the Weary Pilgrim

workin' for God...barely hangin' on

There's an old saying, " give someone enough rope and they'll... "

I had coffee with a recent gradaute of a mainland Bible College this afternoon who is starting on as a childrens minstry pastor in a local church. He's looking for shelter, a place to live. Vacancy rate in the Victoria area is at an all time low, and if your fortunate enough to find something, you might have to choose between a roof over your head or food. Victoria or any major BC city is expensive to live in.

So I start asking questions...after four years of seminary what's your student loan? This young person has a student loan of 26,000$, and the last year of his course he didn't qualify, or couldn't get a student loan...so he borrowed 8,000 on his credit card.

His job will also require he need a vehicle.

Sooooo, I ask him what his salary will be? His salary will be 30,000$. And I ask him, what will there expectation be for that salary? The expectation is a full time work schedule, 40 hours a week.

Now the poverty level in Canada for a single person living in a major city in Canada is said to be some where around 21, 000$.

Oh and this isn't the only story I've heard.

And, this is advancing what ?????????

(Extra)ordinary vision...

Just so you know I'm still kickin', I thought I would post this part of an e-mail from Fred Peatross:

If the church is going to turn the corner on the consumerist twist it finds itself caught up in, it will do so because leaders involve themselves in building a culture of the ordinary evangelist (a faith-community niche). Jesus’ apprentice is not going to be formed through Sunday morning sermonettes, drama, worship teams, or edifices fit for comfort but through clear, intentional teaching that says evangelism is forged through a process of salvation. And ordinary attempts are the turning points. Now, here’s something you might not know. Every Christian makes ordinary attempts. But Christians need to be made aware:

 

• They need to understand that the process of ordinary is as important as the event of salvation

• They need to understand how significant and important their role is in the process of salvation

• Christ wants them to know! The vision must come alive!

 

Teach it! Practice it! Talk about it every time the community

gathers!

 

It’s time we rally around a niche and there is none more important! Make your Sundays a time for ordinary stories among ordinary Christians! Culture building…until Christ comes back! So…Do we invite the missing to our environment? Or follow Jesus’ mandate to “GO” and walk with them in their environment?

 

Road stories are crucial. Like the early Christians, we need to, once again, become known as people of the way. How?

 

• By walking with and listening more to what the people Jesus misses the most have to say

• Drop the infamous slogan “We hate their sin but love the sinner,” and actually get to know and become a fellow sinner’s best friend

 

If we really desire to reach out to this culture, we’re going to have to become like the spies Joshua sent out and boldly walk across our faith borders and engage the land God wants to give us. It’s time we break out of our Christian circles, stop the busyness of church, face outward, take a look, and experience the world beyond the borders of our community gatherings.

 

change...fearing the enterprise will crumble

A church is exploring the idea of an " alternative " service. The challenge, will alternative be anything more than a change of day and time. Will it be the same template with some slight editing...louder, more hip, maybe contemplative...candles,bells and smells. We like to think that traditionalism is those " liturigical " folk. The question is, sure numbers may be increasing, there is a sense of success...the program is working. But...the fear, we want to do something really alternative...but what happens if it doesn't work???

"Tradition is the living faith of dead people to which we must add our chapter while we have the gift of life. Traditionalism is the dead faith of living people who fear that if anything changes, the whole enterprise will crumble." -- Jaroslav Pelikan

policing blogs...freedom is always a threat

( image via Phillip Retuta, Graphic Designer )

Bill Millar shares a concern that is starting to percolate within the United Church of Canada, ethical standards and standards of practice for ministry personel who blog...

WHEREAS The United Church of Canada has established Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice for Ministry Personnel; and

WHEREAS maintaining a Blog, or online journal, is becoming a common practice for ministry personnel; and

WHEREAS the established Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice for Ministry Personnel are silent on the practice of Blogging, and other online journaling; and

WHEREAS the practice of many employers is to set guidelines regarding Blogs and other online journals;

THEREFORE we propose that the Executive of General Council direct the appropriate body to include guidelines for maintaining a Blog,or other online  contributions, within the Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice for Ministry Personnel.

One has to believe it was only a matter of time before some kind of policing had to take place in the blogospehere. Every church/denomination has some form of fundamentalism attaching itself to the community...these are the sacred stone tablets we gather around to protect at all costs, sometimes even more sacred than scripture itself. 

I know in my own journey of blogging for 5 years I have dared from time to time to pull these tablets out and poked and prodded questioning their content. In doing so I have been called into line, I have been asked to remove some posts.I have been treated with suspicion, seen as a threat to leadership and to the community. Even writing disclaimers does not seem to ease the tension.

Freedom is always a threat.

Is it really necessary to police blogs? Should there be freedom to write about anything? What are the sacred tablets that should not be poked, prodded and questioned?

My experience is that the blogosphere does a good job of monitoring itself. Comments are a great tool to challenge the writer, opening up conversation and dialog around different issues of faith.

