As I live out my calling, even my identity, as one who helps
others discover their calls or act on their leadings to ministry, I quickly
and often encounter a dilemma among Friends. I am thankful that this dilemma
does not respect the boundaries of our well-defined divisions and schisms.
Otherwise we would have one more item to add to our "when hell freezes
over" lists. It is not a programmed Friend deficiency or an unprogrammed
Friend heresy. It has spread like ivy on a stone wall -- rapidly and with
a grip that is difficult to loosen. The dilemma is this: the concept of
ministry has fallen out of favor among Friends. Even more, the idea of
a universal ministry suffers from significant decay in many locations.
Why do I say this? In some Quaker circles, an understanding of ministry
has been reduced to something that someone else does, usually as a vocation.
In other circles, ministry is something no one does, possibly because
we fear it would be pretentious to name our business as ministry. Or
perhaps the reservations are because our vision of God is so blurred
we are not certain that ministry is an expectation, and if ministry
is an expectation, we can not agree on what it entails. After making
a statement like that, let me also hasten to say that there are places
among Quakers where ministry is encouraged, respected and thriving.
I am delighted to say that this, too, occurs without respect to our
divisions and schisms. It is the practice of ministry in those locations
that convinces me Friends have discovered the pearl of great price.
However, in most circles I travel and in most conversations I hear,
that practice seems to occur in a minority of Friendly locations.
This lays out my concern about ministry. Let me take a moment and
give you my understanding of ministry as a Friend, followed by anecdotal
examples that describe our challenge. Finally, I will say some things
about how we might proceed positively, should we choose to acknowledge
the pearl of great price that is located in Quaker fields.
I. A Quaker Understanding of Ministry
It seems to me that ministry was at the heart of early Friends' life
together. For me, that does not mean that because it was that way then,
it must be that way now. The context in which the Quaker movement was
birthed was one of turmoil. Religious matters in that day had a sense
of apocalyptic urgency that is largely lacking among Friends today.
For the record, that is a change I do not regret. Ministry was at the
heart of their life together. That allows raising the question of whether
it should continue to be a prominent part of our life together now.
I contend that regardless of each generation of believers' historical
particulars, worship and ministry should be hallmark characteristics
of our communal life. Without doubt early Friends understanding of ministry
grew as an alternative to what was perceived to be a corrupt model practiced
within the Church of England. We all know, perhaps nearly by heart,
Fox's famous quote on the matter to which we repeatedly turn for support:
"Now after I had received that opening from the Lord that to be bred
at Oxford or Cambridge was not sufficient to fit a man to be a minister
of Christ, I regarded the priests less and looked more after dissenting
people. And among them I saw there was some tenderness, and many of
them came afterwards to be convinced, for they had some openings. But
as I had forsaken priests, so I left separate preachers also, and those
called the most experienced people, for I saw there was none among them
all that could speak to my condition. And when all my hopes in them
and in all men were gone, so that I had nothing outwardly to help me,
nor could tell what to do, then, Oh then, I heard a voice which said,
'There is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition,'
and when I heard it my heart did leap for joy." (G. Fox, Journal,
pp.81-82) *
From those words we catch a glimpse of a key point in Friends understanding
of ministry in that formational period. It is simply this: the accurate
and non-negotiable point that ministry grows out of direct encounters
with God. Certainly, we can not allow ourselves to lose sight of authentic
ministry having as its source of origin the work and call of God.
A second key point is this: Friends are fast to claim that such ministers
are to be Spirit-sensitive or Spirit-led. Indeed, if we take our own
history, theology, and language seriously we can not escape this conclusion.
Words like "being led", "grounded", "centered" or "discernment" all
point us in that direction. Friends journals chronicle the look and
the feel of believers whose hearts are frequently quickened by the Spirit's
movement and whose responses, that is to say ministries, are wholly
directed by the knowledge and impulses which arise from those movements.
From those crucial starting points, it seems to me that Friends' concept
of ministry has had a rough ride. Robert Barclay gave us a useful historical
anchor, a bit more developed than that of Fox. In his Apology, he wrote:
"We do believe and affirm that some are more particularly called to
the work of the ministry, and therefore are fitted of the Lord for that
purpose; whose work is more constantly and particularly to instruct,
exhort, admonish, oversee, and watch over their brethren; and that .
. . there is something more incumbent upon them in that respect than
upon every common believer." (R. Barclay, Apology) pp. 214-15.)
In later periods, the decline of vocal ministry and the increasing
preoccupation with adhering to a discipline hardened the Quaker arteries
through which the Spirit pulsed toward ministry. Even so, as Wil Cooper
outlined Quaker ministry in 1990 in his book A Living Faith,
he was able to string together a list of eight principles. Five of those
eight help forward the current thought process (bolded sentences are
my elaboration):
1. "Authority for ministry is from Christ through the Holy Spirit.
It is not received by apostolic succession but by being in the same
Spirit as the apostles were." The important feature of this principle
is that it relies upon a dynamic, experiential relationship with God
rather than upon office or ecclesial status.
2. "Ministry is given by special empowerment and leading of the Holy
Spirit. In this sense it is charismatic, exhibiting the gift and power
of the Spirit at work in the life of the one who ministers." This
indicates Quaker ministry is gift-based, not externally contrived.
