Justice + Mercy
at Citizens Church
At Citizens, one of our church’s distinctives is “Justice and Mercy as Worship”. This is not just a compartment of our identity, but rather a way of being and doing that is integrated with our vocation, social life, whole-self health, and spiritual growth. Visit our Distinctives page to read more about the vision behind Justice and Mercy as Worship, and the vision behind our two initiatives: Feasting with the Poor and Pursuing Racial Equity.
This page is a space for the Citizens Church community to discover the diverse ways that we’re learning about justice & mercy and engaging with neighbors on the margins, in order to make on-ramps for involvement more visible and accessible. We acknowledge that there are many ways to steward our privilege & presence, and we celebrate that there's a diverse array of on-ramps to help us take our next step in learning about and engaging with justice & mercy.
What next step are you being invited into?
Read more about the Values of Justice + Mercy at Citizens Church below.
FEASTING WITH THE POOR
Outer Circle (SFOC) – Pancakes in the Park
Originally part of InnerCHANGE, the Outer Circle has been entering into relationship with neighbors who live outside since 1998. We share pancakes, coffee, conversation, and prayer with houseless friends in Golden Gate Park every Tuesday morning. The cohort of volunteers also meets for weekly prayer and encouragement, and occasional trainings.
Ways to engage: stop by on a Tuesday; join the Pancakes Partners cohort; be a prayer partner
All-In Friendship
All-in Friend teams walk closely with friends on the margins in their journeys towards holistic flourishing: spiritual growth, housing searches, vocational development, medical care, social connections, financial planning, etc. We use the 3E Restoration Process to learn how to be in mutually beneficial relationships and move towards whole-self health together.
Ways to engage: become an All-in Friend or a Servant Leader Coordinator; become a Resource Coach (see below)
PURSUING RACIAL EQUITY
As a church, Citizens is committed to listening and learning from our neighbors and friends who have experienced racial inequity and injustice. We are asking the Holy Spirit to reveal our racism, help us practice repentance and confession, and empower us to live as people who have been reconciled to God through Christ and are now ministers of true peace, equity, and justice.
The framework that we are using in pursuing racial equity is a model that involves four components of postures and practices: outward, inward, corporate, and personal. “Outward” is focused on relationships, dialogue, and action, and “inward” is about God doing deep work in us as we learn new material and wrestle with concepts and emotions – both are important. "Corporate" refers to postures and practices that we pursue as a whole church community, whereas "personal" is about how we engage as individuals and families.
Here are some ways that we have engaged the intersections of these four components in the past, and ways that we hope to engage them in the future. Most of these postures and practices have been pulled from the Beyond Words Movement (a collaboration of diverse faith leaders that equips churches to pursue racial equity) and from the book, How to Fight Racism, by Jemar Tisby (a Christian historian, author, and speaker).
We hope that engaging with these postures and practices isn't about performance or accomplishments, but rather about pursuing a holistic approach, seeking to be intentional and thoughtful, being on a slow journey of growth and discipleship together, and prayerfully discerning and listening for how God is inviting us to engage.
LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS
FOSTER THE CITY
FTC supports churches in learning about fostering and walking alongside foster families. Citizens is grateful for all of the significant ways that FTC is working towards the vision of creating a waiting list of loving homes and reducing the waiting list of kids in need of homes. Cathy McIlvoy is the FTC advocate for Citizens.
Ways to engage: participate in an educational event; learn about being a foster family; learn how to support foster families
TURNTABLE
Turntable provides housing to youth impacted by juvenile justice, sexual exploitation and homelessness, in the development of healing, positive community & independent living skills. Turntable aims to see youth free to be themselves at every stage of their story, with the space to explore, create & succeed – this begins with home and a secure sense of self.
Ways to engage: mentoring; hospitality in a spare room; event organizing; marketing/communications
OTHER WAYS TO ENGAGE
Justice & Mercy Learners
We all have much to learn, but for those who are especially new to justice & mercy concepts and engagement, we facilitate article discussions, workshops, and church-wide trainings throughout the year to connect & learn together.
Resource Coaches
Each of us have passions, skills, interests, giftings, & experiences that we are invited to share with others. Resource Coaches come alongside All-in Friend teams (see above) to offer specific knowledge or skills to neighbors on the margins. What are your assets & strengths, and how might you be invited to steward them?
Vocational Support
Many people in our Citizens Church community already engage with neighbors on the margins through their job: nursing, teaching, working for a nonprofit, etc. If this is you, we want to support you in your vocation and provide helpful resources & encouragement.