Locating the Church

 Where is the best place to look for the church in a Post Christendom context?

In the context of persecution, to find the church you must look in the concealed and secret places. Indeed the survival of the church relies on being unseen and hidden. Not that the church is inactive, but rather the location of gathering is undisclosed.

In the context of Christendom, the church is much easier to find. When it is an institution of respect and favour, the church is located in obvious places. It meets in the open and makes its presence known. It looks for the best exposure so that location is easy to determine.

Mennonite Church Canada and its Area Churches have begun to explore what it means to be a family of faith across the country in a Post Christendom context. From its congregations to its Area Churches and National Church, our Canadian context has necessitated that your family of faith discover a new way of expressing itself. A newly formed Future Directions Task Force is seeking to better understand and respond to this significantly changed context.

The first teleconference of the Future Directions Task Force was planned for a mid-week afternoon.  This created a conflict for me. I had promised transportation for my family during that same afternoon. We determined to leave a little early and that I would connect for the teleconference from my vehicle.

That afternoon I transported my family to the event and parked myself at the edge of a nearby parking lot. As I discussed the need to discover how to be a national family of faith in our changing Canadian context I watched the world of commerce stream by. I watched school children walk by. I watched people return from work. Ordinary life bustled in front of me.

In the context of persecution the church is removed from view. In the context of Christendom, the church seeks key locations of exposure. But where is the church to be found in a Post Christendom context? In such a context the church is not persecuted, but neither does it enjoy the place of honour and respect. It can remain in obvious places of exposure, but it is disregarded. It can advertise its location but the welcome is ignored.

As I reflected later on that teleconference experience, I couldn’t help but smile at the irony of it. Family schedules needed to be accommodated. And the work of the church was taking place in the parking lot of ordinary bustle of life. Maybe there is a message in that experience. Perhaps this is best place to find the church in a Post Christendom context.

Understanding Grace

When I was a pastor I often felt as though I had been invited into sacred space. Space so intimate that I felt guilty by my presence. My breath alone felt an intrusion. The intimacy undressed my defensive robe of resolve and left my emotions vulnerable. Paralyzed by the gripping scene, all I could do was watch and marvel. I consider these experiences precious gifts because they have plunged me into a deeper understanding of grace.

Sometimes it is only when you are plunged into a space that undoes you that the clearest demonstration of grace emerges. Often the most vibrant display of grace is seen in the shadows where the brilliant light of goodwill does not eclipse it. When grace presents itself in the shadows, in the sidelines, it is unmistakable.

One of my most potent glimpses of grace came at a funeral. Grace is a common guest at funerals. Perhaps it is attracted to the deep sorrow of human suffering. It knows it is needed and so does not hesitate to be present.

As the pastor at a funeral, it is important to step alongside your own emotions. Not that you deny your emotions. But you determine their expression. Mourning can seep through words without being flooded by tears.

                The congregation was waiting in the sanctuary as the family expressed their final goodbyes. I stood in the shadows and watched them file past the body of a loved husband, father and grandfather. I had witnessed this many times. There is something about witnessing the deep sorrow of others that is difficult to bear. My heart becomes heavy as well.

                Two brothers approached their father. An intense history accompanied them. Both were rugged, strong men. But through an occupational accident one had been confined to a wheelchair, unable to communicate or feed himself. His aged parents returned to their role as caregiver. Although now an adult, the man in the wheelchair was their son and received the same nurture required as a child.

                I watched in silence as the two sons came to say goodbye to dad. One brother looked down in sadness. The other looked up in grief.

                Some say that rugged men do not display tenderness. But some tenderness can only be displayed by rugged men.

                My breathing came slowly and deeply as I watched. I saw the son lean over and whisper into his brother’s ear. Then strong arms coiled around a frail body and the muscular brother held up the weakened son. Together they stood. Together they mourned the loss of their father. Together they embraced the new reality. Together they gazed upon their father one last time.

                That image has been frozen in my mind. I cannot shake it free and neither do I want to. I cherish it. The tenderness crumbled me. The gentleness weakened me. The image rushed upon me and quickly paralyzed my defences. I was reduced from the pastoral leader and elevated to a common mourner. When grace reveals itself, everything else is humbled.

                I witnessed another side of grace, a nuance I had not yet understood. Grace is not limited to the context of happy endings or celebrated resolutions. Sometimes grace is the gift of seeing what we know we must see, even though dreaded. To be lifted up to see that, which we must reconcile, is a gift of grace.

                This is the grace exercised by God. When allowed by our surrender, God will lift us up to see that which must be mourned; that which must be reconciled. Only then can we allow ourselves to be led into the new reality offered by the God who is eager to redeem, restore and reconcile.

Be Reconciled to God

  (excerpts from a sermon preached March 10, 2013 at First United Mennonite Church in Vancouver, BC- based on 2 Cor. 5:16-21)

What would make it necessary for the church to be reconciled to God?

