Faith and Finance Committee/ Powerpoint without a Prayer

RantWoman was out last Friday night with RantMom at a form of interfaith dialogue. RantWoman went with RantMom and almost the entire Session of RantMom's Presbyterian church to a speech by Anthony Robinson, nationally known congregational life consultant and former pastor of Plymouth Congregational UCC church. RantWoman is grateful for a ride to exotic Bellevue and especially for a ride up windy roads RantWoman suspects would have been a pain to deal with from any nearby bus stop.

RantWoman maintained a stunning Quaker silence in the car going, which is a good thing because the Presbyterians were plenty chattery and all full of earthquake opinions. Upon arrival, RantWoman took note of Impending Powerpoint! Powerpoint gone awry is one of RantWoman's pet peeves; an early glance indicated that the evening's Powerpoint would feature:

--lots of slides with plenty of good whitespace

--few enough words to tempt RantWoman to the thought that if the words were bigger and in bolder type, there could still be good white space and RantWoman might actually be able to read them. Okay, RantWoman detected the screen and the likely presence of Powerpoint RantWoman is sometimes easily deluded in realms of vision, but she has to wonder.

--a more problematic point considering one of RantWoman's takeaways from the evening to be named below: Rev. Robinson plunged right into his Powerpoint without a whisper of spoken prayer, either before or after the speech. In Quaker land, an opening of silence would be highly topical. RantWoman does not think she has ever visited, say, an African American congregation that would not open such an event, even a neighborhood forum or an evening of volunteer tax preparation help without a prayer of some kind. RantWoman would point out that the event with Rev. Robinson opened with fumbling about technology and not a word of prayer. Christ showed up in passing twice. which RantWoman finds, um, curious.

RantWoman was surprised at herself early in the speech. Rev. Robinson had been going through a lot of Then and Now Powerpoint slides (Arrrrrrgggh). The slides all mentioned some sort of certainty and clear social constructs for the Then and all kinds of things for the Now. Rev. Robinson was asking those assembled for reactions. RantWoman took note of how everyone mentioned a loss while RantWoman felt herself strangely energized, like this is IMPORTANT and an opportunity. RantWoman was on her most diplomatic behavior and simply held her silence until the speaker eventually got around to this very point. Quakers seem not to be the only ones who, instead of talking about faith, just want to recruit people for committees.

One thread of message during the speech and also during homebound car ride conversation was congregations that are glad to say what they think about gay marriage and the war in Iraq but do not know how to talk about Jesus or faith, no matter how dynamic the pastor.

RantWoman further notes that although for instance RantMom's church includes faces of various hues, tonight's event tended (surprise to whom?) toward the tall, northern European, and pasty-faced.Before the event there was chatter about chairs, ganged but possibly stackable on chair dollies, RantMom pointed out some wonderful laminated sheets of recurring weekly info.

There was a smattering actually of quite Quaker vocabulary about discernment, testimony, hospitality, and spiritual formation, and a church presence in moral, institutional, and spiritual terms,

Rev. Robinson also talked about, upon his arrival at his job at Plymouth. starting a series called Faith Journeys in the time between two Sunday morning services. He thought he would have trouble finding people from the congregation to fill the Sundays of his first summer. The series is still going on 20+ years later. The effect is a little like something RantWoman's Meeting used to do, Life Story Potlucks. Dang it: the committee that formerly organized is in need of....