>Ode To A Seminary Student

Posted on September 16, 2009 by billmcalilly

>The first Bible that made a significant impression on me was given to me for my 16th birthday. It was one of those imitation leather, green copies of the Living Bible. If you remember that greenback book, you are a baby boomer. Two friends offered it to me with their favorite verses highlighted in yellow. John 3:16. Romans 8:28. Philippians 4:13. In those days of my adolescent formation, I was glad to get my hands on a version of the Bible which was more accessible.

Since those days, I’ve spent a lot of my life pouring over the Bible. I’m prone to look at a variety of translations in search of the meaning of a particular text. I’m grateful for good scholarship which challenges me to dig deeper. My most recent favorite translation is Eugene Peterson’s The Message. I even have a Bible app on my iphone with a host of translations at my fingertips.

There is no lack of interest in the Bible. It is the foundation of our faith. Indeed, I believe that Jesus models an incarnational theology. His life, teaching, death, and resurrection provide the very foundation on which our lives are transformed. Simply stated, that transformation is a result of living in relationship to Jesus Christ rooted in the whole of scripture. From my vantage point, the best way we understand life is by studying the Bible and following Jesus. As a result, persons become vibrant witnesses to the Word made flesh. We honor not just the stories that confirm our particular points of view, but also affirm the whole of scripture as it forms and informs our spiritual lives. In our time, we are losing a sense of our rootedness in scripture with, on the one hand, an interest in the spiritual, and on the other hand, a growing sense of secularism. For that reason, I’ve always preferred the language of Christian formation rather than merely spiritual formation.

One of the key issues facing both the United Methodist Church, and our culture is how one appropriates authority. In fact, voices across the landscape of Christendom today speak freely about Biblical authority. In truth, the Church has been trying to settle on its understanding of authority since the fourteenth century. The question that emerged was: what authority will we trust?

For a very long time the Church and tradition spoke as one voice. With the onset of the age of enlightenment along with the onslaught of the plagues which swept Europe, the authority of the church began to break down. With the Protestant Reformation and the emergence of the priesthood of all believers, the Church divided in two branches, Roman Catholic and Protestant. Later the Church of England was added to the mix. Then, along comes John Wesley with a heritage in the Church of England. Wesley was influenced by Thomas Aquinas via Richard Hooker who articulated the ideas of what we now know as the quadrilateral: scripture, tradition, reason, and experience. For Wesley, scripture was primary. While Wesley referred to himself as a man of one book, sola scriptura, he was actually a man of many books. His primary authority, however, was Scripture.

Authority is being questioned in our time.

If we are to build bridges from the Church to the culture, understanding and appropriating authority will be essential.

Posted in Authority, Wesley | 1 Comment

>This I Believe

Posted on August 21, 2009 by billmcalilly

>Perhaps you have heard the radio presentation “This I Believe” on NPR. Many of the essays submitted have been compiled into two volumes by this title. Some time ago, I penned my own affirmation of faith. It has not changed though the geography of my life has.

I believe that people are the most valuable resource we have. I believe that God calls out the best in us even and especially in the worst of times. I believe that I have been place on this earth for a purpose and I am seeking to live out my purpose as one of His servants. The virtues of honesty, humility, and servanthood are the virtues I seek to embody within my soul and with the resources I have received. These are goals which I believe will contribute to making the world a better place.

I believe that loving and being loved are the two greatest gifts one can give and receive. I believe that the Church is called to stand in the gap and hold people in times of pain and crisis to give them hope.

Most of all, I believe in God, the Father, Jesus Christ, His Son, and the power of the Holy Spirit. I believe that my gifts and graces are called on and called out to bring hope and foster healing in people’s lives. Finally I believe that the best hope any of us has is sharing our life and faith in the midst of community.

Yes I believe.

Posted in This I Believe | 1 Comment

>The Radical Center

Posted on August 19, 2009 by billmcalilly

>”Would to God that all party names and unscriptural phrases and forms which have divided the Christian world were forgot and that we might all agree to sit down together as humble loving disciples, and at the feet of our common master to hear his word, to abide in his spirit and to transcribe his life in our own.” John Wesley as quoted by Adam Hamilton in Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White.

