Christ – Community of Christ – Culture
My mind flutters with thoughts of recent sections of the Doctrine and Covenants, in particular the most recent 164, regarding the global nature of the church and engaging our diversity and our mission as a family, community in and of Christ. With the approval of 164 we as a faith community stepped forward into new territory on how we will encounter and share and live the Gospel of Christ.. or perhaps affirmed a new way, a new expression, of what we have been called to for some time.
As I tried to find the words to reflect my thoughts, my mind jumped to a book I read for a class on evangelism I had several years ago in seminary. I pulled the book off the shelf, and as I glanced through it, read passages, read highlights, underlines, notes of mine I didn’t quite find what I was looking for. The Book from 1925 by E. Stanely Jones, a Methodist missionary, contains theology I don’t agree with, it contains assumptions and understandings I don’t agree with. However within this work Jones expresses his understanding of how western culture has both blessed and hindered the Christian Church. He expresses the need to share Christ, not Western Civilization, to allow Christ to become “naturalized”, to be seen and expressed through the cultural context of those encountering Christ. How that culture (those cultures) has something to give and share to the Christian Church. A realization that he was to share Christ, not an ecclesiastical system, not a western way of being, but Christ.
What all that means, he and I may disagree upon, but that awareness that the Gospel of Christ and a western expression of Christianity are not the same thing, in fact that western expression may be far from being an full expression of Christ, we might agree upon.
Now what does this have to do with World Conference, with 164….Well I think it has a lot to do with it. First, lets pause and not just look at geographical culture, but also culture of time. We are not in Upstate New York or North Eastern Ohio in the 1820s and 1830s anymore. We are a very different “culture” (set of cultures), we encounter Christ in a very different way, and yet… essential core pillars reflect through… pillars such as… Sacredness of creation, Continuing Revelation, Worth of all persons, all are called, pursuit of peace (even if we had a hard time embracing it and kept moving away from it), blessings of community, among others… (yes these are some of the Enduring Principles, hmmm maybe that’s why they are “enduring???” 
) With this time, this global family is found expressed around the Globe, in many different sets of cultures.
Now unlike Jones, who is being a missionary and seeking to share Christ in a particular place, my discussion turns to a global family of 250,000 missionaries and how they will express themselves as a global community, and in their witness of Christ. Thus there are aspects of ecclesiastical systems that we must share together, but perhaps there is room for some variation within that system. Variation already does exist, but perhaps allowing some now universals to move a step down and allow a broader, more flexible universal to take their place is needed…
The call to deal with some things at national/regional/cultural… levels, allowing for the ability to address the issues that a set of cultures in one area might be dealing with to be dealt with there, in a way appropriate that would be inappropriate to another area, I think is wise and inspired. But I say this with some hesitation… I find the counsel in Doctrine and Covenants 164 to be inspired, I however fear several things. I fear how we will interpret this counsel, I fear how we might stumble as we seek to embrace the guidance found within and within other sections as well.
I struggle greatly with the thought of the US trying to come to some sort of consensus as a whole. I struggle with the idea of allowing man made political divisions be a primary way of deciding who should be gathered together to discuss particular issues. Especially when we as a church recognize that not all our members find representation by the flags of these nations. I struggle with and wonder if as we embrace these challenges, will we hold true to our enduring principles.
Will we ensure that as regional polices are formed that these polices: a) reflect the Gospel of Christ b) uphold the enduring principles of Community of Christ c) allow us to continue to share in the rich fellowship and diversity we are as diverse global family that is many and yet is one? Will as we move forward ensure that we stand up for injustices, and not allow some to go without mention because they are taboo to talk about in a particular place? Will we ensure that we don’t do something to follow culture, but rather always ensure we do it because it is reflective of the Gospel of Christ, our enduring principles… and how we feel the Holy calling us to be? In other words: “Above all else, strive to be faithful to Christ’s vision of the peaceable Kingdom of God on earth. Courageously challenge cultural, political, and religious trends that are contrary to the reconciling and restoring purposes of God. Pursue peace.” (Doctrine and Covenants 163:3b).
Yet I have hope. I have hope that we will embrace our calling, we will find the ways to move forward as a global family known as Community of Christ. I have faith we will stand up to injustice, we will stand up to trends that are against the healing, reconciling, and restoring purposes of God. I have faith we will truly become a people of temple, a people of Sacrament, a people of healing, reconciliation, a people known as Community of Christ.
I fear that in the processes being formed to “build consensus” we will loose voices. That we will not truly gain consensus, for some of the most important voices will be missing when we gather together. What voices? Many, but the easiest perhaps to describe is the “poorer” amongst us.
In the US the Federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. Let’s assume that a church member is getting paid that much, they are working 40 hours a week, and due to the length of the conference and their travel time, what day(s) they get off during a week they would have to miss all 40 hours of work, and they don’t have the vacation time to cover it. That’s $290 before taxes, let’s make conference cost half of the late registry fee of World Conference, so $72, add a few tanks of gas, money for food… let’s say $200 (for those further away I’m sure much more… Such as those in Alaska, I doubt that will be enough for transportation to and from let alone food)… assume they are able to find free housing… So for them conference is costing them $562, or about 3.7% of their income… before taxes. If the person is full time at 32 hours rather than 40… the cost drops to $504 but up to around 4.2% of their annual pre-tax income. Spread over enough time they may or may not be able to find a way to put aside that much of their income, but even with the required 12 week notice for a conference, that may be way more than they can come up with… And if they are hoping to share with the global family the next year or two year later or the same year with World Conference, which will take an even larger cut out of their income… Will they be able to? What if they have a child, the costs go up even more… What if the cost to keep a roof over their head, food on the table, gas to get to and from… is eating up most if not all of their income? Where will the funds come from? Perhaps the small (dollar amount but significant amount of their income) about they give faithfully to local and world mission tithes, oblation and world hunger?, from food on their table, a doctor’s visit? What if their situation is even worse off financially?
So I wonder, will in our attempts to gain consensus, will we loose those who have the least financially, but whose voices are most needed, and who desire to be a part of the process? Will these conferences become places where church employees and more affluent members, and those living in the area, be the only voices heard? (Well some of this does impact World Conference already, but will the impact be even bigger?) Will the added costs of a regional conference take funds away from other needed ministries? Conferences aren’t cheep to put on, be they for an area as large as the US, or for a much smaller area, and they take hours of time to pull together as well, time that currently assigned to other tasks. (For some they may be able to do it, for other not… but I worry about the cost both on those with the least – financially- amongst us, and also about the ministries the church is called to provided but currently can not afford to provide and what impact will these conference have, or if we will find a way to overcome these obstacles) So knowing this will these efforts truly lead to better consensus building, and truly “bless the communities” we are part of, will we work hard to ensure all voices are able to be a part of the process and the ministries of the church are not reduced so we can gather and discern, reflect, and discuss together? I hope so, but I have concerns on my heart about it. I believe the council is inspired, I hope our response and interpretation lives up to the possibilities it calls us toward.
I hope as we journey forward, we will grow in understand of what is and is not the Gospel of Christ. To grow in our understanding of what is and is not needed to be the people and witness we have always been called to from 1820s before we had a name to 1830 and the name Church of Christ, through all the names since to the name Community of Christ, in this time and these places where we live. To know what essential expressions of the body for all places and cultures, and what is flexible to address needs in particular places and cultures. And that we learn how to share and gain from the cultures of our sisters and brothers who we meet physically only once every three years if ever…
Peace be with you,
— Lyle II