Language can exclude as well; it's very easy for someone who does not "speak the lingo" to feel put off by a religious setting that barricades them unless they know the terms and protocol.
Pastor Chad
· 1 year ago
This is a very good reminder about what we are doing with Jesus. It makes me wonder if our desire to fill our churches is such a good thing. There was a church I knew that consciously maintained two morning services (even though one would fit the congregation) because then they would have room for others. This did not provide the kind of energy that a full service would provide, but they were committed to it none-the-less.
I am not saying that this should be done, but since people often encounter Jesus through their friends or others they get to know personally, does a huge crowd of people help them see Jesus, or does it hide him?
TomDuregger
· 1 year ago
Regarding women in leadership. It would do us good to re-think the whole concept of "what is the leadership that our Lord desires to see in His Body?" Much of the frustration which is expereinced by women and men in church gatherings stems from "the right to speak (minister), to do the verbal one anothering in the ecclesia. This ministering by men as well as by women is quenched and supressed, when only the hired, chosen, or approved ones are allowed to speak. The idea that one must pass through the many man-made hurdles, just to share or pray out loud in the church is the main problem here, simply put, the right to minister in the gathering of the saints. It is the gross denial of the "priesthood of all believers" which is in play here. Many want to become elders or the "head" elder in order to merely gain the right to speak (there is nothing Biblical about this practice). This should never have become an avenue to "the right to speak". If the Biblical requirements for the office of Elder were held in high regard, that is, adhered to, few would be clamoring for this most holy office (one must become a servant-leader who guards against sin and helps others grow to the point of being able aslo to "feed the sheep"). Instead, among those who understood it would be busy gaining the requried qualifications,or qualities, which can take, decades, such as producing adult children who are solidly in the Faith. To desire the office of an Elder, is a noble thing, but a thing that few will truly accomplish in this present culture because, it seems that, most think that becoming an elder is about winning a popularity contest of ones peers, which is the farthest thing from the truth. I would like to see the women in leadership topic morph into a men and women in ministry (able to share, speak, use their gifts, their voices) issue. As we more just meet in homes, ditchingt the a Basilica heirarchy structure, and begin to openly mininister to one another we eill begin to get releif from these sorts of anxieties, I am convinced.
All Comments
I am not saying that this should be done, but since people often encounter Jesus through their friends or others they get to know personally, does a huge crowd of people help them see Jesus, or does it hide him?