Providing Christian resources from the YMCA past and present to nourish inclusive, equitable work in our diverse and global neighborhoods that build up healthy spirit, mind and body for all.
Provoking reflections for adults investing in young people: “Adults may have their longings, but they keep them out of sight, and somehow master them; and the more they have to overcome in order to live fully in the present, the more they will have the respect and confidence of other people, especially the younger ones, who are still on the road that the adult has already travelled.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer
How do you know when you are grown up?
What makes an adult an “adult”?
For all of us who work with youth, how do we measure success?
This paragraph below by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, taken from his Letters and Papers from Prison, resonates with me, in particular discerning the characteristics of becoming an adult.
But is it not characteristic of adults, in contrast to an immature person, that their center of gravity is always where they actually are, and that the longing for their fulfillment of their wishes cannot prevent them from being their whole self, wherever they happen to be?
The adolescent is never wholly in one place; that is one of the essential characteristics of youth, else he would presumably be a dullard.
There is a wholeness about the fully grown adult which enables a person to face an existing situation squarely.
Adults may have their longings, but they keep them out of sight, and somehow master them; and the more they have to overcome in order to live fully in the present, the more they will have the respect and confidence of other people, especially the younger ones, who are still on the road that the adult has already travelled.
Desires to which we cling closely can easily prevent us from being what we ought to be and can be; and on the other hand, desires repeatedly mastered for the sake of present duty make us richer.
Lack of desire is poverty.
Almost all the people whom I find in my present surroundings in prison cling to their own desires, and so have no interest in others; they no longer listen, and they are incapable of loving their neighbor.
I think that even in this place we ought to live as if we had no wishes and no future, and just be our true selves.
What is it about that quote that sheds new light for you the role of desires in becoming an adult?
In an era that idolizes being “young” and resists becoming “old” – how does this description of desires and becoming an adult subvert those idols?
Bonhoeffer’s lived experience and seasoned reflections as a Christian pastor and theologian – he died in a Nazi prison at age 39 – are meaningful to me, and have shaped my striving to become an adult that is fully present with my whole self.
For me, no greatness or gratitude comes from regret-dwelling on the past or day-dream living in the future; that usually only fuels self-loathing and depression.
If I don’t master my desires, it also undermines me becoming the kind of adult who takes genuine interest in others, who truly listens, and is capable and willing to welcome and love neighbors, strangers, and enemies, as instructed by Christ Jesus.
In the YMCA and our communities, in the youth work we do, in the collaboration we do with adults, mastering our desires, by God’s help, gives us freedom to become our true selves – not enslaved to our desires.
This is how we can all live richly and authentically in the present; it enables us to embrace the duties that God’s Spirit and society have presented to us in these turbulent days.
The Y decided long ago, wisely, not to make religion an expectation or requirement of membership or employment.
Loyalty to Jesus Christ is always about grace, about gifts and blessing, not about coercion.
George Williams and his eleven friends – and later Anthony Bowen, John Mott, MLK, Paul Limbert, Harold Smith, Carlos Sanvee – are evidence of what happens to men who do believe Jesus, who take a leap of faith and pledge their loyalty to the Kingdom of God.
And that is how Jesus is alive and well in the YMCA today, when Y staff and members show up desiring to embody the love and loyalty of Christ to whoever comes across their path.
“I first learned in Bridgewater”, said Williams, “to love my dear Lord and Saviour for what He had done for me…I was on the downward road…I said, ‘Cannot I escape? Is there no escape’ They told me in this town of Bridgewater how to escape—Confess your sins, accept Christ, trust in Him, yield your heart to the Saviour. I cannot describe to you the joy and peace that flowed into my soul when I first saw that the Lord Jesus had died for my sins, and that they were all forgiven.”(7)
It is undeniable, the role of Jesus in the origins, heart and purpose of the YMCA.
George Williams and the eleven Christian friends who founded the Y in 1844 did so out of their love and loyalty to the Lord Jesus.
As an Association it’s impetus for action was Christian love and loyalty to the Young Men in their factories and neighborhoods who were facing crushing inequities, overwhelming temptations to vice, loneliness and purposelessness.
