With Justice for All

M. Perkins John

Description

"I am persuaded that the Church, as the steward of this gospel, holds the key to justice in our society. Either justice will come through us or it will not come at all." John Perkins's optimistic view of justice becoming a reality starts and ends with the Church. With Justice for All is Perkins's invitation to live out the gospel in a way that brings good news to the poor and liberty to the oppressed. This invitation is extended to every racial and ethnic group to be reconciled to one another, to work together to make our land all God wants it to be. And it is a blueprint--a practical strategy for the work of biblical justice in our time. In an age of changing demographics where the need to break the cycle of poverty is staring many of us in the face, Perkins offers hope through practical ministry principles that work. This outstanding resource includes reflection questions for personal or group study as well as interactive sessions for groups to participate in activities together.

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Christianity

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 25 août 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781441224330
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

1982 Regal Books
Published by Baker Books a division of Baker Publishing Group P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287 www.bakerbooks.com
Baker Books edition published 2014
ISBN 978-1-4412-2433-0
Previously published by Regal Books
Ebook edition originally created 2011
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-for example, electronic, photocopy, recording-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Other versions used are:
JB—The Jerusalem Bible. Copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd. and Doubleday & Company, Inc. Used by permission.
KJV — King James Version. Authorized King James Version.
NIV —Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
Phillips — The New Testament in Modern English , Revised Edition, J. B. Phillips, Translator. © J. B. Phillips 1958, 1960, 1972. Used by permission of Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022.
TEV —Scripture quotations are from Today’s English Version. Copyright © American Bible Society 1966, 1971, 1976. Used by permission.
This book is dedicated to the next generation of indigenous leaders: Ryan Weary, Bernice Wambari, Sterling Ruiz, Joshua Forrest, Rishard Harris, Sarah Wambari, Jade Harris, Tranquility Gordon, Cymone Vance, Eunice Wambari, Gabriel Gordon, Chaya Vance, Damien Shannon, Keith Magee and Robert Wilkerson, III.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Foreword
Charles W. Colson
Special Foreword to the Updated Edition
Elizabeth Perkins
Introduction
THE NEED


1. Evangelism Is Not Enough
2. A Powerless Gospel
3. Sheep Without a Shepherd
THE VISION


4. Here Am I, Send Me!
5. I Have a Dream, Too
THE STRATEGY

R ELOCATION


6. Your Need Is My Need
7. Filling the Leadership Vacuum
8. Getting Your Feet Wet
9. Relocation: A Strategy for Here and Now
Update—Relocation: Still the First Step
R ECONCILIATION


10. Love Is Stronger than Hate
11. The Reconciled Community
12. The Rocky Road to Reconciliation
13. Ten Years Later
14. Reconciliation: A Strategy for Here and Now
Update—Reconciliation: It’s Happening Slowly But Surely
R EDISTRIBUTION


15. A Dime and a Buffalo Nickel
16. The Not-So-Great Society
17. Can Free Enterprise Work for Us?
18. Redistribution: A Strategy for Here and Now
Update—Redistribution: The Challenge Remains
THE CHALLENGE


