My friend Stephen sends me this post on "What Young Clergy Want you to Know." It sounds right on the money to me. Some highlights.
- They love Jesus and they love the Church
- They understand they are presiding over the death of American Christendom
- They are okay with that
- But they want the church and their leaders to be honest about where we are.
- The sooner we can come to terms with our dyings, the sooner we can live into the new life that is emerging from it. Despite their concerns, they remain hopeful.
- They are native to a culture that the church, on the whole, does not fully - or hardly - understand or engage. That doesn’t just go for parishioners. It goes for clergy, too.
- They are never going to act or sound like previous generations of clergy.
- They feel the church needs honest self-assessment, but feel they can’t be critical because their next job depends on the people they may critique.
- They feel the expectations placed on younger clergy are not enforced among older clergy
- They are no less theologically committed than their predecessors,
- But their work looks different and their language sounds different.
They are worried about job security - not just about getting paid (which is not always a given) - but whether they can do the job they feel called to do in congregations that don’t want to change. Being prophetic is an attribute we laud in seminary, but it can get you fired in the parish.
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Very intersesting. Read the whole thing.