We started the day off early today by taking the subway from my sister Cameron's house to our BGU class meeting place at the Metropolitan New York Baptist Assocation. We had the opportunity to meet 30+ new classmates and friends. Dr. Ray Bakke started the day off with a lecture about New York, and then we all divided up to go to different churches in the city. I attended worship services at Bethel Gospel Assembly, a church that takes up an entire city block in Harlem. The church was pretty diverse with a strong African-American and Latino presence in the building. The songs were many of the same songs that I am familiar with at North Way in Pittsburgh, only the style was very different. The songs all had a strong gospel feel. I asked lots of questions about how the church is intentional about being cross-cultural, and how they design their worship. I have not spent much time in pentacostal churches, so it was an enjoyable experience. We ate lunch at a soul food restaurant in Harlem, and then we watched the New York City Marathon for a while. All afternoon we toured around Wall Street, the Occypy Wall Street movement, Federal Hall, NYSE, St. Paul's Church, Trinity Church (the second richest church in the world), and the Customs House. Ray lectured a lot along the way. We then took a ferry ride to and from Staten Island as we watched the sun set on a perfect day in New York. In the evening we watched a documentary about the history of New York City back at the MNYBA.
Today was filled with a great deal of walking, which was fine since it was such a beautiful day. Walking is the best way to get to know a city. That's true in NYC and in Pittsburgh. One of my favorite things to do in Pittsburgh is walk around the city to get to know people and places. I really enjoy the BGU learning model because what we learn in the classroom is carried over into the streets. I picked up on a couple good lines that Ray said while we were walking around the city. He pointed out that the church has two functions: to be a sign of and an agent for the Kingdom of God agenda. There are several different models that are effective in cities. He used the metaphor for urban ministry that some ministries are like bicycles and some are like 747 airplanes. Depending on the context, either approach is effective or ineffective. Small churches can do things in cities that big churches cannot do, and vice versa. Storefront churches can provide a family structure for people in need, while cathedral's can speak truth to power. As Christians in the city, we should value the many different expressions of worship in the city. The diversity in New York is amazing! I am really enjoying getting to know so many people. I have classmates from all different parts of the United States, and other countries such as Brazil and Thailand. I met several campus pastors a multisite churches today, and I also met several people working with at-risk youth. I even met a guy from Chicago who launched a faith-based mentoring initiative with high risk youth in Chicago five years ago. We had a lot in common, and I love having access to these types of leaders.
I learned many transferable principles today. I need to continue to walk around the East End of Pittsburgh to get to know my community better. One of the key points we discussed today was that most churches in cities operate in silos. The pastors and church members rarely interact with people from other churches and ministries. Transformational leaders are bridge builders and reconcilers, so it is my responsibility as a pastor in Pittsburgh to build bridges with other churches and Christians in the city. As the East End campus is launched, it will be crucial for me to continue to be present in the East End as a reconciler while also remaining focused on the details associated with a new North Way campus. Every church has gifts, no matter the size, scope, or history of the mission. It's part of my job as a pastor in the city to identify those gifts.
No comments:
Post a Comment