Annual Report Address
Some people are disillusioned with church. And I understand. Episcopal demographers weep about the church's demise. They don't know what to do. Actually we do know, but most churches can't do the work as effectively in this highly competitive spiritual marketplace. We have big physical plants, and few volunteers.
We look at our leaking roof, our peeling paint, our flooding pipes and wonder who is going to pay for it. There are lots of good reasons to believe we won't survive. That's possible. And if we want to do things the same way. We won't. We can't have it both ways. We change and grow or we die.
I think we've forgotten how to make friends. People around us move away or die, we stop practicing the work of inviting people into our homes or our churches.
Unfortunately, Christians have an image problem.
Christians are called "judgmental", "sheltered", "anti-gay", "too political", "hypocritical", "pushy."
But that's not the faith I recognize. The faith I recognize declares that we are diplomats to the sundered; Maitre Ds to the sick; explorers of hope; soldiers of joy; scientists of freedom. We stand at awe of our creation and agree that it is good.
Perhaps our first task is to relearn what it means to make friends. That's part of the gospel. "I have called you friends" Jesus said.
I see signs of life. We have lots of visitors to our webpage - nearly thirty a day. It took one family 11 years to get out of bed to visit our church. And they came after seeing our church video. After three years of having only two people - in all three years - show up for pub theology, I have an email list of thirty-five people. Thirty visitors all within the last three months. I have hope.
Our challenge: Do we believe in reconciliation? Then let's be present to each other. Do we want our church to be hospitable? We can learn from 3 star restaurants how to respect, as the baptismal covenant says, the dignity of every human being. Do we want to rest? Then we have learn to let the church be a place where we can live that sabbath. Fortunately, I didn't grow up thinking church was an obligation. I learned that church was a time to rest, meditate, contemplate and just spend some time with God. I also occasionally find that people don't tell people in the church the vicissitudes of their lives. This is strange to me. What's stranger is when people complain.
And do we want to survive? Then we have to relearn how to live together. And in our culture, when we are easily distracted, confident in our own individualism and power, living face to face is a challenge.
People don't know about us. Most people don't know we have a soup kitchen; or that we have a shelter, or the The Episcopal Church sends millions of dollars a year to mitigate the suffering of people throughout the world at an over head 1/3rd of most not-for-profits. We spent a lot this year. we could have saved some money by, probably, not having a secretary, heat, or a custodian. We could have also been slumlords. We could have decided not to do any advertising. We are frugal. There is not a lot of waste here.
Do we have faith that the Apostles saw the risen Jesus? Why do we say such a thing? It is because in the midst of desolation, we can believe that we can still have hope. But this comes with a transformation. If we want to be alive, we have to speak the language of the generation coming up.
And if we have NOT spoken to our children about our faith, about what what their faith might look like then we are the blind leading the blind.
What we can do: We can be present for each other. And that includes church. We must be consistent. People visit on low Sundays. The people you know who are hurting, are looking to see if you have anything worth knowing about pain and suffering. Perhaps the church is the last place you would go to share your inner life. And in that case, it would be a sorry state, and let us close our doors.
But if the church has given you anything, hold on to it, proclaim it to people, tell people that it means something, and bring it back here. Are we willing to take the risk? Are we willing to make the investment? Are we willing to believe that what is around the corner is better than where it has been, and we can change to live it?
Around the country, churches that make changes that have dedicated, entrepreneurial people, are making a difference in their communities. They are a lot like us. They have a willingness to share themselves with others. We've got readers, runners, bridge players, cooks and other people who can gather and harness their interests for the friendship that the world needs, the fellow travellers with God that Jesus Christ represented.
People are looking: they are wondering if we care for one another and if we have the energy to care for the world.
God is the chain of being, that connects us to each other. And it is at the heart of this church that we seek others to teach them that the foundation of church is not doctrine, it is not dogma, it is not rules or laws or guilt, but joy - a joy that we have found in Christ.
So lets discern ways to have celebrate, making our world a little more of a joyful place.