The Ministry of Word and Wonder

The ordained ministries in Christian communities tend to fall along one of three structures. There is the historic threefold office of ministry which holds that deacons, priests, and bishops are three orders of interrelated ministry. Within this system, ordination is successive, which means that to be a bishop, one must already be a priest, and to be a priest, one must already be a deacon. It was only in the latter part of the 20th century that many traditions fully recovered the permanent diaconate as a full formed and lifelong form of ministry. There were distinct one-way rituals that marked the movement from one order to another.

 

Some Mainline Protestant denominations embraced a simpler two-fold definition of ordained ministry, with one option being the Ministry of Word & Service, which is roughly equivalent to the permanent diaconate, and the other being the Ministry of Word & Sacrament, which is most analogous to the priesthood, though some of these ministers serve in institutional roles as executive presbyters/bishops/presidents. The office of adjudicatory leader is a different form of Word & Sacrament, not a distinct order of ministry. The formation track is parallel for the two groups, and one does not lead to the other. Though it might be fair to address that there is often pressure for candidates for ministry to choose Word & Sacrament because of a perceived or actual clergy shortage.

 

Finally, other Christian denominations and associations hold to a single order of ordained ministry, effectively an authorization to preach and preside within the community. The diaconate is understood to be a form of lay ministry, with deacons serving as the mission and service leaders in a congregation, while Trustees (or a similar title) handles the fiduciary and management responsibilities. Sometimes this onefold ministry is understood as further specialized using the five-fold ministries of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, which include a mix of ordained and lay roles, but all of which are meant for building up the people of God. These include apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Each of these roles is grounded primarily in a Ministry of the Word, but with different emphasis like planting/founding, radical truth telling, reaching new people outside the faith, spiritually caring for people in a congregation, and offering both initial and lifelong formation.

 

While I was ordained into the two-fold ministry structure and followed the path of the Ministry of Word and Sacrament, I have been exploring new language to articulate where I find myself at this moment in my life and spiritual journey. I find myself drawn to the idea of a ministry like one of the fivefold roles, because it can be done by a layperson or by someone ordained. My working title is Ministry of Word and Wonder. In some of my professional spaces I use the idea of a worker-priest or a chaplain because I am ordained, but I do not have a congregation in my care now. Rather, I have circles of community, like my unhoused neighbors, other social workers I serve with, the people of my home city, the siblings of the order, my colleagues at Bethany House of Prayer, and my colleagues at SDI. The Ministry of Word and Wonder includes a deep grounding in sacred story (scripture, history, the stories of each person I meet, my own unfolding experience of the divine, and the wondrous insights I have gained through life in community). It involves bringing contemplative curiosity to those stories and to the present moment, without clinging to easy explanations or anxiously desired futures.

 

The Ministry of Word and Wonder is the focus of my rule of life. When I help others construct a rule, I try to help them focus much less on “What do I do? What should I do? What do I wish I would do?”, and much more on “Who am I meant to be?” and “How do I want to be?” An embodied approach of identity, principle, and values can be applied to a nearly infinite number of practices. This working title embodies those questions for me. I am a storyteller, story-keeper, and affirming witness. I am a gentle nurturer who listens for the sacred in what is present. I am anchored in a dialectical relationship that goes from Gospel to Life, and Life to Gospel. I move towards my favorite self (seeing in me what delights God), when I am curious, open, asking open ended questions, exploring, and searching for new ways to love the world and all creatures.

 

So, yes, I write and ponder, I listen and reflect, I mirror and challenge, I mentor, I sometimes preach, I often teach, I try to tell the truth in love. I preside at the table or in other ways when invited, and I offer myself in service to my many circles of community. All held deeply in the sacredness of the Word and the joy of Wondering.

 

Practice

Be gentle with yourself, you are worth it.

Peace and Everything Good,

The Rev. JM Longworth, OEF Spiritual Direction and Trauma Care

https://www.sdicompanions.org/sdi-profile/GreenMtFriarOEF/ To book an appointment: https://calendly.com/greenmtfriaroef