Our history is centered on the real presence of Christ Jesus, a man who figures in the background of the Y and the foreground of our leaders throughout the many generations.
The Y logos since 1881
The “X” and “P” in the background of the original Y logo are Greek letters, religious symbols for the name of Christ in the New Testament, written in Greek and spelled XRIST – Chi Rho Iota Sigma Tau.
Was the simplification of the logo in 1897 a secularist removal of Christ from the Y or rather a pragmatic marketing move?
Considering the Christians leading the Y in those days, men like John Mott, Luther Wishard, etc, their work and words, attitude and lifestyle was the real embodiment of the “C” in the YMCA.
The reality is that Christ is present in the Y irregardless of what the logo looks like, for it is through people that Jesus does his reconciling work, not marketing materials.
It is undeniable, though, that the role of the “C” – of Jesus – has become more complicated and conflicting in the YMCA.
The 1960’s seemed to have changed everything. One could make the case that the Great War of 1914 broke the ecumenical Christian Spirit of the world, that the Holocaust and atom bomb of WW2 poisoned the global Christian Spirit, and that it took decades for these reverberations to unsettle and upheave Christianity in our American culture; the 1960’s were the unveiling of the brewing chaos.
In post-war 1940’s elderly John Mott is noticing the waning of the Christian mission of the Y; in the 1950’s the famous Christian theologian and Y advocate Emil Brunner is calling the Y back to Christ; in 1989 the revered 101-old Paul Limbert laments the lack of awareness of Christian principles and legacy in the Y.
The YMCA was affected by the 1960’s, and all that led up to it, and since then; in some ways the Y embodies the culture of its communities and countries – in other ways we influence it.
One example: The diversity of Christianity in the USA is found in our YMCA staff and members.
This religious inclusion was intentional, hard-fought, often resisted, but crucial to us living out our name.
What the Y learned through religious inclusion has been seeds for greater inclusion amongst our increased dimensions of diversity – not without struggle, obviously.
Christians have always been part of the push for inclusion in the Y; they are also ones who resist it.
That’s been the history of Christianity, it’s attempt to live out Jesus’ prayer recorded in the New Testament Gospel according to John “that they may all be one.”
As Christ’s gospel encountered different tribes and nations, the diversity of the Faith increased, and so did the complexity and conflicts amongst the Body of Christ.
You can see this in the by-laws of the YMCA:
THE YMCA IS UNIVERSALLY REGARDED AS BEING IN ITS ESSENTIAL GENIUS, A WORLDWIDE FELLOWSHIP OF PERSONS UNITED BY A COMMON LOYALTY TO THE PRINCIPLES OF JESUS CHRIST FOR THE PURPOSE OF DEVELOPING CHRISTIAN PERSONALITY AND BUILDING A CHRISTIAN SOCIETY. THE YMCA SHALL BE NONDENOMINATIONAL AND SHALL NOT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST ITS STAFF, BOARD, VOLUNTEERS, COMMITTEES, MEMBERS OR RECIPIENTS OF SERVICES BASED ON ANY CHARACTERISTIC OR STATUS PROTECTED BY FEDERAL, STATE OR LOCAL LAW AND IS COMMITTED TO A CULTURE OF INCLUSION AND UNDERSTANDS, RESPECTS AND VALUES THE DIVERSITY OF OTHERS.
It’s ironic: as Christians strive to bring the peace-full gospel of Jesus to more people, there sometimes ends up being more struggles and even chaos – hence the emphasis by the Y on inclusive fellowship in imitation of Jesus Christ.
The Paris Basis of the YMCA, the original document for framing how different Christians could work together across the globe emphasized “harmonious relations”:
“The Young Men’s Christian Associations seek to unite those young men who, regarding Jesus Christ as their God and Saviour, according to the Holy Scriptures, desire to be his disciples in their faith and in their life, and to associate their efforts for the extension of his Kingdom amongst young men. Any differences of opinion on other subjects, however important in themselves, shall not interfere with the harmonious relations of the constituent members and associates of the World Alliance.”
What could it look like now it for Jesus to still be part of the Y? Challenge 21 is a compelling strategy and framework, developed in 1998 in reflection of 15 decades of YMCA ministry.
