Tag: Love

Defining YMCA Christian Principles: What They Are Not?

In our brand mission statement it’s not only “Christian principles” as a phrase that is taken for granted, but also the part about “spirit” – it’s as if these are too hard to understand, too out of date, or too powerful.

Context matters.

When a phrase doesn’t seem to make sense anymore, or it causes misunderstanding, or it doesn’t inspire like it used to, then it’s time to step back and consider what is going on, what has changed, and what to do about it.

If the phrase “Christian principles” is really as important as many think it is for the YMCA and our brand mission statement, then shouldn’t we invest more time in discussing it, reviewing it, celebrating it?

If it’s not important to keep that phrase, what all does that imply about who we are now and why we are here and what ought we to be doing next?

It’s obvious that meaningful phrases can become so common, so familiar that they get taken for granted, full of assumptions that everyone knows what it means. Of course as we know, what ends up happening is that no one is on the same page about what it means, and it fades to the background as a source of direction or unity.

In our brand mission statement it’s not only “Christian principles” as a phrase that is taken for granted, but also the part about “spirit” – it’s as if these are too hard to understand, too out of date, or too powerful.

There is immediate resonance in our culture regarding the phrases “healthy”, “for all”, “mind and body” – those show up on lots of branding documents in print and on file. Why the disparity?

Is it a matter of culture moving on, and the YMCA has to adapt, and we should read the tea leaves and acknowledge the obvious: the community does not need or want “Christian principles” or “spirit” work from the Y.

Maybe. I suppose it depends on what kind of organization the YMCA wants to be – are we a leader in our community or a follower?

Do we put our finger in the air to catch the direction of the breeze and run to get in front of it? Or do we look around and within and make a decision about what we can offer a community that is both resonant with who we are but also visionary in how we believe the community might become even healthier with us?

The Y has traditionally been a leader and a mirror in our culture; whatever is going on in our country shows up in a YMCA, but also: the Y innovates and problem-solves in unique ways that change the world. For example: basketball and volleyball; group swim lessons and group exercise classes; ESL classes for immigrants and night-school for day-laborers, Mother’s Day and Father’s day all have their roots in the YMCA.

“Christian principles” and “spirit” were powerful combinations for fueling this innovation, all channeled through the desire to be “for all.”

It’s almost unethical to split apart “Christian principles” from “for all” in the YMCA; they are so intertwined to almost be indistinguishable; you could almost say they are two sides of the same coin, inspired by Jesus himself as he prayed “…that they all may be one…” [John 17:21]

But, to help give some definition to what we could mean in the YMCA (based on our trajectory) regarding Christian principles, let’s start with what it is NOT (since that sometimes is an easier place to start):

