Breaking Bread with Jana: Relocation

Recently it was my pleasure to connect with Jana and Ampie Niehaus from Durban who recently felt like a certain geographical move was on the cards for them. i engaged with Jana on a series of ten back and forth emails in which we tried to keep it to about 100 words a comment. It was really great to get a bit of an understanding of why they are making the move and what the response has been as well as look ahead to some of the challenges. In a country where geography and relocation played such a significant part of our past, it is not surprising to me that moves like this and others that intentionally look to build bridges between groups and cultures, are a huge part of a positive way forward. I’d like you to meet Jana Niehaus:

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Brett [1/10]: Hi Jana. You recently emailed me to tell me that you and your husband are planning a move into the Durban CBD. Perhaps, for those of us who are unfamiliar with that area, you can share some of what it is like and give us some of the motivation for the move you are making, which sounds like it is not a typical decision one might make in Durban? At the moment my wife, tbV, and i are busy looking for a new place to stay and top of our list of priorities is a place that looks diverse where we are not surrounded by white people. After that there are things like space for hospitality and deep dive conversations, hopefully close to public transport so it can be more accessible and space for me to office at home. 
 
Jana: [2/10]: The CBD is rich in socio-economic diversity and cultural heritage. Her stark contrasts will take you by surprise – affluence and dire need, revitalisation and ruin, happy smiles and sorrowful stares, vitality and malady all exist in the face of the other. Most people who live with us in the northern suburbs (but certainly not everyone) would perceive the city as crime-ridden – an area to avoid or escape, rather than embrace or occupy – and moving to the inner city would be considered a step “backwards”. We have felt the desire to experience life and build relationships with people in our country who are different from us (socio-economically and culturally). We believe that the best way of doing this in a sustainable way is, for us, to live in close proximity with each other.
 
Brett [3/10]: Val and i resonate quite strongly with the reasons you have given for wanting to make such a move, but as you suggest it does seem a little bit counter-culture. Since apartheid was strongly enforced with geographical means [dispossessing people of land and relocating to other areas] it makes a lot of sense that making geographical moves might be part of a healthy way to redress that imbalance. But i would be interested to know how your move would be viewed by those you know who care about you and live in the northern suburbs. As you have been dreaming and thinking and now planning and enacting this move, has there been much push back from your friends and family. Or have you found support for the idea? And are you hoping to trigger the same idea in other people at all? 
 
Jana [4/10]: Almost all of our loved ones have been incredibly supportive and interested, although I think many of them had a hard time understanding what it would look like and how this will work. They have been and still are asking many questions. We enjoy the questioning, it helps us check our “hearts” or our intentions, but it also stirs imagination – it helps us all imagine that there are other ways of having a “good life” or “being successful” or “bringing change” than what we have been lead to believe by the framing story of the world around us. Some people still think we are just having financial problems!! 
 
Brett [5/10] Ah, that’s great. Having support from loved ones can really help give impetus to an idea that might be a little new and potentially a bit scary. So what you’re doing seems a little bit counter cultural and different from the norm. Can you share a little bit of the story or process of how you moved from being a ‘normal person doing normal things’ to a couple who were prepared to try something many will see as quite radical or ‘out there’? Was this a growing process or was there one moment or incident or book or something that inspired you to make the change? And then for you as a couple looking to make this move, what are the particular challenges you see ahead of you that maybe make you a little nervous or anxious? 
 
Jana [6/10] Yes Brett, so many people, conversations, books and powerful moments have shaped our decision. My husband, Ampie, and I, have both known for a long time that we were called to, at some point, live counter culturally, but it has taken us many years to process the “theological reasons” for this, as well as what exactly this would look like. I did a Masters in Church Practice a few years ago and the recommended reading included Ron Sider’s Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, and Shane Claiborne’s The Irresistible Revolution – which we both read. These are “dangerous” books to read (certainly not the kind of books you should read if you want to continue living in ignorant bliss)! 
 
We attended conferences and dialoguing sessions which opened our eyes to the challenges we as Christians/the church face in our country. Your blog challenged us in so many ways (we are so grateful for a voice like yours)! These were some of the elements in our story so far, but I cannot really do justice to the whole process in a few sentences.
 
We are aware that we will be facing many challenges, including issues of trust and cultural barriers. The Quaker saying, “Let us then see what Love can do…” has been my prayer over the last couple of days, especially when I feel overwhelmed, anxious or challenged.  
 
Brett [7/10]: Wow, Jana, that is incredible, thanks for sharing. Yup, there are some dangerous books out there – just recently read ‘Rich Christians’ and was greatly challenged by some of the end chapters in particular and ‘Revolution’ really resonated with a lot i was wrestling with at the time. i guess if we were trying to summarise this experience we might go with the phrase ‘Faith lived out’. i think it’s terrible difficult to critique people around you who don’t feel the same conviction as you and haven’t made the same moves without coming across as judgemental, but at the same time i do think it is helpful to ask the question, ‘What do you think stops other people from making such dramatic counter culture moves as you are doing?’ Are they not ‘called’ or is God working in them in a different way? How do you reflect on the choice you’re both making as the exception more than the rule?  
 
Jana [8/10]: That is such a hard question to answer and one that we are still struggling with at the moment. There apparently is a line in the Talmud that says, “We do not see things as they are; we see things as we are.” As easy as it could be to criticise people for being ignorant, uninformed, driven by fear, greedy or racist, so much of what we notice in the world has to do with what we are willing to allow God to do or transform in us. I feel that I still have such a long way to go and not nearly understanding our context well enough to judge or criticise others. At the same time, I am so aware of the incredible urgency for all followers of Christ and all South Africans to stop talking, judging, intellectualising and pointing fingers and change our ways by actually really “doing” something about it! And the “doing something” for those of us who believe our lives should be shaped by the cross, will require a certain measure of risk, inconvenience or danger or difficulty.
 
Brett [9/10: i think what’s been important for Val and myself is to let our actions speak louder than our words and as much as possible to back up our words. Words in this ongoing conversation feel incredibly important at times but there HAS to be a point where it translates into action. Some of those actions [like where we choose to live] we make quite public in the hope that they spur people on to think and question and reflect and maybe see if there is relevance for themselves. Others of those actions [like where we give our money to] are more private in the hope that we can just get on and do good things without feeling the need to announce them to the world [don’t let the left hand know that the right is doing] but if people ask we are happy to share further. I think that is a healthy mix – as you said the incredible urgency for others to realise the need to engage in whatever ways they can and hopefully the desire to do a good thing rather than some kind of external compulsion that isn’t really value based. Any last words from you as you reflect on this conversation and the new life that you guys have stepped into?

Jana [10/10]: Yes! One of the reasons I started following your blog was because of your integrity – your thoughtfulness actually translates into a “faith lived out”. Thank you for encouraging and inspiring us in that way!