Tradition!

Tevya sang it: Tradition...tradition. The things we do that make us "us." They define who we are. In the church, there are traditions and then there are TRADITIONS that make for a congregation's identity. They are the-way-we-do-things-around-here.
I'm a new pastor, working her way around the congregation, trying to find out what are the traditions that are 'sacred cows'. In my meeting with small groups, someone asked about traditions in the church--who decides what they are and when can they be changed. I gave a long and way too complicated answer about Presbyterians and group decision making in prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit. It turns out that the person wasn't really interested in that, just that the last pastor (with probably the most innocent of intentions) left out a tradition during the Christmas season. It seemed like someone's toes were stepped on, and there probably wasn't enough attention to the way the decision was made.
Even so, the question got me thinking...what do we do together, and how does that shape our Christian witness? Jesus was accused of being a hedonist, and someone who didn't pay enough attention to the traditions of the Mosaic practices that had been revived by Pharisee groups in the centuries just before Jesus' birth. The Mosiac law was/is a good way of life. These traditions were good things to do, things that made Jews resilient, ethical, and an effective witness against the forces of Roman oppression and abuse of power. So why did Jesus and his followers criticize them? Jesus was pointing out that the traditions of the ancestors had another pernicious effect--they kept outsiders at arm's length. Jews and non-Jews couldn't eat at the same table, or mingle in worship. The Mosaic law practitioners interpreted them in such a way as to keep outsiders out. This prevented the good that they were intended to do from being spread among the wider world. If God made the Jews to be a witness to salvation for the whole world, the Jews were going to have to figure out how their practices could be interpreted so that outsiders would become insiders. This is what the Acts 15 controversy is about--how could Jesus' followers who were Jews be witnesses to the reconciling and saving love of God TO THE NATIONS, that is non-Jews?
We have a similar situation in the world today. Many of our practices, our Christian traditions are good things to do. They help us define our life together, give us ways to be with each other for love and compassion. But they are also designed to keep outsiders out, barriers to inclusion and a subtle indication that we don't really want to mix with people who are not like us. Some say that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in America, not only segregated by race, but by any other demographic you can think of--ethnicity, age, economic or educational status, political affiliation, etc., and any other litmus test question that we feel passionately about. A "big sort" happens in churches because we all want to be with folks who know "the-way-things-are-done-around-here." We keep out people who don't do things our way, think like we do, or look at the world the way we do. Is this the right way of interpreting the radical hospitality of God?
When outsiders enter our church, what traditions are there as barriers? If a tradition is really a good witness to the gospel, it will serve to show that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. If we can't point to that reality with our tradition, I suggest that the tradition is a barrier, and should be abandoned, for Jesus' sake!

to be a blessing

If there's one thing I've learned in the past week, it's that there is a lot of hurt in the world, even in the world around North Arlington, a re-gentrifying city if ever there was one. The houses are beautiful. The gardens are plenty. More and more people are looking for a shorter commute into Washington, and this drives up the demand for housing on this side of the Potomac. Beautiful houses are being built and beautiful condos. Wealth is everywhere. Trendy restaurants, stylishly dressed young professionals, expensive cars. On the outside, everything looks fine, even more-than-fine...outwardly blessed.
As this congregation's new pastor, I'm listening to the life histories of many people connected with the church. Some indeed record more than their share of blessings...interesting careers, successful businesses, many years of marital happiness, smiling children. But there is much to morn, too,--betrayal, anger, abuse of self and others, disappointment, estrangement.
My sermon this morning was about the call of Abram/Abraham, and his response to God's promise of blessing. God promised that he would be blessed so that he would be a blessing. God's promise of blessing to Abraham was not just for Abraham's sake, but for the purpose of blessing the rest of the world.
The rest of the story is a story about God's promises of blessing, and the threats to that promise. It's not a clear cut path to individual happiness, but God doesn't give up on us. What if we, too, are blessed in order that we be a blessing? What if stepping out in faith is meant for passing along God's blessing?
Everyone's story has a joyous side and a tragic side. Why has God given us such a range of experiences? Maybe we can't know, but we can pass along those blessings given to us. And maybe that's what faith is for.
North Arlington has a multitude of blessings. Church of the Covenant, how can we pass along those blessings?

Why Are We Here?

In the past several days, I've been meeting with the folks at this small church in the north part of Arlington, Virginia. They are a very brave, committed, and gifted congregation. Still, they are voicing hopes and dreams for the future of the church. Why are we here? What is God calling us to do and be in this situation? to start thinking about this together, my sermon topics for the next few weeks will look at the call stories in the Bible. In every age, God has called particular men and women to do specific things and be specific people to the end that God's purposes for human life will be fulfilled. These people met God in particular ways, and God called them to respond in particular ways. God still calls women and men to be and do certain things in the circumstances of our lives. What is God calling us--Church of the Covenant--to do now?
In order to understand our own life together, I've proposed we start by sharing our own faith stories. Why are we here? My questions to everyone are:
1) What brought you to Church of the Covenant?

2) What blessings are you seeking?

3) What blessings have you received?

4) What blessings are you sharing with others?

Are we bold enough to speak about these things with each other?
God knows...comment below!
Blessings, Pastor Beth

Must a church have a website?

I received a solicitation today from one of the big Christian publishing houses that said "80% of your visitors will find you on the web." They wanted to sell us some web site design and hosting services. Our church doesn't have a website. I'm very new to this blogging thing. Does this count?
I know that keeping up a website is another whole round of activity that small churches may or may not be able to afford. What if we spent our time actually talking with people, listening and interacting with flesh and blood?
Do churches absolutely need a website in today's culture? What if we really wanted to tell people about Jesus in person? Doesn't the anonymity of virtual space make people even more lonely? I'm not sure that the answer is clear.
The brand new moderator of the Presbyterian Church USA--Bruce Reyes-Chow--is a web-sophisticate. He uses the multi-channel communications of web 2.0 with ease and abandon. [See his blog at right.] One of the reasons he was chosen by our branch of the church, I'm guessing--I wasn't there, was that he can communicate so well in a variety of media. I suppose when Jesus comes again, there will be something like an absolute explosion of communication, or maybe community. Then we will know face-to-face and perhaps this will all be moot.
The unique message of Christianity is that God so loved the world that God communicated IN PERSON. Ours is an embodied faith. Jesus is human AND divine. I still think there's something to be said for eye-to-eye, stand-facing, mouth-grinning, heart-to-heart conveying of the good news.
Must a church have a website?
If you have an opinion about this, I'd like to hear it.

Covenant Church doesn't have a website

I will preach my first sermon as the pastor on Sunday, August 3, 2008. Jacob wrestles with a "man" at the ford of the Jabbok. Like all good Bible stories, this one has many interpretations. Over the centuries, this story has been heard as many things: a struggle with a river demon, a test of leadership, an initiation rite, a psychological confrontation with guilt; an allegory of the church?
I've worked at churches before, but the church I'm the new pastor for-- Church of the Covenant in Arlington, Virginia--is odd. The church doesn't have a website. Maybe this is a good thing...
We like our relationships face-to-face. Like Jacob at Peniel, we wrestle with God and humans in person. Whether we prevail or not remains open, but we're hanging on for a blessing. I'm wondering what the church will decide to do: website or NOT?
Stay tuned...