Grey Day, Good Article, Cool Song, Cute Baby

It's a grey day here in Barrett. And yes, I do mean grey. I find the American spelling of the word just doesn't convey the feeling of grey; rhymes with "fey," and maybe some time in a dictionary would help us on that one, too. There's poetry in this grey day somewhere, but I don't think I'm going to get to it today: it'll be a day for desk work and reading for me.

Jon Meacham had a brilliant op-ed piece in the New York Times on Sunday - check it out. Boy, do I wish I could make the point as well as Meacham does; he's a good writer whose strong faith does not require switching off his brain or denying the power of a fully engaged intellect.

Anyone wanting to hear one of the coolest Celtic songs I've heard in a while should go here for a free mp3 download from the Sligo Rags. "The Whiskey Never Lies" is a GREAT song.

Yesterday was a decent day. It was cold, rainy and windy, so we didn't go outside much. Did the laundry, caught up on some TV shows, read the newspaper, cooked a good supper (pork roast in the crock pot with potatoes, carrots and pineapple - Caribbean jerk seasoning to give it that extra little bit of punch) and went to bed after Heroes. A good day off, in other words.

Oh, and we played with the baby. Duh. :-)

Blogger has a new video post thingy - figured I'd give it a shot.

October Newsletter Article - "Requirement"

¹⁴ "'I had to offer sacrifices, and today I have paid my vows; ¹⁵so now I have come out to meet you, to seek you eagerly, and I have found you!'" Proverbs 7.14-15

Dear friends in Christ,

At first glance you might think that this passage from Proverbs refers to a righteous and wise person who has done the proper thing, offered sacrifices to God, and has thus been allowed to seek and find God. You'd be wrong. The speaker quoted here from the seventh chapter of Proverbs is a person on the prowl for an adulterous good time, whose spouse is away on a long journey. Wisdom, who is a character in the book of Proverbs, would have us avoid such a one, and so Wisdom describes the person who falls into the clutches of the would-be-goodtimer as one who follows "like an ox to the slaughter…like a bird rushing into a snare, not knowing it will cost him his life…Her house is the way to Sheol (the land of the dead), going down to the chambers of death."

Note that the temptress thinks that offering sacrifices and paying vows clears the way for all kind of illicit behavior. She believes that religious observance is a chore to complete quickly so that the fun can begin. Wisdom would have us avoid false belief such as this; we were never meant to live in this way, nor can we live in this way for long. Wisdom is right: when religion becomes a chore, it leads us down the way of death. Faith cannot live in an environment of requirement. There is no room for faith when all we hear is "you must – you should – you ought – you have to – you need…" In fact, the demands of requirement tend to lead us away from faith into the type of foolish and dangerous life Wisdom warns against in Proverbs 7; it's as if we thumb our noses at what is required by going as far in the opposite direction as possible. There is no way to faith through the demands of requirement; that way lies danger, destruction and death.

Why bring this up? Two reasons. First, we're about to begin a stewardship program here at Peace. In a few weeks, Pastor John Lee from the Northwestern Minnesota Synod Staff will be joining us to preach and help kick off a two-month stewardship program. But this is not a stewardship "drive," in the sense of an NPR campaign or some sort of telethon. The theme of our stewardship program is "Stories to Tell, Gifts to Share," and the point is this: what we do here as a congregation is pretty incredible at times, and those incredible things come from our stewardship of what God has first given us. I want to invite you to consider telling the story of how God has touched you through the ministry of our church – you can tell the story through the newsletter, through an email to the whole congregation, through a Sunday morning Temple Talk or in whatever way you want. I want to invite you to share your gifts through the ministry of our church, too. God has given all of us unique talents and abilities; what are yours, and how can they augment our ministry and make us more and better than we are presently? "Stories to Tell, Gifts to Share" is a means that we can use to discover what it is that God is up to among us – and how we can play a greater part in God's work here.

