In my last post I talked about the book Slow Church: Cultivating Community in the Patient Way of Jesus by C. Christopher Smith and John Pattison. The values of Slow Church are laid out as a meal, in three courses: Ethics, Ecology and Economy. Here’s a quick look at each of the values.
1. Terroir: This is the idea of being grounded in a place.
“God,
Shrink our territory,
And narrow our boundaries
That we might truly be a blessing to all.”
--Paul Sparks
2. Stability: Fidelity to people and place.
“The power of stability, though, is the chance to get below the surface, to recognize patterns, to become more sensitive to the work God is doing all around us.”
3. Patience: Entering into the suffering of others
“Patience means to enter actively into the thick of life and to fully bear the suffering within and around us.”
4. Wholeness: Looking at people and things as a whole instead of fractured into parts.
“Can I separate my own health from the rest of the world? My own good nutrition from the poor nutrition of billions? My longing for peace from the warring in the Middle East…or anywhere else at all? In a universe where the lifting of the wings of a butterfly is felt across the galaxies, I cannot isolate myself, because my separation may add to the starvation and the anger and the violence.”
--Madeleine L’Engle
5. Work: Cooperating with God’s Reconciling Mission through our labor.
“[The ideal work:] work that engages the whole person, often in collaboration with others, for the sake of the flourishing of the whole community.” “Help people recognize and prefer good work over bad work.”
6. Sabbath: The Rhythm of Reconciliation
“Sabbath observance requires a leap of faith, a firm confidence that the world will continue to operate benevolently for a day without human labor, that God is willing and able to provide enough for the good life. Sabbath promises seven days of prosperity for six days fo work.”
--Richard H. Lowery
7. Abundance: The economy of creation
“Scarcity impedes our imaginations, compelling us to conclude, ‘We could never do that.’”
“Scarcity often has the effect of blinding our churches to the abundant resources that God has provided for our life together.”
“The myth of scarcity is useful for subjugating peoples, and for helping the rich stay rich and the powerful stay powerful.”
--Walter Brueggemann
8. Gratitude: Receiving the good gifts of God
“Gratitude is how we practice recognizing the abundant gifts God has given us. It’s how we praise God for those gifts. And it is the energy that compels us to want to share those gifts.”
9. Hospitality: Generously Sharing God’s Abundance
“For churches, one of the most transformative, and intimate, forms of generosity is hospitality: Sharing our homes, our tables and ourselves with others, particularly strangers.”
The final chapter of the book is called “Dinner Table Conversation as a Way of Being Church.” It focuses on the good work that can be done among members of a church through sharing a meal.
“Christians spend too much time ‘deciding’ who can’t be included at the dinner party. In contrast, we believe it’s our responsibility and privilege as followers of Jesus to add chairs to the table, not take them away.”
My biggest takeaway was just the idea that my little church here in my little town may be nailing this idea. I am happy to be a part of a body of believers who practice lots of these values.
