Who is their God?

This is a spoken word piece with music exposing the hypocrisy of today's leadership in the United States of America.

The Dilemma

                                                      

                                                    The Dilemma

Corona-virus has invaded our airspace at an incredible rate of infection using natural selection attacking the most vulnerable in our population first. Virtual prayers being sent to the heavens are asking for this demon to cease and that we be released from the clutches of this damnation plaguing our nation and the world.

Even before this pandemic as one of the coordinators of the House of Love Soup Kitchen/Pantry I’ve often wondered how long we would be able to keep going. Sustainability is a formidable issue. I think this because we the leaders are now senior citizens, some with underlying health issues. We’ve been truly blessed because our volunteers from the community with both the soup kitchen and the pantry are able bodied men and women. We have three primary leaders left that are all seniors that make up the planning committee and now we have the monster COVID 19 that has complicated matters further. One of our senior leaders succumbed to this deadly virus. She had underlying health issues and was living in an assisted living facility when the Coronavirus reared its ugly head and pounced. We are praying virtually three times a day now to keep ourselves in God’s perfect peace that surpasses all understanding and that we will be able to stand in the face of adversity.

Part of sustainability is having resources. The foodbank gives the pantry food for the community. Our main expense with the pantry is renting a U-Haul truck once a month, and taking care of the Orkin bill (pest control). The soup kitchen is not aligned with the foodbank because of certain modifications to the building that had to be made before we could join in with them as a partner consequently the soup kitchen does not get food from them. The food sources for the soup kitchen come from Seton Hall University which is part of the network of college recovery programs that are across the country. These programs have student volunteers recover leftover food from their cafeterias and then disperse it to various feeding programs in the community. This food otherwise would be thrown away. We also get donations from the Hilton Hotel in Short Hills New Jersey. As soon as COVID 19 exponentially multiplied in our area and New York City became the epi-center, and New Jersey as well was being infected at an alarming rate all the schools closed down, as well as some hotels; Newark imposed a curfew which was quickly followed by orders to shelter-in. The soup kitchen had to be temporarily closed but the pantry is still in operation.

Even though the soup kitchen had to temporarily close God has been good to us. In a way it’s good that the soup kitchen is not aligned with the food bank because we are a faith based organization. We have Bible study before our dinners but it is not mandatory for people to attend, and we also have prayer before we eat in which participation is not required.  What I have found in my years at the soup kitchen is that most of our clients want to participate because many of them believe in God and are looking for consolation and comfort. Because of Federal regulations we cannot pray at the pantry, nor pass out tracts, nor engage in any kind of activity that might be perceived as infringing on our clients civil rights.

We enjoy having religious freedom at our soup kitchen though. Souls come seeking solace from a world that relentlessly beats them down.  I can hear the voice of the community scribe reading from the Bible, I Peter 5:6-7  “Humble yourselves…Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you.”  Issues…issues…issues…I’m homeless…got no health insurance…need to go in a  program…boyfriend abusing me…don’t have enough food for my children…tired of living in the shelter…and this was before COVID 19 that is now our reality.

In the midst of this pandemic from the depths of hell our country is being shaken to the very foundation of the sustainability upon which it was built capitalism being our economic system, and democracy our political system.  The organization Feeding America has always been here as have foodbanks all across the country but now they have been thrown into the forefront because so many people have lost their jobs and now have no income. Millions and millions have filed for unemployment but for many the process is endless and they have not received compensation. On our last pantry day we serviced about 161 heads of households and the food bank on the same day had a drive through pantry where 5000 boxes of food were given away.  This highlights the magnitude of the current problem of food insecurity in our country.

According to a New York Times article found at nytimes.com entitled Poor Americans Hit Hardest by job losses and amid lock downs…”thirty-six million people in the last two months have applied for unemployment; 39% of those who have lost their jobs make $40,000 a year or less as compared to 13% who make $100,000 a year or more.”  According to the organization Feeding America prior to the pandemic about 37 million people were suffering from food insecurity, or having a hard time buying food with all the other bills to pay. One foodbank network reported that typically they service about 32,000 households weekly but since the unemployment crisis these numbers have increased by 26,000 people needing food assistance.

