Cultures of Call by Laura Patty

Exploring Vocational Habits and Practices in Congregations

VOLUME 01

www.callingcongregations.org

A publication of

The Fund for Theological Education 825 Houston Mill Road, Suite 250 Atlanta, Georgia 30329 (404) 727-1450 www.thefund.org

VOLUME 01

Regular and Remarkable Family, Community and Call at Zebulon Baptist Church by Graham Reside and Enuma Okoro

Inviting and Mentoring Leadership Development at Park Manor Christian Church by Charisse Brown Gillett

A Rule of Life Ministry Formation at Second Presbyterian Church by Joel Thomas and Stacia M. Brown

Leading, Connecting and Serving A Contagious Call at Christ Church by Samantha Hamernik and Stacia M. Brown

ÂŠ 2009 The Fund for Theological Education.

www.callingcongregations.org

About this Series

In every generation, women and men have emerged from congregations to serve as pastors and leaders for the church. For some, their call was nurtured by those congregations and their formation as ministers received close attention. For some, their congregation never knew the ways in which they encouraged—or discouraged—the call that was taking shape in their lives. In Cultures of Call, we hope to show how the church is blessed when congregations attend more closely to vocation and cultivate the call to Christian ministry. Each congregation in this series was selected because it has been unusually effective in engaging members in vocational discernment and in raising the possibility of ordained, pastoral ministry as a career choice. These are places where practices operate on many levels to place before young people the question, What will I do with my life in light of my faith? They also represent a diversity of sizes, traditions, locations and ethnicities, illustrating how a common commitment to ‘calling’ is expressed in myriad ways. These profiles are intended to be a guide for clergy and lay leaders, providing not only the particulars of a congregation’s approach to vocation but also analysis of the context and principles that make these habits and practices effective. However, this volume is not intended as a simple how-to manual with step-by-step instructions. Rather, the profiles are intended to assist congregations with creating their own unique ways of nurturing vocational exploration, especially among young people in their midst. We believe that these profiles will be most effective as a resource when they are read and discussed by a group within your congregation. That is, the profiles are not ends in themselves. Rather, they are an invitation to tell your congregation’s story on the same themes, tapping into the transformative power of stories by telling them out loud and to each other. Perhaps you can introduce the profiles one at a time to a committee that oversees Christian education, youth ministry or ordination candidacy. You might also consider convening an intergenerational group for the sole purpose of reading these profiles together and thinking about the implications for your congregation’s own culture of call. To that end, we have included with each profile a set of discussion questions that will get your congregation talking, illuminating the connections between the story of the profiled congregation and new possibilities within your own congregation. In every congregation, young people are growing up faced with endless choices about who they might be and what they might do with the life they have been given. The Fund for Theological Education offers these testimonies to awaken your congregation’s capacity to be a gift and blessing along their journey. We hope that you will discover here inspiration for your own work and that you will join the growing number of “calling congregations.” Series Editors

Dori Baker

Jim Goodmann

Scholar-in-Residence The Fund for Theological Education

Regional Director, Calling Congregations The Fund for Theological Education 5

Regular and Remarkable Family, Community and Call at Zebulon Baptist Church by Graham Reside and Enuma Okoro

INTRODUCTION

Zebulon Baptist Church is a remarkable place, living in interesting times and making a difference in the lives of its members and its community. At first glance, however, it looks like any other small town church in the South. Located on the city square, Zebulon offers a fairly traditional church experience: without drums, PowerPoint presentations, or contemporary music, but with an avuncular minister in black robes offering exegetical sermons from the front of a colonial-style sanctuary.

Zebulon Baptist Church

Despite its conventional appearances, Zebulon is vibrant and innovative in its own way. It is a

Zebulon, North Carolina

congregation that knows how to connect the Gospel to the contemporary world. It is a church that

www.zebulonbaptist.com

effectively ministers to young people and encourages them to consider the choices in their lives in light of Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s intentions. And it is a church that is especially remarkable for its ability to nurture young people into full-time ministry.

Over the past 15 years, the congregation has ordained or been instrumental in supporting and leading over 15 young people into full-time ministry. Yet, in so many ways, Zebulon is similar to thousands of other congregations that do not effectively nurture young people into ministry. What is it about Zebulon then that makes it both regular and remarkable at the same time? What is it about its life that has made it a fruitful incubator for a new generation of church leaders? What can be learned from this church to assist other congregations who may be like Zebulon Baptist Church in many ways and yet do not have a culture of call?

Zebulon is located in the eastern end of Wake County, North Carolina, not far from Raleigh, the state capital. The congregation has an active membership of 800 and is a central institution in the community. Its minister, Jack Glasgow, is regarded as a pillar of both the church and the community. During his 27 years as pastor, the congregation has doubled in size and become known as an intergenerational church. Congregants like to celebrate the fact that Zebulon is a â&#x20AC;&#x153;cradle to graveâ&#x20AC;? congregation. 6

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A HERITAGE OF HEAD AND HEART

Zebulon Baptist Church aligns itself with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and might best be described as moderateto-conservative in the larger Protestant ecology. The church covenant emphasizes commitment to personal holiness, to evangelism and to regular devotion. Within its particular Baptist world, however, Zebulon is considered progressive and on the moderate-to-liberal side of the spectrum. Education plays an important role in church leadership and ministry outreach and it is fair to say that Zebulon Baptist Church understands that the call to discipleship is followed as much with the head as with the heart. Though the church can trace it origins to the mid 1850s, it was L.M. Massey, a lay leader in the 1930s and 40s, who is most remembered as leaving an enduring impact. A dentist and an intellectual, Massey led the church in a progressive direction, highlighted by its call of George Griffin in 1939. Griffin was a scholarly preacher trained at Yale Divinity School who brought timely and pertinent theological thinking with him to Zebulon. He was the first minister to allow non-Baptists to join the church, and he inducted the first woman as a deacon in 1939. Griffin

began the tradition in which Zebulon identified itself as an “intellectual” congregation. The church established itself as the tall steeple church on the square and a center for rigorous theological education and conversation, maintaining a strong emphasis on the freedom of the pulpit. Yet, since the 1960s, it has worked to combine the warm-hearted evangelical tradition with the values of education and progressivism. Jack Glasgow, Jr., first came to Zebulon in 1977 to serve as an assistant pastor to youth. He was called to the position of senior pastor in 1981. Although the average tenure of a Baptist minister’s ministry is just over three years, Glasgow has provided long-term stability at Zebulon, serving the congregation in various capacities for over 30 years. He sees his long tenure as an important asset, observing, “It’s good, I think, that when a young person comes back from college she can expect to see her old minister.” Glasgow also recognizes that his ministry, carried out in tandem with his wife, Barbara, who serves as the Minister of Music and Minister to Seniors, provides a possibility for youthful imagination that other ministries may not. In other words, Glasgow’s tenure is its own advertisement for a life in ministry. He serves as a committed mentor for his staff: Many of the young people who have served as youth pastors at Zebulon (usually a two to three-year commitment) point to Glasgow’s guidance and example as one of the most important and formative experiences in their own journeys toward full-time ministry. A FAMILY IDENTITY

In her work on congregational conflict, Dr. Penny Becker outlines four congregational types which can help sharpen this description of Zebulon.1 One type is the church as house of worship where the accent is heavily on liturgical and educational dimensions of congregational life. Another type is the church as community in which attention is focused outward on key social issues like race, sexual orientation or economic justice. In the church as leader type, congregations are righteous warriors in pursuit of public and political ends. Finally, the church as family type organizes its life and practices principally around the building of intimate relationships. Issues of care and fellowship are high on the agenda here. The leader is first a pastor, not a prophet, and the purpose of congregational life is to deepen relationships with one another. These congregations feel like families and are more likely to consider fellow congregants as part of their 8

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extended support network. In this model, it is clear that Zebulon is a family church, but one that extends its familial vision beyond its members to include the local community as well. The public schools, for example, are seen as extensions of home and church. This is not to deny Zebulon’s sense of civic obligation and its prophetic sensibility, but these are minor notes compared to the centrality of familial care and concern that dominate conversation and practice at the church. Members of Zebulon use family metaphors to describe their church again and again.

A faithful and wise church knows that learning to lead is a lifelong journey made up of daily opportunities and choices.

One important function of a family is to encourage its members to achieve all that God has prepared for them. Attentive parents find opportunities for their teens to try on new levels of responsibility and maturity. Likewise, a faithful and wise church knows that learning to lead is a lifelong journey made up of daily opportunities and choices. Zebulon has been intentional about making the church a place where youth can be supported on that journey. Glasgow and the youth pastors who serve with him have been committed to positioning youth in church leadership and to providing opportunities for youth to minister. The young people find their place throughout congregational life, from participating in the large youth choir and bell choir to serving others on mission trips to building stronger relationships through camp experiences co-sponsored by Passport, Inc., a summer service camp that seeks to “model for students the importance of service in the Christian journey.” April, a child of Zebulon and now a pastor on a staff at a large church, described her experiences growing up in the church: “From a very early age, Zebulon gave me a chance to be a minister. I was a Vacation Bible School (VBS) helper as a 7th grader, and, by the time I was a freshman in high school, I was a VBS teacher. I felt very needed, and felt like I was doing something that made a difference. I felt the call to full-time ministry in the summer after my sophomore year in high school. I was at Camp Caswell, during mission week. I heard that out West there was a need for missionary teachers. I knew, as a 10th grader, that God was calling me into full-time work.”

April’s story is one that the congregation is particularly proud of, but it is not unique. Several young people report the same kind of invitation to participate in the ministry of the church and are openly disappointed when not selected to preach on Youth Sunday. In April’s year, there were 24 high school seniors actively involved in the youth group, and a friendly competition arose for the opportunity to deliver the sermon.