  • Christian Principles does not mean Christianity (shocking, I know but here me out: no one is just a “Christian” – you’re usually either from the Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant tradition which each has it’s own distinctive and cultural realities for how Christianity is experienced and practiced – even “secularism” can be seen as a form of Protestant Christianity).
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: drawing on the most common and enduring truths and foundations of all the varieties of Christianities across the ages and generations (this is meant to be a unifying direction that draws thoughtfully on the strengths of different Christianities so that as many Christians as possible can participate in the Young Men’s Christian Association as meaningfully as possible.)
  • Christian Principles does not mean Christian Morality (shocking, I know, but again, depending on your culture and context, not all Christians agree on all moral standards, which have now have become very divisive).
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: the teachings and example of Christ Jesus that cross as many cultural barriers as possible that build up as much unity and harmony as possible; it also presumes that Christ Jesus is the foundation and living reality which gives Christian Principles it’s vitality and endurance.
  • Christian Principles does not mean Biblical Proof-Texting (if we had to have a Bible verse to back up every code of conduct or every value or every major decision, we’d have to keep twisting the Scriptures to support whatever is personal to us; the Bible is sacred and of profound value to Christians in the world including the YMCA, but the Y lets the local church teach the Bible and organize around it in particular ways).
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: drawing on the most common and unifying themes of the Holy Scriptures as a way for diverse Christians in the Y to put into practice what they believe and value such that their lives and those they are in proximity with experience transformation in spirit, mind and body.
  • Christian Principles does not mean Church-centric Decisions (how a Y engages a community has a unique dynamic and reality to it compared to a local congregation, and that’s okay – what gets frustrating and disillusioning is when church leaders on a Y board insist the Y act in accordance with how they think their church should participate in the public sphere: the Y is not a church).
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: reflecting on the kingdom of God themes in the New Testament, instructions that transcend the Y and the church, which point back to the larger work of Christ Jesus in the world and how the Y and the church can complement each other, work together in different ways unto flourishing for all (see the Paris Basis, 1855 and Challenge 21 of World YMCA).
  • Christian Principles does not mean religious dogmatics – what a YMCA is putting into practice is not about abstract religious ideals or carefully nuanced dogmatic beliefs – while religion and dogma are of existential importance for humanity, the Y keeps focusing on what we can do together for more healing and harmony as religious and dogmatic people.
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: paying attention to the various truths and wisdom in all religious traditions and honoring all they ways they highlight and enrich what is revealed through Christ Jesus and the Holy Scriptures – by looking for what he hold in common, we are also looking for maximal agreements and cooperation, not lowest common denominator for all varieties of Christianity and religions in the world.
  • Christian Principles does not mean putting our YMCA Core Values into practice – while the brand mission statement and the organizational core values have different centers of gravity for why they were created and their intent for influencing our movement, they are obviously highly compatible and mutually enriching, but they are not the same thing. Our brand mission statement is an evolution of the Paris Basis, Portland Basis, and the YMCA Constitution Preamble and Goals; our Core Values are a creation of a national YMCA leadership team to identify key themes around which our organization can collaborate that are deeply held in common through all religions and faiths. Again, it may seem similar to Christian Principles, but not the same.
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: drawing as many people together who care about and respect to some degree the Christian faith and way of life and together lead and serve in their community such that their labor of love enriches and heals for stronger and more resilient spirits, minds and bodies – and we’ll keep doing this work with anyone who invites us in, we’ll keep expanding the scope of our work, we’ll keep inviting in those who want to add to this calling, our posture is to be for all of those who want us to come alongside them in hope and practical programs.
  • Christian Principles does not mean categories for judging and condemning those we disagree with; while we humbly acknowledge that everyone has faults and everyone has their prejudices that taint their perspectives, we do not want to blindly lash out at those who we consider different or wrong.
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: a way to ground our passion for truth and grace in a strong foundation which goes deeper than the whims of a chaotic cultural; a way to put down deep roots to sustain liberty and justice for all; a way to gauge a healthy spirit, mind and body for a community and individuals such that we don’t have to make everything up as we go along; a way forward for all that taps into the depths of our humanity, believing we are all made in the image of God, that Christ Jesus is working unto the restoration of all things, and the Holy Spirit empowers with tremendous love all who would embrace it.
  • Christian Principles does not mean your personal preferences about religion and faith, it’s not pointing to just your own opinion on how people ought to live and behave based on what you happen to believe.
  • Christian Principles CAN MEAN: drawing on all that Christians have learned through the last twenty centuries across all the continents on how to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God in the Spirit of Christ amidst every kind of political and economic reality, amidst every kind of cultural upheaval and violent revolutions, amidst ordinary times and extraordinary chaos, amidst quiet neighborhoods and bustling cities, amidst seething hatreds and miraculous loves such that we can pour all that learned experience and wisdom into the complexities of our own day that we might create dynamic programs which build up a healthy spirit, mind and body for all.

Defining YMCA Christian Principles For All?

Did you know a Christian YMCA member used the phrase “for all” when he crafted the Pledge of Allegiance?

Walking through a YMCA during the busy part of the day includes sounds of clanking metal, thuds and grunts, but also laughing children, chattering adults, maybe announcements on the loudspeaker about child-watch, sneakers squeaking in the gym and depending on if the door is open lots of squealing and splashing from the pool.

