Activists walk to promote liberal faith

On Easter Sunday, five men and two women began walking east from Phoenix. By the time they reach their destination, the nation’s capital, on Labor Day weekend, they hope to have sparked a dialogue that could change the public’s perception of what Christians stand for politically.

The 2,500-mile CrossWalk America, which passes through mid-Missouri this weekend, is a reaction to the growth of Christian fundamentalism in the United States and how it has dominated the intersection of faith, the media and the public.

“Our hope is to help change the face of Christianity in our country to be more inclusive,” said the Rev. Eric Elnes, an organizer of CrossWalk America and one of the walkers. “In the media, the voice of Christianity is often just a small group of go-to people, and what we’ve heard from them is not what we know about our own Christian faith and experience.”

CrossWalk America describes itself as an emerging Christian movement, and their stated values set them apart from conservative Christians who oppose same-sex marriage and favor the death penalty. CrossWalk America embraces tolerance of all religious faiths, supports separation of church and state and expresses concern for the environment.

The walkers’ journey and their message will be celebrated at Freedom Sunday Jubilee at Rock Bridge Christian Church. The event, which is co-sponsored by the Mid-Missouri LGBT Coalition’s Faith Based Outreach program, is set to feature speakers and live entertainment. Because the walker’s route passes south of Columbia, near Jefferson City, the evening will end with a symbolic candlelight walk on the church’s grounds.

As they make their way across the country, the walkers are doing media interviews and meeting with anyone they can to share the Phoenix Affirmations, a set of 12 theological values that show Christianity from a progressive stance. The affirmations are based on the three “great loves” of the Christian faith – love of God, love of neighbor and love of self.

Once they reach Washington, D.C., the walkers plan to rally at a church about six blocks from the White House to symbolically nail the document to the nation’s door.

For one walker, the journey is also a way to express the changes his personal faith has undergone.

“I’m a recovering fundamentalist and was at one time even Southern Baptist,” says Merrill Davison, who now serves as the community developer for Asbury United Methodist Church in Phoenix.

Davison says his decision to walk was influenced by the fact that 40 to 50 percent of his congregation is gay and lesbian. One of the Phoenix Affirmations states that everyone is worthy of being treated “as made in God’s very image.”

The group invites people from communities along the way to join them. A Walk Wherever You Are campaign also encourages people to record their steps with a pedometer and report them to the group’s Web site, www.crosswalkamerica.org. So far, more than 15 million steps have been reported from people as far away as Great Britain.

While many people joined the group for a portion of their trek, more Missourians have sent e-mails requesting to join the walk than residents of any other state, Elnes said.

The group, broken into teams, covers 26 to 30 miles a day, with each team responsible for covering half of the day’s distance. The teams rotate between walking and riding in a recreational vehicle. The group takes two days off each week, sleeping in churches or the homes of supporters and attending community events.

“The biggest benefit of moving so slowly is that we have time to get a sense of the people, geography, and culture,” Elnes says. “We watched the corn and the wheat grow from the beginning to the harvest. We’re demonstrating a part the motto of trying to slow down from our 65 mph lives and really get to know each other.”

Though the walkers encountered sleet, snow, rain, and humidity, the weather is not necessarily their biggest challenge. Not all communities or even every church they visit has welcomed the group. On the group’s Web log, Elnes recalled a visit to the Jesus First Baptist Church, a conservative church in Eagar, Az. Elnes wrote on the blog that the tension in the service rose noticeably when he mentioned tolerance for gays and lesbians.

“But as soon as I gave voice to my belief that liberals and conservatives could find common ground even as we dialogued over significant difference, the tension immediately dissipated and smiles reappeared.”

Elnes says that the walkers are not trying to directly challenge people with differing views, but instead hope to affirm their own beliefs while keeping an open mind. “We’re listening to people who may disagree with us, too,” he said. “They may have objections to some or all of our affirmations, but what we’re trying to do is start that national conversation about what really matters to Christian activists.”

The walkers start those conversations every chance they get. They arranged for open forums, such as the one that will be held Sunday at Rock Bridge Christian Church, and have encouraged discussion of issues important to the local communities they pass through. Elnes, a senior pastor of Scottsdale Congregational United Church, is scheduled to deliver a sermon at Rock Bridge’s 10:45 a.m. service Sunday.

Walk Across America 2006 is just one of recent attempts by liberal Christians to change the perceptions of people of faith in America. The Rev. Jim Wallis, head of the anti-poverty group Call to Renewal and editor of Sojourners magazine, hosted Pentecost 2006, which drew hundreds of Christian activists to Washington to promote A Covenant for a New America to rid the U.S. and world of poverty.

On Wednesday, the conference’s keynote speaker, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, stressed that religion must play a larger role in liberal politics.

“Over the long haul,” said Obama, a Democrat, “I think [liberals] make the mistake when we fail to acknowledge the power of faith in people’s lives, in the lives of the American people, and I think it’s time that we join a serious debate about how to reconcile faith with our modern, pluralistic democracy.”