Slow Wisdom Session 1:
Experience of discernment and the Church Meeting
Slow wisdom book: see chapters 1 and 2 for more detail
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download this video to share with your church group (928 MB).
Discerning the mind of Christ from 1 Corinthians 2.14-16:
The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
This research:
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Identifies barriers to attendance and participation at the Church Meeting,
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Explores the theology and tradition of discernment for Baptists
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Provides a new language for Baptist discernment: ‘Slow wisdom’
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Identifies discernment as embodied Christian practical wisdom
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Analyses best practice to increase participation at the Church Meeting
Low attendance is often caused by historic conflict and observed among younger members, members from different denominational backgrounds and Black and Brown members.
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Younger members attend less (Brierley, 2017) but are more devout (Perrin, 2016).
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Practical changes to timing and format increased attendance at Gates Baptist.
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Members from different denominational backgrounds are present (Dougherty, Marti & Martinez, 2015).
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Sharing slow wisdom model will grow knowledge.
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Black and Brown members are seen as too different and can experience racism.
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Preferences in speech and theology need to be addressed to increase belonging (Jennings, 2020).
QUESTION: What is your experience of discernment at the Church Meeting?
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pdf of this session.