Glasgow is committed to supporting the youth ministry program by carefully selecting qualified youth pastors, regarding them as full members of staff and mentoring them during their tenure. The current youth pastor, Tim Ratzlaff, works hard to get youth into leadership positions and to provide meaningful programming for the youth of the congregation. Like Glasgow, the youth pastors are mindful of their position as models for the youth. Their lives become examples of what the high school and college students can choose for themselves. As one young man now planning to become a minister noted: “When we were in youth group we watched Nathan Parrish and Jill Jenkins. When I was in middle school they were going to seminary. They served as our youth ministers and I got to watch someone else’s calling come into place. I grew up watching all of that happening. It shows you what’s possible.” The church is careful, too, about keeping in touch with its youth when they leave for college. A list of all the college students is posted prominently in the narthex, and members are reminded to keep these young people in their prayers. THE SAMUEL PROJECT

In the spring of 2005, because of Zebulon’s history of mentoring young people into ministry, Glasgow was invited to make a presentation on becoming a “calling congregation” at a one-day conference hosted by the Center for Congregational Health and The Fund for Theological Education (FTE). Though he intended to inspire his audience with Zebulon’s example, his presentation had REGULAR AND REMARKABLE

a somewhat surprising outcome: he inspired himself. He came away from the conference and his presentation with the inkling of a plan to make Zebulon an even more effective “calling congregation.” Consulting with staff and lay leadership, he borrowed from work done by FTE and Passport, Inc. to develop the Samuel Project, an initiative built on the conviction that God calls all persons to their vocation. The goal of the project was for the church’s youth and young adults, with the support of their families and congregation, to recognize and seek God’s guidance along each step of their vocational journeys. Glasgow’s idea was to engage the biblical story of Samuel to open conversation around the question of vocational discernment, a conversation equally committed to yielding God-called doctors, teachers, builders, businessmen and women, civil servants, engineers and attorneys—a commitment grounded in Glasgow’s own conviction that congregations often neglect the whole idea of vocation and call. In addressing that neglect, he said, “It makes sense that encouraging every Christian to seek God’s guidance in their vocation is more likely to yield an ample number of God-called men and women to serve churches vocationally than an emphasis that is solely focused on the call to ministry.” Organized around the call story of Samuel found in 1 Samuel 3, the project has three components, defined by the three major characters from the story. First, Samuel, a youth whom God calls to be God’s prophet, represents the youth of the congregation. Every teenager and young adult asking questions of vocation and identity is a potential Samuel, straining to hear the voice of God. This may be especially true for the children of professional and middleclass families where identity is tied tightly with occupation. Zebulon youth describe a keen interest and investment in the question of their future occupation. Several recounted how the current structure of their high school curriculum leads them to focus on a career track more immediately than they were expecting. Within the last five years, the local high school has re-organized its curriculum around four tracks, which require students to begin thinking about career as early as 9th grade. The intentional effort to help students think about these decisions in theological terms—what would God have me do with my life?—is timely and important. It tells the youth 10

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of Zebulon that the church has a role to play in their life today, that beyond being a context for social engagement and fellowship, the church provides a particular understanding of the nature and meaning of contemporary life. It also says that God has an investment in the kind of people they will become and the kind of work they will do in the world.

Every teenager and young adult asking questions of vocation and identity is a potential Samuel, straining to hear the voice of God.

The second component organized around Eli, who in the biblical story serves as Samuel’s counselor and guide. Analogously, this is the role to be played by members of Zebulon who are partnered with individual young people from the congregation to assist in vocational discernment. The responsibilities of the “Elis” in the Samuel Project include being trained as mentors with a commitment to enter into the world of the young person and to meet regularly with young people to discuss the things most important to them. The effects of serving as an Eli are significant. Adults in the congregations become connected not only to the youth but also to their families, thus building up the bonds of family that define Zebulon.

Faye, a mentor, described the program’s appeal for her. In the past she taught emotionally disturbed high school students, and she currently volunteers in the schools working with at-risk young students. She finds such work both important and satisfying. “When Jack announced the Samuel Project, I immediately wanted to be a part of it,” she says. For her, the program’s focus is a powerful agent for shaping the values of young people. “Rather than just seeking out money or desires or trying to meet parental expectations, we ask them to discover what is within them—what is in you that you love?—that may signify God’s voice trying to guide them. The Samuel Project gets us to help them hear that voice.” The third character in the story is Hannah, Samuel’s mother, who dedicates her son to God, and the third component deals with parents of the youth in the program. Parents are asked to support the work of the mentors, to encourage their children to participate responsibly and to engage their children around the question of vocation. Glasgow encourages families to be intentional in thinking about the life of their child within the larger framework of God’s kingdom. “I encourage parents to desire their

children’s lives to be lived in the service of the Kingdom of God and the church first and foremost,” he says.

He also instructs parents to “share their own experiences in the journey of faith and in the area of vocational calling.” To that end, the Samuel Project offers guidance for effective parenting and invites parents first to engage their children in conversations about how faith can inform their decisions, including decisions about vocation, and second, to invite other adults in the church into their children’s lives—other adults can provide a kind of counsel and relationship that is not always within the parents’ abilities. Parents relish others in the congregation serving as partners with them in the formation of their children. One mother, whose daughter is in the Samuel Project, expressed deep gratitude for the efforts of her daughter’s mentor. “Sometimes a teenager doesn’t want to talk to her parents, but she still needs adult guidance,” she observed. “I think it’s great that there is someone else in the church willing to take on this role.” ENCOURAGE, MENTOR AND SERVE

In October 2005 Glasgow undertook what he called a “church campaign,” preaching a series of three sermons: “Hannahs: Parenting Encouraging the Call,” “Elis: Adults Mentoring the Young,” and “Samuels: Youth who Desire to Serve God in their Vocation.” At the end of this series of sermons, he invited people to become Hannahs, Elis and Samuels. Glasgow began a series of training sessions for those who accepted the invitation, including an initial seminar for parents, a subsequent training session for adult members and an introduction of youth and mentors. He emphasized the importance of these training sessions for the success of the program, not least because they helped establish necessary trust: “Any church that encourages one-on-one conversation between adults and teens takes some risks. We only assign mentors who are proven members in our church to be mentors in this first year.” Glasgow expected parents and mentors to have an initial REGULAR AND REMARKABLE

conversation to set appropriate boundaries and to determine mutual expectations. In the first year of the program 24 mentoring relationships were established. This led to the heart of the program: monthly mentoring meetings between Elis and Samuels, between the youth and their mentors. “The purpose of these conversations is for the adult to listen to the youth’s thoughts about vocation and education, to talk openly about how we listen to God’s voice, to follow God’s direction in listening to the youth’s ideas about possibilities for their future, and to encourage openness to God’s call to ministry, ” Glasgow notes.

We ask them to discover what is within them that may signify God’s voice trying to guide them.

The Samuel Project concluded with a series of mini-retreats. These included a parenting seminar and a mentoring pairs seminar. The final retreat served as a capstone, providing an opportunity for closure, renegotiation and evaluation of the program. The last event made a space in which to celebrate the end of the year’s Samuel Project, to give thanks for the blessings received along the way, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the ministry. ALONG THE JOURNEY

In its second year, the program did not work as smoothly as its first. The largest challenge was the increased difficulty in getting participating youth to stay engaged with the program. The mentors encountered obstacles to meeting regularly with them over the course of the year. It was not that youth didn’t want to be involved; rather young people’s lives were simply over-scheduled. Mentors also reported their own creeping sense of inadequacy. Unsure of how to connect with youth, several mentors reported the experience of feeling like an imposition; conversations were stilted, even when the young people did show up. In response, Glasgow asked them to focus on long-term goals. The benefits of these relationships may not be felt for years to come, he assured all those present. One of the mentors shared her experience of receiving a Bible from someone in her church when she was sixteen. It made no impression on her at the time, but years later she remembers it as an act of great importance. Glasgow insisted that the efforts do matter and suggested that 12

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failure can also bear particular rewards. He and the mentors also shared some best practices for mentoring, including meeting the youth on their turf and letting them set the agenda. One woman described how much better the interactions were when she simply followed her mentee to one of her practices at school and engaged her in that context. Others focused on the importance of becoming a fan at the youth’s school sporting events. Presence, rather than intense interaction, seemed a worthy objective.

Whatever the Samuel Project is or will be at Zebulon, it is not a seamless effort at vocational discernment. In large measure, this is because the youth do not engage it this way. Zebulon is learning that vocational direction may work best when it is sought—when the young person is self-motivated. At the same time, evidence suggests that the program is important to participants, even if it does not generate immediately measurable outcomes. The truth is, for many of the youth of Zebulon, their life trajectory feels pre-determined by the educational and occupational structures in which they are embedded. Ironically, in the current cultural context, multiple careers over a lifetime are becoming the norm. Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich has suggested that the current generation of college graduates should expect five career changes, not just job changes. In response to this emerging reality, the Samuel Project presents vocational discernment as a lifelong process, less about what one should do with one’s life and more about whom one should be in the world. Thus, it may be that while youth in high school are asked to make educational choices that will undoubtedly bear on their career trajectory, the resistance to committing to a career path, including a career in parish ministry, may well make sense, given the realities of their lives. CONCLUDING PERSPECTIVE

The Samuel Project is important, not as a stand-alone vocational discernment tool but as part of the broader culture of call operative at Zebulon Baptist Church. Its leader, Jack Glasgow, is the single most important factor in the congregation’s success in nurturing a sense of call among young people at Zebulon. His mentoring and

his leadership for the commitment to the youth of the congregation are of primary importance. His leadership makes possible the critical front-line interactions of youth with capable, energetic youth pastors who have the visible support and mentoring of a strong senior pastor. Glasgow’s parallel commitment to the mentors of the Samuel Project exemplifies his encouragement of all facets of the life of this body around the question of call. Finally, Zebulon is conscious of its identity as a family congregation. A congregation of this type can be quite effective at nurturing people into ministry. With the strong emphasis on intimate relationships, authentic care and fellowship, it creates an environment where the core vocational question—who am I and what am I becoming?— is continually being asked and reinforced within and among young people.

1. Becker, Penny Edgell; Congregations in Conflict: Cultural Models of Local Religious Life; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.

Questions for Reflection REGULAR AND REMARKABLE

1. Jack Glasgow has served Zebulon as pastor for over 30 years. His continued emphasis on lifting up young leaders, providing them with roles in the congregation and mentoring youth ministers, has had a remarkable effect on young people’s choices about their future. Has your church experienced long, flourishing pastorates like this? If not, can you identify other sources of continuity? How might they be strengthened so that young people might sense ongoing support, despite changes that inevitably occur in their lives?

2. Reflect on the call of Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:1-21 and the Samuel Project in place at Zebulon. Who might the Samuels, the Elis and the Hannahs in your congregation be?

3. Youth at Zebulon feel that they are under great pressure from their parents and their schools to make career decisions. They are acutely aware of pre-determined structures, such as the cost of higher of education, which affect their life trajectories. In part, the Samuel Project can be seen as good pastoral care. It provides an intervening space where young people are invited to bring faith into conversations about their future. What pressures do youth in your context face? How might your church create safe spaces for youth to wonder about what part faith plays in choices about college and career?

