Rector's
Thoughts about Church Today
Why Church? What is Church?
I have always believed that our Book of Common Prayer was one of our chief
sources for our understanding of what we believe. It gives us our “common” sense
of who we are as a people, especially when we come together. I wish to use these
selected verses as we begin thinking about what we believe about Church.
I believe, as followers of Jesus, we have discovered the real Why and What of
Church. As we are raised to new life because of the Hope, Leadership, and Faith,
we have come to know as Christians in the Episcopal Tradition that we have been
able to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a very real and living way.
Offertory Sentences (BCP 376-377)
One of the following, or some other appropriate sentence of Scripture,
may be used
• Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and make good
your vows to the Most High. Psalm 50:14
• Ascribe to the Lord the honor due his Name; bring
offerings and come into his courts. Psalm 96:8
• Walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself for us, an
offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:2
• I appeal to you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present
yourselves as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual worship. Romans 12:1
• If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember
that your brother has something against you, leave your gift
there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your
brother, and then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23, 24
• Through Christ let us continually offer to God the sacrifice of
praise, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his Name.
But do not neglect to do good and to share what you have,
for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. Hebrews 13:15, 16
• Lord our God, you are worthy to receive glory and honor
and power; because you have created all things, and by your
will they were created and have their being. Revelation 4:11
• Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the
victory, and the majesty. For everything in heaven and on
earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom, and you are
exalted as head over all. 1 Chronicles 29:11
or this bidding
• Let us with gladness present the offerings and oblations of
our life and labor to the Lord.
We seem to begin by recognizing God as supreme “you are exalted as head over
all” and the creator and source of everything in heaven and earth. Because “by
your will they were created and have their being” we exclaim that God is “worthy
to receive glory and honor and power”.
We suggest that it is proper to “ascribe to God due honor by name and bring
offerings”. Like Christ we are to continually praise and acknowledge God with
our lips without neglecting to do good and to share what we have as actions that
please God. We are urged to “offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and make
good our vows to the Most High.” Clearly, as Christ loved us and gave himself
for us, we also must walk in love by offering ourselves to one another in loving
sacrifice to God. Scripture makes the appeal that this is our spiritual worship.
By the same loving mercy by which God presents to us we are to be present to one
another as a holy sacrifice.
If in gladness we desire to make offerings of our life and labor to God we have
a further important consideration; should anyone have something against us we
need to reconcile such matters first. We need to be at peace with one another
before we expect to make peace with God. Our intentions are important since an
appropriate relationship with God requires that same integrity with each other.
In the prayer that Jesus taught us this concept is clear: “forgive us our
trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. There is no gift at all
if sincerity and truth are not present. This is clear in the text above: “If you
are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has
something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be
reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift”. Clearly one’s
relationship with God and one’s relationship with others is essential for a life
of integrity and wholeness.
When we ask the question: what is Church? – we can see that it involves a lot
more than simply attending a worship service or making a donation of money. It
is much more than a building or location. It might be best to define a church in
the same way we would define a Sacrament: “The sacraments are outward and
visible signs of inward and spiritual grace….”. While there are outward and
visible signs of organization and structure that are basic to a church, there
hopefully are clear signs of inward and spiritual grace that enable effective
relationships to God and people. This is not just a people who attend worship
once a week and who give some monetary pledge of support; it must be a concerted
effort of a “living sacrifice” by a people who freely offer their time, talents,
and treasure to accomplish a mission as the people of God.
When we ask the question: why Church? – we need to look at Christ Jesus who
offered himself to be a living Word to bring the Realm of God among us. Jesus
told stories and parables to help people understand that God wanted to help all
people to the love and power of a living God for grace and hope. His actions
spoke volumes in expressing and enabling the change that God intended to bring
to all people. It must be clear that the reason for church is not to establish a
social club for the successful but to gather people who will offer themselves as
followers of Christ Jesus to declare and enable the Realm of God to be present
among all of us in our day. They are people who are actively involved in a
covenant and commitment to values of the Gospel. These values are clearly stated
in our Book of Common Prayer:
The Baptismal Covenant:
Celebrant: Do you believe in God the Father?
People: I believe in God, the Father
almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
Celebrant: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
People: I believe in Jesus Christ, his
only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
Celebrant: Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?
