Above All ...
One or two people have noticed my suggestions on rules for Christian blogging. So I thought I'd add what I think is probably even more important, and without which the rest are mere piffle in the wind.
St Paul and St Peter (or writers claiming to be them) both include in their epistles (1st century blogs, I suppose) lists of rules for proper behaviour among the followers of Jesus, and cap them with an 'above all': Love.
Whatever rules you adopt for your blog, this has got to be our Above All, too. Above all, love what you are writing about. Love the people, the places, the situations, the work. Love them with all their crankiness and infuriatingness; love them with all their true beauty and heroism. If you don't love 'em, you should consider blogging about something else that you do love. (If you don't love 'em, maybe you should consider some other line of work ...)
This is actually a bit of a passion of mine. I've come across far too many vicars in my time, who spend a good bit of their time berating the congregations they are supposed to be caring for, telling them off for not being better than they are, urging them to become something they are not, complaining about them to their friends, colleagues, bishop, God. Actually, that's Satan's job description, not the pastor's. The people I've admired have been the ones who imitate St Paul, who defend the people and stand up for them, start off before anything else by giving thanks for them. You've got to love the people you serve for who they are, not for who they ought to be, or who you would like them to be. They're never going to get that way, if you're accusing them the whole time.
And that's what I've tried to do in my thinking and praying and preaching. The funny thing is, it works. OK, I guess I was luckier than some. This group of people were pretty lovely to start with. But as I have loved as an act of will, so the feeling has grown to match. Till even at the end of a PCC meeting last Friday - mostly about money of all things - I found myself telling them: I really love being the vicar of this parish, you're all such great people.
The crazy pay-back is that they then love in return. Anyone would think Jesus was right, after all.
St Paul and St Peter (or writers claiming to be them) both include in their epistles (1st century blogs, I suppose) lists of rules for proper behaviour among the followers of Jesus, and cap them with an 'above all': Love.
Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Col.3.14)
Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Pet.4.8)
Whatever rules you adopt for your blog, this has got to be our Above All, too. Above all, love what you are writing about. Love the people, the places, the situations, the work. Love them with all their crankiness and infuriatingness; love them with all their true beauty and heroism. If you don't love 'em, you should consider blogging about something else that you do love. (If you don't love 'em, maybe you should consider some other line of work ...)
This is actually a bit of a passion of mine. I've come across far too many vicars in my time, who spend a good bit of their time berating the congregations they are supposed to be caring for, telling them off for not being better than they are, urging them to become something they are not, complaining about them to their friends, colleagues, bishop, God. Actually, that's Satan's job description, not the pastor's. The people I've admired have been the ones who imitate St Paul, who defend the people and stand up for them, start off before anything else by giving thanks for them. You've got to love the people you serve for who they are, not for who they ought to be, or who you would like them to be. They're never going to get that way, if you're accusing them the whole time.
And that's what I've tried to do in my thinking and praying and preaching. The funny thing is, it works. OK, I guess I was luckier than some. This group of people were pretty lovely to start with. But as I have loved as an act of will, so the feeling has grown to match. Till even at the end of a PCC meeting last Friday - mostly about money of all things - I found myself telling them: I really love being the vicar of this parish, you're all such great people.
The crazy pay-back is that they then love in return. Anyone would think Jesus was right, after all.
posted by Tony at 9/14/2004 03:39:00 pm
4 Comments:
Tony...I could HUG you for writing this. Just back from our Bishop's Clergy Day (which, btw, was excellent...stimulating speakers, good atmosphere, and we are truly and hugely blessed in our new Bishop, Michael Perham)...but the number of clergy I heard whingeing about the way their congregations just didn't "get" what they wanted to do, or were somehow standing in the way of their Grand Plan. As a shiny new enthusiastic curate, it didn't feel appropriate to comment, but a very loud voice was shouting inside my head "But your Grand Plan is surely to minister to these people..not to run them down to your peers"
And then I came home to read this. Thank you :-)
Tony...I could HUG you for writing this. Just back from our Bishop's Clergy Day (which, btw, was excellent...stimulating speakers, good atmosphere, and we are truly and hugely blessed in our new Bishop, Michael Perham)...but the number of clergy I heard whingeing about the way their congregations just didn't "get" what they wanted to do, or were somehow standing in the way of their Grand Plan. As a shiny new enthusiastic curate, it didn't feel appropriate to comment, but a very loud voice was shouting inside my head "But your Grand Plan is surely to minister to these people..not to run them down to your peers"
And then I came home to read this. Thank you :-)
Sorry about that...puter is currently so unhelpful it either does nothing I want it to, or everything twice..Sometimes, of course, it pretends that it is doing nothing and persuades me into doing something again, and then does it anyway..or maybe I'm just inept
Oh dear...overenthusiastic puter syndrome strikes again. Sorry about that ;-(
Kathryn
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