Reflections
ASSUMPTIONS BEHIND THE MOVEMENT FOR MDL
By Ed White
- God has a purpose for the life of each human being.
- The primary "calling" or ministry for most laity is in the world not in the church.
- Many laity are undeveloped in relating their faith to daily life.
- The primary task of the congregation is to develop mature disciples for ministry in the world.
- For the most part, congregations do not take seriously the worldly vocation of their members.
- The current model of ordained ministry is overly individualistic and competitive.
- Clergy must be re-oriented to be more concerned about authority and less about control in the life of the congregation.
- The church has been seduced by the compulsive careerism and consumerism of the present culture.
- A change in the culture, the priorities, and the reward and recognition systems of the congregation is needed.
- A change in the culture, the priorities, and the reward and recognition systems of the denominations is needed.
- A change in the process for incorporating new members is needed to address the meaning of discipleship in a hostile pagan culture.
- Laity must learn how to incarnate and articulate their faith in a non-imperial manner in a pluralistic society.
- Appropriate small groups can provide support for lay ministry in the world.
- Regional judicatory staff can play a useful role in assisting the reinventing of congregations for a new mission frontier.
- Regional judicatories must place more emphasis on facilitating local initiatives and less on functioning as a regulatory agency.
This is the first attempt to set forth the assumptions behind the movement known as The Coalition for Ministry in Daily Life . Do you concur with these assumptions? What would you:
- Delete
- Add
- Modify?
Reprinted with permission from Laynet, Volume V, Number 1, Spring 1994
Ed White is a full-time trainer and consultant with churches and church-related organizations, and Senior Consultant for the Alban Institute. Ed is also the founder and editor of Laynet, the newsletter for the Coalition for Ministry in Daily Life, an international ecumenical not-for-profit partnership for individuals, congregations, local judicatories, denominations, colleges, seminaries, publishers, and independent organizations in support of the ministries in daily life of all Christians. For more information on the Coalition for Ministry in Daily Life, write CMDL, 4694 Boxwood Circle, Emmaus, PA 18049.
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