MIchael carline-perez
Editor's Note: This article is part of a series featuring the 2020 Sacred Sector Fellows. Each Fellow received a host site placement, where they are conducting an organizational assessment and implementation plan, and then will apply the “Three P’s” -- organizational best practices, public policy, and positive engagement -- at their host site.
How many times have we left the church in order to get to church? It’s an unusual question, but it is an important one. It is an important question because the answer speaks to the foundations of what we conceive church to be. And, this is the question that started On Ramps Covenant Church. On Ramps is a healing community healing its community - where the healed become [1] the healers. It is a congregation located in the Lowell neighborhood. Lowell is adjacent to the [2] downtown area of Fresno, CA and is roughly two-thirds Latino, with half being undocumented. The median income is just under $13,000 a year, and it is believed that 75% of the residents of Lowell do not have a high school diploma. [3]
This congregation is diverse by nature. It is multi-generational, multi-ethnic, multi-educational, and multi-class. Their parish mind-set allows them the great privilege of focusing on the Lowell community. This focus gives them the ability to have strong relationships with indigenous leaders within the neighborhood. In addition to individual leaders, On Ramps works with various types of nonprofits such as Lowell Community Development Corporation and the Center for Community Transformation. In the past, it has worked with large nonprofits such as InterVarsity Christian Fellowship through the Pink House, which is a ministry of InterVarsity located in Fresno.
On Ramps has addressed several public justice issues in the past. It has addressed immigration issues facing the church family as well as the Lowell community. In partnership with Breaking the Chains, On Ramps has worked to address sex trafficking through spreading greater awareness.
However, with theology of place being so foundational to the church, On Ramps tends to specifically seek out the public justice issues that Lowell deals with. Part of this seeking includes a sacred practice called Impact Gatherings, which happen every third Saturday of the month. During this time, they review the crime statistics for the previous month and pray specifically on those issues, giving praise with the community when praise is due and grieving when grief is due. In addition to this sacred and regular praise and grief practice, the church goes into the community during this gathering as well. During that time, several things happen regularly including cleaning up graffiti, picking up litter, and prayer walks. An extension of the church’s theology of place are the Street Parishes. Street Parishes are On Ramps’ version of the small group. However, they have a unique twist. These Street Parishes take place in homes on the streets of Lowell, are hosted by residents of the neighborhood who have adopted that street as “theirs,” and are attended by residents of that street and church members who don’t live in Lowell.
I have the honor of serving this congregation as a Sacred Sector Fellow this year. As part of my fellowship I will set out to learn several things as well as be performing several duties. One such learning goal is to interview 2-4 indigenous leaders within Lowell to discuss leadership strategies. In order to lead the community, one must first sit at the feet of those currently leading it.
One of my duties is providing leadership to the Street Parishes and increasing their capacity and number. This will entail maximizing the leadership capabilities of experienced leaders and ensuring they are able to succeed in catalyzing love and healing for their street. Another duty that I will have is to provide leadership to the Impact Gatherings. This will entail planning and scheduling leaders to nourish the spiritual lives of the congregation and the neighborhood through God’s mission for public justice. God has a mission and that mission has a church. Impact Gatherings and Street Parishes are parts of how On Ramps interacts with God’s mission. It is an honor to work in these areas and to learn from experienced leaders within Lowell.
[1] Phil Skei and Rici Skei, “A church of and for the community: a case study of On Ramps Covenant Church,” in Out of Nazareth: Christ-Centered Civic Transformation in Unlikely Places, ed. H Spees and Randy White (Skyforest CA: Urban Loft Publishers, 2017), 322-323.
[2] “Mission and Vision”, https://www.onrampschurch.org/home
[3] “The Where”, https://www.onrampschurch.org/home
Michael Carline-Perez is one of three Connections Coordinators with On Ramps Covenant Church, where he has been an active member for seven years.
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