It can be easy to take this kind of inclusion for granted: how many other spaces in a community have this variety of services to such a diverse collection of individuals?

How did the Y get to this point where they provide such a wide array of programs to a community?

By being “for all.”

These days “for all” is a volatile word, it’s easy to be uncertain about what it means, trying to put it into practice is complex, and definitions end up being ambiguous.

But it’s a crucial phrase.

Did you know a Christian YMCA member used the phrase “for all” when he crafted the Pledge of Allegiance?

American Pastor Francis Bellamy committed his young life and ministry to “liberty and justice for all” – a calling influenced by his leadership in the Little Falls NY YMCA, and he inadvertently inspired our nation to it as well.

When Bellamy looked around his community and church and saw actions and attitudes that were not right he spoke up and tried to make a difference; that’s a very dynamic interpretation of being “for all.”

The mission of the YMCA is to put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all.

The Y doesn’t wait around for things to go downhill before we step up – we try to be for all at the beginning, providing healthy programs for all the little children who come to us, their families and everyone else who wants to join us in spirit, mind and body: it’s a vital triad amidst our national epidemic of loneliness and heart disease, cancer and diabetes, etc.

But why is the Y for all? Why was Bellamy for all?

We state it as “Christian principles” in our mission; our YMCA Constitution phrases it as: “a common loyalty to Jesus Christ”.

The Young Men’s Christian Association we regard as being in its essential genius a worldwide fellowship united by a common loyalty to Jesus Christ for the purpose of developing Christian personality and building a Christian society.

This all flows from the original purpose statement of the YMCA crafted in 1855: “The Young Men’s Christian Associations seek to unite those young men who, regarding Jesus Christ as their God and Saviour, according to the Holy Scriptures, desire to be his disciples in their faith and in their life and to associate their efforts for the extension of His Kingdom amongst young men.”

Why does this matter?

Does your being “for all” create more freedom and liberty in homes and communities to love care and serve? What can motivate you to do this everyday? Sacrificially?

The obvious tension comes when we get weary of doing good and our liberties clash, hence the crucial commitment to justice for all.

Here’s how Saint Peter put it: “live as free people, but do not use your liberty as a cover up for injustice; live as God’s servants, for all.” [adapted from 1Peter 2:16].

For Christians in the Y and our country we seek to imitate Jesus who called us to walk with him, learn from him, serve with his heart, embodying his liberty and justice for all – here’s how Christ put it to his hometown:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty and justice for all the prisoners,
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor for the broken-hearted.” [adapted from Luke 4:18-19]

We don’t have to make up from scratch a definition of “Christian principles” and “for all” in the YMCA, we have a rich history to draw on, a strong foundation upon which we stand to shape our imagination for our context today.

If you were going to make up your own definition of “Christian principles” and being “for all” in the YMCA, you certainly have the liberty to do so!

But we invite you to use that liberty unto justice for all, not just in the Y but our whole community in spirit, mind and body using Christian principles on the way towards healing for the broken-hearted.

If you were going to try and start defining “Christian principles” and being “for all” it’d be wise to start with the context of our brand mission statement, Constitution preamble and goals, and the original Paris Basis.

A few reflections to empower the defining work:

