Christians
Supporting Community Organizing (CSCO) is a bold national
attempt to change the relationship between the theologically
conservative parts of the Protestant church and community
organizing.
from
the report by USC's Center for Religion and Civic Culture
(Fall, '99). For entire report see CSCO website in "About
Us."
PURPOSE
The purpose of Christians Supporting Community Organizing (CSCO)
is to work for the shalom of our society (Jeremiah 29:7) and
of our churches by engaging Evangelical, Holiness and
Pentecostal churches in congregation-based community
organizations. To work for the shalom is to work for systemic/
structural justice within our communities and churches. By
engaging in this work, we are seeking to bring all of life
under the Lordship of Christ.
MISSION
The mission of CSCO is to motivate, enable and support
churches and pastors of Evangelical, Holiness and Pentecostal
traditions to become active members of regionally- and
nationally-networked congregation-based community
organizations in their city.
Christians
Supporting Community Organizing,
P. O. Box 60123
Dayton, OH 45406
WTilleman@aol.com
Phone
937-277-7102
CSCO Discuss
Email
to
subscribe@Yahoogroups.com
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Outreach
to Other Organizations
A priority for CSCO has been to reach out to
other organizations. At
each conference of these organizations which we attend we
have a table exhibiting our work and often a workshop
demonstrating it. We have attended SCUPE conferences twice. Last
year’s annual meeting followed the National Association
of Christian Social Worker conference. We met with NACSW
board members. Then last fall we were present at the
Sojourner Justice Revival conference in Dallas. This year
we will attend the Pentecostal s & Charismatics for
Peace & Justice conference.
Boston
Branch at CUME
The Boston Branch again held all-day workshops as
the conclusion of a required “Church and Community”
seminary course at the Gordon-Conwell Center for Urban
Ministerial Education (CUME). The workshop provides a
biblical grounding for faith based community organizing
and identifies its strategy. The lead organizer of Greater
Boston Interfaith Organization joins CSCO in this
teaching. CSCO has been presenting this workshop since
1998. We have kept statistics only since 2004, but the
same demography has been true all along. Of the 330
students taught, only 37% have been Euro-American, and of
the Euro-Americans almost half have been women. Most of
these students are already urban pastors or other
congregational leaders.
2009 Annual Meeting
The annual meeting was held at the Benedict Center
in Indianapolis. Local Christian Church pastor, Mike
Bowling, addressed us at the plenary. He stressed the
importance that the congregations which are the members of
a community organization must not only be well organized
internally to involve many of the members in the community
organizing activity. They also must be vital and growing
with mutual love and a vision of God's Reign.
CSCO adopted Norm Wetterau's
proposed college program with a monetary award to groups
involving in organizing. Contact us if you want more
information and wish to be a part. We are very pleased
that Dr. Susanne Johnson, Associate Professor of Christian
Education at Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, was
elected to the Leadership Team and for her enthusiastic
and creative involvement.
Web Site News
www.cscoweb.org
The website now had at the bottom of the homepage
an opportunity to link to Evangelical, Pentecostal, and
Holiness writings pertinent to faith-based organizing.
This is new and is growing - let us know if you have
ideas and suggestions.
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CSCO, P.O. Box 60123, Dayton, OH 45406; email: