Some ways I've been looking at the world differently.
God created people with disabilities on purpose as part of human diversity. Disabilities reflect the glory and beauty of God.
A common secular disability justice view: My body/disability isn't the problem. Inaccessibility is the problem. For example: a staircase without a ramp or elevator is the problem. Lack of listening or caring is the problem.
We need to listen to and learn from disabled people who are willing to share. They have a view of the world and a voice that shares God’s truth that we often overlook. (And not as “inspirational overcoming” stories.)
Building the world for disabled people benefits everyone. There’s even a term for it: the Curb Cut effect. (Curb cuts were made for wheelchairs, but they help carts and strollers too. Disability designs help people who are temporarily disabled due to injuries, and they help people even in a moment of situational distraction! (More history on this 99% Invisible podcast episode.)
I highly recommend both- Dr. Amy shares deep personal experiences and convictions from her own life and Bible perspectives as disabled person. Dr. Conner shares from deep research, many scholarly writings, and the positives and negatives of Christian missionary work.
Image description: book cover, a wheelchair is covered in flowers of all colors with a yellow background. Bold white text on top reads: "My Body is Not a Prayer Request."
Quotes from the first chapter
"I wish I was whole in their minds- enough to exist without needing a prayerful remedy to cast out my 'demons,' a full human who has something to offer other than a miraculous narrative. I wish I could be more than my diagnosis, more than a problem in need of fixing, as if my disability is only valuable if converted into a cure. I wish prayerful perpetrators were free from the lie that I am worth less simply because my body works differently. In each of these encounters, I come away feeling like my stomach has just dropped out on a roller coaster. I am confused by the way people interpret my disability as in need of "fixing" without knowing anything else about me. I am troubled that my body becomes public property they feel they have the right to control. I am indignant that this takes place under the veil of Jesus-following, as though they are the bouncers to God's table. I am hurt that I must justify my own existence at church.
"Belonging shouldn't have the admission price of assimilation."
Access InterVarsity is an accessible and disability inclusive space for all to belong, grow closer to Jesus and use their God-given gifts. Learn more about Access with this great video from 2020:
Urbana '22 Resources
This year, InterVarsity had our national missions conference with around 5,000 college students in Indianapolis, IN. After two years of online Zoom meetings with the national Access InterVarsity team, we finally got to meet our friends in person! We were especially joyful to spend time with Deb, who runs Access and has been mentoring us in many ways.
Ginger, Deb and Ira, arms wrapped across shoulders and grinning at the camera.
For two years in a row, I attended InterVarsity's spring break project on the Big Island (Hawai'i Island) in the town of Hilo. Rachel leads our ISM chapter, International Friends. We brought two different teams, first Sonoe, Risa and Sarah from Japan and Okinawa, and David, who has been raised internationally in a military family and studies Chinese.
Second year, we brought Feng from China and Jikai from Okinawa and Peru. We joined students from five different islands and stayed at our host church, Haili in Hilo.
Haili Church
This historic church is a famous location - maybe not to tourists! But historically, Haili was the center of a 1800s revival and grew to 10,000 members. It was possibly the largest church in the world at the time. The history of Christian missionaries to Hawaii is mixed- many terrible things happened. But also wonderful things happened. Titus Coan was an example of the latter.
The incarnation is expressed so beautifully
in John 1:14, "the word became flesh and dwelt among us." This is
what Titus Coan attempted to emulate. His love for the people was
expressed first by the mastery of the Hawaiian language and
secondly by his desire to preach the gospel to everyone living in
his district, which was around 15 to 16,000 all living within the
distance of 100 miles. In order to preach to everyone, in the fall
of 1836 he decided to make a tour on foot of his entire
district. - Hawai'i's Great Awakening
Homelani Cemetery
The second year, we made an unusual starting location for learning: a cemetery. The local kupuna (elders) taught us about another important Christian leader, Joseph Nawahi. Nawahi was a native politician during the time of the overthrow. He was a an excellent example of someone maintaining their kanaka (native Hawaiian) identity while deeply following Jesus. (This is in opposition to the historical missionaries who often converted people to white/European/American culture rather than converting them to Jesus.)