  • “Christian” indicates someone who’s been observed in faith and life as a “little Christ” – not just through their own confession of Jesus as Lord but that others could vouch for them.
  • “Principles” indicates (via online Oxford Dictionary): a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behavior or for a chain of reasoning.
  • So: following Jesus Christ in faith and life is a fundamental truth and foundation of the existence and purpose of the YMCA. It creates programs for youth development, healthy living, social responsibility, gyms and swims in order to “put Christian principles into practice” – not the other way around.
  • But: Jesus makes it complicated – just as he attracted “non-followers”, so does the YMCA; just as Jesus welcomed, healed, loved, served anybody who came close, so does the Y; just as Jesus chose proximity with the world in joy and suffering (Christmas & Crucifixion), so too the YMCA.
  • If: the Y was about “holy huddles” or “God Squads” we’d have drifted into irreverence ; but when the Y forgets or rejects our fundamental foundation, we drift into irrelevance. We see in George Williams and Anthony Bowen, John Mott and Fred Hoshiyama beautiful and compelling experiences of the YMCA defining “Christian principles” and being “for all” in their generation: not irreverent nor irrelevant.
  • Defining both “Christian principles” and “for all” include intertwined themes of hospitality and welcome, sacrificial love and generous justice, freedom and responsibility, faithfulness and hope. They are not two separate ideas in our YMCA, they are they mutually inclusive reality, as seen in Jesus and the best of our YMCA leaders.
  • Should we have concrete definitions for “Christian principles” and “for all”? Depends on your context and rationale: is it to infuse them with living dynamic energy to fuel your service or to control the narrative and put them in a box to guarantee compliance?
  • What I’ve learned along the way: keep the conversation going! Keep experimenting in grace and peace regarding Christian principles and for all. Lean in to the dialogue in good faith and a hopeful heart. Be quick to listen, open to healing, empowered to love, serve and care for all whom God brings into your life.

What Is Christian About the YMCA?

It’s a fair question. Every generation of Christian YMCA leaders must re-earn the title of “little Christ” by how we treat people in the way of Jesus.

A problem that remains is the Y.M.C.A.’s name. The Young Men’s Christian Association is open to all. But many are either confused or put off by the seeming religious connection. The Y was founded on Protestant evangelical values; its mission statement says it intends to ”put Christian principles into practice.” The organization lets it go at that.

Joanna L. Krotz, November 17, 2003, New York Times

How much is different twenty years later regarding Krotz’s observations in her New York Times Community Icon article entitled: “Clarifying What Y.M.C.A. Stands For.”

Aren’t there still many Y members and community partners still “confused or put off by the seeming religious connection”?

Maybe if Krotz had expanded her research she would have found many Y members who are still drawn in and nourished by the religious connections?

But the article gets at a crucial yet still contentious point: are our founding Western European Christian Protestant evangelical values still valid, still resonant, still worth standing upon, and still worth clarifying?

If there is confusion or offense taken by many, doesn’t that indicate the direction we ought to go – move on, adapt with the times, and take on a new identity and values?

It’s worth noting in the NYT article there is also confusion about what the focus of the Y is: are they a for-profit gym or a urban child care organization? Are they for the poor or the rich? Are they a local or national movement? Ken Gladish, the CEO at YMCA of the USA at the time, deftly and admirably tries to explain simply in the article the complex variety of programs that the Y provides.

It’s not just our religious founding that is confusing for members and the community to see, it’s also confusing to see what is the main purpose and program of the Y.

But if we revisit the spirit of Krotz’s article today, what could we say is Christian about the YMCA, amidst an even more diverse and complex organization?

Our brand mission statement includes the phrase “to put Christian principles into practice through programs” – there is also in the constitution of the Y the phrase:

The Young Men’s Christian Association we regard as being in its essential genius a worldwide fellowship united by a common loyalty to Jesus Christ for the purpose of developing Christian personality and building a Christian society.

YMCA of the USA Statement of Purpose

In 1998 the Washington Post ran an article about the C in the YMCA connected to a conflict with the identity of the Y and how they are for the community. Here’s how Larry Rosen framed his understanding of what “Christian” stands for in the Y:

Larry Rosen, director of operations for the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles, agreed. “We define Christianity in its broadest terms,” he was quoted as saying in the Los Angeles Times.

“We define it as promoting charity and peace on Earth, things attributed to Jesus Christ, whether or not you believe he is the son of God.”

Rosen noted that he is Jewish and has been involved in Y activities since he was 7 years old. “I have not found any conflict with my faith in that participation,” he said. “The organization has never asked me to compromise my faith.”