At the General Conference of the United Methodist Church, 2004, there was a bit of stir about a resolution that might come to the floor to present the idea of “amicable separation.” On Friday morning, the last day of General Conference, Bruce Robbins and the late Bill Hinson were permitted to address the conference for the purpose of addressing the rumors. We were told a group of persons representing the so called progressive side of the church and the so called conservative side of the church had been exploring how to co-exist in a time of great division. The conversation stalled and no conclusions were drawn. Essentially, the disagreements were, and are, around Biblical authority and the growing frustration that the doors of the United Methodist Church were in fact, not as open as we sometimes think. (A full explanation of the factors leading up to this can be found in Dr. Stan Copeland’s book, Lord, He Went.)After Hinson and Robbins presented, a resolution calling for unity in the church was offered. It was a carefully crafted statement with essentially no practical way to achieve unity built into the resolution. During that debate, I was recognized by the chair to speak in favor of the resolution. I spoke about another voice in the church that was represented by neither the left nor the right. I used a phrase that, in retrospect, has not been well received by some in our beloved denomination. I spoke of the wide middle of the church. The link here will give you a verbatim of the session at General Conference during the unity debate.

http://www.gc2004.org/interior_print.asp?ptid=17&mid=4722&pagemode=print

If given the opportunity to speak today, I would frame the conversation a bit differently. My sense is that the middle language does not capture the passion and depth of faith with which many of our tribe hold. Thus, finding a way to give voice to this crucial conversation is critical. Adam Hamilton is instructive. In his book, Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White, Hamilton calls us the “radical center.” Bishop Scott Jones, speaking theologically, refers to language that centers us theologically in Jesus’ command to “love God and love neighbor.” He refers to it as the “extreme center” and has a book by that title. I believe Hamilton gets it right. The radical center is that which holds us to our roots in the Christian Tradition as well as our Wesleyan heritage, calling us to love God and neighbor. We cannot be lost in a theologically one-sided faith. Evangelism and social holiness are rooted in one gospel, not two. Holding these two carefully, thoughtfully and prayerfully together keeps us from a divided heart. Jesus held Matthew 25, “the least of these” with Matthew 28, “Go into all the world and make disciples,” together by both word and deed.

There is nothing moderate about holding the center. In fact, it is demanding, perhaps more demanding, than living on the one side of the theological spectrum or the other.

In the coming weeks, among other things, I intend blog here about those ideas under three headings: “Rooted in Scripture”, “Centered in Christ” and “Serving in Love”.

Hopefully, this will be a place to begin a conversation that will allow some bridge building to be done.

I welcome your comments and look forward to the conversation.

Posted in Radical Center, United Methodist, Wesely | 2 Comments

>Inside-Out

Posted on August 12, 2009 by billmcalilly

>I walked over to the church Sunday morning to prepare for worship. Miss Mary Eliza was already there waiting, as is her custom, for church to begin. We walked into the quaint sanctuary at Cambellton United Methodist Church and I placed my notes on the pulpit. On the altar I placed four loaves of freshly baked bread from the Publix Supermarket. The aroma of the bread wafted through the sanctuary. We were preparing for worship. The text was John 6:35, Jesus is the bread. The image of fresh bread placed on the altar stirred images of communion and other times when bread has been essential.

Just before the service began, Laura, our daughter and her fiancée, Nate Paulk arrived. I had invited them to sing in worship. The song they chose was one I had not heard, “Inside-out” by a contemporary Christian group, Hillsong, out of Australia. Their music lifted the spirits of those in worship. I was thrilled to finally hear the two of them sing together.

The images of bread and the spirit of God moving in our minds and hearts from the inside-out captured my imagination. Too much of our time is captured in doing rather than living in the God’s spirit. The times in my own life when I’ve forgotten who am I and whose I have come when I have tried living from the outside-in rather than the inside out. When we know in our heart of hearts that Jesus is the bread of our lives, we live more centered and whole, from the inside-out.

We’re building bridges…across the Church…inside out. Thanks Laura and Nate, for teaching me a now/old way to be present in the world. Jesus, who built bridges from the inside-out, brings bread that is ever lasting.

Lord, give us this bread, that we might live first from the inside.

Bill

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

>It’s Friday but…

Posted on August 7, 2009 by billmcalilly

>I’ll leave in the morning for Cambellton, Georgia. Sunday morning I’ll be preaching at the Cambellton United Methodist Church where our son, Chris, is a student pastor. Chris is in the midwest, attending a wedding of one of his friends from soccer playing days, Jared Monts.

Cambellton is one of many rural congregations across our United Methodist Connection. The church predates the civil war in its beginnings. Out back are civil war graves as well as the graves of former slaves. It’s sobering to take the walk behind the church, down the path to the cemetary.

I look forward to seeing Miss Mary Eliza and Dan and all those whose lives are blessed by being a part of that faithful community of believers.

The Gospel lesson for Sunday is from John’s Gospel, chapter 6, where Jesus says in a variety of ways, “I am the Bread of Life.”

I’ll begin by saying, “I’ve never met a bread I didn’t like.” We will travel a journey together and our lives will be gathered up in the Spirit and Presence of God.

I suspect there will be bread enough to sustain us all as we gather. And a bridge will be built between a son and a dad, a pastor and a congregation, between a Mississippian and some good, salt of the earth Georgians.

And for that, I give thanks.

Posted in Cambellton | Leave a comment