3. "Ministry is not an office or profession, but a response to the
divine initiative with reference to the particular gifts of the person
ministering." Thus even at our most formal point, we are less developed
than most of our counterparts. Two key points are divine initiative
and human response.
4. "Ministry is universally possible for all believers. Everyone has
a calling to ministry of some nature, although in many cases it may
not be the vocal ministry. The "priesthood of believers" as interpreted
by Friends universalizes all ministry and removes the distinction between
clergy and laity." Our understanding of the universal ministry leads
us out of the traditional clerical paradigm and easily into a functional
community more in keeping with biblical imagery of the body of Christ.
5. "Believers are called to specialized ministries based on specialized
gifts of the persons called." We do not have to fall victim to a
theology espousing a purely spontaneous ministry. Specialization suggests
that some might do things regularly and not all things will be done
by all people. (Cooper, A Living Faith, pp.81-82,)
This brief survey gives a bit of what Friends have said about ministry
in the past. Let me give you one more quote from Barclay that is, for
me, a wonderful place to end this brief rehearsal of Friends' view of
ministry:
"He who gathers Christians also provides ministers and teachers among
them by the inward unmediated operation of his own Spirit, to watch
over and instruct them and maintain them in an animated, refreshed,
and powerful condition. Their call is verified in the hearts of their
brethren, and the seals of their apostleship are the awareness of the
life and power passing through them which daily and inwardly reinforces
them in the most holy faith." (Barclay, Apology, pp. 191)
In that paragraph, I like Barclay's description of the community's
role in affirming and encouraging the ministries of others, coupled
with the recognition that there is some inward verification in the heart
of the one exercising their gifts that this is ministry. This dual observation
and validation are the healthiest of combination among Friends.
Those are some historical excerpts that begin to provide a context
for how Friends have thought about ministry. They provide useful links
to our heritage. But as one of the cats in the herd, let me add my own
nickel's worth of commentary on this subject. Spirituality, which is
the cultural rage today, is really nothing more than "lived faith."
[ I am grateful to Stephanie Ford, Visiting Assistant Professor of Christian
Spirituality at ESR, for this concise definition of spirituality.] The
word "spirituality" sounds pious and a tad bit mystical. But what it
really is, where the proverbial rubber meets the road, is "lived faith."
Going a step beyond that, I describe ministry as "lived faith intentionally
exercised toward others." That is an easy definition to arrive at once
one recognizes that ministry is, in New Testament terms, diakonia,
or service.
There is a nice pair of descriptions in I Corinthians 12 where Paul
describes that familiar image of the body of Christ. Verse 4 reads,
"there are varieties of charismata but the same Spirit; and there
are varieties of diakonia, but the same Lord ..." Charismata;
diakonia. Grace; service. Expressions of God's love; expressions
of love exercised toward others.
When we look at the Scriptures, it is important to note that ministry
always calls people to something. It motivates an expression, or a living,
of one's faith. Old Testament judges like Gideon or Deborah discovered
that truth when the Spirit rested upon them for brief periods. Each
of those persons who became disciples found that their encounter with
Christ called them to something different. In their case they left what
they were doing and followed the one who called them. Saul, who became
Paul, discovered that God's call to ministry led him out of the religious
context he loved and defended, creating instead a new vision of the
world that catapulted him into a different social group with a surprising
purpose. Lived faith does not always take us away from home, as the
Gerasene demoniac learned. He actually wanted to leave is abode and
follow Jesus, only to learn that his ministry took him back home but
in a new way! The location and form are unpredictable, but the presence
of the charismata and its diakonia character are certainties.
Ministry is not status, position or office. It is about service that
answers that of God in others, and invites people to a lifestyle lived
under the influence of the transforming power of God. In biblical and
Quaker terms, this diakonia, or service, or ministry, comes in
a variety of forms. When we understand that faith is best lived in community,
not isolation, then there is scarcely a way to disengage from ministry
without forsaking our faith. This description may come as a surprise
to you. I find people frequently assume when I talk about ministry that
I am referring to pastoral ministry. I never know if that is because
I am not clear enough, or because of stereotypes applied to programmed
Friends, or because of the hearer's own limitations regarding the subject.
Positively stated, a Quaker understanding of ministry offers some
incredible features: 1) the universal element Friends have insisted
upon contributes to the possibility that we will actually he a faith
community that more resembles an organism than an organization; 2) coupling
"ministry" with "universal" means this community should live near the
focused center of God's Light, partnering with the Divine Spirit as
it manifests the love of Christ in a multitude of ways; 3) because one
5 ministry grows out of the experiential dialogue the individual has
with God, there is a greater likelihood that what Friends offer is relevant,
fresh service rather than static beliefs or undeserved authority. In
places where this understanding works well, I have witnessed discerning
individuals and communities. I have seen networks of Christ-like relationships
nurture one another. I have seen extensions of help and concern to the
neighborhoods around them. I have seen these things occur under the
headings of God's call upon their lives and of sharing faith.
Negatively practiced, both sides of the Quaker coin have the capacity
to forsake universal ministry, often without recognizing the broader
implications this has for the Religious Society of Friends.
