Continuity and Change: Saint Luke’s Church in the 21st Century

Good Morning, Friends,

It is good that we are here on this Lord’s Day, as it is on every Sunday and special feast day. When we come together as Saint Luke’s Church, our reasons and needs for worship are as varied, personal and unique as each one of us. The miracle—which is both a comfort and a challenge—is that given all the individual sorts and conditions of men and women’s lives, when gathered up in Christ, we experience a Holy Communion with God and each other: a reassuring touch, both human and divine, that gives us the experience of being included in a circle rather than being off and out on an edge somewhere. Considered in the light of Christ’s Life, each of us is offered direction for walking in the way of new life. As individuals and as church, we are embraced and we are sent. Yes, God’s love is both comfort and challenge.

In recent times many people across the land and in this very fellowship of Saint Luke have been weighted down and burdened. This past fall season, when we attempted to get together to talk about the comfort and challenge of God’s love, people were understandably focused on the then upcoming election and the condition of the economy. So we decided to wait until now for starting that conversation, which is not to suggest that now people’s lives have eased up but that the issues we need to consider were on the table before the present economic crisis hit.

Continuity and Change
What it is going to look like to be the church, as the 21st century continues, is not the same as how dioceses and parishes look now. Changes during the last quarter of the 20th Century not only set the stage but radically changed the scene. One such change has to do with our own geographical area. Inside of the Rego Park and Kew Gardens/Richmond Hill lines, boundaries that used to mark the natural bounds of the Saint Luke’s parish, the population is now, and for quite awhile has been, overwhelmingly non-Christian. I am sure this does not come as news to you. As a parish, we have long tried to be more intentional in reaching people in Forest Hills and beyond. However, it is hard to drag all this brick and mortar out onto Queens Boulevard or catch the V train with 150 prayer books and hymnals under your arm. I am employing some hyperbole here. The point, however, is that in many ways we have been trying to meet change with our old assumptions. Yes, it has been right to try and reach new people in a wider area and to invite them, through our various ministry program offerings, into our community. We need to do much more of that. However, we also need to change our very idea of “community.”

Our vision of community, while certainly needing to include what we cherish and the people we hold dear within these walls, needs, at the same time, to break through this brick and mortar. As much as we want out community here to grow, as much as we must continue to strive to welcome all and to go out there to invite them in, our vision of community needs to expand. We live in an age when a good number of the people we could touch with the Gospel are folks we would never see here in the pews. Yet, they are still potential members of the Body of Christ; and, in the 21st Century, the way in which they are members of Saint Luke’s will be very different, indeed. They could well be members of a web-based parish. These are just one or two of the changes that are occurring and responses we might possibly make. I think, though, it gives the sense of the shifts we need to face as we, Saint Luke’s Church, prayerfully and faithfully consider continuity and change.

Continuity cannot be about holding on to the way we’d like things to stay. Rather, continuity as Saint Luke’s, involves our ever-growing as a center of spiritual strength and compassion; as a people who offer an all-inclusive welcome to others; as a parish where outreach growth is a baptismal ministry priority. We need to continue our focus upon and understanding of the Mission of the Church Universal as well as further developing Saint Luke’s unique expression of Christ’s mission.

During our 10-Year Plan for Congregational Development, we have often found ourselves focused on “survival”. When I joined you as Rector in February 2000, we had to discuss that the church doors would close by 2004 unless changes were made. You made the change. Your stewardship growth in increased pledging and special giving was record-setting. The doors stayed open, open wide, in fact; we began growing in numbers of members, expanded ministry programs and as a faithful parish. Yet, by 2006, our combined stewardship could not meet expenses and we began a series of annual cutbacks in the operating budget, which brings us to 2009.

Today, when we talk about “survival” our first concern, our Gospel concern, is for people who are anxious over what survival is going to mean in their own lives. Many of you have communicated through conversation, email or penned note that you are unable to support Saint Luke’s at the same level as in the past. Some of you have lost clients, many have lost income, a few are losing their jobs. Some have expressed embarrassment because they feel they cannot save face, they feel they are letting the church down. NO. You are not out there on that edge somewhere. You belong to Christ, you belong here, and we need each other. You do not necessarily know who was able to increase their pledges, who had to cut back or who might be giving for the first time. It doesn’t matter: our giving is held in common. We are held in common. There is no need for face saving here. We look on the face of Jesus who saves us all. We see the face of Jesus in each other. You can’t buy that. You don’t give it in a pledge. It cannot be taken away from you. It is the gift received and given in an open heart, a stirring soul, in good will and committed action. Yes, we have been and are facing all sorts of survival issues in our corporate life as a parish and in our personal and relational lives too. Yet, throughout it all, by the grace of God we are always trying to express our calling in faithful ways.

Such has been the heart, soul and willed action in our life together as Saint Luke’s Church these years. Amidst the swirling changes and considerations of continuity, there is much for us to discern about our mission and ministry. Yet, even as we intentionally begin this conversation now, there are some facts we can already perceive.

FACT: Since 2001, over 50% of our parish are ‘new’ households.
YET, FACT: We have not grown in overall parish size because of the transitional nature of the greater Forest Hills area.

FACT: Our 2009 endowment position vs. 2000 shows growth through responsible management/stewardship.
YET, FACT: As we all know from our annual stewardship campaigns, our endeavoring to have annual expenses stay in line with annual resources has left our operating ministry budget under funded and has affected ministry and administration.

FACT: Last year in 2008, even though we were close to the ceiling of what we could expect to receive in annual giving from the members of a parish our size, the pledge promise was the highest ever, with the highest ever percentage of participating households.
YET, FACT: The pledge promise for 2009, to date, is the lowest in a longtime.

FACT: Saint Luke’s is not a wealthy parish.
YET, FACT: Saint Luke’s is a vibrant, healthy parish!
From such a position of strength, the Vestry, parish committees and all the people need to sharpen our focus on the issues of continuity and change. The Church’s calling is Mission, going forward; not maintenance of the ‘as is.’ Such is the challenge for the spiritual growth of the church and our faith witness as Christians.

2009 is going to be a year of assessment and exploration. We will look back on our experience and ask what we have learned during our 10-year plan and what we are committed to carrying forward. We will also explore the creative possibilities of networking with other Episcopal parishes in the deanery and archdeaconry, pursuing ecumenical links and projects with other Christian faith communities in the greater Forest Hills area, and investigating alternative ministry models that are arising throughout The Episcopal Church.

Yes, 2009 will be a time for discernment and 2010 the time for potential decision-making. Throughout, it will be a time of openness and clear communication, of dialogue and conversation involving the whole parish—we cannot do this without each other. This is surely a time in which we will experience God’s love both as comfort and as challenge. And make no mistake: the hard work of discernment in 2009, decision-making in 2010, and parish life come 2011, will position us well for a magnificent year of Saint Luke’s Centennial Celebration 2012-13.

Yours ever in Christ,