Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner

Then Jesus turned to the host. “The next time you put on a dinner, don’t just invite your friends and family and rich neighbors, the kind of people who will return the favor. Invite some people who never get invited out . . .”

Luke 14:12-13 (The Message)

Next week is our September Presbytery meeting! The meeting is on Zoom, so please remember to pre-register. I look forward to seeing you all there. We will hear from Rev. Dr. Hiheon Kim, International Peacemaker from Korea, our General Assembly Commissioners, and Interwoven and Live Oak new worshiping communities.

As it happens, I’ve had the opportunity to speak about GA a few times this summer. I’ll be glad to hear from our commissioners, Deidra Goulding and Melinda Forbes, because their experience is much more intense than mine, of course—but also because though it’s only been nine weeks since it ended, it seems like a lifetime ago! 

Like with any report, different audiences respond to different elements of the story. For instance, at a typical congregation, very few people have been to a GA, and only a few more understand or connect with what happens there. For others—Monte Vista Grove, for instance—nearly everyone has been to at least one GA, if not many more! For them, GA is a regular touchstone to reflect on the state of the denomination.

For 2024, the lasting memory of this GA was the joyous celebration of the PC(USA) as a faith community that has become a place of welcome and acceptance for people who have not been welcomed by most Christian churches. One story I often recall came from one queer young person who grew up in the Presbyterian Church and thanks God that they have always been loved and affirmed as they came more fully into their identity. Another came from a pastor who saw someone new who took communion, a transgender woman who might have been homeless. She later shared that this was the first time in 20 years that she felt like she could receive communion, because this was the first church where she felt like she could.  

One data point that I have also mentioned was shared at the very beginning of the GA, that the membership of the PC(USA) will dip below 1,000,000 at some point this year. 

For those who remember the PC(USA) as 5,000,000 strong, this is shocking. But for those who are just happy to find (and be) a church where all are welcome—and one with the resources to continue in relative comfort—this is a good moment in the life of the denomination.

An astute leader in the church asked what this GA said about evangelism. I honestly don’t remember the word being used much, but I suggested that much of what the denomination is trying to do right now—starting new worshiping communities, being more open to people beyond our traditional demographic, and taking action on issues that are most critical for our next generations—is our strategy of evangelism. New people are coming to our churches, but most of them did not grow up Presbyterian, and don’t have the same understandings of how to “do” church.

This is good news, but also gives us cause for concern. I have seen the challenge of trying to be a Presbyterian church when the leaders do not understand the system, or the church cannot afford to cover the budget through their members’ offerings. We are likely losing money as a denomination as we lose members—and money and members, along with the Gospel and the land we own (though taken from Indigenous people whose voices are even more silenced), are the most valuable assets that support the church’s continued existence.

So the familiar story of God’s party invitation list feels more real than in the past. We can feel comfortable and pat ourselves on the back when our pews are almost full of cradle Presbyterians, with space for one or two outliers to make ourselves feel like we’re an accepting, diverse church. But what happens when the folks coming in are really only there for the free lunch, or who feel entitled to speak their mind even though they can’t afford to give much for offering, or when some of the only people available to serve on session cannot read, let alone read the Book of Order?

In the foundational principles of the Presbyterian tradition, there is a small note about the extent of our faith as a church body. It was stated in a way that was easily missed before, but when the Book of Order was rewritten a dozen years ago, it was presented in a more compelling way. In the section describing the church as the body of Christ, F-1.0301 begins with this:

The Church is the body of Christ. Christ gives to the Church all the gifts necessary to be his body. The Church strives to demonstrate these gifts in its life as a community in the world (1 Cor. 12:27–28):

The Church is to be a community of faith, entrusting itself to God alone, even at the risk of losing its life. . .

Do we have enough faith to follow Jesus Christ’s commands, even to the point of letting go of what we have always known as the Church? Are we willing to risk losing the Church’s life? All of us believe in and appreciate Jesus for giving up his life for the sake of the gospel. Most of us know of people who gave up their lives for the sake of the gospel. A few of us have been willing to give up our own lives for the sake of the gospel. Are we also willing to give up the institution for the sake of the gospel?

Several years ago, a long-time pastor took another call and left his church. The members panicked, and talked about the end of the church coming near without their beloved pastor at the helm. That pastor told his members something very simple that has stuck with me—he said, “If God wants this church to continue, this church will continue.”

May we be obedient to Christ’s call to welcome even those who never get invited out. May we remember that our churches are not “our” churches, because we are all strangers and sinners, invited into Christ’s church by the God of welcome. May we trust in God’s gracious care to guide us, bless us, forgive us, and provide for us, that we may be a blessing for others.

In trust and in peace,

Wendy