People: I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Celebrant: Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and
fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the
prayers?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever
you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you proclaim by word and example the Good
News of God in Christ?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving
your neighbor as yourself?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you strive for justice and peace among all
people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in
Christ?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving
your neighbor as yourself?
People: I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant: Will you strive for justice and peace among all
people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
People: I will, with God’s help.
The why and what of Church today:
In this 21st Century the why of church may not be so different from much
of our past except from the amount of new information and Galactic awareness of
our Universe. Our view of the Earth as a planet and its place in the Galaxy, our
changing understanding of our international Globe of life and its economic and
ecological concerns, and the change in the social structures of leadership and
tribal interdependence may cause us to think about “A New Christianity for a New
World”. A recent conference at Trinity Parish in New York City raised thoughtful
concerns about “Religion and Violence” in our past and its effect in our present
Century. Beside our Baptismal Covenant as noted above, we also have a notable
theme in our national pledge of allegiance: “one nation, under God, with liberty
and justice for all”. As we enter this new Century we certainly have a long way
to go if we aspire to be a committed people to these lofty aspirations!
The what of Church is also undergoing dramatic change because of the
societal variations that are continuing to change dramatically in this 21st
Century. Family structure is not at all as it used to be. Work now includes
people of both sexes and incorporates the young and the old as well; we now have
a Global economy, and most people travel and mingle as never before. Such
transiency and transition is certain to have an effect on our churches and the
way they may be able or forced to in this changing world. Church today is a
great deal more than attendance at worship and making a pledge for financial
support. It offends me that our present records are primarily counting these
aspects of Church. Our Annual Reports concentrate on counting people and money.
We need to change this so that we begin to focus on the Easter vision of Jesus.
If the church is to be raised to its full and proper vocation we need to stop
focusing on our primal elements of counting people and money. We need to become
accountable as to what we as the people of God are doing more comprehensively
with our time, talents, and treasure.
I happen to love anachronisms and use them frequently to make and define a
point. Allow me to present three of them.
1. We need to be people of HOPE. Persons who are Habitually Open Productively to
Exploration are people of HOPE.
2. We need LEADERSHIP, people who are - Learning Enthusiastically Appreciating
Diversity Encouraging Relationship Sharing Hospitality Inspiring People.
3. We are to be people of FAITH – Finding Authenticity In Today’s Happenings.
God blesses us in Christ Jesus to be people of Hope. Jesus’ life style was to be
open and productive. He was usually moving about and being rather productive in
the lives of the people to whom he ministered. His words raised their awareness
of a Godly Hope like no other in his day. Jesus was the definitive example of
Leadership! He was a living example of each of the words in that acronym. Jesus
tried his best to help all who followed him to be raised to that same leadership
quality. That Authenticity was so apparent in Jesus that, one way or another,
they found that authenticity in the happenings of his day.
Most people are aware that I was asked to come to Bayonne by Bishop Rath to
close the church. There seemed to be no practical advantage to rebuild with so
few people. The way we counted then is the way we still count in order to
evaluate our churches. In that way Bishop Rath was right; it did not make sense
to rebuild.
Bishop Rath was also gracious enough to allow me to continue in a different way.
I was sure that God could raise this congregation to new life and new ways of
service as followers of Christ. He was kind enough to give Trinity Bayonne some
slack.
Trinity Parish is still a small congregation by our traditional counting
methods, but we have become the second largest charity in Bayonne. Last year we
ministered to thousands of individuals and families. Obviously we are not
talking about church attendance or the amount of money in our membership pledges
to make such a ministry possible. We are, however, clearly followers of Jesus
Christ in bringing Hope, Leadership, and Faith to a lot of people in Hudson
County where we live. Even though we are a small congregation we employ
thirty-four full time staff and have hundreds of volunteers to assist us in this
ministry. While our congregational budget is hardly one hundred and fifty
thousand, our total budget is about Two Million.
As I said at the beginning, I believe, as followers of Jesus, we have discovered
the real Why and What of Church. As we are raised to new life because of the
Hope, Leadership, and Faith, we have come to know as Christians in the Episcopal
Tradition that we have been able to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a very
real and living way.
My hope is that more of our parishes and missions will come to understand this
Gospel and come alive in Christ. The way we count people and money is somewhat
like the story in the Gospels concerning the Five loaves and two fish. When we
allow God to bring us to an Abundant Life, we can serve the multitudes. AMEN.
