Under the Radar

Many times, both here at Shiloh Church and in the wider community, the efforts of those who work behind the scenes seems to function "under the radar." I want to take just a moment to thank some of those who work there.

 

Thanks to Trey and Larry Jones. The Next Steps chancel renovation is complete, though Shiloh has yet to receive contributions that match the expense of the project. Larry and Trey helped us move toward meeting the expense with their effort. Last Friday, in the cold rain, Larry and Trey helped me load and deliver to a recycling center the aluminum siding that the Robinson family had replaced with vinyl. It was a day-long effort. Larry and Trey helped raise $478.00 toward the Next Steps expense. All they got out of it was a free lunch. Thanks, Larry and Trey!

 

Thanks to all those who worked in the Pumpkin Patch. Because of the efforts of all those who singed up to work shifts in the patch, who helped unload the two trucks, and those who promoted the patch in the community, Shiloh was able to raise just over its goal of $7,000. That means that Shiloh will generate about $2,100 for its Next Steps fund raising effort. Had Shiloh raised under the $7,000 mark, the congregations would have retained a lower percentage of sales, and netted only about $1,500. Thanks particularly to Jay McMillen, who heads the project. Remember that we are looking for a group in the life of the church to undertake leadership and planning for the Pumpkin Patch. If no one steps forward, 2013 will be our final Pumpkin Patch.

 

Thanks to those who work so hard in the Bake Shoppe. In preparation for the Holiday Bazaar, November 16-17, a large group of individuals have been working night and day, making pies, baking, donating ingredients and coordinating efforts. Particular thanks to Shiloh's music department and to Patty Farinet, who works behind the proverbial green curtain to make it all happen. Thanks to you all!

 

Thanks to Martha Kirkland and her crew for all their hard work in organizing Shiloh's new Pictorial Directory. As most everyone is aware, a pictorial directory is an invaluable tool in congregational life. Thanks to this crew's efforts, the process ran seamlessly. Shiloh should see the new directories soon. By the way, if you were not able to schedule a session, but would like to be included in Shiloh's membership directory, you may still submit a photo. Cost is $10.00. Get those photos to Ashley Pack in the Church Office as soon as possible.

 

Thanks, too, to those who have made the Mincemeat for this year's Holiday Bazaar. For some reason that I cannot quite fathom, there are people in our community who just love Shiloh's homemade mincemeat. (It is not that I do not like Shiloh's version. I cannot imagine meat and fruit in the same concoction.) It is a real draw for the Holiday Bazaar. Thanks for all your efforts! 

 

A special ongoing thanks to Connie Neef, who, week after week, prepares the sanctuary for worship. This has been a particular challenge throughout the Chancel Renovation, but I am certain that members and friends of the church will agree with me that Connie has done an outstanding job.

 

Remember the Fall Association Meeting, scheduled here at Shiloh Church on Saturday, November 10. Members and friends from SONKA's eighty-some congregations will gather for a day of business and worship, featuring Shiloh's own Discovery Team worship leaders. While I am thanking those who fly "under the radar," I think Shiloh needs to express its appreciation for the efforts of our Discovery Team. They practice and lead worship week after week. Their efforts make a difference in what we do here at Shiloh Church. Thanks, Discovery Team!

 

See you all Sunday!

Reformation Sunday

This coming Sunday, October 28, 2012, is Reformation Sunday. While the annual recognition that the United Church of Christ owes its identity at least in part to Reformation theology is part of our corporate memory, we must admit that the occasion barely matters.  I imagine that the lack of interest in Reformation Sunday, and in Reformation theology, is part and parcel of the contemporary church's tendency to remember events but ignore the impact of those events on the present.

 

The contemporary church has thought that Reformation Sunday was a means to remember the past, to wave the memory flag over names like Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin. It is a way for us to honor the heroes of the faith, without really considering why those great leaders did what they did, what it cost them, and what they would have us do today.

 

Reformation Sunday is not so much about the 16th century Protestant Reformation in Europe as it as about the willingness and need of the contemporary church to continue the effort of ongoing study, investigation and self-examination. As we learn more and more about the ministry of Christ Jesus, as we more deeply encounter him and his message, we experience the need for new avenues of ministry and service. When our institutional orthodoxies, formal and/or casual, do not allow us to alter actions based on those investigations, then we reject the Reformation spirit. We cling to traditional values and practices, even ones that counter what we have learned about Christ Jesus.

 

Therefore, Reformation Sunday is a challenge for the contemporary church. It dares us to keep alive the spirit of faithfulness to Christ Jesus, as a movement that follows him, wherever his ministry leads us. As we learn increasingly more about Jesus, our practices and traditions must be altered in cooperation with that which we have come to know. Anything less is hypocrisy.

