem–is reward enough.