Dis-Connected Church

I write this as I sit in one of the business sessions of the MO Annual Conference. Not that I am bored (clears throat), but rather I just feel compelled by recent events. The focus of this conference has been (long overdue) on youth and young adults. We have had some great messages and workshops that lead us, as the bishop says, to "remember the future." better late than never that we get serious about this. However, there is one thing painfully clear: there is a disconnect between the message of our leaders, our intentions, and what is actually being loved out. Big surprise, I know. A couple of examples.

This morning began with a learning time with Bishop Schnase. He spoke on the challenges of reaching new generations. In his talk, he shared a story of encountering a young lady outside of a mall. This young lady had some serious ink (tattoos for the uninformed), along with a number of piercings. His point was 1) there was nothing wrong with her appearance, but 2) that how her appearance was in part an effort to "belong" to a group, something more. During this time, a young lady was in the crowd, a young lady with some serious ink of her own. She was connecting to the Bishop's message and perhaps feeling like she belonged here. But, and isn't there always a but, her welcome feeling was short lived. Sitting next to her was an older, long time United Methodist. This person was audibly disagreeing with the bishop and being very judgmental. Talk about a disconnect. The young lady became so upset that she left in the middle of the talk crying. My wife encountered her in the bathroom trying to pull herself together.

Later, In our worship service, we continued to lift up ur youth and young adults. One youth had his iPad open during the service. Was he taking notes? Perhaps researching a topic; who knows. I mean, I'm writing this blog on my iPad. It's part of our culture. However, an older, long time United Methodist sitting behind the youth leaned forward and, wait for it, told him to put it away. Yep, pretty bold.

I wish these were isolated incidents, but they are not. These kind of experiences and far worse ones happen regularly. On the one hand, our leaders tell us to " remember the future." We applaud and say "amen" and even let our youth and young adults have some token leadership in our conference and churches. But, on the other hand, there is a generational struggle ongoing.

Everyone is losing. I repeat, WE ARE ALL LOSING!

We United Methodists pride ourselves on being a connectional church. But a dis-connect clearly remains.

Chris