 

Join us this Sunday at Shiloh Church for a look at Reformation spirit, what we have learned about Christ Jesus in through the past few decades, and how that information changes everything that we do as a church.

 

See You Sunday!

Grace over Law

From the beginning of human religious culture, there has been an interesting dynamic between a concentration on LAW and a practice of GRACE. It is a dynamic that lies at the core of contemporary religious conflict. 

 

In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the dynamic between grace and law is first experienced in the ancient literature that forms the foundation of Torah. In the divided kingdoms of the 8th century, in the polemical kingdoms that gave rise to competing historical tales, the northern kingdom reflected in its literature a Royal Theology. The southern kingdom practiced a Covenant Theology, meaning that it defined a conditional relationship with God that was based on adherence to codes of behavior.

 

Both points of view appear in Torah, since much of The Law is derived from editing together the ancient documents of the northern and southern kingdoms. Priests retained both points of view. An oversimplification might suggest the Levitical Priests governed the law codes and the Priests of Melchizedek oversaw the application of grace.

 

When Jesus was born, the Pharisees and Sadducees ruled over the Law codes of Judaism. They placed stern demands on practitioners of Covenant Judaism. To these political and religious leaders, salvation was earned by faithful practice of the law. Salvation was neither freely given, nor easily retained. The Suzerainty relationship between God and God's people was seen as remarkably fragile. If it were broken, by individual unrighteousness, the nation would pay the corporate price for its citizens' unfaithfulness.

 

Jesus rejected this form of relationship with God. He practiced its alternative. Jesus taught and practiced grace. Grace is an unconditional acceptance of every other, based on the notion that all humankind is saved exclusively by God in Christ. Salvation is accomplished for humanity. Men and women do not and cannot earn salvation, because it is a universal human condition that God achieves in Christ Jesus.

 

Within a century of Jesus' Crucifixion/Resurrection, the Church that developed in Jesus' name had returned to a practice of law instead of grace. While the Great Reformation of the 16th century was an attempt to recover the theology of grace, it resulted only in law-based denominationalism.

 

Today, however, the Church stands at the precipice of changing culture. The culture is moving in a direction that demands diversity and universal acceptance. The Church, while lagging behind in the transition from a theology of law to one based in grace, is offered the opportunity to recover an ancient theological stream. Maybe now we can recover the theology of grace. Maybe now the Church of Jesus Christ can return to being an institution free of the restrictions of exclusivistic law to one steeped in inclusivity and universality.

 

The pendulum is swinging between the ancient dynamic of grace and law. Maybe this time we will embrace Jesus Christ.

 

See You Sunday!

Organ Console and Chancel Dedication

Yesterday, October 7, 2012, Shiloh Church United Church of Christ, at its 10:30 a.m. worship service, officially dedicated its new chancel and organ console. In less than a calendar year, Shiloh Church was able to finish the entire project, moving the church's grand facility plan toward completion. 

 

That plan, devised, through a lengthy process, in 2007, consists of updating and renovating the sanctuary, adding an elevator for access to every floor of the facility, a central and identifiable "front entrance," updated bathrooms, hallways, fellowship and educational space. Despite the challenges of economics and lower participation, Shiloh has been able to achieve several portions of this $3.7 million plan. Already the church has renovated the Omega Hall, the Christian Education wing, replaced the antiquated boilers and windows, and now the chancel and organ console.

 

The congregation is well on its way to updating its facility, making this place of worship, study and fellowship more attractive and significantly reducing the church's carbon footprint. Simply replacing the boilers and the windows has saved us tens of thousands of dollars each year, and has greatly reduced our use of non-renewable resources.

 

An upcoming phase of Shiloh's facility plan further reduces our use of the world's resources. As we move toward updating the sanctuary lighting, we know that simply replacing incandescent lighting fixtures with LED lighting is at least 40x more efficient, thereby reducing both costs and the use of the earth's resources.

 

While what Shiloh Church has achieved is remarkable, what lies before us us is at least equally important. While we celebrate the dedication of a remodeled chancel and a new organ console, at a value of something in the neighborhood of $200,000, there are other important projects waiting to be achieved.

 

I hope that members and friends of Shiloh Church feel as energized as I do for the tasks that lie ahead. While we surely deserve to take time to celebrate what has been done, I sincerely hope that those celebrations feed the energy that moves us forward and outward.

 

Thanks to all those who supported the chancel renovation and organ console replacement. Thanks to those who gave time and expertise, to those who gave countless hours to the project, and to those who led the way. Your efforts will long be remembered!

 

See You Sunday!