CLGS

Zion United Church of Christ in Henderson, Kentucky knows the tension between honoring a congregation's rich history and hearing a call toward progressive ministries. Organized in 1871, this little downtown German Evangelical congregation still worships in its original historic sanctuary built in 1873. This year, we are celebrating 125 years of ministry and service.

In 1992, however, a remnant of only twelve faithful elderly members remained. The church was forced to make some hard decisions. With all the makings of a made–for–TV movie, these courageous members–ranging in age from 76 to 92–committed all church savings to one intensive year of radical renewal. They knew that Zion was not dead, but would be, unless drastic measures were taken.

Desiring to return to my hometown to start an intentional, inclusive Christian community, I knew Zion UCC and its urban-related neighborhood would be a great place for this type of covenant-based community. I was hired by Zion Church to implement a progressive vision of congregational renewal.

Since that time, the new has remarkably blended with the old. Zion remains a distinctively historic, but diverse, place of worship and service. We have 150 members and a worshipping community of about 220. This year, fifty–eight people wrote covenants to live and work as an intentional community. The original elderly members–now ages 80 to 96–are confirmed supporters of the church's transformation. Believing that Zion has the potential to double its membership in the next three years, the Indiana–Kentucky UCC Conference and the United Church Board for Homeland Ministries are now offering assistance.

How well we understand the tensions between historic loyalties and the spirit's leading to new avenues of opportunity! The increase in membership has caused some internal growing pains. Also the church's decisions to hire an openly gay pastor, to become an open and affirming congregation, and most recently, to volunteer to house the city's first Planned Parenthood Health Clinic, have created external dissension by a few fundamentalist pastors and congregations. Some right–wing folks have been most upset about our inclusive language commitments. God is definitely not feminine, they insist.

While the external tension can be frustrating, the internal atmosphere must not get mired in the same kind of discord and disrespect. The storm without cannot become the storm within. Six suggestions we here at Zion have to offer to other churches who are living in the midst of conflict include:

1) Remember the covenant.

Remind people of the covenant. Find opportunities to discuss–again and again–what it means to be a covenant people. Set up structures which make people accountable to a covenant relationship. For Zion, this has meant an annual process of covenant–making and plenty of opportunities to check up on how we are doing with these promises to one another. Potential members spend a period of time in covenant groups discussing the meaning of living in covenant–a novitiate of sorts.

2) Change your method of conducting business.

Instead of using a democratic form of government (most votes wins), implement a consensus model of decision–making. Remember, the process is just as important as the outcome. Consensus is much more than "unanimous vote." Instead, it requires possible dissenters and nay–sayers to voice concerns up front. In the end, consensus means all parties can live with a decision and support it for the good of the whole congregation. Do not assume that older members will automatically take the conservative position. Experience teaches me that middle aged parishioners are sometimes the most reluctant to welcome change–they're just getting settled into current traditions.

3) Be a congregation or a pastor that is guided by principle and character, not church growth.

"Numbers" is not the name of the game. Reality is that some people may leave. However, remember that courageous churches will attract new people. And understand that new ideas are often at odds with the past. Recognize this as a pastoral care priority, but not as an impossible task.

4) Know your congregation's history and relate current struggles to past events.

During both world wars, anti–German prejudice was so strong that Zion Church felt the sting. Hateful rumors were circulated that one German–American church member, a baker, was grinding up glass and putting it into pastries. The prejudice nearly destroyed his business. In the 1950s, Zion Church and its pastor, the Rev. Theodore Braun, led the way against the racist White Citizens Council and their planned boycott of public schools during racial integration. Also, for many years, the congregation sponsored a boy scout troop which equally included Zion's children and Jewish children from the neighborhood. Through close personal friendships, the church came to recognize the pain of anti–Semitism. Remember, liberation is not a new idea; it is deeply rooted in our church histories and the stories of scripture. Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt's land...

5) Encourage ways to enhance creativity, imagination, and celebration.

Many churches have forgotten the value of programs and activities which stimulate joy and creativity in people of all ages. Thus, we have inhibited the free–flow of ideas and weakened our abilities to visualize something different from present reality. Sponsor creativity classes. Create an art gallery. Invite people to draw with their non–dominant hand. Pass out crayons and play dough at potlucks. Write and read poetry. Vary the musical offerings of the church. Congregations that better utilize the performing and visual arts in worship and education are more likely to invite the imagination into times of decision–making. And the church will be a lot more fun!

6) In the midst of change, rely on historical methods of spiritual growth and support.

Read more scripture. Offer more opportunities for prayer and communion. Hold more hands. Give more hugs. Talk it through. Spend time with any dissenters. Utilize house worship. Hold fast to the covenant. Remember to be a church–not a political party, not a business, not a club–but a church. It's what the church should do best. Remind one another of kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. And over all of these, put on love which binds the rest together and makes them perfect.

J. Bennett Guess is pastor of Zion United Church of Christ, an intentional, inclusive Christian community in Henderson, Kentucky.