Worshiping worship - Part 2

Previously I mentioned a bit about the need for movements and institutions.

Last post touched on using the idea of the Trinity to help mitigate idolatry in the way we "do" Church.

Today will be an attempt o connect these two thoughts. 

First - Movements and Institutions in tension
If movements are needed in order to push us beyond the status-quo and institutions preserve the advances of the movements then could we put these two on a continuum?  So it might look like this:

(It should be noted that while it is often the norm to see things on a continuum like this that there is a "left" and "right" correlation, it is not the case with this.  You can imagine there are liberals who care about institutions and movements just as there are conservatives.)

Second - M/I tension results in dualism 
The movement and institution live in a healthy tension with each other, but often are pitted against each other in popular church speak.  One is described as free and another as cumbersome, however, this is rather simplistic and not healthy.  Both are vital to the success of the Church and to think in terms of one 'against' the other is not helpful and leads us to dualism.

Dualism is that way of thinking that sees the world in black and white or sometimes thought of as either/or thinking.  It is this thinking that Christianity seeks to break down (Richard Rohr writes about 'non-dualistic thinking' in Christianity).

When we raise one aspect of Church (worship) over the other aspects of Church we can fall into idolatry.  When we live with understanding of Church that it should be a movement OR an institution we can fall into dualism.

Third - Trinitarian thinking overcomes idolatry and dualism
When we are thinking in trinitarian terms we diminish the influence of both idolatry and dualism in our lives and Churches.  If we want to build a Church that avoids the lure of idolatry and dualism then we need to consider another focus, or another point or another leg, to our above continuum of building a Church as a Movement and Institution.

The next post will attempt to offer a third aspect of Church which might be critical to help ward off idolatry and dualism.

Worshiping worship - Part 1

Among many of the leaders of the area of the UMC which I am located in, there is a premium placed upon worship.  Worship is often described as the most important thing that we do as a Church.

A previous post touched on this idea which you can read if you would like.  

It is not clear to me that there is one thing in the Church that ought to be the most important thing.  To say such a thing seems more of a reflection of the priorities of the person saying it than of the reflection of God's priorities for the Church.

Can we really think that corporate worship is more important than working to eradicate slavery in our back yard?  Or that teaching about the message of Jesus is more important than prayer and meditation?  

How can one hold one aspect of the Church above another?  Did not Paul speak of the Church being a body that is made of different parts and no one part is greater than the whole?  Can the hands of service tell the heart of worship that they do not need it?  Of course not.  

When we elevate worship above the other aspects of Church I would submit that we are in danger of moving toward an idolatry of worship.  We worship worship.  

From the infamous golden calf to elevating sacrifice above mercy to worshiping Cesar, the Bible shares of of many stories of humanity struggling with idolatry.  

The Church also seems to struggle with idolatry in that different parts of the Church elevate one expression of God over the others.  Mainline Church elevates God, Evangelicals elevate Jesus, and Pentecostals elevate the Holy Spirit.  Try talking about the 'Holy Spirit' in the mainline and you will find it to be more uncomfortable than talking about 'God'.  

The Trinity is a teaching about the nature of God which says, of many other things, that no one aspect of God is greater than another.  Yet, our Churches fall into the idea that there are aspects of being Church that is greater than others - namely worship is the "most important" thing we do.  

What if we were to take the idea of the Trinity and apply it to the Church?  

The next post will explore this a bit more...

Adventures with a name tag

I have a name tag at Church which I usually do not like.  The lettering is too small and it has too many words on it to be in any way helpful to people who have not been bitten by a radioactive hawk and possess a super-human ability to see very clearly.  

With all that lettering and the number of words on my name tag, it has become clear the only thing people see on my name tag is the word "Church".  

As one who is curious to know about people and learn from them, it is usually counter-productive to meet an atheist or an agnostic wearing a name tag that says "Church" on it.  It smacks of establishment and no one likes "the man".  

I sought out to make a new name tag for myself.  

I am not creative enough to come up with this name tag on my own but I discovered this style after viewing a number of Meetup groups who were discussing creativity.  While their name tags were temporary stickers, I thought it would be great to go with a bit more of a permanent/official/reusable look.

So here is what I got:

While some might consider this too weird or "hey look at me!", I have discovered the flexibility and uniqueness of this name tag has opened the door to a number of wonderful conversations with people.  And the thing is, it is the other people who choose to engage in the conversation first!

One day I wore that I love "Girard".  To my amazement, I met a guy who knew who Girard was and was well versed in his writings.  He and his wife were in from out of state for medical treatment for their son.  After thirty minutes, he and I traded names and contact information so that we might reconnect on the internet as we find things related to our conversation.  

Earlier this week I visited a coffee shop and the brewista stated, "oh, you are the guy with the name tag.  What do you love today?"  

Not a big deal by any stretch of the imagination, but it has been a wonderful experiment thus far in engaging with people to talk of life, philosophy, religion, God and even Anchorman: