I’ve decided to have a
conversation with myself.
Tom, did you know that when you do
a search on Google with the search string as “Ministry by the Aged” you don’t
get one single hit!
Ah, there is only such thing as
ministry “to” the aged.
But I found the title of a
book:
Claiming a frontier : ministry and
older people By: Robert W
McClellan
So is ministry by older people a
frontier?!
Not bad that it is still a
frontier when the Uniting Church has one of the oldest memberships of all
denominations. It would seem more probable that this is something we
would have down pat.
Actually the Catholics have done
some work here:
http://www.ewtn.com/library/CURIA/PCLOLDER.HTM
The Pontifical Council of the
Laity in fact … on the subject of:
The Dignity of Older People and
their Mission in the Church and in the World
I will stop talking
to myself now and have a read. And maybe Stephen Webb will remind me of
which Insights magazine had this as its subject (I liked the one on healing
Stephen!).
(It’s so embarrassing
when you talk to yourself Tom … everybody not only sees how ignorant you are
but how mad you are as well! Perhaps you should get back to the subject of
homosexuality … far bigger issue in the church than age you
know).
Tom
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On
Behalf Of Tom Stuart
Sent: Monday, 9 August 2004 12:21
PM
To:
'insights-l'
Subject: Mission
by the aged
Hi everyone,
We have a worship group in Parkes
that nearly 10 years ago had a section of it split off creating what is
(probably not accurately) described as the “contemporary worship
group.”
One unfortunate thing that
happened was the original group became described in terms of how it is
different to the break away group and was called the “Traditional Group”.
I say unfortunate because I see that over the years this, and perhaps
the other group, has had a role forced on it in terms of how it is different
to the other rather than whatever it might be that God wanted the group to
become.
That is a small portion of the
history.
So now what we have is a so-called
“Traditional Group” that is near the point of imploding … they have simply got
to that age. While their bodies are frail they have wonderful
hearts. They probably do the typical things that people of their vintage
do. They cater, they have fellowship meetings, they have a craft
group.
Now, all of these things are very positive but the ethos is one
of inevitability of decline and a sort of blaming, or hoping, depending who I
talk to, toward the group that separated itself.
What I want to see happen is that
this so-called traditional group can discover what it is to be a people of God
at their age – with their confidence in themselves as they walk in the path
God has dreamed for them. Of course the last thing they need is a call
to more work. What needs to happen is for them to take advantage of
their age as an asset for introducing the kingdom into their own lives and the
lives around them.
Now I think this has to be an
ENORMOUSLY complex thing and would take considerable energy to break through
the perceptual stereo-typical boundaries we have asserted onto such
groups. It would take a strong will and plenty of time to work out the
new thing God is doing in this context.
I can see the potential for
drawing on all their wisdom and faith, and some how celebrating that in a way
that affirms their mutual encouragement and in a sense communicates that grace
and faith filled joy beyond their own grouping into the wider
world.
Is any one else intentionally
working on this in their congregations, or are there any authors on the
subject who may even be able to show some places that have had some wins in
this regard.
The truth is that I preached to
this group last Sunday and stirred them up a bit and I’m hoping to catch some
of their anger at me into positive energy of walking a path of exploration as
to how they can sense they are “walking humbly with their God” at this
significant point in their journey of faith and life.
Tom
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.milman.uniting.com.au
Ph: 6862 5502 Mobile: 0427 625
502
14 Bushman St
Parkes NSW 2870
'Comfort the afflicted and afflict the
comfortable'.
I prefer to die living than to live
dying!
"War is a poor chisel with which to carve out the
future." - Martin Luther King, Jr
"There is one rule for the industrialist and that is:
Make the best quality of goods possible at the lowest cost possible, paying
the highest wages possible." Henry Ford
__________ NOD32 1.835 (20040806) Information
__________
This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system.
http://www.nod32.com
