Learning from Others

Tags

presbytery meetings, ship of fools, visiting churches

I attended one of our five SIX stated presbytery meetings last night (yes, five meetings a year - don’t get me started! obviously I was hoping we had moved to 5 when I wrote this initially!).  One of the ways I stay sane during these meetings is to peruse the publications offered to visitors in the pews; check out the bulletin boards in the hallways; take in the signage; and generally see what we can steal for our own congregation.  I know I’m not the only one that does this! 

Last night I came across this offering envelope:

 

I was struck by a couple of things:

• the picture reminds me of my childhood days growing up in the church – and that was awhile ago!  Dated pictures speak volumes.  I know some folks do have churches that look like this but I am certain that no sun looks like that!  Dated pictures = out of touch with 2011.
• I am Visiting – I’m all for including folks in the life of the congregation and don’t really agree with the “you don’t have to give because you are a guest” but this seems a bit odd.  Maybe if there had been something else to welcome those who were visiting? 

All this got me thinking about what we offer to folks who enter our building.  There is a ton of room for improvement.  I wish there was a good way to get a feel of what visitors really think about their experience.  The ones we hear from are those that stick around not the ones who never even make it in the door because of the website; the parking lot; the message on the phone; fill-in-the-blank much less those who come once and don’t return. 

We really do need mystery worshippers that will give reports like those on Ship of Fools.  Anyone have a great idea of how to go about doing that?  I am not a fan of anonymous critiques because too often they become a way of not talking, but I know that some folks would simply not share their ideas about what doesn’t work. 

I also don’t agree with “the church is just like a business” argument.  In some ways, yes, but I do believe we are to function in the realm of what is faithful not what is cost-effective or will bring us success.   This example is very Presbyterian and church related but I’m sure the questions arising from it cross denominational boundaries and  even professional settings.   

I’d love to hear your wisdom.

Reverb 7 – Community

Tags

chesapeak bay, community, reverb10

Day 7 – Community Prompt: Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011? (Author: Cali Harris)

 

 The joys of ministry as a pastor are many:  being a part of liminal moments; variety in each and every day; reading and writing as a job requirement; and 4 weeks of vacation and 2 weeks of study leave!  The challenging life of a pastor has been well documented over the past year.  Time away with people who understand the specific demands of the pastoral life is integral to my sanity.  I am a part of two wonderful groups that meet regularly.  The picture above was taken this past August on the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland.  Here was a typical day during our 5 days together.  Slow mornings, coffee and conversation, theological reflection on liturgical practices, food, a drink or two here and there, afternoons in the pool while talking about issues in the church (seriously – some of the best conversations happened around the pool!), kayaking, fresh crab cakes, laughter and more laughter, sound sleep…

It was a restorative week. 

“Community” gets thrown around and there are plenty who will tell you what is and isn’t community.  I think it can be found in a variety of ways.  Community is a safe space where you can simply be – a place where you can laugh, cry, question, ponder…

I treasure the folks in that photo and am grateful for their place in my life.

Don’t Forget the Living Stones

Tags

israel, Middle East Task Force, palestine, PCUSA

On our closing evening in Jerusalem, after having dined in Bethlehem, we asked our guide, Gus, how we could pray for him.  “Don’t forget the Living Stones when you go home.”  Gus is a Palestinian Christian living in a land filled with tensions that I can only begin to understand.  I, along with 19 other Presbyterian pastors, had wandered the land of our faith for 15 days and had barely scratched the surface of the politics of Israel/Palestine.  My prayers for Gus continue as well as prayers for the other Living Stones, regardless of their faith claims.

The Presbyterian Church (USA) has long been active in the Middle East.  Most recently, a task force has worked for close to two years studying the complex issues in Israel/Palestine and will release their report for the upcoming General Assembly meeting this summer. 

