We must get over our denominational depression. The Lord has work for us to do on behalf of the Kingdom of God. Since the reunion of the Presbyterian Church in the United States and the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America in 1983, we have lamented losses, both perceived and real. While many blame membership losses on the denominational merger, it must be noted that both denominations began losing membership in the early 1970s, years before reunion in 1983.
There are two significant conclusions that emerge in my thinking in this data: Our 1983 reunion is not the primary reason for the PC(USA) membership decline; and during the same period, other traditional institutions were experiencing decline in both significance and effectiveness. For example, public education has struggled with emerging technologies and changing communities. In addition, redlining of transportation and jobs eliminated many inner city employment opportunities. Communities and ways of life have been impacted along with the historic institutions that served them. We are still faced with ongoing change regarding privatized education, emerging technologies and heightened social issues within families that are impacting whole communities of people.
It is amazing for me to witness congregations that were once vibrant and in communities of affluence that are now surrounded by dire poverty as members are aging and people who once occupied the surrounding neighborhoods are no longer living near the church building. As church members move out of the community and become older, congregations are required to provide transportation, experience sporadic church attendance, conduct more funerals, make more home and hospital visits and evangelize other communities of people who may not represent the socio-economic background that the church has historically encountered. Furthermore, the new evangelism field represented by the changing community around the church may not even have any familiarity with the PC(USA). I submit that over the years, these challenges have created an internal depression among our congregations and their leaders.
Time for an internal revival
As the PC(USA) membership decline continues to be a measurement of our success both within our denomination and among critics, let me suggest that the stage is set for an internal spiritual revival. The call for us in this present age is to discover new and innovative ways to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. The great commission that Jesus shared with his disciples recorded in Matthew 28 is still applicable today.
We have experimented with successful models of ministry, neatly packaged programs, standard worship rituals, innovative styles of leadership and “flash in the pan” theology. However, our current age calls for a depth-filled and innovative theological application of Jesus’ love ethic. “Church gimmickry,” although enticing to some, is not the way of Jesus. We must bring both substance and an ever-reforming ministry of love to the complex and difficult challenges of ministry in this period of history. As a matter of biblical calling, this has always been the gospel mandate. Gone are the days when Presbyterian elitism represented the growing edge of our denomination. It is our relevance through engaging the contextual realities of our community and people that will make us significant in this era.
Our willingness to try, fail and try something new of substance again in an effort to address the contextual demands of our communities will be the key to our significance and growth in the 21st century. Failure should not be feared, but instead should offer us the impetus and courage to press on with a new understanding. We may never become a four million-member denomination again given the current landscape of religious diversity in the United States. However, we can become a significant contributor to the transformation needed to regain a sense of the relevance through Jesus’ call to be transformers of the current realities.
I witnessed a tentmaking pastor whose Presbyterian new church development is a mobile ministry that evangelizes the poor. His congregation is vibrant and transient. It is interesting to note that this ministry has had residence in a hotel located in a low-income neighborhood, a bar and now in a large church building that is renting space to other congregations. This Presbyterian congregation is one of several who rent space in this multicultural nesting church arrangement.
Another Presbyterian congregation I encountered during my travels is using its large facility as a place where artists who design murals do their painting and art. This mural ministry brings people together while allowing the church to focus its ministry on a specific community of people who see their mural design on buildings as a ministry to beautify the community. This mural project has become significant to more than those who create them. Contracts are even being offered to beautify public buildings.
So, I am not suggesting that we “dumb down” the church as we have attempted to do in some instances. I am suggesting that ministry is taking all types of forms today in an effort to reach people with the love of Jesus. We must stretch our sense of imagination as to how we can be effective agents of meeting the contextual needs of people while celebrating the love of Jesus.
The stage is already set – We must walk in the work we have already done
Our transformation will be the call for greater reformation in the PC(USA). Over the past 34 years we have encountered the pains of reformation. These pains have caused some to leave, but also pressed others to come seeking and even more to stay in the PC(USA) fold. Struggles over the theology emerging in both the church and society pushed us to make decisions while rethinking ordination, marriage, governance, justice policies and a host of other controversial issues. How we view the challenges of change in our denomination is important. Are these difficult moments setting the tone for a vibrant and vital engagement with the current realities of our time? Do we witness these changes as a preparatory ground upon which we can engage the new realities of our existence as a people who live in a changing world that is transitioning from what we used to know?
Let us be reminded that this is not the first time the world has changed. Presbyterians have long embraced change. After World War II the Presbyterian Church offered support for post-war refugees. I have been privileged to meet some family members who reflect on the gift of our post-war Presbyterian engagement with refugee issues. These are members of our denomination who are thankful that our doors were open upon their arrival and that the church hosted them during the post-war transition. Similarly, I have heard the testimony of parents who are grateful that their gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered adult children have returned to the PC(USA) in which they were baptized, which is a result of our long and difficult struggles over their inclusion within the denomination.
And now, it is gratifying to witness our engagement with issues of race and white privilege while recognizing that we must become a more racially diverse denomination in order to grow both spiritually and numerically into the future. We must embrace the difficult theological and practical stances that can serve to advance the work of faith. We have prepared the groundwork for growing the church and building the Kingdom of God with God’s help. However, we must be diligent in “pressing on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).
J. Herbert Nelson II is stated clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
J. Herbert Nelson suggests reading “Faithful Resistance: Gospel Visions for the Church in a Time of Empire” by Rick Ufford-Chase and Carol Howard Merritt.
