Reaching Out
by Kathryn M. Jakabcin, Diaconate Aspirant from Calvary Episcopal Church (Hillcrest, North Wilmington), October 2009
“Outreach” is one of those throw-away words applied to many activities and intentions without a very clear meaning.
- We talk about hanging hats and mittens on a Christmas tree and distributing these to people who could use them as an outreach by our church.
- We describe our Wednesday morning Eucharist as an outreach to the persons who attend.
- We describe our community series as an outreach to the community because there is no admission charged.
These are, indeed, all examples of reaching out and are good activities that benefit others. But the word often just conjures up good feelings and helps us to feel proud of ourselves. We sometimes apply it to whatever it is we are doing that we feel makes others happy, whether or not it does and whether or not we are actually doing anything.
When I first started working after college, I was a social worker in the Bucks County Area Agency on Aging. I learned many valuable lessons during that time from my co-workers, leaders and clients. Among the best lessons was one from my supervisor, Ruth McCarrell. She was a fireplug of a woman with strong opinions, a soft touch, a sharp intellect and a huge heart. She often said in that giving meals, clothes and other provisions and services to the poor and needy, we must try not to be like “‘Lady Bountiful’, traipsing along the lane, doling out our plenty to the poor. They don’t deserve to be treated that way.” The people who needed our help, she taught me, deserved our help, having earned it by their very humanity. We must always most highly regard the dignity of the persons to whom we provided services and things. And the first step in doing that is to determine the people’s real and perceived needs – taking their perspective into first account – and then to love them by assisting them, as we are able and only to the extent they wanted us to do so.
Deacons are one of the four ministries of the church. The three ordained ministries, bishops, priests and deacons, are all part of the most important fourth ministry of which every Christian is a part – the laity. We are called by Christ “to love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves” – his invigorated summary of the Decalogue. We are all called to follow him and, in so doing, to bring good news to the poor, release to the captives, sight to the blind and freedom to the oppressed – that is our common Christian mission statement (Luke 4:18).
What deacons do is to take up leadership in seeking out need in the community and then in bringing word of this need to the church and working with and encouraging the members of the church to meet that need. Deacons are prayerful servants and servant leaders – that’s the crux of the ministry.
I will try to live up to what Christ has taught – and what Ruth McCarrell has taught me as well - and to try to do it more lovingly and effectively continually: to help uncover and understand the needs of the people in our area of the world – whoever and wherever they are – and then to bring those needs back to you – the people of God – and help and encourage you in working to meet those needs. In this we will all fulfill the mission Jesus set before us and will honor the dignity of those we serve.