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Consumerism and Stewardship: Solidarity with the Economically Poor
Chapter 5 from FAMILIES CARING
By James McGinnis
Several workshop models are offered here. The first two are variations on the "consumerism
and stewardship" theme, while the third focuses more directly on "solidarity with the economically
poor".
- The "Consumerism and Stewardship" session is generally perceived as helpful and immediately
attractive to a wide range of adults, who are often quite concerned about the
effects on children of TV, peer pressure, and other sources of consumerism or materialism.
Action possibilities, especially in terms of lifestyle changes, are readily available at all
levels of risk or sacrifice.
On a weekend program, this session fits well in the Sunday morning slot, especially if
followed by a worship service. The offering in the service can be related to individual and
group projects of the session. This session also integrates well with the caring for the
earth theme in Chapter 6. Our oneness with the earth and with present and future generations
of our global family requires a stewardship mentality.
Both inspirational and practical dimensions are important for promoting a greater commitment
to work for personal lifestyle changes as well as changes in the policies of economic,
political, and religious institutions. The activities are also engaging and often fun.
The key to personal lifestyle changes is to find joyful alternatives to a materialistic lifestyle.
The first version on this theme was designed by Kathy and Jim McGinnis. The second
version comes from Susan and Jim Vogt. Their version places greater emphasis on TV and
consumerism and includes a simulated experience of living on the "welfare budget". Each
can range from 1 to 3 hours in length.
- The "Solidarity with the Economically Poor" workshop was designed by the McGinnises and
includes several engaging stories of "service" and "solidarity" as well as creative skits on
how families can be of service and/or be in solidarity with the economically poor.
Model #1 – "Consumerism and Stewardship"
- Family Walk (optional for longer sessions)
Before or after breakfast or perhaps right before the
scheduled for morning), ask each family to take a 15-
session begins (especially if it is
to 30-minute reflective walk, observing
and admiring the beauty of God's gifts of creation. Symbols of that beauty can be
gathered for a table or altar display in the meeting room or worship area. Silence should
prevail during the walk. Afterward family members gather in a circle and each person
shares a short reflection or single word that expresses what the experience meant for that
person. A brief prayer of praise and thanksgiving might conclude the family sharing.
- Gathering Song and Reflection
There are any number of morning hymns of praise for God's abundant love and gifts of
creation. Also appropriate is the Quaker hymn "'Tis a Gift to Be Simple" (one version is
on the RAINBOW PEOPLE tape). The biblical reflection on stewardship might use selections
from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Peter 4:9-11, or Leviticus 25. This
should be brief. At this time the term "stewardship" should be introduced to the group.
One way of learning and remembering its meaning is to repeat several times in a chanting
style, perhaps holding an earth ball:
STEWARDSHIP
Sparing and sharing
as two ways of caring
for the earth and all of God's people.
- Values Dilemma
- Share the following story illustrating a dilemma faced by many middle-class families:
For his tenth birthday, Tom asks his parents for a new bike costing $110 at a local
department store. His two best friends recently got new bikes and he is tired of always
having used things. "It's my tenth birthday besides," he tells his parents. "I should get
something special." His parents are reluctant to say yes, knowing they can get him a
good used bike for less than $50. They feel it would be wrong for them to spend $110
for one present. But Tom insists he wants a new bike. What should they do?
- Ask each family to take three minutes to come up with some "bright ideas" for dealing
with the dilemma and then solicit some of these suggestions in the whole group. There
are no "right" answers. If you are interested in how the actual dilemma was resolved,
it took a month and involved Tom's discovering that initial ideas for raising $60 (to
match his parents' $50 contribution) did not work out. He found a good used bike, but
added some new parts for a final assembly that his friends thought was "awesome."
- What Are We Already Doing?
- As the first step toward "what can we do ?", , distribute Worksheet #14 to each family
and ask them to write out what they're already doing with regard to stewardship in
each of the five categories. Be sure to stress that they work only on the "Already Doing"
column, not on what they might do. That is for later. Families might compare lists
with others at their table, if time permits.