Second, there's a thing that kills the work of the Spirit in any congregation, and that thing is an atmosphere of requirement. As a matter of fact, I believe that requirement kills the spirit in just about every venture we can undertake. In our school systems, the "have to" nature of standardized testing is killing intellectual curiosity and replacing it with a culture of "teaching to the test." People like me, who struggle with weight and appetite issues, have known for years that diets and their "have to" power can be broken in a heartbeat; instead of talking about diets, we remind ourselves about health and the positive results that come from making good choices. My generation chafes under the yoke of requirement like no other, for good reasons and bad. So why would we expect the church to be any different?

If we decide that the motivating power of our congregation is going to be requirement, I can guarantee you that we will soon find ourselves dying a slow and painful death. Any church that is founded on the power of words like should, ought, must, have to, and need will soon become a joyless, lifeless shell of a church, where all the observances are observed and no one has any idea why. Is that the kind of church we want to be?

A wise pastor from the Twin Cities told a group of conference pastors a few years ago that "negative people cannot set the agenda for thriving congregations." I don't want to be a negative person. I want to believe that God is up to something among us. I'd rather not be a pastor at all than be a pastor who bullied, guilt-tripped and hounded his people into his vision of what a church should be. I hope you feel the same way about your contribution to our congregation. There's nothing healthy about a church that offers nothing to its members but requirements and spiritual chores. What is healthy, and what I do hope to see in us, is an atmosphere where members are encouraged to share their gifts, where truth is spoken in love, where we can speak honestly to each other about the realities of what we're trying to do as a congregation. To be sure, there are some consequences that can't be avoided. Sunday School doesn't happen without teachers. Lights don't come on if we can't pay the electric bill. But acknowledging those consequences doesn't have to be accompanied by accusation, and sometimes the best way to address needs and desires is to simply say, "We'd like to do this" and see if someone might catch the vision and support it prayerfully and financially.

If you're feeling as though your presence is required at the church, as though you're paying your religious dues so that you can live guilt-free until the next time you walk through the door of the church, I'd advise you to stop and think about what it is you're doing to yourself. Is it really faith that is keeping you here? If not, what is? Do we really want to be that kind of community? Wouldn't we rather be a place of joy, whose members come together because we find life and faith here? Wouldn't we rather be a place so good that others would want to be here with us? Wouldn't we rather be a place so filled with grace and mercy that people found it hard to stay away? I invite you to think about what that might look like, to tell your story and share your gifts and be a part of something filled with God's Spirit, the eternal YES that binds all of creation together in goodness. Or, as Wisdom says in Proverbs 7: "keep my commandments, and LIVE." Amen.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Scott

Membership Decline? Fuggedaboutit...

An ELCA news release elsewhere in this newsletter notes that ELCA membership declined 1.6% in calendar year 2006 – some 76,573 members left the rolls of the member churches of the ELCA. Every year since 1991 the ELCA has faced a membership loss when annual reporting for each calendar year was completed. This year was no exception.

There is, of course, a voice within me that sounds worried about this decline in membership. Frankly, I'm depending on the membership of the ELCA to care for my physical needs when I can no longer occupy the office of pastor, so I have a personal stake in what happens in our denomination. But in addition to the voice of worry, another voice sounds, if not thrilled, at least delighted by the thought that our church is growing leaner and more fit for discipleship. You see, a good portion of the membership loss is from roll cleaning: purging congregational members who show a decided disinterest in the ministry of the church as it stands.

Understand that I would prefer our members to repent of our inactivity and return to active participation in the ministry of the church. But let's be honest, folks: in some cases, it ain't happening. Inactives stay inactive and show no interest in worship, service or fellowship and thus they have already, in effect, removed themselves from being members – we just finish the act by purging them from the roster.

