Chapter Five – “Why are we here?” - Guest Blogger Jannette Domayer

Lenten Book Study - Changing the Conversation, by Anthony Robinson

Chapter Five – “Why are we here?” 

By Jannette Domayer, St. Thomas, Sioux City

Imagine that you own a business, and gradually the world changes out from under you. Let’s say you are an iceman, and people are starting to buy refrigerators. Now what? Or let’s say you are a mainline Protestant church in the 21st century, and . . . oh, wait. Umm …that’s us!

The analogy isn’t perfect, but the basic concept of facing the reality of a sea change is the same. One of the necessary conversations for the church is, “What business are we in?” In other words, what is our purpose? Can we be fairly clear about what energizes the people to gather week after week?

The risk of not having a sense of purpose is that the church will default to doing whatever makes the people happy and comfortable. Doing too much in too many directions can bring a lot of frustration and wasted resources. What church can afford to be wasteful, particularly with our people, who are the church, after all!

Robinson shares several sources to get the conversation started. John’s Gospel is one that speaks to me. “I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.” (14:12)  The postcommunion prayer reinforces these words.  “And now, Father, send us out to do the work you have given us to do.”

I was also drawn to Hadaway’s typology of churches (which reminded me of a Facebook quiz, e.g., “Which Harry Potter character are you?”). The images for the four types of church are shorthand for the church’s purpose. Is your church a recliner chair, a guided missile, a factory, or an aspen grove?

Even one person is a mixture of elements from more than one of the church types. I confess having introduced myself as someone who has put in 20 years in the choir (established club member). I like accomplishing specific tasks and have  spent regular time making fund-raising toffee (corporate employee/factory worker). But I also seek out personal encounters of transformation. Gracious God, let me be even a leaf on an aspen tree!

St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Sioux City

In the case of our church, St. Thomas, Sioux City, the answer to “why are we here” is a function of where “here” is. Our grand building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is now in the midst of two urban renewal areas. Our neighborhood has one of the highest poverty rates in the city, and the population is highly transient. The simple fact of where we are has demanded that we respond to the needs in our neighborhood. As a result, our ministries include a food pantry and a community garden. Feeding, both bodies and souls, is an important part of our purpose.

St. Thomas has been reading Changing the Conversation since last summer, in the process of making some rather serious adaptations to the new reality. It is heartening that we are already taking a new look at what God is calling us to be. Let the conversations continue!