Remembering Francis

The church as I have always known is in disarray and shambles.  It is not something which happened overnight.  We did not wake up one morning to see with surprise the disorder and chaos.  Perhaps, the only surprising thing is that something which has been in the making for the decades of my ministry has finally come bringing such confusion and sadness.  Naive as it might have been, many had hopes that there would be a different outcome.  Maybe what we are seeing in my denomination was inevitable all along and no one really wanted to go the road of logical conclusions of choices being made.    

In these troubling days I often think of Francis of long ago who had a vision at the beginning of a ministry that would transcend his own life.  As Francis was praying around the ruins of the Church of St. Damian, he heard a voice saying, "Francis, my church is in ruins, go and restore it for me."  Francis immediately started bringing stones to rebuild that neglected church not realizing that his call was far greater than one single building.  Of course, in the days of St. Francis those with institutional power did not see a church in shambles and in need of rebuilding.   

It is likely much the same today.  Too many seem to think the church can be fixed with one program or decree or some other kind of ecclesiastical action.  This old worn out Methodist preacher long ago retired but still in love with his church believes it will take more than anyone of us can figure out.  We may need a person with a vision and a spirit like Francis, but more than anything else, we need a decisive and intentional action of the Holy Spirit.  Of course, the problem is that the institutional church has never been particulary receptive to an intervening work of the Spirit because it is too radical and disruptive of the status quo.