EVANGELISMQ&A ings had been a circus — until now. It was a difficult start to the evening for everyone. Why? Because, in the presence of “the other,” everything had to change. Our tone, our language, our goals, our methods. Our guests asked us questions, curiously, patiently. And we had to speak in plain English instead of “Christianese.” They asked us about what we carry inside and why we want to tell others about it. By the end of the evening, our gracious guests actually helped us name the pearl that our Christian community had been holding — Jesus’ teaching about the kingdom of God. We abandoned our plans to put on a show about fulfilled prophecies of the Bible and instead — as simply as we can — explain some of the teachings of Jesus.That’s what they wanted to know about. They evangelized us! God “trespassed” outside the boundaries of our religion and then visited us in the stranger, as God did so often in the Bible.
On Being Evangelized LEARNING FROM “THE OTHER” WITH SAMIR SELMANOVIC Samir Selmanovic is an author, speaker, and community organizer known particularly for his work in interfaith dialogue. Born and raised in a culturally Muslim but atheistic family in Croatia, as a teenager he joined an underground group of believers and became a Christian. His religious studies took him to the US, and he eventually came to work as a pastor in New York City, where he dealt with the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of 2001 and founded a multifaith community called Faith House Manhattan. He is the director of Citylights, a Christian community that seeks to “learn to love well.” PRISM asked him about his deep passion for connecting with those outside the Christian faith.
PRISM: What are some of the common pitfalls in terms of evangelistic efforts of Christians today? SS:The main one I think is to tend to distrust the gospel while sharing it. God does not need to be defended, and people do not have to be manipulated.The kingdom of God is above that. When Christ tells me to go out to the world and share his teachings, he asks me to embody that teaching, namely to treat others the way I want to be treated (Matthew 7:12).This command, which has come to be known as the Golden Rule, excludes turning other people from subjects to objects, even the objects of my best intentions. I would not want to be objectified by their efforts to reach me, so neither should I objectify them. If I am to reach them, I should also be reached by them. The Golden Rule turns the tables on our religious impulses. If we want outsiders to attend our events, we must attend their events. If we want them to be spiritually open to us, we must be spiritually open to them. If we want them to change, we must be ready to change. If we want them to read our Scriptures with trust and respect, we likewise must read their holy texts.We must not be afraid to be changed by them. In the kingdom of God, there is no room for fear. Without modeling learning and receiving, we cannot expect others to learn and receive from us.Yet, this goes further. Our openness to “the other” is not just a method of approaching them. We really do need them. They comfort us, bless us, teach us. Some of us have been living under the assumption that while the world needs Christians, Christians don’t need the world.There is no reciprocity or interdependence.When we objectify the world and other religions, they have no significant commission to us.
PRISM: You say that an evangelistic encounter with “the other” is a two-way street. Can you give an example of this? Samir Selmanovic: At a strategy meeting for the evangelistic efforts our church hoped to undertake in our neighborhood, the chairman of our church board asked, “Who are our targets?” The next day I approached people on my street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and said, “Our church, the one with the red doors over there, has been trying to convert you for decades.Without success.We believe that Jesus Christ is the best thing ever. Could you please come to our next planning meeting and help us be better at it?” A few folks looked back at me quietly, then glanced at the church, noticing it perhaps for the very first time. “This is no prank, and there is no hidden camera,” I reassured them. “This would be a neighborly good deed on your part.You can think of it as an anthropological field trip you can tell your friends about. And I’ll throw in a gift certificate for your favorite restaurant.” At our next meeting, I made space around the table for the two brave souls who accepted my invitation. “This is Barbara, and this is Mark,” I introduced. “They are our ‘targets.’ Who wants to shoot?” I thought that was funny. Nobody else laughed. One person said I was making a circus out of the meeting. I said our meet-
PRISM 2010
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