From Nawahi, we learn about the lokahi (harmony) triangle. He gave advice to activists who only focused on one aspect rather than the big picture. A believer must:
We enjoy reading the Bible in Hawaiian Pidgin - from the Aloha Chapter: "So now, get three tings
dat stay: we can trus God, an we can know everyting goin come out okay
bumbye, an we get love an aloha. From da three tings, da love an aloha
kine, dass da main ting, an da bestes way." -Numba 1 Fo Da Corint Peopo 13:13
Therefore, the man that truly loves a few, will love all, and the man that says he is aloha aina, [love of land] but rejects God - you can say of his man that his love is not real, deep, or true. That is how we recognize people who go around proclaiming publicly with a loud voice their aloha aina, but you can see beneath these false words there is a love that is worthless from these people, these people only have love for man. -Joseph Nawahi
Studying the Bible in Japanese
Still good advice today, especially for activists, politicians, and missionaries. Native activists do a good job reminding the rest of the world to love and care for the land.
Learning and Serving
Some aloha kanaka at Haili church: learning from the kupuna. These elders have been part of the Hilo community and Haili church for many many years.
We were joined for the week by InterVarsity's regional staff team: some of the upper management from Washington, Oregon and California. These folks were humble and hard-working all week. They laughed when I took a photo of them preparing tomorrow's sandwiches for the students. "You're the fourth person to snap a picture!" they said. Everyone feels encouraged when leaders work as servants.
Aunty Susie also travels to Hawaii every year to manage the kitchen for around 100 students and extended community: a mammoth task! Here, Sabrina is helping her fry spam musubi for lunch.
On community service day, our team worked to serve the church with some aloha 'aina care. We pruned the plants, especially the ti leaves, which have many uses in Hawaiian culture.
and weeded the garden area by the school.
Another year's project was preparing lunch bags to aloha kanaka those living on the streets. Rather than just passing bags out, we brought two lunches, so we could sit to eat together and learn about people's lives. Sonoe was pretty nervous about this project, but working together with friends and making new friends created a good memory for her.
Working in the Lo'i
The big aloha 'aina project for the week is a day working in the lo'i. Like a rice patch, kalo (taro) is planted in a pond.
We travel to Waipi'o Valley, the Valley of the Kings. As a tourist, you can see the entrance and this beautiful vista. We only enter sacred Hawaiian lands with permission. Our kanaka friends remind us, "It's better to go in through the gate then hope over the fence." Our wonderful hosts for this day were Uncle Les and Aunty Renee.
Every year, we clear off all the extra plant life gunking up the pond and also squish the eggs of invasive snails.
Yes, this work involves a lot of bending! But for just one day, the students find it lots of fun. And we keep positive with mele and oli (music and chants).
Then, the kalo can be harvested. First, you break the roots with your foot, pressing down all around the tuber with the side of your foot. Then it's easier to pull the tuber out.
Next the full plant can be harvested!
A worker (not a student) chops off the root, leaving just a little attached to the stalk. We remove the leaves for other purposes and leave a short stalk. Finally, the top stalks are re-planted, so a new tube root will grow.
The day ends with a mud fight!
Afterward, we wash off in the nearby river. Rachel demonstrated her ballet flexibility.
Waipi'o Valley was cut off from its water source for many years. Farmers in the valley lost their water from the Hiilawe twin falls when the sugar company re-directed the streams that fed them. For over a century, the sugar plantations (a thirsty crop) dominated the water usage on the islands. Only in recent years, the entire sugar industry in Hawaii has slowly shut down, with the last plant finally closing. Activists and educators petitioned to get the streams re-directed back to their original location, and amazingly it was accomplished. Now farmers can return to providing for their families and communities.
