Dream Big, Start Small

Last week my family and I went to Cleveland, Ohio for a three day vacation. We stayed at the Radisson Gateway Hotel owned by and connected to the national offices of the UCC.

I wasn't there for a meeting. The only national staff we almost rubbed elbows with was Joe Malayang. He was crossing Huron St. to get his car from the parking lot. He didn't see us.

We were on our way to Jacobs Field, home of the Cleveland Indians who happened to be playing the Boston Red Sox (our team!). Our house in Liverpool is almost exactly equidistant from Fenway Park, Boston and Jacobs Field, Cleveland. Tickets are cheaper and much more available in Cleveland. So, we caught the first two games of the four game series. Boston won both of them!

during the day we walked around Cleveland. We even took a boat tour of the Cuyahoga River. We were actually on our way to the Rock 'N Roll hall of fame but thought the $20.00 entrance fee was a bad deal. On our way to Lake Erie, however, we experienced a great surprise. Cleveland! What grand architecture in that part of the city! What marvelous grand scale design and planning of the gardens, monuments and buildngs!

It was all part of the so-called Plan of 1903 whose major designer, Daniel Burnham, supposedly believed in the big idea. He is reputed to have said, "Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably will not themselves be realized." This quote was emblazoned on an historical plaque commemorating this plan.

Now, I thought this quote had wonderful possibilities for a blog posting for you to read. Help our churches to think big ideas and see grand visions of mission and ministry, I thought. That's the ticket.

Unfortunately, I didn't write it down when we were there. My wife kind of rememberd the gist of it. so, I decided to do a "Google Search" on "small ideas". WOW! did I get hits (over 250,000 of them!)! Most of these espoused quite the opposite opinion from that which I was thinking to share with you. Small ideas are much more useful than large, most of these seemt to say.

Then I ran across a promising looking article, "The Tyrrany of the Big Idea," by Russell Davies, noted advertising and planning guru from Great Britain. You can read the article by clicking this feed. http://russelldavies.typepad.com/planning/2006/06/the_tyranny_of_.html

Davies likes the Big Idea in advertising, like Nike's "Just Do It", with which he has had some involvement in developing. But he has some interesting things to say about hose this advertising campaign slogan actually works. He says that they work because they are vague. The very lack of specificity means that new, creative and smaller ideas can fit within them and help the overall theme to grow. In fact he doesn't like to call these big at all. " Because these things aren't really Big Ideas, they're just huge buckets to contain a whole bunch of small ideas. And small ideas are what makes a brand interesting and effective. A constant series of small, new, interesting vaguely-related ideas which move things on, which explore the edges of the brand, which renew the relationships with customers, employees, etc."

The article is an interesting "read". I found myself thinking about the UCC's Big Idea of the "Comma" campaign and realizing how this fit into what Davies was saying. He also gave some specific advice for advertisers to employ. Even though they are meant for advertisers, they can easily be translated into "church friendly" language and strategies.

1. Starting doing stuff. Start executing things which seem right. Do it quickly and do it often. Don’t cling onto anything, good or bad. Don’t repeat much. Take what was good and do it differently.

2. Look for the patterns that emerge. Look for the phrases that people use to describe what you/they are doing. Collect the things that seem to work as summaries. Notice them, put them in a drawer, don’t turn them into CI guidelines.

3. Try not to write too much down. Manage the brand [vision, mission plan] through conversation and impressionistic media – videos, stories, images, heroes. Not through mandates, best practice or benchmarking.

4. Don’t be media neutral [or program planning neutral]. Favor the things that are rich with experience and texture - events, retail, social media, film. And relegate the things that are thin and specific. Because the rich stuff is more likely to help you move forward.

5. And something else and something else.

Blessings,

Rick Cowles

Boundary Lines

Psalm 16 is one of my favorites, especially verse 6, "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage." I imagine a large ribbon floating down from the heavens and resting on a piece of land on which I happen to be resting with a good book and some liquid refreshment, hopefully including a stream or other body of water. It is the dream landscape of my life, I suppose.

Boundaries are something I think a lot about. This is not surprising given my job. I work with churches and pastors where good boundaries are often at issue. Sometimes pastors work too much for too little pay. Sometimes pastors hold too strictly to working hours without properly caring for the needs of their parishioners.

