It is reasonable to question the orthodoxy of a future peer. According to Dictionary.com, orthodoxy is defined as,”of, pertaining to, or conforming to beliefs, attitudes, or modes of conduct that are generally approved.  When one becomes a part of an institution, be it educational, social or religious, one becomes a representative of the whole.  Though individualism and personal interpretation of the groups beliefs is acceptable, the group needs to know that every member holds true to some basic core beliefs.  Colleges and Universities are not the first institutions to request proof of my orthodoxy.  About fifteen years ago, the United Methodist Church requested similar proof called the Diaconal Orders.  I spent about three weeks putting into words my understanding of the Methodist tradition, history and polity, of Christian Theology, and of my vision of my Christian ministry.  The writing part was easy– all I really had to do was regurgitate what I’d learned in seminary.   The difficult part was meeting with the Board of Ordained Ministry.

It is easy to write orthodoxy.  Living an orthodox life and ministry– now that is a different matter entirely.  I finally decided my best choice was to focus on authenticity.  I was, and am, an orthodox Christian.  My basic understanding of the faith is the same as the leaders  and saints who have gone before me.  Authenticity in living those beliefs can be challenging, especially when postmodernism encourages relativism in moral absolutes.

Simplistic messages and pithy statements do not allow for real engagement in living authentic orthodoxy.    We hear of people who try to follow the “what would Jesus do?” axiom, but I think this simplifies the situation too much. Though we know an amazing amount about Jesus, we really  don’t know what Jesus would do every given situation.  The Jesus we know was not a parent with a screaming child demanding the latest gadget. The Jesus we know lived an itinerant life dependent upon the kindness of friends and family.  Jesus did not have a mortgage, pay rent, or hold a steady job after he started his ministry.  As a young single person I could, and did, emulate the itinerant  lifestyle.  As a mature adult with a spouse and special needs child, I do not have the luxury of the freedom to pursue that life any more.  WWJD doesn’t work for me.

What does work is to attempt to live the summation of the faith, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and^(AX) your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27).  Living this Orthodox theology authentically not only transforms one’s relationship with God, it also transforms one’s relationship with every other being in the planet and requires one to love oneself just as much as one loves God and others.   Living it becomes a balancing act between selfishness and selflessness, sacrifice and  preservation, hope and fear and raging questions and faithful living.  When we live this struggle we come closer to truly living authentic orthodoxy.

So, what’s your philosophy of teaching and learning?

Sources

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (2001), Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. retrieved December 15, 2011, from: http://bibleresources.bible.com/passagesearchresults.php?passage1=Luke+10&version=47.

orthodox. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved December 15, 2011, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/orthodox

One would not be exaggerating to say that my local church was ecstatic to hear that I actually volunteered for the position. No one else wanted the position, and the person who did it last year did not enjoy the experience.

 
Unfortunately, a United Methodist Church Annual Conference can be a confusing and extremely boring event for the average layperson. A seemingly endless array of committee, group, business and church reports are given, complex legislation and resolutions are presented, debated and then sent to a vote, and most of the business of the Annual Conference doesn’t really seem to apply to the interests of the local church.

In reality, though, the exact opposite is true. The business of the Annual Conferences of the United Methodist Church sets the theological, business, policy and fiscal tone for the church for the coming year. On those years leading up to General Conference, the Annual Conference becomes the place where the creation of worldwide policy for the denomination begins.

Though many will say that one person and one little vote cannot make a big difference in an organization as huge as the United Methodist Church, I beg to differ. One vote my not count all that much, but the way our system works allows for one VOICE to be very influential.

 
Case in point, the UMC stance on GLBT issues. Every Annual Conference I’ve attended since I graduated from seminary back in 1995, had at lease one resolution, discussion, or report regarding GLBT issues ranging from support of GLBT in our communities to attempts to restrict their participation in our congregations, districts and annual conference. Policy is made at Annual Conference. If we are supposed to be living Christ-like lives and seeking social justice in our local communities, don’t you think it is time that we take every opportunity for supportive voices to be heard?

I know I will only have one voice at Annual Conference, but I assure you that I will be heard, I will be a voice for social justice, and my little congregation on the Haw River will be well represented as a congregation seeking social justice.  And while I’m at it, I’ll be encouraging my local congregation to stand up for social justice.

Oh, and if you are wondering what set off this post, read this lovely essay from Faith in Action.   Every now and then we all need a little kick in the pants to remember that Christian Education is as much about action as it is about learning and teaching.

Dr. Mel

We as educators and leaders in our organizations would be wise to incorporate the ideas of capital into our vocabulary and our curriculum.  By learning how to name these often unrecognized assets and then focusing on developing their growth both in the individual and across the organization, we can help our organizations envision a future that is dynamic, useful, and empowering.

