Urban Ekklesia

House Church. Urban Church. Organic Church. Multicultural Church. Simple Church. This is a space created for both humble and passionate reflection on the missional, emerging church in urban North America.

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Location: Bronx, New York, United States

A space for thinking out loud and inviting others to join the refining process. Justice, mission, politics, the city. Everything is connected. Theology is life.

Thursday, September 29, 2005

Our Chapter in History

Christendom is dying.
What is Christendom? It is a version of Christianity that is institutional, hierarchical, territorial, and central. Christendom began when Emperor Constantine made Christianity a state religion in 325 A.D. Prior to the emperor’s involvement, Christianity had been a movement, largely home-based, subversive, persecuted, mission-oriented, and apparently pacifist. 325 A.D. historically marks the dusk of what we call the historical period of the early church, and the dawn of the institution of Christendom. The church shifted from being a grassroots movement of Christ’s followers to a religious institution.

Of course, throughout history God has always raised up prophets, reformers, and evangelists to do His work — even during very dark times. Francis of Assisi radically broke with tradition and expectations in the early 1200’s to devote himself to serving the poor and the dying. John Wesley was used to spark a revival movement in the 1700’s by forming small group fellowships that met outside of the church walls. And doctrinal reforms were made by such groups as the Anabaptist movement who were the first to revive the forgotten New Testament practice of baptism immersing under water when a person believes. There have always been those who God has used to reform and to renew His body.

The 16th century marks a significant change in church history. In the 1520’s Martin Luther sparked what became known as the Protestant Reformation. Even though it resulted in the division between Catholic and Protestant, it was originally an attempt to reform the church from within. The Protestant Reformation worked to reform a number of doctrines and corruption in the church at that time. However, Protestant churches continued, for the most part, to be institutional, hierarchical, territorial, central and in partnership with the State.

Today, Christendom is dying. While God’s church is actually growing worldwide like never before, Christendom as a dominant religious institution is in decline in the West. In parts of Western Europe — once the center of Christendom — there are people that have never heard the Gospel. The Christian population of England today is less than 5%. According to research findings, during the last 5+ years attendance in traditional churches in the U.S. has been in a free-fall. The number of those not attending church in the U.S. has doubled in one decade. At the same time researcher, George Barna, claims that the current house church movement is the fastest growing expression of church in the U.S. Several missions researchers have learned that literally thousands of new believers become Christians everyday in China, India, the Middle East and other parts of the world. Christ’s church continues to expand at a pace unmatched by any other period in history.

Christendom is dying, and most people are unaware. Pictures of mega churches in the U.S. do not actually reflect the reality being realized by numerous Christian researchers, and these efforts do not seem to be effecting real change as studies on church growth indicate that much of their increase is the result of church shopping rather than outreach.

While many church planting movements are rediscovering the power of God’s Spirit in their midst, the institution of Christendom in the West is increasingly shrinking. And it is probably one of the best things that could happen to the church! It may yet force us to be a missionary people again. It raises the awareness of the need for reform. It forces church to once again be a community of faith and devotion to Christ rather than a service to go to. It calls us to recognize that the Gospel is counter-cultural. God’s people in this society are back where the Lord has always done His best work — on the margins and against the flow. You see, the Kingdom of God is counter-intuitive. In other words, it pushes against our typical ways of thinking. When it redefines our lives, it redefines our reality and restores hope.

Many Christian leaders across the country have suggested that the changes of the 21st century are as significant as those of the 4th and of the 16th centuries. May our prayer be that we have eyes to see and ears to hear what the Lord is doing in our time, and may we respond to His leading with love and with humility and with passion!

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Fighting to Pray

I have been doing evangelism and ministry as a church planter in NYC forabout 4 1/2 years. Not a long time really, and certainly not by thestandards of what it takes to penetrate Northeastern urban culture. ButI've been at long enough to look back on some history and learn from it. Bronx Fellowship is 2 1/2 years old, and MetroSoul (a citywide simple churchplanting cooperative) is less than a year. While continuing to do the work,I see myself having entered a season of reflection and learning --hopefully, if the funds are available, to move into a month sabbatical thiswinter. I sense my vision for ministry sharpening, and it's calling me todeeper places that I often procrastinate and fear to go.

