Hospitality and unfortunate reality

[temporal1]

Knowing context would help to give an intelligent answer rather than shooting in the dark.
J.M.

JM, MaxPC has been forthcoming from the start, he is a plain Catholic, a conservative Christian, this thread is under "General Theology;" it's possible he does not see or read boot's posts (he has stated this on open forum.) hope that helps. this is my understanding. if not, i'm sure max will correct when he is available.

[temporal1]

I would respond to the parents that this is their wish, but not the wish of their child. They need to deal directly with their child.

I have had many 3rd party requests. I have learned through the years that these requests are more focused on what the 3rd party wants then what the party in mention wants.

I have run multiple food (pantries.) I have always set them up with set parameters.
Help people x amount of times. This allows it to be an emergency assistance, but helps to move away from chronic use and abuse. Most people in need want a hand out, not a hand up. A hand out keeps them locked into their addictions and situation. A hand up, takes much more time and a lot of patience, but has the chance to transform. Jesus did say, "Take up your mat and walk." This is a call to move from the place they are comfortable being and where they get hand outs from passer bys.

Hospitality and charity often say more about the giver than the receiver. Giving with strings attached are a sign of a desire to control the situation or the other person. Giving and walking away often signal a person wanting to feel like they did something when all along they really did not show much compassion. Finding the balance and giving to the person as the need is evaluated will take time and we will make mistakes. Yet, it is what Jesus did. Cookie cutter giving is more about the giver than the one in need.

young parents know the "terrible two's" can be terrible!
i've found, all of life is simply preparation for what's yet to come.

being parents of adults can be the greatest challenge of all.
as scriptures describe.

now add present privacy laws, it's really very difficult for family and friends to step in, in any way.
parents have all the responsibility, expense, heart, time invested, and more, yet, "how to help?" is evermore challenging.

Robert, i agree with your statements about third parties and adult children, and your post, overall.
for any of us to receive help, one must want it, and accept it. just as scriptures state.

this can be deeply painful for parents.

[Bootstrap]

Example: periodically we're contacted by a parent who wants their adult child to live with us. It happens that the offspring is unemployed, addicted to playing video games, and has no interest in pursuing discipleship to Christ. How best to gently deal with this parent (and others), who is concerned about dying and having no one to care for the adult child?

I assume an adult child gets to decide for himself. I assume that the process of joining would be the same as for any other adult.

I'm not sure what "live with us" means, I assume this does not mean "live with us in our RV". If plain Catholic communities actually exist, then I assume they already have procedures for this kind of thing. If an adult has no interest in discipleship to Christ, would any intentional Christian community accept them until that changes?

[temporal1]

speaking only for myself, i had never known of "plain Catholics," before max joined MD.
i find max interesting and authentic to his stated faith.
for me, if there are only 1 or 2 individuals who use this term, i accept it, based on their word.

on MD, it's acceptable to call oneself Anabaptist by theology while not being a member of any Anabaptist group, and, even while being a member of another denom, altogether.
i find, on MN, what a person believes and lives is accepted at face value.
MN, like MD, is not a church.

why would max be held to another standard? why do these questions repeat?

i understand him to also speak of Christians, in general, just as others do on this forum.
i do not question he is a Christian.

different groups use the term, "plain," meanings vary, even within the umbrella name, Anabaptist.
other, non-Christian, religions also use plain dress; some more modest/covering than Anabaptist choices.

max, please let me know if i have speaken out of turn. this is yet another bunny trail.
if so, i would welcome a trip to Brier Island.

[Bootstrap]

speaking only for myself, i had never known of "plain Catholics," before max joined MD.
i find max interesting and authentic to his stated faith.
for me, if there are only 1 or 2 individuals who use this term, i accept it, based on their word.

Me too.

When I hear stories of larger communities or longer histories, or see pictures on a website, I'd like a little more evidence, because these things have been rather hard to verify.

And I would find it helpful if he would give straightforward answers to straightforward questions. For instance, why choose plain clothing in the Mennonite tradition if you are Catholic? I would like to understand what these choices make in his faith walk. It's harder to have fellowship if we can't do that kind of thing.

[MaxPC]

Groups that I have been a part of in the past tie the acceptance of both financial counseling and possible participation in a program that leads to independence financially to any help whatsoever. Most decline, including my late sister.

I am not as familiar with my current fellowship's policy.

Thank you for sharing, JM. We have larger programs that have the same policy. It's good to check with other programs just in case there's a new way to approach these situations that is both Biblically-based and helpful to the individuals in need.

[temporal1]

speaking only for myself, i had never known of "plain Catholics," before max joined MD.
i find max interesting and authentic to his stated faith.
for me, if there are only 1 or 2 individuals who use this term, i accept it, based on their word.

Me too.

When I hear stories of larger communities or longer histories, or see pictures on a website, I'd like a little more evidence, because these things have been rather hard to verify.

And I would find it helpful if he would give straightforward answers to straightforward questions. For instance, why choose plain clothing in the Mennonite tradition if you are Catholic? I would like to understand what these choices make in his faith walk. It's harder to have fellowship if we can't do that kind of thing.

i don't understand the focus on max.
there are various MD-MN members who choose to dress plainly, while attending other churches, even as members of other churches, or not attending. i've never once heard a peep from others to these folks, nor do i question their choices. some are active posters, right now.

max often does not respond to your questions. i see that.
he has stated, he does not see/read your posts, so i don't expect these responses.
i do not see this as evasive.
not all of my threads/posts receive replies. i respect others' choice to not reply. i don't presume evasion or other negative reason. it happens.

in early threads, i saw this happen to Hans! much to my surprise.
not every question/observation will receive a response in the moment.

Brier Island stuff.

[Bootstrap]

When I hear stories of larger communities or longer histories, or see pictures on a website, I'd like a little more evidence, because these things have been rather hard to verify.

And I would find it helpful if he would give straightforward answers to straightforward questions. For instance, why choose plain clothing in the Mennonite tradition if you are Catholic? I would like to understand what these choices make in his faith walk. It's harder to have fellowship if we can't do that kind of thing.

i don't understand the focus on max.
there are various MD-MN members who choose to dress plainly, while attending other churches, even as members of other churches, or not attending. i've never once heard a peep from others to these folks, nor do i question their choices. some are active posters, right now.

If I answer your questions, it puts the focus back on Max. I think I already answered your question in the part colored blue above. I'd really rather not keep putting the focus on Max, perhaps we could discuss this privately if you prefer. But I think the best way to establish credibility is to give straightforward answers to straightforward questions, just like everyone else.

Nobody has an issue with people attending other churches, or dressing plain while attending other churches. I'm attending a non-Mennonite church too.

[Josh]

I'm confused about what an adult's membership has to do with their parents. If someone wants to be a member of a CA church that is something they have to do for themselves, and things like regular church attendance etc would be required before being admitted to things like mutual aid (but certainly the needy would be helped other ways).

Generally the goal of new members with mutual aid is to help others, not help themselves.

[justme]

i don't understand the focus on max.

and i don't understand the need for onlookers to defend max
max is a big boy. he can defend himself.

getting others involved just leads to more drama. which wasn't necessary in this thread.
max started a topic of conversation that included a question on how things should be handled.
judas asked a legitimate question. context is very important in answering questions like this.
what did that have to do with boot and with max not answering boot?

-jm