I believe that we are now living in a post-Christian, even post-organized religion, world. The culture of the US and some other Western European nations has been shaped by a movement of suspicion toward institutions and organizations. While spiritual growth and deep interest in alternative ways of understanding reality grow, people generally have withdrawn from the religious institutions and systems that have shaped the history of Western Christendom. This is a time of being on the edge. As a Gen Xer who is an ordained Episcopal priest, I find myself living on the edge within the church I call home. I live on the edge of acceptablility in that my ways of seeing the world and my experiences of the spiritual journey on which I have been traveling often challenge the assumptions of the institutional history. What has been normative in a previous generation is now under question. What has been customary about worship styles, language, and forms is now under question and adaptation in ways that embrace technology and new ways of communicating. I live as a pastor in an institution that still wants to call me "Father" and make me more like the father figure who knows best. Yet, I am just an ordinary traveler on the path of life who is trying to make sense of the spiritual realities I encounter and remain faithful to the God who loves me and who has given me life. I live on the edge of authenticity between my role and the expectations people have of me versus my identity and who I have been created to be by God.
I believe that life on the edge is a creative and affirming place to be. I believe that life on the edge offers possibility for transformation and spiritual growth to occur. I believe that life on the edge need not be avoided - rather it is an invitation to journey in a place where safety lies in paying attention to the contours of life. It is a place to live where we are called to be present to the NOW of life in order that we might discern where the journey may lead. I want to be a pastor in a church that values living on the edge and is not afraid to stand in a place where the ground may shift unexpectedly. I believe that Jesus walked on the edge. It was Jesus' willingness to live on the edge that empowered him to serve with passion and authenticity in a world under seige.
There is more to come on this journey ...
Will you join me in living on the edge?
