My name is Whitney Starkey. I grew up in Eden Prairie, MN, a middle/upper class, predominantly white, Christian city. I’m the oldest of three children to my parents, who were high school sweet-hearts. My brother plays basketball, my sister loves science, and I’m the artsy one. I started attending church when I was sixteen. When I was nineteen, attending a state university with the hope of getting a bachelor’s degree in art, I decided to follow my call to ordained ministry in The United Methodist Church. By the time I graduated from college, I had discovered a desire to work in urban ministry.
This year, my second year in the M.Div program, I began my first field education experience. I was given the opportunity to engage in urban ministry. I love the city but have only experienced its nice parts: the hustle and bustle, the endless resources, and plenty of things to do. But I knew that that was not the complete picture of an urban setting. Sure, I’ve passed homeless people on the street before, but I wasn’t about to think that these limited experiences were sufficient for my preparation for urban ministry. So I asked, and I received a placement at Chicago Uptown Ministry. It is an agency affiliated with Lutheran Child and Family Services. Chicago Uptown Ministry is a civil service organization that offers outreach to the homeless, Alcoholic Anonymous meetings five times a week, substance abuse counseling, and ESL classes for single Latina women. There I was, a young seminarian who knew nothing of real hardship, submersed in the other side of the urban situation. This was where I was to work fifteen hours a week for eight months. What was I thinking?
During the fall semester, I took a Christian history class. I was particularly intrigued when we were reading liberation theology and learning about the social gospel. I took a deep liking to the works of Walter Rauschenbusch. He was a Baptist pastor at a quickly shrinking church in New York City in the early 1900s. The birth of the industrial revolution combined with an increasing chasm between economic classes was quickly turning the citizens of the United States upside-down. Rauschenbusch saw this happening around him, and discerned that Christians need to promote salvation on a societal scale, not just the individual. He believed in an active Christianity and an attitude of solidarity. When we serve our neighbors, we are transformed together, serving the whole of the body, bringing the Kingdom to all.
This is powerful reading material, but it took on a new dynamism as I spent time in Uptown. I was terrified at the beginning of my placement, but I have to say, it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve participated in our food pantry, worship services, after-school program, and spend time interacting with the community. I’m honored to be making amazing friendships, regardless of any differences. I’m beginning to understand what Rauschenbusch was talking about in solidarity of the body. We are all children of God. We live in a world of ladders, when the Kingdom calls for a table - one table, where there’s room for everyone. I am thankful to God for this opportunity that not only helps prepare me for my future in ordained ministry, but also exposes me to the Kingdom on earth.
Whitney Starkey is a second year Masters of Divinity student.
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