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by Len Hjalmarson
Alan Roxburgh Part 6 - A Proposal Roxburgh has taken us on a tour de force of culture and history, in some ways his own version of creation and fall with reference to the Church. Now we come to his proposal for redemption and renewal. Chapter 11 is "A Proposal," and it is a proposal that is destined to generate a lot of press. The longest chapter in the book, it is a radical proposal to recover an ancient-future system of leadership, one that Roxburgh will argue existed in the early church and was later recovered by the Celts. The need for a movement away from the sola pastora model of our American church means more than the creation of a multitalented staff. It requires rethinking leadership models we have accepted as the status quo. The sola pastora identity remains embedded in the church's imagination and practice. Given this, the development and training of an order of missional leaders requires more than traditional seminary training… such orders require the wisdom, love and guidance of Abbot/Abbess. The key to such formation is a willingness to yield to the oversight of an Abbot/Abbess. An Abbot/Abbess is someone with the capacity to draw together the energies, diversity, and skills of leaders in the community. (159) Roxburgh is not naïve. He recognizes that this proposal is MOST radical in the context of western Christendom, rooted firmly in expressive individualism. Church systems have shaped themselves around these values. He argues that we must "cultivate an ethic of commitment and obligation connecting back to older Christian traditions of discipleship and humble apprenticeship." (160) This in turn requires a communitas where individuals submit their own need for expression to the larger community guided by an Abbot/Abbess. Roxburgh uses Scott Lash and Ulrich Beck (Reflexive Modernization) to reflect on the best system of formation to help people thrive in the globalized 21st century environment. These analysts agree that the market-driven individualism of North America is not helpful, where the tradition formed process of apprenticeship in Germany and Austria holds great promise. Training in North America remains abstractionist and fails to address the liminality of our culture. From here Roxburgh moves to discuss four leadership types: poet, prophet, apostle and pastor. The poet helps people make sense of their experiences. The word in the prologue of John tells how Jesus "became flesh and lived among us." In a similar way, the poet shapes words so that what was hidden and invisible becomes known. Poets remove the veil and give language to what people are experiencing. This is only possible when the poet him/herself lives within the traditions and narratives of the people - "living reflexively in the traditions…The poet listens to the rhythms and meanings occurring beneath the surface." (164) But the poet also has a prophetic bent: "poets immerse themselves in the multiple stories running beneath the surface of the culture.. feel the power of these stories and critique their claims and pretensions on the basis of the memory and tradition of the community." (165) The leadership of poets, however, is not expressed in a modern manner. Poets "are not so much advice-givers as image and metaphor framers… What churches need are not more entrepreneurial leaders with wonderful plans for their congregation's life, but poets with the imagination and gifting to cultivate environments within which people might again understand how their traditional narratives apply to them today…. Many of the programs on church health can only lead the churches down more of the same utilitarian and technological dead ends that have contributed to the current malaise." (166) Finally, "poets make available a future that does not exist as yet; they are eschatologically oriented. From this environment, a missional imagination emerges." (167) As we would expect, poets had little value in the churches of modernity. In modernity we sought to define problems toward a solution. But poets don't bring solutions; rather they bring questions that invite dialogue. Poets do not accept the view of a congregation as a tool for impacting the world. Rather, they see the congregation as the location of God's work of redemption and the incipient present-future of the kingdom. There is growing evidence of the recovery of the poetic voice. In an interview at the Ooze in 2004 Ron Martoia responded to a question on the shape of ministry by speaking of a "kaleidoscopic dance." "The three mirrors in the kaleidoscope are what provides the dance of ministry pieces and programs. The mirrors are the apostolic, the prophetic and the poetic. These three mirrors will reflect a very distinctive ministry dance and provide the direction mission and vision for a church.
"The apostolic mirror says what do we see out there in our "sentness" role as a church. Most churches are very focused within their four walls. The word apostle means sent one. The church isn't to be gathered except to be sent out. As we go out into the culture, what do we see and hear that will enable us to address ministry in ways that are culturally sensitive? In other words, the apostolic mirror reflects to us all the culture context can show us. Roxburgh's second leadership type is the prophet. Prophets focus and desire is that the people of God rediscover the Word of God. "While poets invite dialogue in awareness and understanding, prophets call people to act on that knowledge. Liminality is the rich soil of prophetic imagination. It provides an environment where people are aware that they've lost their world and the connection with their most determinative stories." (169) In liminal times prophets do not develop strategies for returning to the past, but rather they cultivate an environment that enables reengagement with God's story. In a time when the gospel has been reduced to morals and values or to spiritual experience, it is difficult to encounter the sovereign Lord of history. But the prophet creates situations that compel the community to reinhabit its foundational stories. (170) "The poet's primary concern is for the people and the desire to inspire in them new insight. The prophet's primary concern is giving tangible expression to what God is saying to the people." (171) Roxburgh's third leadership type is the apostle.
