Base Ecclesial Communities and the Common Good. Andrew Menzies

An awakening of the Spirit: Base Ecclesial Communities and the Common Good. Andrew Menzies Abstract Across the region there are signs of a growing alternative movement that reflects the liberating essence of the Gospel and seeks the Common Good. This paper explores the wisdom offered by Leonardo Boff amongst poor Brazilian communities and searches for modern, contextual examples of these communities that are working for the Common Good. Base Ecclesial Communities have existed under the title for over seventy years. The idea of an empowered community offers insight for those concerned with local mission and takes us beyond structural problems of the church. This paper identifies Boff’s context and formational pathway and then reflects on some of the significant lessons that are applicable for our contexts, for example: giving ministry back to ‘ordinary’ people; freeing the work of the Spirit from organisational structures; the formation of disciples through regular formational practices combined with deep, local engagement; openness to new structures for ministry; and, identification of the limitation of current ecclesial models for mission. It explores the points of connection that Base Ecclesial Communities offer to those seeking the Common Good. Some case studies and references to the Association of Practical Theology Conference held in Suva, Fiji in November 2018 are included. Introduction For many thousands of years, the area of Karlkula or Kulgooluh1, was inhabited solely by Wangkatha people. Wangkatha is a term that denotes something like a nation and incorporates eight tribal and language groups. To early European eyes, the Kulgooluh area was observed as semi-arid and generally uninhabitable, yet these First Nation peoples inhabited the land harmoniously, lawfully and sustainably for tens of thousands of years. 1 Karlkula or Kulgooluh means ‘Place of the silky pears’, which refers to a native bush banana plant formerly known as Marsdenia australis. 1 In June 1893, two gold prospectors were travelling to Mount Youle, in central-southern Western Australia. Like most prospectors, rumours of gold sightings had drawn the two in search of fame and fortune. About a day’s journey short of Mount Youle, one of the horses cast a shoe. They stopped to refit the shoe when they noticed signs of gold all around them. One of the men, Patrick (Paddy) Hannan filed a Reward Claim with the authorities and named the area ‘Hannan’s Find’. His action saw hundreds of people flood to the vicinity and soon the name Kulgooluh became Kalgoorlie, built along Hannan Street. The traditional owners of the land were quickly dispossessed or forced into low-paid, back- breaking labourer roles as large tunnels and quarries were commenced. Along with mining came gambling, alcohol and prostitution. Racial tensions were apparent early on and there are many accounts of brawls and battles, however nothing would stop the lust for gold. The Wangkatha were disposed of their land and given few human rights. A gold-rush town was born. People arrived daily in wagons, on horse and by foot. Villages and then towns grew to the north as the seam of gold was followed. Claims popped up everywhere as the world’s richest vain of gold was uncovered. The scale of wealth for white people in the area was unfathomable. For the original owners it would take another 74 years until 1967 just for them as aboriginal people even be regarded as Australia citizens eligible to vote. Still today there are regular media reports of ongoing racial tension and social disadvantage for the original owners of the land. Aboriginal people still make up 7.3% of the population of the town, yet they share a much smaller share of the social and economic profits dug up from the town and the region. 2 Even today, 125 years later, the same deposits yield huge amounts of value. The local economy has thrived, which produced employment, services and opportunities. Since 1893, gold mining has enabled the growth of a well-integrated regional town with opportunities for shared prosperity, services, training and a diversification of employment opportunities for some. The main quarry is known as the ‘Super Pit’ or more formally the ‘Fimiston Open Pit’ and still yields about one billion dollars of gold per year. While gold mining has scaled up significantly, today there is less and less benefit for the local people and especially the original owners of the land. Mining is now a corporate activity run by companies with head offices in Australia’s capital cities far away. Mining is not a new industry. Indeed, the growth and wealth of several Australian towns and cities, including Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Ballarat and Bendigo benefited greatly from mining. Similar phenomena occurs across the Oceania region. Nauru’s destruction from the extraction of phosphate is infamous. From New Zealand northward to Fiji and across to Papua New Guinea and Indonesia miners source the large deposits of gold and copper mineralisation that naturally are created from the Pacific Rim of Fire. Other minerals are extracted also including base metals, bauxite, limestone/marble, petroleum and natural gas. Socially, much of the world is prone to the same story as has happened in Kalgoorlie-Boulder in terms of mineral extraction. In times past, a local church was an integral part of the hub of community life. There were rich layers of connection as people lived, worked, married and played together. There was little that was extractive about church or community life. Most activity was invested in the local and particular needs and patterns of the community. Many sports clubs, choirs, support groups, schools, hospitals and nursing homes were initiated by 3 the church because of deep local connections and awareness of need. It wasn’t hard to listen and respond to local needs because the church was deeply enmeshed. Modern forces including mobility, consumerism, entertainment, privatisation, individualism and the high cost of housing have decimated healthy local churches. Many local churches now have only one generation remaining if nothing changes. On the other hand, some churches have grown significantly. Driven by entrepreneurial leaders and packaged with specific audiences in mind, there is opportunity for church growth for some who elect to exploit the zeitgeist. It is these churches, propelled by their eye for success, that have extended their model of extraction to other locations often without much attention to serious contextualisation. So we ask, is God’s main activity concerned with the existence and perpetuation of the church, as an extractive activity? Is the challenge of our moment for leaders concerned with tactics and technical skill? This paper argues that there is much more at stake and indeed that the Spirit is already ahead of us calling us join in the renewal of our communities. The Common Good. Jeremiah 29 says, “Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” The prophet Jeremiah here announces the concern of God for the common good of the city, in this case Babylon. At a surface level, this text is concerned with the basic elements of planning for the future. Earlier in the chapter in verses five and six, Jeremiah instructs the Hebrews to “build houses”, “settle down”, “grow produce”, “marry” and “have children”. Each of these are examples of putting down roots and committing to dwell in a particular place. 4 These examples from Jeremiah introduce us to one level of meaning of the common good. This is concerned with getting on with one’s life, making plans and living as a neighbour. Placement in any locality introduces us to the daily rhythms and particularities of the neighbourhood. This is the level were people’s needs can be made known and prayer, assistance and solidarity rendered. Jeremiah’s language invokes hope, that there is a future. For the Israelites, transported to Babylon this was breathtakingly profound. As Alan Roxburgh observes, “The community of God’s people is invited into the work of seeking the well-being of the city’s neighbourhoods.”2 Concern for the common good requires that we attend to the needs and welfare of the city precisely because we are aware of the needs, through actively living with and listening with our neighbours. It is not about shrinking back into religious ghettos or making claims of persecution out of self-interest. Jeremiah reminds us that following God must include concern for the common good. Jesus invoked this tradition when he summarised the Greatest Commandments in Matthew 22:34-40. Western church life is often centred around a dualistic notion of mission – through evangelism or through justice. Ontologically, the application of either justice or evangelisation from the church tends to be applied for the church - either for its growth or for sense of contribution to society. Either way, when expressed from the church both tend to be insider activity. Roxburgh goes on to note that the language of common good, “Seems different from many contemporary understandings of being the church. In this sense, it is a way of life that stretches us to move outside and beyond our current 2 Alan J Roxburgh, Journal of Missional Practice, “Reclaiming the Commons: What it is and why it’s important.” (Issue 7, 2016). P. 1. 5 practices and habits about being the church. Such stretching is always difficult, anxiety producing and risky because we find ourselves invited into unfamiliar places where we may not feel safe or comfortable.”3 We commenced with reference to the Wangkatha people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as the West Australian Goldfields region.

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