We are experiencing an interesting time in history: a time of global ferment and reorientation. From the Arab Spring to the Occupy and Idle No More Movements and student protest in Quebec, we are witnessing a new generation of global citizens demanding more equitable systems. They are questioning the need for an economic growth dependent on insatiable consumption. A more global sensitive and savvy population is beginning to question their appetites and asking economic systems, corporations and governments to do the same.

In this global reassessment people are also noting consumption patterns and values displayed by faith communities. They expect the church to be a contrast to unbridled appetite. They expect the church to exhibit values of global justice and communal welfare. Perhaps this is the call to be reconciled to God’s purposes for the church.

Sometimes success can blind the church to God’s passion. Sometimes achievement can numb spiritual sensitivities. Comfort and security can cause the church to forget the primary purpose of our identity as the People of God. God’s passion for reconciliation should seep through every pour of God’s People. It is our distinguishing characteristic. It is what sets us apart.

As the world marches to the economic tune of selfish consumption, God’s People dance to the songs of sacrifice. As greed hums its lullaby, God’s People rock to songs of constraint and generosity.

The ministry of reconciliation to God and others is our primary purpose as the People of God. Sometimes I wonder if the prosperity of past Christendom has misplaced our calling as God’s People – lost it in the closets of our own economic success. We are no longer poor immigrants or persecuted refugees. We thank God for that, as we should. But sometimes, without realizing it, and never intending it, prosperity replaces passion and comfort replaces compassion. Sometimes, it is necessary for God’s People to be reconciled to God so that they can once again become passionate ambassadors for the glorious surrender to God’s love.

The call of the apostle is as relevant to us today as it was to the church in Corinth. Can we step out of the confines of comfort? Can we break away from the shelter of prosperity and dance in the sweet surrender to God’s compassion and grace? If so, we will recover again our roles as ambassadors of Christ – and God will make His appeal of passion and grace through us.

Not Easy but Simple

 The more I know the more I realize how much I do not know. The more I experience the more inexperienced I feel.  Being a disciple of Jesus is a bit like that. You begin the journey towards faithfulness feeling you know what you are getting into, but then the demands of discipleship sharpen as it digs into life.

Following Jesus will most certainly invite you to become disencumbered: to become free from hardship and unnecessary attachments. What at first is an invitation to greater freedom, the realization of attachment becomes evident. Fear of being without can quickly turn into a fear of letting go. The invitation to let go is simple. The response is not so easy.

Following Jesus will most likely introduce you to people you never expected to meet. What is at first an invitation to broader fellowship can turn into discomfort. Uncertainty pokes away at friendliness. The stranger disappears. Outsiders become new friends to embrace. The invitation is simple – open your heart to God’s love. The follow through however, is not so easy.

Following Jesus will in all probability include a journey into the unknown. What at first feels adventuresome can become disconcerting as you are continually called to embrace the unfamiliar. Mystery becomes an unwelcome companion. Craving for the familiar deepens. But the faith you yearn comes alive in the context of the unknown. This is where trust is developed. The invitation is simple – follow me, but the step of obedience is not easy.

Following Jesus is simple, but not always easy.

What We Already Know

The beginning of a new year is a natural time for people to reflect about the future. That reflection often includes searching for a sense of direction from God. As individuals and congregations we search to understand how and where God wants to lead us through the coming year.

While such an exercise is a very worthwhile endeavour I have found that it can also cause us to avoid the obvious. When in the atmosphere of grand discernment, searching for direction of what we do not know, it is easy to overlook and act on that we do know. Future options can seem more exciting than current reality.

When I set aside time to seek God’s direction for the future, I have come to realize that I often already know the answer before I begin the time of prayerful search. Sometimes it is an answer that I am avoiding. Then my time of prayerful discernment is merely a stalling tactic. Sometimes it is an answer I am rejecting. Then my time of prayerful discernment is actually an exercise of disobedience. During such times God has felt silent and distant, turning my time of contemplative prayer into annoyed frustration. But God would not cooperate with my stalling or disobedience. Asking God for direction may well result in becoming aware of what we already know.

A good way to begin a new year might be to take stock of the directives God has already placed in our hearts. In fact our straining economic context and post Christendom societal environment may allow the latent directives of God to become more obvious. Two directives in particular seem obvious to me.

The first is to grow in restraint. This is a particular directive that has remained suppressed by the church in North America for some time. Whether it has been clouded over by the values of materialism or buried under a mountain of misinterpreted blessings, or rising consumer debt and the quickening illness of the earth, God’s call for restraint is becoming more obvious. North American lifestyles of overconsumption should not be justified or encouraged. God calls us to freedom from unbridled appetites. The joy of restraint awaits us.

