Column
Column

A sermon on scarcity delivered to St. Augustine’s Episcopal Chapel

By |

The Gospel of Luke, y’all. It is no surprise that our gospel lectionary text gets into wealth today. The writer of Luke is so very concerned about wealth contrasted with the folks who don’t have what they need to exist. In Matthew’s version of the sermon of the mount, we hear “Blessed are the poor in spirit” and in Luke’s version of it, it’s just:

“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.”

And instead of blessed are those who hunger for justice, in Matthew, Luke just says: “Blessed are you who are hungry now.”

Those are two very different slants. And no doubt, this story that Jesus shared in response to this brother’s request for arbitration is absolutely addressing the economic crisis of Jesus’ day.

Features

Former Tent City Resident Recalls His Early Days at the Encampment

By |

Wendell Segroves, a skilled craftsman and a former member of the Metro Homelessness Commission and Homelessness Planning Council, moved to Old Tent City in 2004. Wendell and his dogs. Photo by Steve Samra

“There were only five people there and I had to be invited in,” he said. “It was Nashville’s best kept secret.”

In those days, the camps were spread out. “We kept to ourselves,” explained Wendell.