Many of the iniquities in our system are being exposed.  Why have minorities and immigrants been hit the hardest? There is a direct correlation between health care or should I say the lack of adequate health care or no health care at all and our black and brown communities being ravaged by COVID 19.  In the Washington Post an article entitled Democracy Dies in Darkness found at nypost.com states “As the novel Coronavirus sweeps across the United States it appears to be killing black Americans at a disproportionately high rate…”  In a survey done by John Hopkins University and participating state health departments it was found that “counties that are majority black have three times the rate of infection and almost six times the rate of death as counties where white residents are in the majority.” The information was taken from a sampling of counties most of the states being in the east.  It is a known health fact diabetes, blood pressure, and heart disease plague the black community. Once again these trends point directly to the inequities in our health system.

Perennials blooming yet in May we still have 32 degree days.  Nature is gathering all her forces to take a leap of faith knowing that God is in control of all that is natural and beautiful on earth and in our universe.  The brilliant colors splashed across the sky at the beginning of a new day announcing new beginnings…the strength found in the solid rock mountains of his creation weathering the storms of life…the tides of the ocean controlled by the moon, the sun, and gravity as human beings go about their lives daily.  Yet now we have been stopped in our tracks, constantly having to wear masks, and sheltering-in has become an intricate part in saving our lives…at the same time as states announce plans to open up mustering up our forces and our courage as we are adapting to a new reality.

In February my concern was how much longer the leadership of the House of Love Soup Kitchen/Pantry would be able to sustain our program. But in walked COVID 19 and sustainability took on new dimensions and we became infused with God’s limitless energy as we witnessed the crushing financial blow overwhelming our community reminding us that we are the people of God… the senior citizen leadership…In my mind I can hear our community scribe reading Galatians 6:9 “And let us not to be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”  As long as food insecurity exists in our community God will provide and make a way that even in these devastating times his light will continue to shine at the House of Love Soup Kitchen/Pantry located in Newark, NJ.

                                                                                                 

Back into the Light

                          

Days of darkness have invaded the light in the fight for justice for all.  Ego-centrism moved into the white house and has donned the face of racism espousing the hate that is so innate in the souls of many of the people residing in this country…blood, violence, greed, an ugly part of their heredity.

Greed migrated to this territory holding hands with slavery and deception, double dealing stealing the land from the Native Americans laying down a “trail of tears” from the south to the Midwest celebrating  their lust and their hypocrisy boldly printing on their money “in God we trust”.

Who is their god?

Their god does not care about the sick, the needy, the stressed, the oppressed.

Their god does not care about the Statue of Liberty’s invitation to the homeless and “the huddled masses yearning to be free.”

Their god does not care about mounting health costs or pharmaceutical rip-offs…

Their god does not care about tearing families apart on the new slave block of anti-immigration which is spreading its vile rhetoric throughout our nation.

Their god does care bout destructive gases poisoning the atmosphere, or the disappearing rain-forest, or global warming which is a warning to all the inhabitants of the earth.
Who is their god?

The God I serve is the Creator of the Universe…

The God I serve is the God of Love…

The God I serve is Multi-Cultural…

The God I serve is a Provider…

The God I serve is a Healer…

The God I serve is the God of Peace calling His children back into the Light…Calling His children to unite, calling His children  to take a stand in the land of the free…to speak out, to shout out, to point out the hypocrisy of those that claim to be religious yet use God’s name in vain to justify their inhumane and ungodly actions…

The God I serve is King of Kings…The God I serve is the ruler of all things…

The God I serve has the world in His hands and there is no questioning of His understanding.

The God I serve is Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent…the God I serve is the Beginning and the End...let there be glory and majesty to Him forever and ever Amen!

A Senior's Song

The years have flown by O’ so quickly passing into the abyss of memory…gone…vanishing in time as the melody of the senior’s song plays on in my mind counting the days, the months, the years that Thou O’ Lord has kept me.

The sun relentlessly rises and sets on those in need, the hungry. It’s another community dinner day (soup kitchen). The House of Love Soup Kitchen has been in operation since 2008. We’re all eleven years older. Those of us who have been here consistently are now seniors praying our strength in the Lord. We pray that God will continue to give us the might to fight against injustice and enable us to endure so that we can be of service to the community that we serve.