Freedom is always a threat...and threats need to be controlled.

 

church growth...light (IN) the world

Why is it when things start to look good in our faith communities...more people, harder to find a seat...coffee budget is on the increase, our first reaction is to build? But, do we really think about what we're building. Are we increasing the light ( in ) the world...or are we just increasing the light in( our ) little world. I'm reminded of these quote by Tim Keller and Dallas Willard...

Now, some might be shocked to hear that what the “church” — the disciples gathered — really needs is not more people, more money, better buildings or programs, more education, or more prestige. Christ’s gathered people, the church, has always been at its best when it had little or none of these. All it needs to fulfill Christ’s purposes on earth is the quality of life he makes real in the life of his disciples. Given that quality, the church will prosper from everything that comes its way as it makes clear and available on earth the “life that is life indeed "...(Dallas Willard; The Great Omission)

We believe that, paradoxically, churches grow best not when they aim at church growth as much as when they serve the peace/shalom of the whole city. Saint Augustine believed that citizenship in the City of God made us the very best citizens of the human city. (Tim Keller; Redeemer Church Planting Manual )

flattened leadership...breaking paradigms

In the last while there has been lots of talk around " flattened leadership structure " in the emerging/missional conversation. May I suggest Terry Tate, for paradigm breaking and out side the box thinking.

something old, something new...missional

From the Apology of Tertullian, AD 197

There is no buying and selling of any sort in the things of God. Though we have our treasure-chest, it is not made up of purchase-money, as of a religion that has its price. These gifts are . . . not spent on feasts, and drinking-bouts, and eating-houses, but to support and bury poor people, to supply the wants of boys and girls destitute of means and parents, and of old persons confined now to the house; such, too, as have suffered shipwreck; and if there happen to be any in the mines or banished to the islands or shut up in the prisons, for nothing but their fidelity to the cause of God’s Church, they become the nurslings of their confession. But it is mainly the deeds of a love so noble that lead many to put a brand upon us. See, they say, how they love one another, for they themselves are animated by mutual hatred. See, they say about us, how they are ready even to die for one another, for they themselves would sooner kill. 

church transformation...

Still reflecting on change I came across an article by Darryl Dash, interviewing Alan Roxbourgh around change in the local church...

According to Alan, most recognize that Christendom has ended and Canadian culture is rapidly changing. This discontinuous change is more than a blip. We are not going back to where we were before, and this makes some anxious.

The story that shaped the church for much of the twentieth century is no longer the story that will move it forward. The habits and practices and the way we did church were developed for a certain kind of culture that no longer exists. Therefore, many of our old habits and practices no longer make sense. This is generally accepted and no longer a matter of debate.

Surface Change...

Issues arise as leaders ask what it means to be the church in this new context. Some are trying to revitalize churches by changing at the surface level without understanding the underlying issues. These approaches fail because they do not bring about culture change.

When churches change at the surface, they take what they're doing try to do it better. They hope that if they become welcoming enough, run the right programs, and hire the right pastor, they will attract people. The assumption is that the culture of the church doesn't need to change; they just need better implementation and marketing.

These churches often look for solutions to come from the outside. A church or denomination calls in a great leader, and this leader comes in with programs to turn things around. This way of thinking leads to short term spikes but fails to bring about lasting change.

Read more from Darryl about real change... here

musing change...and church

In a sort of continuation of thought from my previous posts " Emergence Under Pressure...in your church ", and " Cha-Cha Changes ...defining moment ", I look at faith communities as a living organism in complex body.

To look at transformational change in a new emerging culture we need to look at faith communities as a complex living organism...rather than an institution constructed of rigid inflexible structures. But, that is not to say a life giving and life breathing organism such as a faith community does not have some kind of pattern, process and structure. ( 1 Corinthians 12 )

It's in this transformational process we develop realtionship, and identity...in this web of communal life we discover all is interwoven and interdependant. The structures become more fluid, more focused on the present moment and future. So here is some thoughts on what that might look like...

A Constant of evolving and renewing...

If we look at God's creation we observe that the natural world is continually evolving and renewing. This is a basic principle, a law built into creation...that nature constantly reflects this truth...that without this principle there is no life. What are the implications for faith communities?

Transformation and cyclical processes...

In the web of life living organisms continously exchange matter and energy and what is waste for an organism is food for another. The " CHURCH " this massive living body is made up of an incredible complex and diverse network of organisms...that is constantly going through seasons and change. That nothing should be wasted...that we share a common Life...that energy and matter are exchanged ( tradition, stories and journey ). We learn from each others successes and failures.

Interdependence...

All living systems are interconnected and the success or the health of any given organism is dependant on the health of the larger related whole. The " Church " must nourish all of its realtionships among all of its members. Jesus prayer, the prayer that still waits to be answered " That they would be one, as We are one."

Partnership...