Now before some of you start gloating about your regular worship attendance, let me draw your attention to the final sentence of the previous paragraph – particularly the bit about "worship, service or fellowship". I would argue that within our church and our denomination there are far too many people who could be described as "worshiping inactives:" those folks who "draw near to [God] with their mouths and honor [God] with their lips, while their hearts are far from [God], and their worship of [God] is a human commandment learned by rote…" (Isaiah 29.13). Our denomination is experiencing membership decline, but we are also entering the beginning of a time of greater turmoil that will be centered in one undeniable problem: we don't live what we confess. Because of this, our witness, service and fellowship suffer from a lack of integrity, authenticity and genuine love. We've traded discipleship for comfort and service for security, neither of which are God's plan for the church.

In Mark 8.34 Jesus says, "If any want to be my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." Ched Myers says that "the cross in Mark's day was neither religious icon nor metaphor for personal anguish or humility. It had only one meaning: that terrible form of capital punishment reserved by imperial Rome for political dissenters. The cross was a common sight in the revolutionary Palestine of Mark's time; in this recruiting call, the disciple is invited to reckon with the consequences facing those who dare to challenge the hegemony of imperial Rome." In a commentary on the cross in Sojourners magazine, Joe Roos says, "I suspect that after these words, the crowds around Jesus got smaller."

Could it be that our membership decline is a sign that the true meaning of discipleship is beginning to surface in our denomination? Could it be that we are finally learning to invite one another to a life of faith that actually means something? Could it be that we are beginning to remember that when God calls us to follow, God also calls us to leave everything else behind? Could it be that we're finally moving away from being a "social club at prayer"?

I hope so, with all my heart. God doesn't need a praying Kiwanis club in Barrett. God wants disciples, people who have been captured by the life and message of Christ and understand that there is work to be done in the name of Christ in this world. God wants disciples, people who are willing to risk themselves for the sake of their neighbors. In the words of Søren Kierkegaard, "Remove from Christianity its ability to shock and it is altogether destroyed. It then becomes a tiny superficial thing, capable neither of inflicting deep wounds nor of healing them. It's when the absurd starts to sound reasonable that we should begin to worry." I think God wants a church that is a little less reasonable and far more passionate about its mission in the world, and I think that before we get to be in that church, we're going to have to go through a time of great turmoil and anxiety while the old, comfortable, reasonable church dies a slow and painful death.

Am I excited about the thought of "cleaning the rolls"? Of course I'm not. No one should be. But do I think it might be necessary to come closer to carrying out our mission? Yes, I do. Perhaps the time is coming for all of us to examine the way we live our lives and ask the hard question: "Am I really a disciple of Jesus? Do I live what I believe?" I can't answer that for you – only you and the Holy Spirit can answer that question. But I do believe that the only way to learn what it means to be an active disciple of Jesus is to be an active disciple of Jesus – membership in a church is not the same thing. Let the membership decline if it must – I'm more interested in the work of discipleship, and I believe that as discipleship grows, so will membership. It's an exciting, frustrating, challenging, invigorating time to be your pastor, because I sense a hunger for genuine faith in the world and our denomination is slowly starting to turn toward addressing that hunger. I invite all of you to consider spending more time worrying about developing discipleship and far less time worrying about building membership – God wants far more of the former and really, honestly, couldn't care less about the latter.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Scott

A Month of Sundays - the Church in Seattle

Thanks to Lutherpunk for this article (caution: adult language regarding the church follows. It's more than a little disorienting to read "This church is f---ing gorgeous." If you're easily offended you may want to skip this one).

The premise was simple: a Seattle newspaper sent thirty writers to thirty places of worship and had them take notes and write a brief article. It's a multi-denominational array - everything from Ba'hai to the Sea-Tac meditation room and much in between.

What intrigued me was the suspicion with which almost every writer approached the church. Is this something we cause in the "unchurched" naturally? Does it rise out of a series of bad experiences, perhaps even harmful? Are we really so intimidating and banal at the same time?

I hated to read about the crappy music and excruciatingly bad lyrics many of the "praise bands" forced upon worshipers. Is there really a hymn out there that sings "deep inside, I need more of you?" No wonder so many people think we're trying to subvert culture with our own bland form of spiritual must. Friends, let's get this straight once and for all: entertainment is not our business. If you want entertainment on Sunday morning, go to Blockbuster and rent a movie. That goes for bored agnostics and bored people in the pews alike - for crying out loud, stop expecting worship services to be a "show" (and those of you who CREATE that expectation with more focus on music and presentation than content should be ashamed of yourselves as well).

