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Heather Prince Doss

Musings of a multi-cultural, bi-vocational, solo pastor

The Work of Religion and the Religion of Worksim

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Don’t read this post until you’ve read “The Religion of Workism” from The Atlantic. Go read that, even if you don’t have time to come back and read this post.

Clergy might be particularly susceptible to the religion of work. It’s easy to confuse your work with your religion when you work is religion. In my case, it doesn’t help that I am one of the millenials who “passed through a childhood of extracurricular overachievement and checked every box of the success sequence.” I’m fortunate to have been early enough in my generation that the economic crash of 2008 did not blow up my dreams. I got a good job in my field. Thirteen years after finishing graduate school, I am doing my dream job. Two of them, actually. And, in general, I have expected to find fulfillment in this rich and varied work that both pays my bills, gives back to my community, and lets me travel.

Has it worked? Has having two “dream jobs” (at once) brought me fulfillment? Sometimes. Sometimes not. (Today I’m feeling particularly stressed and anxious, wondering whether I even have time to write the post!) As with the author of this article, those unfulfilled times “can send me into an existential funk that can spill over into every part of my life.” Workism, it turns out, does not work – not even for clergy.

I have been catching glimpses of this truth for years, but the picture has become clearer since serving a multi-cultural congregation. I noticed almost immediately that the Cambodian and West African members of my congregation almost never talk about their jobs. After 3 1/2 years of ministry here, I still do not know what many of my people do for a living or who they work for. Their jobs are what they do so that can support their families both here and back home. And while there is certainly some commitment to the American Dream, for my non-Western members, identity comes much more from their ethnic and cultural roots, their commitment to their families, and their faith in Jesus Christ than from their jobs.

A couple summers ago, I led an eight-week worship series on vocation using many of the excellent resources from the folks at the Theology of Work Project. We explored the idea that were were created in the image of God who labored for 6 days to create the world. We were made to work. But we were also created in the image of God who rested, really rested, and charged the creation to do the same. The idea in that series was not to convince people that they needed to find a fulfilling job or even find fulfillment in their jobs, but that they could live out their faith no matter what kind of job they do or don’t do.

Reflecting on that summer series, I wonder if my Workist side was inviting people to find fulfillment in jobs that the culture says cannot be fulfilling. I’d like to think my Christian side was telling people that what they do and how they do it can be an expression of their Christian faith and identity, even if the world doesn’t value one kind of work or another.

I recognize I am privileged to have a job that I mostly enjoy, that pays the bills, and that gives me opportunities to make my community a better place. But if I don’t remind myself often, then the stress, anxiety, and burnout will do it for me: my religion should not be work, even if my work is religion. There is much I can learn from my Cambodian and West African members. And so, as their pastor, I will do my work faithfully even as I try to put my deepest faith not in my job but in Jesus who should shape all that I do, on the the job and off.

Moving the Dream Forward

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Yesterday, Pastor Thysan Sam and I gave the opening prayer at the local MLK event organized by the Middlesex Community College Foundation. In reflecting on just what to pray, I was struck by two quotes from Rev. Dr. King, and meditated on what they might mean when held side by side:

The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.

“Our God is Marching On!” sermon given 25 March 1965

Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and persistent work of men willing to be coworkers with God . . . .

“Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” August 1963

Together the quotes remind me of King’s faith that God is still in control, still at work for the reconciliation of the world, but that people of good will cannot be content to sit around and wait for God to complete that work. The first quote gives me hope when I am tired or despairing. The second gives me a kick in the pants to get up and keep working. In that spirit, I offered this prayer at yesterday’s gathering:

God of justice and peace,
We gather on this January afternoon to remember the life
of your servant and prophet Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Junior
and to renew our commitment to his vision of a Beloved Community;
community where every person’s dignity is honored,
where people of every color and creed have
safe housing, meaningful work, and a voice in our political process;
a community where children from every class and background
have equal access to high-quality education;
a community where racism will be extinguished from the hearts of individuals
and eradicated from the systems and structures that shape our public life.