The first challenge is: “Sharing the good news of Jesus Christ and striving for spiritual, intellectual and physical well-being of individuals and wholeness of communities.” Read more at https://www.ymca.int/about-us/ymca-history/challenge-21-1998/
Sometimes we think too little of Jesus.
Is Jesus like a little Christmas elf, lurking in our buildings to bless people? Is he a ghost that haunts our facilities with nostalgia for the glory days of Christendom?
Is he a severe judge condemning all the sinners who work out at the Y? Is he a cultural critic of the right or left?
Is he wringing his hands at the mission drift of the Y? Is he rolling his eyes at the crazy Christians in the Y? Is he a timidly permissive of whatever people want to do or believe at the Y?
No.
Whatever Jesus is doing in the Y – in our world – in our communities – in our homes – it is with and through people, for all creation.
And whatever Jesus has done, is doing, and will do, it will often be – to be frank – unbelievable.
Why do I say that?
Because that’s the general experience of people as recorded in the New Testament.
It requires a leap of faith, to quote Kierkegaard, to believe Jesus existed and is still who he claims to be.
On the face of it, there is an unbelievability to Jesus.
But George Williams and his eleven friends – and Anthony Bowen, John Mott, MLK, Paul Limbert, Harold Smith, Carlos Sanvee – are evidence of what happens to men who do believe Jesus, who take a leap of faith and pledge their loyalty to the Kingdom of God.
And that is how Jesus is alive and well in the YMCA today, when Y staff and members show up desiring to embody the love and loyalty of Christ to whoever comes across their path.
The Y decided long ago, wisely, not to make religion an expectation or requirement of membership or employment.
Loyalty to Jesus Christ is always about grace, about gifts and blessing, not about coercion.
History shows that Jesus is not bound to our expectations and will not be manipulated or coerced, nor will he require that of us to others.
The grace of Christ grants us an almost unbelievable amount of freedom – which is why St Paul admonishes us to use our freedom for good “all things are permissible but not all are beneficial.”
At almost 180 years old, the relationship the Y has with Jesus is complicated and conflicted, which ought not to be much of a surprise.
But no matter how many decades have elapsed, life with Jesus always require more trust, which means there always more room for doubt.
Our faith only grows when tested, which means we will face more complicated conflicts which give us the opportunity to increase our hope and reveal the resiliency of our love and dependence on God’s Grace.
Are there still Christians still in the Y? Yes.
Is Jesus and the Y still a thing? Of course?
Do we crave more certainty and security about the “C” in the Y? Probably too much.
Did Jesus come to make people comfortable and happy? Not really.
Jesus did come to be the light in the darkness, to rescue us from evil, to call people to join him in a ministry of reconciliation for the restoration of all creation.
That’s what Jesus is doing in the world, in the Y, with and through and for people – people who can be stiff-necked, hard-hearted, stubborn and rebellious.
Yet he faithfully, patiently, with great endurance overcomes evil with good, redeeming it all by love, for those that believe it, who trust that this is what God is doing in the world through Jesus.
Sometimes Christ is in the background of our Y, like in that first logo; sometimes you can’t see him in obvious ways, like our current logo.
But since it’s by faith, through grace, that Jesus fulfills God’s will in the world, may we choose to believe that Christ is in the Y, that he is mysteriously present in the background and foreground leading us – the complicated and conflicted people that we are – into his promised future, where there is flourishing for all.
Here is how Carlos Sanvee authentically puts it, our World YMCA Secretary-General, in his 2021 Easter message to the Y:
I also realised how my faith in Jesus aligned with my African understanding of Ubuntu: that a person is a person only through other people; and that I am, because you are.
The YMCA taught me triangles and trinities: of the interlinkage of body, mind and spirit; and the interrelation of me, my neighbour and God.
So my work has always been my faith, and my faith has always been my work.
The core of my faith is to endeavour to accept and understand the unconditional love of God, shown to us at Easter. And my work is to try and share that love.
Jesus poured himself out in love and service. He preached and he lived the social gospel. He bridged the divides in society, and he reconciled us to God and to each other.
