The Parish
The past two years have brought much about the church into question. Questions surrounding what is the purpose of worship and can it be held as well online as in person? What constitutes Christian community? Is it simply attending a weekly Sunday school class or Bible study with the same group of people or is it something more personal where we feel comfortable with vulnerability and a willingness to offer and accept support in times of need? What is the purpose of membership in determining who is ‘in’ and who is ‘not’?
The pandemic has caused Church in the traditional sense to be turned upside down. Perhaps returning to an older understanding of what the church is will help us move forward in an age impacted by global pandemics, ubiquitous technology, and a seeming disconnect between church and ‘real’ life.
The Anglican church of England still holds a concept of church called the parish. A parish is more than a building where worship is held. A parish is an ecclesiastical district, an area or a town that includes all the people within it. Even if someone doesn’t attend corporate worship they are still recognized as part of the parish.
The vicar or parish priest was responsible to care for souls within the parish, inclusive of all people. Their role was never about trying to get them to congregate together in a building but rather caring for the needs of everyone regardless of whether or not they had stepped inside the sanctuary. This is the epitome of inclusivity. It is a recognition that there are no levels of membership that determine whether someone is ‘in’ or ‘out’. It fosters an understanding of Christian community outside of prescribed days or meeting times and eschews creating barriers based on ethnicity, economic status, political bent, or any other measure that can be used to separate.
Yes, corporate worship, group bible studies, and Sunday school are important, but they measure only a small part of what the community of faith is meant to be. Barbara Brown Taylor reminds us that, “The House of God stretches from one corner of the universe to the other.”[1] When we serve our neighbors via our mission partners we do so as one person within the parish to another, even with our international efforts. As John Wesley remarked, “The world is my parish”.
Rather than bemoaning the fact that many people aren’t coming back to church, maybe we should put our energies toward helping others experience the House of God where they are. We can share in the family of God wherever we find ourselves and invite all around us to join in. Rather than worrying about whether someone is a faithful attender of worship let’s concern ourselves with caring for the souls of others in the fullness of God’s House.
[1] Barbara Brown Taylor, An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith (New York, NY: HarperOne, 2010), 13.
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Dan Kreiss, RPC’s Associate Pastor for Mission Outreach, brings with him a heart for service and a diverse array of experiences in the mission field. Be sure to subscribe to the Mission Outreach Blog to read and follow along as he documents his personal journey and shares his vision for RPC’s mission outreach commitment. Along with providing meaningful resources, this blog will help jumpstart the important conversations our church community must be having about missional living.
Dan Kreiss
Rev. Dr. Dan Kreiss is the Associate Pastor for Mission Outreach at RPC. Dan is particularly passionate about encouraging the church to reflect the diversity found in its surrounding community in regard to age, gender, ethnicity, education and economic status.