In recent weeks, I've hosted Greenhouse training (organic churchplanting workshop) in Manhattan, attended the National House Churchconference in Denver, and participated in the Manhattan Church of Christcongregational retreat an hour upstate. I've been in crowds, focus groups,seminars, and spent time alone in my thoughts.

One phrase that I've heard before has been repeated again recently and keepsringing in my ears... A PRAYER MOVEMENT ALWAYS PRECEDES A CHURCH PLANTINGMOVEMENT.'

Such a statement begins to make sense when we get it into our minds that weare in a SPIRITUAL war. I can't get this statement out of my head. It is acall to pray. That is, it is a call to prayer if I really do care aboutthose who are lost without hope of the resurrection. It is a call to prayerif I really desire to see NYC transformed block by block. It is a call toprayer if I want to be a participant in God's missionary movement acrossthis globe. It is a call to prayer if I have an ounce of compassion for mynext door neighbor. It is a call to prayer, and at the same time adeclaration of my own lack of faith.

Why is it so challenging? My faith tradition stems from Lockeanrationalism. I'm a Post-Enlightenment Westerner. I am a do-it-myself,do-it-my-way American. By global standards, I'm rich, powerful, andsuper-educated. And what does the Bible say about such people? By alllogical standards, it's a testimony to the grace of God that I even believein the power of God working through His Spirit and through prayer. Many ofyou reading this face the same challenge. And furthermore, faith, by aBiblical definition, is about action rather than simple intellectualacknowledgement of a set of facts.

And this kind of prayer cannot be forced. It cannot be manipulated orprogrammed. It must be caught like a common cold virus passing from personto person. It must be a growing call to the deep places welling up withineach believer. It must begin with a transformation of the heart.What would happen if Christians around the world began to pray in a unitedway and in a passionate way for the 5 or 10 most powerful cities on theircontinent? What would happen if every serious follower of Jesus prayedcompassionately and with unyielding passion and daily for the handful ofpeople that they might influence? What if we took Jesus seriously andprayed "Your Kingdom come" and longed for it? What if we lived the kind ofstory -- organic, expansive, and Spirit-led -- that we find in the pages ofActs right here in the postmodern West?I'd love to see it my lifetime. Even more, I'd love to be part of it. Imagine if God gave us the way to unlock the door. Perhaps it's been here all along....

Waiting on God

Recently, MetroSoul (a city-wide mission cooperative that is under development) was having a small retreat for its leaders. Places of residence and ministry were represented from Jersey City(NJ), Bayonne (NJ), Bergen County (NJ), Queens, the Bronx, & Manhattan. As we are working to develop a cooperative of 'organic church planting' from across the NY Metro area, we felt it best to have a loose agenda and spend time in relationships and in prayer. This, of course, flies in the face of our instincts to plan activities down to the minute. We spent time on the NJ shore, sharing meals, playing together, and in prayer.

We remembered that a prayer movement preceeds a church planting movement and lifted our voices before God on Monday evening. We listed areas of emphasis for prayer and attempted to pray over these areas on Tuesday morning. And on Tuesday afternoon, we left our time open for however God might lead us. We took walks, returned and sat together quietly.

Silence. One person began a song. Silence. Another person shared a personal reflection that occured to them during the song. Silence. Another person shared their personal feelings about their journey of faith. Another asked a question about it. The response came, and we then gathered around to pray. Most prayed. Some cried. Everyone hugged warmly. Something happened. God showed up. ....But He wasn't done.....

A man who had come from Guatemala only 8 days earlier was sitting nearby watching. He spoke to one of us in Spanish and requested prayer. He had just left the hospital, couldn't remember where he was staying, was missing his wife and children, was mourning the recent murder of his brother, and had been struggling with suicidal thoughts (his reason for being in the hospital). A handful of people gathered around and those who could to do so prayed in Spanish as the man wept. A couple of brothers drove him to his street where they found the house, gave him some unsoliticed financial help & a snack, and a couple of South NJ contacts were called in order to hopefully connect the man to a church. I pray that God is glorified in the repeating of the story.

I want to share what God can do when we look for Him to set the agenda. While I am an enthusiast for well-laid plans, strategies, schedules, and vision, I am reminded again to leave room for God to set the agenda. There's no magic pill, rather a God who wants us to partner with Him for His Kingdom to fill the earth. That's something I want to be a part of. Don't you?

Lord, You're Kingdom come in Metro NYC as it is in Heaven.