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June 26, 2006
> 10:53 AM
rethinking spiritual authority > again You ever start a post and really not know what you're going to write about? Yeah, me too. I'm actually trying to stay awake - pitiful. It's hot in my office today and I stayed up a little too late and that is not a good combination. My eyes are heavy this morning. Perhaps we can talk a bit about spiritual authority (maybe that's not the right thing to call it) - spiritual direction - having a pastor?? In some of our rethinking and retooling of how we're being the church, have we forgotten what these things mean? I'll say I think so. I think we got very familiar with what we know they probably shouldn't be and never quite got around to figuring out a positive (re)definition. I'm not sure I want to try and do that here. I do want to say it's likely time to wake from slumber and do it though, however you do it. What I've found in my experience is that when you try to back off a lot of the negative crap connected to the pastoral role, you tend to back off too much. You do that pendulum swinging thing and that doesn't always work very well. You try to flatten it all out and make sure everybody knows you're not "the man," that you're not "the boss," that you sure can't solve all their problems, that you shouldn't be controlling their lives, etc. But there is still a you right? You are something, whatever you call it. However it works, there's a you and you are it. Let me get back on track. What I really want to say is, I think, that when you do this flattening, this backing off, especially with pre-churched people, you end up with problems that you might not have expected. A while back I talked about the problem with expectations. That's part of this for sure. Part of it, too, I think, is simply that we've gone too far sometimes. We have been zealous (in a good way) to get away from some very bad stuff, harmful stuff, and in our eagerness to be more healthy we lost something. It's like if you're filing something to get rid of a spur and you file too much - maybe then the thing won't fit any more, there's nothing to grab hold of - does that make sense? I guess I mean, I think there IS a spiritual authority that operates in a community of faith, and not in everyone. I think there is a role of spiritual direction, of being a pastor to people. I still don't think it means "boss" or "king" or anything like that. But it certainly does mean something and something very important. I also see it being ignored. There are times when you, as a pastor/spiritual director have something to say that someone needs to hear and act on and perhaps because you went so far early on to back things off, your voice is no longer heard. That's unfortunate. That might well add up to some misaligned bone healing in the Body. I'm thinking we've messed ourselves over a bit. Give us Grace and Wisdom, Father, to re-see these things. Set us in our places and roles by Your Holy Spirit. technorati tags > spiritual authority, spiritual direction, leadership, emerging church, church Labels: church, emerging church, leadership, spiritual formation 0 Comments:| permalink | e-mail me | 
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