The Times Standard printed an article last week that was all abuzz in Fortuna. The Reverend who authored the article was questioning Fortuna's friendliness by how little services there were for the homeless. Most everyone I talked to was mad about it. It wasn't that the guy was wrong in his article. Most of his facts were right about what we don't have. But he spent no time in what we do. All criticism, probably with some political agenda behind it, and no heart or any real knowledge. Ignoring what the council is doing in the last weeks. A slap in the face to those who are doing great work every week, like RiverLife. And an example of someone taking pot shots from a distance.
But, as Paul and I preach on friendliness to the homeless population in Fortuna, we know there is a lot of room for growth. It isn't abstract. They are people, sometimes friends, who come to church, who come to our community dinners. They are people Sean and others take food to every week, that we walk around or greet on the streets. We have questions and we struggle to know how to help. Sunday was interesting for us, and I can't wait to see how things go for Paul next week.
It is really great to have Sean as a resource for us. And maybe we will live through, perhaps learn from, folks who criticize from a distance.
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