Supporting Life

The American Cancer Society Relay for Life is a big deal in many towns. It seems like a great organization, a great opportunity to get out there and walk all night to raise money and search for cures for cancer. I'm all in favor of cancer detection, treatment, and prevention. I'm in favor of life.

The American Cancer Society supports human embryonic stem cell research, a branch of research which not only has never found a cure for anything but which requires destruction of a human, albeit a very young human, each time it does an experiment. This is not in favor of life.

The American Cancer Society provides grants to Planned Parenthood, suggesting that they engage in cancer screening. In fact, Planned Parenthood does not do any cancer screening, they simply refer people to other organizations. Planned Parenthood is, however, the major provider of abortions in this country. This is not in favor of life.

Guess I can't participate in the Relay for Life. Despite the good that an organization may do, when it turns around and supports evil by providing funding and referrals for destruction of human life, I can't get onto that bandwagon.

Authority for Ministry

Neuhaus chapter four, “Authority for Ministry,” brings us back to the image of a minister as an ambassador of a disputed sovereign. Often the Church is seen primarily as an organization. This idea has been confused with the idea of the Church as an institution, that which was appointed by God. So the “institutional” Church is viewed rather as a human organization than a divine mission. Neuhaus observes that we have a divine mandate to proclaim Christ. That is the heart and center of the institution. It comes from God, not from social acceptance or from our business savvy. While some of the attributes of professionals can be applied to ministers, the Christian minister serves Christ and the community. The profession serves his own particular clients. These are fundamentally different concepts, which must be remembered.

A Choice of Models

In Neuhaus chapter three, “A Choice of Models,” we face the task of finding our identity. Neuhaus observes that there are at least three facets to our identity. We are the Church as we view ourselves. We are also the Church as viewed by different elements in our community. Yet the community itself is at the same time that which we see, that which it identifies, that which exists with the Church present, and that which may exist without the presence of the Church. All these patterns are real. All have some validity in the way we approach all our ministry. All must be respected. Ultimately, without a clear identity, we will be rejected by our community and prove ineffective in ministry. With a clear identity we will be able to proclaim the reality of Christ boldly.

Ministering by Hope beyond Apology

Neuhaus chapter two, “Ministering by Hope Beyond Apology,” brings out an interesting conundrum. We move beyond facts which exist, but never actually contradict fact. In God’s creation not all that is factual is in existence. Our preaching, teaching, and actions shed light on God’s kingdom, which, though often unseen, is entirely real. Neuhaus urges his readers to bring the presence of Jesus, the first century Jesus, boldly into today’s culture. Jesus himself will show that he is the Lord of all.

The Thus and So-Ness of the Church

Neuhaus’ book, Freedom for Ministry, builds a philosophy of ministry in which the theological and sociological elements of pastoral care are balanced. From the outset, the idea of the pastor as an ambassador of a disputed sovereignty emerges as critical. The boundaries of the Church are thus drawn in theological terms, i.e., what we believe, teach, and confess, and in sociological terms, i.e., how we conduct ourselves in the world in light of those beliefs. Neuhaus considers it critical that we realize our beliefs will not be accepted or embraced within the greater culture, yet that we remain consistent in actions which are governed by those beliefs.

In chapter one, “The Thus and So-Ness of the Church,” Neuhaus focuses on the particularity of the Church. It is not acceptable to consider the Church as an institution that runs like any business. We do not exist to meet cultural felt needs. We look to the reality of the Gospel, though that reality is often unseen. When we become confused about our identity or our purpose we fail to be the Church.

Freedom for Ministry

Neuhaus, Richard John. Freedom for Ministry. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1979.

Summertime Reading?

I confess that I don't understand the concept of picking extra books for summertime reading. Just because sunrise is earlier and sunset is later doesn't mean I have more time to read. If anything, quite the opposite. Compare the amount of time I spend shoveling snow (a winter activity) to the amount of time spent weeding the garden, picking and preserving foods (a summer activity) and it seems time should be shorter in the summer.

I used to read really fast. I mean really, really fast. I wasn't convinced that I retained information very well, but I could whip through a book in very short order. Nowadays I've noticed I tend to read slowly, only a little faster than I read aloud. My mind tends to wander and I question whether my retention is that good.

To try fixing this I'm going to try doing some reading and writing summaries of what I read. Maybe posting it on my blog will help me feel somehow accountable. And maybe I can push myself to read faster, retain information long enough to write something about it, and get it posted. Some retention of more reading might be better than some retention of less reading.

I'll open a book with a bibliographic reference and will tag the post. Future chapters will not have the complete bibliographic reference but will have the same tag, so it should be possible to put the whole book together.