Member Mission Newsletter #15   

For meditation: Is not God most concerned about how we live Monday to Saturday.  Do Sunday – all of church life – give us the guidance and the power we need to live better?

 

 

 

"The Last Days of Jesus"
     This hour-long Dateline of NBC hosted by Stone Phillips on 2/20/04 reliably fills in the setting of Jesus' last days by using an array of scholars.  Jerusalem was like a week-long Times Square at New Year's with 200,000 people in a small city short of water and plumbing and ruled by a Pilate and a Caiaphas with huge stakes in maintaining order.  Further, Jesus' proclamation of the Kingdom of God was a direct challenge to Caesar.  In the power of Jesus to endure, see the power he shares with us to take on the "powers that be" in any of the six daily mission fields.  Phone 1-866-NBC-TAPE for a VHS at $40.95 or a transcript at $15.00.  To view it or read the script, go to http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032600/ to Dateline NBC to The last days of Jesus.

 

"The Passion of the Christ"
     The experts in historical criticism are pointing to both the strengths and the flaws in Gibson's film.  I, myself, had never grasped the horror of scourging.  I took it as a sign that today's horrors of the Holocaust, Rwanda, and Saddam are known to Jesus.  Concerning who killed Jesus, those hands holding the nail in the movie were Mel Gibson's own hands as if he wanted to say we are all responsible.  That is vital for a healthy spirituality.  (AWS)

 

"The Theology of Television"
     "What would you know about God if your only source of information were television?" asks Teresa Blythe, writer, spiritual director, and media literacy advocate.  For her comments on shows ranging from "Touched By An Angel" to "Joan of Arcadia" to "Everwood" to "Carnivale," go to http://beliefnet.com/story/133/story_13317_1.html.  It connects with one's mission in church to build a healthy spirituality.

 

Member Mission at Work

 

During Lent – vary it for Eastertide or Pentecost 
     For five Wednesday nights, a group at St. James Church, Essex, VT explored:
#1 – the mission fields of our daily lives adding a seventh "Our inner selves" [the same concern shows up in Revised Appendix A Questions on the website]; subgroups of threes heightened involvement.
#2 – worksheet on "What am I doing in each of these areas to make life more loving and more just?" completed and discussed;
#3 – distinction between "member mission" and "body mission."
#4 – "How have you been living in your mission fields?"  The Magnificat raised Jesus bringing justice and led into a worksheet and sharing on "How do I bring justice to one of my mission fields?"
#5 – Reading Luke 4:16-21, "If this is all you had to go by, how would you describe the Holy Spirit?  How does this compare/differ from you own experience of the Spirit?"  Next, the Spirit and living the baptismal covenant.  Next, free flowing talk of what several were doing in their professional and volunteer work and family life; with others commenting they were doing the mission of God.  Comment: "This is a very important topic – bringing Christianity to life in everyday experiences," said one.
     Contact:  The Rev. Alexander Zabriskie, 119 Northshore Drive, Burlington, VT 05401; 802-863-4571; amzab@together.net

 

For immigrants    
     As part of their mission in outreach, some members of All Saints in Meriden, CT offered the Hispanic people in their local community a "FREE Immigration Information Session" in Spanish on a recent Sunday at Noon.  Mr. John Weiss, an expert from the International Institute of Connecticut answered questions on new immigration proposals; entry into the US; relative petitions; green cards; adjustment of status; visa lottery; and public assistance.  This session was to launch a low-cost biweekly immigration clinic (at All Saints') for immigrants in Central Connecticut, because most immigrants cannot afford private attorneys.  This effort is being made possible by a MacGuire Fund grant from St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, Meriden.
     Contact:  The Rev. Irving Gagnon, All Saints Church, 201 W. Main St., Meriden, CT 06451; 203-235-9695; sherm6501@cox.net.

