The more things change, the more they stay the same. That bit of wisdom may be cited, yet once more, in these early days of the twenty-first century. In particular, it may be applied to the challenges being encountered by the Christian Church in this time. In part, and maybe in large part, the present challenges arise because the Church is often perceived as an authoritarian structure. As an authoritarian structure it is somehow assumed that the Church has all the answers, just about all the time. But are these notions really the case?

When we consider Church history, right from its origins, what we most often see is a movement that has not had all of the answers but, rather, one that has had to wrestle with reality in order to find suitable responses. One of the first notions that must be shed is of the church as an authoritarian structure.

The Christian Church has been perceived for a long time, rightly or wrongly, as one of the big boys, as we say, on the authoritarian front: Small wonder that it is under challenge. After all, any number of aspirants desires to supplant it. Throughout history, for example, the State has always resented the authority Christianity has held for the lives of the faithful. Any time an individual, or group of individuals, or an institution is perceived to be an authority challenges to that authority must be expected.

While the Church ought not to be perceived as an authoritarian structure, it is evident the message and traditions of Christianity have been and remain authoritative for the faithful. Nevertheless, we must shed the fantasy, a non-sequitur really, that the Christian Church is an authoritarian structure. We must come to terms with the reality that any answers that may exist to the challenges we face will come from within us. Most assuredly, they are not in the mind of some expert.

It is in this spirit that our American Baptist Churches are sponsoring a quest under the working title, “Transformed by the Spirit.” In this initiative it is recognized that no Denominational program will meet the challenges of this day. Rather, what is needed is for the Holy Spirit of God to empower all of us who are Christians to find ways to respond to them.

The Transformed by the Spirit initiative is an effort to discover where and how the Holy Spirit is leading in churches all over the country in an effort to learn what may be adapted by congregations variously. There are numerous cases of good things happening.

One matter becoming evident is that churches are having to shed the structures of the past. Those structures that worked well in another day and time are not working in this day. What is of importance are the insights that gave rise to those structures; rather than the structures themselves. All of us must engage the quest for new insights, not old structures. May we be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit in this quest. Otherwise …

Faithfully,

Brian Dixon

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