At the annual meeting of Bay of Quinte Conference our theme speaker identified the disappearance of men as one of several key factors in the decline of the United Church and other mainline churches.
I talked about this with the group of colleagues which meets weekly and I pointed out that church photos from fifty years ago usually show groups of suited, rather stern looking men who were the elders and board members. Women had other work which was usually in the Sunday School and kitchen. Thank God that by the late sixties that had changed significantly. But in many congregations today there are far fewer men in worship and leadership roles.
At conference it occurred to me that half our choir members are men (fourteen or fifteen) and that there are a fair number of young dads who join with their families in worship. We have a thirty-something guy as our vice-chair and several male Sunday School teachers. This past year a mens' group was formed and was well attended. All good, but the reality is that women still do outnumber men at St. Paul's.
Maybe some congregations have a culture of male involvement. My predecessor at St. Paul's was/is a woman and there were plenty of guys around during her tenure as well.
As we approach Father's Day I offer a hearty "thank you" to men in our faith family who lead by general example and in specific roles. And thank you to the dads who accept the manly role of spiritual formation and leadership.
What are your thoughts about this? Have you experienced the shift through the years?Is it important for congregations to have a balance?
A big thank you to all the Dad's/men who take on any role at St. Paul's, whether serving on the Board, in the kitchen, ushering, singing in the choir, teaching Sunday School, fund raising or preaching from the pulpit. We have been attending St. Paul's for over 30 years and I believe the balance in our congregation is fantastic. The first pancake breakfast we went to demonstrated the St. Paul's men in a very unconventional role (at the time). These men cooked and served the seniors, women and children of our congregation and it was only after everyone had eaten did they sit down and eat themselves... I found it so refreshing. My husband was the first man to volunteer for the nursery list and Rev. Ed often commented on this and we both said why should the role be any different at church than in the home. Happy Father's day to all the guys who give our church such balance in this unbalanced world.
ReplyDeleteWell said DMY....we also have male leaders in both youth groups now, and a faithful young Dad who trots a tribe of little girls to Cupcake Club and then stays to be extra adult hands when the scissors and glue come out.
ReplyDeleteWhen Dads stay home on Sunday mornings it is easy for the kids to disconnect when they get old enough to reason and negotiate.... "I'll just stay home with Dad." We are blessed at St Pauls.
Balance is so important. We do need to find ways to work for men and women, boys and girls. Stereotypes can get us in trouble.....but when we look to our young folk, we do have to acknowledge our differences and
figure ways to honour both so to not let the balance tip further.
Happy Fathers Day guys....and to you our strong and fearless leader.
Our choir should pick fights with other choirs in the area. We'd so smoke all comers ...
ReplyDeletePerhaps we could have our version of West Side Story Ian!
ReplyDeleteGood reminders dmy and Laura about other areas where men our involved --we have two men's ball clubs as well. I should have known that Roy was ahead of his time.
I agree L. that the involvement of dads makes a huge difference for children. I have seen it over and over again.