Kalo is a staple food in Hawaiian culture, like bread or rice is in others. Any culture with a yam staple will see kalo as familiar.
Kalo leaves and stems can also be used in cooking. The form is an inspiration for much beautiful artwork.
Baptism and Interpretations
During the second year, many came for baptism! Everyone shared a story about why this was important to them. My big role for the week was interpreting for our students. Unfortunately, I don't know any Chinese or Japanese, but I love to practice simplifying a story to make it understandable. (All of our international students are so amazing at English! They understand almost everything if it can be slowed down.)
I also like providing some visual aids. While Jikai and I talked about Elijah and the priests of Baal (see 1 Kings 18), we built a little altar out of rocks at the beach. The story had been shared at the Haili church service that morning, pared with an important Hawaiian story: Kapi'olani defies Pele. (Don't confuse the princess Kapi'olani in this story with the Queen Kapi'olani our community college is named after - two different ladies in different centuries.)
Princess Kapi'olani was an early convert to Christianity when the missionaries came. But her people were slow to change their ways: they lived under a fearful kapu system where many things were forbidden. Pele, the goddess of the volcano, would punish them if they deviated from the laws. Kapi'olani walked across the island telling her people that she was going to break kapu by eating the sacred berries and throwing rocks into the volcano. People were terrified that their beloved princess would die for doing these things. But she defied Pele anyway, and survived!
In the Bible story, the prophet Elijah conducted a test as well. He and the wicked priests of the god Baal both asked their gods to set fire to their altars. Baal was unable to perform the miracle, but Elijah's God Jehovah showed the true power.
Justice Issues
We also learned about modern day justice issues faced by locals and Native Hawaiians. One often overlooked issue is how environmental injustices disproportionately affect native and impoverished communities. Hawaii is a major tourist location, and this generates a lot of extra trash and waste. Locals on the Big Island specifically complain about the irresponsible way cruise ships like to empty their sewage near native homes. Those with money have figured out who doesn't have a voice and can easily be ignored. Likewise, the state builds sewage treatment plants, landfills, and other waste facilities near these communities. Thus, tourists get clean beautiful beaches, and people whose families who've been on the land for many generations get the trash.
We had a wonderful dinner at at staff family's home to learn about the Hawaiian Homestead Act, and some of the ongoing problems. The Act was created in 1920, and it has many good intentions. It is meant to provide housing for native Hawaiians on ancestral lands.
The first issue is a math problem: to qualify, a person needs 50% native blood. This can be difficult to prove, especially since there were many decades when natives were ashamed and hide their heritage in an attempt to assimilate. A person with 50% blood can then pass their home on to their 25% blood children, but then if the third generation is no longer at 25%, they lose the land. (Imagine pulling out a calculator as part of your romantic life to calculate the hopes of your future family!)
The second problem is the length of the waiting list. We heard from families whose grandparents have died waiting for a home. (And the suspicious circumstance of the paperwork coming through weeks after a death, when it was too late for anyone in the family to claim the property.) The state also sometimes chooses to give Hawaiian Homestead appointed land to businesses rather the families who are waiting.
Year Two was a challenging week for me while I had a bad cold. The first day of interpreting left me hoarse, and our international students told me to take better care of myself! I was so worried about them being confused or left out of all the wonderful conversations. On the evening we discussed the Homestead Act, the group mourned and cried out to God. Hawaii InterVarsity practices a lot of charismatic and communal acts that can seem strange to outsiders. I usually want to jump in and explain what's going on. But, I didn't need to worry. Even when not everything was clear, the Holy Spirit worked to teach. I'm not very charismatic myself but joining in mourning is a good spiritual practice that makes sense to me. I cannot personally understand the pain and struggles of another person or group, but the Spirit provides a small window of empathy so we can share a burden together, even for a short while.
