Winter Issue 9
It’s not my personal space, it’s my pandemic space. - Steven Gomez
Click here to download a PDF of this week’s issue.
Click here for the Greensheet.
To This Very Hour We Go Hungry and Thirsty
By Chris Sundby
To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless…We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment. 1 Corinthians 4:11,13
I recall an old memory in the backseat of our family minivan driving down East Hastings. I have no idea where we were going or what we were doing. What I do remember is the clunk of the car door locks snapping shut. I don’t remember what I saw but stared out the windows terrified that someone would try and enter our car.
I now live a block down from where our van of spectators cruised through the Downtown Eastside (DTES). I am a part of a do-gooder-class that has moved into the community that will never quite fit in—because we can always leave—working to share, serve, build friendships, and join in community.
In The Wretched of the Earth Frantz Fanon describes how the colonized are ‘fabricated’ by the colonizer. I believe this is often true for classes in cities. Vancouver has shoved many into a narrow section of the city, where non-profit workers fabricate a community of clients, appointments, and ‘meals-served’ statistics.
Fanon’s description of compartmentalization is also insightful here: “The colonized sector...is a disreputable place inhabited by disreputable people. You are born anywhere, anyhow. You die anywhere, from anything. It’s a world with no space, people are piled one on top of the other, the shacks squeezed tightly together. The colonized sector is a famished sector, hungry for bread, meat, shoes, coal, and light.”
Fanon is right in his description of colonizing compartmentalization which inevitably forms two different ‘species.’ This is clear from the Canadian project of colonization which saw Indigenous inhabitants as less than fully human and attempted to ‘kill the Indian in the child.’ The resulting generational trauma is seen on the streets of the DTES. Similar violence continues to want to stamp out those in the DTES. Peruse any online publication about the DTES and read the comments—you will not have to read far to find language that completely degrades the Imago Dei.
In a world corrupted by death and darkness, Christians need to be people of life and light (John 12:35-36), and in a world full of famished sectors, “hungry for bread, meat, shoes, coal, and light,” Christians need to be amongst the poor in prayer and deed meeting needs and bringing light. Jesus teaches in Matthew 25 that judgement depends on our treatment of the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick, and imprisoned amongst us, because what we do for the least we do for Christ.
“All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.” Galatians 2:10
Chris Sundby is the current RCSA VP External. He also works at Jacob’s Well in the DTES. The RCSA donated funds this year to help pay rent for a friend in the community who recently moved into a home after many years on the streets. For more info or to come hangout, email Chris at chris@jacobswell.ca or text/call (250) 812-7776. More info on Jacob’s Well at jacobswell.ca
Omnia a te exspectant
By Abraham Wu
Indeed, all creatures look to you,
From the rising of the sun to its setting.
The day’s last golden blaze, kindling
Catching aflame the evening
Sacrifice of prayer and praise.
For dappled creamy orange skies;
For blue-streaked mountains, stately and looming;
For signs of spring, now rising and blooming;
For body, blood, and breath blown from
Your breath,
Brooding and soothing
Rising and sizing,
Giving—as only you do—
To every mortal being,
Pleading, praising, and waiting
For your new day.
Why Join RCSA Council?
A Conversation Between Friends
By Regula Winzeler & Alice Hodgkins
RW: I remember fall orientation two-and-a-half years ago. We were both overwhelmed, trying to make friends and find our bearings. I was just trying to get through the week and remember a few names. You, however, just jumped right in and applied for a job with the RCSA council. What possessed you to do such a thing?
AH: Haha, it wasn’t quite that simple. I came into Regent exhausted, like you, and I was very content to keep my head down socially. I registered for five courses and every time someone told me to drop one I became more determined not to. Who were these strangers to know what I needed? Then at the end of my first week I burst into tears while waiting for a ferry and told Mary Frances that I was dropping a class. I guess I realized I did want to have friends after all? Over the next couple days three different people encouraged me to apply for the RCSA admin assistant position. And I decided to, because doing minutes during meetings basically meant I was Harriet the Spy, watching and taking notes while the cool kids talked.. I know your council origin story was different...
RW: Yeah, I knew it was wise for me to lay low my first year (at the time my only year!), but I remember being mildly jealous of all these new insta-friends you made on council. It seemed like such a fun crew. I remember you emphatically telling me that this is not something you typically do. Was being on council out of your norm?
AH: Oh boy. I was constantly giving that disclaimer my first year. Student government always felt like it was for extroverted movers and shakers, not for kids like me. (My first-ever Et Cetera article was called “On Being Shy at Regent.”) Me on council seemed absurd, like I’d infiltrated the enemy camp or something. But the folks on it were so darn nice. Sure they were big personalities, but they immediately accepted me and asked for my thoughts not as a gesture but because they were constantly working to serve students and wanted input from a first year. It still took me a long time to think of myself as one of them, though. I remember Jayson, the president at the time, suggesting I run for president one afternoon in the spring and it really threw me for a loop. You and I went for a walk right afterwards - do you remember that?
