Dunedin, New Zealand, my city - my people

Monday, January 9, 2012

Sunday Church and lazy thinking.

My last service before holidays
On Sunday 1st of January I felt pretty low about the Sunday service. This last Sunday I felt better. Before Christmas I had to pre-record a radio Church service for this Sunday. I had looked at the main reading (the baptism of Jesus) and bounced off that to give some thoughts about why we do such things as baptism, communion and going to Church worship. I reflected on why Jesus, at the beginning of his ministry might want to go through John's baptism. In brief I said that baptism, communion and worship were "navigation points" for us in the journey of life, where we remind ourselves what's important and where we are going. Reflecting on Jesus' experience I said that in such things (a) we talk to ourselves remind ourselves of who we are. (b) we talk to each other and others highlighting that there are deeper, important aspect to life that need our attention... and (c) through these things God or "the sacred" speaks to us.  After last week I found myself questioning whether it was worth putting effort into running church services. About Tuesday I picked up the notes from my "radio church"  service, reread the outline and thought, "I need this message as much as anyone else!" I redid it, added various other elements and that was the heart of our Sunday service. With it being my final service before my annual holidays I rather selfishly chose hymns I liked and inserted two relevant country and western songs. (Waylon Jennings "I do believe" and a CD of "The Baptism of Jesse Taylor" by Johnny Russell.) I think from rapport while I was leading and the feedback after the service people found it meaningful, helpful and enjoyable. As I have been writing this I have received an email thanking me for the service and saying that it was "outstanding". Confidence restored.
Welcome Collegiality
A couple visiting the service were very encouraging. The wife did an "internship" with me several years ago when quite late in life she was doing ministerial and theological studies in preparation for becoming a minister. We worked together over a six month period and we "clicked". We had many animated discussions about ministry, theology and "church" and found we were on a similar wave length. We enjoyed working together.  Her husband's mother is a member of my church so I get to see them at least once a year when they visit the South Island.. Straight after the service she came up to me and we caught up on what each was doing. We so easily slipped into comfortable, excited, warm conversation for about 10 minutes. While I have not had the same working relationship with him, her husband also is on a similar wavelength so I later had a conversation with him. Our sharing was encouraging, affirming and renewed the sense of being on the same journey together. There are few ministers I "click" with, but when I do I appreciate it very much. It was a welcome "drink of fresh water". As she left she said simply "See you next year... go well!"
Emphatic Generalizations... Grrr!
I get annoyed so often with people who make generalizations. I often find this at the drop-in centre. People will say things like, "All Asians are bad drivers" or "Its all the Government's fault!" or "Bloody Gays, kiddy fiddlers!" or "We know what Catholic priests are like!" or such things. There are often so many statements like this, perhaps not so blatant, said in conversations I have in drop-in centre, our Space2B, amongst Church people or in Chaplaincies. These generalizations would not stand any real critical examination. The difficult thing is that they are often said in such an emphatic way that to question them you would start World War Three! I will often say in a sort of limp fashion, "Oh I don't think it is as simple as that!" or some other questioning statement. To really analyse the subject being raised would take some detailed thought and discussion, so often it is easier to just let it slide. But it annoys me!
What does annoy me too is that often, because they are said so emphatically, people take heed. Politicians and religious leaders can get away with blue murder by making emphatic, simplistic generalizations and lazy thinkers are drawn to them because they seem to be "leadership material", people who know what they think and believe. True leaders and thinkers, think more carefully, critically and analytically about things but many people do not have the interest, the energy or will power to follow their more detailed, but accurate thought. We need to recognise that life is NOT simple. Understanding people and society is not an easy thing. We ARE all different. A part of being real and honest in life is to say, "Look I don't know!" or "This is complicated and needs more thought!' or "There are wider implications!" or "There are different approaches needed for different people."  But such statements, while real, honest and probably more constructive, do not engender "confidence" and so people prefer to give and to listen to inaccurate generalizations.
Education and wisdom should lead us not to make generalizations. Glen Turner, one of the best NZ cricket batsmen from the past has talked about cricketers practicing in the nets. He emphasised that as well as practicing to hit balls, they need to practice to leave balls, or let balls go. He maintained that for test cricket in particular, batsmen need to know when not to hit, and build that into their psyche. Education, as well as giving us knowledge, and teaching us how to problem solve and analyse, should also enable us to know what and when we don't know. We need to be ready to recognise and admit complexity and the unknown. Too many times we try to bluff our way through with emphatic statements which sound good, but only muddy the waters more. It is more constructive to be willing to say "It's complicated." or "I don't know" or at least put our generalizations in the form of questions. "Perhaps Asian drivers find it hard adapting to our roads?"  A fun verse which I have had scribbled on a bit of paper may be relevant...
A wise old owl lived in an oak
The more he saw the less he spoke.
The less he spoke the more he heard,
Why can't we be like that wise old bird?

That's my beef for tonight.

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