I know that I have difficulty practicing what I preach with regard to these types of working boundaries. I work out of a home office. That's the arrangement the four Regional Conference Ministers have with the Conference. I like it mostly. The difficulty comes from the fact that the only time I am away from my office is when I'm on the way to meeting with a church or association committee or with a local pastor. In other words it's hard to figure out a time when I'm off.

This is not new for me. My family became used to the pattern of never leaving for a family vacation without first having to drop something off at the church office first. Even this Monday before leaving for a few days away I spent an hour doing emails. I'm not complaining, even though my wife called up to me as I was doing these emails, "I thought you were on vacation!" I had a parishioner once who commented on my need to "clean things up" at work while I was on my way out the door. He said that I was showing a lack of efficiency. I had to admit he was right.

On another front we have decided to take control of the boundaries of our home. We live in a suburban development in Liverpool. Bounded by houses on each side and in the back, we are surrounded by fences. The fences along our rear boundary are the oldest and in the worst state of repair. I think they're ugly. My wife, Susan thinks they are quaint. I keep wanting to cover them up, or fix the rotted and loose wooden slats, or at least paint them. The problem is that these fences belong to our neighbors and aren't "ours" to fix.

This year we agreed upon a solution. We decided to plant some willow bushes along the back fence. They have beautifully delicate leaves, will grow to cover a good portion of the fence and also withstand the water that accumulates in that portion of our yard every spring.

Sometimes the boundaries with which we are presented are beyond our control. That is, we have neighbors and bosses. We were born into family systems and cultures that define who we are and what we can and can't do. And, we have to learn to come to terms with them whether we come to total complicity or rebellion or somewhere in between.

On the other hand sometimes we need to take control of the boundaries within which we fall. I decided this past week not to take my computer with me. I didn't check my email on my vacation. I didn't take any work along.

Even during my work week I have decided that sometimes I need to let the office phone answering machine do its work. Sometimes I decide to take a nice walk on the golf course chasing the little, dimpled ball along fairways, forests and water hazards. And, yes, most of the time I spend staring at this computer screen or at the dotted lines of roadways blurring by.

But, life is good and the boundary lines have been pleasant for me, and I am thankful.

Blessings,

Rick Cowles

"Blest Be the Tie that Binds"

What a perfect weekend in the northeast (or at least where I was). Beautiful blue skies with puffy fair weather clouds, low humidity...just gorgeous.

My family and I attended a reunion of my wife's (Susan) family in the countryside northeast of Philadelphia. The "family consists of Susan's father and his two younger brothers, their spouses/partners, children, etc. Don and Elise came from Colorado. Bill and Fred from Tennesee. Jack and Ev (Susan's parents) along with Susan's sister Cathy her husband John and her daughter Paige and family, along with our children Peter (along with his girlfriend Mary) our daughter Paige and I rounded up the party.

We sat around at John and Cathy's house eating, swaping jokes and stories. There are family memories and rivalries. Not every one could come. Some may have not wanted to come. That's the way it is with families. But for all who showed, a good time was had by all.

There is news to share of various sorts, of course. There were many religious questions of me, per usual. The Tennessee contingent (both Episcopalians) wanted to know if the United Church of Christ was the same as the Church of Christ. "No, I patiently said. We're quite different from one another." (Of course I say this every time we're together.) Don (from Colorado) asked, "So, what do you do? You don't have a church right? (Right) So what do you do!" When I told him he said, "I didn't know that churches had people to do things like that. This morning I was asked if I heard Tammy Fae Baker had died. Know I hadn't seen the papers. "Yes, she said in a recent interview that she knew she was going straight to heaven." There was laughter and some jeering at the supposed audacity of such a claim. No one acknowledged my response, "Well isn't such knowledge the point of faith?"

I love my families -- my own birth family and also Susan's. I will say that being with Susan's family is a bit easier emotionally (for me at least) because it's not as complicated as the relationships in my own family. I'm the youngest so my sister and my Dad have much different perceptions of whom I am than almost anyone else. Susan's family only knows me as a pastor and as Susan's husband.

It occurred to me while driving home this afternoon that there was much about this weekend that is like my experience of the church.

Most of the people with whom I deal in local churches don't have a clue about what I do or why I'm meeting with them until I do it. Hopefully, they will then see that as they're talking about inviting a neighboring congregation to share space I can connect them with another church that has been doing the same.

