Central Baptist Church: Opening the Doors of the Church to the Homeless

Central Baptist Church: Opening the Doors of the Church to the Homeless

In the early 1990s, teenagers broke into Central Baptist Church and used the gas stove for heat. That Sunday, during the Celebrations/Prayer Concerns time, a member of Central Baptist expressed concern about the security of the building. The following Sunday, a young woman went to the microphone to share her belief that the congregation was not responding in a godly way to the problem. As a result, the church began to assess the needs of its community, and in the process discovered the Main Line Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN). Central Baptist realized that they could make more of a difference by joining this consortium than by working alone.

This is why the third arm of Bethel Temple's mission statement, following discipling our members and evangelizing our community, is revitalizing our neighborhood in the name of Jesus Christ. Ministries of revitalization give community residents hope: "Somebody cares, and I can be part of the solution." By pouring love, time, skills and resources into the community, ministry staff at Bethel Temple not only meet pressing needs but give people a new vision for their future, breaking the cycle of despair.

One important way that Bethel seeks to stop the cycle is through extensive youth outreach. "We're not an entertainment ministry," says Rev. Van Dyke. "We've gotta be about something different." The difference at Bethel is that youth are challenged on many levels, based on a solid foundation of mentoring relationships with caring adults. Rev. Van Dyke talks about the various forms that this takes:

IHN is a national organization (with affiliates overseas as well), all based on the same pattern. A group of "hosting congregations" provides shelter to several homeless families (screened for drug, alcohol, or mental problems) for one-week stays on a rotating basis. "Supporting congregations" assigned to each host church serve meals to the families at the host church and help in other ways, such as with donations of clothing or school supplies. The program transports guests during the day to work, job training, or school. Each participating church contributes money for the salaries of an executive director and a van driver.

As Central Baptist's IHN coordinator organizes the 25-30 volunteers needed for the week that the homeless persons stay in their fellowship hall. Most are from Central, but some are recruited from other churches. Some volunteers work behind the scenes, setting up partitions for the temporary bedrooms or doing laundry; others spend time visiting with the guests in the evenings, eating meals together and helping kids with homework; others spend the night with the guests. [Jennifer] delegates and supervises the volunteers, plans the meal schedule with the supporting churches, handles problems during the week, and writes thank-you notes afterwards. Central's IHN weeks are exhausting for her, but she finds her involvement rewarding. "I cannot emphasize enough the good feeling that comes from working with the IHN. Getting to know the guests ... that's how you make a difference." Her commitment takes strength from "the biblical mandate ... to take care of others as Jesus taught us to do," and from her gratitude for the way God has blessed her own family. "I'm just human hands for a program that is God's," the coordinator says.

IHN illustrates the way that inter-faith partnerships often restrict the possibility of evangelism. Because IHN is an interfaith program, involving synagogues as well as churches, it has a spiritual character without being explicitly Christian. Guests are invited to attend services at the host congregation, volunteers lead a prayer before meals, and parenting classes include discussions of faith and values. Some of the volunteers from supporting churches look for opportunities to share their faith informally as they visit with the guests. However, as a host church, Central does not engage in overt evangelism. Instead, says the coordinator, "We show our faith in God through our kindness." She talks with guests about the role that faith has played in her own life - for example, how when she is stressed she gives her burdens to God in prayer. She notes that some of the guests already have a deep faith, and once guests initiated their own Bible study.

Peter (not his real name) and his family are among the guests for whom IHN has made a difference. The family had been evicted from their apartment after their fourth child was born, because the owner said their family was too large. They had been living in IHN shelters for almost three months. Peter worked a second job as the IHN van driver during the day, in addition to his night job as a security guard. His wife worked all day for a supermarket. Finally, they saved up enough to move into a four bedroom house. "I couldn't save enough money to get another place if the churches weren't here to help me," Peter said. Without IHN, they might have ended up paying daily to stay in a hotel. "I was glad to go to congregations, because they care for you. They help people help themselves."