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Join us for Worship Sunday at 10:00 AM followed by fellowship and refreshments in the He/SheBrews Café
- Join us for worship next Sunday, June 2 for a return visit of musical friend Keith Macpherson. Singer-songwriter Keith will be offering musical leadership on the theme of friendship.
- Church School Wind-Up and Barbecue – Sunday, June 9 following the morning service – We will be celebrating the end of the Church School year on June 9 with a barbecue lunch after worship. Games and a bouncer for the kids. Hot dogs, hamburgers, and treats for everyone.
- ADVANCE NOTICE – The Urban Retreats Garden Tour is going to be held on Saturday, June 22. This is the largest fundraiser of the year for 1JustCIty and the United Church of Canada Community Ministries. Each year gardens in a particular neighbourhood are opened to receive visitors while a tea, craft & plant sale is held in a central location. This year the Garden Tour is in Charleswood and the tea, craft & plant sale will be right here at Charleswood United Church! Tickets are now on sale for $20/person through the church office. For more information on volunteering, please visit: https://www.1justcity.ca/garden-tour or to volunteer email gardentourvolunteers@1justcity.ca
- For news and events, please have a look at Life & Work on our website: Life and Work
Dear Friends
Welcome to worship for Sunday, May 26, 2024.
I was intrigued by news of a study that had recently been conducted and published. The title says it all, “Still Christian?: What Canadian Christians Actually Believe”. The premise of the study was to ask Canadian Christians to what extent they held to the doctrines or teachings of the church they attend. It used fairly orthodox articles of faith but it was interesting nonetheless.
Respondents were asked to self-identify what branch of the Christian family tree they consider themselves a part of and the answers to the questions were categorized as such. For example, when asked if they agree or disagree with the statement “there is one true God in three persons” 89% of evangelicals said yes along with 51% of Catholics and 57% of mainline Protestants (the category which includes the United Church of Canada). On the question if “the resurrection was a historical event” the breakdown was yes for 81% of evangelicals, 48% of Catholics, and 55% for mainline Protestants.
When asked “are all religions equally true” the responses were 20% for evangelicals, 54% for Catholics, and 61% for mainline Protestants. (Thanks to John Longhurst of the Winnipeg Free Press who drew attention to the study and also provided a link to the survey results).
This may make for interesting reading and some curious conversation as we try to draw conclusions from it. Personally, I’m not sure much is accomplished or revealed by asking objective questions about subjective truths. Some will conclude that it is further evidence that religion is falling apart because we can’t all agree on what we believe. Nothing could be further from the truth. Did we ever think that everyone in a given church believed the exact same things?
In the early 2000’s as church attendance was beginning to diminish and the closing of churches was something that many people were aware of, some writers began addressing the question of the ‘Emerging Church’. Just as traditional forms of Christianity were struggling there was evidence of new forms of worship, community, and church coming into being. Some of that looked modern yet familiar. For example, a Roman Catholic colleague of mine told me that on any given Sunday, Mass is given in 18 different languages across Winnipeg. That is a new expression of a traditional form of worship reflecting new social realities. Some emerging churches were using terms like ancient-modern or generously orthodox. Some emerging churches within denominations were questioning age old understandings of human sexuality or committing themselves to Reconciliation as never before. Some emerging churches rediscovered the value and intimacy of intentionally small or house churches. And for most denominationalism became increasingly irrelevant. Consider the courage of Mennonite Brethren congregations in Manitoba who committed themselves to being Affirming and lost their denominational membership as a result.
But here is the wonderful change that has come to many churches whether they are new and emergent or re-imaginations of long existing congregations. It is the change which befuddles and belies the survey results mentioned above. Where churches once counted on a believe-behave-belong pattern of church membership, many of us now look to a belong-behave-believe pattern.
Traditionally, churches were a collection of people who believed the same thing. That resulted in a way of behaving. And if you believed and behaved like everyone else then you felt like you belong.
In the new model belonging comes first. We create community by extending hospitality and welcoming the stranger into our midst without reservation. Once they feel they belong then they may choose in join in our communal life (behaving). Coming to a shared understanding of what it is we believe (doctrinally) is the final stage and not the first.
Can you see how belong-behave-believe as a model for church life and growth would cause us to re-interpret the results of a survey based on questions of orthodoxy? Committed Christians create community where questions of faith, life, and meaning are explored together. We are a people of many questions and not the ones with all the answers. Welcome, acceptance, hospitality are the things that matter most.
And sometimes we fill out survey questionnaires.
Grace and peace,
Michael
- Did you know you can support this ministry by e-transfer, automatic withdrawal (PAR), and gifted securities, in addition to weekly or monthly cheques? For Offering Information please visit: https://charleswoodunited.org/support/ We have begun to receive donations for this summer’s Roofing Project which will be held separate from Operations and Mission & Service. Thank you for your generous support.
- Through the United Church of Canada’s membership in the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, an appeal for donations has been issued for the Humanitarian Crisis in the Middle East. For more information and to donate please visit: Humanitarian Crisis in the Middle East Appeal
- Share the service with friends by forwarding this email or using this link: https://youtu.be/4Vwp3IsGqis
- Read this week’s scripture lesson here: John 3:1-16
