Conversation with Pastor Ben Wideman of 3rd Way Collective

Learn to do good.

Seek justice.

Reprove the ruthless.

Defend the orphan.

Plead for the widow.

Isaiah 1:17

According to their website, 3rd Way Collective is an alternative to extremism or disengagement, an alternative to

the left or the right, an alternative to violence or passivity. A way that is bolder and more enriching for everyone. A place where differences are embraced, open dialogue is welcomed, and fear is replaced with love.

3rd Way Collective is a community focused on relationships, partnerships, peacemaking, and reconciliation. They believe that Christians shouldn’t be intolerant and exclusive, but should seek to follow Jesus’ example of love for all. They offers a place for honest conversation, genuine connection, and active service as we explore issues of faith, justice and peace together.

3rd Way Collective is fully supported by University Mennonite Church, a local Anabaptist Christian congregation.

I first met Pastor Wideman at the Peace Walk in State College. At that time I briefly mentioned how I was interested in his organization and would like the opportunity to sit down and talk with him. He agreed.

1. Enlarge the 3rd Way Collective vision. How did it start? Why did you start this? Were there any roadblocks?

The vision comes from the University Mennonite Church in State College. UMC began about 50 years ago when a group of Mennonites connected to Penn State started meeting on PSU campus. They have grown since from a small number to about 75 to 80 people on a Sunday morning. UMC was part of the United Campus Ministries for many years. This was a collaborative effort of denominational faiths, but it eventually folded. At this point, UMC decided it was time to start something new but wondered what it would be and what it would look like. This is when they noticed that there were 60 plus faith groups in the Christian tradition, but none of them focused on social justice and peace. They decided if they were going to do something, this was the way they were going to go.

They hired me as a newcomer from outside the State College area. The first challenge for me was to understand as a leader the culture. What it meant to be part of the Penn State identity/community, the Happy Valley mystique, and then there was also the institutional challenge of getting club status. Also getting the right number of students, student officers, establishing space which is here in the spiritual center, finding colleagues to work with. And also making sure the student were aware of us.

2. How can you help Penn State students develop a healthy image of being a Christian?

Some things I have noticed, not just at Penn State, but everywhere is the desire to have a personal spiritual relationship with God that has very little to do with living out a faith that changes your life. I think Christians everywhere are looking for a faith that is a bit more practical. It is not just about Heaven and Hell or what you say in silence when you pray, but about transforming my life and the lives of others around me. I think that is a good challenge to keep in front of us and to create something that is a little bit different than the model of who's in and who's out, but to encourage student to engage in a conversation regarding their faith journey. We have active students that don't profess to be Christians, but they are drawn to us because of our work in peace and social justice and because of our safe space so they can reflect on what is important and other things like that.

3. How did you discover the purpose God has presented to you, the power behind the purpose, and how do you put it into words to convey this purpose to others?

A story I think of immediately is one I had with a student my first year here. The student was from China and had found her Christian faith here at Penn State, but her faith community that she connected to and discovered her faith identity told her that she had to leave behind her social justice activist life. She had to pick between the two. She couldn't be a Christian and social justice warrior. And she as someone new to the faith, was drawn to me because she didn't think she was allowed to do both things in the same space. That has kept me going and is a reminder that is it necessary to remind people, especially Christians of all faiths, that their faith is not to take away from social justice, but that your faith can fuel social justice.

4. Do you believe 3rd Way Collective is helping those who give their live to Christ find strength to continue their walk through "at times", a society that seems to be anti-Christian?

I think our critiques will say that we are not being Christian enough. In my earlier comment about students that are not identified as Christian, would say we have to begin building up disciples who are going to claim that identity. I think its more important that people are living out that example that Jesus puts forward - healing the sick, reaching out to the poor, offering peace wherever you go, sitting down with people who are different than you, the social outcast. If people are doing that but not claiming their Christian identity, I think they are still living out their Christ call. They are being disciples without being labeled that way. To me that is more important than calling yourself a Christian. Some people may see that as backwards or say that one has to come with the other, they can't be separate from each other. I think this is how I approach my work.

