Servant Leader

Dear Vincentian Friends,

In last week’s Servant Leader column, Dave reflected on Vincentian service and poverty statistics with an encouragement to invest in systemic change efforts to complement our direct aid. Let me continue that theme with some related thoughts.

Our Society has taken steps in recent years to provide material that can help develop our understanding of what those we help are experiencing. The work of Donna Beagle has been a very good introduction to poverty in the United States. To go deeper into the complexity of the problem, I recommend Matthew Desmond’s new book, “Poverty, by America.” As in his previous best-selling book, “Evicted,” Desmond provides a well-researched analysis of the complexities of poverty in our country today. You may find fault with some of his conclusions, but you will recognize the people and situations he observes.

In last week’s column, Dave pointed out that “It seems we can’t end poverty by spending more on it.” Matthew Desmond agrees with this observation. Desmond’s analysis is: “We can’t just spend our way out of this. Over the past fifty years, we’ve tried that – doubling antipoverty aid per capita – and the poverty line hasn’t meaningfully budged. A big reason why is that we insist on supporting policies that accommodate poverty, not ones that disrupt it.”*

Desmond reviews almost every aspect of the factors that create poverty, and he refutes many myths about the causes of today’s poverty. He does not lay blame on liberals or conservatives. What he concludes is that most of our efforts, though costly, do not really “disrupt” poverty but actually “accommodate” it – to the benefit of many of us.

What about our Society’s systemic-change efforts? These programs go beyond charitable aid to lessen the suffering. We mentor our neighbors to help them out of their situation and find jobs, housing, education, and healthcare. But, do our efforts really change systems, or do they just help our neighbors in need navigate the status quo and therefore “accommodate” the systems that create their poverty?

Desmond lays out the challenges in each of these areas in great detail with real life stories. We also have these stories. If we want real systemic change, it will require that we share those stories and advocate for changes that will “disrupt” how these systems operate to the detriment of the poor. Let’s increase our efforts to be voices for the poor.

Frederic Ozanam seldom, if ever, talked about poverty as an abstract condition. He talked about misery and injustice. Poverty, as we use the term today, is often reduced to an inoffensive statistical measurement. Ozanam wrote about our charity relieving misery, and he believed that it was the place of justice to change the systems that caused the misery he witnessed. (This is the same language Frederic’s contemporary Victor Hugo used in his famous novel “Les Misérables.”)

Matthew Desmond’s conclusion is that we still have people suffering in poverty because many people, including many of us, benefit from the system. That is the origin of the book’s title, “Poverty, by America.” It may be an uncomfortable conclusion, but it’s one worthy of our attention. I don’t find most of his suggested solutions very satisfying. They are broad in scope and not likely to gain traction. Matthew Desmond has once again created a work, however, that challenges us to take a fresh look at the problem of poverty. He does this by drawing on insights both from personal relationships with those experiencing misery and from research on the causes of poverty in America today. That is a combination of scholarship and experience that would have met with Blessed Frederic Ozanam’s approval. That’s because, like Frederic, Matthew Desmond has climbed the stairs, sat by the bed, and listened to the people experiencing misery.

Serviens in spe,
Ralph Middlecamp
National Council President

*(“Poverty, by America” — p. 137)

Years ago I bought some original comic book production pages of black ink on card paper, because I enjoyed the comics featuring Conan the Barbarian and other heroes as a young adult. I had them framed, kept them out of direct sunlight and otherwise protected my whopping investment of about 30 bucks a page. As I recall, the frames cost more than the art!

When I started reading comic books, they cost 12 cents. The books today start at $3.99 and may be $5.99 or more. Most aren’t even designed anymore for kids. A lot has changed in 50 years! If I had continued to read those comics for all this time, I would have spent thousands of dollars – and Batman would still be chasing the Joker. Superman and Lois Lane will still be together (they did finally get married), and Thor would still need a haircut.  The stories were never meant to end, but rather to keep me reading and spending my money.

I’m wondering if it’s the same with poverty.