In fact, one can even make the argument that Sunday morning worship services aren't the means by which people come to be believers in Jesus. Frankly, Sunday morning isn't about evangelism immediately - worship is at its nature an interior conversation for the benefit of those who speak the dialect of the local congregation. Sunday morning worship is for us. Sunday morning worship is about equipping the saints for service in the world. It's a time for conversation with God, a time for recharging the batteries of your soul, a time to be reminded that all of us are more than just accidents - the lucky few who come to worship are to be told that the world is God's kingdom and we are privileged to be servants within it.

Now, of course, this doesn't imply that the church should be inwardly turned, nor do I mean to say that we can stop trying to make our dialect more understandable. While on vacation we attended worship at an Episcopal church and found ourselves bewildered by the bulletin and how to follow along in worship; if a lifelong Christian can't follow the service, how would someone entering the church for the first time feel? But neither should our worship be simplified for the lowest common denominator. Worship should challenge but not overwhelm, vigorously invite but not intimidate, graciously encourage but not cheerlead, and above all, joyfully proclaim the good news of Jesus in such a way that all present feel a desire to know that good news better.

It occurred to me that when the following is your mission, any hope of an authentic experience goes right out the window:

But look around. There are churches damn near everywhere in this town—old churches, new churches, mega churches, mini churches. And just what, we wondered, is going on in all those churches? What are they saying? What are they doing? What are they plotting?

Yeah - that's the best way to find out why we in the church bother being the church. Had I met one of those writers, I might have challenged them to come back when they were actually interested in what it might mean to be a part of a spiritual community, rather than looking for a reason to bug out at the first opportunity. It's hard to have a conversation with someone who's not listening.

I've railed against our captivity to ourselves and the institutional church for a few years now, thinking that if only we could get past the adiaphora we idolize that things might be different. I still believe this is true: we are in bondage to ourselves, and our addictions to what we've idolized for years (unchanging worship, civil religion, cheap grace, a total lack of family interaction in faith education, control issues, cults of personality, do I need to continue?) do stand in the way of the Great Commission. But I'll admit that I was a little offended at the sullen attitude of the writers in this article, who (it seemed to me) came to worship determined to find fault. Finding fault in the church is easy - at least, it is easy in those churches who are honest about themselves. We can't control the attitudes of those who come to see what we're all about. But we can control our own interactions and how they affect everyone who walks through the door of a Christian worshiping community.

One writer seemed to have the experience on which we should be focusing as God's church. Granted, he has a history in the church; his father is a retired Episcopal priest. But somehow his dread at attending church with his father for the first time in fifteen years was overcome by the sense of community he felt while gathered with the members of one particular congregation. No, he didn't find all the answers (have any of you? If so, let me know, please!). No, he admitted that he's not likely to attend worship again next week. But this was one of his final thoughts:

...now I'm wondering if church might be something more than church after all.

And there you have it - something begins to work. God is still creating, for where there was no faith at all, now there is a question. God be praised, there's a question - and perhaps someone who will try to find the answer.

Pouring Yourself Into Joy

"My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and 
become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; 
abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, 
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I 
have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your 
joy may be complete."  John 15.8-11

I'm writing this from an upstairs bedroom in a little house in
Swampscott, MA, just north of Boston along the coast of the Atlantic
Ocean.  My family and I have been traveling for the past 9 days; our good
friends Lee Ann and Stefan were married a week ago today, and they asked
me to officiate the ceremony.  So we decided to make a vacation of the
trip and see some friends and some sights we hadn't seen in a while. 