REGULAR AND REMARKABLE

Inviting and Mentoring Leadership Development at Park Manor Christian Church by Charisse Brown Gillett

INTRODUCTION

According to an Alban Institute report in 2001, the clergy shortage among mainline denominations has contributed to an overarching sense of organizational decline. Data from the United Methodist Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Presbyterian Church (USA), as well as the Roman Catholic Church, indicates a significant shortfall in the number of trained ordained clergy necessary to serve existing and new congregations.1

Park Manor Christian Church Chicago, Illinois www.parkmanorchristianchurch.com

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is experiencing a similar pattern. In the early 1980s the denomination was ordaining about 120 people per year for ministry. However, by 2000, this number had declined to 90 people per yearâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a 30 percent decrease in only 20 years.2 Yet, the 2020 vision statement of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) called for the founding of 1,000 new congregations and the revitalization of 1,000 more. Richard Hamm, former general minister and Disciples president, identified the leadership needs posed by this vision:

â&#x20AC;&#x153;If existing congregations are going to be revitalized and to grow, and if new congregations are going to be established for European American, African American and Asian American Disciples, then we are going to have to become committed to serious leadership development. We need more and better lay leaders; we need more and better licensed ministers; we need more and better ordained leaders.â&#x20AC;? 3 Locating and training a new generation of leaders for Disciples congregations poses organizational, financial and human resource challenges. Unlike mainline denominations with connectional polities, the Disciples of Christ does not have a centralized process responsible for the identification and nurture of church leaders. This function is shared by general and regional ministries within the life of the church but no one entity within the structure of the church has the authority, the human resources or financial resources to launch an effective and centralized training process for the whole church. Furthermore, organizationally the Disciples structure and polity of local autonomy does not support such an apparatus. To meet the challenge of identifying and nurturing the next generation of leaders, the Christian Church will need to implement several creative strategies across the life and work of the denomination but there is one strategy that cannot be neglected: learning from congregations that have demonstrated a consistent history of nurturing men and women into ordained Disciples ministry. This study looks at one Christian Church that has precisely this history: Park Manor Christian Church in Chicago, Illinois. In the last twenty years, Park Manor has supported over 30 lay, licensed and ordained persons for service and ministry in the Disciples of Christ, many of whom have gone on to serve as local church pastors. When asked about their call stories, these men and women say that God spoke

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to them through elders, deacons and members of Park Manor and they express gratitude for the clear and tangible support they received in every stage of their discernment. PARK MANOR CHRISTIAN CHURCH: A BRIEF HISTORY

Founded in 1888, Park Manor Christian Church is a 700-member, largely middle-class African-American congregation in covenant and relationship with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). The first black Disciples congregation in Chicago, Park Manor has a history of long-term and well-known ministers, including Alexander Campbell, a freed slave from Kentucky. Today the church continues to train men and women for leadership in the African-American community and in Disciples congregations. Park Manor serves as a role model for other churches and as a resource for the entire Disciples denomination. The congregation uses an intentional twostep process to cultivate and educate new leaders, namely invitational practices and mentoring habits. All members are asked to consider the call to serve the church. And for those who respond to this invitation with an interest in licensed or ordained ministry, Park Manor follows up with a structured mentoring program in support of their call to service. THEOLOGICAL ROOTS FOR HABITS OF INVITATION

Park Manor’s zeal for vocational development is grounded

in the theological traditions of the Disciples of Christ. Their covenantal values and polity uphold a commitment to the priesthood of all believers. God calls all persons to ministry, broadly conceived, including some to lay, licensed, or ordained ministry.4 Park Manor encourages members to think carefully about what kind of service God calls them to undertake. Disciples’ theology also encourages freedom of opinion. This principle is a sustaining force in the life of the church: “in essentials unity, in opinion liberty; and in all things love.” 5 Members share a belief in the central confession of the New Testament: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. But beyond this claim, they can agree to disagree in love and with a commitment to live out the Gospel as each feels called. This commitment to freedom of opinion at Park Manor means that every person is responsible for his/her thoughts, statements and behavior. In faithfulness to this conviction, leaders, including youth, are permitted and encouraged to operate and speak with a great deal of autonomy. All are invited to develop their voice. Irvin Green, long time youth advisor at Park Manor, often explained to parents and church leaders that he would not interfere with the youth group, even when their ideas seemed to be illadvised. Instead, he encouraged them to be creative in their planning and challenged them to think critically about the

implications of their actions, explaining to parents and church leaders, “No learning and growth can come from having isolation from mistakes and limited choices.” Park Manor is committed not only to filling its own leadership needs but to producing leaders for the broader community. Indeed, Park Manor views leadership development in the church as part of its commitment to the AfricanAmerican community more generally.

All members are asked to

Women’s Fellowships. Others have served on regional boards that license clergy and set policies, and some have overseen outreach ministries. By living out their own callings, these leaders invite others to do the same.

consider the

Elder Harvey Thomas models servant leadership. Elder Thomas has served as the president of the Disciples of Christ International Christian Men’s Fellowship and the chair of Park Manor’s general and elder boards. By his example, Elder Thomas has invited several persons to accept calls to regional and general church ministries, to the role of elder and to licensed and ordained ministry. He observed, “I know God called me to service and ministry as an elder. I feel very deeply the responsibility to guide God’s people. I have been so blessed by the grace and mercy of God that I must give back and I feel I’ve been given a particular ministry as an elder of the church to offer guidance and wisdom.”

call to serve the church.

Grounded in these theological foundations, Park Manor welcomes diverse gifts for service. Church pastors and lay leaders encourage congregants to see themselves as ministers within the communities where they live and work. “We are a church that identifies, nurtures and prepares folk for ministry,” says James L. Demus iii, the current senior pastor. He describes vocational discernment as a three-way conversation between the individual exploring a call, the Holy Spirit and other members of the congregation who support the discernment process. “In a very real sense, this is a dialogue between God and the person experiencing the call and a dialogue between God and the person who is helping the person interpret the call,” he says. DELIVERING THE INVITATION

Rev. Demus also recognizes that even the most effective programs, organizations and strategic plans cannot replace the Spirit’s power to transform individual hearts for service. So when Park Manor advocates vocational discernment, it begins with an invitational question: What is the Spirit calling you to do? Park Manor delivers this invitation in at least four different ways.

The Reverend Montee Akers is another who invites members to consider ministry by his example. Rev. Akers has been the assistant pastor at Park Manor for 18 years. Prior to this ministry, he served in the children’s church, youth church and as a member of the elder board. Rev. Akers is a child of the church and has served with three of its senior pastors. He is willing to listen and offer words of encouragement and comfort. Sandra Brown, now a lay minister at Park Manor, explains, “Rev. Akers was a wonderful encouragement to me during my discernment process. His peaceful and gentle spirit helped me to put my call and other things into perspective. He has been a tremendous mentor and example of ministry and service for me on this journey.” INVITING BY HABITS OF CONVERSATION

INVITING BY EXAMPLE

Elders, deacons, ministers and congregants recognize that at some level to model Christian leadership means encouraging others to consider ministry for themselves. The congregation has a rich history of leadership role modeling with lay leaders not only shaping the ministry of the congregation but serving in prominent positions of leadership beyond the congregation, such as the international chairpersons of the Christian Men’s and 16

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A second strategy of invitation is the cultivation of conversation and habits of language that encourage vocational discernment. Members at Park Manor talk regularly about what it means to be “called to service” and they frequently hear the phrase, “Those whom God calls he will equip.” These and similar ways of talking create an atmosphere where church members are regularly prompted to consider their own call to service. And when an individual shows particular interest or zeal in a certain

aspect of congregational life—whether Sunday school, prayers for the sick, or committee planning—elders and leaders take note and act on it. They invoke the language of call that is already in the air by asking an individual how God might be calling him or her into service to the church and to the world. Darron Bowden and Sandra Brown are long-time members of the church with deep roots in the community and provide leadership to the early morning service, and to the youth and children’s ministries. They both remember conversations with others who encouraged them to consider God’s call. Darron remembers the support of many people, but it was conversations and the example of the former youth minister, Donald Gillett, that rested upon his spirit. “Don urged me to continue listening to and for God’s voice and to be open to the will of God for my life,” he explains. “It is because of these conversations and Don’s support that I ultimately decided to consider ministry and am seriously contemplating the direction of my call and seminary. I have a thirst and a desire to go to seminary but am still wrestling with this call and where it will take me.” Likewise, Sandra recalls many encouraging conversations with Larry Jackson, a former member of the church’s ministerial team. “Larry really helped me to understand the vocation of ministry. During a challenging time in this process he helped me to come to terms with ministry as a shared vocation.” Larry recommended that Sandra read “The Heart of the Pastor’s Vocation: We Have This Ministry” by Samuel D. Proctor and Gardner C. Taylor. “To this very day this book helps me stay connected with the meaning of my ministry,” she says. INVITATIONS FROM THE PULPIT

The invitation to consider ministry also comes from the pulpit. Senior pastors regularly discuss ministry, seminary and lay leader training in their sermons. Both Rev. Demus and the former senior minister, Charles Webb, Sr., single out the church’s college students and seminarians for prayer. They have invited students to the pulpit to give a word of greeting to the congregation, added them to the worship program to deliver scripture, or simply acknowledged their return to the congregation by noting their presence in service. They created an atmosphere that welcomed young people as active members in the church and they did so by affirming the younger person’s

participation in services, encouraging them in their studies. The senior pastors have been advocates for the vocation of ministry. Because of this advocacy they have helped to set a tone which insists that lay, licensed or ordained ministry is a valuable and worthy vocation for consideration. The advocacy and invitation from the pulpit are key elements validating ministry and opening doors for service in the life of the whole church. In addition to creating an atmosphere of invitation from the pulpit, senior pastors introduced key structural elements to the life and work of the church that create opportunities for children, youth and young adults to consider the invitation to service. Former pastors Richard Davis and Charles Webb, Sr. introduced youth and children’s services, providing young people a place to find their theological voices. Moreover, Rev. Demus refined a mentoring process for those seeking opportunities to discern practice, and grow in ministry. INVITATIONS ESPECIALLY FOR YOUTH

Finally, Park Manor devotes particular attention to inviting younger members into vocational exploration. The church offers programs and opportunities for youth to participate in ministry as junior deacons, elders, ushers and worship leaders. Young people serve at the Lord’s Table, pray for the sick, and visit the ill and shut-ins as part of the church’s outreach programs. Timely plays, poetry readings and rap sessions about the meaning of faith and God in the world also serve an invitational purpose. And when the pastor proudly highlights the accomplishments of college students and seminarians, young people learn about the vocational pursuits of their friends and peers. Park Manor urges its youth to participate in the life of the church. Whether they participate in local and regional youth groups, serve on church boards or simply participate in the programs for children and youth, young people at Park Manor are learning about the life of service. Through these and other activities, they receive the invitation to consider ministry as a life-long calling. JEFFREY’S STORY

Jeffrey McCuen is a Ph.D. student at Northwestern University. As a youth at Park Manor he announced his call to ministry at the age of eleven and preached his first sermon at age twelve. Entitled “Brother to Brother Resuscitation,” his sermon made a passionate plea for a renewed level of trust and a fresh outpouring of the Holy INVITING AND MENTORING

Spirit to revive the community. “I don’t really know what compelled me to talk with the pastor,” he says, “but I knew I had a message to deliver, and Rev. Demus, after talking and probing my thinking, permitted me to speak at the morning worship service.” The positive response from Rev. Demus illustrates the quality Jeffrey most appreciated. “We were allowed to speak and share in the ministry of the church. Not everything was perfect but I was listened to and heard by our ministers,” he says. Jeffrey was an active member of the youth fellowship, camping programs and traveled with the youth group to other churches. His participation in the youth program and especially the camping programs was life changing. He remembers an ecumenical exchange camp in Seattle and the Christian Youth Fellowship summer camp programs as experiences that taught him to appreciate the great diversity in the Christian community. Jeffrey received encouragement in the youth church to continue his education and explore his talent for music and ministry. After graduation from college he decided that the Spirit was calling him to ministry but not pastoral ministry. “I believe the trajectory of my ministry is to a wider audience than congregational ministry will allow. I know the Spirit is calling me to a ministry but not to the pastoral ministry. I also know my ministry will more than likely encompass an academic career and I am preparing myself for that eventuality,” he says. And he credits Park Manor for his current sense of purpose and calling. THE MENTORING PROCESS AND AFFIRMATION OF THE CALL

