Now that some background reading is done, it’s time to dive into it. I’m not 100% sure, but I believe I never use the word Zion in my reflections… I think I might mention the peaceable community… though is it in the context of building? I leave that up to you to decided. However what follows is thoughts and reflections of my encounters with a particular congregation since May 2002 and dreams for the future.
Note/Warning: I express struggles, I express joys of the past, and also of the future. Presenting hopes, dreams and concerns. In doing so I do bring forth some particular encounters, I also make some statements that may seem to be, or even written as if it is of a particular individual, though often I am combining several people and incidences into one. I mean not to place any one up for praise, or put them down, but sometimes expressing an event… was the only way I could find to express both joy and concerns. (sometimes one that may be a joy or be a concern at first glance is both a joy and a concern) So as you read, if you know me, know any of the people I have served, worshiped, and or fellowshipped with over the years, remember I am grateful for all you do, but I can’t write 28+ years or even just the parts of the the past 8 relevant to this post in anything shy of the same amount of time if not that amount * 100… so a lot of joy (and maybe some struggles) are missing… feel free to leave comments, or to talk to me via other means… Again I am thankful for you all, and the ministry all of you have provided me in my life, and provided others as well and you will continue to share as we journey together.
Starting to reflect
Wow! that grew quite a bit, and took a lot longer than I had planned… In part as I choose to type all the Doctrine and Covenant quotes rather than copying and pasting from already typed versions. Since I started some time ago, I am sure my thoughts have shifted, some new has come and some old has disappeared
The title of this series is “Building the Peaceable Community (Zion)” before I made the decision to break it into segments it continued on with these words “One step at a time,” which was perhaps foreshadowing that it would become multiple posts, that you would get to read if you so desired one at a time. Though rather it was my desire to focus my reflections on a particular path of thought… not sure how well I did, but let us see…
If you took the time to read part or all of the “background” information you might think my primary focus for this multi-part post will be at a denominational level, and yet that is not the case. My focus is upon the local congregation. It is about thoughts of the present, hopes, dreams, desires and fears for the future. Yes, I the multi-congregational minister, is going to “attempt” to focus on a single congregation… (Or is it truly a single congregation? 
we shall see…).
I first walked through the doors of the Kirtland Community of Christ in the second summer of my undergrad degree. A good friend of mine and fellow brother of Agape House at Graceland drove me from Graceland in Lamoni, IA to his house in Indiana and the next day to Kirtland, OH. I don’t recall if my first experience was a care club, where the congregation gathered on a Wednesday night and shares a meal, along with concerns and other aspects of life as they share in fellowship, or for a Worship service. What I do recall however is attending a young adult class with a few others, meeting in what was at the time the library, just off the chapel. I do remember being asked to participate in the worship services and the life of the congregation, and the hot breakfast that was most Sunday mornings. I also never fully feeling part of the congregation, at times feeling uncomfortable there. Though remembering the bonds I made with the young adults, some who I knew from elsewhere, some I met for the first time. Never would I have thought one day I would be co-pastor there. After a summer in Kirtland, it was back for my final year of undergrad.
I would return two years later in 2004 for another summer in this city. This summer had many of the feelings of the old, many of the experiences as well. I know in these two summers there were times where I could not participate in worship, and found myself elsewhere, often alone, but eventually going to another congregation of the church on occasion. One of these two summers I also went and was a guess for a class and talked about the ministries and roles of the office of Deacon to a group that was learning about Deacons, Teachers and Priests, some in preparation to ordination to one of these offices.
Once when I expressed my concerns to the pastor at the time was told essentially that since the pastor didn’t understand/see the issue I saw it didn’t matter. It was the 4th of July, the US flag was placed in the center of the rostrum, rather than using the bulletin from Community of Christ that Sunday, a different one was used that misused and abused scripture in a way to uplift a particular nation (the US) over others, the pledge of allegiance, patriotic songs were in the order of worship. I was suppose to provide the opening prayer, brothers and sisters from other lands were part of the congregation that summer, and were there… and the pastor (who planned the service and presiding over it) could not see my concern, my pain, my struggles and so dismissed them. I was not in attendance that day, but rather elsewhere pausing to pray and reflect in ways I could, though missing community. Needless to say, I could never have dreamed one day I would be co-pastor of this congregation.
In the fall of 2006 I moved to Ohio, though not to the area, I did have occasion to visit and attend a few services over the next year, after which I found myself moving up to Kirtland. I moved in 2007 after a summer in Illinois, just around the time the other congregation I sometimes attended in the past closed down. Now however I found myself more welcomed, and more invited into the congregation, but could still see and feel how others did not receive that same sense of belonging. I did quite little things behind the scenes to try and prod the congregation to some ways of being more open, not sure if any of my silent ways worked, though one thing eventually stuck, in part I think as the pastor who ahs served for the past year and a half shared a similar view upon it as I did. During the two years of the pat, I have spoken and presided a few times, and served in many other ways as well. Unlike in the summers when I was there the young adult class was no more, though one was attempted it soon became the older adults and few young or middle participating. The Sunday breakfasts slowly dwindled and eventually completely died away. Monthly Community Pancake breakfasts were born to raise funds to aide various charities that seek to help those in need, a program which has grown and is making an impact in the community, by the food provided, the donations given, and fellowship fostered.
