EMQ » January–March 2020 » Volume 56 Issue 1
By Andre Van Eymeren
Picture 45,000 global city leaders gathered in Quito, Ecuador in an area where the old city meets the new. Cultures from around the world gathered under the South American sun for the 2016 UN Habitat 3 gathering. Participants explored together how to create sustainable cities where everyone belongs and can work with others towards meeting their own needs, as well as the common good. The feeling of connectedness was palpable as leaders from every sector of global cities sought to talk together and learn from one another. The small delegation of Christian leaders attending the gathering quickly recognised that despite communities of faith being present in every city in the world there was no outward representation of faith in the larger gathering. As a result, the Urban Shalom Society was born.
Cities Characterised by Shalom
Our cohort brought together by Lausanne / World Evangelical Alliance Creation Care Task Force, the International Society for Urban Mission (ISUM), the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA), and Micah Global, decided there was a need for a network that specifically focused on issues created by rapid urbanisation. By 2017, ISUM evolved into the Urban Shalom Society (USS), broadening its focus from almost solely informal settlements and urban slums to the greater urban environment. Since that time members of the society have been active in Christian, multi-faith and broader global conversations around different aspects of urban life.
As a society we are motivated by a question: As urban environments expand and develop, what quality of life will people occupying them experience? The answer includes the complexities of the city environment, God’s desire for our world now, and the role we play in partnership with him.
Our vision is to see cities characterised by shalom. Many have truncated the meaning of this biblical concept arising from a Hebraic worldview simply to peace, meaning the absence of war. However, the term refers to a holistic experience of life and is concerned with the individual in the context of community. It’s a greeting which asks about a person’s health, wellbeing, good fortune, the cohesiveness of the community, relationships, and the health of those with whom the person is in relationship. Its intention is not so much information but the demonstration of the connection between the two people in the exchange. The motivation of the greeting is the wellbeing of society based on a common humanity. In essence it points to the reality of the Kingdom of God in our world now.
Establishing City Networks
The desire to see cities reflect this reality has moved us in a number of directions. We have held close to twenty gatherings around the world (Urban Shalom Forums/summits/trainings) which invite urban practitioners, leaders, and academics to come together to seriously reflect on their work in the city and to become more strategic in their engagement with other city leaders, practitioners, and academics. As well as being informative these events have catalysed the start of networks in cities. These are all embryonic yet; representing a seed of collaborative thinking and action in global cities. The goal of these networks is to bring people of like mind and heart together to explore where the Kingdom of God is present and lacking in their city and then discern strategies to partner with God in the journey towards shalom.
The establishment of these networks takes time, effort, and resources. After three visits to Lusaka, the capital city of the southern African country of Zambia, a network of leaders and practitioners is emerging. Our focus has been to help leaders recognise the strengths present in their communities and look for ways these assets can be utilised in the development of the community and the city. Actions can be as simple as a neighbourhood clean-up or as complex as engaging with city council on a poverty alleviation project. The key goal for each network is to see the community and city move towards shalom. To reach this, it’s important for the network to focus on each person contributing in the community, recognizing that everyone has something to offer to the community improvement process. Other networks are emerging in other major cities in Zambia, Kenya, Cameroon, Australia, and additional countries across the world.
Global Conversation Hubs
In addition to city networks, the Urban Shalom Society is establishing global conversation hubs that go deep into a particular area of focus or sector of city life. Sectors include theology of the city, education, healthy cities, community development, environment, good governance, young people, urban design and resilience, urban poverty, smart cities, arts and culture, and economic justice. The hubs bring together practitioners and thinkers from diverse backgrounds in a particular area to reflect on the role the church can play in that area. The conversations help participants reflect on practice and thinking, share perspective, and potentially author articles on the sector to inform broader conversations.
These broader conversations include United Nations’ gatherings such as the World Urban Forum, various conferences on aspects of the city, involvement in environmental and economic development conferences as well as involvement in other networks such as the Congress for New Urbanism. Because of our association with the World Evangelical Alliance, we are also a partner in the United Nations’ World Urban Campaign. Through this connection we received an invitation to run Faith Based Urban Thinkers’ Campuses around the world.
An urban thinkers campus (UTC) is an opportunity for a sector or group of sectors to come together for a couple of days to think deeply on issues related to the United Nations’ New Urban Agenda (NUA). The NUA is a document outlining a vision for sustainable cities that was ratified by world leaders at the 2016 gathering in Quito. The UTCs we have run are multi-faith which has given us the wonderful opportunity to connect with urban focused “people of peace” from other faiths exploring what we can to do together to create cities that we can all call home. We have held events in Kenya, Costa Rica, Australia, the UK, and the Philippines. After each UTC, a report is written and disseminated to the participants for comment and feedback. These reports will then form a larger body of work that will be presented at the World Urban Forum 10 happening in Abu Dhabi in February 2020.
Shifting Perceptions
The Urban Shalom Society is a relatively new and innovative network. With a focus on global cities, our desire is to equip and empower the church to take an active role in city shaping conversations. As with most networks no one is fulltime, we have very limited resources, and all raise our own funds to travel and equip others. The message we bring, while vital, is one that is on the periphery for most local churches. Much work has yet to be done to help churches see the importance and pathway to active engagement. We also work with many Christian aid and development organisations and have noticed a reticence to engage in urban issues. Some seem to feel it is too difficult to reorientate their offering from a rural setting to the city. However, this shift is vital.
Despite these challenges, as a network we have achieved much in our short life. As well as the various gatherings, trainings, and involvement in global conferences, we have delivered at least an annual edition of the New Urban World Journal (NUWJ), a journal inherited from ISUM. We have also published a book, Urban Shalom and the Cities We Need.
As with most networks, all our members are active in their own ministries, and we seek to add value to them through all our work including our website (urbanshalomsociety.org), the publications, and making our training as available as possible. We also promote our global conversations and active participation in conferences, inviting others to join us whenever possible. Within the network we also encourage members to be active in contributing, believing that each of our members has something to offer to the whole network. This is particularly true for those in the majority world, who are most affected by rapid urbanisation and whose voice we seek to amplify.
Individuals or organisations interested in joining the Urban Shalom Society should email urbanshalomsociety@gmail.com. In your email tell us about who you are and what you are involved in. Then we’ll invite you to connect.
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Andre Van Eymeren is a co-director of the Urban Shalom Society and Managing Director of the Centre for Building Better Community. This is an extension of two decades of community development work ranging from caring for at risk young people, working closely with community leaders, to running community wide celebrations. He’s the author of the book Building Communities of the Kingdom and the editor of the New Urban World Journal.