God of grace,
we thank you for all the people who have been
working, marching, praying, voting, protesting, and legislating for decades and even centuries
to build this kind of community in our nation and around the world –
those who came before Dr. King and those who came after him,
all the way up until today.
We thank you for people of every background
who sacrificed their social status, their economic well-being, and even their lives
to move the dream forward.
We thank you for Fredrick Douglass and Sojourner Truth
for Rosa Parks and Medgar Evers,
for John Lewis and Fannie Lou Hamer
for Patrisse Khan-Cullors and William Barber
for Lura Smith and Marisol Nobrega
for Lowell Votes and the Southeast Asian Water Festival.
We thank you that even when these our predecessors grew weary,
you sustained their dream and kept their feet a-marchin’.

We confess, God of mercy,
that in this second decade of the 21st century
we sometimes feel discouraged or disillusioned, cynical or skeptical.
Empower us, Gracious God, when not only our feet but even our souls are tired.
Remind us that you, O God, are still committed to the reconciliation of the world;
still bending the universe toward justice.
Open our eyes to see our neighbors who are still working for the dream.
Grant us glimpses of Beloved Community in our own homes and churches,
in our own workplaces and neighborhoods.
And strengthen us, God of might.
Make us tireless in our efforts and persistent in our work
so that we might be called coworkers with you,
ushering in your reign of justice and peace for all people.
Strengthen each of us and all of us, O God,
so that we might keep moving the dream forward together.
Amen.

Moderate a Meeting like a Boss

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We Presbyterians love our rules – you know, everything decently and in order. There’s no place we love good order and rule following like meetings. A friend from another tradition recently had to moderate a Presbyterian session meeting, and she wanted to get it right. Here are a few tips I shared with her. Maybe the will useful to you, too.

What does the moderator actually do?

The role of the moderator is to keep the meeting moving in an orderly and timely fashion. You should have a pretty good understanding of everything that is on the agenda and how long each item might take. If something is new or contentious, allow plenty of time for questions, discussion, and debate. If something is relatively routine, move quickly through those items. When one item is taking too long, the moderator has to figure out how to end the debate, either by pushing the group toward a vote if you think they’re ready, by referring the item back to a committee, or by tabling debate until a future meeting. As moderator, your role is to make meetings effective by managing the time and the discussion well. Here is how the meeting should go:

  1. Call the meeting to order
  2. Open with prayer or devotion or whatever is customary in your setting. The moderator can lead this or invite a meeting participant to lead.
  3. Ask the clerk of session if you have a quorum – enough people in attendance to conduce the meeting.
  4. Ask for any new businessor any changes to the docket. New business goes at the end of the docket. Then make a motion to approve the docket (as amended, if needed). Call for a vote to adopt the docket. Vote.
  5. Proceed through the agenda/docket.
  6. Any recommendations that need a vote should come in the form of a motion. If the motion comes from a committee, it doesn’t need a second. All other motions need a second. Technically the discussion comes after the second, before the vote. At my church we are pretty casual and have lots of discussion before we ever get to a motion and second. I usually do voice vote unless it’s likely to be a close call. (For example, the Christian Ed Committee recommends moving Sunday School to 6:30am. The committee recommendation doesn’t need a second. After the committee chair introduces the recommendation and tells why they want to do this, you ask for discussion. Your people can discuss all the reasons this is a good or bad idea. When you feel like they’re done, say, “Are you ready to vote? Ok. All in favor say ‘aye.’ All opposed, ‘nay’. The motion carries/fails.”) Your clerk will record the vote. Move to the next item.
  7. Ask for a motion to adjourn. Vote to adjourn.
  8. Close with prayer.

How much should the moderator participate in discussions?

Different organizations have different cultures about the role of the moderator in discussion. One of my goals is to empower my lay leaders, so I do not want to be the expert with all the answers. I also know that if I give my opinion the group will tend to defer to me. Instead, I see my role as helping the group listen to one another and come to a conclusion that everyone feels good about. I also make a point of asking the quieter members of the group to share their ideas or ask questions. When I do participate more directly in the discussion, I try to ask questions to clarify things that are difficult or that I think they don’t see. For example, “What feedback have you received from teachers about the 6:30am time for Sunday School?” or “How might that impact our outreach efforts?”

Moderating a meeting without dominating the discussion is still a growing edge for me since my tendency is to speak out and direct things. Ultimately, though, asking questions instead of giving answers is crucial to developing leaders that are equipped to lead well. A good meeting is one where everyone participates and knows that their contributions are important to the mission and ministry of the organization.

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