Another congregation closed recently, many of its members, like some of the one that closed a couple of years ago have chosen to join with Kirtland, bring new gifts to be utilized and embraced, I hope they will feel welcome and be willing to grow with me and everyone else as we step forward together as disciples.
I have heard many people share their joys and their concerns. I have heard many differencing views of how this community is, and how it embraces its call. I have heard some with dreams, some with concerns (most have had both). I have heard some express with strong feeling some opinions, some desires, some struggles, and then when sharing them with the larger body softened them, give outs to their calls of transformation and sharing the peace of Christ. I have seen others express appreciation of words spoken to the one speaking (sometimes me) followed by comments that clearly indicate they missed parts of the message, sometimes big parts. You know those parts that call them to action as part of the community…
I’ve seen in my time here conflicting power struggles, and the frustration caused. I have seen people struggle with change, struggle with things being done, or kept somewhere where they didn’t think it to go. Even once someone telling me that an item always went somewhere and never where it was, and yet for the past two years it had been in the location it was, and the two summers I spent out here it was kept in a different location, but not the one mentioned… and a month later two of us who used it the most searched and searched for it and finally found it after almost giving up, in a place neither of us had ever seen it kept… near where the person said it always was. How do we move past these struggles, these difficulties? I’ve seen someone declare they are stating a new ministry, announcing it to all, with as far as I know not talking to the current pastor or the pastoral team that will be in place when it starts… not that it is a bad thing that the ministry is starting, but rather the route to it… I’ve seen several become frustrated by how some seem to “take over” and seem to feel they know best, and ignore the ones who are technically recharge of an event or activity. I’ve seen some complain of others lack, of engagement, and yet did not put forward possibilities and at times ignored their own stumbles of similar nature (few have shared with me my many many many many many stumbles, maybe I stumble to quietly?). Yet I have also seen young adults go “We are going to have a fellowship event” [though I think we did forget to tell the pastor, (though I did mention it as my status on Facebook, and sent it to the congregation’s group, both of which he might have seen… and it was announce once at church, when he was gone…] until after we had had it…). I have seen the inspiration of a member who rarely is there on a Sunday who put tons and tons of effort into a “green” craft show to help the youth and help the environment and bring awareness to environmental issues. It was amazing. I watched as we did our monthly pancake breakfast and our annual Turkey dinner on the same night, people afraid it wouldn’t work out, and yet the food did get done, and the community was served. It was amazing how things turned out. Or others invite everyone everyone to their homes…
I ponder now about the future, soon I will co-pastor… with a team of 4 others. I worry that 5 in the role of pastor might be difficult. In ways I wish we were a leadership team with 1-3 of us as “pastor” but working together as a whole, in ways I see our diversity of gifts, and dream of the possibilities of how they will complement each other in helping this community truly embrace its diverse gifts and talents and seek the peaceable community. I hope our size, and perhaps diversity of visions, and understandings of the congregation will not hinder us as a team or the congregation as a community as we discern what matters most.
I hope that as a congregation we will be willing to risk. I hope we will take the time to help people share their gifts, grow their talents, both individually and communally. To find the hidden talents people are bursting to share, but are unsure how to go about sharing, and others don’t realize they have, or don’t realize the desire. How to we birth the desires of the youth into formed reality as well? Will we find ways to utilize what we have been given to aide the local community in new and different ways. Will we be willing to “give up” that which is not suited to our calling, our gifts and talents and rather risk to step into the unknown at that which does? Will we be willing to ensure we don’t stop doing that which we are called and have been gifted to do? Will we be willing to have meaningful and transformative worship? To do things differently? to place things in new places??? To step back and not be the focus, the center, the authority? To step up into the roles?
How did I go from never dreaming of being the pastor of this congregation, to becoming co-pastor of it? Am I up to it? Will I allow my gifts, talents and ministries to be utilize and to receive the great blessings of others who share theirs, and all of us be willing to be vulnerable to divine grace for the sake of the kingdom?
Hmmm… the New year is almost here, so I shall leave the thoughts for now…
If your part of Kirtland please share our hopes, dreams and concerns… if your part of another, feel free to share your dreams for that community (be it Community of Christ or any other faith tradition) for the upcoming year.
More to come, to be written in a year other than this one.
Peace be with you as we journey together in Christ,
— Lyle II