Now I have to say that for me one of the most confusing things around me is the issue of collaborative church and what it really means and why we should be doing it.
Confusing because I, perhaps naively, thought it was what we were supposed to do.
Confusing because I am meeting a number of people who are effectively preaching anticlerical tosh and rallying the laity to 'take ministry back from the clergy' to do Church as it was. After all, the early Church didn't have paid clergy did they?
Confusing because I am hearing clergy complain about workload and seeing more multiple beneficed, multiple roles, point something jobs. What's worse is that I come across more people being expected to do the bulk of the work in places whilst those who collaborate with them (AKA the laity) predominantly sit and watch them 'do their job'.
I recently met a cleric who had taken on a 'point something' role and after their first Christmas in the place had decided to chuck it all in and effectively retire from all ministry for good. This was a decision made (officially) because their other half had decided to take an early retirement which provided them with a good excuse to walk away without sour grapes or fingers being pointed in bitter rancorous rantings (either way). Yet the reality was that their three day a week ministry role had immediately been extended to Sunday and 'nine other days a week' (their comment, not mine - but it was adorably bittersweet humour) because of the expectations of the (previously whole time parish) church members.
The problem is that wherever we maintain any level of clerical input (and Eucharist makes this 'everywhere') there is an expectation from many who attend (for which read 'the fewer who attend') to have their dog collar on deck whenever they assume that it is meet, right and their entitlement for the cleric so to do.
But the reality is that Church is a game for ALL the Church family - each of us has a calling, a baptismal calling, to find out what they are supposed to be doing and to get on and do it - and the role of the clergy and the wardens and the congregation is to help people do it. And we do it by:
Permitting - Giving permission to others to explore and try stuff. This can be:
Preaching, Teaching, Leading, Missional stuff, Making Music
Sharing, Caring (we call it 'Pastoral'), Kid's Work, Visiting ....
Encouraging - Cheering when they try it - win, lose or draw - and keeping on cheering
Equipping - Giving the basic skills and enhancing them as they progress (or fail)
to get the job done better and people doing it stronger.
Releasing - Realising that once they are doing the stuff that we need to get out of the
way and let them do it. This doesn't mean we don't correct and advise but
We don't interfere for the sake of doing it - this is what collaborative means!
Supporting - Being appreciative without being being fawning, condescending or
disengaged. One of the worst things is to let others try by over managing or
'leaving them to it'. Collaborative means we works as PEERS and family.
And it so blinking simple - it's what Church is meant to be - it's what Church always has been - that I don't understand why people make it out to be something clever or innovative or anything else.
Regardless of who you are you are always, if you are Church, laos, then the business of being and doing Church, (and that means active, engaged, worshipping and missional Church) is yours. Adding diakonos or presbyteros (or anything else) to that does not remove the laos label.
I you are one of those who thinks it does then you are one of the people who make me very much the confused cleric that I find myself projecting all too often - and so a final word to those who make me confused - STOP IT!
