"Oh yes, and I was tricked into eating goat and was offered charred bat," laughs Kim Lehmann, a 21-year-old Nebraska native. Knowing she is a vegetarian, Kim's newfound friends chime in with laughter. They are all participants in the pilot program of Global Justice Volunteers. All have just completed an 8-week mission experience in a Third-World country, designed to change the way they view the church and the world.
Unusual foods, cultural differences, lost luggage, faith-filled reflection—these are familiar aspects of a typical international mission experience. What makes this program different is its focus, length, and intensity.
Global Justice Volunteers (GJV) is a new program of the General Board of Global Ministries. It was initiated by the Women's Division and the Committee on International Ministries with Women, Children, and Youth, and it is administered by the Mission Volunteers Program Area. The GJV program is designed to enable young adults 18 to 25 years of age to have short-term experiences living and learning alongside people whose lives are shaped by justice work. Based on a philosophy of mission with—not mission to or for—others, the model is one of solidarity, accompaniment, and reciprocity.
Mission Volunteers works with United Methodist-affiliated agencies and ecumenical organizations that place small pairings of volunteers—usually groups of two—within grassroots community groups. There, the volunteers are immersed in the local culture, language, and customs. High school graduates, college students and graduates, seminarians, and others—both US citizens and internationals—make for an interesting mix.
Accepting the challenge in Micah 6:8 "to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God," the Global Justice Volunteers work with local people on the pressing issues that face their communities. Sites for the GJV program are in development on five continents. And the issues addressed include community organizing, conflict resolution, economic development, environmental justice, indigenous rights, land rights, labor relations, refugee resettlement, interfaith communities, and advocacy for women, children, and families.
In the rural communities of the northern Philippines, this means working with local organizations on environmental-justice concerns and land-rights issues posed by strip mining. In the streets of São Paulo, Brazil, it means working with the Street Children's Project to identify homeless children and connect them with their families in the favelas.
Over the course of a term of service—which may last from two to six months—local hosts offer ongoing education and orientation for the volunteers, along with opportunities for exposure, work, dialogue, and reflection. Rather than building structures in the community, participants work to build relationships, to make critical connections between their developing faith and specific justice issues, and to understand the root causes of social, political, and economic problems. Given the educational character of the program, an agreement is being negotiated with Drew University to offer transferable college credits for participation.
Like Mission Interns and US-2s, the GJVs receive a stipend that covers most of their expenses. However, volunteers in the GJV program are asked to collect sponsorships and to contribute $200 for each month of participation, as well as cover food and local transportation costs. Some scholarships are available. In addition, the program utilizes an internal stewardship fund whereby wealthier participants share support with less affluent ones.
At the close of 1999, GJV teams are serving in Armenia, Brazil, and Liberia. More teams are scheduled for 2000. Applications are received on a revolving basis, but there are deadlines for specific dates. Approximate dates of service for 2000 are: May 14-August 1 (deadline February 15); June 4-August 22 (deadline March 15); and September 11-December 14 (deadline June 30).
The Rev. Bud Heckman is executive secretary for Mission Volunteers at the General Board of Global Ministries, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 330, New York, NY 10115. Tel: 212-870-3825; Fax: 212-870-3624; E-mail: dheckman@gbgm-umc.org
Text and photographs copyright 1999 by New World Outlook: The Mission Magazine of The United Methodist Church. Used by Permission. Visit New World Outlook Online at http://gbgm-umc.org/nwo/.
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