“Sacred Organizing” Rev. John Hasenjaeger and Mary Ann Barham
Rev. John Hasenjaeger and Mary Ann Barham will share their experiences and challenges with “Sacred Organizing,” in their work with the Leaven Community Land and Housing Coalition, a predominantly interfaith group in Multnomah, Washington & Clackamas Co. that includes both Westminster Presbyterian and First UU in Portland. John will offer some of his own vocational journey and how his thinking about it has been revolutionized by his Land & Housing Coalition experience. Mary Ann will introduce us to the “Sacred Organizing Spiral,” as a way of living out one's spirituality in community, while making real change in the world. Together they will introduce us to the Barbie's Village project, which will provide transitional housing for Native American families who find themselves houseless in Portland; this “land back” project will be located just a half mile from where Wy'East UU meets.
Rev. John O. Hasenjaeger is a retired Presbyterian minister and neighbor of Wy'East UU. He has served as Pastor of churches in the wider area. John also taught Philosophy and Religion at Clackamas and Mt Hood Community Colleges. And he has participated in the life of Eastrose UU in Gresham over the last 20 years. Today his church home is Westminster Presbyterian in the Lloyd area. In addition to church and higher education, John's third vocational dimension is what he has learned to call “sacred organizing,” which is the subject of today's talk.
Mary Ann Barham has been a resident of NE Portland for 35 years and currently lives in the Hollywood neighborhood. She has been a member of the Land & Housing Coalition’s Multnomah Co. design team for the past 1½ years and attends First UU in downtown Portland where she is involved with immigrant justice and other social justice activities.