YMCA IN CENTER OF DEBATE ON SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

For some Christians in the YMCA, this is not enough to stand on. Even as early as 1958, Evert R. Johnson writes a cover story for Christianity Today (the flagship magazine for neo-conservative evangelical Protestant Christians led by Billy Graham) titled: “The Confusing ‘C’ in YMCA”. He opens with these comments:

Returning to YMCA work in August of 1955, I was again confronted with the movement’s confusing “C.” I say “again,” because I had worked in various YMCAs, part-time and temporarily, while a student from 1948 until 1953. I say “confusing,” because I know of no other Christian movement which tries so desperately to define its Christian content in such general and inclusive terms, yet conclusive enough to say, “We are Christian.”

Just what kind of Christianity is this? Is it possible to have no formal Christian theology and yet be quite sure of what is meant by “Christian”? Can we be Christian by just saying we are, without reference to stated New Testament doctrines?

Johnson, CT Magazine, April 1958

He’s got a fair point: what is it about our actions, our attitudes, our character, our formal statements, our mission and purpose that reveals us to be Christian?

It also gets at a delicate, nuanced and existential conundrum: what exactly makes a person “Christian”?

Depending on your denomination there are different elements required. Thus it’s not really the YMCA that’s confusing, it’s Christianity that is confusing. Even within evangelical Christianity there is a patchwork quilt of confusion!

What adds to the confusion is that the YMCA started off as a sort of missionary enterprise to save souls, similar to what we call para-church ministries, it worked alongside churches and denominations at a local and national, and international scale.

And like EVERY SINGLE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY THAT HAS EVER EXISTED (please excuse my startling claim and I welcome examples to prove me wrong) what started off with successful evangelistic zeal then stabilizes, turns inward to nurture and strengthen their converts, institutionalizes in order to steady its foundation for the long-term while complexifying its work (evangelism leads to discipleship and fellowship and prayer and worship and outreach and administration and kids ministry then youth ministry then women’s ministry then men’s ministry then seniors ministry then young adult ministry then revival ministry to recover the nostalgic evangelism of their founding…).

What kind of simplicity and clarity can the YMCA still exude as a Christian organization founded in London on June 6, 1844, now in over a hundred countries with over 40 million members, holding together a culturally diverse organizational system amidst the most violent and technologically sophisticated century in humankind?

Obviously, the C in the YMCA is not above criticism. In fact, that’s a sign of its vitality, resilience, and energy: it welcomes critique, it is a public Christianity, it is out in the community every day being tested by every encounter with a member.

Most critics of the “C” in the Y are Christians who can’t agree on what the “C” ought to be like, and obviously many other critics of the “C” identify with other or no faith traditions. At least for Christians in the Y, let’s try to be critical in love, inspired by Jesus in John 17:21 alongside the Golden Rule and Great Commandment.

Also: the Y is not a church, so if a Christian only has a churched-Christianity kind of examples to draw in, there will be little imagination for the kind of Christianity that exists in the Y alongside churches.

Finally: too many Christians are too individualistic in their understanding of how to live in obedience to Jesus Christ, there is almost no thoughtful theological reflection of what it means for a non-church organization like the YMCA to embody the gospel of Jesus.

The Y is unique, which makes it prone to criticism from everyone; I get it.

So if you are a Christian in the Y, and you’d like to strengthen the presence of Christ in the Y, you’d like to see the Christian principles build a healthy spirit mind and body for all, here are a few tips for the future that I try to put into practice:

  • get thicker skin; welcome critique; foster the courage to be misunderstood…
  • get thicker theology; name your Christian tradition, know where your faith came from, see how you uniquely embody the gospel in the Y…
  • get thicker ambitions; the Y can be a front porch for the kingdom of God which is bigger than church growth or ministry success or organizational prosperity…
  • get thicker perspectives; Americans are addicted to simplification, reductionism, control, predictability and convenience, of which ruins our perception of the real Jesus in the New Testament and the complex ways the real crucified and resurrected Jesus is active in our world today…

What is Christian about the YMCA? It’s up to Christians to decide, and the decision starts when their feet hit the floor in the morning, and when they walk through the door of their Y: what kind of Christian are YOU when you show up?