After Park Manor invites members to consider ministry as a vocation, church leaders follow up with a second and crucial step: mentoring. Once an individual formally acknowledges a call or expresses a need for clarity about what God is calling them to do, they enter an intentional process of guidance. The process has four stages: discernment, observation, empowerment and support. Mentoring at Park Manor provides a person with opportunities to pray and meditate on a call to ministry. Through conversations, fellowship with like-minded believers, and personal reflection, those who are struggling with a call to ministry receive support and insight into their vocational questions. Although each stage has a discrete purpose, there can be considerable overlap in the manner in which each person lives out the mentoring phase and affirmation of call. It is a highly relational process. As such, 18

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its success largely depends on the relational skills of those engaged in the mentoring dynamic. DISCERNMENT

The discernment period provides time to reflect on a call to ministry. Because Disciples advocate the priesthood of all believers, Park Manor insists that its members take the time necessary to sort out the nature of their call. Discernment may take one week or ten years and many Park Manor members responding to a call acknowledge a period of “wrestling” with God. Those exploring a call come forward in any number of ways. However, most often a person responds to the invitation of the pastor during Sunday morning worship to come forward if they believe God is calling them to a new level of ministry whether ordained, lay or licensed ministry. Others merely acknowledge a call to ministry in private conversations with a member of the ministry team. Following this acknowledgement of a call and after conversations with church leadership, individuals then embark on a period of reflection. During this time, the person keeps a journal or writes a statement of call which is then presented to the elders during a formal meeting with the church leadership. He or she also works with a mentor (or mentors) who themselves have gone through their own call process and can offer moral and spiritual support. Mentors function as shepherds. They listen, encourage and share their own stories and resources. Larry Jackson experienced firsthand Park Manor’s mentoring process. Larry preached his first sermon at age 12 and went on to serve Park Manor as a choir member, elder, youth sponsor and board chair. He came forward to acknowledge a call to ministry following a spirited worship service. He told the congregation, “I have been running away from this call but I know God has called me to this.” By the time he came forward in the congregation he had been struggling and discerning his call to professional ministry for several years. He credits the elders with helping him to discern his path. Through their support, prayers and conversation he was able to understand and accept that he was called to ministry. “I was nurtured into the faith,” he says, “but when I began to consider the profession of ministry as a vocation, my discernment of the faith grew deeper…It was the elders who helped me on this path. They were terrific models of service and leadership.”

INVITING AND MENTORING

OBSERVATION PERIOD

Mentoring at Park Manor provides a person with opportunities to pray and meditate on a call to ministry.

The observation period, which varies from person to person, provides an opportunity to observe and learn about the inner workings of the church and the life of ministry. It offers an unvarnished view into the joys, blessings and inevitable bumps and bruises that occur in ministry. At Park Manor, an individual engaged in this practice of observation attends weekly meetings, regional events and external gatherings of ministers. He or she also attends biweekly ministry meetings with administrative units of the church, as well as meetings with mentors and church leadership to discuss the dynamics of congregational ministry. Due to privacy considerations, the candidate is permitted only limited observation of counseling situations. But to whatever extent possible, he or she observes firsthand all of the other duties that Park Manor’s ministers undertake. At the end of the observation period, the individual has a conversation with the pastor and mentors. He or she then is invited to speak to the elders about his or her discernment process and call to ministry. The elders helped Larry to discern clearly his call to ministry. However, it was his observations of Rev. Akers and Rev. Demus that taught him to appreciate what it means to shepherd the people of God. He described his experience of being mentored at Park Manor: “As I moved through this process, Rev. Akers walked right alongside of me. He watched me and began to teach me what it meant to be a leader in service. He taught me how to set the tone as a minister for any function. He walked alongside me, coaching and helping me to learn the difference between my roles as lay leader and minister.” Larry discovered firsthand how the congregation looked to the ministerial team for leadership, guidance and comfort.

two things: it provides meaningful opportunities to serve in the role of minister, and it allows the candidate to be seen and received as a minister by the congregation.

This step is reserved for those persons whose discernment process has led to a sense that God is calling them to congregational ministry, or more specifically, to the pastorate. For those whose discernment work has revealed a call to non-ordained or non-licensed service, Park Manor encourages immersion in the activities of a lay leader. Persons exploring a call to congregational ministry begin preparing for the licensing process. This process follows the order of ministry guidelines for the regional judicatory, and receipt of a ministry license allows the individual to practice a specific area of ministry at Park Manor. Once this step is completed, he or she can consider or prepare for seminary applications. Finally, the candidate is assigned to specific ministerial duties and placed on the preaching schedule. Larry, under the mentoring of Rev. Akers and Rev. Demus, came to accept his call to pastoral ministry. Recognizing the character of his call, the ministerial team assigned him to serve as co-pastor of the 7:45 a.m. worship service. In this capacity Larry had preaching, worship and administrative responsibilities. He enjoyed the preaching moment and the preparation needed to effectively reach God’s people. As with the preceding stages of the mentoring process, his experience in a pastoral role led him toward a next step: seminary. “I found myself needing and desiring more in the way of theological training,” he says, “and I was not sure that I could realistically make the lifestyle sacrifices needed to attend seminary. But as I grew in my conviction to live out my call as a local church pastor, God helped me to find the answers that made it possible for me to attend seminary.”

EMPOWERED TO SERVE

The third step in the mentoring process is the empowering of ministerial candidates for service. The individual takes on a leadership role as a member of a ministry team, and he or she experiences ministry firsthand, from the ground up. This part of the mentoring process accomplishes 20

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Through the support of the mentoring process, he entered Chicago Theological Seminary and continued to co-pastor the early morning service. In 2005, Larry accepted the call to pastor Jackson Boulevard Christian Church.

MATURING AND GROWING: SUPPORTING THE CALL

The final stage in the mentoring process at Park Manor supports the maturation of those called to congregational ministry and to seminary. Persons called to seminary participate in a mentoring relationship with others in the congregation who have attended seminary themselves. An in-care committee led by elders monitors the candidate’s progress and plans the ordination service. Financial support aids the purchase of books and makes it possible for the candidate to attend denominational conferences. The pastor and other prayer partners regularly pray for the candidate. In recent years, candidates who have remained in the region continued to serve at Park Manor while in seminary. Many were active members of the leadership team but reduced their hours of service when educational field experiences called them to other churches as student ministers or interns. However, the Park Manor in-care committee maintained contact with each person during this time. Don Gillett, Larry Jackson, Phillip Conyers and Howard Kennon—pastors who emerged in recent years from Park Manor—all remained on staff serving the congregation while in seminary. Following ordination and graduation, these candidates accepted a call to pastor in other congregations. The strength of this fourth and final step lies in the valuable relationships established and in the willingness of those called to remain open to the outcome of the call process. As open vessels, candidates become as pliable as clay to the working of the Holy Spirit, and to the nurturing and mentoring of the congregation and its leadership as well. Through this process, those pursuing Disciples ordination learn to articulate clearly their call to ministry. Others learn that while they have been called to faithful service they have not been called to pastoral ministry. Moreover, they experience the joys and challenges of that call in the safety of their home church. ANALYSIS

When it comes to nurturing God’s call to ministry, Park Manor Christian Church does two things. First, the church lives out practices of invitation that encourage all members to think seriously about how and where God is calling them to serve the church and the world. The fundamental ethos of the congregation is invitational as Park Manor asks each member, “What is the Spirit calling you to do?” Second,

the church offers a systematic program of support for those who believe God is calling them to a higher level of service, especially those who sense a call to ordained ministry. As noted earlier, the language of call and the congregational habits that support it have roots in a theological commitment to the priesthood of all believers. But there are other fundamental values that support Park Manor’s habits of inviting and mentoring. There are commonly-held convictions in the congregation—convictions that say, “We must be better today than we were yesterday,” and that say, “Train up a child in the way she should go and she will not depart from it when she is older.” These values underscore and promote the cultural elements and practices that invite members into service to the church. They also have a conviction that ordained ministry—while not the only form of ministry—is certainly one of the most important forms of service to the church. The idea that the minister is set apart and called by God to preach, teach and provide vision to the people of God is held in high esteem. Indeed, it is seen as a reflection of the biblical text—where there is no vision the people will perish. Clearly, this value does not exclude the incredible and noteworthy roles of the other ministers, elders, deacons and laity. These convictions undergird the heavy investment that Park Manor makes in training and mentoring those who would be licensed or ordained and drive the congregation’s commitment to support seminarians with financial, spiritual and human resources. The church takes direct responsibility for inviting and forming those called into ministry. The pastor makes the invitation to ministerial calling a priority—both in the pulpit and in the programmatic life of the church. He showcases ministerial models and experiences. And he reminds members that all Christians are called to service, inviting them to join the priesthood of all believers. While the church relies heavily on its senior pastors and assistant pastor, the vocational discernment process would not be sustainable without the support of the laity, deacons, program leaders and elders. The congregation provides financial, spiritual and mentoring support to ministerial candidates. Most importantly, it gives them a safe haven in which to test out their vocational passions without judgment or condemnation. And while the process is time-consuming, Park Manor’s members and leaders have embraced the challenge. Park Manor also succeeds in producing leaders for ministry INVITING AND MENTORING

because it takes seriously the needs of young people and provides those called with the opportunity to engage the practice of ministry. Opportunities abound for youth to sample pastoral work at all levels of administration and leadership. Mission trips, church camps and educational programs encourage them to listen for—and to—the voice of God, and to ask tough theological questions about their place in the world of service. Integrating young people into the fabric of church life is one of the best—if not the best—ways to ignite interest and zeal for ministry in future generations of Christian leaders. These practices support a congregational ethos that invites young people to search for God’s voice, model leadership, and to wrestle with their faith. This ethos is lived out in their conversations, behaviors and programs of the church in such a way as to communicate directly to the youth their importance and value as members of the congregation and larger faith community. Pastors who embraced their call to ministry at Park Manor expressed their experiences appreciatively: “I was allowed to serve, and through service I had my call affirmed by the community,” says Donald Gillett. Many of those interviewed said that by serving as ushers, deacons, elders, and by engaging in various Park Manor programs, they learned to trust their call and to experience firsthand the realities of church ministry. In teaching Sunday school, preparing the communion table, or providing pastoral care to the homebound, these individuals experienced a deepening of their faith and, in turn, fell in love with the work of pastoral ministry. Through service, people learned the value of servant leadership, and the joy of meeting the needs of God’s people, caring for them during the best and worst of times. It was during moments of service that candidates could demonstrate the gospel love of God to people. While serving it became clear that ministry was not about the minister but rather about the Spirit and love of God. It was also through service that the candidates were able to discern if God was calling them to congregational ministry as a pastor or to a higher level of commitment in their current role as an elder, deacon, or lay minister. Park Manor has a culture of service where expectations are set by the example of the elders. The expectation of service to the church and to the world is not only implied but enunciated and lived out: the verbal and non-verbal vocabularies of call are integral to the way people at Park Manor talk and live out their faith journey. The result of Park Manor’s convictions and habits is a 22

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community that produces theological educators, lay leaders, hospital chaplains and most of all, pastors of local congregations. Active, committed and called, these young men and women of God acknowledge the value and importance of a loving and nurturing congregation in their vocational journeys.

