Emerging Spirit @ The United Church of Canada Emerging Spirit @ The United Church of Canada

Originally posted on Sojourners God's Politics blog.

One of the reasons the St. Francis quip, “Preach the gospel always, if necessary use words,” is so often quoted is because it pokes fun at Christians’ propensity to think sharing our faith is primarily about words. And for good reason. We study the words of the Bible. Our church services are filled with words. Our endless discussions on hot-button issues overflow with words. Even prayer, our most intimate form of communication, is nearly always reduced to mean those prayers we make with words.

But if mere words were enough, perhaps the Word we worship wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of becoming flesh and dwelling among us. Sharing our faith can’t be reduced to rehearsed sound bite, but is something as complex, sensitive, and alive as we are.

This originally appeared on Faith & Leadership, an offering of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity. To go to the original article, click here.

As the Christian landscape changes, Faith & Leadership says leaders must ask and answer a new question: What's the future of denominations? This is part of an occasional series that offers the thoughts of people across Christianity on this vital issue. To see the entire series, including the video interviews, click here.

Denominations are important because they embody an ethos, provide connection and are able "to see and solve problems," said Brian D. McLaren,  an author, pastor and public speaker.

But denominations must turn from a "problem focus to a goal focus" if they are to remain relevant, especially to young people, he said.

And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there and prophesy there."  - Amos 7.12

I was once at a Presbytery meeting in Northeast Saskatchewan and, as is the wont of United Church folk, we were discussing justice stuff. We like to talk about justice in United Church circles - in fact it is often one of the glues that bind us. And in that time - I think we were revisiting discussions around uranium, our involvement in the global trade of nuclear technology, and its impact on lives and the environment - when someone piped up and said, "Why are prophets so grumpy?" There was a pause and then laughter.

For most churches, it's annual report time.

Ministers spend hours trying to be pithy, reflective and inspirational as they cobble together words that most of their community will not read. Folks want to get on to the meat of the report - the numbers and graphs. Red ink and black. This is the time when find ourselves weighed, measured, and often found wanting.

Did we make money?

Did membership go up? (There was someone I didn't know sitting in my pew last week.)

Is that welcoming and listening to people really worthwhile?

Is this emerging church thing really working? (I think that H1N1 might have put a stop to it.)

We have one particular problem that needs to be addressed. (Actually, I have many, but you probably don't have the medical credentials to deal with them.) In the past decade, 25-45 year olds have not sought out "membership" in religious institutions. This is not only true of The United Church of Canada, but all churches from evangelical through Anglican and Roman Catholic (don't ask for a footnotes, ask around). It is not limited to churches, but also true for fan clubs, consumer clubs (Costco, Sam's Club, etc.) and other identifiable groups. We don't want to be a single thing, we don't want to limit ourselves with labels and darn it, we just don't trust joining stuff!

Part of Emerging Spirit's work is to help churches communicate effectively with their communities. Emerging Spirit is not the only church-run program helping congregations market themselves, however. The United Methodist Church in the U.S. has a program of its own that it is running to help its congregations communicate and reach out to their communities.

The United Methodist program takes the form of a thorough, five-step online tutorial -  including PDF downloads, action steps, worksheets, and, yes, homework - to help you formulate a marketing plan for your church. The five steps outlined in the tutorial look at the values and vision of a church, perception and needs, strategy, implementation, and finally evaluation of the plan and how to make adjustments if it isn't working.

Commenting on the tutorial, Kevin Hendricks (a blogger for Church Marketing Sucks) said, “This is a meaty resource, ideal for any church that wants to get serious about marketing (and no, you don't have to be Methodist). The biggest downside is that it's entirely online, so you're on your own.” If you're looking for ideas, or just curious, have a look at the program for yourself by clicking here:

http://www.umcom.org/site/c.mrLZJ9PFKmG/b.5160951/k.54F3/Church_Marketing_Plan.htm

No, really, it was an Italian restaurant - this is not some obscure Billy Joel reference. I was having dinner in the early evening by myself in a little Italian eatery with some aspirations to "fine dining." The food was fine, nothing spectacular, but the people were a study.

To my right, over by the bar, sat seven professional business men, gathering after work; they drank a lot of beer, ordered most of the menu and carried on in loud, if jovial, manner that made it clear that this was "their place." As much as I enjoyed their laughter, I was also excluded from it. I didn't know the jokes; I didn't get the references and frankly, they were just too loud.

I began to wonder if we don't often do the same thing in our churches. Jovial folk, well meant, but very clearly in charge, in the know, in the in-crowd. Often, it seems that for new comers, there is no room at the "in" (bad pun, but I trust you take my point). As long as this is "your church" it's never really going to feel like "my church."

Much has been made of the decline of moderate and liberal churches in North America. The prevailing wisdom is that conservative churches, on the other hand, are on the rise. Is this really the case? In a brief article at Ekklesia.co.uk, Martin E. Marty (columnist for the Christian Century, professor and pastor) asks whether the U.S. is following the pattern of Western Europe - a decline in church membership and attendance across all denominations, both liberal and conservative. Both the U.S. and Canada are both generally seen as secular societies. The U.S. in particular, however, has had a much stronger religious 'streak.' Could this now be changing?

"But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves."  --James 1.22

Advent is here and I have to admit that I am feeling some melancholy. This time last year I was in Israel-Palestine with Christian Peacemaker Teams. It was easy, I am aware of the irony, in that place to be a Do-er and and Be-er at the same time. Each day began and was framed by worship that was grounded in using The Beatitudes as a way in which to experience the Holy in places that were not always easy and in which the temptation for apathy and cynicism was always present. Using our hearing of The Beatitudes made it possible to be fully present as a Do-er!