The second is to grow in compassion. When faith in God is routine in society, the church can afford to dictate boundaries. But when faith in God is sidelined by secular values, the church does not have the luxury to be selective. Survival of faith communities will depend on embracing all who God will call. And when we open ourselves up to this missional reality, we may discover that God never did abide by our boundaries.

As the People of God let us respond to what we already know and determine to grow in restraint and compassion.

Missed Opportunity

I am feeling a little defeated. Waves of regret lap up against me like the rising sea. It isn’t guilt that I am wrestling with. It is feelings of disappointment.

Last year at this time I was at COPS17, the UN Climate Change Forum in Durban, South Africa. The hope then was to increase the number of Canadian Church Leaders who would attend COPS18 this year in Doha, Qatar. But to my embarrassment not one church leader from Canada has been able to attend. We asked the church representative from El Salvador to carry our voice of concern.

I feel like we have allowed good intentions to erode into lost opportunity.  I can still hear the pleas from last year. ”We have no more time,” expressed a delegate from Nigeria. “If we cannot agree on a second commitment of the Kyoto Protocol, let us lay it aside and prepare ourselves to die.”

The task remains. We still need to find solutions to decreasing our negative impact on creation. Church and civic leaders must give voice in asking governments for real change to our corporate systems of consumption. I applaud the recommendation issued this week:

Recommendation of African Leaders on the occasion of the 18th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate:

We can not continue with the same models of development , economics and amoral conduct in the global system of governance  and multilateralism.  Not only must we address the evident causes of climate instability, its impacts, and support those most vulnerable - we fundamentally need a model of living which is anchored in good faith, compassion, respect for nature, an adherence to the scriptural guidance of our role as stewards and custodians, not of consumers of the Earth's beauty and abundance.... Success in  the climate negotiations must speak directly to the well- being and sustainability of the least developed countries.

- South African Council of Churches

I am grateful that the church is still actively present at the negotiations in Doha. I am grateful that El Salvador agreed to carry our voice. But I can’t shake the feeling that we have requested others to do what we should be doing.

I’d love to hear your responses, your thoughts, your comments and observations of how churches should engage this pressing matter.

Creation Care and Worship

It is fruitless to get caught up in a discussion about the credibility of climate change science. This debate will continue for some time. Yet faith communities do need to be engaged in discussions of creation care.

                       

I am beginning to realize that creation care is naturally lodged within a theology of worship. True worship, encompasses generosity, restraint and compassion. These values are critical to creation care. Indeed it is their opposites – greed, recklessness and apathy – that threaten the health of the earth and its inhabitants. It is people of faith, especially Anabaptist faith, conditioned and committed to live lives of worship by loving God and their neighbour that are most logically positioned to lead the way in seeking climate justice and creation care.

Anabaptism, with its focus on discipleship and service has always resisted a one dimensional understanding of worship. Menno Simons wrote; “True evangelical faith cannot lie dormant. It clothes the naked, it comforts the sorrowful, it shelters the destitute, it serves those that harm it, binds up that which is wounded.”

Such an understanding of faithfulness to God will naturally lead us to express commitment to the other. It is an alignment to the directive expressed by Jesus in Matt 22. When asked which the greatest commandment of the Law is, Jesus replied by saying: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. This is the first and greatest commandment and the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself.” If you follow this directive it will be impossible to ignore the compassionate imperative of creation care.

According to a report by Willie Reimer and Bruce Guenther at the 2012 Mennonite Central Committee Canada annual general meeting, every night one billion people – one sixth of the world’s population – goes to bed hungry. The growth of global undernourishment can be largely attributed to the increasing number of people affected by environmental disasters such as drought, flooding and storm surges. An estimated 250 million people are affected by climate related hazards in a typical year, according to Reimer and Guenther, and that is projected to grow by 50% to an estimated 375 million people a year by 2015.

It is difficult to worship God and ignore these dynamics. If there is even a chance that our Canadian lifestyle patterns contribute to the suffering of global neighbours, our adulation and reverence to God will compel us to seek correction and express compassion.

The developed countries of the world hold 25% of the world's population, but consume 75% of all energy, 85% of all wood products, and 72% of all steel produced. (http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/handouts/ethics/wasting_away.cfm)

Canadians are consuming at a pace that is 2.5 times greater than the average global citizen. (http://planetpanels.com/human-consumption-and-the-earth-logged-hours/).

Our love for God obliges us to express generosity, restraint and compassion.

Generosity: because with the Spirit of God in us, we can’t help ourselves from being generous. Restraint: because we yearn for greater surrender to God not a defeat to self-indulgence. With the Spirit of God in us, the discipline of restraint is joyfully embraced. Compassion: because disregard for others is intolerable. Inaction is unacceptable. With the Spirit of God in us we cannot help but push aside apathy and become engaged.

Creation care is neighbour care. And neighbour care is a vital expression of our love for God.