How Serious should we be?

The advertisement to the left appeared on my facebook page this month.

Serious Pastors Only?

Because of my more relaxed approach to life and ministry, my tendency to laugh too much, an inclination toward celebration rather than melancholic introspection - I have a long history of being accused of not being serious enough.  Infact, at one parish, a woman looked at me and with a pointed finger said, "Your problem is that you aren't serious enough about the church."

I have to confess that she is probably right.

A long time ago, I learned the distinction between being 'serious' and being 'sincere'.  I do not take my faith seriously, but I am very sincere in my faith.  In my opinion, and I could be wrong, to be serious tends to suggest a rather rigid approach. A serious person is often labeled as up tight or even mean spirited. In contrast, being sincere connotates a genuineness and integrity about ones faith, perhaps even a flexibility.

Can we be sincere and still laugh?  Can we be sincere and still wonder, explore and probe the mysteries of faith? Can we be sincere and yet, not take ourselves too seriously?

Just a thought, or actually a question.

Where are we going?

This weekend sixty some leaders from across the New England Synod met in Springfield to review the final report from ARE - a renewal enterprise.  You can view the report yourself, just click here. We worked hard to focus on clarifying some strategic directions for the synod.  More info to come, but just want to give you a little insight.

We ended the day with a focus on three areas including leadeship development, faith develoopment and addressing poverty.

Those of you reading this wondering if this is going to be some new top down synod program - sorry to dissapoint you.  We are attempting to grow this from the congregations, not up, but across.  Think more relational and network as we go forward.  I'd prefer to see a congregation connect with two or three other congregations and a social service agency to address a local issue. 

How are we going to live forward in a more inter-related manner?  That's a big question.

Will we get it right all the time?  Hmmmm, doubt it.  But, when we fail, we use it as an opportunity to learn. Then go out and try again.

The Quest and the questions continue...

While launching my web browser this afternoon to read the New York Times, I noticed the following advertisement:

Brad Pitt caught my attention.  (People say we look alike ;) )

Here is the direct link to the video advertisement. click here  Watch it!

Now I find this particular ad quite intriguing.  It plays on some universal human longings.  The black and white film look, the narrator himself speaking in soft and slow poetic language.  Brad Pitt represents a kind of god-like hero in our psyche, he's even played some psuedo-supernatural characters in his career.  The hopes and dreams of humanity are not so subtly suggested.  There is a strong hint here in the build up to the closing... a build up that could go toward questions and answers of ultimate meaning.  But, no...Chanel No. 5 is not the answer.

But the ad is such an obvious example of how the questions of ultimate value are still with people - the problem is that the answers are now being provided by commerical enterprises.  In other words, I'm saying that Chanel is playing on our longings for God, and substituting their product as an answer.  Am I making a bold leap of logic here?  Perhaps?

Joseph Campbell, Carl Jung and Paul Tillich helped people of the 20th century realize that all of humanity is on a quest.  The popularity of those vehicles named Quest, Voyager & Explorer are everyday reminders that the journey continues.  Those authors also helped us understand that humanity seeks God in many forms.  The modern world is not the ancient world, but the quest goes forward.  We are still seeking God, or perhaps more accurately we are seeking to realize that God has already found us.

Our challenge in the church of the 21st century is to realize that the questions and the search go on.  But. And this is a HUGE "but".  But, we have to find new ways to engage the questions.  The older tools will not serve the disciples of Jesus in the 21st century. Contracting with Brad Pitt is probably not an option.  I take great hope in seeing this advertisement, because it makes me understand that the search goes on.  As long as the search goes on, then we in the church still have a shot at being a relevant player.

The question for us centers around the delivery and the forms we will take as the new millenium unfolds.  

 

 

How 'm I doin'?

When I lived in New York City in the late 1980's, Mayor Ed Koch always started his press conferences with this question.  He was the quintessential New York City mayor.  Now, I want to know, "How am I doing?", specifically, in relation to my commitment to visit every congregation of the New England Synod in the first 365 days.  

Today, I was at Redeemer in Woburn, MA attending the Camp Calumet board meeting.

Here is a list of my travels to date, in no particular order.

Pilgrim Lutheran, Warwick, RI

St. James Barrington, RI

Good Shepherd, Rutland, VT

St. Paul, Old Saybrook, CT

Christ the King, Holliston, MA

St. Luke, Gales Ferry, CT

Faith, Middletown, CT

Zion Lutheran, Portland, CT

Good Shepherd, Kingston, RI

Faith, North Andover, MA

Concordia, Manchester, CT

Trinity, Worcester, MA

Zion Lutheran, Worcester, MA

Ebenezer, Willimantic, CT

Redeemer, Foxboro, MA

Good Shepherd, Quincy, MA

plus Hammonassett and the parking lot at St. Andrew, Charlestown, RI

Tomorrow I'll be at Emmanuel, North Grosvenordale, CT as well as Emmanuel, Hartford, CT  (By the way, how come Emmanuel is spelled so many different ways?)

