Types of Societies (Congregations)

1. T raditional Modern Late Modern a. set patterns a. division of labor a. relational b. re lational b. abstract b. weak ties c. obligation c. exchange d. homogeneous d. money e. deep ties e. calculation f. exclusive f. weak ties Programmatic Lutheran Congregations Congregations Niche New Immigrant Congregations Congregations Types of Societies (Congregations) Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, April 2008.

2. The Role of The Exchange in American Religion The Characteristics of American Religion ● The Heartfelt ● Religion as a Means to an End (God has high expectations, which if met, yield positive and significant rewards.) ● In this sense religion also functions as a means of gaining control. The Reward The Good Life = Personal Peace + Affluence Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, 2009.

3. Lutherans and The Exchange One view is that Lutherans offer little in The Exchange. Life is hard and difficult and one should expect little in return. Garrison Keillor: I'm expecting Mr. Fellows to come over. The music director at Third Lutheran. Sue Scott: Oh? Where is Third Lutheran? I never heard of it. GK: Well, it used to be called First Lutheran, but — you know — they're Lutherans. They were more comfortable with being Third. SS: Oh. That sort of big boxy church that looks like a storage facility. GK: That's it. Anyway, they've asked me to compose an anthem for Lent. http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/programs/2007/02/17/scripts/bob.shtml

4. Lutherans and The Exchange The Anthem It is Lent According to the New Testament, An event that is meant As a time to repent. Repent! Repent! And lament Man's descent. And as a time to sacrifice, Like instead of sirloin steak you could eat brown rice. To embrace poverty in a land of plenty— Like instead of a venti You could have a grande latte, and instead of whole milk, you could ask for two percent. http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/programs/2007/02/17/scripts/bob.shtml

5. Lutherans and The Exchange It is possible to draw a very different conclusion. Lutherans should be the most positive people around. Finding the good life has little to do with meeting the expectations of a demanding God, but instead, the good life comes through faith in the goodness of God. “So you see that the gospel is really not a book of laws and commandments which requires deeds of us, but a book of divine promises in which God promises, offers, and gives us all his possessions and benefits in Christ.” (Luther, “What to Look for and Expect in the Gospels,” Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings, p. 107, Timothy Lull, editor.) Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, 2009.

6. Lutherans and The Exchange Faith in Christ Jesus leads us as Lutheran Christians to focus on the promises of God. And, “since these promises of God are holy, true, righteous, free, and peaceful words, full of goodness, the soul which clings to them with a firm faith will be so closely united with them and altogether absorbed by them that it not only will share in all their power but will be saturated and intoxicated by them.” (Luther, “Freedom of a Christian,” Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings, p. 601, Timothy Lull, editor.) Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, 2009.

7. Lutherans and The Exchange Lutherans believe that Jesus is a “wonderful, indescribable, unfathomable gift from God.” Jesus shows “the great fire of the love of God for us, whereby the heart and conscience become happy, secure, and content.” “This is what preaching the Christian faith means.” (Luther, “What to Look for and Expect in the Gospels,” Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings, p. 106, Timothy Lull, editor.) Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, 2009.

8. Lutherans and The Exchange Lutherans are long on hearts and consciences that are happy, secure, and content, and this happiness actually sets us free from the pursuit of affluence (control). Lutheran happiness comes from the absence of need, not in fulfilling needs. Lutherans are happy, secure, and content, precisely because Christ has already done everything that needs to be done. In Christ, we have everything. We are set free from gaining or preserving our possessions. For Lutherans the good life is faith in Christ. This faith alone brings us happiness, security, and contentment. Kenneth W. Inskeep, Research and Evaluation, ELCA, 2009.

9. A Community of Practice Practice 1. Contemplation, testimony, hospitality, the arts--running counter to the current contemporary culture. 2. Becoming a community, growing in intimacy with God, and welcoming strangers. 3. “The only way to acquire these things is to practice them.” (Diana Butler Bass and Joseph Stewart-Sicking)

10. A Community of Practice Tradition: Keeping Christian Wisdom Alive “For practicing congregations, tradition is a vision of the good life, expressed in the wisdom of those who have gone before and kept alive by discussion and argument.” (Diana Butler Bass and Joseph Stewart-Sicking) “In short, they try to make the wisdom of the past alive today. In doing this, practicing congregations have become soul friends with great figures throughout the church’s history, such as the leaders of the early church, Benedict, Luther, Calvin, Brother Lawrence, Edwards, Wesley.” (Diana Butler Bass and Joseph Stewart-Sicking)

11. A Community of Practice Narrative 1. Telling stories, stories of the God who still acts and has sent them, with all their unique gifts, into a specific community, place, and time. 2. Practicing congregations engage in discernment, finding God’s will for them both as communities and as individuals. 3. “This discernment allows them to find those specific practices to which they are called--the practices that provide coherence and meaning for their own unique stories.” (Diana Butler Bass and Joseph Stewart-Sicking)

12. A Community of Practice Virtue “Practice, engaging the tradition, and storytelling become a way of life for practicing congregations, and this structure becomes a framework for vitality.” (Diana Butler Bass and Joseph Stewart-Sicking)

13. A Community of Practice Intentionality – Lack of Assumptions • God is real. • Members expect something to happen. • The Bible provides the framework. • Commitment to ministry of the baptized. • Commitment to connecting because God changes lives. • Prayer