Posted on

Ministry in times of Transition

In times of transition in the church, questions about the future of the church’s mission are in everyone’s mind and they cause some distress when hope is overwhelmed by fears of the church’s demise. I believe that the transition is a Kairos moment when we recognize the opportunity for new life in the church’s mission.

In Paul’s ministry, he began his ministry in many communities and then moved to new communities. Paul recognized that his ministry was not permanent.  That is, he did not stay with the community.  But he moved on with a confidence in God’s work continuing through the ministry of the community.

(Phil 1:3-6 NIV)  I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Paul affirmed that the ministry of the community as a partnership between the members of the community and a partnership with God enables the ministry of the gospel of Jesus Christ to continue through times of transition.

Paul also assured the Philippians that during times of transition, we can be assured of the Faithfulness of God when he wrote that [the one] “who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion

I believe that the challenge of transition we face is a Kairos moment in the life of the church.  Kairos is a moment of new awareness and an urgency to act.

Theme of the 41st General Council was based on Micah 6:8:

And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly (do justice) and to love mercy (kindness) and to walk humbly with your God.

What does it mean to do justice in the context of the church’s global mission today – such as in regard to the human rights violations of Palestinians, or the struggle of El Salvadorans against the mining operations that are affecting life in the small country?

I have been re-reading Melanie Morrison’s book, “The Grace of Coming Home”

In the chapter entitled, In This Kairos Moment (p. 66-74) she describes the experience of the women at the empty tomb as a Kairos moment.  She said, “Why have you come here?” was not a reprimand.  It was a moment of realization that the perceived resurrection was not about Jesus but about the women choosing life with the knowledge that the same power that Jesus lived with was available to them.

Morrison describes the moment in El Salvador when the people were forbidden by the government from attending the funeral mass of Marienella Garcia , director of Human Rights Commission.  In spite of the prohibition and high security, the peasants she had helped came at great risk to attend the funeral mass – and later that night the soldiers raided their homes.

The voices of the poor and oppressed around the world are calling us to respond to the Kairos of our times.  Our response to the present Kairos moment is a ministry of partnership in making justice a priority with the assurance of the faithfulness of God.

(This reflection was given during the Chaplain’s Reflection to Kent Presbytery on February 5, 2013.)

Posted on

Maranatha–Come, Lord Jesus-A Christmas Prayer

On the Fourth  Sunday of Advent, this was the title of the message today.  Bruce Cook, our minister, introduced us to the origin of the term “Maranatha”.  After an exegesis and origin of the term, he described a familiar experience of how many people react when traveling by plane – displaying a variety of reactions of boredom and disinterest. But a child reacts differently.   When he enters the plane, he declares that he hopes he can see the pilot, at which point he is ushered in to the cockpit.  After meeting the pilot, he returns to the cabin and where for the rest of the trip he exclaims, “I have met the Pilot” and his face is lit up with delight.

Bruce went on to ask, when we come to worship, do we see Jesus – do we expect to see Jesus?  Do we display a glowing of the experience in our appearance and our life.  Are we busy dying or are we busy living?

For the past decade or more, we have been lamenting the decline of the church, in attendance at worship, financial support, presence of youth, and the closing of churches.  It seems to me that we have been too busy dying, instead of getting busy living.  If we could become busy with living, there would excitement, hope and activities that reveal the presence of the Kingdom that Jesus talked about.

For me, being busy with living means being active in the community, or the world, working for justice and peace, and finding community with those who are busy with living.  For the past year, being part of a network of people who are passionate about advocating for justice and peace in Palestine and Israel has given me the experience of being busy with living.

In this season when we celebrate with expectation the coming of Jesus, we might ask ourselves if we have seen the Pilot.  Maranatha is the church word for living with hope in the Kingdom, that is both present and in the future.  Come, Lord Jesus, come.  May this Christmas be a time when you can say Maranatha and welcome the Prince of Peace into your heart – and begin to be busy with living.

Posted on

Response to “Give Grief a Chance” by Kenneth Bagnell, UC Observer

This article on current attitudes and practices of grief is
certainly relevant.

Having just had a graveside service today for a family whose
mother had died at 92, I was told that she did not want anything but the family
felt that they needed to say goodbye.
So, as we stood by the grave for the cremated ashes, I led them in
prayers and scripture readings with a short reflection on God’s reconciling
love in response to the emotions of anger, regret and guilt mingled with the
gratitude for happy memories of her life.

It seems when the person lives a long life and does not have
many surviving friends, families think the formal funeral is not
necessary. But I remind them that the
funeral is for the survivors, not the deceased.

When my mother died at 92, she did not have friends of her
age still living, but we had many of our friends, some of whom traveled some
distance to be with us, even though they did not know my mother. It was this support that helped me to
grieve. The funeral was on Saturday and
the burial was to be in another city on Monday.
I was associate minister and attended the worship service on Sunday
because I wanted to be with people who were able to offer ongoing pastoral
support.

I believe his comment that “There’s probably never been
a time in United Church history when strong pastoral care was more needed”
is absolutely true. It seems to be the part of ministry that has been most
ignored in the age of easy access by technology, but pastoral care has been the
foundation of the church in my experience of growing up in the mid 20th
century. My own ministry of pastoral care to those who are bereaved has been
acknowledged as a significant service of the church. Pastoral care to the grieving, whether for a
loss of loved one in death, loss of a job or family breakup, is the aspect of
ministry where the church can relate to the spiritual life of people, whether
they are active worshippers or not.

Thanks to Kenneth Bagnell for this article.