So I've been down at Stony Point Center this week attending an event known as UNCO.
Some of you have heard of this annual event. A few of you have attended in the past. A
quick explanation of what UNCO is... UNCO stands for "Un-conference." Basically, it is a
group-defined sharing and discussion and study of different topics, the ideas of which are
generated by the people who show up. In other words, it is a conference-type event, but it's
focus and content is not pre-defined
One of the things I've appreciated about UNCO is the desire of folks to ask the big questions
and explore a bit about what those questions mean, what implications they entail, and what
some ways might be to discern possible answers.
A question that really grabbed my attention and energy this time is this... What does it mean
to describe a congregation as being "viable?" For decades - for the scope of all of our
memories and experiences - a "viable" church meant a congregation that had its own
building, offered its programs, and was served by a full-time, installed pastoral leader. A
"viable" church meant a specific place with a definite address, where everyone in the
community could say, "Oh, 'X' Presbyterian Church...That's the building at the corner of Oak
and 2nd." That model of being the Church was workable, and even successful, for a long
time.
But then there's today... Membership in most of our churches has shrunk dramatically in the
past 20, 30, 40 years. Many of our churches have sanctuaries that were built to hold 400
people, and today maybe 45 people are regularly at worship services. Upkeep and
maintenance of our church buildings are draining our resources. Being able to afford to have
a full-time, ordained, installed pastor already is not possible, or folks are aware that that day
is rapidly drawing to a close. Combine all of this with the reality that the Church - particularly
denominations like ours - are no longer the highly-respected focal point of the community,
nor are we the influential institution that we once were. Thus, many, many of our
congregations don't feel as if they are "viable."
What would it mean to rethink what it means to be "viable" as a community of faith?
What
would it mean to lift up the ministry and calling of people within our congregation, and
encourage and enable them to live out their own ministries and exercise their own gifts
instead of expecting "the pastor" to do it all? What would it look like if we intentionally let our
stately buildings go, and found ways to take the Church - literally - into the community and
world, rather than waiting for people to come to where we are?
These are questions that are uncomfortable at best, terrifying at worst. But these are the
very questions that I believe God is calling the Church to wrestle with in our day and time.
It's hard. In some ways, this is at least as hard for seminary-trained pastors, since what
this might well mean is that the days of expecting that you will work full-time as a pastor for
your whole "career" no longer will be able to be assumed! In other words, many of us might
well be out of a "job" in the Church. As I said, uncomfortable...terrifying to consider.
As someone here at UNCO put it: "The mission of the Church is not to have a good choir
and a beautiful building. The mission of the Church is to share the Message." What are we
willing to let go of in order to put our energies, our resources, our passion, our commitment to
share the Message which we have been entrusted by God to share? And what gets in the
way of this mission?
Let's continue to ask the big questions and to dare to dream and discern what the Spirit
might be doing in our midst, in our day!
