Church is a Way - Not a Where
Written by: Bryan Willkom
Church is not about WHERE we gather…
It’s a WAY of being together.
Years before I walked away from performance Christianity, my soul was so burnt out that I wouldn’t even go into the worship center for “church”. You’d find me out in the commons area chatting with folks over coffee and donuts. Usually, with parents who were chasing a kid or someone who also was not interested in “worshipping” that day. Looking back now…
I didn’t realize how tired I was and probably a little soul sick of what felt like to me as the Sunday Show.
I wonder if this is because the Church got stuck on a location instead of a lifestyle? Acquiring land, building buildings, establishing a religion, stages, altars, etc.
Richard Rohr is quoted saying, “Christianity is a lifestyle—a way of being in the world that is simple, nonviolent, shared, and loving. However, we made it into an established religion (and all that goes with that) and avoided the lifestyle change itself.”
A way of being.
I don’t know about you, but I just love this phrase. I can’t really explain it. Maybe because it hits on mystery, purpose, identity and human longing in only 4 words… Or maybe because “a way of being” is spirituality in its truest form.
In the New Testament, before the words Christian and Church were used, the first followers of Jesus were called, “people belonging to the way”. Most scholars agree that, “The Way” was really the first name of the Jesus movement. Jesus literally called himself, “The Way” (John 14:6).
Beer Church, Trail Church, etc. are certainly unique ways of being church, but that doesn’t mean we have “the way” figured out. I’m just reporting on my own experience, which I’m learning, has more value than I previously thought.
Rohr talks about something called, “The Spiritual Tricycle”.
Rohr argues that the Church taught us to only put Scripture or Tradition on the front wheel (to lead the way), but NEVER our own Experience. All 3 wheels have value in our spiritual lives, but many of us were never taught to trust our own experience or let that lead us from time to time.
Why did this happen? My hunch? The Church wanted the power, authority and control that came with Scripture and Tradition. Teaching or allowing people to find God in their own life was too scary, subjective and threatening.
Like many things, healthy spirituality is about balance. We get off-balance if we allow Scripture, Tradition or Experience to stay on our front wheel for too long. However, I believe, now is the time for churches to help us pay attention to our lived experience, and the wisdom embedded in our own stories.
When I consider my own church story, I realize how many years I looked to stages and altars to show me the way.
That “way” was mostly void of my own experience. I just lived within the box that was created for me. Leaving the box meant trusting my own experience and my experience was leading me away from churchy locations to more everyday spaces in my community.
I find hope that Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life” and NOT, “I am the answers, the religion and the worship center”. Our ministry would not exist!
So if church is truly a way of being together… not a place or a performance… When you trust your own experience…
