Sometimes social progressives think of change in terms of necessary growth and development, but they run into resistance from those who hold the above sentiment. The challenges of 2009 have the capacity to drive conservatives and progressives alike stark raving mad. It seems that everything around us is broken. A political system that used to function by means of dialogue and compromise has become a dysfunctional mess of partisan posturing. A business community that used to see itself as providing valuable contributions to the well being of all has deteriorated into a fight for short-term profits that ultimately have little to do with the services and goods that are provided and received. The social and cultural environment that used to build in space for the well-being of families, and even had room for Sabbath, has changed into a set of overwhelming demands for time and resources that suck the energy and spirit out of everyone. The church that used to stand apart as a sanctuary and as a healing community for people, now must compete with sports teams, entertainment offerings, video games, i-phones, the internet for the small remnant of time and resource that the demands of working for a living leave unscheduled.
We can’t go back to how it used to be – at least not right away. But, we also can’t ignore the ever-present drain on time, energy, resources, and spirit either. I have said many times that if the church tries to compete in the worlds of entertainment, sports, or even service organization, sooner or later it will lose. While it may touch many other areas, the church does not exist fundamentally for entertainment, competition, or even public service.
If the church cannot be defined in those terms, what, then, is it? When I was growing up, the church was simply the place you were a part of on Sunday mornings. It had something to do with heaven, and something to do with the spiritual truth about life. It had very little competition from other social activities (although, I will confess to having gone skiing instead on some Sundays). The church didn’t have to work very hard to define itself, because those were less complicated times. Its identity and its connection were generally understood by most people that I had any contact with.
In our “interesting” times, this is no longer the case. I think we have to work very hard to articulate who and what the church is today. We certainly need to know what the community needs from us, but, more than that, we need to know who we are. What is characteristic of who we are as the church?
Here are some of the characteristic attempts to describe the church’s identity:
1. The church knows God’s will and has to convince people to follow it – or else!
2. The church is the (only?) way to salvation – whatever that means.
3. The church is the soul of the community – and without it, the community may have no soul.
4. The church is a collection of sinners who know that God’s love is bigger than their individual or collective “badness.”
5. The church is a collection of the lost, who at least know that they are lost.
6. The church is a meeting place for people who know God’s love and those who seek it.
7. The church is where you can ask all the questions that are not allowed in other places.
8. The church is a sanctuary from the problems of the world.
9. The church is a spiritual filling station.
10. The church is the “body of Christ.”
I’m sure there are many others.
All I know is that many churches are trying to live and be in an interesting time.
How would you articulate the identity of the church today?
Wayne Gustafson
“Our faith is 2000 years old. Our thinking isn’t.”
The United Church__of Christ
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