The " Church " and faith communities need to be aware of there interdependance, we need to cooperate with each other in order to coexist. We need to be bold enough to form partnerships with emerging/missional ventures on the fringe...even those outside our denominational lines. Remember it is about the larger related whole, rather than the individual organism. It is about the Kingdom, and sharing the wealth of the Kingdom. It isn't about Darwinian Theory and survival of the fittest...that counters the reality of the Kingdom.

Diversity and Discrimination...

One of my fears of the Missional/Emerging church is the preception life is composed of separate parts and can be exploited apart from the larger related whole. In the web of natural life, every living organism ( faith community ) is important to the welfare of the whole, and they don't look down on each other. We must recognize that the most important elements of creativity and life are our differences and diversity. Life does not happen from cloning what works...it usually leads to something quite cancerous.

Leadership, flat structures...

Create leadership structures that are not authoritarian...rather than heavy handed control, a communal leadership that is in service and serves one another. Physicist, Fritjof Capra asks, "How do we facilitate emergence?" He responds...

"You will facilitate emergence by creating a learning culture, by encouraging continual questioning and rewarding innovation. In other words, leadership means creating conditions, rather than giving directions.

"Above all, facilitating emergence means building up and nurturing a network of conversations with feedback loops. The first step toward this goal might be loosening the designed structures and thereby creating more flexibility.

"Another important aspect is creating an emotional climate that is conducive to emergence. This means a climate of warmth, mutual support, and trust; but also a climate of passion with plenty of opportunities for celebration.

"Finally, we need to realize that not all emergent solutions are viable. Therefore, a culture fostering emergence must include the freedom to make mistakes. In such a culture, experimentation is encouraged, and learning is valued as much as success."

cha-cha-change...defining moments

Last week I wrote a post, " emergence under pressure...in your church." It tweaked some nerves, poked some old wounds, and also revealed some circumstances that people find themselves in now. I must say in the process of e-mail conversations with a few people, some old wounds I thought had been healed re-surfaced and started to bleed ...causing me to reflect.

Now in the post, I talked about pressure on faith communities from the prevailing postmodern culture that surrounds us from all sides. We can't avoid the reality that these pressures should cause change. Again, I want to say, the pressure of post modernity does not change the Gospel...what changes is how we engage the culture with the Gospel.

But in this post I want to talk about inside pressure...that can be as deadly to the life of the community as pressures from the outside.

I write out of my experience from a few years back, and I'm finally at a place where I can confront the mess that I had basically swept in to a dark corner of my mind. So this is therapeutic for me, and also I hope my old friends from St. Stephens will find some understanding in it.

This was a community that wanted change, they asked for change...and they understood the reason for change. But the failed to understand a couple of important things...

• in order to change a complex system it must be disturbed
• systems resist change...disturb a complex system and it will attempt to return to stability, the status quo.

It's interesting Scott Peck talks about Pseudo-community. It’s the group where we meet together and smile, even when hearts are breaking. We are polite and avoid conflict.. and honesty and growth. The only way to achieve community is to pass through chaos.. and emptiness. Because systems resist change, most groups cycle through chaos back to pseudo-community. That doesn’t bode well for churches attempting to come to grips with the changes around them.

Pseudo-community on the surface can look like the real thing, but it is very deceptive and is only the illusion of real community. This community took a survey by a group called " Natural Church Development Institute. " The community scored highest in loving relationships, and community. The down-side, the survey doesn't differentiate between pseudo and the real thing.

Scott Peck also says this about community:  community is not achieved once for all… it requires constant effort and vigilance; and community is not sustainable unless it has a clearly defined task and that change is a constant variable in communal life.

“The only obstacle to building and maintaining community within an organization is not structural. It’s political. If you get somebody at the top, or who are dominant in the community,  who are not willing to relinquish the structure, even temporarily, or who have to dominate everything, there’s no way you can have community in that organization. So the people in the community, particularly the domineering, have to be willing to temporarily lay aside their egos and their agendas.”

Institutions seek stability, and a couple of ways they do it is through tradition, well defined roles and structure. Anglican churches are embedded in hundreds of years of this kind of organization and are about as stable as a mountain...and changing direction is near impossible, unless you have dynamite. Any change that is likely to happen will come in infinitely small increments, noticeable only under a microscope. It might take the form of a committee, years of discussion...and eventually the conversation dies like fading wind.

But by miracle, if it does get to the point where the community is ready to think about changing direction, sorting and packing the things that make up the community, things begin to teeter a bit...and instability sets in. Relational alliances begin to shift, new allegiances are formed, undermining will happen, power struggles within the community...and the blame game starts.

Any of this sound familiar. This is sort of what Moses experienced in the wilderness with his faith community. So when the boat that the faith community lives in begins to rock... instability, predictability, and control are like waves on the ocean...folks start to look around. They never seem to look ahead to the horizon to the future. Everyone seems to strain to look backwards to where they came from.

It is here where faith becomes monumental, this is where the community will be defined and shaped. This is the place where the community builds altars, this is the place they truly meet God. This is the place where the community has the most potential and creativity.

This is where we can truly say we have changed...or