However, I do offer one caveat,  please consider a form of capital that is not mentioned in the article, but which is very important in the life of the church: the capital of a calling.  Though this form of capital may not be recognized by mainstream researchers, the power of a call to a particular vocation can be a form of capital in its own right.  Individuals following a call often  pursue that call in spite of enormous personal, economic, cultural and educational challenges.     The church places a strong emphasis on God’s Call in our lives, and if we are to encourage our people to pursue their own call, naming the value and power of the call is important, and allows us to help them to develop and grow into their call.

Capital is more than money.  It is also more than cultural.  It is spiritual as well.

Peace, Dr. Mel

My choice was based upon many factors, the least of which is that my community and I  were a recipient of UMCOR aid back in the early 1990′s when Hurricane Hugo devastated the South Carolina Coast. At the time, my family lived in Summerville, SC, in the direct path of the hurricane.  We lived through the devastation and damage caused by the hurricane and spent the next three or four years recovering from the storm.  Like any major natural disaster, it takes years for a community to recover from such an event.  Initially, the desire is to feed, clothe,  heal and shelter those who are displaced by the storm.  Then the next step is to repair or replace the community infrastructure of schools, roads, bridges and municipal buildings. Next comes the rebuilding of the local economy.  And finally, helping families rebuild their lives by repairing and building permanent housing, job creation, and long term care of the emotional, mental and physical scars left from the storm.

These tasks do not take weeks to accomplish; they take years.   UMCOR was present in Charleston and all the affected areas for years.   Their presence helped to care for and sustain the fragile recovery of untold thousands.

Though UMCOR is not alone in claiming and living a mission to long term recovery after a disaster, it is one of the few agencies whose response is almost immediate.  By working though local UMC congregations, UMCOR is able to get substantial help on the ground, often before the federal government or other relief agencies arrive. On those occasions where the United Methodist Church has low or no numbers, UMCOR works in partnership with other denominations to establish a base of operations and offer their considerable support of the local denominations efforts.  UMCOR  and its partners were on the ground and helping the victims of the Japanese Earthquake immediately, and was offering assistance to anyone in need.

I am both in awe of that response and proud to associated with the UMCOR.

UMCOR, like any non-profit agency is doing it’s annual fund drive called One Great Hour of Sharing through the United Methodist Church. This year that offering will take place in most churches April 3, and  is very important as it offers UMC Church members a rare opportunity to have a very clear understanding of where their money is going.   So, for my UMC friends out there, Please give generously.

If you are not a member of the UMC, your support is also welcome.  Because of the denominational support of UMCOR’s leadership, the all funds go directly to aide instead of operational costs.  Donating to UMCOR is money well spent, and appriciated.

To learn more about UMCOR and its mission, go to UMCOR.ORG

.

Peace,

Dr. Mel

These moments when a student opens the way for teaching a lesson are called “teachable moments.”  Teachable moments occur when questions, some times unexpected questions, are asked by the learner and cause a moment in which new knowledge can be imparted and readily accepted.  Educators seek these moments whenever possible.  These are the “aha” moments when educators can see the spark light up in their students eyes, and the teacher knows the student is “getting it.”

I am one of those educators who believes that these teachable moments can be intentionally created.  It’s not always easy, but I know it can be done. The trick is to finds something in the mundane that points to the divine. My preference is to use unexpected means to achieve this end.  I personally like to use popular films to create teachable moments.  I’ve gotten to the point where I judge a film’s worth on it teach-ability.   When I was working in the church full time, I kept a collection of these kind of films at the house.  Once a quarter or so, I’d haul out another movie and have a lock-in.  The event was fun, and the teachable moment felt spontaneous, though I always knew better.

Preachers and theologians seek the same kind of moment, though we don’t usually use the same terminology…  we seek “moments of celerity,”  “divine intervention,” “grace.” — Moments when God’s truth is suddenly made plane.

When I was in seminary, the term we used to describe the tools used to create teachable moments as “preachable”   Essentially, we would ask ourselves was the book, play, movie, event one that could be used to teach / preach about a subject that was relevant to the congregation and accessible by the majority of the audience.  Books, movies, poems, songs,  and stories were scrutinized and studied.  The lucky few were described as “that ‘ll preach.”