When the fruit of the Spirit of Christ Jesus is obvious in Y members, the C is fine in the Y.

But if people can’t see or experience that fruit of the Spirit when they are around Christians in the Y, then it is worth wondering what is Christian about the Y.

From a Christian point of view, how many Christians who bear the fruit of the Spirit of Christ are needed in a YMCA in order for it to be a Christian Y?

Most? Majority? Simple majority? Powerful minority? At least 50? 40? 30? 20? If there are at least 10 Christians in a Y bearing the fruit of Christ’s Spirit, can we call it a Christian Y? Does the CEO have to be one of those 10? Or the Executive Director of a branch? Or a board chair?

What is it we want? For Christians to be in charge of the Y or for Christ to be in charge of you in the Y? Is it about institutional and organizational power or the power of Christ’s Spirit through us in the YMCA?

In closing, here is a series of quotes from a chapter titled “Jesus Needs You – Not Your Religion” in a book by Christoph Blumhardt called Action in Waiting (influential on Karl Barth and YMCA Christian leaders in the 1920’s-1940’s):

It is the task of Jesus’ disciples to put the nature of Jesus into action. This fact is generally not understood, since Jesus has been called a founder of a new religion. But that is not God’s word to the world. His aim was never to give us a new religion in order that we might live a bit more decently – in that case Moses and his law would have sufficed.

With Jesus’ simple command to the disciples the Savior is saying, “Don’t make a religion out of me! That which I bring from God is not a religion, for all religions are rigid.

page 48

When we approach God with our prayers full of self-love and self-satisfaction, when the aim of our prayers is to make our world great, our prayers are in vain.

The Savior will not allow himself to become petrified in religion. With this, he says, “There are some who make a religion out of me, a cozy haven, a state of bliss. It is the others who will be the living Christians, always open to change, always seeking something new, until the entire world stands there renewed.” So ask yourselves: are you ready to go for it, or aren’t you?

Dear friends, we must grasp how important it is to surrender ourselves completely There is so much Christianity in which hearts are not subjugated, so much religiosity that leaves people just as they were before. The way to serve Jesus, to go to meet God, has not yet been understood.

page 49

This kind of religion is false because it separates me from other human beings. I will have nothing to do with that! Jesus entered right into the human condition in all its ugliness. He united with people. He did not separate himself from us. In the same way I want to come alongside the lowest people in hell and not separate myself. I want to see who is finally deemed righteous, and whether Jesus is not greater than our righteousness.

page 50

The YMCA is not a church or a religion.

It started off as a dedicated association of young Christian men in 1844 London and it became a worldwide fellowship with a common loyalty to Jesus Christ.

It’s genius: anyone is welcome! Any kind of Christian (which is no small accomplishment), any kind of neighbor with no disregard for their religion, or any other form of discrimination.

Of course, the Y has not been perfect at this, we have much to repent, much to keep learning, and we know we ought to do better.

But for me, listening, confession and repentance, and making amends in the name of Christ is essential to our identity moving forward.

The early Christians earned their name through their loyalty to Jesus amidst affliction and persecution, flippantly called “little Christs” for how they cared for the marginalized, overlooked, neglected, abused, and forgotten.

Maybe every generation of Christian YMCA leaders has to re-earn the title of “little Christ”? May we have the courage and humility and endurance for it in our day.

In the meantime, let the criticism keep coming; it’s how we keep learning and growing in wisdom amidst these complex and traumatic times.

In closing, meditate on these words from our founder George Williams, addressing Springfield College in 1894, on the fiftieth anniversary of the Y:

Prayer and faith have won victories in the past fifty years ­but these may’be, -will be -as nothing to what shall yet be wrought through the power of Christ resting upon you. I sincerely pray that you may each be fitted with the Holy Spirit. Let it be the aim of each to be able to say, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

Courtesy of Springfield College, Archives and Special Collections
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