- Solicit their practices and write each one on newsprint or a blackboard, two or three
minutes for each category, considered one at a time. Encourage participants to write
down in the "Possible Next Steps" column ideas they hear that they want to consider.
- If time permits and the group is amenable, an engaging way of sharing some of these
ideas is to combine pantomime with verbal descriptions, that is, have the first two or
three examples for each category be acted out in pantomime, with participants
guessing the activity; this is followed by several other examples shared orally. Be sure
to solicit examples that incorporate "sharing" as well as "sparing" and that involve the
whole family, not just individual members.
- Family Next Steps
- If time permits and if the group seems to want or need some additional suggestions on
what families can do, distribute Worksheet #15 on "101 Ways of Living Green." This
means promoting respect for the earth and for human diversity and encouraging involvement
in changing social structures. Ask participants to mark those items they
are already doing, perhaps distinguishing those they do regularly from those they do
only occasionally. Then ask them to identify those items they would like to do or do
more of. These too can be divided into things they would like to do in the next month,
the next year, the next five years, It's best not to overwhelm people by suggesting that
they should be doing dozens of new things at once.
- A simpler variation would be to have families make a decision on their next step(s)
from what was shared in Step #4 and perhaps give "101 Ways" as a take-home for later
consideration.
- Dealing with consumer pressures (several options)
- Discussion groups on peer pressure
Divide into groups of teens, over-6's, and adults with preschool, elementary school,
teen, or grown children. Participants discuss how to deal with consumerism and its
pressure from peers, from relatives, and from the media on themselves or the children
they care for.
- A song and worksheet for teens and adults
- Listen to the song "Buy, Buy, Buy" by Doug and Jude Krehbiel (on their JOURNEY
WITH JUSTICE tape; from the Institute for Peace and Justice) and share in
pairs or triads initial reactions to the lyrics. Distribute Worksheet #16 on "Consumerism/
Stewardship for Teens and Adults", so that participants can review the
lyrics.
- Have each person fill out the bottom half of the worksheet as best they can.
- In mixed small groups of adults and teens, discuss some of the questions, insights,
and decisions each person came to in filling out the worksheet.
- Videos on TV commercials
(see pp. 73-74 below)
- Create Commercials
- Discuss how TV, radio, magazines, and advertisements encourage us to value
material goods as the most important things in our lives. Have the children act out
commercials they remember. Then have them think of things they enjoy that do
not cost anything, such as a sunset, petting a cat, playing with a friend, swimming
in the lake. Ask them to make up commercials to advertise these and perform the
commercials for the rest of the group.
- These could also be family commercials in which each family creates their own.
- Magazine Ads
Have participants, particularly teens, browse through teen magazines with a critical
eye for advertisements. Then they fill out a simple questionnaire:
- How much space is devoted to ads?
- What's the purpose of the ads for the magazine? For you?
- What's the pitch?
- How is it directed toward (1) women? (2) men? (3) children? (4) people of color? (5)
older people?
- In what ways are the images either humanizing or dehumanizing?
- Joyful Alternatives
- As a part of either a long first session on consumerism and stewardship or a second
session on the same theme, generate some joyful alternatives to consumerism. For
example, focus on the next major holiday or gift-giving occasion; then alternative ideas
can be put into practice right away, for example, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah,
Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, weddings. Birthdays are a good focus any
time of year. The discussion should focus on this question:
What are some alternative ways to celebrate (less materialistic, more person-centered
than thing-centered, ecologically sound, inexpensive, globally conscious)?
- If Christmas/Hanukkah is the focus, Alternatives (P.O. Box 429, Ellenwood, GA
30049) has some wonderful resources focused on the theme "Whose Birthday Is It
Anyway?", including the 17-minute video, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,
describing the commercialism of Christmas and presenting a wide variety of
joyful, creative, people-centered alternatives.
- Concluding Reflection
Slides of the earth or of specific manifestations of the beauty of God's creation could be
projected on a screen as participants read together the reflection of Chief Seattle, printed
on Worksheet #14. This reflection is also visually illustrated as part of the Building
Shalom Families video program.
Worksheet 14
Worksheet 15
Worksheet 16 |
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