It seems we can’t end poverty by spending more on it.  With the billions of aid from government and charities in the United States alone, the number of poor people remain stubbornly about the same. They are considered to be relatively better off than 50 years ago, but millions are still under the poverty line.

As Vincentians we remain hopeful, and we keep giving resources to our neighbors in need as we help one family at a time. The frustration we share privately is that some people we help need to return to us again and again, whether it be for rent assistance or food pantry support. We smile but it can break our hearts, and we wonder if we truly make a difference. We do of course, but perhaps to create lasting change we need to provide more lasting support. As the Society we can invest in building our capacity to serve, or keep spending on treadmill practices that move a lot but never really get anywhere.

Some Councils and Conferences have invested charitable dollars into systemic change solutions, designed to help families get out of that food pantry line once and for all. This strategy can be expensive when considered on a cost per person basis, but with a longer view of real impact the investment is a good one. Our Bridges Out of Poverty classes, Back2Work, and other employment programs, IMMERSION, and other reentry services, predatory loan aversion strategies, and financial literacy education, and so many other local creative programs, work closely and over time with one person or family. Yet that family has a much better chance of succeeding, not just now but generationally. That’s true impact.

Considering inflation and the cost of living, and our Society’s financial resources which also are affected by the same forces, systemic change makes sense. This does not, and never will, mean that we should abandon our signature Home Visit programs. People need help today, and that can’t be ignored. Allow me to offer two blended strategies for your local consideration.

One, keep Conferences focused on immediate help while designing Council programs for systemic change. Some of those who come for urgent needs can be recruited into the lasting solution resources, and Conferences can financially support the more regional, often more expensive, programs.

Two, re-think how we spend our precious local financial resources. Just as individuals spend some wages on today’s needs while putting some aside for retirement and education, consider splitting Conference resources (at whatever percentage you determine) into separate immediate and systemic change budgets. Strike a balanced approach between immediate and long-term solutions.

There are two notable exceptions to these strategies. First, sometimes a community is hit with a disaster such as a storm or a refugee crisis. These all-hands-on-deck times require urgency in both time and dollars. Second, we do not hoard funds for rainy days. It is raining right now for our neighbors! Saving to start a major program, however, is not hoarding.

While I am hardly a financial genius, I saved all those childhood comics and sold them to invest in a year of my college tuition. The original art pages I bought for a few bucks apiece are now up for auction and expected to sell for a return of several thousand percent! Our beloved Society likewise can benefit now as well as later, if we create plans and budgets over longer time horizons and keep long-range goals in our minds and prayers.

Yours in Christ,
Dave Barringer
CEO

Dear Vincentian Friends,

Last weekend I met Sister Norma Pimentel at a regional meeting of our Society in Texas. She is a highly respected leader of relief efforts for immigrants in the Rio Grande area, and I have long admired her work. In the next few weeks, you may see Sister Norma interviewed on national news programs because the situation with refugees on the U.S. southern border will receive a lot of coverage. Talking with her put me in touch with the human stories of suffering and fear that are often ignored in the political narrative the surrounds this complex problem.

Some have called Sister Norma the Mother Teresa of the Rio Grande, but I think she is more like our Blessed Sister Rosalie Rendu. Sister Norma is trusted and beloved by those refugees she serves, and she is also trusted and respected by border patrol agents and their leaders. (She tells me the agents all have her cell phone number and regularly call her.) Like Sister Rosalie, Sister Norma is trusted by the poor and is trusted by those who have the resources to provide aid.

Sister has stories to tell that humanize the refugee situation at our southern border. She emphasizes that you need to get close to the people to understand, and she believes that it is possible to protect our borders and still respect humanity. We Vincentians understand the need to get close to the situation and listen to those who suffer. We serve people who are without shelter, without food, and without adequate healthcare, and who are also portrayed with a narrative that fails to capture the real suffering and fear experienced by people living through complex, difficult realities.

