tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post113439679269552752..comments2023-10-24T08:51:39.726-05:00Comments on In Lay Terms: Dysfunction and PrayersRosshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10308078791932985528noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post-1134443209987244792005-12-12T21:06:00.000-06:002005-12-12T21:06:00.000-06:00One more comment to Joe: It's odd because of the R...One more comment to Joe: It's odd because of the RIC vote, it seems that the congregation just lost everyone. The place has been in a decline for a number of years now. They are neither hot nor cold. They are just lukewarm water.<BR/><BR/>I think that in trying to be everything to everyone, they have become very ineffective in any statement they make (something the ELCA might end up being as well).Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08732955876428732569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post-1134443085762806582005-12-12T21:04:00.000-06:002005-12-12T21:04:00.000-06:00Joe and Chad,I agree with your thoughts on members...Joe and Chad,<BR/><BR/>I agree with your thoughts on membership. But, at the same time, they do have real implications for where you are and what you do. I probably wouldn't care so much if I didn't work in the church.<BR/><BR/>My other half suggested just moving my membership back to my home congregation, in Northern Minnesota. The problem is that my hometown is in a different synod. I wouldn't be as well connect in Minneapolis if my membership were somewhere else.<BR/><BR/>I think that membership is part of an old paradigm. We just need to figure out how to function without working off of a membership.Rosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08732955876428732569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post-1134434097191011482005-12-12T18:34:00.000-06:002005-12-12T18:34:00.000-06:00Ok, my e-friend Ross, you've got me hooked. I'm wa...Ok, my e-friend Ross, you've got me hooked. I'm waiting for the next installment. This is getting very interesting. <BR/><BR/>Fr. B.Bob Bussenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16959389709581745329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post-1134429094609234852005-12-12T17:11:00.000-06:002005-12-12T17:11:00.000-06:00I have been privy to other info about CLT in the p...I have been privy to other info about CLT in the past. The bell tower has been what I have heard about most recently. I also am not a membership person, more of a discipleship person, you know? Following...<BR/><BR/>I think this may be a very good thing that is coming out of postmodernity--we don't count numbers and we don't pay our dues just because we have to. There is a real sense of authenticity that comes with is and is really refreshing. PazChad Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12047372963436129691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17937506.post-1134426047144561512005-12-12T16:20:00.000-06:002005-12-12T16:20:00.000-06:00I'm always wondering about what "church membership...I'm always wondering about what "church membership" really means. Baptism is our entrance into membership with the Body of Christ. And, to be Christian means to be in community. We really must seek a community. But the "membership" thing seems to be something out of the old paradigm of Church from the fifties. <BR/><BR/>I have more questions than answers. What does it mean?<BR/><BR/>Ross, I applaud you for staying the course. That must have been really demoralizing. <BR/><BR/>I am a member of an Episcopal Church that has lost members because of the gay bishop thing. [Why can't Episcopalians play chess? Because they can't tell their bishops from their queens.]<BR/><BR/>But the number that left was small. Most have stayed, though they are all over the map on opinions on the issue. Mostly, it isn't discussed. There are members of this congregation that go back for generations! And, there are new-just-moved-to-town types. A mixed bag. We are definitely NOT the flagship type of parish, though I know what you mean.<BR/><BR/>But, right now, most of my spiritual nurturing is on-line, through folk like yourself. Any idea of "membership" i've had is being stretched. Unable to have close ties here with other LBGT people, I am having to find it elsewhere (and thank God, I've been able to).<BR/><BR/>I am rambling. Thanks for your post. Good words.<BR/><BR/>Cheers, Joe.Vic Mansfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06194671996997775313noreply@blogger.com