Suffice it to say, not everyone is happy.  A colleague of mine in Atlanta, Marthame Sanders, who served on the committee has shared on his blog some of the recent concerns raised by the Simon Wiesenthal Center.  It is discouraging to read the report on the Wiesenthal website.  Words such as hostile activists, anti-Israel beliefs, radical agenda, “leaked” press release (it wasn’t leaked – it was a press release!), poisonous document, declaration of war, are fraught with emotion.  Some of the information is flat out wrong.

My intent for placing this on my blog is to encourage the mass of readers that come here (humor, friends!) to read the information.  All the information.  In addition to the links above, here is the response from the Stated Clerk of our denomination.  Read it.  Please.  The final report of the study team has not been released but I will place the link on here as well as soon as it comes out.

I will continue to pray for the Living Stones in Israel and in Palestine.  will you join me?

Well Hello Blog

Tags

examen, Linn brothers, San Francisco, Sleeping with Bread

It has been awhile.  Lots of good reasons and I’m still pondering if I’ll keep this going but there is some stuff brewing and I might as well put it out on the internets and see if it sparks any conversation. 

Examen is something I’ve practiced off and on over the years.  It is an Ignatian practice that is complex in its simplicity.  The Linn brothers in their book Sleeping with Bread poses the questions in this way:

• for what are you most grateful?
• for what are you least grateful?

I spent the past week in San Francisco with a wonderful group of clergywomen who challenge me to be faithful in creative ways.  In the short time I’ve been a part of this group, I’ve found the time we share to be filling in ways that most other continuing education “events” can’t even compare.  It is a safe space to laugh, cry, complain, dream and hope. 

So I am most grateful for this amazing group of women and the opportunity to share in ministry with them.  I am least grateful for the craziness of the past month and my lack of finesse in managing it.  Thanks be to God for grace and the room to grow.

Back to School in More Ways than One

Tags

Bruce Reyes-Chow, Calvin, Carol Howard Merritt, Garrett Evangelical, GodComplex Radio, PCUSA, Stephen Ray

School started back up this week and with it some routines.  After K2 gets on the bus I usually head off for a walk.  This week I’ve been catching up with some of the podcasts from The GodComplex Radio.  Carol Howard Merritt and Bruce Reyes-Chow are two PCUSA pastors on opposite coasts who have put together some amazing interviews with an incredible folks.  If you haven’t listened to it – go check them out now.  I’m trying to re-work my Monday schedule so that I can listen live and engage in the online conversations that happen. 

Yesterday I listened to the Calvin episode with Dr. Stephen Ray.  Listening to him speak made me want to sit in on one of his classes or read one of his books.  If you haven’t read Calvin’s Institutes or have even seen them here is what you need to know:  Calvin’s Institutes are dense, thick, at times confusing, challenging – and printed in two volumes.  On thin paper.  With a really small font. 

So when Dr. Ray was asked to summarize Calvin’s work he said this:

The sum of Calvin’s Institutes is this:  either you trust God or you don’t. 

Wow.  I’m pretty certain I would have failed my ordination exams if I had given that answer but he is so on target.  I can think of countless conversations with good, faithful folks who struggle with Calvin’s understanding of predestination and the sovereignty of God.  It is hard to not make it all about us and what we must do in response to God’s gift of grace.  Or that we have to somehow initiate our own salvation.

Ray’s words make me think of that image that God grabs hold of us long before we grab hold of God and that ultimately, whether we grab hold doesn’t matter. 

Thanks Dr. Ray.  I think I’ll pull out Calvin’s work and do some reading.

Either you trust God or you don’t.  I’ll be pondering that for awhile.

Deep and Wide

Go read this post.  Do not pass go.  Do not collect $200.  Go.  Read.  It. Now. 

http://www.achurchforstarvingartists.com/2009/07/more-than-1-way-of-being-christian.html

Jan is a great pastor, wonderful writer, and friend and colleague I treasure.

