To the have-nots

Four years ago, the artist Stromae made a powerful social statement: an ode to those who are often overlooked—the ceux qui n’en ont pas, or the have-nots—recognizing their efforts and dignity through a gesture rooted in gratitude. The song Santé is not only a striking act of recognition for those who often fall through the cracks, but also a call that resonated deeply with Kate, inviting her to reflect on her own place within a demanding, production-focused world.

As Kate engaged with Creation hands-on, the song became more than a companionship melody—it emerged as a theological question: What places are we occupying in a Creation struggling with poverty, food insecurity, and imbalance?

“Through field education, I discovered a new niche of theology that I wanted to be part of,” Kate affirms.

When we are young, we often dream of being agents of change. We see injustice and inequality affecting our brothers and sisters, and we imagine gathering the skills, knowledge, and recognition needed to rise to the challenge—to bring to earth the revolutionary love that Jesus called us to live.

Yet, as Kate reflects, many of those children grow into a world swept up in relentless currents. In this productivity-driven society, worth is measured by output. Those who witness—or feel—the deprivation of the “have-nots,” in both material and social terms, often sense the quiet breaking of their own souls—a sound that many are unwilling or unable to hear.

Through her Field Education experience at the Gift Farm Garden, a ministry of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in the Okanagan, Kate realized that, in her ministry aspirations, she was not alone and that the type of change she wanted to foster was possible. 

During her time on the farm, Kate observed how churches, too, experience the pressures of contemporary governance—structures that can leave people burned out and weary. Yet she also saw how institutions can be instruments of change when they focus on prayer, spiritual discernment, and attentive leadership.

“It was amazing to see how institutions can forge transformation, letting the Spirit guide them. Through collective discernment, I witnessed this faith community reorienting itself into circular, life-giving models, rooted more deeply in the land and the community around them,” she reflects.

In this call towards balance and harmony, Kate learned that leadership does not come from intellect alone. It calls for openness to where God leads, for embracing the discomfort of not knowing, and for guiding even a congregation through uncertainty with trust, humility, and care.

Kate’s time on the Land offered her not only the chance to create cherished memories alongside inspiring leaders, friends, and her children, but also a deeper, almost sacred experience. As someone once shared with her, even the berries seemed willing to hear the casual conversations of those working in the garden—offered up as if they were organic confessions—attuning Kate’s listening to a song that transcended the physical realms of Santé. It guided her to hear the subtle melodies of birds, sunrays, and soil—an awakening that inspired her own ode to those who experience the ‘have-nots’ in myriad ways, giving voice and rhythm to her call for social justice within her ministry.