The ministers it has raised readily initiate the conversation about God’s call in their new settings. They also constitute a peer group and support team to call on when dealing with issues in their own pastorates. They reach out to and serve as resources for one another across a wide spectrum of congregational life. To date, seven former Park Manor members are pastoring churches. Together, these men and women have created a network of like-minded and supportive peers that grows across each stage of the vocational journey. But this network is not limited to those who have gone out from Park Manor to pastor other congregations. There are others who are engaged in other significant leadership roles at Park Manor and in regional and national church bodies.

“I was allowed to serve, and

through service I had my call

In many cases, those who pursued the ordination process have taken the legacy of Park Manor’s culture of call into their new congregations. These pastors and educators are providing their own parishioners with the same opportunities that they enjoyed at Park Manor: the invitation to consider ministry as a viable vocational option, and the commitment to mentoring those who sense that God has issued such a call to them.

affirmed.”

Former Park Manor ministers Donald Gillett and Howard Kennon both began inviting persons to consider God’s invitation to ministry in their pastorates. Rev. Gillett introduced the language of call to his church by asking members, “What gifts and talents do you have for ministry that are going unclaimed in your life and work?” Later, he formed a mentoring group for women and asked them to meet for one year to discern how the Spirit was calling them into service and ministry. One of these women, Dikeia Cloyd, is now a second-year seminarian. “Before Pastor Gillett came to this congregation, we did not talk about call,” she says. “We talked about doing ministry from a position of doing our Christian duty but not from a sense of call or vocation. This is a completely new language for us and way of considering ministry.” Likewise, Rev. Kennon, now the pastor of United Christian Church, initiated conversations regarding call by asking members to consider what the church mission statement calls the church to do. He observed: “I asked them to reflect upon what we as a church were asking ourselves to do and why. As a congregation being formed from two histories, two traditions and two ways of being, one black and one white, I thought it was important for us as pastor and congregants to take stock of who we were and what God was calling us to do in this shared ministry.” Park Manor, then, is not merely producing pastors. It is causing a ripple effect in other Disciples congregations.

Rev. Gillett has a deep appreciation for these friendships and their conversations about ministry and faith. He accepted a call to pastor East Second Street Christian Church in Lexington, Kentucky, less than a month following his ordination and graduation from seminary. Having been mentored as the youth minister and a member of the ministry team at Park Manor, he felt that he had been groomed to pastor a church and he approached this new ministry with more anticipation than trepidation. “It was in my first year as the senior pastor that I really began to appreciate my Park Manor colleagues. I spoke often with them and Rev. Demus about congregational dynamics and church politics. Their collective advice was invaluable.” Even more valuable than their advice was their willingness to speak honestly with him about their experiences as pastors of their own congregations. “During the early days of my ministry,” he says, “I spoke with them often about the weight of being a pastor and found great comfort and, frankly, relief in the idea that what I was going through as a new pastor was the norm, not the exception.” Rev. Kennon echoes these sentiments, observing, “There are few opportunities to talk openly and frankly about the unique ministry to which I have been called but I find with my network of Park Manor ministry friends I have a safe place to talk about the challenges and considerable joys involved in pastoring a predominately Euro-American congregation.”

INVITING AND MENTORING

Despite these powerful stories and positive outcomes, inviting persons to consider ministry as a vocational calling remains delicate work. Park Manor members recognize that a fine line exists between inviting someone to think about ministerial callings and steering or maneuvering that person to do the same. Church leaders are careful to invite persons to consider the vocation of ministry by providing opportunities for service and reflection and then listening and guiding persons as they wrestle with a call. This approach is in contrast to telling someone they have been called to ministry based solely upon an external and limited perception of that person’s gifts and talents. A decision to enter ministry cannot be forced; it must emerge naturally in response to God’s call. It must be given time to develop and to be tested out in the congregation. Discerning God’s call is a highly spiritual and individual journey, and while others can be helpful in the process, no one can determine the nature of another person’s call or if one has indeed been called. Because of its theological underpinnings, Park Manor affirms the call upon all believers to some form of ministry, and recognizes that not all persons discerning a call will interpret this call as a call to pulpit ministry. Indeed, a key ingredient of the discernment process is to remain open to the will of God for one’s life. Being open frees one to discern that God has

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called one to significant church leadership and faithful service in the congregation but not to pastoral ministry. A FINAL WORD

Developing congregational practices that encourage conversations about faith, service and vocational choices can be liberating to those seeking direction, meaning and wholeness on the Christian journey. Moreover, such conversations encourage thoughtful discussions that merit clear understanding of one’s traditions, practices and ways of being. Ultimately, congregations that seek to develop a culture of call are reminding us of Thomas Merton’s words: “Each of us has some kind of vocation. We are all called by God to share in His life and in His Kingdom. Each one of us is called to a special place in the Kingdom. If we find that place, we will be happy. If we do not find it, we can never be completely happy. For each one of us, there is only one thing necessary: to fulfill our own destiny, according to God’s will, to be what God wants us to be.” 6 This is the invitation that Park Manor extends to all of its members. It is the invitation that is embodied in the discernment, mentoring and support that they provide for men and women preparing for leadership and ministry

in the church. And by example, Park Manor offers an invitation to other congregations to follow in the same way, asking once again the essential question: What is the Spirit calling you to do?

Questions for Reflection INVITING AND MENTORING

1. Gilbert R. Rendle and James P. Wind, The Leadership Situation Facing American Congregations. (Bethesda, Maryland: The Alban Institute, 2001), pp. 6–8. 2. Richard Hamm, 2020 Vision for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). (St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2001), p. 129. 3. Richard Hamm, 2020 Vision for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). (St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2001), p. 128. 4. Duane D. Cummins, A Handbook for Today’s Disciples in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). (St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2005), pp. 56–68. 5. Richard Hamm, 2020 Vision for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). (St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2001), p. 35. 6. William Placher, Editor. Callings: Twenty Centuries of Christian Wisdom on Vocation. (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), pp. 421–428.

1. At Park Manor, finding one’s calling is a communal venture, rather than an individual journey. There are numerous caring adults along the way whose eyes are attuned to notice young people’s gifts. Who are the faithful elders paying attention to such matters within your congregation? How might church life be structured to better support and encourage such mentoring, both formal and informal?

2. Park Manor is unique in that it provides a long arc of support across the life span of a call, from helping a young person discern a call, to financial support for education and valuable field training through seminary. At what points along this trajectory might your church most effectively nurture call? What stories from your church’s history might inspire an ethos of nurture and support?

3. What biblical images come to you as you think about Park Manor’s story? What ways might these biblical stories inspire your own congregation?

4. The fundamental ethos of Park Manor is captured in the phrase What is the Spirit calling you to do? How would you encapsulate the fundamental ethos of your church in a phrase? What are some small ways in which lay people might be invited more often to consider how the Spirit is calling them to some form of action, ministry or service?

INVITING AND MENTORING

A Rule of Life Ministry Formation at Second Presbyterian Church by Joel Thomas and Stacia M. Brown

INTRODUCTION

It’s every pastor’s worst nightmare. An early morning phone call from the fire department rouses you from a sound sleep. You make your way to the church as fast as you can, only to discover the building engulfed in flames. The fire chief tells you that it will be a total loss. What do you do now?

For the Reverend Jim Kitchens and the members of Second Presbyterian Church, Second Presbyterian Church

Nashville, the same fire that destroyed their sanctuary in 2003 also ignited a passion for

Nashville, Tennessee

courageous and creative ministry. Fire tore down one space, but it opened up another.

www.secondpresbyterian.net

It gave the church an unexpected gift: the opportunity to lay a new foundation.

While the loss of their building has become a defining moment for this congregation, Second Presbyterian also enjoys a rich and variegated history that long predates the events of the last five years. Steeped in the legacy of the Civil War South, Second Presbyterian stands today as a social justice leader in the Nashville area. Even more, Second Presbyterian insists that God has called every member of the congregation—including and especially young people—to a unique and particular ministry. For this church, ministry is not an extracurricular activity. It is the beating heart of a life of discipleship.

WHAT’S OLD IS NEW AGAIN

When Kitchens and his “vision committee” began planning to replace the building they lost in the fire, they tried to come up with a design that looked to the future while also honoring the congregation’s past.

They succeeded. The new building, dedicated in 2006 and located on the corner of Belmont Boulevard and Graybar Lane in downtown Nashville, contains key artifacts from the

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congregation’s former structure, including a circular window behind the lectern. The new steeple tower, an exact replica of the original, serves as a beacon welcoming people from all directions and walks of life. These and other sacred spaces within the new sanctuary elegantly express Second’s modern, progressive outlook within a traditional architecture.

Second Presbyterian insists that God has called every member of the congregation.

The same could be said of the congregation. Second Presbyterian, a member of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has a rich and complicated history, dating back to its origins in 1842 as a mission school for poor children. The Civil War divided both the congregation and the leadership of the church, causing then-pastor John Hayes to request that the Nashville Presbytery sever its ties with Second. During the war, Union troops used the sanctuary as a chapel.

Second Presbyterian emerged from the war years with a firm commitment to justice and with a new interest in youth outreach and women’s leadership in the church. In 1889 the congregation founded The Young People’s Society for Christian Endeavor, a youth group dedicated to missions, and the Ladies’ Aid Society, created to provide outlets for women interested in Christian service. The values expressed by these programs quickly became central to Second’s values and ongoing congregational identity. Today the church retains its historical commitments to the empowerment of women and youth as leaders in the church. Women have held leadership roles at Second Presbyterian since the 1960s, with the congregational board calling its first female deacon in 1969 and its first female elder in 1971. In 1987 the church appointed its first female associate minister. Ministry with and for youth also has a longstanding history at Second, from the congregation’s early work with the Monroe Harding Children’s Home to its later and ongoing outreach to Nashville schools, playgrounds and counseling centers. When people think of Second Presbyterian, they think of a welcoming congregation. In recent years this phrase has come to hold a particular meaning, indicating a church’s pledge to enable the full participation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people in the life and 28

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witness of the body of Christ. Second Presbyterian is one of only three “More Light” Presbyterian congregations in Tennessee. But this “welcoming” also has ties to an older mission of the church. Since 1842, this congregation has dedicated itself to calling the faithful into ministry and to extending genuine hospitality to the neighbor.

