Re-Turning & Re-Tuning

 
 

"You see," said Aslan. "They will not let us help them. They have chosen cunning instead of belief. Their prison is only in their own minds, yet they are in that prison; and so afraid of being taken in that they cannot be taken out." -- C.S. Lewis

What a joy to gather this week with Presbyterian pastors and leaders from across the country at the 2024 ECO National Gathering in Greenville, South Carolina. We have been steeped in discussions of metanoia, the Greek word for repentance or, better yet, a complete reversal of thinking, as writer and thought leader Alan Hirsch has reminded us in multiple sessions. 

"A ship is safest in port. But that is not what ships are made for," Hirsch said earlier today. We have become -- both individually and collectively -- entrenched in ways of thinking that no longer serve the purposes we are hoping to achieve, Hirsch argued. And without a willingness to undergo a complete paradigm shift, we will continue to see churches on the decline.

Consider Jesus' first words in Mark 1 as he begins his ministry: "Repent and believe the good news!" Jesus says. In other words, repent and prepare yourselves for a startlingly new way of seeing yourselves and the world around you; Jesus begins his ministry with a call for metanoia, and he continues this plea throughout his time on earth.
So why is metanoia importanttoday?Here are Hirsch's answers in a session earlier this afternoon:

  • Because any move towards God -- any advance in our experience and knowledge of God -- demands repentance.

  • Because if you fall in love with your system, you will lose the capacity to change it.

  • Because if we are going to adapt and faithfully respond to the promise, we are going to have to be adaptive, agile, open, and child-like.

  • Because we have to redraw the maps to fit the new territories.

  • Because when the flaws are revealed, we have to be responsible to do something.

  • Because when the system gets stuck or jammed up, we have to recalibrate to push reset.

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn, Hirsch continued.

At Cedar Creek, how will we be a church that embraces the spiritual art of re-turning and re-tuning? As individuals, as a community of believers, and as Christ-following members of the church universal, how will we avoid the non-metanoic mindset of the Pharisees and other religious leaders, and instead step into something mind-blowingly new?

Peace to you this week ,

Jennie 

Rev. Dr. Jennie A. Harrop