"Apostles have a clear sense of calling, urgency and direction. They hear the voices of the poet and prophet and set about to make what God is saying through them a reality. Judah did not remain in exile; out of the Liminality emerged leaders with new vision for God's plan. The apostolic function is to lead God's people into the missio dei - the "mission of God." Apostles stand at the doorway between an old world that has died and the transition world that lies ahead and call people to action." (171-2) Roxburgh makes it clear that by apostle he does not mean the strong, entrepreneurial leader who has a plan and program for people. The apostle says to the people, "We know we have been called to be the sign, witness and foretaste of the kingdom [and the] missio dei in this community. Here is how we can act on what God is saying, forming and calling forth among us." Roxburgh distinguishes between the apostolic call and the pastoral. "The heart to care pastorally is present; but the drive toward action is primary." Furthermore, "when an organization is stuck in its own interior life or confronted with the crisis and chaos of liminality, the apostolic leader is an essential member of the leadership team." (174) The inevitable problem, as we have previously seen, is that these sorts of people have long been marginalized within the older churches and many have moved outside those systems. Roxburgh's fourth type is the pastor-teacher. He recognizes that it will seem odd to place this type last since it has been the dominant mode of leadership in churches for two thousand years. After the Enlightenment the role became more deeply embedded in the western imagination. Schleiermacher redefined the role as an educated professional and that mode has been with us ever since. (See the excellent discussion in chapter 7 in "Missional Church"). Sadly, with the exception of some experimental groups there remains "an inability to imagine leadership other than sola pastora." (176) Roxburgh closes this lengthy chapter with ten principles for forming a communitas of leaders. Among these points the following are perhaps the most intriguing.. 5) Alongside the singular, stand-alone congregation that characterizes Protestantism, we need to cultivate experiments wherein leaders in a geographical area are formed into an apostolic network to co-serve multiple congregations, house churches, and other forms of missional witness. 9) Leadership in communitas is neither positional nor hierarchic 10) A leadership communitas requires a synergistic relationship between the various gifts in order to function. This does not happen by chance but requires the presence of a leader with the oversight and wisdom to guide the work of such a network. This leads to the introduction of one final, but critical, leadership type - the Abbot/Abbess. Part 7 In chapter eleven Roxburgh made a radical proposal for a new (old) expression of leadership as seen in the vocation of Abbot/Abbess. The final chapter of the book elaborates on this role. Roxburgh clarifies that the root "abba" (father) does indeed have connotations of male primacy. In Celtic monasticism, however, women served equally in the role. Roxburgh goes on to describe the centrifugal nature of Celtic communities. According to George Hunter III the Irish monastic communities incorporated whole families. They were formed not to escape the world but to offer places of sanctuary for the world. They were holistic and embraced all of life in a sacred space. They were accessible rather than isolated. They aimed at sustainability and care for creation. (The Celtic Way of Evangelism). Roxburgh writes,
"Historically, Abbots/Abbesses provided oversight to a community of monks/nuns in orders formed around a way of life. The Abbot/Abbess formed an extended contrast society of the new family in Christ whose characteristic way of life was not power or control but self-giving love. What shaped their life was an ideal rooted in Jesus and the missio dei. In the Celtic context they were not cloistered communities but families extending outward in the missio dei." (181) The Rule of Benedict defines the role: "to care for and guide the development of many different spiritual characters." Coincidentally, today is a solemn day for Benedictines: Benedict died on March 21 in 543. The primary roles Roxburgh wishes to note are the following:
Roxburgh points out that this practice cannot merely be tacked on to existing structures; rather it represents a shift in the nature of leadership. "In a city or town a combination of church plants, congregations and house churches would form a common leadership communitas under the direction of an Abbot/Abbess. The communitas is comprised of the various leadership types.. working on behalf of the missio dei among the communities. They function as a missional order.. The Abbot or Abbess is not a denominational executive.. [but] overseeing and guiding the leadership communitas in its work. The communitas is a missional order committed to the rules of the order. Some of those rules would be..
