Dress at General Synod

OK, so this might not be the most earth-shattering thing to comment on, and maybe I'm just a crank, but as an outside observer who occasionally got the livestream from General Synod to actually work -- does it seem to anyone else that 'anything goes' for dress at General Synod? 

I'm not advocating anything like a formal dress code.  (If I did, I'd make it simple.  Like -- guys, cover  your entire legs.  And wear something that has at least one button.)  I don't mind an air of informality.  But might there be a line inserted in next year's online workbook to the effect that "casual Friday" dress is most appropriate for Synod meetings? 

After all, we gather to do the Lord's work.  Sometimes it seems like several delegates -- even staff (well, at least one that I saw) -- are gathered for a few moments before they head to the shore to dig for clams.  Or to the parking lot for tailgating. 

Is this the message we intend to convey -- "hey, we all just really love the Lord, and Jesus says 'come as you are' (please quote the passage for me), so it doesn't matter what we wear, as long as we're comfy?" 

Is it sexist of me to notice that the women on the whole -- as few as they are -- dress in a way that befits the importance of the occasion?

Do we bind the Spirit if we ask for some kind of standard?

You can't even wear shorts to lots of golf clubs!

Have any bloggers attended the assemblies of our ecumenical brothers and sisters in Christ?  If so, what do they wear when they gather to discern the will of the Spirit? 

Lots of good things happen at Synod, maybe despite our dress.  I get that.  Seldom is enough credit given to the "back of house" staff people who work so tirelessly and cheerfully to deliver a productive Synod experience.

But -- tell me -- am I just out to lunch on this one?

(OK, I'll quit RobBelling, 'just asking questions.'  If you're going to Synod next  year, please, dress like you're doing the Lord's work, not like you can't wait to get out on the deck for margaritas.)

My mother, the RCA

Of late I've picked up in a few places some genuine disdain for the RCA.  Disdain -- and even mockery. 

I get that the RCA isn't perfect.  How could any denomination with Calvinist roots claim to be free from the totality of human sinfulness?

But consider this.  For many thousands of folks (I'll only say thousands, because we ain't that big), the RCA has been their spiritual mother.  We began life here.  We continue life within its walls.  Maybe from time to time we need a little 'therapy' to deal with 'mother issues.'  Nevertheless, the RCA is still our "spiritual mother," to use a rather archaic phrase.

So, if at some point a reader of this blog thinks it expedient to mock the life of the RCA, please consider -- you're calling out someone's mother.  I would venture a guess that (if you're in the mocking mood) you wouldn't want your mother ridiculed in public.  I hope you'd rush to defend her.

Think about it, next time before you say "yo momma" about the RCA. 

Unrecognized and Undervalued?

Just had a brief conversation with a church-start pastor (planter) who commented that he hears fellow planters often expressing concerns of being unrecognized and undervalued.   I replied that many people in 'traditional' ministries also feel unrecognized and undervalued at times, while the denomination goes on its way promoting a zillion new church starts and revitalizations.  We wondered together about whether Our Call (though we didn't specifically name it) had some part in people at such different places in ministry might feel a similar lack of being appreciated.

I don't want to turn this into a thread where people can just whine away unabated, but is this feeling of non-recognition or being non-valued very widespread? 

For my part -- I'm in one of those 'traditional' ministries. Congregation here for almost 200 years.  It's done countless missional things over the years, and it continues to do so, although what counts for "missional activity" these days isn't all that much in evidence.  (We aren't starting a new program each year to reach out to a new community need, for example.)  Sometimes my eyes roll back in my head when folks who are enthusiastic about missional activity talk to me, and others in churches in the East, as if we're not doing anything for the sake of gospel and and God's reign.

What do you think?  Have a story to tell?  Are we just not talking to each other?

Thanks, Wes

Wes Granberg-Michaelson has announced his intention to move on from the position of General Secretary of the Reformed Church in America.  1994-2011; quite a span (I might have the date a bit off).  Think of all the changes that have happened in society in those years.

What do you think will be Wes's most significant legacy in the RCA?  How would you choose to express your gratitude for his leadership?  What sort of person do you think the RCA should be looking for as its new General Secretary?  What sorts of qualifications (or disqualifiers) should he or she possess?

For my own part -- thanks, Wes; you've given your mind, body, and soul to serving the RCA for these years.  You've dealt with both supporters and detractors with grace.  You have served us well internally and have represented us well externally, and we have been blessed to be led by a true servant of the church (the whole church).  May God be with you in your time of transition, and with the RCA in a time that will no doubt bring some anxiety and concern to the fore.

What Do You Think?

I understand that a video of Tim Wise was played at this year's General Synod, and that some folks welcomed it, and others rejected it.  Wise here makes ironic observations about what he calls "right wing paranoia and rhetoric."  I'd be interested to hear what fellow RCA folk think of Wise's take. http://www.redroom.com/blog/tim-wise/black-powers-gonna-get-you-sucka-right-wing-paranoia-and-rhetoric-modern-racism