Church Culture Change

Part I
What’s Going
Here?
Church - Culture - Change
Bruce Reyes-Chow
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN - WEST CHESTER
Wednesday, September 25, 2013

#FIRSTPRESWC | @BREYESCHOW
BUILDING PLANES IN MID-AIR

morning people or night owls
decade: 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s 90’s, 00’s
ages: under 90, 70, 50, 40, 30, 20
religious tradition: Presbyterian,
Baptists, Methodist, Lutheran, UCC
Catholic, non-denominational, other...
time to ministry: 10m, 30m, 60m
church longevity?: till the end, <10, <5
Who are you?
technology: email, facebook, texting, google, twitter,
pinterest, instagram, foursquare, yelp, spotify...

Who is Bruce?
69X:85Y
URBAN:SF
TECHIE:SM
CREATIVE:BOBO
PASTOR:PLANTER
BLOGGER:WRITER
CONSULTANT:COACH

Why Bother?
Genesis 17-18 - Will a son be born
to a man 100 years old and a
woman the age of 90?
Abraham gave the best of what he
had . . . Sarah laughed . . .
God is NOT done with us and is
continually asking us to birth new,
irrational and unexpected things.
What are we being asked to birth?
Gladys Burrill, 92
2011 Honolulu Marathon
Photo: AP

21C Culture Shifts
Authority and “t”ruth:
from a single source of authority to
an open source of discernment.
eg . . . how we explore and discern
Scripture, politics, culture, worship,
decision making, etc. changes.
SO WHAT?
The church must ﬁgure integrate
new ways of worshipping,
discerning and understanding
authority.
Photo by carbonnyc

21C Culture Shifts
Structure and Adaptability:
from a mindset of methodology
and “steps” to a of spirit of
embraced chaos and institutional
fluidity.
eg . . . Changes how we structure
our communal lives: congregation
and councils.
SO WHAT?
The church in all aspects of its life
must become less rigid and more
adaptable, flexible and fluid. Photo by 31878512@N06

HTTP://YOUTU.BE/3RJBD8ZE48A

21C Culture Shifts
Mobility and Commitment
from a life-long commitment to
“place” to an expectation of
transience and change.
eg . . . we change how we
perceive a person’s commitment
in terms of longevity.
SO WHAT?
Organizational structures and
communal activity must be more
adaptive and responsive. Photo by carbonnyc

21C Culture Shifts
Technology and Community:
from geographic clustering and
isolation to broad global
community.
eg . . . our understanding and
experience of community, privacy
and social interaction is
broadened.
SOCIAL MEDIA SO WHAT?
The church must ﬁnd faithful and
effective ways to utilize social
media in all aspects of the church. Photo by splityarn

21C Culture Shifts
Inﬂuence and Social Capital:
from a monolithic presence and
mindset to a niche reality and
opportunity for growth.
eg . . . denominational evangelism
strategies will change.
SO WHAT?
The church must ﬁnd and value a
multiplicity of expression of faith.
Photo by glamhag

Long Tail Effect

21C Culture Shifts
Spirituality & Public Engagement
from a silent understanding of
separating church and state to an
increased move to a public
expression of faith and politics.
eg . . . we acknowledge political
realities while encouraging
personal discernment.
SO WHAT?
We must reclaim our voice in the
public square and responsibility to
nurture the voices of the people. Photo by wy_jackrabbit

questions | comments
@breyeschow

Lets Take a Break

Part ||
But I Don’t See
You As Asian
Curating Conversations about Race
Bruce Reyes-Chow
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN - WEST CHESTER

Race.
The church must not only be a
safe place to talk about race,
it must also be where the
complex beauty of God's
creation is made real.

Evelyn...

Conversation.
While there may be times
to pause, just because we
may not ﬁnd agreement,
that does not mean that
we should stop talking.

To hear we must speak
When they heard this sound, a
crowd came together in
bewilderment, because each one
heard their own language being
spoken.
ACTS 2:6

Deﬂection of the struggle
"IT IS APPALLING THAT THE MOST
SEGREGATED HOUR OF CHRISTIAN
AMERICA IS ELEVEN O'CLOCK ON
SUNDAY MORNING."
REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

Hollow multiculturalism
There is neither Jew nor Gentile,
neither slave nor free,
neither male nor female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
ETHNICITY
ECONOMICS
GENDER
POWER, JUSTICE AND INCLUSION
GALATIANS 3:28

Condescension of inquiry

Devalued graciousness
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to
drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
ROMANS 12:20 (TNIV)

Calciﬁed tactics & rhetoric
HOW TO TELL SOMEONE THEY SOUND RACIST

Awkward

Microaggressions
BRC SELF-PORTRAIT - 1970’S
BRIEF AND COMMONPLACE DAILY
VERBAL, BEHAVIORAL, OR
ENVIRONMENTAL INDIGNITIES,
WHETHER INTENTIONAL OR
UNINTENTIONAL, THAT COMMUNICATE
HOSTILE, DEROGATORY, OR NEGATIVE
RACIAL SLIGHTS AND INSULTS
TOWARD PEOPLE OF COLOR.
RACIAL MICROAGGRESSIONS IN EVERY DAY LIFE

WHAT KIND OF ASIAN ARE YOU?

“DON’T BE SO SENSITIVE”

ILLUSTRATION BY CHARAMELODY
“WHY DO YOU
ALWAYS SIT TOGETHER?”

“HE’S A DIFFERENT
KIND OF BLACK”
FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR

“WHAT KIND OF ASIAN ARE YOU?”

PHOTO BY STÉFAN
“IT’S NOT EASY BEING WHITE”

DO YOU KNOW MARTIAL ARTS?
MINORITIES CAN’T BE RACIST
WHY DO YOU ALWAYS SIT TOGETHER?
AND OUT COMES THE RACE CARD
WHAT KIND OF ASIAN ARE YOU?
WE JUST NEED ONE
IF THEY CAN SAY IT, WHY CAN’T I?
I’M NOT A RACIST, BUT...
THOSE PEOPLE...

GREAT DEBATERS CLOSING DEBATE

“THE ARC OF THE MORAL
UNIVERSE IS LONG, BUT IT BENDS
TOWARDS JUSTICE”
REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.

Questions and Comments
Questions, Comments,
Reﬂections
Connect with Bruce
reyes-chow.com
twitter/breyeschow
facebook/breyeschowpage
linkedin/breyeschow
instagram/breyeschow
pinterest/breyeschow
THE DEFINITIVE-ISH GUIDE
FOR USING SOCIAL MEDIA
IN THE CHURCH
THANKS FOR COMING!

The End
@breyeschow

Church Culture Change

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