5. How can you/your organization help others live to give?

Anytime you talk about social justice, you are talking about people groups that are marginalized and conversation then has to turn to how to be active about changing the system. It is one thing to just spark a conversation, but I think faith needs to be practically lived out. Any conversation that 3rd Way Collective has, I hope can inspire someone to continue the work they are doing or inspire them to make a change to marginalize the people group. So we talk about things on campus like racial justice, LGBTQA exclusion, hunger injustice issues, environmental injustice. I hope that those kind of topics and interfaith dialogues (peace and war) will help student make small changes in their lives and that will help solve these problems. Faith based certainly, but using that faith to make a change.

6. What are some ways you choose to be happy? How do you think bringing people to Christ can help them to be happy?

Happiness can be a choice. I think it is the way I see little glimmers of hope. I get really excited when I connect with a student who just get it and believe that they are called to be a part of the solution, not the problem. That really brings me happiness. It really makes me happy when a student reaches out to have coffee, help with a project or to suggest a project - something we can work on together. My personal life, my spouse and children (ages 6, 2 1/2 and one on the way) bring me much happiness. Also, when I became a pastor, I have been a pastor for five years, I used to consider myself an extrovert. Now that I have a job where I work with people all the time, I find myself trying to find time where I can be more introverted. (Laughs!) Some of the things I like are my long bike rides, doing little project around the house, gardening, things I can get into by myself. Plus, when you are focused on peace and social justice, I think its really depressing work. The world is a difficult place. Finding time to remind yourself of the good things can make a difference.

7. Do you have a reason to hope for the future of Christians in a world that is constantly at war with one another?

This upcoming election is not make me hopeful. Like I said, there are moments in my life that give me hope. When I see students from difference backgrounds working together on project, when I see groups here at the spiritual center collaborating, even though the come from different faith communities, when I see people working for people, those are things that give me hope. For instance, the Peace Walk that occurred on Palm Sunday. I was pretty much convinced that it was only going to be me and ten of my friends who would show up, but I was surprised when over 100 people came out. That give me hope. Even in a areal like this, that doesn't talk a whole lot about people and social justice issues, that on a Palm Sunday afternoon, one hundred people can come out in the cold, gives me hope.

8. How did the Peace Walk come together?

The Peace Walk began in November when I started talking to some of my colleagues in the spiritual center and other pastors in town who I knew care about peace and social justice. Going back a bit first, I spent four years of my life in Pasadena, California. In Pasadena there is a Peace Walk parade where churches march and have been doing so ever since the Iraq War. So, with that in the back of my mind, I asked if we could do something similar here in State College. It was sitting down and talking with those people that shaped what the idea ended up becoming. The walk here shifted away from what the walk in California is about (more political/anti-war) but to a celebration on peace.

9. Why do you think it is important for Christians or those living a spiritual life to be involved in social justice and peace?

I see no other way to be a follower of Jesus. His ministry was based on reaching out to those who society had marginalized, and challenging the people in power to have more compassion and a desire for peace. He was about nonviolent responses to power, and leading humbly as a servant first. He listed love for God and neighbor as the greatest commandments, and I see this as the core of what it means to be someone concerned with social justice and peace.

10. How did the Mennonite Church begin their involvement in social justice and peace?

Mennonites has long been interested in serving others. From the very beginning they understood scripture to be read in a Christocentric way - that is read through the lens of Jesus and His life. Their commitment to peace and nonviolence also comes from the teachings of Jesus, a very literal interpretation of turning the other cheek. Mennonites have refused to take up arms in global wars, and often ended up serving in alternative ways (farming, medicine, and international development). These things all grew out of a service-first approach to how we engage the world. Early Anabaptists (the forefathers of the Mennonite movement) were burned at the stake for their belief in non-violence, refusal to baptize children, and rejection of earthly powers. It is in the DNA of the Mennonite church.

Finally, 3rd Way Collective would like to focus on things that need to be focused on in Happy Valley and at Penn State. Pastor Wideman adds, "We all move as one. If students are going to go to sporting events, they are going to go the biggest. If they are going to do some sort of volunteer work, they are going to go to Thon. If they are going to go to a party, its going to be the best/biggest party. I am trying to figure out how we can create spaces for the outsiders and the people who don't necessarily want to belong to a giant crowd, to create movement and to change."

Pastor Wideman believes it will take a collaborative effort from all the little groups who do their own small thing to work together and highlight some of the cool stuff that is happening here in Happy Valley and at Penn State.

If you are interested in learning more about 3rd Way Collective, volunteering, or speaking to a group of students around a dinner table, contact Pastor Wideman at ben@3rdwaycollective.org