Page 37 - Presbyterian Connection

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in every human life, even at birth. It issues in such sins as pride as- serting itself against God, indiffer- ence towards God and neighbour, untruthfulness, greed, lust, lazi- ness, gluttony, envy, and selfish anger” (Living Faith, 2.5.2–2.5.3).
According to the gospels, our focus should be on loving God, loving others. This is how we avoid sin. And we love God when we love people. Sometimes, evil cannot be avoided, but we can face it through our love for God. Simply asking questions for soci- ety is a powerful way to demon- strate humbleness and attitudes and behaviours that foster com- munity life.
Pluralism, in modernity, has be- come a globalized phenomenon. It is interesting that we are more and more connected in digital life but disconnected in real life. In theological terms, we are alien- ated. Alienation and disconnec- tion are understandable concepts for postmodern and pluralistic people.
The effects of sin are evident in the relationship between coloni- zation and religion. The Western, white influence of the Christian church has adapted to the mate- rialistic and consumeristic world- view of North American culture, where the doctrine of “I did it my way” is prevalent. This has led to the view that God’s grace is “nice but not necessary.”
In this time of transformation,
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denominations in the last century to contribute to such significant shifts?
Reginald Bibby, a Canadian so- ciologist, has conducted surveys every four years for more than 25 years to demonstrate how religious affiliation has shifted among younger people in Can- ada. From 1984 to 2008, there was a decrease of 47% among Canadian teenagers who identi- fied themselves as Protestant or Catholic, while at the same time, 32% of Canadian teenagers re- ported themselves as “nones” in terms of affiliation, and 16% reported themselves as affiliated with some non-Christian faith (see The Emerging Millennials: How Canada’s Newest Genera- tion Is Responding to Change & Choice by Reginald Bibby, 2009, p. 176). It seems like Canada is rapidly becoming a different place religiously, and the fact that these changes are happening among younger generations signals that these changes are only beginning.
Understanding this moment of profound shifts is an opportu- nity for repositioning the Chris- tian faith. We need to establish an essential dialogue between Reformed theology and pluralist society. It is time to ask questions like Jesus did in interactions nar- rated in the gospels. When we are willing to understand the heart of others, we improve our commu- nication with them. An interesting
curiosity in the gospels: we find 141 questions addressed to Je- sus and 217 questions asked by Jesus. He asked more questions than he had received. This signals something important in commu- nication. The practice of dialogue entails adopting attitudes and be- haviours that foster community life. Dialogue is decolonization.
For a congregation attempting to reposition itself in society, dia- logue can be an essential tool for this transition. The church could start a movement of dialogue with different actors in society, like schools, colleges, other reli- gions and political institutions. It is time to abandon the temptation of Christendom’s influence in so- ciety and return to be known as who belonged to the Way (Acts 9:2).
An excellent way to establish dialogue is to find and focus on common points of view. A perfect common point to start a dialogue is about the manifestation of evil in the world. Religious and non- religious people are concerned about this cruel reality. Reformed theology explains the reality of the evil in our world through the ef- fects of sin.
“Sin alienates us from God. It offends the holiness of God, separates us from our Lord, and leads to spiritual death. It mars the divine image in us and infects our relationship with others and ourselves. Sin is a power present
not confusing Christendom with Christianity is crucial. Christen- dom refers to the cultural influ- ence of the Christian religion, while Christianity encompasses all people who are disciples of Christ. “Christianity is the faith, Christians are believers in the faith, and Christendom is the col- lective culture and institutions of the faith” (see “How American Christendom Weakens American Christianity” by David French, 2021).
While the cultural influence of Christianity has been significant throughout history, the Christian faith is ultimately about follow- ing Jesus Christ and living out his teachings in our daily lives. As we face the challenges of a post- Christendom society, it is essen- tial to remember that our goal is to share the love and message of Christ with others rather than sim- ply preserving the influence of a particular religious culture.
As Christians, we need to hum- bly engage in meaningful conver- sations with diverse perspectives, including youth and those who have left our congregations. It is our responsibility to inquire about people’s concerns and offer gos- pel-centred solutions.
When I was pastor of First In- dependent Presbyterian Church in Ourinhos, Brazil, there were concerns with violence in the community. I considered the pos- sibility to use space in our church
to teach martial arts—self-de- fence and Jiu-Jitsu. In a Session meeting, elders were uncomfort- able with promoting any kind of violence. I explained for them the goals of this initiative and the im- portance of our relationship with our neighbourhood to testify the love of God in Jesus Christ. At the same time, I committed to attend- ing all Jiu-Jitsu classes, to inter- act with the students, talk to them and learn from them. I was the first student enrolled. Some fami- lies started to visit our Sunday services and were integrated in the community life of the church. From an average of 50 partici- pants in our Sunday services, we now have 250 people.
When I was pastor of the Inde- pendent Presbyterian Church of Itaqui, in the city of Campo Largo, the church was already a par tner of city hall, providing a class for children aged 2–4 at a municipal school close to the church that did not have enough space for a classroom. When I star ted my ministry there, city hall asked the church to open five more classes to serve children until 12 years old. At the Session meeting, el- ders were divided whether they would accept the expansion of this par tnership. I invited three elders to join me and visit other churches who have this type of partnership. During this time of research, visiting and pray- ing, the Session decided unani- mously to expand the partner- ship. For that, we needed to build more classrooms, but the church didn’t have the money. In addi- tion to financial support from city hall, neighbourhood residents and businesspeople helped us build the teaching spaces. As a result, the church experienced an increase in the number of visitors to Sunday services.
Before my arrival at Independ- ent Presbyterian Church of Itaqui, the church was already develop- ing contemporary services. How- ever, as a result, older people felt excluded from community life. I talked about this reality with the Session, and we started hold- ing more traditional services, as an alternative to contemporary services, with the reactivation of the church choir. The result was that people who were away from the church returned to the com- munity of faith, while other people who missed this type of worship in this city also became part of it. At this moment, the church has, between the two services, 650 people attending their celebra- tions on Sundays.
The choir at the Presbyterian Church of Itaqui in Campo Largo, Brazil.