The answers to migration, homelessness, unemployment, addiction, hunger and lack of healthcare are complicated, with people of goodwill disagreeing on how to respond. Frequently, however, the political narrative is not centered on finding solutions but rather on scoring political points and demonizing people with opposing ideas. Let’s not get caught up in this as we advocate for compassionate responses to the serious problems from which we see people suffer.

Sister Rosalie and Sister Norma are role models for us in their sharing of stories that show the human faces of those they serve – so that the real people involved are not cast as mere pawns in divisive political debates. We can do that, too, but we need to take the time to have actual conversations in which we listen to those we are helping. That takes some extra time and effort, not just talking to get the information to fill out an application or voucher.  When we do that, Frederic Ozanam says, “we begin to know the elements of this formidable problem of misery; then we have the right to propose serious measures, … instead of frightening society.”

In that same speech Ozanam gave in 1848, he also tells us, “when the times are so difficult, the problems so serious, the designs of God so hidden, how could the finest citizens not be divided and not bring to their opposite opinions all the passion of their patriotism?” There will be a lot of political news in the next few weeks that affects the people we serve, and we Vincentians will not always agree amongst ourselves about what should be done. Let’s be sure we always respect each other and work to preserve the human dignity of all who suffer – because in them we have seen the face of the suffering Christ.

Serviens in spe,
Ralph Middlecamp
SVdP National President

At the recent Vincentian Family conference hosted by DePaul University, we learned about how the Vincentian charism has grown in both size and impact around the world. From Vincent and Louise, through Frédéric and Rosalie, and so many others, to the Saints-in-training working alongside us today, we are a global force for good and charity.

It struck me especially how different Frédéric Ozanam was, and would be today, from so many others in his various professions. He was a lawyer, a professor, and a newspaper contributor/editor, as well as a husband and father. I’m sure that if social media were around in the 1830’s, Frederic would have been an “influencer” as well, using all available communications channels to spread his observations and ideas.

Ah, but that’s where the difference was made. The world then, and certainly now, is full of lawyers, professors and media types who like to talk, to complain about life and about others, and to offer ideas — always for someone else to do. Frederic stands out then, and now, because he didn’t just shout from the rooftops; no, he went out and did something.

While providing commentary and ideas is doing something at some level, putting your ideas into actions that help people, spread the Catholic faith, and engage others to join you is quite another thing. Maybe it was Frédéric’s young age, when energy and enthusiasm may be at our highest. Maybe it was the mentors and professionals such as Emmanuel Bailly who encouraged and supported his voice. Perhaps it was urging from Sister Rosalie Rendu, who provided practical outlets for his desire to help others. Or maybe it was the inner zeal Frédéric had to “do a little good” in his life, as he was aware of life’s frailties and possibly  of the short lifetime he had in which to work.

As a servant leader, Frédéric led by example. He went on the first Home Visits. He continued to speak and defend his ideas in public forums where he was at times subjected to ridicule. He met with Church leaders, including several Popes, to create and advocate for change. Along with his friends, he organized the meetings and the standards that would become the Rule to keep the initial energy of what would become the Society in front of others. He realized that while one person can and should do something good for the poor, real societal impact comes through leading others to carry on and expand one’s vision and efforts.

Is it any wonder that we promote this man’s Sainthood?

While the canonization process unfolds, we can promote his cause best by following his example.  The world today is full of talkers (and shouters) and writers, but is lacking in people to do the necessary tasks to help one another. As Vincentians we may feel relatively few, but we are mighty in our works and impact. Joining with nearly 900,000 Society members around the world, we are surely a force for good within the Church and within our communities.

The work is hard. What we see in poverty around us can break our hearts. Sometimes it seems that the systems around us thwart our efforts and even the opportunities of those they are designed to protect.  Yet we persevere in fellowship with our fellow members and in our seeing the face of Christ in those we serve.

We don’t just talk. We Do.

Frédéric Ozanam and his friends led the way for us. When someone responds to our words with “So what are you doing about it?” we can smile and carry on. And invite them to join us.

Yours in Christ,
Dave Barringer