Or, as they are in transition between pastors they possibly will experience some comfort and peace in hearing me share with them a process for moving forward that is tried and true.

Or, as they are in the midst of conflict I can offer some wisdom to help them to see their way through to a healthy future.

Or, as they are trying to develop a new vision along with a mission plan and a new structure they can experience my offer encouragement and some tools to move forward.

Church, our local congregations and also our associations and conferences are very much like a family. Sometimes we find it difficult to get along. Relationships within and among settings of the church are often complicated.

Communication is also difficult. We come at each other and the issues the confront us with preconceived notions and biases. Because we've known a person for decades we think of all that they do and every idea that they propose through certain lenses, for good or ill.

Sometimes we feel as though we just want to opt out of the family. It's easier to go it on our own. But how much better it is to show up to the reunion, to laugh at the jokes, share in the hugs of people whom you have known for a lifetime, or to welcome new members to the family, to eat together, even get red in the face with each other, but mostly to rejoice in being together. What else is there, after all. Being alone can be good. But community is the thing!

My mother-in-law, cried as we hugged her good-bye today. She's been doing that lately. We know that she's wondering which hug and kiss of farewell will be the last. How do any of us know this. Fortunately, we have each other and we have a God who wants us to have each other as part of a family on "another shore" that will never part.

Indeed, Blest be the Tie that binds,

Rick Cowles

"When We Cast Our Bread upon the Waters"

This is a missional posting! Why? I continue to believe that the Church only exists for mission. Our mission is to worship God, to serve the world and all those for whom Christ died and rose again, to perform the ministry of reconciliation to which God has called us. By the way this ministry requires working for justice and peace: beating swords into plowshares, spears into pruning hooks, teaching nations to learn war no more. This ministry of reconciliation also seeks to make the world a smaller and friendlier place, where we can actually come to know each other, understand each other, love each other.

I know, I know...I'm preaching. But, I will declare how it excites me to hear about churches that are actually doing this work, that have developed a heart for mission, that seek ways to reach out to the community, to other churches, religions, other nations. And, I want to share my excitement with you.

So, please pray for the group of youth and adults from the Homer Congregational Church that are leaving on a mission trip to Mexico early tomorrow (Friday, July 20).

Please pray for the two delegates representing the UCCNY Commission on the Global Church (Nathan Wright and Rick Cowles) who will be traveling to Managua, Nicaragua (August 2-6) to renew the ecumenical partnership with Mision Cristiana.

Please pray for the next NY/Help group that leaves for San Pedro Sula, Honduras (August 13-24). 7-9 persons from local churches in the New York Conference will be working with the villagers from the communities of the Mt. Matederos in the Yoro District of Honduras.
We rejoice in the mission trip undertaken by the youth and young adults of the Presbyterian/New England Congregational Church of Saratoga Springs to Europe earlier this month. We hope that their visits to some of our covenantal partner congregations in the Protestant Church of Hesse and Nassau helped to build their understanding of the universal church.

We also rejoice to welcome Daniel Happel to ministry within the Upstate Region of the Conference. (Note the photo to the left of Homer Pastor Jim Ziobro with Daniel.) Daniel is currently preparing for ordination with the Protestant Church of Hesse and Nassau. As part of this preparation he is going to be serving two churches in the New York Conference. For the next six month he will be serving as the Associate Pastor at the Homer Congregational Church. Afterward he will be moving to Buffalo to serve in one of our churches there.

The wise one who compiled the sage advice and philosophy in the book we call Ecclesiastes observed, "Cast you bread upon the waters, for after many days it will return to you." (Eccl. 11:1) It is a message of good investment sense, to be sure. (e.g. You have to spend money to make money.) It also makes good theological sense. As Jesus said, "Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, runing over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back." (Luke 6:37b-38)

I pray that the give and take of faith, of generous and open spirits, of mutual understanding and of love will enrich all of our missional endeavors...with God's help it will be so.

Blessings, Rick Cowles

This Ministry of Reconciliation

Pope Benedict XVI gave Christendom some "food for thought" in his statement, "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of the Church." The Holy Father reasserted the Vatican's claim that the Church in Rome was the only true Church, that all other expressions of the Church were either "defective" or mere "ecclesial communities" (but not the Church!) and did not provide the means for salvation for their adherents.

