G.I.F.T. Fest presents, "Meaningful Dialogue" w/ Rev. Jimi Calhoun & friends
“Inclusion requires making way for everybody, and the only way to do that is wanting the best for everybody.” - Rev. Jimi Calhoun
“Grow. Inspire. Feed. Teach.” G.I.F.T. Fest is an attempt to bring secular, sacred, and self-defined people together for a better future, starting at a neighborhood church and garden in north Austin, TX. In 2024, we are presenting two classes on ecology and two conversations on society, with local, exceptional, altruistic leaders. The meme, “Grow. Inspire. Feed. Teach.” seems to not only connote living at its best, but perhaps Faith, dharma, honor, community, and love, as well. We grow ourselves and aim to inspire ourselves and others. We feed ourselves and the greater good, and, we teach each other how. G.I.F.T. Fest was created by BioIntegrity and AllCreation.org as a response to polarization. How do we make the future better, together?
Rev. Dr. Stephen Kinney connected us to Rev. Jimi Calhoun, legendary bass player of the 60s and 70s, at the first G.I.F.T. Fest in 2022. They each participated in our Called to CARE event that year. It so happens Rev. Calhoun’s life of ministry, his five recent books, and his historically-influential music exemplify G.I.F.T. values. In this event, we celebrate and explore Rev. Calhoun’s newest book, Border Dance (which features a foreword by Brian D. McClaren).
This conversation, entitled Meaningful Dialogue, with special guests Simone Talma Flowers and Rev. Dr. Paul Kraus, is our first in the 2024 series on society. Jimi and our exceptional panel talk about unseen Racism in the church and society; Including “differently-abled” people in “Inclusion”; Human Rights > Civil Rights; Care-frontations; How Jimi's new book gives voice to the un-seen; What It's Like to be a receiver of Racism; and more. And then — we Dance!
All of this ties directly to the miracle of Earth’s biodiverse-biosphere and living in environmental care.
PROGRAM
There are so many wonderful things said in this discussion, we’ve decided to highlight as many as possible.
I. Welcome
Rev. Dr. Stephen Kinney, host — Pluralism enriches rather than divides, and that’s part of what we want to explore today.
Simone Talma Flowers — It’s about listening. It’s about… seeing the humanity in front of you. . . Everyone has a place in this book.
Rev. Dr. Paul Kraus — You have to be there. You have to get to know them one person at a time, and just never label. Never label.
Rev. Jimi Calhoun — I worked in a church in the US where half the staff wouldn’t even speak to me. . . Hence, I wrote the first book: How are we going to heal the racial divide?
Racism is corporate in nature. Racism ether means something or it doesn’t mean anything at all.
I’m challenging everybody to be willing to be a bridge to someone.
II. Care-frontations
(17:25)
Rev. Steve — As Jimi says, It’s one human race. It’s not races! That’s a human construction.
Rev. Jimi — Reads from Border Dance: "“Just because you don’t see it, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.”
He was almost making ME feel guilty for her bad behavior, because he didn’t see her bad behavior. He saw her typical behavior. And it has happened more times than I can count.Simone — I identify so much with what you’ve said in this book. And as a woman, a Black woman, you know, it’s a double-whammy, and I have to take a deep breath.
You bring up a point, and you bring it about so gently, and then you repeat it again. It’s a gentle way of being in your face and saying — “Did you hear what I just said?!” And just bring the attention back into focus. . . where it needs to be.
So I thank you for being so diligent in sharing this so gracefully.
Love is the only way through this; it’s the only way you can do this work, because, you know, it’s the long game. Yes, you take advantage of the moment, but it’s ripple effects that also are going to make a difference. So, thank you, Jimi.
Rev. Paul — There’s something Jimi is bringing to the forefront, and he has to be courageous in doing it, is to be Confronting as a person who is not considered in the dominant culture. . . (He’s) a gift in having that voice and in representing a collective voice… And you do it with such, I would call it, Care-fronting. You confront with care.
III. Selfish Discomfort < Greater-good Discomfort
(33:40)
Jimi - All of my writing is not about Race and Racism, it’s not about Civil Rights, it’s about Human Rights. I’m altruistic enough to believe that if we pursue all of our rights, collectively, that it’s going to be a win — somewhere down the road.
It’s not about Rights, it’s about Love.
Re: Compassion for dominant culture,
”For him to think any differently, he’d have to stand outside the culture and say, ‘What we’re doing to these people is wrong.’ But most people aren’t that self-critical… And since this guy was just doing what everyone else was doing — and it was legal, I’m not going to take vengeance on him, because he’s only doing what everybody else does and that would be wrong.”Inclusion requires making way for everybody, and the only way to do that is wanting best for everybody.
