Religious Ethnicity

Unfortunately I would have to vote with the majority on this one. It seems to me ... and I could be dead wrong on this ... that the ethnicity of a congregation is sometimes more about style than it is about anything else. The issue of style seems to transcend issues of ethnicity ... some churches have services that attract younger people ... some attract certain lifestyle and image choices ... some attract a certain type of theological leaning ... but some attract a very diverse and broad reaching population.

Sheffield Family Life Center is a large church in downtown Kansas City that exemplifies a truly diverse and multi-cultural expression of the body of Christ. I didn't really understand why they were so successful until that day when I watched their white pastor, George Westlake, cry over the treatment that many of his African American friends had received over the years. In his tears I saw the image of a man who so resonated with people's pain and so loved people right where they were. It is an image I'll not forget ... it is an image that yet challenges and molds me to follow George as he follows Jesus.

1 comment:

  1. I think it's got a good deal to do with location as well. Like it or not we're still pretty segregated when it comes to our residences. If you live in a racially diverse part of the city your church will (and should) reflect that.

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