In response to my earlier post, "Onward Christian Soldiers," the question was asked:
Can you preach about that, somewhere along the line?
Which is a really good question. One that deserves its own post.
My answer:
Well...no. Not here and now, anyway.
My congregation is in San Antonio, Texas. We have a huge number of retired military and active military members. It's a pro-military environment, with some of the usual trappings; e.g., we carry the American flag in procession behind the cross, and veterans day is a big deal, with recognition of those who served and special prayers. I actually got a nastygram after the sermon July 4th weekend for not supporting the troops. I heard some grumbling after a one-sentence insert into one of the rector's sermons, which went something like "you can't make peace while you're lobbing bombs at somebody."
I did wrestle, hard, on the Sunday morning in question, with the idea of ditching my prepared sermon and speaking from the passion that the hymn had brought up in me. What stopped me was the knowledge that I'm not that articulate preaching while shooting from the hip, to use a military metaphor. I've tried it, and it doesn't work so well. And if I'm going to preach something that I know isn't going to be immediately well-received, I want to be extremely careful.
My current thought is that, if I want to confront a congregation, I have to have either (1) a large stockpile of relational credibility, so they know that we love each other even if I fuss at them, or (2) zero relational credibility, meaning that nobody knows me, which gives an odd freedom to speak, even if only a small fraction of the congregation will really hear. After a year, I hope there's a small positive balance in the credibility account. But not enough.
Of course, I do realize that by that argument I'll almost never say anything difficult, and much of the gospel is uncomfortable to western middle-class culture if you really pay attention, so I can't always be positive.
I've picked up a couple of books on the topic of preaching uncomfortable messages, in hopes of finding some help.
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6 comments:
In some ways, your relationship with your congregation resembles mine with playwrights. I have to earn the relational credibility to give them the really tough notes that are going to challenge their ideas about their plays -- but will ultimately make the plays better.
Perhaps I should look at the books you've picked up on discussion of difficult subjects. Would you mind posting the titles or authors?
(1) Buechner, Telling the Truth. turns out to not be about what I thought it was about, and not so helpful for that specific application.
(2) Barbara Brown Taylor, Speaking of Sin. more useful, but I'm not done with it yet.
Would you consider posting it here? If not -- and I can understand why not, since this is a public forum -- would you be willing to email it to me?
I'd be really interested in reading it.
If you mean the sermon I didn't give, no. I didn't have any prepared text.
Ah yes, between the rock and the hard place. I know it well, my friend. I also know the struggle that accompanies the place - the compulsion to speak the truth and the struggle to speak it so that those around you will hear. Hang in there. Listen to what God is calling you to do. Eventually he'll show you the time and the place and he'll probably even give you the words.
I do my pastoring thing a few miles down then road and two exits to the left(literally). I understand your struggle. So many things I want to say, feel need to be said. Then I remember what my Mom taught me, "Pick your battles carefully and only fight the ones you afford to lose."
Maybe after living with my flock for thirteen or fourteen years I will have their trust and can fight that battle. Until then I'll pray a lot and cry a bit.
Pax
PastorBluejeans
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