40 Prayers of Hope and Gratitude

Bruce Reyes-Chow, moderator of the PCUSA and a colleague from past Montreat events is celebrating 40 tomorrow and offered a challenge to his readers to make a list of 40 things for which you are grateful, gives you hope or are in need of God’s healing.  Since it has been a few months since I made my list of 46 items in celebration of my bday, I thought I’d join in the fun. 

Gratitude

1. JP – we marked 20 years a month ago.  His generosity, gentleness, and graciousness are pure gift.  He is the ultimate renaissance man
2. KP – joy, pure joy.  I am ever so thankful for this amazing gift
3. The gift of life.  This week we said goodbye to one of the saints of Pioneer and I was reminded of what a gift our very existance is
4. The challenges and joys of being a pastor.  It is amazing how people allow me/us into their lives.  I need to remember that when I frustrated by the struggles
5. Spring.  Seriously, it couldn’t come soon enough this year
6. Friends who are willing to hear my whining
7. More books to read than I have time
8. 4 days in Montreat with plenty of time to relax, read and reconnect
9. Time with my mom and brother
10. In-n-Out burgers
11. Hard work in the yard
12. Reconnecting with family and our shared history – can you say dart guns?
13. A congregation to serve
14. The care of so many
15. Colleagues
16. Folks who are willing to lead in challenging situations (this would be you Bruce!)
17. Netflix
18. The gourment dinner group – a safe place to be me
19. The arrival of Neil.  Thanks be to God!

Hopeful

1. Listening/watching K2 and her variety of buddies playing together
2. laughter and tears at a memorial service
3. Sunrise
4. Becka’s new call
5. Ashley’s passion for public health
6. Heather’s commitment to the Invisible Children
7. G & J and the Chagrin Valley Job Seekers
8. K2′s prayers
9. sitting at the ocean – (preferably the Pacific)

In need of God’s healing

1. Palestine/Israel – and the living stones that reside in that hallowed land.
2. Families and the tension between generations
3. F. approaching surgery this coming week
4. T, D & C as they grieve
5. G as she grieves the loss of her marriage
6. Those struggling with infertility
7. Faith communities in our area who are closing their doors
8. A young man struggling with his health
9. Widows/widowers who miss their partners
10. The PCUSA
11. God’s good creation
12. those in need of employment

Busting out the Walls

image from www.tommynaumann.com

edited 3.24.09

It seems inevitable that when churches run out of space they build something new.  I worked with one pastor who ascribed to the notion that the one way to insure a member’s commitment to the church is to build something every few years – even if it wasn’t necessary. 

 

Random Thought 1:  Recently, I read the book When Not to Build: An Architect’s Unconventional Wisdom for Growing the Church.   There isn’t anything particulalry surprising in the book (I wouldn’t run out a buy a copy) but it does provide some interesting starting points for why churches build.  Bowman and Hall focus discerning the true needs of a congregation – the opening scenario is how one church needed to build a storage shed rather than a new sanctuary.  It is a helpful book to hand off to the engineer types who are more likely to want to find “solutions” to any “problems” that might arrive.  What I found lacking was a discussion of outside the box thinking when it comes to how we can best be the gathered body in our respective communities.

Random Thought 2:  We are maxed out on space in some ways.  We can’t find a place for another group to meet on Sunday mornings.  Pews are full – sometimes too full.  Parking is a challenge on the lowest of Sundays.  Midweek we are without any space for groups to meet that is not upstairs. 

Random Thought 3:  There is a building I pass at least twice daily.  Up until 6 months or so ago it housed some mobile phone company with a really tacky mascot that would stand out in all sorts of weather. He/She/It did grab my attention.  Now there is a sign out front that speaks to the desperation of realtors:  First Year’s Lease Free.  Now that sign grabs my attention.

Random Thought 4:  There are a number of congregations in our Presbytery that are struggling with the albatross of beautiful buildings that once served well but are now simply sucking the life out of these people.  These congregations are choosing to close rather than moving beyond thinking that the church indeed is the building.  I completely understand the emotional tie to buildings (I worry about my home church at times as it struggles to “stay alive”).  I guess that childhood song was just that – a cute childhood song that is too simplistic for grown-ups. 

