Sometimes, I wonder if the Church of Scotland is irrelevant to today's society. I'm not talking about faith and body of Christ the Kirk should be, but out of touch with the way of Christ. Where administrative burdens from government bodies (such as the Scottish Charity regulator) and 121 get in the way. And, potentially, unrestricted calls prevent growth of church communities due to lack of leadership change (I'll get back to this).
I have a couple of friends who would say this. They have had some bad experiences lately, which if they were the experiences I had had, I too would be anti-Church of Scotland.They encountered congregations and ministers who, frankly, didn't care. Who were more about intellectual faith than heart-felt faith. Who were more about being a middle-class social club than a called by God loving body of Christ's followers.
I wonder how many congregations are like this? Probably not that many. But anyones encounter with unloving churches, especially if searching for faith, will not help anyone - them, the congregation, the Kirk. Most importantly, it may stop that person ever having a personal relationship with God. That makes me very sad.
So, I wonder, does the general "unrestricted call" type tenure hinder growth in churches? I am playing a bit of devil's advocate here, but is it good for a congregation to be lead by the same minister for 30 years? It brings continuity, but is that at the detriment of growth? Possibly not. My gut instinct is it is a combination of the minister and congregation which makes the difference.
At the church I grew up in the minister was there for over 30 years. He was very well loved, not just by the congregation, but all in the parish and many in the presbytery. Why? Because he obviously had a very close relationship with God, trusted Christ and loved people deeply. I am where I am due to the grounding I had in that church, which was only possibly due to that minister's leadership.
I also know the Kirk is one of the largest providers on social care in Scotland through Crossreach. That is showing Christ's love in a very real way. But there are much, much more outreach the Kirk does which only those in the local community knows about. The Kirk doesn't brag about it. That would be very un-Scottish, un-Presbyterian. Perhaps that's why those outside those communities don't see what's going on.
For me, the Kirk - the national Church of Scotland - is my church. I know it's not perfect, but if I ever found the perfect church I'd leave as I would spoil it. I know the kirk has become overgrown and needs trimmed down. That is going on. But, like all good gardeners, God leaves and feeds the fruitful branches. He trims the bush in such a way that new shoots of His love will spring from the plant. The plant which will never be consumed.
Something that helped me throughout my ministry was to expect less from the congregation and less from myself. But you could also say it is good to expect more of congregation and more of self. A dose of realism with a good level of faith gets us through. Every Blessing
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