Tuesday, October 11, 2011

The Church that Serves

In Karen Armstrong's book, A Case for God, the author writes that there is a clear historical pattern of cultural and religious shift that takes place every five hundred years. These seismic shifts change the ways that culture lives, its rules, its values, its mores and assumptions. Religion changes along with culture. An argument about which leads the way is one of those chicken or egg things, and is irrelevant at best. If the last seismic historical shift took place in the 16th century European "Great Reformation," then it would be no surprise to understand the 21st century, the present, as transittion from one culture to another.
For decades now, social and religious scientists have pointed to a major cultural shift that began sometime in the late 1960's. The shift is marked by certain characteristics. There is, in the developing cutlure, a rejection of authority and its institutions. There is a distrust of organizational motivation, and a move away from "the social good." As Tom Brokaw noted in his book, "The Greatest Generation," the post-Depression, WWII era generation may well be the last that is willing to sacrifice personal rights for the sake of the greater social good.
Much like the beginning of the events that led to the Great Reformation, the new "Electronic" culture is developing along lines of information and communication. Distrust of authority is fueled by immediate and exhaustive personal access to information and data, much like the culture that formed in the wake of the movable type printing press. Communication is immediate and continual. Anything that one wishes to know, from anyone, is now accessible 24/7. There is no need for authoritative opinion or institutional approval before one sifts through the mountain of available information.
While the management of information has turned personal, it certainly has not progressed toward intimacy. In fact, the electronic age has brought greater isolation. The self is now what matters. The person, and that person's rights, are sacrosanct. Ironically, due mainly to the destruction of 9-11-2001, personal rights have been abridged in this culture like never before. The outcome has been an almost violent backlash against the "them" in political and social power and the "us" who suffer through their poor decision-making. Hence the huge libertarian movement. Hence the passion for minimal government intrusion.
So, how has this cutlural shift impacted the Church? As many of my friends and colleagues have witnessed, as each of those who have seen our congregations shrinking can attest, the result in the Church is devastating. Those few who thrive turn away from serving the wider culture into God's kingdom and focus on serving just its membership, forming again exclusive groups of those who have religious and spiritual hegemony. These are the loud religious voices. These are the mega-churches. These are the inwardly focused, self-concerned, heaven-bound practioners of a faith that fits perfectly in the developing culture.
One question. And this is the question of the Progressive Church Movement. Is the self-serving configuration of the modern-day "successful" Church what God wills? Is it what God wants? Do we care if the successful Church may be contrary to God's wishes for the body of Christ?
If the Church cares about God's will, then it will have to shape itself differently. This is true for two reasons: 1. God's will continues, even, or particularly, in the face of new cultural directions and developments and 2: The Church must be relevant for Christ in contemporary culture. If the Church is to continue at all, and if it is to make a difference in the developing culture, it will have to discover anew what is God's will. The Church will have to investigate new avenues of understanding and ministry. The Church will need to progress, alongside its culture, in order to speak any divine truth within it.
I firmly believe that Shiloh Church is turning a significant corner of relevancy and faithfulness, in the light of new cultural developments. I am convinced that each of us needs a purpose that overrides our self-concern, something for which we might sacrifice personal liberty for the common good. I know that the motivational factor of a life lived for the sake of universal salvation, exercised within the confines of human history, surpasses the self-focus of our electronic age. The Church must be The Church That Serves, not just its own membership - as some exclusive club - but the entirety of humankind. It must serve the world into God's kingdom, preceisely because that is what God wills for the Church.
You can join us, as Shiloh Church becomes that Church!
See You Sunday!

Tuesday, October 04, 2011

Fall at Shiloh

Fall at Shiloh Church is an amazing series of very important ministries, missions, programs and projects. Because the leadership of the congregation wants every person to be aware of and involved in everything that goes on, this contribution to The Shiloh Insider will serve as a walk through the season.

The Fall season is off to a great start. The demarcation line for the congregation is its annual Fall Fair, held this year on September 16 & 17. The Fall Fair is actually a huge sale of flea market items, used clothing, books, food and fun. In 2010, Shiloh actually lost money on the Fall Fair. This year, Shiloh saw an income of over $4,500. Thanks to the hard work of our volunteers, staff and booth chairs, Shiloh Church is off to a fabulous Fall.

Pumpkins arrived for Shiloh's annual Pumpkin Patch on October 1. A huge group of volunteers, some thirty strong, unloaded from the semi trailer over 1700 pumpkins. The variety and size of this year's crop is phenomenal, and should lead to increased revenues. Remember that 75% of all proceeds return to the Navajo reservation in New Mexico where these pumpkins were grown. Please sign up to help staff Shiloh's Pumpkin Patch. You call call the church office for available times and dates.

The congregation's annual Celebration Dinner will be held on Saturday, October 22. Shiloh will gather that evening, starting in the Omega Hall at 6:30 p.m., to recognize the contributions of the church's monthly "Actioneers," office and business office volunteers and those who have worked behind the scenes in a series of capacities. The congregation will also recognize the annual Shiloh Service Award recipient(s). This award is granted each year to a person or couple who has/have, over time, distinguished him/her/themselves in "Living the Word by Serving the World."  Tickets are $10.00 per person. There is a reduced rate fro children from 4-12 years of age, while those under three years of age are free.

On October 28 and 29, Shiloh will host the Ohio Conference "Church Vitality Road Show." Featuring Ohio's own Jim Oates, the Church Vitality Road Show is brought to us by SONKA's Church development Team. That Association Team is chaired by Shiloh's own Jay McMillen. SONKA will also hold its Fall Gathering on Saturday, November 5, at St. John's UCC, Newport, Kentucky. At that meeting, Shiloh's Senior Pastor, I, will hand over the Moderator's gavel to Mr. Karl Ulrich. Karl attends The Nexus Church. Registrations for the Fall Gathering, Mission 1, can be made by contacting Jay McMillen, Carl Robinson, or by linking to the SONKA website on Shiloh's website, www.shiloh.org.

Stewardship Sunday is slated for November 13, when Shiloh will hold a congregational meeting. This congregational meeting is called in order to establish a course of action that is needed in response to Shiloh's budget deficit.

The annual Holiday Bazaar is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, November 18 & 19. Holiday decorating items, baked goods, mincemeat, jewelry and antiques, great food and better friends are available. The annual quilt raffle will take place as well. Times are Saturday, Nov. 18 from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 19 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Yard signs will be available very soon, and sign up sheets for booth volunteers will be in the Narthex in the next few weeks. The Bake Shoppe is collecting items. Check the board in the Art Gallery, near the mail box system.

The put an end to Fall activities at Shiloh, the annual Christmas Musical will be held at 10:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. on December 11. Remember weekly Bible studies, Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. and Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. in the chapel, Bible @ Boston's, held each Wednesday, from 6:00-7:00 p.m. at Boston's Bistro and Pub, North Main at Westbrook/Dogleg Road.

With all of this going on around Shiloh Church, it is a wonder that any of us have time for Christmas shopping. Maybe this will be a good year to downsize those celebrations?! Join us for these activities, as well as weekly worship, held on Sundays at 8:30 a.m., 10:25 a.m., and 7:00 p.m.

See You Sunday!