Will We Get Arrested?
Each year on the Sunday before Halloween, the Methodist Youth Fellowship in my home church went trick-or-treating for UNICEF, seeking donations for the United Nations Children's Fund.
Our church and others in Garden Grove, California, been doing this for years.
We learned a little about UNICEF before we set out, how it saved the lives of children around the world, and it felt good to be doing our small part to hel them. We looked forward to our trick-or-treating—and the party afterwords. When I was in the eighth grade, though, some people went to a city council meeting in October and demanded that the city deny us a permit to sollicit funds for UNICEF. “Some of the food and medicine and blankets that UNICEF gives goes to Poland and Yugoslavia!” they objected. “and these are communist countries!”
“But the money does not go to the governments of Poland or Yugoslavia,” somebody pointed out. “It helps sick children in Poland and families in Yugoslavia whose homes have been destroyed by earthquakes.”
“It is better for a child to die,” one man responded, “than to grow up in a communist country!”
The city council denied us a permit and declared it illegal for anyone to collect money for UNICEF. What were we going to do? We did not want to be thrown in jail, but we knew that what the city council had done was wrong. Leaders of First Methodist Church called a meeting for everyone in the youth group and their parents. They told us that the pastors of many churches had agreed not to cancel trick-or-treating, that it was time to stand up to the city council. A lawyer from one arish volunteered to represent anyone who got arrested.
“There is still some risk, though,” we were told. “Each family will have to decide if their child will take that chance.. But whatever you decide, we hope you will come to the Halloween party afterwards.”
In the end, nearly everyone in our youth group went trick-or-treating. along with hundreds of kids from other churches. We felt brave--and a little scared. Nobody knew how our neighbors might treat us or whether we would be arrested or not. It was, for most of us, the first time we had to consciously decide whether to follow Jesus or obey the Powers That Be.
At a few houses, people slammed the door in our faces. Some places, people screamed at us, "Go away, you communists!”
Two girls from our group were so upset when one man yelled at them that they started crying and crying. A woman who lived next door came out to see what the fuss was about. She comforted the girls, gave them hot cocoa, and went with them to every other house on the block. Perhaps people felt sorry for us because we looked frightened. Maybe they admired our courage. Some may have wanted to show that they were on our side.
Whatever the reason, when we gathered at church that night, we had collected more money for UNICEF than ever before.
Not a single child had been arrested. Nervous, relieved, and faithful, we had the best party ever.