RW: I remember being excited for you. That conversation ended with you saying with a knowing look, “We BOTH know which of us should run for president though, don’t we?” I love this kind of stuff, but I’d told myself I wasn’t going to take on any responsibility at Regent. But then I didn’t think I’d be there longer than a year, and honestly, I was itching to jump into community life more by this point. This moment planted the seed. After a few encouraging conversations with Jayson, a couple phone calls to get counsel from my sister, and some prayer and reflection, I decided to go for it. I felt quite nervous. I love being in a role like this, but being the president felt a little too up front. I decided that this was a good opportunity to work on that leadership muscle despite my insecurities around it. I’m SO glad I did. I was also relieved that you decided to stay on council. Why did you decide to run for VP Internal- besides more reasons to hang out with me of course?
AH: Did I need other reasons? In all honesty, I think because by the end of first year I realized how much my council experience had meant to me. The Regent community would have been a great place to heal and grow regardless, but being able to be useful behind the scenes made me realize how good it felt to be invested and to love a place and people. Of the executive council positions, I knew VP Internal - who thinks about events and student well-being - would be the best fit for me (though honestly, as we both know, still not a perfect one). Plus I obviously wanted to keep my cubby in the RCSA office! But actually...I was eager to have a role in an institution that increasingly felt like home. (Who knew institutions could do that?) It meant I got to be connected to so many people. Council does SO MUCH. Do you want to speak to some of what the team does?
RW: I’d love to. I am so proud of our team. For those that might not know, council is made up of 4 executive roles and a team of volunteers who take on particular portfolios (called members-at-large or MALS). The exec team has responsibility for behind-the-scenes work. We sit on committees and represent student voices in parts of Regent’s governance. No syllabus gets passed without the VP Academic reading it, the VP Internal provides insight on the Financial Aid Committee, and the VP External meets with the much larger UBC student government (AMS) to make sure we affiliates are heard. That’s just a small sliver. The President’s job is multi-faceted, which I love. I spend a lot of time brainstorming about what we could do and how to do it well. I sit on the Regent board and senate and support the MALs and execs in their projects. The MALs are the real MVPs. They’ve spearheaded prayer nights, community dinners, lunchtime concerts, museum tours, games nights, the list goes on and on. What was one of your favourite memories of our time on council together?
AH: In terms of my VP Internal role, the New Student BBQ we put on as a part of Fall orientation made me proud. We had such a good turn-out with so many folks both on council and outside of it pitching in to welcome first-years well, which is such a key part of the Regent ethos. Really though, my most precious memories (I’ll be the sappy one for a moment) revolve around some of those early exec meetings, where we’d talk over home-cooked breakfast in someone’s living room and our strengths were playing off each other. That group was a particularly good team of listeners. We took a lot of care with the student body and with each other. Our council retreat and the affirmation circle you forced us to do made that especially clear, haha. I’ve obviously waxed long about the impact my RCSA experience had on me personally. What has it meant to you, friend? (Big question, but we like those.)
RW: Aw, man. You know I am very effusive about this question. Brace yourself. I loved the group of people on council. In those breakfast meetings, I felt so supported and safe to voice my uncertainties. I always left feeling equipped with a solution in hand for the problems I brought to the table. I think my favourite part is just the relationships that have such an opportunity to grow through the regular interactions in meetings and the shared locker/office/nap space/hideaway that is our tiny RCSA Office. I have fond memories of quotes on the whiteboard, things left for each other in cubbies, friends napping on the couch, and even sharing a good cry when needed. There are many ways to build deep relationships as a Regent student but council is a wonderful avenue for this. I could gush for hours (as you are well aware). And it’s evident to both of us how instrumental council was in our friendship. I joined to build community and live into my leadership skills, but the biggest things I’m leaving with are friendships.
AH: I’m so glad you brought up office interactions. That’s at the core of it. Regent’s all about Theology for Life, and for both of us as well as many other council members over the years, the RCSA has been a way of tangibly living out the mundanities and frustrations and wonders of everyday life and relationships in the midst of our theological education. It’s one of the ways the rubber really meets the road in this place. It’s also an ever-evolving organization to suit an ever-evolving student body. How have you seen it change during your time? What’s the future of the RCSA, Madame President?
RW: Good questions! As we know, COVID impacted everything, so it would be unfair to compare this past year of council to the one prior. I have to say I am SO proud of this year’s council. They missed out on so many of the typical wonders of being on council and YET, they always showed up fully engaged. I was humbled at everyone’s willingness to show up to yet another Zoom meeting, think and rethink ideas as the nature of the pandemic changed throughout the fall and winter term. It speaks to the love they feel for Regent. Our work has still been so meaningful. Systems were improved, students were advocated for, and countless quarantine meals were delivered. It wasn’t the year any of us wished for, but it was so good in so many ways. In regards to the future, I think this next year holds many fresh opportunities. We hope to revive some of our favourite in-person traditions and events. However, it’s also a bit of a blank slate. The pandemic has forced us to be creative and think outside of the box and this will serve the new council well as they dream up ways to build community at Regent. I’m already excited for the folks that will step in!
AH: I appreciate your thoughtful enthusiasm. I’ve learned to expect nothing less. So where do people sign up?
RW: I thought you’d never ask. Nominations open March 23 and close April 6. I fully expect a plethora of nominations to come in after this inspirational conversation wouldn’t you say?!
AH: Honestly, this is the best conversation we’ve had in two-and-a-half years of friendship. If our testimonials don’t convince people to join council, nothing will.
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