St. Paul's Episcopal Church

St. Paul's Episcopal Church
425 Cleveland Ave SW
Canton, Ohio 44702
Phone: 330-455-0286
Fax: 330-455-9818
E-mail: office@stpaulscanton.org

Fifth Sunday of Pentecost
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Canton OH
Mark 6:1-13

July 5, 2009
The Rev. Barbara L Bond

What is the difference in a church and a shopping mall?

I had to ask myself this when I visited a mega-church near Chicago, because this huge structure, with valet parking, also had a food court and a book store and a bowling alley. The worship service featured an entertaining play about domestic situations, the rock band was very professional, and the sermon was delivered with folksy charm. I sat with about 5000 other folks consuming the offerings. In many ways I could not tell the difference between this church’s life and the consumer society it represented.

What is the difference in a church and a country club?

I’ve never belonged to a country club, so this is pretentious of me to ask, but I imagine a country club is somewhat exclusive because of the financial cost of membership; and I imagine that the activities are pleasant and high class; and that they attract people with the same interests. It is all very nice and comfortable, and not challenging to the member’s lifestyle or beliefs.

I’ve been mulling these ideas over in my mind because of the Gospel reading today, and because of our latest report from Natural Church Development. At the end of May, many of you were kind enough to participate in two surveys. The first was the official Natural Church Development survey, which asked you subjective questions about your life in this parish. The second survey was a little questionnaire, asking for input about your interests and activities. When the results came back from Natural Church Development, we scored lowest on “Holistic Small Groups.” That is where we need to do more work in our growth process. And the other survey revealed that most of all, we wanted to watch movies and hear lectures. Put these two together, and we have our answer, right? Form small groups to watch movies and hear lectures?

I don’t think so. Then we would have other questions: What is the difference in a church and a movie theatre? What is the difference in a church and a lecture hall?

The difference is in that funny word, “holistic.” It refers to the whole person, in mind, body, and spirit. The whole person is not a mindless consumer, but is one seeking spiritual connection. The whole person is not just seeking entertainment, or comfortable like-minded surroundings, but rather someone looking for a leaner path.

Jesus was talking about that in today’s Gospel. He had just suffered a pretty awful setback at home – he spoke at the synagogue, fresh from performing major miracles in the countryside, and his family and friends smirked and wondered, “What’s the big deal?” We don’t know what he preached that day, but apparently it didn’t go down well. So Jesus said, fine, we’ll take the message elsewhere. And he sent out his disciples in a stripped-down fashion. They took no comfort with them, no soft shoes or the comforts of their accustomed surroundings. No, Jesus sent them out with nothing. Get out the message, pure and simple, and if people in one place don’t want to hear it, then keep moving. Don’t get too comfortable. Our mission is too important.

So – I’m thinking about Jesus’ recommendation to be focused on the Kingdom of God, and I’m thinking about our next topic, Holistic Small Groups.

We have little groups popping up spontaneously in our parish family right now. Some opera fans answered my call to see the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts together. Some of our men gathered together for fellowship and a baseball game. Some folks interested in weight loss are gathering next week. All of this is wonderful, enlarging our avenues of fun, fellowship, and mutual support. Let’s do it!

But is it holistic? Does it embrace the whole person, and does it further the Kingdom of God? Jesus calls us to keep our eye on the path, to look further down the road, to remember we are a church, not a shopping mall or a country club.

How can we take these wonderful spontaneous groupings, and encourage them to be church? I have two suggestions.

One, whatever group is gathering, for whatever purpose, always begin the meeting with a prayer. Today, in our Prayers of the People, you will be invited to pray a special prayer for Holistic Small Groups. Use that prayer, or another, but the simple act of prayer redefines a group right from the beginning.

And my second suggestion is to have a mission, a goal outside yourselves, right from the beginning. For instance, our weight loss group might contract to provide healthier snacks for coffee hour. Our opera group might provide tickets for those who can’t afford to go. Our children are leading the way, actually: the Sunday School class decided last year to raise funds for Heifer International, to help poverty-stricken villages in the Third World.

As we enjoy our time together, let us never forget why we gather, and in whose name we go forth. AMEN