“Innovation in ministry” is a recurring theme, one that I first began hearing forty years ago when I entered seminary. Even then, just 10 years into the precipitous and ongoing decline in mainline churches, it was clear we needed to be doing some things differently.

Which things, of course, was up for debate. We have made the easy changes — though we struggled mightily in the process — namely, new liturgies and more diversity in who could preside in worship.

We deferred the harder changes, such as rethinking the place of Sunday worship, rethinking facilities and their costs, embracing Biblical stewardship, casting our lot with the prophetic and gospel witness for justice, and breaking through our fundamental whiteness.

We took symbolic actions, rather than consider transformation of life. We let the 1% continue their looting of America, rather than speak truth to the powerful among us. We avoided standing tall against the extremism of right-wing evangelicalism.

Last week I spent three exciting days with the nascent Center for Innovation in Ministry at San Francisco Theological Seminary, in San Anselmo, CA. Three dozen creative clergy and laity from around the country looked intently at what needs to be done to help faith communities grow in effectiveness. Some specific ideas emerged, such as intentionally listening to people outside our walls and gathering innovators together in an incubator for fresh thinking. No one idea seemed likely to be enough. Inertia, baggage and conflicting priorities won’t be shed soon or easily.

But there was in the room an almost unanimous consensus that innovation is essential. Not just a good idea espoused by trendy people on the leading edge, but essential, timely, necessary for survival, and necessary for being what God wants us to be.

Specifically:

 Don’t be wedded to traditional ways, but rather claim gospel ideals of justice, mercy, repentance, and self-sacrificial caring.
 Push through local resistance to change, which serves a few longtimers but doesn’t build a future.
 Listen to the world, rather than just ourselves.
 Push through expressed needs for comfort. Challenge our people to be more, believe more and do more.
 Focus on the life of the entire faith community, not just on the doings of leadership.
 Look beyond familiar issues like ordination rules, Sunday worship styles, doctrines, and denomination. Look instead for fresh ideas, entrepreneurial leaders, risk-taking, variety, and venturing into a larger world that is quite unlike the familiar cultures of mainline churches.
 Try more, fail more, learn more, risk more, and keep trying more.
 isn’t wild-eyed, it is bold. Innovation entrusts the future to God and asks what God wants us to do for that future.

About the Author

Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest based in New York. He is the publisher of Fresh Day online magazine, author of On a Journey and two national newspaper columns. His website is Church Wellness – Morning Walk Media