By George K. Werner (former education)
According to the Gospel of the Ministry of Bread-and-Butter Issues
Chapter 1: Word Goes Forth
1:1 And it came to pass in those days that a word went out from Broad Street,
1:2 saying, The problems are being solved.
1:3 And the word was spoken with confidence, and many received it.
1:4 But among those who heard were the poor, the worker, the market woman, and the parent whose child had been sent home.
1:5 And they said among themselves, What is it that is being solved among us?
Chapter 2: What It Means to See
2:1 For the rulers spoke of seeing, but the people spoke of bearing.
2:2 And the bearing was heavy.
2:3 They bore the price of rice, measured by the cup.
2:4 They bore the fare of the journey to work.
2:5 They bore the darkness when the light went out and the cost of fuel when it returned.
2:6 They bore wages divided before they were received.
2:7 And they said, If the burden is lifted, we will not need to be told.
Chapter 3: Bread-and-Butter
3:1 And the people spoke again, saying, Bread-and-butter issues remain.
3:2 But the reply came, Why do you still speak, seeing they are being addressed?
3:3 And the people were troubled, for bread and butter were not the food of the poor.
3:4 For from the beginning they lived by rice bought daily,
3:5 By small earnings gathered with effort,
3:6 And by what remained after the market and the journey.
Chapter 4: Good News Tested
4:1 And it was proclaimed, Those who have learning are finding decent work.
4:2 But among the people were those with learning who waited without work,
4:3 And those who worked yet could not sustain their households.
4:4 And they said, Good news that does not reach the poor is not yet complete.
Chapter 5: The Turning of Numbers
5:1 And fuel became cheaper, and the people rejoiced.
5:2 Yet transport became dearer, and their rejoicing turned to wonder.
5:3 And they asked, How can this be?
5:4 And no plain answer was given.
5:5 And they learned that numbers may fall in reports,
5:6 While costs rise in the streets.
Chapter 6: Children and Burdens
6:1 And it was said, Education is free.
6:2 Yet payment was required for uniforms, for transport, and for examinations.
6:3 And some children were sent home for sums small to the state but heavy to their parents.
6:4 And the people said, Good news that sends children home is not yet freedom.
Chapter 7: Why the People Speak
7:1 And it was taught that the people should speak no more of these things.
7:2 But the people could not be silent.
7:3 For silence did not lower prices,
7:4 Nor shorten journeys,
7:5 Nor fill the pot at evening.
7:6 And their speaking was not rebellion,
7:7 But witness.
Final Saying
8:1 For the measure of justice is not proclamation,
8:2 But relief.
8:3 And the proof of good news is not that it is announced,
8:4 But that it is felt first by the poor.
8:5 When the burden is lifted, the people will not need persuasion.
8:6 And when life becomes lighter, the mouths of the people will rest.
8:7 Until that day, the voices of the lowly shall remain,
8:8 For the cost of living cries out,
8:9 And it crieth louder than any statement.
These are the Broad Street Scriptures.
