This morning will be something of a throw-back Sunday at the United Church we now attend, pastored by our son, Isaac. We'll use resources created by the denomination in another era, celebrate communion in the Presbyterian "in the pews" manner, and listen to a portion of a sermon by my late "pulpit prince" father-in-law, a fine preacher. I'll actually don a clerical collar for the occasion, something I only did when presiding at funerals when I was in ministry.
I doubt that the service will be funereal, but I must admit to mixed feelings. I expended a great deal of time and effort inviting congregants to look down the road rather than in the rear-view mirror during ministry, so I'll just have to trust in Ike's creativity and vision. I'm ready to be pleasantly epiphanized!
I have reached back to a seven-year-old blog entry for some thoughts about the Feast of of the Epiphany and what that means. As our denomination enters into a new form of structure we'll need to be open to transformational change. Meanwhile, pray for us as we worship like it's 1969.
January sixth means different things to the various communions of the Christian church. For hundreds of millions of Orthodox Christians this is Christmas day, so a merry and blessed Christmas to them.
For Protestants and Roman Catholics who follow the church year this is the conclusion of the twelve days of the Christmas season (yes, as in the song Twelve Days of Christmas and the play Twelfth Night.) The sixth is the Feast of Epiphany and in congregations where there will be worship today the gospel reading is the story of the journey of discovery by the Magi, the astologers/astronomers from Persia who sought and paid homage to the child Christ.
It's a good story because when we use the word "epiphany" we often associate it with an "aha" moment of awareness or discovery. For the Magi the epiphany required commitment and time and even risk.
In a changing church I doubt we are going to have one of those "aha" moments about the transition from a Christendom where just about everyone was on board with the conventions of faith to what will continue to be a community in transition.
Maybe it is significant that artworks often portray the Magi on the backs of camels even though they aren't mentioned in Matthew's gospel. The joke is that a camel is a horse put together by a committee and we do struggle at times to pull together new images of ministry which are effective. I must admit that I sometimes wonder how many more sleeps to retirement because church life can be rather frustrating.
Perhaps my biggest frustrations are the debilitating effects of nostalgia when folk hark back to another era, along with the reluctance amongst some to be committed to the journey of faith in the present. We really need the considerable gifts of a younger generation to be vital, rather than the lumps of coal in the form of excuses. I suppose we simply choose to keep following the star, anticipating the discovery of Christ for this moment rather than mooning over the past or fearing the future. I am encouraged by the faith and readiness of some of our teens. Recently one of our 17-year-olds wondered if he might be a candidate for chair of our congregational board. While he need a bit more seasoning I admire his willingness and we are determined to nurture his leadership skills.
What does Epiphany mean to you? Any observations or epiphanies about the changing church?
Got your camel ready?
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