I cameacross an unexpected resource “preachable” yesterday.  Our little community has a free, informal lending library of books, CDs, VHS tapes, etc up at the Post Office.  I found there a little HBO film from 1997 called “The Gloaming”.  It is a lovely little hour long film that address love, loss, death, AIDS/HIV and the dynamics of a slightly dysfunctional family. The film is a tear jerker, and requires a box of tissues to watch it, but I found myself profoundly touched not as much by death of the son, but rather by observations present in the conversations.   One observation in particularity struck me.  The son asked his mother, “why do you think Dad grows all of those tomatoes when he doesn’t even eat them?” “I don’t know,” said the mom, “I never really thought about it.”  “I think he grows them for you,” said the son.  The mother is totally taken aback, and looks out at the garden in surprise.  Her expression changes from surprise to wonder, and we can see her “aha” moment  as she realizes that her husband’s quite actions say more about his affection for her than he has expressed in words. He offered her a moment of affirmation and insight into her marriage.  This observation was the last sentence said by the son before he died.

What a gift to give one’s parents– a teachable moment offered with one’s last breath.

Yep, “that ‘ll preach.”

Dr. Mel

Part of being a leader is being willing to take risks and speak the truth. Being truthful, to oneself and to others, is probably the most difficult action a person in the ministry can take.  Recently, Len Ripley, a friend of mine and fellow Duke Alumni from the UMC Course of Study program offered this sermon after the shooting in Az. Though the sermon as a whole is very moving, I find his reflection and reasoning for taking the risk of preaching the sermon the most powerful section of the sermon. He offers  for motivation his own experience as a young person looking for guidance from his pastor at a time when he was struggling to come to terms with the injustice of our society.  Len writes:

The Sunday after Martin Luther King was assassinated in 1968, I was in church with my parents and sister. I went with a heavy heart, expecting my pastor to help make sense of the tragedy. You see, I was a young person who really listened to Scripture, preaching, and [was] already sensing a call to representative ministry. I also had become good friends with a teammate on my high school basketball team whose dad had just died in Vietnam. He happened to be African American. What hurt me was the fact that he was not welcome at the soda fountain at Port City Drugstore like the rest of us. Even though his father died for this nation! That changed me! I began to understand Martin King and why he said and did the things he did. …

…Well, on that terrible morning at NCUMC [North Charleston UMC], my minister rose to preach. I held my breath. But he said nothing of the events in Memphis. He preached as if nothing had happened.

I left church that day confused. I left that morning disgusted because my pastor did not have the courage to speak what needed to be said and heard.

Len choose not to model his behavior upon his childhood pastor and instead boldly reflects and calls his congregation into reflection and action.  He writes:

At their best, American pulpits are not about taking sides and blaming. Those pulpits should be places to reflect on theology and life, on the Word and our words.

I hope my sermon this morning will go beyond expressions of sympathy or even calls for civility and niceness. Right now, we need some sustained spiritual reflection on how badly we have behaved in recent years as Americans and as Christians–how much we’ve allowed fear to motivate our politics, how cruel we’ve allowed our discourse to become, how little we’ve listened, how much we’ve dehumanized public servants, how much we love to hate.

Boldness, seeking justice and mercy, and looking for and offering compassion and convection. These are signs of a good minister.

Thanks, Len, for being courageous.    And thanks for letting me post your sermon here.

Dr. Mel

Good interview covering several topics ranging from role of homosexual’s in the church, role of church in the society, and the goals of the NC Council of Churches.

Enjoy!

Dr. Mel

http://www.youtube.com/v/cZ8mAezZnkQ&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3

This Documentary is a lovely example of  a theological response to the human condition.  It is also an opportunity for each of us to open or continue the conversation about one of the greatest issues facing our congregation.  Please take this advantage of this opportunity to learn more about the documentary, work to get it aired in you local community, and converse with your congreation on the issue.  Perhaps you  will be able to save a life you did not know was in danger.

Dr. Mel

In this day and age of a challenging economy and social insecurity, perhaps we in the world of preparing people for ministry (be it lay or ordained) should take a page out of the playbook offered in the article, especially since all of these traits and practices are desirable traits in any non-profit leader.

Dr. Mel

It seems my last post was an appropriate precursor to this one.   The UMC Board of Church and Society is calling upon the UMC related seminaries to make an intentional effort to address AIDS/HIV in their schools and curriculum.

About time.

Imagine what kind of changes we could see in our denomination if every new clergy person is as prepared to discuss the role of AIDS/HIV within the church, as she is the role of money, death, or marriage.

The question is, how will the seminaries address the issue when they have difficulty discussing related topics such as sex, sexual orientation, and the health of an individual?   We have difficulty discussing these topics amongst ourselves.  How can we expect our seminary graduates to discuss it unless we become more comfortable with the issues.

Perhaps what is needed is a series of continuing education courses for the rest of us to learn more about the subject.

What say you?  Any interest?

Dr. Mel