A "Traditionalist"...

I had a coffee meeting at The Well this morning with my friend, Jd Bowman, who is the assistant theatre professor over at my alma mater #2, McPherson College. We were discussing details for their upcoming production of "Grease." As we talked our conversation moved on to family and life.

We both grew up in "conservative" families, yet knew the term "conservative" probably wouldn't best describe us (I mean, come on - I'm a charismatic, Anglican-rite priest. That is an oxymoron to more than one person! :) ) Jd gave me a great term: "traditionalist."

I realized that was a great fit. Although "tradition" seems rather old-fashioned to many, or conjures up images of Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, it is such a strong, pregnant term.

Quoting Laurence Hull Stookey's book Eucharist: Christ's Feast with the Church, "Our word tradition, so often used with a sneer as being negative, is derived from the Latin traditio, which literally means 'handing on, delivering.'" This is what St. Paul referred to in 1st Cor. 11:23 saying that he handed on to us what he received from Jesus.

Being a traditionalist means I value the values, thoughts, and customs handed down to me and desire to hand them down to the younger generation, be they my college students or children.

What have we received from previous generations and what are we handing on to the next?

Things to ponder...

Electronic "disciples"

A good friend of mine has been trying to convince me to get a Twitter account. I decided to start the process today. This got me thinking about the terms used for people in electronic social networks.

In some blogs they are called "subscribers."
On facebook they are called "friends."
On Twitter (and some blogs) they are called "followers."

Aston Kutcher, as of 5:12p CST, on 26 Oct. 2010, has 5,967,996 "followers."

It has caused me to think of who or what I am following. Where am I spending my time? I will confess (and my wife and bosses will confirm) I am, at present, not the most organized person. My focus can shift as I think of tasks that need to be finished, meetings that need to happen, and blog posts which need to be written so I feel like I'm "keeping up with it."

St. Paul wrote "Follow me as I follow Christ."

And, in the words of Little Peggy March, "I Will Follow Him." :)

Leading by the Holy Spirit and French Press Coffee

Last Friday I had the privilege of facilitating a session at my national Communion's annual conference. The session I was asked to facilitate was entitled "Lead by the Holy Spirit."

Before I began my session people were milling about the room on the mid-morning break. I was scurrying around setting three places at a cafe table positioned at the front of the room. Featured was a plate of pumpkin bread and brownies and a French Press coffee maker.

I asked for two volunteers to join me at the table. I began to make the coffee and explained to the group in the session that my context of leadership would be different than most of theirs, however the application would be very similar. At the end of the steeping time, we pressed the coffee and had a sip. Had my 2 volunteers note the aroma and flavor of the coffee.

Then I had them take a bite of the pumpkin bread, followed by a sip of the coffee. This was followed by another sip of coffee to "cleanse the palate," then the same steps were repeated for the brownie. I asked them if they noticed a difference in the flavor of the coffee. They both responded the coffee was subtley accented in a different way by the food which preceded the sip.

I looked at the gathering of clergy and lay people and said, "This is a life of leading by the Holy Spirit - it is rife with subtleties." When many people talk about living, and leading, by the Holy Spirit they think about mighty, blatant, and outward signs and words. The reality, which many people realize further, is, much like Elijah, found in the whisper - the still, small voice. It is, as Dr. Leonard Sweet's latest book is entitled, the "nudge."

Oh, Lord, may I be sensitive to your holy whisper, to the gentle nudgings of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Praxis...

The late Dr. Ray S. Anderson writes in his book The Soul of Ministry about praxis as an action of the Spirit of God.

He starts with a definition of poiesis, "an action [which] produces a result, like a carpenter constructing a cabinet..." (p26) He goes on to state, "The end product completes the action regardless of what the future use may be of the product. This future use or purpose...called a telos (the "ultimate purpose" - RM), does not enter into the proces of making something..." (p26)

The other action he defines is praxis. This, Anderson says, "goes beyond merely producing a product according to a design." (p27) He states,

"With praxis, the telos, or ultimate purpose and value of an action, becomes part of the action. While the design serves to orient the action toward its goal, the ultimate purpose, or telos, informs the action so as to correct the design, if necessary, in order to realize the ultimate purpose. One involved in praxis, therefore, is not only accountable to implement the design with skill, but to discover the telos through discernment." (p27)

Thus, our lives, lived under the influence of the Holy Spirit, become praxis in the hands of God. The telos of our lives is part of the action. This can be seen in the "Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi," asking God to "make us an instrument of [His] peace."

Note what Anderson says again: "One involved in praxis, therfore is not only accountable to implement the design with skill, but to discover the telos through discernment." (p27) We have a responsibility, a part to play, in the writing of our lives. We are to discover, via discernment by the Holy Spirit, the ultimate purpose, and implement that into our lives with skill!

This is not a half-baked idea - this is a purposeful design from a purposeful Creator. And, if we get off the path, it is comforting to know "the ultimate purpose...informs the action so as to correct the design, if necessary, in order to realize the ultimate purpose." (p27)

May we engage and infuse the telos of our lives into our everyday actions.

Anderson, Ray S. The Soul of Ministry: Forming Leaders for God's People.