19. Come, Let Us Rebuild the Walls of America

Epilogue
Interaction Section
Endnotes
A Few Other Books Worth Reading
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to express special thanks to Eddy Hall for his good editorial work, and to my wife, Vera Mae, who worked with me on this book. Thanks also go to Sue Nelson who spent hour after hour retyping this book with some assistance from Melody Hall. The research of Tom Adams, Eva Meiers and Joannie Perkins was also much appreciated.
I am grateful to Tim Robertson for letting me borrow heavily from a sermon he delivered to Voice of Calvary Fellowship in December 1980 for most of the material included in chapter 19. Thank you to Steven Crane, Margaret Love Denman, Tim Robertson, H. Spees, Lem Tucker and Sue Nelson for reading the manuscript and offering helpful suggestions. A special thanks to Donna Wheeler, my secretary, without whose help I would never have had the time to write this book. I want to thank the late Bill Greig, Jr., former president of Gospel Light Publications, who encouraged me to write this book.
I am also grateful to the entire Denman family: to Rusty and Margaret Love for giving us free access to their home, to their meat locker, to the fruit trees around their farm, and to their lives during the weeks we spent drafting the manuscript; to all of the wonderful Denman kids—Pepper, Laura, John, Stanton, and Hunter—for helping to make us welcome during our stay; and especially to Pepper, Laura and John, who moved out of their beautiful three-bedroom home to make room for us.
Thanks to Jim and Shirley Posey for opening their home to Vera Mae and me during the final editing of the manuscript.
Finally, I want to thank the many friends who encouraged us and helped us in many other ways while working on this project.
FOREWORD
John Perkins is a prophet. He is also a loving brother and friend. As a matter of fact, in my very first encounter with him, he taught me one of the most important lessons of my Christian life.
I had come to Jackson, Mississippi, to speak at a rally sponsored by John’s ministry. It was the first time that Voice of Calvary, primarily a black ministry, had staged a public event seeking to involve the largely white population of Jackson. John hoped that my speaking would break down century-old barriers.
I had been in Jackson a year earlier for the Governor’s Prayer Breakfast. There was an overflow crowd of more than 2,000. Hundreds had wanted tickets but could not get in.
But in sharp contrast, when I arrived in the auditorium for the Voice of Calvary rally, there were more empty chairs than I had ever seen in my life. Four or five hundred of John’s supporters were sitting in the front, and throughout the rest of the cavernous auditorium I could see only little islands of people—maybe 100 at the most—from the local white community.
As a white man I was embarrassed and hurt for my new friend John. He could tell that I was angry; he leaned over to me and said, “Don’t worry about it, brother; it will all be all right in God’s timing.” Here was a man who had been beaten and tortured during the civil rights movement in the sixties. Though he might have been bitter again this night, he instead radiated God’s love.
That is the kind of man John Perkins is, and With Justice for All communicates that same spirit of love and commitment to Christ. This book is not just another theoretical treatise or cold-blooded analysis of the fabric of American culture. Woven throughout it are examples of God’s working in John’s life and ministry over the years, with practical principles drawn from Scripture. When John describes his work as a blueprint, it is a plan I trust because of his dependence on Scripture and his practical experience. As the “Ten Years Later” chapter makes clear, John’s work is not an untried philosophical supposition, nor has it been a series of easy victories. His principles of relocation, reconciliation and redistribution have been tried by fire. Suffering has been an intrinsic part of his personal experience; his resulting wisdom is hard won. As he likens the leaders American Christians so desperately need to Nehemiah, he is serving as an example. John Perkins is a voice shouting out in the wilderness of contemporary modern culture; now, more than ever before, we need to heed that call.
If effective, deep-seated change is to come to our nation today, it will come only through the leadership of Christians—not as a political force, but as a network of believers sharing the reconciling love of Jesus Christ and the power of His gospel to meet the gamut of men and women’s moral, physical, spiritual and emotional needs.
As we see the power of that gospel communicated through the believing hearts and practical actions of Christians ministering in the weak places of our society, we will see committed Christian fellowships growing among the poor and oppressed in our ghettos, reconciliation between black and white in our cities, healing of the broken within our prisons. Though it may seem to be foolishness to the world, it will be from the ranks of the powerless that the powerful see the work of Christ.
As John Perkins makes clear, this work begins with you and me. As we ourselves have feasted on the good news, we must in turn proclaim liberty to the captives and justice to the oppressed. As Christ ministers through us, then we will begin to see healing in our land—not through government programs or distant relief funds, but by rolling up our shirt sleeves, taking on the concerns of the needy and sharing in their sufferings. This is the model Christ gives us—and it is leaders like John Perkins who show the excellence of their leadership by focusing our eyes on Christ.
C HARLES W. C OLSON
SPECIAL FOREWORD TO THE UPDATED EDITION
Someone once said, “You are foolish if you believe you can live in your environment, thrive, and not in any way be responsible for the environment in which you live.” I believe this person was right. For the past 50 years, my father and mother, John and Vera Mae Perkins, have lived in impoverished communities and have helped them thrive. Through their many years of doing Christian community development, I consider them to be the grandparents of a movement that is centered around the strategy and principles in this book known as the three R s: relocation, redistribution and reconciliation.
In thinking about what I was going to write, I thought about how inspirational the message of this book has been to so many people. As a child, and now as an adult, I would hear people come up to my daddy and tell him how With Justice for All and Let Justice Roll Down changed their lives or changed the path they were on.
For the past 50 years, my parents have worked as a team in building communities all around the country, from the little town of Mendenhall, Mississippi, to the dope-infested big city of Northwest Pasadena, California. Now at 77 and 74, respectively, Daddy and