Beginning connections:  I don’t want us to build for

• the sake of building
• as a way for folks to connect to the “institutional” church
• because that is what you do when you feel the pinch of crowded hallways and packed pews.

I also believe that all churches have a life cycle.  Who knows how long we will continue to grow at this rate.  There is no way to solidify that information in any faithful way.  And, I don’t think that is what we should be about.  Instead, I want us to ponder what it means to be faithful in this context we find ourselves in today.  How do we best live out te call to love God and love our neighbors?  Maybe it means a new building.  Maybe it means utilizing an old mobile phone company building (without the mascot, however!).  Maybe it means adding services and doubling – heck, tripling up the useable spaces we currently have.

Maybe it means building a storage shed. 

What I hope and pray for is that we will be open to how God is working in our lives and how we can best respond.  Not a simple task but an exciting time to be God’s people in this place. 

A note to Pioneer folks… please hear this as musings of one of your pastors who has been stuck at home sick for over a week! 

If I was asked to pray at the inauguration…

In case anyone is wondering, if I had been asked to pray at the Inauguration I would not have closed with the Lord’s Prayer.  I know I’m making a number of assumptions here but I didn’t want any of you (all 3 of you who read this blog!) to lose sleep over this. 

Here is why:  The Lord’s Prayer is intentionally exclusive.  For the early Christians, the first time they would have prayed the Lord’s Prayer would have been after they had been through a lengthy process of training (the catechumenate), baptized (during the Easter Vigil) and then brought into the worshipping community where they would pray those words and receive the Lord’s Supper. 

So why in the world would a person stand before 2 million people plus the millions watching and pray that prayer?  There were 6 adults in our group who attended the inauguration, 5 of whom are Presbyterian pastors and the other is a church professional – none of us joined in.  It wasn’t the time and place.  This was a crowd of people representing who-knows-how-many faith traditions.  Why diminish the Lord’s Prayer in such a way? 

If I am asked to pray in a public place I go as a Christian pastor.  That is a given and I am not afraid to represent Christ.  Actually, I am humbled to do so.  But I also need to understand the context.  Jeff and I are co-teaching a course with the neighboring rabbi about Jewish-Christian relations in our community.  Would it be appropriate for us to close each meeting with the Lord’s Prayer?  Nope.  No more so than it would be for the rabbi to close with a prayer from her tradition.  Would it be appropriate for us to teach about those prayers in that setting.  Absolutely. 

This begs the question, why do we pray at such public events?  It is intriguing to me that the inauguration was surrounded by so much prayer.  As a person of faith, I am grateful that such an event is surrounded by prayer.  I can’t think of a role that needs more prayer than the presidency!  But what would have happened if there had been a variety of faith leaders leading those prayers?  What would a humanist say?  What sort of uproar would we have heard if a Muslim Imam had prayed? 

Bottom line:  those of you who are people of faith had better be praying for the leadership of this country using whatever words best suit your beliefs.

Moving beyond the violence

I can’t quite wrap my head around the numbers:  one third of the dead in Gaza are children.  I’m sure the numbers of Israeli children killed over the course of the never ending bloodshed in the Middle East is equally distressing.  In the midst of all the horrific news I heard a brief conversation between two people who are seeking a way beyond the rockets and bombs, names and stones.   Their monikers are “Peace Man” and “Hope Man.”  One lives in Gaza and the other in Israel.  Here is how they describe their blog:

This blog is written by 2 friends. One lives in Sajaia refugee camp in Gaza and the other lives in Sderot, a small town near Gaza on the Israeli side. There is ongoing violence between Israel and Gaza which has intensified greatly since October 2000. Many have been killed and many have been injured. The media coverage on both sides has been extremely biased. Our Blog is written by 2 real people living and communicating on both sides of the border.

Such a glimmer of hope.