Where are the churches?

Where are the churches, indeed.

I would like to congratulate our local Christian churches for giving me yet another reason why I have chosen to walk away from my faith.

The past seven years has been tough for those, like me, in the Christian faith. I have seen Christians, even in Canada, support a racist, bigoted, misogynistic strongman politician who clearly is manipulating them for his own means and has spawned replicas. Shockingly, these Christians desire the same thing in Canada.

I have seen Christians increasingly confuse their conservative politics with their faith which, with a mere iota of thought, they would realize the two are diametrically opposed.

I have seen Christians deceived by conspiracy theories around COVID-19 and refuse to do the very simplest of things Jesus taught, which was to care for others before yourself.

I have seen an increase in hatred coming out of the church around women's rights and bodily autonomy, and hatred towards those in the LGBTQ+ community, seeking to silence them rather than loving them as Christ told them to.

I have seen those in Christian-conservative circles take changing the term "woke" into a pejorative, yet failing to realize that, if they really read the Gospels, Jesus was very much “woke” and progressive and, dare I say, liberal.

I have had a Christian friend tell me to “take my liberal bulls#*t and get the f*#k out of here!"

Do I even have to mention Le Estcwéý and the horrors of residential schools all done in Christ's name?

The above examples are just some of the reasons why I no longer identify as a Christian. Why would I want to identify with a group so full of hate and anger and ignorance?

I will clarify that I know that not every Christian is this way but they are seemingly few and far between these days.

And, so, we come to the reason I mentioned at the start.

On Nov. 7, Shelley Joyce of CBC Radio played an interview with Glen Hilke, who, after a freezing, desperate night of gathering street-entrenched individuals into what shelter his group could find, including RIH's Emergency Room, asked: "Where are the churches?"

In other words, why have none of the churches offered to house, even temporarily, the street-entrenched community or those still living without shelter, in their gyms, activity centres or even on the pews of their sanctuaries?

When it was announced nearly three weeks ago that two of Kamloops' cold(-weather) shelters would not operate, why did none of the churches bang on the doors of City Hall, BC Housing the CMHA or (the provincial government in) Victoria saying we will house them?

Why, this past weekend, when temperatures dropped drastically, was it those like Glen Hilke opening doors and not the churches?

Is it security? Is it cost? Is it concern about damage? Is it too uncomfortable for the elders and boards of these churches? Is it too uncomfortable for the congregations to sit where someone might have slept? Is it optics and how neighbours of those churches will react?

It’s funny, I cannot recall any verses in the Bible saying help the poor, the sick, the widowed and the lame but only if it is cost prohibitive and you don't make "regular" people uncomfortable.

I would remind those of you reading that Jesus said "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40) Also, "Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do, yet fails to do it, is guilty of sin" (James 4:17)

I am no longer a Christian because of inaction like this.

I realize many churches support our marginalized communities with donations but if there ever was a time for our local churches to rise up even more, regardless of the cost and regardless of opinions, it is now.

Or is it just too uncomfortable?

Mark Wereley