Leadership Archives - Who's Minding the Story?

Can We Stop Talking About “Us”?

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Rev Dr JeffJune 24, 2021

Something that has been a bugbear for me for a while now is the use of “us” and “our” language by churches. You know the kind of thing I mean:

- “We welcome you to join us for worship at 10”
- “Join us for coffee after the service”
- “Please join our Facebook page/newsletter list”
- “Our ministry is supported by your gifts”

Such language is meant to sound invitational and inclusive, but in reality it functions as a boundary marker: “us” on one side of the boundary, and “you” on the other. Whenever we invite you to do something with or for us, the boundary is reinforced. Continue reading →

What’s Missing?

Posted on December 17, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffDecember 17, 2020

I remember the last Sunday before the suspension of in-person worship back in March. I remember remaining on my knees at the altar rail after receiving the host—the common cup had been suspended the week before—and getting choked up. Or … Continue reading →

Three Sins of the Mainline: Pastoral Care for Insiders

Posted on December 9, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffDecember 9, 2020

This post will focus on the third and last of our “sins” of the mainline: pastoral care as a membership privilege. Previous posts in this series focussed on the sins of “relevant” preaching and “accessible” liturgy.

Continue reading →

Three Sins of the Mainline: “Accessible” Liturgy

Posted on December 2, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffDecember 2, 2020

In this post we take a look at the second of our “sins” of the mainline church, the sin of “accessible” liturgy. A previous post examined the sin of “relevant” preaching, and a subsequent post will consider pastoral care as … Continue reading →

Three Sins of the Mainline: Introduction

Posted on November 19, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffNovember 19, 2020

In this next series I’m going to take on what I think of as three of the major “sins” of the contemporary mainline church: relevant preaching, accessible liturgy, and pastoral care as a privilege of membership. You may be surprised … Continue reading →

Why Do We Gather? Covid and Sunday Attendance, Part 3

Posted on November 10, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffNovember 10, 2020

As our long season of Coronatide rolls on without any sign of abating—and in fact is steadily worsening in most areas—perhaps it is time to reconsider our focus on Sunday worship gatherings. As I noted in the previous post Sunday … Continue reading →

Covid and Sunday Attendance, Part 2

Posted on October 29, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffOctober 29, 2020

In my previous post I described the current challenge faced by congregational leaders: How to hold our faith communities together when we can no longer get together? The absence of Sunday gatherings has been difficult for leaders who have invested … Continue reading →

Covid and Sunday Attendance

Posted on October 27, 2020 by Rev Dr JeffOctober 29, 2020

A couple of conversations this week got me thinking about the ways congregational leaders are responding to the challenge of keeping church going through the ever-lengthening Covid crisis. We are familiar with the talk of shifting from a sprint to … Continue reading →

Who Are We to Hinder God? The Church and Same Sex Marriage

Posted on November 16, 2019 by Rev Dr JeffNovember 16, 2019

A personal story The issue of same sex marriage and the church is profoundly personal for me. I am a gay man, in a same sex marriage. My husband and I were married in our church, by our minister, in … Continue reading →

A Message to Our Bishops

Posted on July 15, 2019 by Rev Dr JeffJuly 15, 2019

In response to an invitation to share thoughts on the outcome of the marriage canon vote, I wrote the following note to members of the House of Bishops gathered in Vancouver for General Synod 2019. Dear Bishops, The outcome of … Continue reading →

Who's Minding the Story?

Jeff Seaton, Church Doctor

Category Archives: Leadership