BLOG 7/17/18. THE CHURCH NEEDS BOTH ARCHAEOLOGISTS AND ARCHITECTS IN THE TURBULENT BETWEEN-THE-ERAS CULTURE
Those of us who inhabit church communities are certainly no more exempt from the turbulence of our present cultural whitewater as we are irresistibly carried along by all of the changes that are taking place in nearly every dimension of our lives. The church which took on many institutional forms over previous centuries has been seeing those institutions become victims of a post-Christian era, and being replaced by a culture formed by a much more secular era, and one so often indifferent to the Christian faith. In my city, here it is now common to see handsome old church sanctuaries demolished and replaced by housing or commercial developments. Denominations become increasingly irrelevant, and the digital age brings us into intimate contact with the presence of other followers of Christ across the globe.
I was in conversation with a gifted bunch of younger men and women a few years ago who were trying to figure among themselves what it would take to be a community that had integrity with what were the essentials of Christ’s intent for the church. A few of the leaders would get together with me from time to time to ‘pick my brain’ about my insights gleaned from decades of leadership in the church. They were a gifted, and not at all a passive group. They would would report in periodically. The day came when they wanted to share one of their insight with me, and I will pass their insights on to you here.
In essence: they shared that they did not want to forsake the treasures of the church’s past, or the lessons the church had learned in, often, extenuating circumstances and seemingly intractable difficulties. Nor did they want to forsake its heritage in the components of purposeful gatherings. But then again, they did not want to be captive to those forms as our emerging era is carried into a digital and global community of ethnic nomads who bring their cultures and religious or irreligious persuasions with them. So, Christian communities in Myanmar will partner with Christian communities in American cities and towns.
That means that the church must be always rediscovering itself, and reconfiguring itself. Their conclusion was simple: they were to be, intentionally, both ecclesiastical archaeologists and ecclesiastical architects, i.e. those who were always retrieving the treasures of the church’s past, and at the same time forming communities that were sensitive to the emerging future. They sensed that having integrity in this nation might well be, at the present historic moment, one of the most difficult what with those forms of communal life that perpetuated overfamiliarity and mindless participation. They were keenly aware that there are abroad in this country and at this moment those who make the most noise about their Christian faith, who seem to be the most illiterate of its essence, which makes those outside the church the more resistant to the true church’s message.
Their insights get very close to home with me. As my own Presbyterian denomination was rapidly losing members, a professional study group did an in-depth study of the causes. Here we were with venerable theological institutions, ostensibly producing good leadership, yet it was the conclusion of the poll that, note, … a denomination of Biblical and theological illiterate laymen and laywomen. Alas! My young friends were sharp enough to know that it takes continual work to maintain a fruitful Christian community in a culture that is rapidly in transition—and yet without losing touch with its rich heritage from the past two millennia. Archaeologists and architects. Indeed, that is a compelling calling for all who participate in such communities.
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