As many commentators have pointed out, the Pope did not state any new positions of the Roman Catholic Church. But as the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America declared, "It does, however, restate known positions in provocative ways..." Bishop Hanson went on to observe, "The anguished response of Christians around the world to the Vatican's statement...clearly indicates that what may have been meant to clarify has caused pain. Now is the time for our thoughtful and measured response."

UCC Ecumenical Officer, the Rev. Lydia Veliko remarked, "It is most upsetting to read persistent language, not new yet still distressing, characterizing the Protestant churches as not having 'preserved the genuine and integral substance of the Eucharistic mystery,' thus relegating us to a category of 'ecclesial communities' rather than 'church.'"

Veliko, however, remained positive about Catholic-Protestant-Orthodox relationships, especially in the United States. "We appreciate the many ways in which Roman Catholics … work collaboratively and collegially with Protestant and Orthodox colleagues, in many cases exhibiting the very best of the ecumenical spirit to which they made visible commitment in the days following Vatican II."

Locally, Paul Dreyer-Wiberg, interim pastor at our Plainville Christian Church UCC (Oneida Association), wrote to the editor of the Syracuse Post-Standard, "It is a sad day for Christians everywhere when a church leader sweeps aside decades of work and prayer toward the essential unity of all believers with the arrogant pronouncement that his church (The Roman Catholic Church) is the only true church." He went on to point out his sadness over the damage such statements make to the cause of Church unity. He imagined Jesus reading this statement and wondering, "I died for THIS!"

The Rev. Dr. Setri Nyomi, General Secrectary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, wrote in his letter on behalf of the World Alliance to the Vatican wondered about the timing of this statement, "It makes us question the seriousness with which the Roman Catholic Church takes its dialogues with the Reformed family and other families of the church. It makes us question whether we are indeed praying together for Christian unity. This is unfortunate timing since we are about to release the results of the third series of our bilateral dialogues."

I also wonder what purpose such a statement can serve. It certainly need not be made from the standpoint of "our" (that is non Roman Catholic) understanding of their position. Perhaps, it is to reassure Roman Catholics that the Vatican is not becoming "soft" in its doctrine.

Apparently, the statement is based upon the doctrine surrounding the Eucharist, or Holy Communion. Without the proper ordination (by a Roman Catholic bishop) of the celebrant of the Sacrament, non Roman Catholic churches are therefore not able to administer the Sacrament rightly.

Without the Sacrament rightly administered these churches cannot be instruments of God's salvation as mediated through the body and blood of Christ. (At least, that's how I interpret the logic of the doctrine.)

Personally, I don't care to limit the power of the Holy Spirit to make holy what God wants to make holy. I prefer to ask myself the question, "Am I being faithful to the Good News of the coming of the Realm of God through the person of Jesus Christ?"

Of course, I am biased. I belong to one of those "ecclesial communities." However, I do consider my position to have some scriptural basis. Jesus said that not everyone who says, "Abraham (and Sarah) is my ancestor will enter the realm of Heaven." He also taught in sermons and parables that whoever does the will of God is a part of his family.

St. Paul understood that in Christ God gave us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:16-21). To me, this reconciliation includes working toward the unity of the Church. It is as Setri Nyomi said in his letter to the Vatican, "For now, we are thankful to God that our calling to be part of the church of Jesus Christ is not dependent on the interpretation of the Vatican. It is a gift of God. Receiving this gift, we appreciate the Roman Catholic Church as a part of this family (as affirmed in the final report of "Towards a Common Understanding of the Church" published in 1991). We pray for the day that the Roman Catholic Church moves beyond exclusivist claims so that we can further the cause of Christian unity for which our Lord Jesus Christ prayed - so that the world may believe (John 17: 21)."

Blessings,

Rick Cowles

"Climb Ev'ry Mountain"

The Conference Staff has been on annual retreat over the last couple of days. Every year we do this. We've been to Silver Bay a couple of times. We've gone to NYC. We often stay are B&B's in various places like Owego and Ithaca.

The purpose of the retreat is to take a little time to bond as a staff team. Usually, we discuss a book that a staff person has found to be especially helpful. One year Phil Washburn taught us about "Systems Theory". At another time Bruce Tamlyn spoke to us about another system of personality types within the context of how our staff could work better together.

