DIVERSITY, and yet UNITY

One of the ironies of American Christianity is that should a church choose be inclusive, embracing the diversity of our culture—i.e., welcoming anyone and everyone—it is a sure and certain way to ensure a congregation will be small. As studies are done of congregations of all types and sizes, a stunning homogeneity is found. Folks tend to be of one social class, one educational level, one race, etc. Like attracts like. A church that makes a public stand to be inclusive, placing welcome as its core mission—actively seeking people from all walks of life, sexual orientations, ethnicities, etc.—will be small. Perceived disorderliness holds people at bay. 

Denominationally, we see that play out as mainline denominations tend to drift to positions of inclusion. Certain elements find that move anathema and choose to leave. The PC(USA) certainly experienced this reaction deeply and hurtfully over the last couple of decades. 

The thing is that homogeneity is going to be harder to maintain as American culture becomes more diverse. We see this rise of multiculturalism on nearly every front. 

The Latino community is quickly rising to become the biggest ethnic community in the country. We are becoming bilingual by default. In California where I live, the Latino community is the biggest group of any group in the state. The context becomes even more stunning as we narrow the view into Sacramento County. Alongside the Latino community (which itself is comprised of several subgroups), Korean, Indonesian, Indian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Ukrainian, Filipino, Native American, Middle Eastern, African, another sweep of cultures from smaller Asian nations, and, of course, Anglos, all live side by side throughout the neighborhoods. Presbyterians have started faith communities within a few of these non-Anglo groups (Latino, Korean, Japanese, Indonesian, and Vietnamese), but we still are not reflective of the diversity of the area. 

In terms of gender issues, women are becoming the majority group within the presbytery. Women can and do serve as officers in local congregations. Women clergy lead several of our churches and fellowships. Others serve in chaplaincies, counseling, and other areas of validated ministry. Women are the most numerous demographic in our congregations. But there is still further to go. Surprisingly, there is still resistance to women in ministry. In order to fully acknowledge the welcome of Christ, there is work to be done. 

In terms of sexual orientation, churches are left to their own devices. Actions taken by the General Assembly opened the door for gay marriage and ordination within the congregations, but did not mandate that every church had to adopt this practice. If a church chose not to practice these tasks, they were left to do so. The surrounding culture is tolerant and open for the most part. Especially among the generations just entering adulthood, the issue is a non-starter—they assume a more libertarian approach as a generation, basically assuming people are going to be who they are, so what’s the issue? The church still has a long way to go on this front. Fortunately, holy war (theological rather than literal) seems less an option. Folks who could not abide the ecclesial changes left. The remainder—folks from differing viewpoints—chose to work together without forcing the issue. Each congregation can choose for itself what direction it wants to follow. So be it.

This single issue raises another—theological diversity—for that is often at root in the argument over sexuality. One reaction to being a minority community in an irreligious environment is to harden one’s stance. The folks who remain as congregants are “true believers,” so to speak. If they assume that mantle, it becomes easy to retreat into a fortress of dogma, moralism, and purity to ward off the secularism of the world. But that is by no means universal, nor even a majority position. In actuality, one finds a wide range of theology in the churches. A Presbyterian congregation may well be comprised of ardent evangelicals. Or it may look more like a Unitarian church where all views are welcome. Or it may look like an orthodox Calvinist enclave. Or it may be something else altogether. The hope comes as these different theological positions learn to dialog with one another without an overarching need to be right or correct. The problems arise when one group or another stops listening to the other groups present. There is room at Christ’s table for an incredible range of belief—just look at the gathered Twelve at the Last Supper—my personal favorite pair of antagonists being Matthew the Tax Collector and Simon the Zealot, enemies in the world who would have sought the death of other, able to commune sincerely and deeply with one another. Such an ability to lose ourselves in Christ is our hope.

As we move out from the diversity within the Christian community to the overall religious community, diversity is not so much the issue as simple irrelevance. Statistically speaking, in Sacramento County, only 180,000 people declare any religious affiliation, leaving 820,000 with no professed religious practice. True, many within that 820,000 would name themselves “spiritual but not religious,” but there is still a huge number for whom even that designation no longer fits. However, among the 180,000 religious folk there is a wide range of practice. All the major streams of American Christianity are present, alongside more ethnically centered Christian communities like Russian Orthodox or Egyptian Coptics. Buddhism, Islam, Sikhism, and Judaism are all present. There are other religious entities present, as well, creating a crazy mix in a relatively small group of people. But the universal truth is that all of these communities are small. Our Presbyterian congregations would benefit greatly from seeing themselves as on a mission field. The analogy is really not at all farfetched. 

What this means for a presbytery is that we are a small slice of a small slice. A small community will find this push hard to manage—limited resources and limited people limit potential outreach. 

Even though in the current climate of American Christian practice, a choice to be diverse seems to be a choice to be small, that is still the most hopeful path to follow. But here is a primary point at which the presbytery can take the lead instead of forcing congregations to shoulder the burden alone. Yes, some congregations will need to act independently, tackling diversity head on, especially if they are in a neighborhood that has become radically more diverse in the time since the church was founded. An example—in Sacramento, our Bethany congregation is already dealing with the fact that along the street running east-west past them, each block is seemingly home to a different ethnic community—Vietnamese, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Latino, and Anglo all within five miles of each other, something the original congregation never could have imagined. To continue to be vital, they will need to find a way to reach the neighborhoods on each of the city blocks surrounding them. But more likely what needs to happen is that our smaller churches pick one front on which to work, like our ethnic congregations focusing on one community, leaving the presbytery to be the diverse umbrella organization embracing all the differences within a region.

What this means is that the presbytery needs to be intentional about creating communities welcoming the diverse elements of the area—i.e., be sure there is a Spanish-speaking church, a Korean church, a church that welcomes folks from any and all orientations, a church that attempts to be racially diverse, a church that sits on the edge of a retirement community actively seeking to work within and for that community, and so on down the list of potential identities within a region. The overall diversity comes through the quilt of congregations knit together. 

Then, the presbytery needs to ensure that all those voices are heard within the larger body. Everyone needs a place at the table, no matter what their theology, social stance, racial makeup, etc. The presbytery becomes the arena in which the world is in microcosm. 

That, of course, has implications for leadership. Leadership will need to be able to openly engage and communicate with all the separate pieces comprising the whole. They will be charged with the arduous task of keeping everything in a state of equanimity. Equanimity cannot simply be a religious ideal, but an actual practice. Every voice has something to say, so every voice will need to be heard. No one voice needs to drown out the others, but everyone needs to be kept in balance. However, there will be times when one voice needs priority over another as needs arise or issues come to the fore. That is when the hard work of justice for all takes center stage. But achieving that state of being will bring an experience of the kingdom within us and for us, revealing to the world the true power of Christ to transform and transcend all that we are. There is indeed a way to be many, yet one. 

That leads directly into the next topic —ENGAGEMENT