Table Talk

Come to the Table

Invite your friends, pass the cookies, and dig into Sojourners. Table Talk discussion guides provide a gathering place for communities to discuss issues of faith, politics, and culture—local and global. Table Talk offers a smorgasbord of questions (enough for four sessions, if you want to arrange it that way), as well as resources for further study and action. You bring dessert.

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Session I. Passing the Peace

"Prophetic Leadership" (p. 7)
"We Pledge Allegiance..." (p. 15)
"‘Patriotism is Not Enough'" (p. 20)
"Not a Just or Moral War" (p. 26)

"Overpower evil with good! Now that is a radical foreign policy," writes Peter Gomes. How are Christians responding to the U.S. plans for war against Iraq? Gerald Schlabach looks at Romans 12 and 13 as he explores what it means for Christians to call Jesus "Lord," while David Anderson outlines how churches are responding.

1. Do you find it difficult to "discern which of the many competing messages about Iraq are coming to you in good faith"? In what ways does your faith affect how you listen to the news?

2. How does your Christianity inform, or conflict with, your patriotism? How might you or your church affect the war debate on a local level?

3. How much have you heard about worldwide Christian response to the proposed war? Where might you be able to find information about this?

4. "If the United States does go to war...in the absence of an imminent threat from Iraq," Jim Wallis writes, "Christian proclamations of an unjust war will likely turn into Christian calls for noncooperation and nonviolent resistance." Would you consider engaging in faith-based civil disobedience?

Resources

Sojourners Online. Provides current news headlines and suggestions for action. (www.sojo.net)

The National Council of Churches. The "Season of Peacemaking" Web site section offers educational resources, anti-war statements by religious groups, links, and a calendar. (www.ncccusa.org/iraq/iraqlinks.html)

Pax Christi/USA. The Catholic peace movement offers resources for prayer, study, and action. (www.paxchristiusa.org/index.html)

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Session II. Let Justice Roll Down

"Who Owns Your Water?" (p. 34)
"Tax the Rich?" (p. 36)

The estate tax falls almost entirely on the richest 1 percent of Americans—so why has Congress moved to shift the burden onto those who can less afford it? Bill Gates Sr. and Chuck Collins explore the theology and economics of the estate tax, while Rose Marie Berger looks at the growing trend to put control of water into corporate hands, often at the expense of the poor.

1. Studies have shown that estate tax repeal is one of voters' lowest priorities, ranking far below tax cuts for those with moderate incomes. How might you act to help make the legislative agenda more closely match the American people's agenda?

2. A study last summer showed that while 60 percent of likely voters initially supported an estate tax repeal, the figure fell to 27 percent after those polled heard who pays the estate tax and how much it would cost to repeal it. In what other areas of politics do you feel that the public is making decisions without enough information?

3. Who owns the water in your district? Are there bids to privatize parts or all of your water service? Is this an issue your church or community could look into more deeply?

Resources

United for a Fair Economy. An economic justice organization co-founded by Chuck Collins. Gives updates on the fight to keep the estate tax—a battle likely to heat up in the first months of 2003. (www.ufenet.org)

Americans for a Fair Estate Tax. A coalition of civic, labor, social justice, faith-based, and environmental organizations. Offers legislative alerts, polling data, and sample letters to the editor. (www.ombwatch.org/estatetax)

Public Citizen. A consumer advocacy organization. Its "Water for All" campaigns offer updates, with action suggestions, for water privatization battles in the U.S. (Louisiana, California, Michigan) and worldwide. (www.citizen.org/cmep/Water/new/articles.cfm?ID=7557)

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Session III. ‘Let's Get Moving!'

"The Duty of Delight" (p. 42)

"This is a culture that nearly drowns people with meaningless consumer choices, yet leaves most of them feeling that they are powerless in the most important affairs of life—but that's not true," said Chuck Matthei. As Robert Ellsberg's final visit with him shows, Chuck lived these words in his activism, in his thinking about economic justice, and in his vibrant relationships with others.

1. Matthei asserts that we can always "keep hold of the only ‘possession' that cannot be taken away from us: our dignity, integrity, soul, call-it-what-you-will." What are the one or two issues in society that seem important, yet intractable, to you? How might you assert your soul in these cases, perhaps in community with others?

2. What wise storytellers have you known in your life? How have their stories affected the way you live? What lesson from your own life would you most like to pass on to the next generation?

3. What are one or two ways in which your life might be different if you never made decisions based on money or peer pressure?

Resources

Who Is My Neighbor?: Economics As If Values Matter. A study guide from the editors of Sojourners.

"Redefining Land, Capital, and Labor," "A Community to Which We Belong," "A Return on the Gospel," and "The Spirit of Work," by Chuck Matthei. These articles from Who Is My Neighbor? can be read at www.sojo.net.

"New Initiatives in Gospel Economics," by Chuck Matthei. An audiotape available from the Sojourners Resource Center. (www.sojo.net/resources)

The Equity Trust, Inc. A nonprofit organization that offers practical, philosophical, and policy initiatives, including loans (and occasionally grants) to community land trusts and community shared agriculture. (www.equitytrust.org; 860-376-6174)

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Session IV. A Wonderful Universe

"The Cold Reaches of Heaven" (p. 31)

Whether your own experiences with science have been wonderful or terrible, you'll find the enthusiasm of Nobel Prize winner William Phillips to be infectious. He's not only delighted by the "wonderful and interesting universe," he's also excited about doing the right thing in his relationships in church and at work.

1. Has reading about Phillips' view of creation—as a place where "amazing things" happen—changed how you feel, as a person of faith, about physics and other natural sciences? What previous experiences and cultural messages have shaped your attitudes about science?

2. Phillips and his family have chosen to attend a racially diverse church, in part because so many of his colleagues are white, as he is. In what situations have you experienced, or might you find, a "wonderful" and challenging diversity?

Resources

The American Scientific Affiliation. A Christian association of scientists with information about how faith intersects with various kinds of science. (www.asa3.org/ASA/resources/index.html)

SojoCircles

SojoCircles is a network of local groups that meet regularly to pray, dialogue, and build community in churches, families, and neighborhoods. Organized by Sojourners after Sept. 11 to discuss issues of peacemaking and social justice, SojoCircles includes groups from Australia to Wisconsin. Sojourners provides an organizer's packet with tips on meeting facilitation, resources for publicity, and links to SojoCircles around the world. Want to join? Contact sojocircles@sojo.net or call 1-800-714-7474.