This week I'll be in Newington, NH for the first of our Next Step events, Bethesda in Springfield, MA, next Sunday preaching at Trinity in Chelmsford, MA, plus the Boston event on Wednesday (see below) followed by a visit with some of our chaplians at Mass General Hospital.

I'm workin' it, baby.  So, how'm I doin'?

 

The NeXt Church - Part 2

I am fresh off the Installation, and now in Chicago for the Conference of Bishops.  I'll be posting some updates as the week goes forward.  So stay tuned.

But first, I want to deliver another blog post on the Future church, which I am now renaming the NeXt Church. The most frequently asked question I receive on my visits with congregations centers around the future. While I am not a time traveler, I do have some guesses.  I confess some help from our friends across the pond.  

The churches of the United Kingdom, aka Great Britain, have faced the changing landscape for some time. They're website contains a number of stories that are worth reading. I encourage you to look it over.  Maybe a field trip to learn from the people at Fresh Expressions is in order?  Can you say "London 2013"?  I spent some time this summer digesting what the Brits are doing, and brainstormed some possibilities for us in New England.

NeXt Church ideas

  • ·      A Congregation turns a piece of its grounds into a community garden.  Through a separate 501c3, they seek funding, develop a training program for people in the neighborhood to learn how to grow their own vegetables.  Later they connect with a nearby Community Health Center, so they can partner on offering a health/diet program
  • ·      Two congregations merge, but rather than sell both properties, they keep one of the original buildings because of its “monastic feel” and turn it into a Christian Meditation Center.   The center offers classes and experiences in meditation, iconography, painting and the arts as a form of Christian expression, yoga and forms of liturgical dance.  Over time they acquire a national reputation for people to come and learn the ancient/future forms of Christian spirituality.
  • ·      The Barn – A music resource center for young people.  A youth center built around music expression and learning.  The goal is to Bless the community with creativity.  Weekly events/concerts/worship/coffee house events take place with young people as the leaders.
  • ·      The Pub Church –After a couple of churches sell their buildings, they make arrangements with a local bar to hold more traditional worship services on Sunday morning.  They also hold a Sunday evening “Table Talk” aka Pub Theology with the Pastor from 5 to 6.  Later the owner of the bar, decides to sell the bar, and the church buys the place, turning it into more of a Restaurant/Bar, it even opens an AA group during the week in the restaurant/bar
  • ·      The Walking Church convenes regularly to walk, talk, pray, meditate, sing.  Instead of a building, they meet regularly at a starting point and then walk.  This gives exercise as well as a public witness.  The church ends the walk at a nearby coffee house.
  • ·      X-treme or Shackles Off – A new ministry is birthed in a store front where teens are invited to hang out.  The lead lay pastor is a 40 something mother who has a deep love for teens.  She hangs out at the store front on couches, and engages teens in conversation.  Eventually she developes trust and introduces topics of deep meaning.  Teens begin to pray for one another, programs are started to help a local homeless shelter.  A once a month coffee house concert starts, as people talk about Jesus in a way that connects to reality of their lives
  •        Multi campus church.  Several churches in a community come together and decide to combine their efforts for mission.  They sell two church buildings, and keep two other buildings.  One has an excellent facility for a much needed K-6 Lutheran/Christian elementary school. The other building is in an ideal setting to continue offering weekly worship from all those who worshiped at the initial four buildings. They conceive of themselves as a multi-campus congregation.

This summer while with the high school youth from St. Andrew on a mission trip, I caught the glimpse of a NeXt church.  The group is called "Nomads of Hope."  Essentially, they are a NeXt Church.  The group gathers high school youth from both the community at large and several churches to engage in week long mission trips each summer.  

In 2012, they went to three different locations.  During the school year they gather to plan, raise funds and develop a group bond.  The leaders are mostly kids, with the adult supervision of several parents including a key couple from Massachusetts.  Is this a traditional church? No, but it has connectivity to several traditional churches.  Perhaps these kinds of linkages are also part of the NeXt church.  I could envision some of our congregations networking across denominations for something similar.  The key to Nomads effectiveness seems to be that they have strong leadership, as well as a fluid structure.  They are a ministry partner of a local congregation, but are not subserviant to the structure.  Learn more here.  Hey, they are local, give 'em a call.

On the local Lutheran front - Talk to Pastor Andrew Borden at Zion Lutheran in Worcester, MA, as he is involved with LIPY, a youth ministry program of several churches in the Central Mass area.  This group has figured out ways to do youth ministry together.