This made intuitive sense to international students too, as they understand injustices taking place in their own countries. I'm also grateful to the students from other chapters who are eager to adopt internationals into their friendship circles! It was a good reminder for me that I don't have to be everything for our students.
As always, I am so grateful for this opportunity to learn in Hawaii, from locals and natives who share their wisdom so generously. Thank you for allowing me to be your guest.
You can read more from the links summarized at https://journeyhawaii.wordpress.com/about/ The Hawaii area team did a great job preparing this for students. I found it was great to keep reading after the trip was over.
I loved listening to several Hawaiian/Island/Reggae music stations while driving in Hawaii. We hear a lot of classics- like Aloha Oe by the Queen, or 30's/40's American influenced music like Blue Hawaii and Tiny Bubbles. Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's songs are special favorites, like Over the Rainbow and White Sandy Beach of Hawaii.
There were two protest/justice orientated songs that frankly shook me when I heard them. Here's the lyrics- I'll break them down for you.
Couldn't Take The Mana Recorded by Mana Kaleilani Caceres
Another road built on sacred land One more hotel gone upon our Birth Sands Where have all of our Ali'i [chiefs, leaders] gone Maybe they'll return when they hear this song.
Hawaii is a popular place for new construction, especially resorts and tourist attractions. There's also controversy over scientific construction.
They took the land, they took aloha [love] they took the Queen even though they didn't know her Suppressed Ikaika [strength] and then Kupuna [elders] broke the ohana, [family] but they couldn't take the mana [power] but they couldn't take the mana
Queen Liliuokalani was overthrown by Americans who owned large properties in Hawaii in the late 1800s. More on my InterVarsity posts.
Saying they took the aloha really makes me sad- it's still a huge part of their culture. Kanaka are very hospitable and loving. But, being taken advantage of many times damages that.
Another puka [hole] in the mountain Side One more bone move for a faster ride Where have all of our old ways gone Maybe you'll bring them back when you hear this song
I remember how things used to be My Tutu [grandpa] used to say as I sat upon his knee
We didn't need a lot of money, we didn't have a lot of things The only mau mea [things] we needed was what the Akua [god] brings Like the sunshine and the rain and the wind was so much stronger the life of the land must live forever and longer
Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono is a well-known Hawaiian phrase which was adopted in 1959 as the motto of the state of Hawaii. It is most commonly translated as "the life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness."
Another ohana [family] must move away the better prices and lifestyles so they say Where have all of our people gone one day they will return and sing this song
There's a lot of immigration, especially to Las Vegas (jokingly called "The Ninth Island") and also the Pacific Northwest.
He Kanaka by Ka'ikena Scanlan
Most of this song is in Hawaiian, but here's the English section of the song (which of course is all I really understood driving in the car.)
According to my name which is Elijah The one that I give praise to, his name is Jah Sorry I don't believe in your religion No offense to you it's just that I'm a Hawaiian Ever since the day you landed on my island Many of them passed away and many of them gone All of them giving the praises to your holy begotten son My people have to chant and sing "This is my song," I say... [Hawaiian lyrics]
I never gave my praises up to Jah Cause the race of which I came from was raised on Hāloa so... [Hawaiian lyrics]
"Jah" is a commonly used name for God in reggae lyrics. It's a Hebrew word for God, along with Jehovah and Yahweh. Elijah has jah as a root word, so Elijah means, "Jah is my God." (The singer clarifies in the Hawaiian lyrics that he also isn't into Rasta.)
Hāloa is the Hawaiian creation story. So, he's saying his people's stories can't be reconciled with other stories.
Queen Lili'uokalani holds the Kumilipo creation chant, her own music, and the new constitution she wrote for Hawaii. She was a Christian.
I don't blame anyone who would to reject everything from Christians, or everything from Americans. Yet, I'm grateful to the Native Hawaiian and extended community of locals and activists who taught me about how they make their Christian faith their own, rather than taking the white, western version that was given to them by colonizers. They remember the good things the missionaries brought, while also standing against the harm that they did.
