Reflection Roundup: Crisis Prioritizes Care
Each week we gather news stories, notable pieces, and other important items for Christian leaders today. As always, listening broadly draws together differing perspectives from which we can learn but may not concur. Here are 10 things worth sharing this week.
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1. Pairing folks is a great way to assess the impact of the pandemic on both individuals and body life. “Four Reasons Your Church Needs a Mentoring Program” describes mentoring relationships as a real, practical way to achieve these connections.
2. “Multiracial churches tend to mimic white churches in their culture and theology,” according to Christianity Today cover story by Korie Little Edwards, which reveals striking data from a recent study regarding both the attendance demographic and leadership of church plants. “The Multiethnic Church Movement Hasn’t Lived up to Its Promise” highlights needed exploration of attitudes such as those reinforcing inequality and those “maintaining individualistic ideals.” As Christians, we “are all called to a life of repentance (for the kingdom of God is at hand). We – both white people and people of color – must turn away from our support of white supremacy. But repentance is not simply an apology; it is an about-face. It is openly acknowledging how we were going in the wrong direction.”
3. The Trinity is a practical dance, expressed in the divine person, applicable to every aspect of life and culture in the world today. Richard Beck unpacks “Karen Kilby's much discussed essay ‘Perichoresis and Projection: Problems with Social Doctrines of the Trinity,’ and the ways in which the loving socialization of the Trinity touches and potentially transforms everything. Part 1, “The Trinity is our Social Program,” testifies the truth of its title and calls upon “all social and political arrangements to reflect, embody and participate in this love.” Beck’s second move quotes several truths put forward by Kilby regarding the active practicality of the divine relationship, yet reminds the reader of our own circumstantial points of reference and draws awareness to the human tendency to project our own reflections thereunto.
4. Max Lucado exemplified the mighty power of a humble apology this week. This, coupled with the truth of the chaos-calming presence of the Holy Spirit, was just the message our nation’s people, Christian and non alike, needed at the National Cathedral on February 7. Our brother spoke well into the ecumenical circle into which he was invited. May we remember the strength in confessing weakness, and the creative and recreative power that has moved over the chaos since the beginning (Gen. 1:2). Calm came before even God’s creativity. May we remember this first example amid the chaos of our issue-driven age, and say “Yes” to the Word’s active presence once more.
5. Here is a favorite and trusted resource for Ash Wednesday, Lent, and burying the alleluia. These practices, while unfamiliar in many of our Protestant circles, can receive enhanced significance in a year such as the one in which we find ourselves. Legalism toward methodology and calendar dates slides away easily when our hearts truly seek lament. Ash Wednesday 2020 may represent some of the closest human contact we’ve had in churches for an entire year. This year more than ever as we look toward the season in which our hope is affirmed, it’s worth exploring, reading up, and allowing the liturgical calendar, which may not typically orient us, to work alongside the Spirit .
6. Reimagination is the word for 2021 on many fronts; many of our houses of worship have come into this frame. Whether to offset costs or expand the missional reach, Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows serves this article as a guide in exploring how we might continue to utilize one of our congregations’ greatest assets – our buildings – in missional ways. Baskerville-Burrows says, “The pandemic is an amplifier and accelerator, and it’s going to amplify and accelerate some of the trends that are troubling. But it can also amplify and accelerate some good things.” Digging further, this article poses relevant questions that assist reimagination, and exemplifies the tension between honoring tradition while maintaining forward motion. Further fueling the imagination, this is happening.
7. “Christian Prophets Are on the Rise. What Happens When They’re Wrong?” describes the gift of prophecy as declining in the postmodern Christian era and touts there “are stars within what is now one of the fastest-growing corners of Christianity: a loose but fervent movement led by hundreds of people who believe they can channel supernatural powers.” Whether or not this is an accurate depiction of the prophet, it’s a great time to remember the hallmarks of reputable prophets, deliverance from oppression and rest for the people, a less transitory view. “Social media rewards ‘buzz and sensationalism’ over wisdom, and pressures independent prophets especially to churn out fresh predictions every few days.” Isn’t one of the many facets encompassed by our faith the truth that God’s thoughts and ways are higher than our own (Is. 55:8-9)?
8. Ordinariness has the power to bring joy and relief. Even just for the pictures, don’t miss “Inside a Nursing Home,” and the reminder to participate in the “bodily care of those who once bodily cared for us.”
9. NBC’s webpage, “Plan Your Vaccine,” dispenses helpful information regarding your state’s procedures. On balance, here are other perspectives to consider.
10. Read these; you’ll feel better.