I'm just dreaming here, random notes, ya know.  What are your ideas?  Let's jam on some of these.

As we go forward in this venture, we are going to look to the South, the East and the West for clues.  What's happening in Honduras that could teach us something about starting new congregations?  That'll be the next topic in this series.

The Ride is On!

If you are wondering whether or not the motorcycle ride is on for Saturday due to weather.  Yes!  We are good to go.  Remember we are leaving St. Andrew at 9:59 a.m. so assemble there at 9:30 a.m.

If you wish to join us along the way and not come all the way to Charlestown, you can meet the procession at 10:45-11:00 at this address  33 Plainfield Pike, Plainfield, CT  06374, in the parking lot in front of the Lighthouse Church of God.

I've also made plans for all riders to walk in the procession inside the church so wear your leathers and carry your helmut in the procession.  FUN!  I can hardly wait.

 

Motorcycle Procession Saturday at 10:00 a.m.

On Saturday, I'll be installed as the new bishop of the New England Synod of the ELCA..  The worship service begins at 2:00 p.m.  If you are driving a car, please consider car pooling as we are expecting a large crowd, and there is limited parking.

If you have a motorcyle, join the Lutheran Lizards.  This Saturday at 10:00 a.m. those who wish to join in the motorcycle ride to Worcester for my installation are most welcome.  We'll meet in the parking lot of St. Andrew Lutheran Church, 15 East Beach Road, Charlestown, RI  02813.  The plan is to ride up route 216, then join 49, and up into Plainfield, CT where we'll hook up with I-395. See the map below. All motorcyclists are welcome.   

I know some people are thinking the above photo is what will show up on Saturday.  I hope so!  In reality, we'll probably look more like this picture.

I have a fantasy that I could look as cool as this guy.

Since we'll be arriving at 12 noon, you'll want to plan on getting lunch in Worcester.  The worship service begins at 2:00 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church 73 Lancaster St Worcester, MA.  Everyone is welcome, there is a reception afterwards.  You are on your own for your return ride home, as I will be leaving later, and I don't expect you to wait for me.

 

If you can't make it to the Installation, the worship service will be live on the New England Synod website.  But we can't bring the video cameras on the ride with us.

Here is our route.

 


View Larger Map

Interview with Pr. Keith Anderson

On Sunday evening, while some of you were enjoying "60 minutes", I had the pleasure of being on the top rated internet Skype Show "30 minutes."  Pastor Keith Anderson aka "Pastor and Guru of the Social Media Church" interviewed me about social media, the web, this blog, being a bishop, my predictions for the 2013 Super Bowl.  Unfortunately, we ran out of time for my Super Bowl selections.  But we did cover a lot of territory.

Keith is not only a great Pastor, he is also a wonderful interviewer.  His book, Click to Save: The Digital Ministry Bible, is a must read for people trying to navigate the brave new world of cyberspace. 

Enjoy.  FYI  The audio is a little funky, as my voice comes out a bit louder than Keith's so you might have to play with your volume controls.

 

The Future Church Part I - Faith Lutheran Church

This is the first of a series of blog posts dealing with the future of the church.

When we begin conversations on this subject, we need to include Faith Lutheran Church in Middletown, CT.  I believe there will always be congregations, but that's not the only model.  We'll look at other models in the next post.  But today, we'll explore how Faith Lutheran maybe an example of one model, namely consolidation.  Faith is the result of St. Paul and Christ coming together for the sake of a more effective mission.

I was there today for the birth of a new congregation.

Check it out.

 

Jesus had a Wife?

Dr. Karen King has received a bit of attention this week for her research surrounding a second century coptic christian papyrus, in which there is a reference to Jesus' wife.  Pr. Dave Buehler resourced me with this link, which is very helpful.  CHeck it out here.

The Smithsonian Channel will have a television program on Sept 30.  More info here.

Here is a brief interview with Dr. King 

 

What's my take on all this?  My impulisive answer is "I love it."  Let's continue to take in, discover, wonder, examin and explore Jesus.  It doesn't impact, hurt or damage my personal faith one bit.  I've always believed that the church should embrace scholarship.  We have these amazing God given brains, let's use them.  The more circumspect answer would be along the lines of carefully examining and studying.  What's the basis of these findings?  How does this evidence impact our categories of understanding?  I'd be essentially saying the same thing in both answers, just different language.

Personally, I'm looking forward to reading more about this, and watching the Smithsonian piece.

The Mobile Generation

Hmmmm.  WWJT?  What would Jesus Text?

The iphone 5 was announced this week, or was it last week, they all merge together.  The original iphone was a game changer.  Each version since has been an upgrade, but not the REFORMATION of the first generation.  The latest version is said to improve in areas of faster connectivity, screen space and a few other tweaks.  No, I'm not getting it.  I'm good with my version 4s.  I'll wait for the chip implant version in 2016.  You laugh, but it's not that far off.

How can the community of Jesus respond to the Mobile Generation?  One million smart phones are sold everyday. Everyday!

Maybe we need an app for the New England Synod.  "What would we do with that?  What's the point of that? Are you sure, is it really needed?"

We would only want to do something like that if we wanted to, ah, let's see?  Connect people with a gospel centred life.

On October 31, 2017, we'll celebrate the birth of the Reformation.  500 years since Luther slammed a hammer to a church door in Wittenberg, and said, "Here's my app!  Here's my reboot of the church operating system. Check it out."  Have you been to Wittenberg?  I was there in the early nineties, the same year the Soviet Union was undergoing a coupe, and people in Moscow were screaming for a new operating system.  I stood infront of the door that lit the fire on the reformation, and it was a stinkin' museum piece.  It was all shiny and bronzed and polished.  They'd taken the spirit of Luther's fist and turned it into a domestic museum piece.

I'm into Luther, but I prefer the living, breathing passionate mission driven version.

WWLT?  What would Luther Tweet?

How will the church connect to the Mobile generation, which is not an age group, but a way of being in the world?

My iphone contains the whole bible, I'm now downloading an audio version of Eugene Peterson's The Message. So that, in addition to U2, Over the Rhine, REM, NPR and the latest audio book, I can HEAR the Word of God - be shaped into the disciple I deep down long to be, but am so frightened of becoming.  Yes, I am simultaneously longing to be a saint, and suffering as a selfish sinner.  How bout you?

Maybe a New England Synod App could contain audio recordings of Calumet kids singing their hearts out or video clips of a church building a Habitat house or an inspiring word from pastors.  It could link Twitter accounts, Facebook updates.  Help people find a church nearby.  And probably 30 other ideas that you have, and I don't.  It could be a tool for helping us be the Lutheran Movement in New England.

The mobile generation is hungry for spiritual connection, meaningful service and vital community.  They want to partner with God in the building of the kingdom Jesus preached and embodied.  Makes me wonder if now, more than ever, might be the most important time to be the church.

Just a thought.

 

 

 

Living in the Visual Age

 

4 hours of TV

5,000 visual advertisements

8.5 hours in front of digital screens

That is a profile of the average North American's life EVERY SINGLE DAY.

---

Hello!  Did you note that - Every single day.

Martin Luther transformed western civilization as well as the church by using the tools of his day to communicate - the Guttenberg printing press, translating the Bible into the language of the people, bring songs from the Beer Halls into the sanctuary.

Part of my experiment at Hammonasset with the Text and Talk session with the youth was an attempt to embrace a technological tool and use it for Gospel communication.  Rather than telling teenagers, "OK it's time to sit quietly and listen to the bishop."  I opted to for "pull out your smart phones and text me any question you like."  I learned two things from this experiment:

1.  Teens will respond if you engage them and invite them into a conversation.  They asked silly question, of course, but that made it fun, and I was willing to be playful. But, they also asked significantly profound questions: "Why are most prayers not answered?  Why is there suffering? What is the Holy Spirit?  What's so good about being a Lutheran?"  After the session I had several interactions with kids, one girl really pressed me hard with a simple question:  "Why Jesus?"  She was not satisfied with my short pithy answer, she wanted more, so she pressed me again, and then again a third time.  Was she challenging me, playing with me, showing off in front of her friends or did she really want to know why Jesus made any real difference in my life?   My answer was to tell my story of connecting with Jesus - not church, not Lutheran, not doctrine, but Jesus.  I finished, she looked at me and nodded in affirmation.

2.  I also learned that we are overcomplicating our efforts to get the gospel connection going.  I realized that we don't need more programs, education, information, committees, a new book, a new how to manual with steps. What we need is honesty?  Think for a moment.  Why do you believe?  What do you beleive?  What do you doubt?  What do you wonder about?  Those questions can form the basis for a lifetime of discussion and learning.  Why Jesus?  such a simple, yet profound question.

The title of this blog post was inspired by an event that is happening on the left coast out in Hollyweird, CA.  If I had the time, money and beam me up Scotty transport options - I'd be there.  Check it out here.  But, I don't, so I can't.  However, we need to get real serious real fast about how we communicate, especially with young people, but actually with everybody.  I'd love to hear what you are trying.  How are you experimenting with preaching, worship, teaching, discipling?  What's working, what failures led you to new and better ideas?  Post in the comment section below or on Facebook or Twitter.