These commitments are not just practiced on Sundays. For many congregation members, they mark a way of life. Second Presbyterian adheres to the Reformed theological tradition, particularly the doctrine that Christ is both fully divine and fully human. Sermons, Bible studies, weekday outreach projects and youth education classes all teach participants that the believer is called in daily life to honor Christ’s humanity and divinity, or what is much the same, that the body of Christ is a place of refuge and justice as well as a place of worship. The pastors of Second Presbyterian describe the call to ministry in similar terms. For them, being “called” suggests no more—and no less—than the duty of embodying Christ’s radical love for the neighbor. MINISTRY IS NOT AN EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY

At first glance, Second Presbyterian looks like countless other mainline Protestant congregations in the southern United States. Its members are predominantly college educated, middle-class, Caucasian, and attend as families. They live in the same prosperous Green Hills neighborhood where the church is located. Their theology is not particularly unusual or shocking. What Kitchens preaches to his congregation on a Sunday morning would resonate with other Christian communities. In many ways, Second Presbyterian is an ordinary church. But a second glance presents a more fulsome picture. Second Presbyterian stands out from the crowd in its remarkable commitment to sending its members into ministry. Young and old, lay and ordained, Second’s members are the kind of people who get out of the pews and into the pulpits, the schools, the shelters and even the streets, living out the Gospel message. Over the years the church has supported dozens of young people considering

ministry as a vocation, and Kitchens enjoys a solid reputation as a skilled developer of the next generation of religious leaders. Yet congregation members do not think of themselves as exemplary in this respect. Said one member, “We’re just doing church together.” What does it mean to “do church” together? At Second Presbyterian, ministry is not an add-on or an optional activity, something to pursue as time allows. Ministry is church. It is formation. In the words of another congregation member, it is “enacted spirituality.” Second Presbyterian calls its members into ministry by exposing them to the needs of the local community and then helping them understand the ministerial and leadership dimensions of their own vocation, whatever that might be. Ministry at Second unfolds in countless ways. Every room in the new building serves a purpose beyond the Sunday services. From early fall to early spring, the sanctuary opens one night a week for Nashville’s Room In The Inn program, feeding and providing temporary shelter for homeless men and women. The church kitchen plays host to the local Meals on Wheels. The multipurpose room houses a daily program for senior citizens. In addition to these on-site ministries, Kitchens and his team of pastors encourage congregation members to participate in local justice and social service organizations. The church gives 25 percent of its annual budget to support these non-profit groups, which include the Campus for Human Development, The Living Room, Safe Haven Family Shelter, Habitat for Humanity, Nashville CARES, and many others. Congregation members also volunteer at the Monroe Harding Children’s Home and the Preston Taylor Ministries.

at calling its members—especially youth—into ordained and lay ministry. Compassion for the neighbor comprises the center of the church’s mission. And anyone can do it. And so Second calls its youth to make real their love of the Gospel, and to live boldly the ideals and values they have learned as members of a truly welcoming congregation. Of course, not everyone gets involved in one of Second’s ministries. What matters, however, is the opportunity to participate. And in this church, opportunities abound. What’s more, those who do get involved serve as a kind of glue that holds the congregation close to its mission: loving the neighbor and proclaiming the Good News. These individuals foster what one congregation member calls a “sleeper effect” in the minds and hearts of Second’s young people. Even those teens who do not consider ministry as a possible career will learn to appreciate and value those who do. And, years later, those same young people might find themselves called back into the church as volunteers, capitalizing on the skills and talents they have cultivated. A CONGREGATION OF CHIEFS

Rev. Kitchens describes Second Presbyterian as a “congregation of chiefs.” This is true in several senses. Though Second is blessed to have many wise and seasoned laypeople who care deeply about the church’s history and its future, over 20 ordained ministers also regularly attend as congregation members. More pastors in the pews means more opportunities for young people to discuss vocational

These outreach efforts are not peripheral to the work of the church. Second Presbyterian embraces the community’s work as its own. Participation in activities that heal and strengthen those in need is not secondary to fulfilling the Gospel. It is the Gospel, embodied daily and daily enacted. This is how Second has become so successful A RULE OF LIFE

choices. It also means more conversations about what it’s like to minister—not only in the broad sense of that word, but also as an ordained pastor. The presence of these 20 ministers at Second Presbyterian reinforces the church’s identity as a calling congregation. Pastor-members provide an invaluable resource to young people who are considering ministerial careers. Teens and young adults are more likely to consider ministry when they are exposed to real ministers, to vibrant and effective forms of ministry, and to others in their peer group who also are considering service to the Church. An informal survey at Second Presbyterian bears this out. Over the last ten years, seven church members, ten Young Adult Volunteers, and six regularly worshipping Vanderbilt University students have gone on to seminary or other theological schools. The leadership structure of Second Presbyterian also encourages young people to consider ministry as a vocational option. From an early age, children and youth are treated as regular members of the congregation, with all the rights and responsibilities thereof. The governance structure of the church, whose formal leadership consists of a 25-member session—elected by both the previous session and the congregation—encourages young people to see themselves as making a difference.

Opportunities for informal mentoring are everywhere. Second’s mentoring ranks includes long-time members, worshiping non-members who lead congregations elsewhere, and the elderly, especially elderly women, whom Kitchens describes as the “radical and saintly” pillars of the congregation. Leaders comprise a key ingredient in Second Presbyterian’s success as a calling congregation, but they are not the only factor. Under Kitchens’ oversight, the church oversees several formation and leadership programs designed especially for youth. Two in particular provide a model for other congregations to follow: the Peaceable Kingdom and the Nashville Epiphany Project. YOUNG SCHOLARS: THE PEACEABLE KINGDOM PROJECT

Peaceable Kingdom is a Sunday morning program for children in elementary school designed for multiple learning styles. Participants enrolled in Peaceable Kingdom spend four to six weeks immersed in the interpretation of a single biblical text. Each week they learn the text in a new way, in a different room, and in a different rotation. The program serves children in their elementary school years, so the curriculum repeats every six years. The goal of Peaceable Kingdom is to teach children to think for themselves—that is, to think creatively and compassionately about how the Bible applies to their lives and the world around them. As Second Presbyterian children move into junior high school and early adolescence, their Sunday morning classes retain the same commitment to critical thinking but become more traditional in structure and format. Rather than following a linear program like Peaceable Kingdom, middle and high school classrooms are organized around specific topics. Children learn about biblical texts, current social issues, and navigating personal relationships. They debate. They argue. They process for themselves rather than assimilating someone else’s doctrine. And—perhaps most importantly—they get involved in the life of the church.

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Children and adolescents at Second Presbyterian participate in every activity and every Sunday service. They do not bide their time or wait for a later date when their opinions or actions might be considered relevant. They serve here and now as “strong workers.” They hold duties in the session. They work with the Room In The Inn outreach program. And in the process, they learn to integrate faith and daily life, a skill that will equip them for a lifetime of faithful ministry.

Any young person who displays gifts for ministry will find supporters waiting and willing to provide help for the journey.

And, since Second Presbyterian partners with such a diverse array of social service agencies, young people can learn about the political, social and religious conflicts of their time simply by paying attention to what their parents and teachers are doing and discussing. By including the younger generation in the intellectual life of the church, Second Presbyterian is raising up compassionate and critically reflective Christians. These are young people who are learning to understand the needs of their city and who do not fear getting involved. They are learning to interpret and live out the Gospel message.

It is true that Second Presbyterian does not have a formal pipeline for funneling young people into ordained ministry. But maybe a pipeline isn’t needed. Kitchens and his team keep watch for any teens who might be good candidates for parish ministry, and they offer support where it’s needed. It also doesn’t hurt that so many of Second Presbyterian’s members have pursued ordination themselves. Their collective wisdom, together with the ongoing guidance of the leadership team, means that any young person at Second Presbyterian who displays gifts for ministry will find a team of supporters waiting: diverse men and women of faith ready and willing to provide help for the journey. YOUNG MINISTERS: THE NASHVILLE EPIPHANY PROJECT

For young adults finishing college, Second Presbyterian offers the Nashville Epiphany Project. One of twenty programs nationwide serving as a means of vocational exploration for recent college graduates considering ministry, each year the Nashville Epiphany Project sends up to four young people to Second Presbyterian to experience ministry firsthand.

Known as Young Adult Volunteers (YAVs), the graduates come to Second Presbyterian from other congregations. They spend a year participating in the life of the church, volunteering at a local social service agency and living in a small dormitory next to the church playground. Seventy-five percent of participants in the Nashville Epiphany Project have gone on to formal ministry or related professions as a career.

How are these young people selected and assigned? Young Adult Volunteers do not blindly choose their congregations; nor are they accepted blindly. Project coordinators carefully place volunteers with congregations and social service agencies that are best able to foster their gifts and skills. As a leadership program, the Nashville Epiphany Project has proven enormously successful. Volunteers play vital roles in their assigned organizations, and in the process they gain new insights into their own calling. Throughout the year-long internship, YAVs learn to appreciate ministry in all its forms, both within and outside the walls of the church. When they leave the project, they come away better equipped to determine whether ordained ministry is their true vocation. Interviews with recent volunteers testify to the effectiveness of the Nashville Epiphany Project—particularly its capacity to call young people into ministerial vocations upon the completion of their year of service. One volunteer, Chasie, spent her internship at the Martha O’Bryan Center, the oldest social service agency with which Second is affiliated. Now located in East Nashville and primarily serving residents of public housing, the Martha O’Bryan Center empowers children, youth and adults in poverty to transform their lives through work, education, employment and fellowship. Chasie has since taken another social services position, clearly the direction she was intent on when entering the Epiphany Project. Another Young Adult Volunteer, Jeff, who at the time of his interview was on the ordination track in the Presbyterian Church, worked with the Campus for Human Development, an outreach center for homeless persons in Nashville. When asked about the role Young Adult Volunteers play in the church, Jeff replied that A RULE OF LIFE

the presence of a YAV serves as a bridge or connection between Second Presbyterian’s charitable contributions to the Campus and the daily relationships that are vital to serving the needs of homeless men and women in the Campus facility. Jeff remains in continued discernment about the Ministry of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church.

“We are the ministry, all of us together, whether we’re in the pulpit or in the pews.”

Volunteer Tara worked for Conexion Americas, where she helped nonEnglish speakers with housing, language barriers and employment. She reported feeling heartened by Second Presbyterian’s understanding of ministry as an activity that can take place outside the sanctuary, or across a larger community. After finishing her term as a volunteer, Tara chose to continue serving Conexion Americas for a second year alongside an incoming volunteer named Leslie. Through an organization called Strangers No Longer, Tara and Leslie are working to create dialogue among faith groups, particularly within Nashville’s growing Hispanic population. Tara plans to attend Vanderbilt Divinity School upon the completion of her service. Leslie’s story similarly testifies to the power of hands-on leadership training to guide young people into a life of ministry. After graduating from the University of North Carolina, she traveled first to Guatemala, where she served in the local presbytery, preaching, leading Bible studies,

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making meals with local Guatemalans and acting as a liaison to visiting church groups. It was in this latter role that she found compelling direction for her future. As liaison, Tara served as the vehicle through which diverse groups were able to meet, tell stories and begin to listen to one another. The opportunity both humbled and enlightened her. She decided to pursue her newfound interest in cross-cultural dialogue through the Young Adult Volunteer Program. In both Guatemala and Nashville, Tara has learned that ministry is not only about action, or “doing right.” It is also about “being”—learning to be in conversation with the other.

Another volunteer, Patrick, worked for Preston Taylor Ministries, a mentoring program for children in public housing. Close to the end of his volunteer year, he preached a sermon at Second Presbyterian. There he observed that for Nashville Epiphany Project participants, as for many members of the church, ministry is the natural outpouring of a life of faith. “The truth is,” he said, “we are the ministry, all of us together, whether we’re in the pulpit or in the pews.” MINISTRY AS RULE OF LIFE

Patrick’s remark underscores Second Presbyterian’s success as a “calling congregation.” While leadership programs

like the Nashville Epiphany Project offer targeted help to those immersed in the work of vocational discernment, the entire history and culture of this church is infused with practices of ministry. From its origins to its recovery after a tragic fire, and on into the present, Second Presbyterian has created opportunities for ordinary Christians to participate in extraordinary acts of service, both within and outside the sanctuary. Every year Rev. Susan Brantley, director of the Nashville Epiphany Project, holds a retreat for her Young Adult Volunteers. And every year she asks participants to write a “rule of life”—something that describes their overriding purpose and mission. As an exercise in discernment, the rule of life helps young people describe and articulate the meaning they have begun to make of their lives. It encourages them to integrate their volunteer-year insights with their faith, their history and the dreams they have for their futures. If Second Presbyterian Church has found a measure of success as a “calling congregation,” it is because the church’s leaders, members and partner organizations value and advocate ministry as both a daily practice and a lifelong aspiration. They teach and model ministry as “doing church, together.” Former volunteer Jeff said it best when he observed in his sermon that a “prophetic congregation” is one in which all acts of service are known and valued through the life and lens of faith.

Questions for Reflection A RULE OF LIFE

1. A fire at Second Presbyterian Church was a catalyst for the congregation to rethink who they are and who they want to be. What catalysts have occurred in your church’s recent history to provide a significant moment for articulating your vision, vocation, or identity? Can you envision a catalyst that might turn you toward more mindful nurturing of call within young people?

2. Through a very deliberate process of education and formation, Second instills in its children not only the Christian faith but also the particularities of living out that faith in ways that are distinctive to Second. How is your church passing on its distinctiveness to the next generation?

3. The large number of ordained ministers sitting in its pews at Second increases the chances that a youth or young adult will get to know someone who is living out a pastoral call. In most churches, though, there is just one clergy person. How does the vocation of the laity and their commitment to living out the fullness of their call on a daily basis have heightened importance to youth growing up in such churches?

A RULE OF LIFE

Leading, Connecting and Serving A Contagious Call at Christ Church by Samantha Hamernik and Stacia M. Brown

INTRODUCTION

There is a popular saying at Christ Episcopal Church in Alexandria, Virginia: “Wherever two or more are gathered, there a ministry is started.”

The people who say this are only partly joking: Christ Church is a busy place. Step into the sanctuary or parish house, both identified as national historic landmarks, and you will discover a mobile and energized community. The parishioners of Christ Church, who include leaders in multiple sectors across Washington, D.C., understand that where ministry is concerned, there is always room for more.

Christ Episcopal Church

Christ Church is also a calling congregation. Over the years many gifted young

Alexandria, Virginia

people have emerged from its pews to fill ordained and lay ministry positions in

www.historicchristchurch.org

the Episcopal Church.

What makes this congregation’s call so effective?

First, Christ Church is engaged in leading. The congregation boasts a rich history of leaders and constantly hums with ministries created by entrepreneurial laypeople. Second, Christ Church is engaged in connecting. Though its numbers are many—over 2,400 communicants at last count—this is a congregation that believes in one-on-one relationships, in time spent listening to and learning one another’s stories. Finally, Christ Church is engaged in service. Lay and ordained members alike pour their energies into solving local and global problems. Their influence is widereaching. A young person fortunate enough to attend this church will spend his or her formative years in the company of skilled and generous leaders who work as Christ’s witnesses in the world. Their compassion is contagious.

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ENGAGED IN LEADING

Founded two years before the Revolutionary War, Christ Episcopal Church stands as a landmark in American political and religious history. George Washington worshipped here—and possibly served on the vestry. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt attended services with Winston Churchill on the World Day of Prayer in 1942. Today docents lead daily tours of the property, explaining Christ Church’s venerated tradition of civic responsibility. The church’s motto is “A Historic Church, A Living Congregation.” At Christ Church, leadership matters. A spirit of civic involvement continues to shape and inspire new generations. Six full-time clergy serve on a staff of twentyseven. Most members of the church are in management professions in the service sector, and some hold powerful roles in Washington. Every Sunday the pews are filled primarily with middle- to upper-class families. The cultural and geographical location of the church has helped create a vibrant network of lay involvement and leadership. For those interested in testing the waters of ministry as a vocation, opportunities to practice ministry abound. People do not come to Christ Church to wait for a clergy-person to run programs for them. They come to start programs themselves. Through a structure of shared leadership with

the full-time staff, the congregation commissions laypeople to serve in a variety of roles. This focus on lay leadership has a foundation in the Book of Common Prayer, which promotes the priesthood of all believers. The collective sense of entrepreneurship is not lost on the congregation’s youth. Members as young as 6th grade have started their own ministries. One young woman came up with the idea of a group for pre-teens, and, with the help of a staff member, her plan has become a reality. Another started a teen lay readers group. Still others have developed a ministry with a community in Jamaica. Throughout the history of Christ Church, strong lay and ordained leadership has made it possible for members to engage in ministry before they even have finished high school. ENGAGED IN CONNECTING

Everywhere they turn, young people who attend Christ Church see models of leadership in action. But examples amount to little if they are not accompanied by one-on-one relationships. These take time. Christ Church is a successful “calling congregation” because it maintains a broad and supportive social fabric that makes real relationships—and real mentoring—possible. Cultivating these connections is harder than it looks. Large churches in big cities can be highly impersonal.

Committing to relationships poses particular challenges in Alexandria, whose heavy concentration of military, government and media professionals makes the city a highly transient community. One staff member estimates that the church loses and replaces 30 percent of its members every four or five years. The election of a new president can cause significant job turnover among the parish laity. At the same time, the presence of these sectors—as well as numerous national non-profit headquarters—offers some advantages. Church members do not take their community of faith for granted. They understand what is required to build genuine relationships within a limited time frame. Clergy and laity alike make an extra effort to connect with visitors and with one each other. Together, they strive for deeper intimacy and mutual accountability. And, in the process, they mentor gifted youth into ministry. How do they do this? One strategy involves the inclusion of “journey stories” at the beginning of each service. As part of an intentional effort to strengthen relationships in the parish, over the last few years clergy and parishioners have begun sharing their personal stories during worship and the Sunday School hour. Says Rector Pierce Klemmt, “We hear moving, funny, tragic, and deeply felt…journeys that brought people to the Christ Church family.” Some stories find their way into the church’s newsletter. A note in the worship bulletin describes their theological significance: We, the people of God, are part of God’s ongoing story of redemption. As God’s people, our lives, our struggles and our triumphs, our joys and sorrows, our own personal experiences of dyings and risings through life’s journey, all these become part of the redeeming story that God is making known . . . The sharing of our journey stories will help to remind us that God is not just the God of the past but is a living God who is active even now. The sharing of journey stories builds connections among members. So also does Christ Church’s commitment to religious education. The congregation has seen a renewed interest and emphasis in spiritual formation for all ages over the last few years. New programs are constantly taking shape. Not long ago, the church leadership created a new full-time staff position: Associate Rector for Family and Student Ministries. The new role allows more inclusive care and attention to families with children and teens. 36

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The decision to create this full-time position for youth ministry emerged, in part, from high turnover rates among previous youth pastors, which in turn caused participation in the youth group to fluctuate dramatically. While the new role is still being shaped, the long-term hopes for this position are high. A more stable youth leadership structure will allow for more stable relationships—and better opportunities for mentoring—across early, middle and late adolescence. The new associate rector is aware of, and intentional about, serving as a clergy presence at youth events and is working hard to foster deep relationships among teens and their mentors.

on their journeys of faith.

Strong leadership has made it possible for members to engage in ministry before they even have finished high school.

Young people are not the only ones to benefit from relationships that encourage vocational discernment. Christ Church also builds mentoring connections with adults who are interested in exploring their own lifequestions. One parish program, Foundations for Spiritual Leadership, draws support from Lilly Endowment to bring clergy residents to Christ Church for two-year internships. Similar in structure to a medical residency program, Foundations allows new clergy to practice and hone their ministry within a supportive teaching congregation. Staff and congregation members alike build “ministry support teams” to connect with their new residents. Laypeople who serve on the support teams report significant benefits from the process, for themselves as well as the residents. Several say that discussions with clergy residents opened the door to their own exploration of seminary and the ministry. One even confesses to feeling a little bit jealous of the clear vocational direction exhibited by these young visiting priests! The culture of call, it seems, is infectious. ENGAGED IN SERVING

A church body that is engaged in connecting its members more deeply with one another and the world is inevitably engaged in service. Christ Church’s mission statement suggests that quality relationships go hand-in-hand with the empowerment of believers for service: Christ Church embodies God’s unbounded love by embracing, liberating, and empowering people, whoever they are and wherever they find themselves

If Christ Church succeeds as a “calling congregation,” this accomplishment derives, at least in part, from its extraordinary level of involvement in struggles of contemporary and cultural consequence. This is a social justice church. More than 70 programs, outreach efforts, groups and committees function as a “lived theology.” As one member puts it, “the ministries of Christ Church offer people room to follow their hearts.” In the process, these programs invite participants to consider or reconsider their own vocational choices.

