And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’ And immediately they left their nets and followed him. Mark 1:17-18
How do we – who serve churches – shift congregational paradigms that no longer work without losing our jobs – or worse – our minds?
And what support is there for pastors and other church leaders trying to make these changes?
We in the institutional church have response teams to support congregations hurt by financial or sexual misconduct. We have disciplinary procedures to help congregations dealing with toxic interpersonal relationships. But there doesn’t seem to be much support for churches with this particular problem:
– There are members who are happy with the status quo. The same music they’ve always sung. The same programs, sermons, furniture arrangements, faces. They have their favorite events and traditions. But things are different now. Long time parishioners refer to a time when there were hundreds on the membership rolls and now there are less than 100. Maybe less than 50. Bt they refuse to consider changes to The Way Things Are.
– There are members who are restless. They imagine a different kind of church. A church that cares about the people who aren’t there as much as they care for those who are. A commitment that goes beyond Sunday morning. A church that is less about membership and more about discipleship.
What do we do to support those churches? There’s been no misconduct – unless it’s the misconduct of demonizing those who disagree with us. There’s been no clear break in relationships, but something’s brewing. Ugliness lies in wait.
How do help churches that need to make a shift even though some in the congregation either don’t see the need for a shift or fear the loss of familiar spiritual traditions? It’s an old question but I haven’t discovered many answers. How do we love congregations in such a way that they make healthy, faithful choices in light of a changing church. Are we satisfied to:
1) Lose a chunk of the congregation who feel like their old church has been taken from them?
OR
2) Lose a chunk of the congregation who feel that the status quo is slowing killing the church they love?
Anybody seen this done well?
Image is Happy Jesus by Fan Pu (2007)
A Church for Starving Artists 
I am very interested in reading answers to your last question! Thanks, Jan.
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Me too. 🙂
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Pingback: Still Wondering . . . | achurchforstarvingartists
I think the trick for reformers (not just in the church, but anywhere) is to be respectful of the feelings of the traditionalists, and even of the traditions themselves, without being dissuaded from reform. It’s also important to have a clear vision of what “reform” looks like and means, and not simply advocate change for change’s sake.
This is no small challenge.
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I think it can be done slowly and thoughtfully from a place of health or out of necessity when near (institutional) death, and in either situation – only sometimes. I’m quite sure it can’t be done easily.
I’m 10 years in, have seen some really significant shifts with great and slow intentional teaching, coaching, stretching, struggling, story-sharing, etc… I also don’t think there are specific models, as every context is different, but perhaps some general principles.
I blogged some about our journey starting here: http://robertaustell.blogspot.com/2009/02/defining-missional.html
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Jan,
You’ve likely already heard about the changes at “Tiny Church” and maybe you’ve already read this post (http://theblueroomblog.org/2011/09/26/the-upper-room-at-tiny-church-takes-shape/) from MaryAnn. It might provide some inspiration!
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Yes! Tiny Church’s pastor is a friend and hero. What she’s doing is truly transformational.
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I think it is happening at my church, but not without quite a bit of pain. Our current pastor seems to have a gift, though, for changing things slowly enough that the people who want the status quo don’t really notice the changes until they have already happened, but quickly enough that the people who are hungry for a different way to be church are happy.
I can’t completely tell you how he does it, but I do know that he works with the people who are most open to changing things, regardless of what committee his idea would tradtionally go under (Faith Formation is doing some things that would have traditionally been under Worship or Care, for instance, like a pet blessing for St. Francis Day and collecting for the ELCA Malaria Initiative through the children’s offering).
Of course, that puts some people directly in the line of fire when it comes to changes that the status quo folks don’t like. We’ve lost four council members recently because they couldn’t handle the stress, and I’m not running for the second term I’m eligible for (though I do feel guilty about it). Still, I’m hopeful about what I’m seeing.
Oh, and the question about wether older clergy have given up on leadership…our new pastor is 59. He was ordained in 1978, and he is still open to innovation and to leading as we slow adopt a more missional focus.
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