At one point Christianity was the centre of life in North America; now it has been pushed to the margins. But that’s an important place to be, according to Cam Roxburgh.
Mennonite Church British Columbia hosted a day-long missional church seminar at Peace Mennonite Church in Richmond on Jan. 19 called “Faith Qwest: Sharing God’s love in changing times.” As keynote speaker, Roxburgh, of the Forge Canada Missional Training Network, an organization that equips leaders and churches to become missional, to multiply and to transform neighbourhoods, explained that the church often goes through peaks and valleys, but it is in the valleys that it thrives and becomes stronger.
The way the church has responded to this change in culture by building new models of the church, having revivals and returning to past traditions, is insufficient. “I’m not convinced this will turn it around,” Roxburgh said. “We think we can tweak what we do on Sunday morning and they’ll still come. But guess what? They ain’t coming!”
The same applies to young people not being involved with or attending church, according to him, as these church responses aren’t bringing this demographic back either.
Roxburgh suggested that a new way of understanding God and the church could help the church bear witness to God in every action. “I am convinced that a renewed theological vision of the church on mission, where we bear witness to God in every action, will strengthen the church,” he said.
According to Roxburgh, this happens when Christians obey the greatest commandments: “To love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and strength, and to love your neighbour as yourself.”
During the course of the day, youth and young adult participation in church and incidents of young people leaving the church were recurring concerns that came up in discussions and in Roxburgh’s speaking.
Although some people talked about how technology has kept young people from engaging fully in the church, Tim Kuepfer, lead pastor at Peace Mennonite, had a more positive story to share. He spoke about his son Josh, who was starting to think more about the church and the role of young people within it ever since he moved away from home. Kuepfer said that in a phone call, Josh told him, “Dad, young people aren’t leaving the church because you ask too much of us; they’re leaving because they’re bored. You aren’t asking enough of us.” During that call, Josh proposed turning the unused rooms on the top floor of Peace Mennonite into communal housing, building a community garden on the roof and having community meals every week.
Kuepfer later reflected on how the most influential Anabaptist leaders were young when they had their best and brightest ideas. “Grebel, Blaurock . . . they were all under 25,” he said.
Young people often have creative ideas on how to improve the church if they are invited to contribute in their own ways, he said, adding, “We live in a time of creative opportunity.”
Willard Metzger, executive director of MC Canada, participated in the workshop along with Garry Janzen, executive minister of MC B.C.
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