 

In a vestry meeting 
     "In March, we discussed what we are doing now in our work environments ‘to make life there better, more loving or more just.'   Every member shared something they were doing.  I cannot reveal details, since what we share there stays there.  I have permission to tell you about one of our vestry members who very recently lost his wife to cancer (funeral was 2 days before this vestry meeting).  This man chose to describe what it was like to be on the receiving end of these ‘member mission' ministries. [He did leap ahead to the ‘church' environment, since he had not been working for the last month of his wife's illness, and so was not able to focus on the work environment.]
     He told how the members made his family's life so much better throughout his wife's protracted illness and dying.  [The congregation had rallied around, cooking, cleaning, visiting, and praying with them.]  We were blessed that he was able to point out what it feels like to be the recipient.  His words reinforced how important it is that we look at all our environments as mission fields, and live our ministries there.  There are people in them who desperately need to receive what God has given us to share!  Another amazing blessing was that his wife wrote a letter to the congregation, which was read at her funeral, in which she pointed out many of the same things, urging continued commitment to Christ and Christ's mission!  It was a powerful evangelizing moment . . . "
     Contact:  Diana Montenegro, 2380 Mary Beth Ct., Brookfield, WI 53005; 262-786-9743; dmonten@aol.com.

 

Parenting
     For help with their daily missions at home, parents at St. Luke's, Ypsilanti, MI will meet seven times to discuss the seven chanters of Parenting with Love and Laughter: Finding God in Family Life by Jeffrey. D. Jones (Jossey-Bass, 2002).  Led by a mother in the congregation, they will meet every other Wednesday night beginning the Wednesday after Easter.
     Contact: Catharine M. June, 8205 Starling Court, Ypsilanti, MI 48197-6009; 734-547-1953; cmsj@umich.edu.

 

In strategic planning
     With program-size and larger Lutheran congregations, Richard Rouse always includes what can be done to help members in their Monday to Saturday living.  Rick has long championed ministry in daily life seeing the laity as the front-line missionaries.  His dissertation was "Mobilizing the Laity for Mission: A Lay Training Center Model for the Local Church."  He now works in ELCA's "Splash: The Ripples of the Baptized" (www.elca.org/dm > Programs > SPLASH or Craig Settlage, 773-380-2700, ext. 2877) to help congregations reorient themselves into ministry in daily life congregations where they focus on how to equip, train, and empower their members for their mission and ministry in the world – what he calls a "discipleship church."  This is a major paradigm shift from the "membership church" focused on taking care of the members.  Judith Dickhart, whose book is Church-going Insider or Gospel-carrying Outsider: a Different View of Congregations, put together "Splash" with Sally Simmel. 
     Rick introduces this paradigm shift with Loren Mead's three paradigm shifts – the Pre-Christian Era, the Constantinian or Christian Era, and the Post-Constantinian or Post-Christian Era.  We still do church as if we were back in the Constantinian era where the pastor did the missionary work, not the members.  Now, we shift to where everyone is a missionary because everybody's home opens up onto the mission field.  The frustration comes when the people who have nodded in agreement, shift back into automatic pilot of the Constantinian era when it comes to visioning and planning.  They have not really made the cultural shift they need to make.  It takes more than a weekend to make this shift. [Ongoing consultation can help the day-by-day decisions so needed to give up old ways for new ways.  Member mission folks can network with each other for peer consultation.] 
     After developing an outreach-oriented and lay-empowering mission statement, one church began skits on ministry in daily life and members take turns writing in the newsletter how they take their faith into the workplace.  The pastor is fully committed and his sermons show it.
     In other uses, Rick provided WTMATM as a resource for a major theological conference on the campus last summer about the church in mission in a post-Christian era.  At the last gathering of the North American Association for the Catechumenate, he presented a workshop on WTMATM using excerpts from the book.
     Contact:  Richard Rouse, Office of Church Relations, Pacific Lutheran University, 12108 Park Ave., Tacoma WA 98447; 253-535-7423; rouserw@plu.edu.

