"Create a culture of service so that we can compassionately respond to human need inside and outside our church." So reads "Goal 4," listed on the web page for West Seattle's Fauntleroy Church. So why did they recently opt not to host Seattle's Tent City 3 (Tent City 3), a community benefiting homeless people?

At the beginning of October, a group from SHARE/WHEEL, two sister organizations working with and for homeless men and women in Seattle, approached the church with a proposal: host Tent City 3 during the months of December through February. (SHARE stands for "Seattle Housing and Resource Effort." WHEEL stands for "Women's Housing Equality and Enhancement League.")

They were allowed to give a presentation - tent cities provide shelter for homeless people, and require residents to adhere to strict rules and regulations - but in the end, were denied.

According to David Kratz, the senior pastor at Fauntleroy Church, the decision was really the result of bad timing and lack of community knowledge about tent city communities and the SHARE/WHEEL program.

Kratz claims that the presentation was not given to the entire community; rather, they held an unofficial meeting with some of the leaders of the congregation. Afterwards, a "straw poll" was taken. The reaction was mixed.

"Some were enthusiastic, some were not," says Kratz.

The main problem, according to Kratz, is that word then got around that Fauntleroy Church would be hosting a tent city. People who were not at the meeting - and who did not receive the information that the attendees received - started talking, and, says Kratz, "People started choosing sides."

It was really too bad, says Kratz, maintaining that they weren't yet ready for people to take sides.

"We wanted a (congregational) vote before that."

The neighbors heard rumors that the church was letting Tent City 3 move in without telling everyone. The church started receiving phone calls. "A number of neighbors were quite hysterical," says Kratz.

Kratz believes that a lot of people just don't know anything about a tent city; they imagined bums and beer bottles landing in their yard. In today's climate of fear, says Kratz, it's the end of the world to people. "They allowed their fears to take over their willingness to ask questions and get information."

To add to the situation, the church was in the middle of a capital campaign for building renovations. Kratz says that he began to hear a lot of "If you do this, I'll do this," or; "If you do this, I won't do this."

Consequently, the church council - a group of eleven members - voted to suspend the conversation, and not host the tent city in December. However, they did decide that, come the first of the year, they will look at what they can and want to do for the less fortunate.

In the church's defense, Kratz points out that "We have done a lot for homelessness." They participate with the White Center Food Bank, and helped found the First Avenue Service Center (now known as the Family and Adult Service Center) in downtown Seattle. "We try to care and to be responsible."

Kratz insists that the church - generally speaking - wants to do something for homeless people.

"We are all for peace; we just don't all agree on how to achieve peace."

When asked if the church would ever consider hosting a tent city in the future, Kratz doesn't have a definite answer. "We aren't of one mind about tent cities," he says. "Tent cities always face opposition (in a new community); the church needs to be committed and together to face the community, or it can be internally destructive."

"Dynamically," Kratz says, "Churches are people. We'd love to be perfect, but we're not."

Kratz describes SHARE/WHEEL as "really wonderful people," who received the church's rejection "graciously."

Scott Morrow, one of the program's leaders who contacted Fauntleroy Church was not able to comment due to his position at SHARE/WHEEL; he did confirm that Tent City 3 has found a host for December, but is still trying to find a host for January through February.

For more information about tent cities, visit: http://www.anitraweb.org/homelessness/faqs/tentcities.html

Mia LaCourse may be reached via wseditor@robinsonnews.com