Slow Change?

I received the May-June 2006 issue of Communion this week. Heading the newsletter for the last several months is Jeannette Flynn's series on cultural change and how it affects us as a church. (You can read my previous postings on this series here: Change of Culture, Our Culture (version 1.0), and Transformational Change?)

 

In this latest installment Flynn provides an overview of how cultural change occurs, pointing out the differences between cultural drift, developmental change, transitional change and transformational change. The latter is the most radical, requiring a shift in assumptions and actions.

 

True enough. I am learning through my own personal experience and observation that slow, gradual change is rarely effective. Jesus' own life and teaching reveals, however, that God is in the business of dramatic, radical change. Often our churches have settled into a comfort zone that closes out this possibility.

 

Flynn is a brilliant person and contributes much to the Church of God. But, the SLOW nature of this discussion is not helping us address and deal with change. In fact, the plodding nature of this discussion actually sends the message that change must be cautious and far from urgent. One article every two months doesn't cut it. Sure she's set up a blog, but apart from an introductory post from December there has been silence from Jeannette.

 

If we are serious about change we need to move beyond a casual conversation and toward engaged dialogue and action. This is necessary for true transformational change.