Uncomfortable Conversations

I do not go looking for challenging conversations. But I don't run from them when they find me. I have come to realize that discomfort is an indispensable element of growth. We generally realize that being stretched is a good thing, even though few revel in the stretching.

I have been reminded of this during the Church Leaders Justice Tour this spring. Together with Susan Johnson, National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada, and Karen Hamilton, General Secretary of Canadian Council of Churches, when the tour is done we will have been to ten events in five cities listening to citizen concerns and aspirations regarding poverty and climate justice.  The conversations have been reinvigorating and challenging.

I have been encouraged by the gentle but bold aspirations expressed for the church. We have been reminded that the church should be the voice in the desert. The church should not be constrained by lack of popular support. The church needs to be prophetic and should not be dissuaded by initial resistance. It is reinvigorating to hear people articulate a clear role for the church. It is challenging to hear people articulate a clear expectation for the church.

In Saskatoon we were reminded that our congregations contain those opposed to the fossil fuel industry and those dependent on the fossil fuel industry. "It becomes very uncomfortable to have any conversations," stated one participant. In Edmonton we heard a pastor push back at claims that the oil industry is globally impacting climate, stating emphatically "My people working in the tar sands do not want to kill children in Africa!”  And in the heart of mixed agriculture in Kitchener we heard a passionate call to abandon meat and dairy products to become vegan.

These are not comfortable conversations.

But the church needs to be a place where uncomfortable conversations can occur. The church is a community of people committed to one another; a commitment that does not require agreement. The church is a community expressing love to one another; a love that does not require assent.

Perhaps this is our best witness in a secular society becoming more volatile in disagreements. Showing that disagreement does not negate our love for one another may be the strongest Christian witness the church has today.

As communities of faith we must resist the temptation to shut down uncomfortable conversations. As communities of faith we must resist the impulse to avoid difficult conversations. These conversations are the context for growth. These conversations are the context for a compelling display of the love of Christ at work.

The  Justice Tour arrives in Montreal on May 12, and makes its final stop in Ottawa on May 13. 

Where Are You church?

With our increasingly secular Canadian society I have always been thinking that people have disregarded the church. However this assumption has been challenged for me.

This spring I have been asked to participate in a Justice Tour developed by Citizens For Public Justice and the Canadian Council of Churches (CCC). Together with Susan Johnson,  National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada and Karen Hamilton, General Secretary of the CCC, I have been listening to community leaders across Western Canada express their hopes and frustrations in regards to Canada's engagement with poverty and climate justice. It has been a moving experience. Whenever people share the concerns of their hearts, it is impacting. 

This is where my assumption of secularization has been challenged. I was not surprised to see young adults engaged in the conversation. I was not surprised to hear their passion about issues of poverty and climate justice. I was not surprised to receive their criticism of church leadership. However, I was not prepared to experience the tone of their message for us as church leaders. 

From Vancouver, Edmonton, and Saskatoon across six forums, I heard accounts of community action. I heard of new collaborations. And I heard a growing lament. I heard young adults lament the lack of church presence in their struggles of addressing issues of poverty and climate justice. Many of them acknowledged that it was because of the church that they were currently engaged in these activities. The church taught them that God cares about the poor. The church taught them to love their neighbours as themselves. The church taught them that part of worship is caring for neighbour and the earth that we all share. That is why they were so disappointed to experience the church's absence in the concrete struggles of advocacy and actions seeking social change. 

I heard our young adults express a deep lament. They want their church with them. They want to be part of a faith expression that lives out the values they have been taught by their faith. But while they struggle for social change they look behind them and watch the church in a comfortable embrace of a society that benefits the advantaged. While they stand in solidarity with indigenous communities they witness the church avoiding indigenous peoples. While they stand in solidarity with the poor they witness the church maintaining distance through impersonal charity. 

Our young adults are not very interested in maintaining the current form of church. In that, they are aligned with secular society; it isn’t interested in carrying on the current form of church either. Our young adults are compelled to be engaged with care for the poor and the earth. In that, they engaged with the Spirit of God. 

Our young adults have not disregarded the church. Our young adults are missing the church. Many of our young adults are ready to take serious the expectations that God has for the People of God. And they long to be accompanied by the church in their efforts. 

I was prepared to hear people say; "we really don't care about the church." Instead I heard a resounding question of deep lament: "church, where are you?"

Perhaps that is the question that has resulted in a growing secular society. When the church truly remains aligned to the activity of God's Spirit it will never become irrelevant. 

In May, the Justice Tours will continue in Kitchener, Halifax, Montreal and Ottawa.

Apologetic Canadians

I have always enjoyed the positive characterization of Canadians as being polite and apologetic. It made me feel good; wholesome. I felt humbled with pride.

However, a recent Ecumenical Conference on Mining that I attended in early May greatly frustrated that image. I heard of the devastating environmental impact and the negative physical health consequence of mining. I learned that Canada is home to 75 per cent of the world’s mining and mineral exploration companies, and Canadian stock exchanges raise 40 per cent of all mineral exploration capital worldwide. I was startled to see images of local communities referring to Canada with disgust and disdain. I felt humbled with an unfamiliar shame.

The US government has often been characterized as global leaders in military activity. On behalf of the global Anabaptist family, I have often viewed Mennonite Church USA as having a particular global responsibility to be a witness and voice of peace to their government. Their geographical presence contained global responsibilities.

As I reflect on the percentage of global mining conducted by Canadian firms, I am left with an unsettling and growing question. On behalf of the global Anabaptist family, do we as Mennonite Church Canada bear a particular global responsibility to be a witness and voice of challenge to the political and economic powers that drive the resource extraction industry? Of course this cannot be done without also addressing our individual and collective lifestyles that support the industry. I am feeling humbled by a growing sense of accountability.

As I met with our global guests at the Ecumenical Mining Conference, I felt an overwhelming urge to apologize. But I didn’t. I knew that in light of such incriminating evidence a mere apology would be insulting. Instead I looked down in disgrace. The usual posture of an apologetic Canadian would be inadequate and unsatisfactory.

Reaching Caucasian Canadians

One of the exciting gifts in my role is the opportunity to dialogue with other Canadian denominational leaders. While the Anabaptist perspective I bring is an important contribution to the dialogue I also benefit from the perspective of others.

One such meeting recently with denominational leaders within the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) produced an interesting conversation. We were discerning together what new initiatives will be required for missional effectiveness in Canada. The discussion turned to church planting and the need to develop congregations that appeal to Caucasian Canadians.

This prompted one denominational leader to exclaim: “For denominations to be effective in the future they will need to focus on new Canadian church plants. It will be the new Canadians who will reach out to the white, young adult Canadians. You see that happening already in the second generation English services of these congregations.”

It was an interesting comment that caused us all to pause in silence. I had often heard denominations lament that the only new congregations being formed were among new Canadian groups. But here was a perspective that not only applauded this reality but declared it to be of strategic importance for impacting mainstream Canadian society.

I have always appreciated the ethnic diversity within Mennonite Church Canada and feel we are much richer as a Church family because of it. We worship in over 15 different languages. This is a reality to be celebrated.

Perhaps it is true: that as we embrace the enthusiastic witness of new Canadians, our impact in mainstream Canadian society will be strengthened.