This year we've been staying at the Trail's End Inn in Keene Valley. It's a nice facility--just right for our needs. Geoffrey purchased copies of the book "This I believe" based on the National Public Radio series by the same name. On Monday afternoon we read through the series of essays by people from every day walks of life as well as though who are famous on this very engaging theme. After reading we spoke of what we read, what stood out for us in these essays, and what we believe.

You may or may not take comfort in this, but your Conference staff believes! This is good news. We believe. We're passionate. We make mistakes. We go on marvelous journey's inspiration, toil, joy, sadness, doubt and faith. In short we're just like you...people in search of ways to grow closer to the source of our being, the truth that unlies all things, the love that pervades all of life...God.

Don't get me wrong, this is not all deep and serious. We laugh a lot and have a very good time, too. For instance last night David Felton decided to regale us with a series of demented camp songs from his youth about Mrs. O'Leary's Cow and the fire of Chicago (or was is San Francisco?) and of the sinking of the Titanic. And, we don't let a few serious discussion get in the way of flights of fancy that take us far off the track.

Tuesday morning we also took care of our need for physical wellbeing and reuniting with NATURE. We climbed the mountain, Rooster's Comb that rises right behing our B&B. It was only 5 miles round trip. But most of us are getting a bit creaky in the joints. Several of us start breathing heavily after climbing a short flight of stairs...but we all made it! It took us over two hours to get to the top and over one hour to walk down...but we made it!

We noticed that we heard and observed a lot more on the way down than on the way up. We heard the birds chirping and the thunder rumbling. We noticed the huge rock out of which trees grew, their roots stretching from the top clutching to the sides and digging into the earth underneath...amazing. We were too busy talking and lifting one foot in front of the other on the way up to notice much of our surroundings. We realized that if we want to notice what's happening around us and within us we have to pay attention. Excellent advice for our churches, we thought!

Well, today we have a morning business meeting, and will head back home after lunch. We'll be finishing up our book reports. Geoffrey asked to to share synopses of a book that we feel is important for use in our work. These have been interesting discussions. But mostly, I'm glad we'll be actively rocking on the front porch tomorrow morning. The exercise on my creaky knees will be much more enjoyable than climbing that mountain! I'll have to go home to rest.

Blessings,

Rick Cowles

"...Creating and Renewing the Church..."

Something's happening in our Upstate Region churches these days. More and more of our churches are seeking to creatively address the challenges that face our congregations in our "mainline" relatively more progressive denomination. The challenges of older congregations (and buildings) with aging and dwindling memberships that still desire to be faithful in mission are becoming increasingly pervasive across the UCC. Add to this the increasing challenge of our churches's ability to support qualified pastoral leaders and the stress in our congregations becomes even greater.

So, what's been happening? In short an increasing number of churches are taking a serious inventory of their life and mission and are coming to the conclusion that conducting business as usual is not working. More churches are considering doing ministry and mission differently.

Making Traditional Ministries New

At Plymouth Bethesda, Utica, the congregation has found a new way to renew a dormant outreach ministry of hospitality to the community. Pastor Tom O'Donnell reports that the congregation has entered into a mission covenant with "Kitchens With Missions (KWM), the nation's most comprehensive and most successful food service-base- training and job-placement program." According to its mission statement KWM provides:
1. comprehensive foodservice training, soft skills training, supportive services, targeted job placement and job retention efforts for those who historically have had barriers to employment
2. nutritious meals to disadvantaged and other targeted populations of the community and
3. a program that will eventually lead to self-generated revenues through food-service-based programs.

Doing Shared Ministry

In the Utica/Rome area three congregations are coming together through the leadership of Pastor Ed Townsend in what they are calling the Three Steeples Parish. Consisting of one UCC and two Presbyterian congregations the Parish has already sold one of the Presbyterian church buildings. While maintaining the other Presbyterian facility as a parish hall and mission center, this ecumenical shared ministry meets in the UCC building in Paris.

Plymouth-Bethesda already hosts St. James AME Zion Church in their building. Now negotiations are continuing with the Cornerstone Community Church to share the building. So, on any given Sunday there will be three congregations worshipping (two in the sanctuary and one in the chapel).

In Auburn St. Luke's UCC is moving along steadily and prayerfully with merger plans with Calvary Presbyterian Church. St. Luke's began their search process for a new pastor 3-4 years ago. The Search Committee went through the process of developing a profile, receiving ministerial profiles and interviewing potential candidates. But after an extended time found that it was difficult to find the candidate that they felt the congregation needed in a part-time position.

