Thoughts on christian formation for the 21st century...

I am not certain when this realization ripened for me - it was probably 15 years ago or more - but being a church leader now is NOT about performing certain functions with clarity and panache.  No, being a leader of Christ's body today has to do with training everyday, ordinary people to LIVE like Christ in the world.  David Lose, at Duke University, put it like this in a recent article:  "It’s time for pastors to think of themselves as coaches and teachers, people trained not only to do certain tasks well but also to help others do them for themselves."

Think about how most ministers are trained in seminary. They are trained  - we were trained! - to do things. In particular, we were trained to execute certain skills -preaching, teaching the Bible, offering pastoral care and counseling, and so forth. Ministers are trained to perform certain religious tasks on behalf of a congregation.

This “performative” model of ministry - so called because it emphasizes performing certain activities -- served the church well for the last century or two. It was particularly effective when the larger culture was, if not Christian, at least highly supportive of church life. For many years, in fact, going to church was considered not simply normal but actually desirable, a mark of education, civility, and good moral standing. Further, and not all that long ago, the larger culture actually helped ministers tell the Christian story by teaching it in the public schools and showcasing it on televised Christmas and Easter specials and the like.

Curiously, while we all know those days are pretty much over, we haven’t necessarily changed the way we think about professional ministry and often find ourselves surprised that we now live among a generation of Christians who a) no longer privilege going to church over other activities and b) do not know the Christian story very well. As a result, more and more of our people simply don’t find the Christian story helpful in navigating their daily lives, and so increasingly wonder why they’re spending their Sunday mornings in the pew.

In response to this drastically changed situation, pastoral leaders also need to change. In particular, we need to stop executing religious skills for our people and train them to perform them for themselves. Otherwise, they will continue to be spectators, appreciating the faith but never really learning how to do it for themselves.

I share this extended quote because as I enter a new phase in the renewal of my faith community, I have come to the conclusion that this training needs to be shared with families in a creative and bold way.  Most small, struggling once-mainstream-but-now-side-line congregations like mine believe that if we make our children happy with sweet things we will pass the faith on to them by osmosis.  Well, this hasn't been working for 40 years, but they still keep at it.  It doesn't matter that the truth is this: only strong and faithful adults pass on the faith to their children.  So the key is helping parents grow in commitment, discipline and experience rather than creating more distractions for their children.

To be sure, it is much easier to just have a fun time on Sunday morning than create new resources for 21st century parents who are stressed-out to the max.  It is much easier to keep on rearranging the chairs on the deck of the Titanic than change direction.  But it is clear to me that doing the same old shit while expecting different results is just crazy. So  we're going to give it a shot - growing pains, fear  and trembling not withstanding- and the jury is still out if we can make it.  Lose states the case clearly like this:

When my kids were young, we started them in violin lessons. They’ve been playing now for about a decade, and I sometimes think about where they’d be if each week they spent their hour-long lesson listening to their teacher play. That wouldn’t have been a bad way to spend an hour, when you think about it, as over time they would have learned much of the Western canon of violin music, to appreciate classical music more generally, and to recognize and value good technique and musicianship. But despite all this, they never would have learned to play the violin themselves.

There have been several generations of ministers trained and commissioned to perform the Christian story to the delight and edification of their congregations. But while we have trained a multitude of Christians to appreciate the Christian story, very few of them can tell it themselves, either as a guide to their daily decision-making or to share with others. And I think the only way to reverse this trend is to re-make our self-image.

Now this new/old way takes more time.  It also means that we must raise the standard from the lowest common denominator to something more sacrificial.  M. Craig Barnes once wrote that the call of Jesus ALWAYS takes us away from something - in this case our outmoded habits and safety zones - because "conversion" is always the place where our fears meet and confront our trust in God's presence.  When it comes to shaping future generations of faithful people, Lose asks:

Why can’t everyday Christians learn to interpret Scripture, make connections between faith and life, and share their faith with others -- all of which are elements of preaching and teaching? And why can’t our congregations learn to visit, listen to, encourage, and pray for each other -- elements of pastoral care? Of course they can learn these things, as long as we teach them.

So let’s shift our self-image from doctors and lawyers to coaches and teachers, highly skilled people who are capable not only of doing these things very well, but also of the more challenging task of helping others to do them for themselves.

My faith community is about to enter Advent with a whole new model - empowering and encouraging parents to LEAD what Fr. Ed Hays calls the "domestic church" in the home - and clearly the old line leaders are worried.  Not only are they fearful, but I don't think they don't trust people to rise to the occasion.  My hunch, however, is this: if God trusted humanity enough to raise Christ Jesus from the dead, so we can trust ordinary people to want to help their children grow in faith and grace.  I'll keep you posted but... away we go.