IV. Doppelgänging (Thy Neighbor & Thy Self)
(40:00)
Steve — (Not) seeing their doppelgänger as inferior would require me to give up my privilege for the sake of reality: seeing the person.
Re: Stumbling into a Trans event, being uncomfortable and recovering:
I saw their doppelgänger until they started singing. It was so beautiful.At the heart of the Christian understanding of God that I’m a part of is the idea of “the partners,” Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who — each one, utterly differently, each one co-constitutes the other. Without one they wouldn’t exist. . . So “the dance” is at the heart of God, if you will.
To perform according to the brand, according to your doppelgänger, and to then partition the world in those terms and to then project that onto everybody else, is to live in weird fear and hate. There’s no love in that.
Simone - I would say again, How do we open our hearts to each other? What does it take? And Jimi you have mentioned we have all these borders…. What does it take to penetrate (dissolve/resolve) the biggest border? The biggest barrier?
V. A Choreography of Altruism: “Dance & Freedom”
(48:00)
Jimi - Demonstrates “The Circle Dance of Love.”
Something magical happens when we dance in a circle. We’re all doing it at the same time — with each other, not separated from each other, and we’re dependent upon the other, and it’s connected, inter-connected.The only thing to be careful of is to make sure the circle isn’t exclusive.
Reading from Border Dance,
"And this principle (for society) would be called, “A Choreography of Altruism.”Simone - There is this freedom in people experiencing the commonality of the music. . .
I’m from Trinidad-Tobago, and… I remember how we danced. WE RAISED OUR HANDS IN THE AIR and jumped-up, you know, Like We Just Didn’t Care… But, it’s part of that freedom, that rejoicing and openness, where we open our hearts. And in that moment of dance and freedom, you could be upset with someone, but you’ dancing with them…
VI. Getting to the Funk of It
(52:00)
Jimi - “Funk” being the lived-existence of people who look like me, Black people. Funk. That’s the Funk of it. That gets to the pure essence of our life here.
And so what happens when you realize what Funk is? Your’e able to unchain your heart and you become a person who’s free to choose, free to love, and free to give, which makes you free to live. And I ended this book with saying, “That’s the Funk of it.”
Reading from his book, Funknology:
“James Brown, the father of Funk, found an unlimited number of ways to create funk music on the first beat of the measure, or — as the saying goes in my circles, “Do it on the one.:” . . . My writing, why it’s about — and what my Life is about, is that everyone in this room would become one; that we start living as one, because it’s possible.So, I think i’m going to take Simone’s prompt. Don’t know if I’m gonna do that, but I might get youto.
Paul - When you’re thinking about the subject of disability, and the Disability community, think about in your life what may have disabled you…”
Coda: Dance & Freedom
(55:21)
Dancing together!
Watch the Conversation
Quotes from the Convo
Watch the Video
Additional G.I.F.T. Highlights with Rev. Calhoun
Thanks again to Rev. Jimi Calhoun, Simone Talma Flowers, Rev. Dr. Paul Kraus, and Rev. Dr. Stephen Kinney (host) for their connective leadership and insights. Learn more about this event: https://giftfest.org/jimi-calhoun.
Rev. Jimi Calhoun is an author, pastor, and musician. He’s written five books, started nine churches in two countries, run at least one marathon, and helped formulate American pop, Soul, R&B, Funk, and Rock in their earliest days. Visit JimiCalhoun.com for more.
Simone Talma Flowers is executive director at iACT, Interfaith Faith Action of Central Texas. Visit InterfaithTexas.org for more.
Rev. Dr. Paul Kraus, director of pastoral care, Austin State Supported Living Center, president of the board, International Association of Christian Chaplains, adjunct professor, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary,
adjunct professor, Seminary of the Southwest. Visit his LinkedIN for more.
Rev. Dr. Stephen Kinney, retired from full-time ministry at All Saints Episcopal in 2022. He is also the founder and beloved creator/host of The Front Porch Project, the culture-crossing conversation series this event is modeled on. He is also past broad-president for Interfaith Action of Central Texas.
Thanks also to our partners: Black Pearl Books and Love Wheel Records for co-presenting these events; our sponsors: Rentsch Brewery, Genuine Joe Coffee, Texas Sake, BioIntegrity and Tres Monarcas, and to all the wonderful people who attended and supported these events!