In the meantime it became clear that there were some other congreations in their neighborhood that were going through some of the same problems. At the urging of their interim pastor, Dick Scheffler, the Search Committee met with me last summer and decided to stop the search and pursue possible cooperative ministry with Calvary. Chances are that the Oneida Association will be able to welcome a new, merged congregation into our fold. Praise God!

In the Groton-McLean area the three churches on which I have reported before in this blog continue their growing "cooperative parish" model of ministry. The churches (Groton Community, Groton City and McLean Community) are worshipping together this summer, alternatelyon a weekly basis in each of the buildings with each pastor preaching in one of the other places. The pastors are in the process of developing more intentional ways to help their congregations to discern the future of the cooperative parish.

Honoring Transition Times

One of the most difficult times in the life of any congregation is the transition time between pastorates. Most churches want to the search process to be over as soon as possible. One problem with this very understandable desire is that this time of Transition is short changed. The new pastor is called and in place before the church gives itself the chance to move beyond the previous pastorate much less to consider fully where God might be leading them and whom God might be wanting to serve them. This has led to some very short-lived pastorates (believe me, I know!).

There are some churches that have decided to discipline themselves against the need to hurry. They are trying to make the most out of the time of transition to take stock of themselves as congregations and develop a new sense of the mission to which God is calling them.

The Search Committee of the Plainville Christian Church UCC was just about done with the church profile. So, they contacted me to meet with them in order to go over this final draft before it would go to the Conference office for distribution. We had a good discussion, I thought. I suggested some changes to the profile. I also asked them some questions about the church's mission, how they were dealing with the leaving of the previous pastor, what kinds of challenges they felt the church had. A couple of days after this meeting I was contacted separately by the chair of the Search Committee, Ken Landon, and the Interim Pastor, Paul Dreyer-Wiberg, both of whom asked for my thoughts on prolonging the interim time in order for the church to discern further about its mission. "God bless you," I said.

First Congregational UCC, Corning and First Congregational UCC, Ithaca have also been in an interim time. Their Presbyterian Interim Pastors David Asbhy (Corning) and Catherine Taylor (Ithaca) have been doing great work in helping their respective congregations to discover anew their sense of mission and to move to a place where they are ready to welcome whomever God will be calling as their new pastors.

In our UCC Statement of Faith we declare our belief that God "bestows upon us the Holy Spirit to create and renew the church of Jesus Christ." Praise God the new flames of the Spirit that are inspiring our congregations!

Blessings,

Rick Cowles

(Thanks to Jenni O'Neill for the "fire" photo taken outside of East London, South Africa during our UCCNY Mission Trip, August, 2006.)

Back in the Real World of the Church

Well, after reporting about General Synod in the last several posts, it's time to get back to life and ministry at home.

Part of getting back to "normal" is reading local church newsletters. I always enjoy reading the newsletter from Friedens UCC, Syracuse. Pastor Ginny Anderson usually has a thought-full and provoking article about ministry and church life. While her article in the July edition of the newsletter is no exception (she urges her parishioners to use the summer months to grow into the experience of the Wisdom of the Gospel), another article caught my eye. In the section reserved for articles of fancy and fun appeared the following:

"There was a feud between the Pastor and the Choir Director of the Hicksville Baptist Church. It seems that first hint of trouble came when the Pastor preached on dedicating yourselves to service and the Choir Director chose to sing: 'I Shall Not be Moved'.

Trying to believe it was a coincidence, the Pastor put the incident behind him.

The next Sunday he preached on giving. Afterwards the choir squirmed as the director led them in the hymn, 'Jesus Paid It All.'

By this time, the Pastor was losing his temper.

Sunday morning attendance swelled as the tension between the two built. A large crowd showed up the next week to hear his sermon on the sin of gossiping. Would you believe the Choir Director selected 'I love to tell the Story.'

There was no turning back.

The following Sunday the Pastor told the congregation that unless something changed, he was considering resignation. The entire church gasped when the Choir Director led them in 'Why not Tonight?'

Truthfully, no one was surprised when the Pastor resigned a week later, explaining that Jesus had led him there and Jesus was leading him away. The Choir Director could not resist selecting 'What a Friend we have in Jesus.'"

