our values

Some of the core values that drive, haunt and inspire those of us at Alterna include:

Relocation. We, the members of Alterna, are committed to following the kenosis example of Christ who emptied himself, took on the form of a servant and made his home among us, a community in need of redemption.  For Alterna, relocation means living a life of simplicity and in solidarity with migrants, particularly with undocumented immigrants and with the poor in Latin America.  (Philippians 2:5-11)

Generous simplicity. There is no topic that Jesus focuses on more than that of our relationship to money.  Our culture has convinced us that acquiring wealth is the means to being generous.  We marvel at what mega-wealthy philanthropists do and say, “when I’m rich I’ll…”  But the truth is the average American is possessed by possessions, imprisoned by interest and living such a fast-paced life that auto-drafting a donation to our favorite charity is a 21st century illustration of what how we have redefined living simply and generously.  Richard Foster states, “ simplicity is freedom… brings joy and balance… is an inward reality that results in an outward life-style.”  We commit to waging a war on the evil of materialism by offering all of our services pro-bono, living below our means, and being more generous with our time, talents, and treasure. (Matthew 6:19-21, Luke 12:33, Luke 16:13)

Hospitality. Scripture calls us to offer hospitality to the strangers among us.  Dorothy Day once exhorted every congregation to establish a house of hospitality and for every Christian family to establish a Christ room, a room that is always ready to accept the Christ that Mother Teresa said visits us in the “distressing disguise” of the poor.  Alterna sees this as central to our witness.  We plan to expand our service of hospitality to immigrants for we find this to be the greatest antidote to our society’s epidemic of fear.  (Hebrews 13:1-6, 1 Peter 4:9)

Reconciliation. We are deeply saddened by the racial and ethnic divisions in our land and, especially, within the Church.  Most acutely we lament the partition of the Church in America along socially and politically constructed borders.  To dehumanize an entire category of God’s children as being “illegals” (and the terms get more vulgar than this, even among so-called Christians) is a structural sin.  Therefore, we commit to an active pursuit of a just reconciliation and will engage in prophetic acts to call us all to repentance and, ultimately, to right relationship. (2 Corinthians 5:11-6:2)

Community. While Alterna is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization; our deepest desire is to be a missional community of people who are committed to a common vision of the Kingdom of God, deepening in our intimacy with one another, and committed to serve and be served, love and be loved, know and be known, celebrate and be celebreated.  (Acts 2:43-47)

Environmental stewardship. At Alterna, we hope to grow in our understanding of sustainability and faithful stewardship of the Earth’s and our limited resources.  We commit to continually finding ways to support our local economy as well as the commerce of fair trade.  We also seek to continually lessen our ecological footprint by gardening, raising chickens, and other sustainable initiatives.  (Genesis 1:11-12; 20-25, Psalm 65:9-13, 1 Timothy 4:4-5)

Nonviolence. As believers that Christ calls us to literally love our neighbors, we seek to pursue peace through active nonviolence.  We will continue to be a prophetic witness to not only overt violence but also to the structural violence of greed, militarism, and oppression.  Within our community we value conflict resolution as described in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 18.  (Luke 6:20-49)

A balanced spiritual life. We aspire to help nurture a community of believers who understand that the marks of a balanced Christian life includes growing in the disciplines of not only meditation, prayer, fasting, and study but also in simplicity and solitude.Furthermore, as a community we seek to cultivate an environment of mutual submission, service, confession, worship, guidance and celebration.