We in the YMCA are called to do the same.
Carlos Sanvee, https://www.ymca.int/eastermessage/
A brief reflection on the difficulty of Christian leadership, of sustaining hope while caught up in the chaotic whirlwinds of life these days, inspired by the life and writings of Henri Nouwen, who writes: a Christian leader is a man of hope amidst chaos, a woman whose strength in the final analysis is based neither on self-confidence derived from his personality nor on her specific expectations for the future, but on a promise given by Christ Jesus.
Indeed the paradox of Christian leadership is that the way out is the way in, that only by entering into communion with the suffering Christ and the chaos of hurting humanity in your midst, can hope and any sense of relief be found.
adapted from Henri Nouwen, The Wounded Healer, p77
In the YMCA, in the church, in the community, there is a great need for leaders who can sustain hope, goodness and solidarity amidst the upheavals, violence and even abuse throughout the world.
But it gets tiring, there is too much information to process, too many people to help, too much complexity and ambiguity in each situation. How to do what is right, how to make a difference for the better, how to help heal when so much is uncertain, shaky and even dark?
Henri Nouwen’s little book The Wounded Healer, is a continual fount of wisdom and encouragement in these difficult days of leading and serving.
May these quotes from his chapter on “Ministry To A Hopeless Man: Waiting For Tomorrow” provide some needed perspective on how to be a Christian leader of hope amidst chaos.
For hope makes it possible to look beyond the fulfillment of urgent wishes and pressing desires and offers a vision beyond human suffering and death.
Nouwen, Wounded Healer, 76
A Christian leader is a man of hope amidst chaos, a woman whose strength in the final analysis is based neither on self-confidence derived from his personality nor on her specific expectations for the future, but on a promise given by Christ Jesus.
This promise not only made Abraham travel to unknown territory; it not only inspired Moses to lead his people out of slavery; it is also the guiding motive for any Christian who keeps leading in hope towards new life even in the face of chaos, corruption and death
adapted from Nouwen, Wounded Healer, 76
Leadership is not called Christian because it is permeated with optimism against all the odds of life, but because it is grounded in the historic Christ-event which is understood as a definitive breach in the deterministic chain of human trial and error, and as a dramatic affirmation that there is light in the other side of darkness.
Nouwen, Wounded Healer, 76
Every attempt to attach this hope to visible symptoms in our surroundings becomes a temptation when it prevents us from realization that promises, not concrete successes, are the basis of Christian leadership.
Many ministers, priests, and Christian workers have become disillusioned, bitter, and even hostile when years of hard work bear no fruit, when little change is accomplished.
Building a vocation on the expectations of concrete results, however conceived, is like building a house on sand instead of on solid rock and even takes away the ability to accept successes as free gifts.
Hope prevents us from clinging to what we have and frees us to move away from the safe place and enter the unknown and fearful territory.
It is an act of discipleship in which we follow the hard road of Christ, who enters death with nothing but bare hop.
Nouwen, Wounded Healer, 76-77
…it has become clear that Christian leadership is accomplished only through service.
This service requires the willingness to enter into a situation, with all the human vulnerabilities a human has to share with one another.
This is a painful and self-denying experience, but an experience which can lead a woman out of her prison of confusion, a man from his chains of fear.
adapted from Nouwen, Wounded Healer, 77
For me, in navigating changes in my home, the constant changes in my work, the turmoil of our culture and violence throughout the nation and world, it is easy to despair, to give in to the belief that it is all cause and effect, that the forces out there are too powerful, there is not much we can do about “it” and we are just pawns, and that we are only standing in shifting sand when we try to make a difference for the better.
These quotes of Nouwen are timely, disturbing, and refreshing- it may not alter the reality “out there” but I am encouraged in my spirit, to trust in the presence of the suffering and strong Christ, who is with me, with us, and at work to restore and reconcile all things, in his time and way.
In whatever way I am called to lead, care and serve, I am striving to be attuned to Christ’s brilliant, persevering, and merciful work in the world he loves and holds together.
This is a way my hope as a Christian leader is sustained amidst the suffering and chaos within and around me.