 

At a vestry retreat – missions, gifts, and a community service
     The vestry of St. Luke's, Ypsilanti, MI spent the bulk of a Saturday morning on member mission.  First, came a brief look at the Canons for who is responsible for what as rector and vestry.  Then, to increase empathy for the daily lives of the members whom they lead, all looked closely at their own daily living by listing what each was doing to make each of their daily arenas more loving and just (Basic Tools 2 on the website); and shared the results in trios.  They reflected on these actions as missions sharing in God's mission of love and justice among us all.  Next for team-building as a whole group, each described in some detail one of their more central current missions.  The rest responded with the gifts or special abilities they heard being used in that mission.  As they did so, they were guided by remembering that Paul's list of gifts in Romans and 1st Corinthians were his words for gifts in the church life he experienced in the first century.  They were free to use today's words for the gifts heard at work in each person's story.  (For more, see Basic Tools 4 on the website.)
        Since the congregation desired to begin some local community service project, the following method was shared.
1.  Survey what is needed – identify three people from education, health care, law enforcement, or community life for vestry members to interview asking: "In your experience, what are the three most pressing needs of the people you work with?" 
2.  List the results; compare them with what is already being done by St. Luke's and others; and choose which St. Luke's can do most effectively. 
3.  Work out a plan for startup and ongoing operation.
The rest of the day was given to responding to concerns of the congregation.  The vestry had requested such a list the previous Sunday.
    Contact: The Rev. JoAnn Slater, St. Luke's Church, 120 N. Huron St., Ypsilanti, MI 48197; 734-483-4253; slaterj@umich.edu. 

 

A diocesan commission on ministry
     The Commission on Ministry of the Diocese of Eastern Michigan spent an afternoon exploring the member mission approach to lay ministry.  After an overview of the theology underlying member mission (see Basic Tools 1 on the website), the group got the feel of each arena of daily life as a mission field by listing and sharing what they were now doing in each of their six daily mission fields to make life there more loving and just (Basic Tools 2 on the website).  Next, they discussed six essentials supporting the members in their daily living as Christians (see Basic Tools 17 – Body missions that support member missions.)  Along the way, they looked at the role of deacons in connecting with and supporting the members as missionaries.  Member mission may become the starting point for the diocese's annual emphasis on lay ministry on All Saints Day.  At the conclusion, Bishop Ed Leidel commented , "What you've got here is so simple, and so profound!"
     Contact: The Rt. Rev. Edward M. Leidel Jr., 924 N. Niagara, Saginaw, MI 48602; 989-752-6020; bishopeml@eastmich.org.

 

Check out some new resources

 

Basic Tools #16 – Introduction for Planners.  Getting Acquainted with the Vision of WTMATM – an experiential introduction for congregational and diocesan planning groups; and
Basic Tools #17 – Body missions that support member missions.  Here are some ways church leaders can vary their accustomed and expected activities to support the daily missions of the members (both on the Making the Vision work menu of the website).

 

The Earth Charter: Values and Principles for a Sustainable Future – a resource for both individual and group work for environmental responsibility in both the local community and the wider world.  info@earthcharter.org; http://www.earthcharter.org; p/506-205-1600; 
f/506-249-3500.

 

Gospel Based Discipleship.  An aid to a healthy spirituality is this way to pray each day's gospel reading from the lectionary in three steps – what stands out for you; what is Jesus (the Gospel) saying to you; what is Jesus (the Gospel) calling you to do.  For print, radio, and internet resources, go to: http://home.gci.net/~episcopalak/ and click on Daily Lessons & Prayer and / or GBD radio.

 

Making Disciples the Way Jesus Did – forming members and candidates for baptism or confirmation in a healthy spirituality for mission.  The annual gathering of the North American Association for the Catechumenate, July 22-25, 2004, Niagara Falls, Ontario, CA; cost $280.  Contact the Rev. Bev Piro, 18925 Burke Ave. N., Shoreline WA 98133; 206-542-1314; bpiro@prlc.org.

 

Member mission goes door-to-door – a way for those doing door-to-door visiting in outreach to the local community to communicate a congregation's commitment to the member mission vision (see Session Plans and Ideas on the Making the Vision Work menu on the website).

 

Theology in a Dynamic Universe by Arnold Benz.  This distinguished astrophysicist traces the truth and the limitations of both science and religion.  He cites the changing universe with its death – our Sun's life expectancy of 6 billion more years – and birth – ten new stars every year in our galaxy alone.  Then he cites religion's hope and its basis in "experiences and perceptions that differ fundamentally from those of science. . . The universe is revealed as a continuous creation, and there is hope for new creation also in the future."  It's a rich resource for our dialogue with nonchurch and church people alike on a healthy spirituality.  Download this paper on http://www.astro.phys.ethz.ch/papers/benz/zukunft/summary.html.