Of course, part of the expectation for officiating a wedding is
presenting a homily/sermon/message of some fashion.  Stefan and Lee Ann
had chosen the verses above for their gospel text, and I was struck by
Jesus' hope for his disciples.  He didn't hope for happiness or material
blessings or even health:  what Jesus hoped was that his disciples would
discover complete joy in following the Father's commandments and bearing
much fruit in the world.  Jesus hoped that his disciples, whom he also
called "friends," would discover complete joy in pouring themselves out
for the good of one another, and that in so doing they would discover
what it means to abide in the love the Father, Son and Spirit have for
one another and for all of creation as well. 

The wedding we traveled to witness took place in Washington, D.C. over
Memorial Day weekend.  We used our time in Washington to see many
things:  the monuments along the National Mall; the "Rolling Thunder"
motorcyclists riding 500,000 strong to commemorate our nation's veterans;
several of the museums in the Smithsonian system.  We also took time to
go to the National Archives and view a copy of Magna Carta, the
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.  Most of what we saw
was supposed to be inspiring, but due to the crowds gathered for the
weekend, the overwhelming garbage such crowds inconsiderately left behind
and the intense heat and humidity, we weren't really inspired by much of
what we saw.  In fact, by the end of each day in Washington we felt more
relieved that we were home safe than inspired that we had been out in the
first place. 

Obviously, this is not what was intended when those artists and
statespeople began planning the buildings and monuments to commemorate
the notable achievments and sacrifices upon which our nation was
founded.  But when such things become just another goal to achieve, it is
impossible to be inspired or even affected by the experience.  When a
view of the Lincoln Memorial becomes just another item on your list of
things that will make your trip "complete," well, you've just lost any
kind of significance or meaning you might find in that memorial.

The Declaration of Independence states that all people have inalienable
rights, including the "pursuit of happiness."  I've come to believe that
this right to pursue happiness is not as wonderful as we may have come to
believe, that simply pursuing happiness is in many ways the same as
trying to get to all the monuments - the acquisition of your goal can be
more deflating than inspiring, especially if the goal was only a thing
you wanted in the first place, nothing more. 

I said as much to Lee Ann and Stefan in my wedding sermon.  I told them
what I've come to believe, that going through life pursuing happiness
will lead to an empty life and an empty marriage.  Jesus never asks for
his followers to be happy: he asks for his followers to experience
complete joy.  Joy is not achieved: it is experienced.  Joy is not
attained: it is revealed.  Joy is not a thing which we can grasp: it is a
revelation to us through the work of the Holy Spirit, who gives us eyes
to see the wonder and mystery of life in whatever circumstances we may
find ourselves.  Joy is something to which we surrender.

I've experienced joy many times on this trip with my family.  I
experienced joy when I watched my friends bind themselves to each other
as husband and wife.  I experienced joy when we all gathered for food and
drink the night before the wedding and caught up on all that had happened
in our lives since we'd been together last.  I experienced joy
introducing our four month-old daughter to friends who hadn't met her
yet.  I experienced joy rocking my daughter to sleep (especially when
that rocking was preceded by a good strong crying fit).  None of these
things were items we achieved - they were portions of our life which have
born fruit because we and our friends have poured ourselves out for each
other over years of friendship.  Had we been given the time, I'm sure we
would have known deep joy honoring the memory of those who poured
themselves out for the sake of the nation we love, and I'm sure that time
will come when we visit Washington again.  But our joy has come from
realizing that where we love, there we find joy, and that abiding in the
love God has planted in us is the only thing that truly brings joy into
our lives. 

Friends, I implore you:  don't settle for being happy.  Look around you
and find what you love, and pour yourself into it with all your heart. 
There you will find that pursuing happiness ends and experiencing joy
begins, and in Christ, I pray, your joy will be complete. 

Baby Ainsley 365: Family Photo

From our visit with friends on Friday afternoon:


Also, Jan E from A Church for Starving Artists linked to this cool article on knots from the Washington Post. Beloved commented the other day that my blogroll includes many friends she doesn't know; I had to remind her that I haven't met many of you either. But links to cool stuff like this is one of the many things I've really come to enjoy about being a blogger.