Roxburgh references the leadership community in Acts 13 as an example. Practically speaking, this direction is a corrective to supply what is missing in many existing and new ekklesial expressions. Roxburgh recognizes that many small church expressions fail because they lack the multiplicity of leadership giftings needed to survive. This results in discouragement to young leaders, and worse. The result is similar to what occurs when Wal-Mart enters a community. The small, flexible, personal and socially connected (or missional) businesses cease to exist in favor of the megachurches and the community suffers as a result. Roxburgh sees the precedent for this proposal as far back as the early church, and then in the post-apostolic period, and then in the Celtic communities. He recognizes that it is not possible to jump straight into the forming of such a leadership community, and that dialogue is needed, and Abbots/Abbesses need to be found, apprenticed, and empowered. Efforts toward communitas need to be documented, researched and reviewed. But primarily we need the imagination and the willingness to experiment and risk. One of the goals of the ALLELON association is to explore these new directions. Assessment and Reflections With twenty-five years since my only course in sociology of religion, and no background in cultural anthropology, I don't feel well qualified to assess all aspects of Roxburgh's work. I'll share my thoughts and questions and a personal response, and hope that you will engage the material in your own way. I don't see any real flaws in Roxburgh's assessment of our cultural situation. I find Beck's work compelling, and his general assessment of our "risk society" and its evolution makes sense to me. In the first part of my review I raised the question of Roxburgh's use of "Liminals" and "Emergents" to describe two groups of people, living with two different sets of maps. I wonder whether it would have been helpful for Roxburgh to reference Webber's work in "The Younger Evangelicals." Webber develops his own typology, and describes three groups of evangelicals through the last century: traditional, pragmatic and the younger evangelicals. From Webber's perspective the division Roxburgh describes is between the pragmatic and the younger evangelicals. Granted Roxburgh's typology is more shaped to his particular purpose, and to the general framework of liminality. In order to situate my assessment of Roxburgh's proposal, I need to talk a bit about my own journey to date. My interest in intentional or "covenant" community dates back to 1980, and a year I spent living in an experiment in Christian community called "The Manor" in Vancouver, BC. That was an eye-opening experience that alerted me to the dangers, and the potential, of intentional community. My growing interest in different forms of community led me to Gordon Cosby and the Church of the Savior and the writings of Elizabeth O'Connor, and then to Jim Wallis of Sojourners. Finally, I found myself reading Eberhard Arnold and other writers from the Bruderhof family. A few weeks ago I found myself thinking about my own journey and the inner call on my life, asking the question, "What do I need to do to answer that of God in me?" "What is the next reasonable step in my own faithfulness to Christ?" I ran these kinds of questions through a second grid: "How can my own faithfulness contribute to a new way forward for the western church?" "What is the best use of the thirty years I have left to live?" I know that the "answer" the world needs in our times is not primarily to be found in words, but in "demonstration of the Spirit and power..." the power of transformed lives, the power of love. I found myself thinking less about a teaching vocation and more about lifestyle. Ultimately, what we contribute is ourselves.. and what we are becoming. And I believe that the general malaise we face requires an answer that is deeply personal. Some of us elders have to be willing to show the same adventuresome spirit that characterizes the younger generation. Some thirty years ago Elizabeth O'Connor wrote that, "We must be willing to let come into being that which might fail." Likewise thirty years ago Jim Wallis wrote the following…
An individualistic understanding of the Gospel carries the danger of making salvation into another commodity that can be consumed for personal fulfillment and self-interest. (Agenda for Biblical People, 31) I do believe that we need a new kind of ekklesial community. I do believe that if there is a way forward, we can't go there alone. I do believe that the world won't believe our message until they see us living out the message of peace and reconciliation. I also believe that we desperately need to find a way beyond the expressive individualism described by Roxburgh and so many others. I believe we need to demonstrate a new way of living, a new kind of family. More than ever before, people are looking for ways to belong.. looking for a home. For this and other reasons, my wife and I are talking about a physical expression of our convictions.. finding a way to step toward intentional community. The other events that make up this recent story occurred during the five or six days I have been writing the review. As part of a discussion group on the Ancient-Evangelical Future, I received an email from an active Abbot. The next day (March 21st) I visited the website of a friend only to discover that that day was the anniversary of Benedicts death in 543. These are strange coincidences, but they feel like signposts along