Andrew C. Thompson - Generation Rising

Abingdon Press

NASHVILLE

GENERATION RISING
A FUTURE WITH HOPE FOR THE
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

Copyright 2011 by Abingdon Press

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed to Permissions, The United Methodist Publishing House, P.O. Box 801, 201 Eighth Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37202-0801, or e-mailed to permissions@umpublishing.org.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Generation rising : a future with hope for the United Methodist Church / edited by Andrew C. Thompson.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-4267-1020-9 (trade pbk. : alk. paper)1. United Methodist Church (U.S.) I. Thompson, Andrew C.BX8332.G46 2011287'.609'05--dc22

2011008206

All Scripture quotations, unless noted otherwise, are taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked TNIV are taken from the Holy Bible. TODAY'S NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 2001, 2005 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of the International Bible Society.

Scripture quotations marked "THE MESSAGE" are taken from THE MESSAGE. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Scripture quotations marked RSV are taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2010 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

C O N T E N T S

Andrew C. Thompson

1. 
   Andrew C. Thompson
2. 
   Timothy Reinhold Eberhart
3. 
   Joy Jittaun Moore
4. 
   Jeffrey Conklin-Miller
5. 
   Kevin M. Watson
6. 
   Arnold S. Oh
7. 
   F. Douglas Powe, Jr.
8. 
   Presian Burroughs
9. 
   Sarah Arthur
10. 
    Julie O'Neal
11. 
    Eric Van Meter
12. 
    Shane Raynor

Andrew C. Thompson

PREFACE

Two United Methodist theologians in the generation ahead of usWill Willimon and Stanley Hauerwashave made the claim that "theology is intrinsically a community process." Those who do theological reflection for the church are called to aim their work for the building up of the body of Christ.

What a liberating concept! If theology is the church's reflection on its life with God, particularly in light of the witness of Scripture and the Christian tradition, then it doesn't have to be confined to the stuff of academia. Instead, theology should be written for and read by folk in the church! That connection guides each chapter of this book.

But the claim that theological writing should be a community process has one more piece of significance for this book. A different author has written each of the twelve chapters you'll find here. All of us are members of Generation X (born between 1961 and 1981, approximately). Beyond that, we represent a wide diversity of backgrounds. We come from different parts of the country and we are diverse in gender and ethnicity. Our experiences in ministry include pastoring congregations, leading campus ministries, serving as youth ministers, teaching in seminaries, doing mission work, and serving on the church's general boards and agencies. Because of that diversity, we believe this book is much stronger than it would be if any single one of us had written it alone. For "we, who are many, are one body in Christ" and we "have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us" (Romans 12:5-6). Our reflections in the pages that follow attempt to shape a theological vision that is for the church and by the church. We want to cast a vision for the future of the United Methodist Church as our generation sees it. And to do that, we need to draw on the gifts and experiences and dreams of many.

As you read these pages, keep in mind that we're joining our voices in a conversation that requires all of usyoung and oldin each and every generation within the church. It's even a conversation that includes the voices of generations long past. John Wesley, for one, looked to the example of Jesus drawing men and women together in fellowship and saw in that a real means of grace. He called it "Christian conference." We understand what we're doing here as an expression of that kind of holy conferencing. As members of a generation to which the church is increasingly looking for leadership and witness in the present, we want to join our voices and offer our view on the great possibility that exists for God's work through the United Methodist Church in the years ahead.

Andrew C. Thompson

Sarah Arthur

Presian Burroughs

Jeffrey Conklin-Miller

Arnold S. Oh

Joy Jittaun Moore

Timothy Reinhold Eberhart

Julie O'Neal

F. Douglas Powe, Jr.

Shane Raynor

Eric Van Meter

Kevin M. Watson

introduction

STANDING AT THE CROSSROADS

Andrew C. Thompson

Does the United Methodist Church have a future?

Pastors and laypeople anxiously ask that question as they look at troubling signs of the church's decline in the United States. The UMC is growing in other parts of the world, but statistics on the American church suggest that we have real problems that need addressing. Whether it's the drop in numbers of young adult clergy or the steady falloff in total church membership over the past few decades, evidence of a shrinking denomination is interpreted by most people as a sign that we need to do some serious self-evaluation to find out what is wrong and how we can address the church's ills.

Some people point out that no denomination is an end in itself. The Methodists are only useful as a church body insofar as they are making disciples of Jesus Christ (and not just members of a local United Methodist church!). That's surely true. So the real question for us is whether the UMC can still be a part of the larger body of Christ that makes faithful disciples of Jesusmen and women who worship faithfully, experience transformation through grace, and are moved to go into the world as witnesses to the gospel.

If so, the church's future is clear! And if not, its future is sealed.

This book is not about how to "fix" a denomination. But it is about how the United Methodist Church can have a hopeful future ahead of it if it understands its purpose and how to live for that purpose. As a church rooted in the Wesleyan tradition, the UMC has a special calling to an evangelistic witness that proclaims God's transforming grace for all people. Back when Methodism was a movement within the Church of England, John Wesley described this calling as spreading scriptural holiness over the land and reforming the larger church. Either way, the people called Methodists have always believed that God has a special calling for us to receive and be remolded by his grace so that we can be empowered to go forth and offer it to hurting people in a broken world. It is a calling for each of us as individuals, as well as for all of us collectively.

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