Editor's Note: Ed Moore is a historian of American religion and a retired United Methodist pastor. In this reflection from 2010, Moore reflects on the challenging intersection of pastoral leadership and civil religion. In that year, the Fourth of July was on a Sunday. Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan noticed something new in their book "The Last Week": the Roman calendar for Passover. They say that Jesus carefully designed and scripted his "Triumphal Entry" to make a point. He timed his entry into Jerusalem through the eastern gate, down from the Mount of Olives, to coincide with Pontius Pilate's military procession from the west. There were two parades in town on the same day. Jesus was asking people to choose one or the other. When a pastor presides in worship, she stands at the intersection of two parades: the catholic church's sacred story and the local congregation's history within its particular community. The pastor acts as translator-in-chief as she speaks and signs the church's story in the dialect of the congregation. Jesus did likewise when he spoke to Galileans in metaphors of lost coins or sheep or of a prodigal child. The ministry of translation is particularly difficult when secular culture's "holy" days overlap the church's gathering for worship, as will happen again July 4th. A local congregation's traditions for this Sunday may run the gamut from the reasonably mild (red, white and blue floral arrangements in the sanctuary) to the affronting: an American flag draped over the Lord's Table, the Pledge of Allegiance included in the liturgy, or the choir expecting to deliver a patriotic anthem. |
| | FROM OUR ARCHIVE: THE FOURTH OF JULY |
As people of faith, it might be appropriate to have a quiet Fourth of July, taking a cue from the Moravian Christians who marked the first public celebration in 1783 with prayer, music and a candelight procession, says a pastor.
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Jim Dant recalls how a congregational conversation -- and conflict -- about where the United States flag should go in the worship space ultimately nurtured a greater sense of community. |
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The church year is often seen as a framework for church programs, but well-known Alban author Charles Olsen shows readers how it can be a prism through which congregations more deeply understand their own stories. By weaving together our narratives and those of Christian tradition, a congregation can clarify its identity, grow in wisdom, and discover a new vision and ministry. Olsen draws parallels between the church seasons and practices of spiritual formation -- letting go, naming and celebrating God's presence, and taking hold. He shows us how these movements are expressed in the three major cycles of the church year -- Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost. Focusing on communal narratives, he presents a process for telling a story and forming a corporate memory of the story, and then deepening and reflecting on it by exploring the season of the church year that captures its character.
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