Christ Church uses a “time and talents” survey to collect information from members and newcomers on the types of ministry in which they might like to participate. The current survey offers 66 different options, and it asks the following questions: “If time, money and the fear of failure were not issues, what would you love to do for God’s kingdom? What experiences have you had that would help you minister to people?” Staff members who process these surveys take care to follow up with those who express an interest. They recognize the courage and time it takes to volunteer. One parishioner equated this aspect of parish life to an innovative and exciting corporation, where everyone has the chance to become actively engaged in work that really matters. Ministry at Christ Church takes place both locally and globally. Congregation members distinguish between “mission,” which has a global focus, and “outreach,” which is local. Global projects range from the Children of Chernobyl to the Holy Land Ministries and missions to the Sudan. Local projects include Meals on Wheels, Habitat for Humanity, St. Clement’s Hypothermia Shelter and many more. All projects share a common goal. Both global and local programs help church members to live out their baptismal covenant and to proclaim the good news, by word and by example. Rev. Klemmt points out the importance of these activities to the identity of Christ Church as a “calling congregation.” He says, “We are a sent community. Sunday in and Sunday out we are strengthened by worship, prayer and learning, but ultimately we are sent to serve.” LEADING, CONNECTING AND SERVING

Two ministries nearest and dearest to the hearts of many parishioners are Lazarus Ministries and ALIVE! (ALexandrians InVolved Ecumenically). Lazarus Ministries, held on church property, provides walk-in services twice a week to low-income and homeless persons in the neighborhood. Recently, clergy residents developed a prayer service before the start of the program, open to participants as well as volunteers. ALIVE! is a nonprofit that coordinates food donations and provides over 10,000 Alexandrians annually with shelter, low-cost early childhood education and childcare. In concert with other local organizations, ALIVE! also offers financial help for rent, utilities, medical care, emergency food, and donated furniture and household wares. In these and many other ways, Christ Church members immerse themselves in acts of service. Both global mission and local outreach make it possible for this congregation to excel at leadership development, social justice and spiritual formation. HOME-GROWN MINISTERS

Christ Church sends an impressive number of its youth and young adults on to lay and ordained Episcopal leadership. Some are born and raised in the congregation; others come to Christ Church in college or later. How do these groups of young people make sense of the

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congregationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role in their significant life decisions? Young adults who join Christ Church shortly after college and, within a few years, make the decision to attend seminary, see their new church as the spark that ignited a latent passion for ministry. Those interviewed for this study explain that they felt a vague or undefined sense of call early in their lives but did not explore it fully until arriving at Christ Church. Joining this parish changed everything. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My call is being focused and solidified here,â&#x20AC;? one young seminarian explains. Others have accepted lay staff positions, which serve as a stepping-stone to ordained ministry. As staff members, they are learning the nuts and bolts of church administration. They find mentors among the full-time clergy and learn to develop their own style of religious leadership. And their influence at Christ Church is growing. Indeed, the number of young adults in this congregation who experience and respond to a sense of call might be even higher if not for the competing demands on their twenty-something lives. More than a few parishioners have admitted that if time, money and fear of failure were not issues, they, too, would like to pursue the priesthood. Young people born and raised in Christ Church have a slightly different story, one that has seen them saying goodbye to their home church in order to train and assume

leadership roles at other parishes. These “home-grown” ministers have benefited from clergy and staff who took the time to speak with them and encourage them as teens to consider ministry. Staff members “are intentional about helping people,” says one of these young adults, “[and about] nudging and planting the seed.” Young people who grow up as members of Christ Church are challenged to take seriously the call to discipleship. When asked what characteristics he looks for in a ministry candidate, Rev. Klemmt says he looks for natural leaders and diehard lovers of the Church:

“I gave the sermon my senior year. And after that I was standing outside greeting people, [and] no joke, a dozen or so people came up to me and said, ‘So, where are you going to seminary?’ I didn’t know what seminary was. I didn’t know what they were talking about. I had absolutely no clue. I said, ‘You don’t understand, I’m going to the College of William and Mary. I am going to college.’ I didn’t think anything more of it at the time, but about two years later I started to think, ‘Oh my gosh, they saw something that I didn’t even understand at the time’ . . . I don’t know how long they knew, but I feel like they were involved a long time before I had any idea what was going on.”

We are strengthened by worship, prayer and learning, but ultimately we are sent to serve.

“They are the ones we try to cultivate, write letters to, invite to things at the church, and put in positions of leadership. The characteristics of those kids that we begin to notice are that they are able to mobilize people toward a common effort or goal. Typically, they are very well-read and bright. Publicly, they can connect to people. That kind of puts you at the head of the pack. They seem to be decisive, welldifferentiated and well-balanced, but most of all we see them involved in our outreach and mission ministries at a younger than expected age, so there is something going on inside of them about the justice of God. They seem to be around the church a lot. Their parents seem to foster laying good foundations for church involvement. These are the same kids that are leaders in school and community life.” The Associate Rector for Family and Student Ministries, Matthew Cowden, uses humor to prompt young people to think about ministry. He sees this as a non-threatening way to plant the idea in someone’s head. “On the one hand, it’s a safe joke that a fifteen-year-old old can pass up, but it’s also something that can really soak into a child,” he says. Both formal and lighthearted nudges toward ministry can have a cumulative effect. Beth, a home-grown postulant (the first canonical stage of the Episcopal ordination process) now in her second year of seminary, says that what mattered most for her discernment process was being taken seriously by clergy and congregational leaders. The support of the rector, in particular, she says, has been “a huge gift.” So is the encouragement of friends and family members. And she says that an ordained minister is not the only one who can cast light on a young person’s call to ministry:

The support Beth received at Christ Church encouraged her to get involved as a student at the diocesan level. She participated in the Parish Youth Ministries committee for the Diocese of Virginia, where once a month the youth of the committee met to plan retreats and events. Very quickly, Beth’s cohorts on the committee became her closest friends. She felt safe and free to let her true personality shine through. She is, in her words, an unabashed “church nerd.” Had she not been raised in a community like Christ Church, who knows how long it might have taken her to claim the church as what she loves and to take such pride in these convictions? KIDS WHO “HANG AROUND CHURCH”

Many factors contribute to Christ Episcopal Church’s success as a calling congregation. The church is a vibrant and healthy community—busy leading, busy connecting and busy serving. In such an environment, individuals with a latent curiosity about ministry are bound to find a helpful conversation partner. It only takes one person to plant the idea. From there, young people need a strong relational network of support that enables them to imagine and then to practice becoming ministry leaders themselves. Christ Church’s unique, highly diffuse leadership structure, which honors the contributions of clergy and laity alike, is also significant. A young adult who has worked in frustratingly hierarchical business models may find this environment to be just what he or she is looking for in a LEADING, CONNECTING AND SERVING

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career. The relational atmosphere provides a safe place for community members to ponder questions about faith and the future. One young person interviewed puts the matter this way:

Questions for Reflection LEADING, CONNECTING AND SERVING

“I started to recognize that there was something different about the church community that I wasn’t feeling at school or anywhere else. It was kind of a genuine depth, is the best way to describe it. I felt very safe and very comfortable asking those questions [in a way that] I might not have done elsewhere . . . I just started hanging out around church a lot. Any lecture, anything like that, we would always show up, or I would always show up just to find out what was going on to be able to know more and to ask questions.” In the end, it is these youth—those who “just started hanging around church a lot”—who have given Christ Church its reputation as a “calling congregation.” These are the young people who seek out conversations that matter. These are the students who thrive when invited to lead, and who can find no greater purpose than to serve the body of Christ, whether as priests or as lay leaders seeking social justice.

1. Inviting people to tell stories of their faith journeys in worship is one practical way Christ Church opens a path for young people to envision their own emerging stories. Re-read the church’s theological rationale for including these stories. Do you agree or disagree? Would your church be a welcoming place for such stories to be spoken out loud?

2. Christ Church asks its members “If time, money and the fear of failure were not issues, what would you love to do for God’s Kingdom?” Answers to this imaginative question become data for the pastoral team as it seeks to engage people in life-giving ministries that grow out of their own deep hopes. What might surface if you asked this question regularly—beginning with yourself—in your congregation?

When asked where she sees God at work in the world today, postulant Beth points to her denomination: “One of my favorite things about the Episcopal Church is the freedom we are given to engage in dialogue. The church has always been a place for me to discuss worldly matters while grounded in my faith . . . I believe it is through this dialogue that our faith-based reactions permeate society.” What she says about the Episcopal Church serves as a fitting summation of how she also feels about her home church, Christ Episcopal, that bustling congregation which called her—and loved her—into ministry.

3. The ministry internships at Christ Church are modeled after residency programs in the medical profession. Recent seminary graduates have a chance to engage in ministry while their vocational understandings are still emerging and lay people serve as valuable conversation partners. What are the internship possibilities at your church? How might an internship be transformative both for the student and the congregation?

LEADING, CONNECTING AND SERVING

Contributors

Stacia M. Brown (A Rule of Life, p. 26; Leading, Connecting and Serving, p. 34) is a writer with graduate degrees in religion and historical theology from Emory University. Charisse Brown Gillett (Inviting and Mentoring, p. 14) is the program director for the Lilly Project at Transylvania University, an initiative that facilitates theological exploration of vocation with students, staff, faculty, clergy and lay leaders. Samantha Hamernik (Leading, Connecting and Serving, p. 34) is member of Second Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and an ordained elder. She serves on the session at Second and is an alumna of the Nashville Epiphany Project, a year-long volunteer program sponsored by the congregation. Enuma Okoro (Regular and Remarkable, p. 6) is the former director of the Center for Theological Writing at Duke University. She is currently the director for communications at Methodist Home for Children in Raleigh, North Carolina, and a member of All Saints United Methodist Church in Brier Creek, North Carolina. Graham Reside (Regular and Remarkable, p. 6) is a former regional director for Calling Congregations at The Fund for Theological Education. He is now assistant professor of divinity at Vanderbilt University Divinity School and the executive director of the Cal Turner Center for Moral Leadership in the Professions at Vanderbilt University. Joel Thomas (A Rule of Life, p. 26) graduated in 2007 from Vanderbilt Divinity School. He currently directs a program for elementary school students through the YMCA in Brentwood, Tennessee, and is preparing to pursue additional course work in school counseling.

Photo credit: Allison Shirreffs (cover, pp. 4, 7, 15, 18, 19, 24, 40)

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About The Fund for Theological Education

The Fund for Theological Education (FTE) is a leading, ecumenical advocate for excellence and diversity in pastoral ministry and theological scholarship. FTE supports the next generation of leaders among pastors and scholars, annually providing more than $1.5 million in fellowships and a network of support to gifted young people from all denominations and racial/ethnic backgrounds. FTE also serves as a resource for congregations and for educational and faith communities in their role of identifying and encouraging young people to consider vocations in ministry and teaching. Since 1954, the Fund has awarded nearly 6,000 fellowships in partnership with others committed to the future of quality leadership for the church. FTE offers fellowships for undergraduates exploring ministry, for seminary students and for doctoral students from underrepresented racial/ethnic backgrounds pursuing degrees in religion, biblical studies and theology. This series of congregational profiles is one of the learning tools offered through FTEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Calling Congregations initiativeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a national, ecumenical effort to encourage and equip churches to play a leading role in the vocational discernment of young men and women. Its goal is to increase the number of gifted young people who are considering ordained ministry as a profession. In addition to this publication, FTE provides the following opportunities and resources for congregations: Workshops, consultations and other learning events on vocation and the call to ministry An annual, ecumenical conference for pastors and lay leaders Coaching and program assistance with specific, vocation-nurturing habits and practices Grants for congregational initiatives Matching grants to enhance a congregationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s financial support of individual seminary students An online journal (Calling) and other print resources For more information about FTE and its programs, please visit www.thefund.org.