As I walk into Advent this year, however, I think James’ words might be reframed to Christians in the 21^st Century to read, “But be hearers of the word, and not merely doers who deceive themselves.” As opposed to, “But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.” It seems that we stand in a bit of a tension with our consumerised holiday season to be always doing something: where every moment is filled with a meeting or party to attend, a gift to buy or a charity, NGO, social justice cause to support – all this doing is bloody exhausting! Furthermore, it seems we have stopped, been tempted, distracted (however you want to frame it) to let go of the Be-er, hearers, simply Being a people of faith.

Sally hasn't gone to church much since she started university. Away from home, Sunday morning is more about sleeping than attending a church near campus. She still attends when she goes home-maybe once a month-but doesn't find the service "upstairs" very engaging. She is a veteran of every aspect of children's programming: nursery, church school, junior youth, youth group and even a year or two as one of the youth leaders. The one thing she has little experience with is worship: particularly everything after "Children's Time."

Here's a new, Olympic-themed congregational ad in the "We're Just Glad You Could Make It" series. Click here to check out all the ads and download customizable copies in a variety of formats.

Emerging Spirit congregational ads have been developed as pomotional tools for helping United Church congregations let people in their communities know more about their congregations and ministries -- and perhaps come by for a visit.

Click here for more information and suggestions on how to customize these ads for your use.

"Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone?" -Matthew 7.9

Okay, I have a need to offer confession before proceeding! First of all, I am looking at that crazy calendar that is a life in Accountable Ministry and realise I have two similar tasks that are pending. Both are sitting in my Outlook calendar and require me to write something that is reflective and, hopefully, also useful and meaningful. One is text-based, the other digital ... and I think they are similar enough that I have decided to put them together! Now, as for the second confession, it is that this ruminating piece is heavily influenced by an article from the Alban Institute that has taken hold of me with its clarity and import.[1] I hope, therefore, that the following is inspired and not plagiarised ...

We are, at UCiM, currently in our Annual Stewardship Campaign. It is a rich time - a time to review where we have been and continue to imagine where we might go. Such a time, in the church year, can be an intentional opportunity to hold up needs and realities in a way, which hopefully, highlights the year long work of discussing what Stewardship means. One of the ways we have been framing Stewardship is to think of it as ‘caring for someone else's stuff' or ‘caring for someone else's child' (yes someone = God). Part of my reflection with the Finance & Stewardship Group has been the reality that no matter how much money comes in, if we do not have clarity as to why we need it, there is no way that we will be able to inspire people to offer their time. And, without commitment, one's mission cannot be lived out. Without the people, Discipleship is simply expressed by a bank account number - not so bad as a metaphor, not so good as a gauge of living out our call.

 In "The Fence-sitters: How real is the hope?" (Observer, Nov. 2009), author Richard Wright questions the role of research numbers in church growth efforts, including The United Church of Canada's Emerging Spirit initiative. Since data formed part of the Emerging Spirit research we had to make some decisions about their use and authority.

Wright raises the question of whether the 77% identified by Environics as "Potentials" is a valid statistic. We believe it is. In addition to Bibby, a 2006 Ipsos-Reid survey collaborates what many church leaders know - a significant interest in spiritually and faith exists "out there."  The Potentials identified in the Environics quantitative research are just that-those with a potential interest in a church with the attributes of The United Church of Canada. There was never any guarantee that these people would become members of the United Church according to the definition of the last century.

Back in the old days, the church seemed to think viability was a numbers game. Drop below a certain membership number, and you were no longer a viable congregation. I'm sure the number varied from place to place, but one hundred was a popular threshold. It's hard to pay a full-time minister with less than a hundred members, so the number was fairly logical.

What became apparent, in time, was the strange resilience of congregations. Two of the congregations on my settlement charge had six and seven members respectively. Logically, they become one congregation of thirteen members, and carried on like there was nothing unusual about this. Stewardship levels were good, heat was donated, and the total utility bill could be measured in cents (one electric light in the centre of the sanctuary--the organ required only pumping).

Here in the big city, we get occasion questions about congregational viability and how to measure it. Sometimes it is rather obvious. The congregation that closed after failing to pay their gas bill is a quick example. It got cold inside really quickly. But what about the average church, soldiering along, and uncertain about the future? I'm suggesting a new measure of viability, with four components. A surplus in one category can compensate for a deficit in another, and then create an average. Here are the four:

WonderCafe's "There's Probably a God" ad campaign has won Silver in the Public Service and Advocacy category at the 2009 Extra Awards for the best in Canadian newspaper advertising! 

Created by WonderCafe's ad agency, Smith Roberts Creative Communications, the "There's probably a God" ad was a response to an campaign run in Canada and the U.K. by atheists which claimed, "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life." 

WonderCafe's ad ran in the Globe and Mail, and a French-version was published in several Quebec newspapers. The ad and subsequent media coverage brought a landslide of new visitors to WonderCafe, where more than 13,000 votes were cast in a poll on the two perspectives.

A former nun, now an author known for such books as A History of God and The Battle for God: Fundamentalism in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, Karen Armstrong was recently interviewed on U.S. National Public Radio about her new book, The Case for God. In it, Armstrong “argues that religion is a practical discipline that teaches us to discover new capacities of the mind and heart.”

In the long format interview with Fresh Air host Terry Gross, Armstrong jumps right in to the deep end of the theological discourse swimming pool, discussing God as a being beyond being, “the God beyond God.” Whether you find yourself agreeing with Armstrong or not, you will likely find this interview interesting and thought-provoking.

Check it out here.