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A Letter from Lowell:
The 51 students in my course on “Church and Community Analysis” are expressing the usual end-of-semester anxiety, but I am excited about what I’m going to learn from their term papers about their churches and their communities. My last two letters have told you about our research, forums, and dialogues on congregations dealing with the nightlife of the Lower East Side—especially the East Village. But what you may not know is that our interest actually started with student papers. Two years ago, Sheila Johnson wrote about how Father’s Heart Ministries on 11th Street between Avenues A and B had created a point of intersection between the “at-risk youth” of the neighborhood and the new consumption-oriented residents and visitors who populated the streets of this gentrifying neighborhood. She told how Father’s Heart had created the Alphabet Scoops Ice Cream Parlor, where youth would learn both job skills and life skills while making premium ice cream for sale to the newcomers who were transforming Alphabet City from an “urban village” to the East Village. Those who attended the forum on “Religion, Youth, and the Justice System” at Iglesia Primitiva on April 12 could see that many churches and community organizations share the commitment to youth that Father’s Heart expressed in Alphabet Scoops. In fact, we (EOL) organized the forum precisely because we had recognized so much concern. Somehow, even as there has been a reduction in poverty and crime, it appears that many youth are still being left behind, left out, left without the connections needed to be in a sustaining community. Rev. Alfonso Wyatt of the Fund for the City of New York led a wonderful panel and audience in a lively discussion of strategies for bringing youth into the relationships a healthy community offers. Watch for a video report on this forum at www.ecologiesoflearning.org. Two other student papers also lured us deep into the Lower East Side. Debbie Gibson took us to Middle Collegiate Church, showing how it has literally grown with the East Village arts scene by incorporating the arts and welcoming the artists into the life of the church—with the result that it is now at once a gallery, a dining room, a stage, a school—and a worshiping community. And Pam Chisholm showed how the mostly black members and clergy of the historic Mariner’s Temple Baptist Church, seek to understand the huge changes in urban structure—the rapid expansion of Chinatown around them, the impact of 9-11, the gentrification of the classic immigrant neighborhood. Together, these three students pointed toward the radical restructuring that is happening in the Lower East Side under the impact of real estate markets that mainly serve Wall Street and Midtown workers. And they gave us three important examples of churches making a difference in response. We have been adding to their insights ever since. Sincerely, |
Each Block Differs: Congregations & "Night Culture" :
The East Village is one of New York City’s centers for live music with venues devoted to every kind of music from punk to folk music, jazz to opera. It has its own Theater District, with 14 theaters and theatrical companies on East 4th Street. St. Mark’s Place is a world unto itself in evening entertainment and the block from Second to Third Avenue has 7 late night tattoo parlors along with a wide assortment of clubs. Since the summer of 2005, the Ecologies of Learning team has been studying communities of faith in the East Village. EOL’s research on the neighborhood’s “night culture” has focused upon the interaction between communities of faith and these evening entertainment activities, which can easily overwhelm the neighborhood, particularly on weekends. The area’s 253 bars (including bars in restaurants as well as nightclubs) are more widely distributed over the 88 blocks of the East Village. But bars also have distribution patterns, with 83% of these bars lying on the blocks between Third Avenue and Avenue B. With an average of 2.875 bars per square block, 53% of the blocks within the East Village actually have two or fewer bars – relatively low-density. What sometimes makes life a challenge for residents and religious communities is the other 47% blocks have as many as 13 bars on a four-sided block. The density of these blocks forms an “entertainment district” for both residents and visitors that can result in a constantly high level of street activity during the late night and early morning hours. Next month, we’ll describe how the intensity of night culture has impacted religious communities of the East Village and different ways that congregations have reacted, influenced, or taken advantage of this evening vitality. |
Faith Based Institutions & Housing Development: By Sharon Carter Jones New York Theological Seminary, Ecologies of Learning Project (EOL) in collaboration with the Community Preservation Corporation (CPC) are a providing a half-day seminar on June 12, 2007 for church and other religious leaders considering options for housing or property development. This seminar is a follow-up to an event held in October 2006, Faith Based Institutions and Housing Development - Meeting Your Mission by Maximizing Your Options. Our goal is to help religious leaders explore the various options available to religious organizations considering the sale or development of their property. Over the next few months we will launch a joint project titled Faith Based Institutions & Housing Development. Through education, strategic planning, and real estate development, this project seeks to help communities of faith:
Over time, the project hopes to also provide a forum for on-going dialog where leaders across various denominations can join efforts in support of affordable housing and other community development initiatives that support social justice. This groundbreaking project is a much-needed response to the requests of communities of faith across New York that have been involved in, or desire to be involved in, real estate development. Some large communities of faith have made significant headway, managing community development projects and providing low income housing to help those most in need. Many others, unfortunately, have been cheated out of their properties by unfair investors, simply because they do not have access to information, and do not fully understand their rights – particularly their rights as faith-based institutions. Communities of faith seeking to develop affordable housing face difficult choices and a complex process with little help. The mission of CPC is to work with communities to build and preserve affordable housing through innovative solutions. Created in 1974, CPC has financed more than 140,000 affordable housing units throughout New York, New Jersey and recently expanded to Connecticut. This represents an investment of more than $6 billion. CPC currently works with several churches and non-profits to develop housing on church-owned property. CPC is eager to expand its relationship with communities of faith through the Faith Based Institutions & Housing Development project. This project has been driven primarily through the vision and collaborative efforts of NYTS President Dale T Irvin, and fits naturally at NYTS, an educational organization focused on urban transformation. The Ecologies of Learning Project, dedicated to helping congregations engage with their local communities through scholarly and practical support, is thrilled to be involved. I encourage you to attend our event this June (flyer attached) and to contact eol@nyts.edu with any questions regarding this project. Together we can work, in the words of St. Francis of Assisi, "to preach the gospel to the oppressed at all times and use words only when necessary.” |
WHAT’S HAPPENING "Faith Based Institutions & Housing Development” - Tuesday, June 12, 2007, Location TBA , 8:45am - 1:30pm. This seminar is for church and other religious leaders considering options for housing or property development. More information will be provided in the upcoming weeks. Please contact EOL Project Coordinator, Shirvahna Gobin (212-870-1208 or Sgobin@nyts.edu) with questions or comments, or to confirm your attendance. “Manhattan Religious Leaders and New York State Court System” Thursday, June 28, 2007, at New York County Supreme Court (60 Centre Street, Room 452 New York, NY 10007), from 9:30am - 5:00pm. The Interfaith Center of New York in cooperation with The Ecologies of Learning Project and Unified Court System of The State of New York cordially invite religious community leaders from Manhattan to participate in a free all-day seminar to learn about the courts legal issues of concern in their communities. This seminar is an opportunity for you to gain information & resources to better serve your constituents and to share any concerns you have about the Courts and the needs of your community. To RSVP, please call 212-870-9515 or email anushavan@interfaithcenter.org .Please leave your name, address, telephone number and email address. “When Urban is Global: Making the City your Campus” June 14-24, 2007. A seminar for seminary faculty. For information contact Dr. Lowell W Livezey, llivezey@nyts.edu |
