I'm Really Very Fond...

Here’s part of a poem from Alice Walker, which, if nothing else, should be a good reminder about the dangers of dating, or, more precisely, breaking up with, poets.

I'm Really Very Fond

I'm really very fond of you,
he said.

I don't like fond.
It sounds like something
you would tell a dog.
Give me love
or nothing.

Throw your fond in a pond,
I said...
I love that line, “Throw your fond in a pond!” Now that’s poetry!

“Tolerant” is a word like “fond”. They’re lukewarm words, and anyone who’s read Revelations 3 knows that things didn’t turn out so well for the lukewarm church in Laodicea.

“Tolerant” is one of those words that make gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender members of the church a little squirmy. We say that we’re looking for acceptance not tolerance. Tolerance makes us feel as if we were some rash on the ecclesial body which the church is pondering whether to treat or simply endure. But lately I’ve been reconsidering …

To me, the newest generation of church leadership – those born after 1980, say – have redeemed the word “tolerant.” It’s a generation that’s comfortable with difference – that grew up with diversity, not as an ideal, but as a way of life. It’s a generation that has by dint of circumstance, come to understand the world as a complex place, and where disagreement doesn’t equal separation.

Several recent studies, for instance, show that even among Christians who identify as evangelical, there has been a significant shift toward greater support among those under 30 for marriage equality and for expansion of employment nondiscrimination and hate crimes protections to cover sexual orientation and gender identity. I think what’s going on here is more about a change of values than a change of beliefs. It’s not so much that beliefs about “homosexuality” have changed for these younger evangelicals, as it is that they value a healthy respect for difference. What’s more, they are more interested in the kind of advocacy that can unite people –tackling the environmental crisis, facing racism, ending poverty; in a certain sense, the next generation of Evangelical Christians is less interested in ideological positions, and more interested in practical transformation.

I could live with that kind of tolerance. I can imagine a healthy church that isn’t susceptible to constant fracture along ideological fault lines. I can imagine a church that gives fair consideration to all who are called to serve as officers regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity, and still allows for the full range of ideological perspectives. I can imagine a church that has moved on from the debate about the place of glbt persons in its life and ministry – a debate that keeps our attention focused inward; I can imagine a church where people who hold vastly divergent theological views come together to get stuff done; I can imagine a church that can not only come together to talk deeply and wisely about racism, poverty and the environment, but that can also head out the door and make a constructive difference.

In our red-state/blue-state nation where it’s nearly impossible for a member of one party to cross-over and vote with the other party, and legislation with bi-partisan sponsorship is almost unheard of, maybe the example of a thriving, vital, creative, engaged Church made up of members from disparate, even opposing theological points of view could point the way to a new way of confronting big and serious issues that affect all of us.

“Forbearance” might be the dressed up theological word for tolerance. Even so, right now, I’m rather fond of “tolerance”.

* * * *

Lisa Larges is the coordinator for That All May Freely Serve, a grassroots organization advocating on behalf of all who are disenfranchised in the Presbyterian Church, especially lgbt members. She's a 1989 grad of San Francisco Theological Seminary, a member of Noe Valley Ministry, a Presbyterian More Light Congregation in San Francisco, and likes cheese!

Lady Church, You Are Alive

Those paths that once made the way so clear, the seminarian-to-associate-to-head-of-staff paths have begun to crack (some might even say crumble.) As those seminarians step from the classroom they’re finding other trails – some muddy, some hidden, some that haven’t even been revealed yet. They lead to counseling centers where clients cry out for the Spirit and to taverns where friends fellowship at tables over bread & beverages... sound familiar? These ministers are finding it necessary to supplement their ministerial incomes by brewing coffee or substitute teaching or even returning to the careers they swore they had abandoned – all for the chance to supply preach at the fifteen member church forty-five minutes away. They don’t have to. But they do. Why, you ask? Because they are called. Lady Church lives among them and she smiles at their freedom. Yes, the Church is alive.

Think what you will, say what you want – it appears as though Lady Church has given us every reason to believe that she dying. Just weeks ago as seminary presidents and elected church representatives gathered for the November meeting of the PC(USA) Committee on Theological Education, the statistics spoke a clear picture:

“Half of PC(USA) congregations are no longer served by fulltime theologically trained ministers.”

“Two-thirds of the congregations in my home presbytery cannot afford full time pastoral ministers.”

At this very moment, 2156 ministers are seeking a call, while there are only 559 open positions for them to fill.

It did not take long for our committee to arrive at the obvious question: for what kind of church are we preparing our seminarians? If the simple laws of supply and demand are shouting: “TOO MANY PASTORS!!! NOT ENOUGH CHURCHES!!!” then why do we continue to admit, financially support, and educate people young and old who claim that God has placed a call upon their lives to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament.

Because, friends – God has placed a call upon their lives to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament. It just doesn’t look like it used to. The Church is alive; she’s just rearranging the furniture a little. While the paths from seminary were once laid in solid rows from classroom to pulpit, recently they’ve begun to wind a bit more – and Lady Church has decided to seek opportunity outside the stained glass windows. Forget the wood paneled walls and the antique desk lamp, Lady Church is not always found in her office anymore. In fact, she’s taken to spending her mornings at the coffee shop: Calvin on her Kindle and Indigo Girls on her IPOD. Jesus told her life was more interesting on the road.


Not all of the straight paths to the pulpit are gone – not at all. There are places where the fulltime, theologically trained, well paid pastor continues to thrive – and Lady Church tips her hat. However, she must admit that these new places and faces bring her such a particular joy. Perhaps it’s because they bring God joy and it is because they bring God joy they must not be ignored.

Lady Church is alive – alive with God’s mysterious Spirit that inspires her to open the doors and repaint the walls and breathe in the life that is going on because of her or in spite of her. Therefore, we owe it to Lady Church to pay attention to her life as we train the ministers who will soon step out onto those paths. Technology, diversity, creativity and ingenuity are all steps along the way. As theological institutions learn to walk the line between tradition and change, Lady Church is with them – her Blackberry in one hand and her Bible in the other.

* * * *

Kathy Wolf Reed is a member of the PC(USA) Committee on Theological Education. She is currently serving as a resident Chaplain at St. Thomas Hospital in Nashville, TN..

What If? A (Very) Open Question

"What if...?" is one of my favorite questions, it really allows you to move into the wonderful land of the hypothetical and daydream a little bit. So I was intrigued by a video from the PC(USA) that popped up on YouTube last week and made its way around the offices of Montreat Conference Center, where I work...


The video poses some great questions, and I think we're best served by taking this to the comments.What do you think about the PC(USA) office teaming up with institutions like Montreat to offer special programs? Are camps and conference centers connected to the denomination at large as closely as they should be? What would you like to see camps and conference centers do more of? Less of? Start doing?

For the record, one of my favorite answers is "Why not?"

Generations of Christ - Carol Howard-Merritt

One of our elders, a twenty-something law student, explained recently, “Living in D.C. as a young woman, I could live my whole life and never talk to someone who is older.” She went on to tell us that the reason why she attends Western Presbyterian Church is because she has a chance to be with people from all different generations.

And it is wonderful to see—we have Christmas Pageants with responsible college students working as stage director, making sure that the costumes stay on. We have Easter hunts, with young professionals stuffing eggs. And all throughout the year, recent graduates learn from young parents, how to juggle the challenges of careers and raising children. Men and women who are getting their first “real” job have a chance to talk to retiring people, and learn what they need to negotiate now, in order to be prepared for the future.