While Presbyterians Were Sleeping

I will return to my illusion ramblings tomorrow but I want to revisit an earlier post.

I had an article published last week in the Presbyterian Outlook called Respiratory Failure in PCUSA. I have received several atta-boys from a diverse group of folks. I got one today that I thought was particularly interesting. The sender included a quote from a Roman Catholic that sparked some discussion. Here is a paragraph from his post.

“It reminded me of a comment from a Roman Catholic priest during their recent interregnum. Asked about whether a new pope would allow for more lay involvement in the church, he responded along these lines: ‘Why do they want to get all tied up in the church? They're the ones who are supposed to be taking the gospel out to the world in their communities and careers. The clergy are the ones who work in the church. If the laity get focused on the church as well, who's taking the love of Christ to the world?”

So here I sit in the Presbyterian Church (USA). A core piece of our DNA is the priesthood of believers, the idea that the body of Christ is the priest to the world. Each of us supposedly has a call. I even hear Priesthood of Believers bandied about now and then. It is probably one of the most important contributions our tradition has to offer the broader Church as we move into a post-modern era. Are we the Priesthood of Believers?

What I see is status distinction of clergy versus laity. I do not see apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers who equip fellow ministers for the work of ministry. I see insular survivalist communities looking for someone to care for them. I see super-centers offering religiosity products and services under the close supervision of “professional” Christians. I see us sending people to seminary to go into the ministry while the rest of us do …. what? … sit back and consume the work of credentialed Christians? I do not see people going through their daily lives with a sense of call and purpose. I do see some Presbyterian leaders publicly express their pleasure that we are not as gauche as those “Purpose Driven” Southern Baptist simpletons. All the while the Presbyterians in the pews buy the books in droves out of hunger for call and purpose.

Add to this the Roman Catholic Church since Vatican II, the most hierarchical, clergy/laity oriented manifestation of the Body on the planet, and you get, “They're the ones [laity] who are supposed to be taking the gospel out to the world in their communities and careers. The clergy are the ones who work in the church. If the laity get focused on the church as well, who's taking the love of Christ to the world?”

We need another Reformation! If for no other reason than to catch up to the Roman Catholic Church on the Preisthood of Believers.