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- Congregational Formation Initiative and Slow Church
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Visit the Ekklesia Project Website
the Ekklesia Project
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Lent
We should know what it costs to follow this man;
we should recognize how dangerous it is to be good.
Peter Storey, Listening at Golgotha |
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CFI and Slow Church
Over the next few months we will feature reflections from several EP folks who have engaged CFI materials and processes in their congregations. We hope these brief reflections offer a window into what CFI is about and the work it might do in your congregation. Todd Edmondson was the minister of a rural church in Kentucky that was part of the initial pilot phase of CFI.
Every community has its own language. Any time a group of like-minded people comes together to discuss what is important to them, it is critical that eac h person understands what another is saying. They develop a kind of shorthand among themselves, and cultivate ways of sharing information, interests, and convictions that are particular to that group. A gathering of accomplished cooks can exchange recipes and discuss culinary technique with one another without much effort. Experts in auto repair can discuss parts and technical procedures in ways that elude the layperson. To enter into the conversation requires a grasp of the language that is employed. The same is true for the church. It is not that we, as disciples of Jesus, consciously seek to utilize jargon that excludes or alienates those not already part of the in-group. But followers of Christ do sometimes traffic in terminologies and concepts that are essential to a proper understanding of who we are. Often, such terms are difficult to grasp for those unpracticed in the art of sustained ecclesiological conversation.
At this summer gathering, members of the Ekklesia Project will reflect together on the notion of "Slow Church" as a way of being faithful. As advocates of slow church remind us, something like "sustained ecclesiological conversation," or--more simply--"talking with brothers and sisters in Christ about things that matter," is an essential element of the slow church vision. But, as anyone who has tried to enter into this kind of conversation with a church community will likely tell you, this can be difficult when there is no common language shared by those who engage. Even more challenging, sometimes participants in the conversation come to the table with stubbornly trenchant ideas about the terms of the conversation and deeply ingrained definitions of the concepts up for discussion. Sometimes, instead of talking with each other, participants simply talk past each other and leave the conversation feeling more frustrated and alienated than when they came.
One of the strengths of the Congregational Formation Initiative is that it assists church communities in exploring key terms--basic building blocks of any conversation about corporate faithfulness--in ways that challenge all participants to rethink and perhaps revise any stubborn perspectives that hinder real discussion and growth. If two people come to the table with radically different notions of what the "Kingdom of God" might look like, or what "reconciliation" is all about, the initial stages of CFI provide opportunities to sort through these differences, to work towards a common understanding of their common vocation as members of the body of Christ. On an even more basic level, participants are encouraged to develop shared perspectives on things like "virtues," "convictions," and "stories". Because each person comes to the conversation with different experiences and different influences, there will--thankfully--always be some measure of diversity in our understanding. The development of a common language helps to ensure that such diversity doesn't result in a conversational impasse, as congregations learn how to articulate the story of their life together in Christ. These discussions, as simple as they might seem, achieve so much in the way of laying a foundation for future conversations.
As a pastor committed to engaging my congregation in long-term dialogue about our identity in Christ and our calling to embody the gospel where we are, I look back on the CFI experience as one that provided an invaluable starting point for that process of engagement. CFI is not a quick-fix. In the early months of our three-year conversation, I jokingly referred to the curriculum as "1,095 Days of Purpose". By the end of the three years, I was convinced that the conversation would be much longer than that. And that's exactly how it should be. A mustard seed takes a long time to grow. God's work is not instant, and the conversation among God's people about that work should unfold in a context of stability and commitment, where we are patient with God, with one another, and with ourselves. The CFI conversation assists congregations in creating space for the Spirit to do its work on us, as God continues to grow and build us up in love, and to shape us for the purposes of the Kingdom. |
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Board Meeting Update
The EP Board of Directors met in mid-February for their winter meeting at Fuquay-Varina United Methodist Church in Fuquay-Varina, NC and Duke Divinity School in Durham, NC. It has been a practice for several years that the board meet yearly at an EP-affiliated church. (FVUMC was one of the pilot congregations for the first phase of the Congregational Formation Initiative). Members of the church hosted board members in their homes and provided meals and meeting space. For the board session at Duke, the group met with Stanley Hauerwas for a conversation about the past, present, and future of the Ekklesia Project.
Along with revitalizing the "Signs of the Times" portion of bLOGOS (see article above), other board business included: preliminary discussion of nominations; reports on various initiatives (pamphlets, book series, CFI); updates on the website, bLOGOS, and the monthly newsletter; a financial report; and a progress report on the plans for this summer's Gathering. Preliminary discussion of the 2013 Gathering centered on the possible theme of "The Abolition of War."
The board appreciates your prayers in their ongoing work and is always open to your questions and concerns. |
New on bLOGOS 
Anger in Church
by Debra Dean Murphy
Third Sunday in Lent
John 2:13-22 (25)
"The gesture in the temple is all the more poignant and prophetic when we imagine it executed by a man too slight to carry his own cross without assistance, a man whose idea of a workout is a forty-day fast."
Garret Keizer, The Enigma of Anger
To read the rest click here.
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Back by popular demand on bLOGOS are "Signs of the Times": timely, theological engagements with the powers and principalities, with the contingincies and events that all too easily masquerade as the true makers of history.Look for new, varied content weekly. |
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Gathering 2012 - July 5-7 - Chicago
Slow Church: Abiding Together in the Patient Work of God
Plenaries:
- Jonathan Wilson roots 'slow church' in divine patience
- "Stan and Kyle Talk Slow" - No, this is not a children's book, but a conversation about slow church between Kyle Childress and Stanley Hauerwas
- Phil Kenneson explores 'slow church' in congregational practices
Workshops update:
Chris Franks has agreed to lead a conversation on 'slow church economics' drawing from his book in the Ekklesia series, He Became Poor. Attendees will be encouraged to read the book in advance. |
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Meet the EP: KJ Williams
KJ is a palliative care physician, now working at Agrace Hospice Care in Madison WI. She grew up on a dairy farm near Richland Center, WI, attended Augustana College in IL, th en moved to Washington DC with the Lutheran Volunteer Corps. There she worked at Bethany Day Center, a drop-in day center for homeless women. That fueled her interest in healthcare, and (after "jumping through a series of hoops") she managed to get through medical school at UW-Madison. KJ thought being an inner city family doctor was in her future but then became interested in end of life care and opted to do a palliative care fellowship at the Marshfield Clinic, where she worked for 8 years before moving back to Madison last year.
KJ's Marshfield connections are how she came to know the Ekklesia Project. The Department of Palliative Medicine organized a conference called The Soul of Caring each year and there she first met Brian Volck and Therese Lysaught. She grew up in a country American Baptist church where most of the people in the congregation were relatives. In college, KJ was part of Augustana's campus ministry which had an ELCA pastor and a Jesuit priest. In DC, she became part of a small ecumenical group in Mt Pleasant called the Community of Christ.
When she then moved to Madison, she became part of the Madison Mennonite Church, which she still attends. As a resident in Milwaukee, KJ was part of an inner city Episcopal Church, St. Andrew's, which was one of the most diverse congregations in terms of race and class. A consistent thread in the congregations in which she has been involved is an interest in social justice and intentionality about building a strong community. KJ appreciates that within the Ekklesia Gatherings, these are concerns that are shared.
The picture is from a pilgrimage KJ went on to Ireland last summer with the Sacred Art of Living Institute. She is on the right. |
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The Ekklesia Project is a network of Christians from across the Christian tradition who rejoice in a peculiar kind of friendship rooted in our common love of God and the Church. We are convinced that to call ourselves Christian means that following Jesus Christ must shape all areas of life.
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