this particular journey - little signs that say, "here is the way, walk in it." The Proposal It would be easy to write off Roxburgh's proposal as simply a natural swing of the pendulum.. from expressive individualism to intentional and accountable relationships.. from individual authority (solipsism?) to centralized and rational (however relational) authority, from our current leadership models (obviously broken) to a new monasticism. It will be easiest for those who have been burnt in the current system, or by the shepherding movement, to write off his proposal. It may even be necessary for some of these people to do so, for a time. But reaction is not response. What we need, more than reaction, or even more than a written reflection like this one, is groups of people willing to risk moving forward on his proposal. We need more communities shaped by the Gospel, and committed to finding a new way forward together. We need those who will experiment, and share their discoveries, failures and victories as we attempt to reimagine what it is to the faithful people of God in this day. And for me to venture this kind of agreement means that I have to be willing to be one of those people. Alan's proposal is in many ways the beginning of another conversation. What is the role of the Abbot/Abbess? Where do we find such people? How do we begin to move in such a direction in our existing locations among diverse groups of believers, many of whom are defensive of their territory, traditions, and structures? What examples do we currently have out there? (Alan mentions one in "The Order of Mission" in Sheffield). On his blog recently Alan wrote,
"The Abbot's role is to guard the ethos. He/she is continually asking: 'Are we living the story? Are we keeping the ethos?' Abbots live the ethos among others and in so doing are saying; 'This is what we do as members of the Order; it may also be what you want to do.' Therefore, the Abbot's role is deeply relational and interpretive, continually inviting others into exploration not program. "The Abbot must be in a fixed location, a HUB (the monastery at the center of the HUB) and, at the same time, be aware and conversant with the bigger picture. He/she focuses on keeping the ethos alive without enforcing others in the inner journey. He/she models and assists others to live a life shaped by God and keeping the questions alive. It is a very relational role of reminding and holding up the mirror but never coercing. The question an Abbot is always asking in various ways is: How is your heart? To me this is a helpful connection. Paul writes that "we have many teachers, but few fathers." Paul affirms fatherhood, even a fatherhood with authority. The fathering mode was his own way of working.. relational, strong, affirming, protective. He affirms fatherhood as more important than a teaching gift (without opposing the two.. we do need teachers). In this "fatherless" generation could there be a more gripping call? Speaking at the level of myth Thomas More writes,
The father spirit that seeds culture and personality is a subtle substance. We may recognize strands of traditional paternal qualities in it--guidance, protection, procreativity, teaching, and genuine leadership. This spirit is so subtle that although we see it clearly in a confident man, we might also glimpse it in a woman of vision, a pioneering community, or even a forceful but imperturbable building. And men are confused.. and that confusion is not empowering or helpful. It is a destabilizing force in our culture and in our communities. More is not naïve.. he also reminds us.. The father becomes a problem only when his deep and subtle spirit disappears and is replaced not by a mentor but by an impostor. Paternalism, like any ism, is a disguised and corrupt version of the real thing. Yes, he needs to go, but we must take care lest when we banish the imperial impostor, we lose the Father Almighty. Whether or not you affirm the fatherly (and motherly) vocation with reference to ekklesial life, what would these new communities look like? Roxburgh references the Celtic communities founded by Patrick. George Hunter, III is one of the experts on those ekklesial expressions. The following lengthy excerpt is from his book, "The Celtic Way of Evangelism."
What was the difference between Eastern monasteries and Celtic monastic communities? Briefly, the Eastern monasteries organized to protest and escape from the materialism of the Roman world and the corruption of the Church; the Celtic monasteries organized to penetrate the pagan world and to extend the Church. The eastern monks often withdrew from the world into monasteries to save and cultivate their own souls; Celtic leaders often organized monastic communities to save other people's souls. The leaders of the Eastern monasteries located their monasteries in isolated locations, off the beaten track; the Celtic Christians built their monastic communities in locations accessible to the traffic of the time, like proximity to settlements, or on hilltops, or on islands near the established sea lanes. The visitor to a Celtic community would especially notice the guest house. Sheldrake informs us that guests ... "were accorded a kind of semi-spiritual status and housed within the sacred enclosure." Hospitality was of great importance in these communities. It's difficult to know how to close this reflection. Perhaps I'll let Tennyson close it for me..
Come, my friends.
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• © 2005-2006 Len Hjalmarson.•
Last Updated in April, 2006