As I read the article, I thought, "This would be humorous, if it weren't so similar to a situation that I had been dealing with over the last several months in another of our upstate churches!" Indeed! It's too real. The frustrating and sad thing is that no one did any wrong, per se. No one seemed to have any axes to grind. No one was making any power plays. It just seemed to happen (not immediately). The council put out a questionnaire to ask the congregation about their feelings regarding the ministry of the church, of the lay leaders and of the pastor. Chances are the pastor-parish relationship in that particular church will soon end.

One positive note has come out of this situation, for me at least. Because of my conversations with the leaders of that church I became aware of the recent Alban Institute book on pastoral evaluations, "Completing the Circle," by David R. McMahill, UCC Association Minister in the Minnesota Conference. It is a very helpful and accessible resource for churches and pastors. I highly recommend this resource that can enable churches to foster a healthy culture of communication based upon consistent, fair and constant feedback of ministries, leaders and staff.

Blessings (and Happy 4th!),

Rick Cowles

"Germans, Africans and Volunteers" (Let It Shine, Four)

A final piece on General Synod 26. We were pleased and honored to enjoy our growing relationships with sister and brother Christians from Germany and southern Africa.

As reported in the first posting from Hartford, the New York Conference and the German Protestant Church of Hesse and Nassau officially entered into a covenant partnership agreement at our annual meeting on June 22. The delegation from our partner church in Germany remained in Hartford, however, for General Synod.

On Sunday, June 24, the German delegation met with staff and other leaders of the Conference to discuss plans for future ecumenical engagement. We have a tentative plan to send a delegation of New Yorkers to Germany in the spring of 2008. Plans are also in the making either for an exchange of youth delegates or a combined New York/Germany youth mission trip to southern Africa (or both) in 2009.

Besides these official meetings, it was good to meet up with various members of the German delegation in our travels in and around Synod. My wife Susan and I joined up with J.K. Boodley (from Ithaca) and Walter from Germany for lunch on the last day of Synod. Walter (on the left in this photo of our meeting with the delegation on Sunday) was about to join the rest of the delegation from Germany on their trip back home. But we enjoyed an hour over lunch to become acquainted.

Along with two other UCC Conferences, New York help to support the visit of the Revs. Prince and Cheryl Dibeela to Synod. Cheryl is the Mission Coordinator for the Council on World Missions (of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches) for southern Africa. Prince is the General Secretary of the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa. It was a pleasure to meet these two wonderful church leaders.

The Dibeelas joined the New York Synod delegation for our early morning caucus on Monday, June 25. There was great interest among the delegates of their ministries. Bonnie Bates, pastor of our church in Madrid and convenor of the Conference Commission on the Global Church, and I accompanied them to observe the deliberations of the Synod Committee that was dealing with Immigration Reform. Part of their interest in visiting Synod was to learn the process that we use in our decision-making.

Bonnie and I (actually, the Commission on the Global Church) also hosted a luncheon with the Dibeelas, Conference staff and a few other leaders. (Prince and Cheryl are in the front row on the right, standing on either side of Claudette Spence.) This was one of the highlights of Synod for me. It was great to sit back and watch the quickly developed free flow of conversation about a wide range of topics.

Following up on the Conference Mission trip to Southern Africa in 2006, the Commission hopes to develop an ongoing relationship with the United Congregational Church of Southeran Africa and with our missionaries who work with the UCCSA. We are currently in the process of officially signing onto a missionary partnership with Dawn and Jon Barnes, missionaries living in East London, South Africa.

And finally, any report of General Synod 26 would be incomplete without mention of the volunteers from the churches of the Connecticut Conference that made our experience so comfortable and welcoming. Over 1,000 volunteers worked to welcome and guide us around the Hartford Civic Center and the city of Hartford. Not only that, but thousands more across the state provided cookies for us!

Now it's a tradition that the host conference provides cookies for delegates and visitors to Synod. (Except at Columbus, Ohio in 1997 when the Ohio Conference provided "Buckeyes", a devilish chocolate treat!) But the folks from Connecticut provided us with over 14,000 dozen cookies. Connecticut Conference Minister, Davida Foy Crabtree, estimated that that meant there were 2 dozen cookies per person at Synod! Thanks Connecticut Conference! (I feel lucky to have only gained 3 pounds are Synod. Probably, 2.5 of them were from the cookies, I'm sure!)

Blessings,

Rick Cowles