It’s a warm day in May. Our soup kitchen is part of what is called The College Recovery Program, a network of colleges from across the country where the students gather food from their cafeterias. Ordinarily all food not eaten by the students is thrown away and this is delicious, nutritious food would be going to waste. Instead the students that are a part of this initiative recover the food and disperse it among different community groups that are servicing hungry people. According to the USDA Office of the Chief Economist food waste in the United States ranges from 40-50% of our food supply equating to around 160 billion dollars annually.. Our benefactor college in this fight against waste is Seton Hall in South Orange, NJ. When school is out though, we must fend once again for ourselves which we will be doing from now until mid-September.

Today is one of those days. We know how to cook, and with what resources we have we manage. Some of us are not well but we push ourselves. I know that part of my drive has to do with the fact that my son, who is now deceased, co-founded the House of Love Soup Kitchen along with another minister. Part of my drive is directly related to keeping my son’s legacy alive.

Sustainability in you O’ God has enabled me to maintain my sanity through triumphs, through storms, through sickness, through health, through financial instability, through insecurity, through the joy of giving birth, through death, and through the overwhelming sadness at the loss of loved ones.

We are a faith-based organization and we come Tuesday after Tuesday because we are trying to do God’s will: St. Matthew 25:33-36:

33) And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34) Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 

35) for I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

36) Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

In the course of our discussions during Bible study we often wonder if we are serving the same Jesus that those currently in control of this government say that they worship. Are we serving the same Jesus that the racists and misogynists say that they serve? Are we serving the same Jesus that the Xenophobic and the intolerant serve? Are we serving the same Jesus that the haters serve?

First, our Jesus would change hearts and minds to love instead of hate. Our Jesus is multi-cultural. Our Jesus through people would feed the multitudes and eradicate the amount of food wasted in this country. Our Jesus through people would heal the sick making sure that all have adequate wellness and health care. Our Jesus through people would eliminate the homeless problem by seeing that there was suitable housing for all. Our Jesus through people would see to it that those incarcerated and those re-entering society would have the skill set necessary to survive in this world. Our Jesus cares and wants to share our burdens. He loves us. Do we really serve the same Jesus as the haters?

The tables have been wiped down. The food is ready, and the salad is made. Dinner is about to be served. The people gather together and join hands. The community leader of the Bible Study leads us in prayer. Hope is infused into the atmosphere. Despite the dire circumstances of many the phrase “God is good all the time” jumps from breast to breast. Joy will come in the morning.

The magnificence of the sunset colors the sky as the sun descends each day in its majestic beauty proclaiming hope…hope in which tranquility trumps hostility forging a path of empathy, love, and peace into the hearts of man.

America Still Sings of Freedom

In the midst of nuclear insanity

In the midst of natural calamities

In the midst of hatred and harm crisscrossing the land

In the midst of hostility riding in cars emasculating our civil liberties

In the midst of blood spattered into the streets…

In the midst of people crying…people dying

America Still Sings of Freedom

In the midst of black lives Matter

In the midst of limitations set on Muslims’ immigration

In the midst of white supremacy poisoning the tender tendrils of democracy

In the midst of Native Americans wanting to save the earth from greed and destruction

In the midst of dreamers’ dreams vanishing in the wind

In the midst of chaos and confusion

America Still Sings of Freedom

In the midst of immigrant children being wrenched from their parents’ grasp

In the midst of the vanishing affordable health care act

In the midst of the oppressed screaming for justice from the callous and the cold

In the midst of the stranglehold of the school to prison pipeline

In the midst of the vines of violence choking aspirations

In the midst of mass incarceration

America Still Sings of Freedom

In the midst of earth’s disintegrating atmosphere

In the midst of conflicting attitudes towards a solution to pollution

In the midst of profits leading to the desecration of our planet

In the midst of socio-economic terrorism

In the midst of religious fanaticism

In the midst of man’s obsession with power

America Still Sings of Freedom

In the midst of the sunrise greeting a new day in magnificence

In the midst of the stars twinkling eminence throughout time

In the midst of intergalactic connections singing in eternity

In the midst of the courageous voices of the many standing together in unity

In the midst of joy infusing hearts of stone

In the midst of peace in search of a home

America Still Sings of Freedom

Who is My Neighbor?

“Love thy neighbor as thyself” a command of wealth for the health of our souls.  

