Defying reports of statistical decline, churches in the 21st century are making themselves heard, forging new connections, asserting their identity, and changing lives.
That’s the news to be discovered in the Fall 2015 issue of Reflections, the theological journal produced twice a year by Yale Divinity School. The magazine features essays, poetry, and artwork around social or spiritual themes, extending the Divinity School’s mission to promote faith and intellect in the church and world.
The theme of the Fall issue, “New Voyages: Church Today and Tomorrow,” gathers the insights of YDS faculty, alumni, and other practitioners. Their dispatches and arguments testify to the well-being of churches that abandon stale habits, challenge oppressive politics, and nurture a fresh vision of gospel life.
“People have not lost their need or appetite for spirituality; they have lost their confidence in institutions,” YDS Dean Gregory E. Sterling writes in the Dean’s Letter.
The Reflections essays point to a basic Christian ideal, he says. “We are called to serve people. We may need to learn how to connect with people via new media, but the fundamental truth is that no matter how the connections are made, people need to come first. The world does not care about our doctrines; it cares about the way we treat human beings.”
Other contributors relay their own experiences in church innovation. The Rev. Kaji Douša ’06 M.Div. writes about the changes she helped make in her congregation in La Mesa, CA. The church now partners with local artisans, cottage business entrepreneurs, and young-mom gatherings, among other surprising collaborations.
“Improve people’s lives,” she declares. “We are truly living our calling when our community knows us not just as a place of worship or emergency help, but as a place that takes its power seriously and channels it in order to transform people’s lives for the better.
The Rev. Tim Ahrens ’85 M.Div. writes about learning to trust the perspectives and enthusiasm of young people in his Columbus, OH, congregation.
“The spirit of the Social Gospel moves within the rising generation,” he argues. “They are seeking to serve and alleviate human suffering. They know the planet and all its inhabitants cannot continue to spiral down. They know the church cannot continue to spiral down.”
This Reflections also features articles by Dean Andrew McGowan of the Berkeley Divinity School at YDS, and YDS faculty members Bruce Gordon and Michal Beth Dinkler.
The issue includes an interview with the Most Rev. Michael Curry ’78 M.Div., new Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.
“I really do believe we need to see ourselves as a movement – a Jesus movement – rather than as an institution,” Curry says. “That’s what Jesus was about. He inaugurated a movement to make God’s dream happen.”
See reflections.yale.edu to view this and previous issues, or to start a free subscription to the magazine.