In his seminal work on The Prophetic Imagination, Walter Brueggemann begins with a statement of how he sees the contemporary situation of the church and the task facing us in ministry. He writes:

The contemporary American church is so largely enculturated to the American ethos of consumerism that it has little power to believe or act. This enculturation is in some way true across the spectrum of church life, both liberal and conservative. It may not be a new situation, but it is one that seems especially urgent and pressing at the present time. That enculturation is true not only of the institution of the church but also of us as persons. Our consciousness has beenclaimed by false fields of perception and idolatrous systems of language and rhetoric.

Brueggemann is known for his candor. He sees the cause of our enculturation as “our loss of identity through the abandonment of the faith tradition.” He claims that “we suffer from [spiritual] amnesia, every form of serious authority for faith is in question, and we live unauthorized lives of faith and practice unauthorized ministries.” Hence, in his judgment, “the church has no business more pressing than the reappropriation of its memory in its full power and authenticity.”

On June 26 I have invited the members of session and the board of deacons to join with me in a day-long retreat to explore Brueggemann’s analysis of the church and its faith tradition in the context of contemporary American culture. Each officer has been supplied with a copy of Brueggemann’s book. We will investigate his hypothesis that “the task of prophetic ministry is to nurture, nourish, and evoke a consciousness and perception alternative to the consciousness and perception of the dominant culture around us.” We will look at what grieves us about the church and our culture as well as what energizes us and urges us to anticipate the newness that God has promised. It is hoped that this exercise will open us to new and more effective ways of being God’s people in this particular congregation at this critical juncture in history. I invite you to be in prayer for the elected leaders of this church as we approach this day of reflection and seek more clearly to discern where God’s Spirit may be leading us in our time and place