Are we starting the day with a good morning to loved ones and to other people we meet on the way to our daily tasks? Do our hearts shine with God’s love in a world filled with misery and in our minds vowing to make a positive difference whether big or small in our communities?  Do we listen with empathy to stories of heartache and pain from those whose lives are drowning in a deluge of rain from the storms of life? Do we use soft words to confront strife… to diffuse situations always pushing toward the restoration of peace and harmony?  Have the hungry been fed? Is there shelter for the homeless? Do the sick have affordable health care? Are the incarcerated being educated to succeed in the world beyond the cement walls? Will the Statue of Liberty be allowed to continue to welcome immigrants with open arms to our country?

How long O’ Lord will mindless selfishness be the rule of our land? How long O’ Lord will the money god reign inflicting pain and oppression? How long O’ Lord will phony politicians and evangelical Christians wreak havoc destroying programs of promise?

1 out of 6 Americans face hunger

49 million Americans struggle to put food on the table

1 out of 5 children are hungry

1 out 3 African American and Latino children suffer from food scarcity

40 % of the food in America is thrown out every year…$165 billion dollars’ worth.  All this uneaten food could feed 25 million Americans.

St. Matthew 25:34-36 (this scripture is the parable that separates the sheep (true believers) from the goats (hypocrites.)

34) Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35) For I was a hungered and ye gave me meat. I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink, I was a stranger and ye took me in;

36) Naked and ye clothed me; I was sick and ye visited me: I was in prison and ye came unto me.

Yesterday was pantry day. People from the community gathered early in the morning in great expectation and anticipation of food boxes to quell hunger pangs and the shame associated with food scarcity in one of the richest countries in the world.  Friendly camaraderie floated in and out of easy conversation as the clients lined up to get numbers and check in with Oasis the latest technology in keeping track of the hungry. It’s summer time and somewhat muggy. Those who have registered camp out in the shade waiting patiently for the arrival of the truck which will come bearing gifts of meat, beverages, produce, dairy products, canned goods, rice, bread and so much more. Over eighty people go home with enough food to tide them over for the next few days.

How long O’ Lord before we learn to “Love thy neighbor as thyself”?

The Great American Food Challenge

Hunger, holiday season on  the horizon touching hearts to reach out and embrace love…turkey love…cranberry craziness…sweets insanity...empty stomachs teased…cupboards bare...hearts ache. Hungry people everywhere…poverty across America…no money for the basics…soup kitchens and pantries addressing the need to a degree. That time of year once again has descended upon the economically challenged to emphasize and make them even more aware of this acute condition.

Soup kitchen aromas tantalize famished palates waiting to be pleased on this day out of the year set aside to give thanks for thoughtful souls. Hunger a year around concern yearns for means to keep refrigerators full, and cupboards complete with the ABC’s of nutrition. Hungry children, hungry adults, hungry seniors plead for relief from this chronic condition.

The House of Love Soup Kitchen, a faith based organization, located in Newark, NJ served a pre-Thanksgiving meal to over 80 people on the 15th of November. What a meal! What a meal! Praises floated up to the heavens as blessings of turkey with all the trimmings came down and filled plate after plate…God bless the hands that prepared the meal...fried chicken, mac ‘n cheese, stuffing, baked beans…it seemed as if the choices of food would never end...God bless all those who were able to partake of this scrumptious meal…candied yams, tuna noodle salad, pasta salad, green salad and mixed vegetables for the healthy minded... God bless all those trying to make a difference in their communities... ice tea to wash the feast down and yes, pies and cakes galore. Lord we thank you for this day to ward off hunger…this day for the community to engage in an all you can eat treat with camaraderie and the love of God filling the air.

Where do we go from here? What does the future hold in store for feeding hungry Americans? Should there even be a scarcity of food in America?

• Feeding America Statistics:  42.2 million Americans lived in food insecure households, including 29.1 million adults and 13.1 million children.
• Households that had higher rates of food insecurity than the national average included households with children (17%), especially households with children headed by single women (30%) or single men (22%), Black non-Hispanic households (22%) and Hispanic households (19%).
• In 2014, 5.4 million seniors (over age 60), or 9 percent of all seniors were food insecure.
• http://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/impact-of-hunger/hunger-and-poverty/hunger-and-poverty-fact-sheet.html

Praying and asking God to guide, to protect, and to direct those involved in battling hunger…please God fill the stomachs everyday of those suffering from the great American food challenge and please God strengthen all involved in the fight against hunger not allowing us to “grow weary in well doing”.