Re A Shift in the Wind, December 2010
Rev. Hans Kouwenberg makes some very interesting comments and poses many interesting questions. His final comment and question is of special interest to me: “I know the Life and Mission Agency has consulted among its membership and with the Assembly Council in making these decisions, and these include my friends, but are they aware of the direction in which these moves are taking us? Perhaps they are, but are we content with these decisions?”
I feel there is agreement that the Presbyterian Church in Canada is in serious membership decline and that adjustments are needed to compensate for reduced financial resources. At the same time we need to provide extra financial and human resources to help rejuvenate our church.
What recommendations does Kouwenberg have for how the PCC should best deal with the dichotomy of having substantially reduced finances available (because of declining numbers), while needing increased financial and human resources to help our congregations and presbyteries revitalize, grow, and better serve God and the congregations and communities they serve?
Dr. Kouwenberg replies online:
Thanks for your comments, Bill.
While I’m a big supporter of all of the work of the Presbyterian Church in Canada – after all, it has provided me and my family with a wonderful church home and with many opportunities for local, regional and national service – you will see that I have a special passion for the development of the local church.
Thus I believe, if finances at the national level are declining, why not balance the appointment of staff for church development issues with the provision and deployment of staff for social and justice issues?
Even more, if we have no real strategy (as I think is the case) for building up the church and increasing its membership, then perhaps we need to rethink where we marshal our resources and “bulk up” where the need is greatest. Maybe we need more, not fewer people dedicated at 50 Wynford Drive to praying and planning how we might reach the next generation for Christ. (Do we even know enough about who and what this generation wants and needs?)
I really believe the LMA needs to take the decline of church attendance (without speaking of member-ship) more seriously. An extensive report prepared and presented to the General Assembly by Jim Czegledi, then an associate secretary of the LMA, some years ago on this very topic received scant attention and virtually no discussion. Why?
The LMA needs to do far more thinking and planning about ways and means to make a difference to this trend. Any business worth its salt takes a hard look at the direction the graphs are trending and attempts to think about how the slide may be reversed, or they’re toast. I know at least one Christian denomination in B.C. that has done that – all new church plants must be “seeker sensitive.” Also in Abbotsford, where I minister, there are many innovative ways of doing church, including liturgical, traditional and contemporary expressions of the faith. Surely, there are any number of ways we can do this while retaining our preferred “ancient-contemporary” (Robert Webber) balance of worship and witness.
My experience at General Assemblies – many of which I have attended and whose reports we can read in the Acts and Proceedings – is that the stories of social and justice issues are frequently and well told. What about the stories of new faith, new church, and new church development? Let the LMA make sure that more of these stories are shared.
And for those who may be struggling, let’s share more gifted, skilled and experienced people who can embody some of the changes we need, as well as resources that may help. (I know the Vine seeks to do this, but they are truly limited in the number of people who can answer questions knowledgeably and are free to actually go out to any given congregation and/or presbytery and provide tangible help.)
Let’s pay more attention to providing more resources to consider more thoroughly in what ways we can and must attract people who are spiritually hungry, even as we seek to form each other as Christians who will continue to express their faith in a Reformed and Presbyterian manner.
I know it isn’t simple, and I know it cannot be simplistic. We don’t need to be “market-driven.” Just paying lip service to the word “evangelism” or coming up with a few “tricks of the trade” will not get us there. It will take constant and thorough, ground-breaking work. But, somebody needs to be tasked to do this.
Hans Kouwenberg, Online
Abbotsford, B.C.
Upon reflection, Mr. Ashby, who is both a member of the LMA committee and a representative elder to presbytery, wrote the following to our managing editor:
The answer: Through prayer, communication and action.
The question: How can the PCC go forward in a way that will better serve God, its congregants and communities?
The question is straightforward. The answer is very complex.
Many very good ideas came out of the Emmaus conference held last year. One of the prevailing conclusions was that we need to put more financial and human resources at the grassroots level of our church, namely, presbytery. How this can be best done is a topic that needs further discussion collectively, at all levels of the PCC.
But more than that, I feel we all need to consider what we can do personally to help our church go forward and each of us should truthfully answer the following questions:
1. Do I personally, with regularity, pray for guidance from God for our church and our leaders?
2. Am I fully engaged to the best of my ability in supporting my church financially? Do I get personally involved with church committees and support church events?
3. Do I share my ideas and concerns with my minister and elder?
4. If I am an elder, do I communicate with my district and bring their ideas and concerns before session?
5. As a minister, do I effectively communicate information to my congregation about activities, programs and literature that will equip them to meet future challenges?
6. Do I attend presbytery meetings, seminars, workshops and conferences to hear what is being discussed and when appropriate offer my input?
7. If I am a member of presbytery, do I take an active role in important committee work?
8. Can I find ways to become involved in national committee work and say yes if asked to participate?
Our church is based on a collective sharing of faith, human and financial resources to best serve God, our congregations and the communities we serve. Are we as individuals acting in a way that we can truthfully say, “we are trying our best?”
