words
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
In Genesis, God spoke and creation was. God’s words, “let there be…” created everything from nothing (creatio ex nihilio). As Jonathan Merritt writes in Learning to Speak God From Scratch, “in the poetry of the first chapter of Genesis, God creates the world with words” (42). Merritt brings up an argument about how “the imago dei is our ability to speak” (42). The argument emphasizes how “God’s first command to humans is to formulate a vocabulary by assigning names to animals and objects [in Genesis 2:19]” (43). Merritt says, “communicating with words is a unique part of what makes us human…no animal can relay the texture, nuance, color, and emotion that we human beings do with our words” (43).
Words matter.
For thousands of years people have argued over the words and definitions used to communicate the deepest theological truths about God. For example, in the third and fourth centuries there was significant conflict regarding Trinitarian theology related to ousia (substance or essence) and filioque. There was debate about the substance of the three persons of the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Some people, such as Arius, claimed the Father’s nature and substance was different than the Son’s. However, the Council of Nicea “declared the Son was begotten ‘from the same substance of the Father’ and therefore was ‘of the same being with the Father’ through the inclusion of the word “homoousios” (same essence)” (111). While some rejected the declaration, preferring the word homoiousios meaning ‘similar in essence’, orthodoxy (as depicted in the Nicene Creed) still maintains homoousios. Additionally, there was significant debate around the inclusion of the term filioque, which means the Holy Spirit proceeds from (is sent by) the Father and the Son. The debate centered around whether the Holy Spirit is sent by the Father alone but had broader implications about the relationships between the three persons of the Trinity.
Note: Orthodox Christian belief as described in the Nicene Creed maintains both ‘homoousios’ and ‘filioque’. If you are interested in learning more, including detailed arguments for the terms, refer to the Oxford Handbook of the Trinity, edited by Giles Emery, O.P., and Matthew Levering.
All the debates about words inform our understanding and worship of the Trinity, which as noted by Giles Emery, O.P., is the very God Christian’s worship.
Words matter for theology and spirituality.
In addition to all the ‘ministry’ of the church (i.e., teaching, discipleship, worship, evangelism, care ministry, etc.) and words to talk about God, the church has a different set of words and challenges related to church administration because the church does nearly all the same functions as a business.
In Smart Church Finances: A Pastor’s Guide to Budgets, Spreadsheets, And Other Things You Didn’t Learn in Seminary, John Reece and George Hillman Jr. try to bridge the gap between church and business. John Reece is a business leader who runs a consulting firm called WayQuest. George Hillman Jr. is a former pastor who is now the vice president of student life, dean of student, and professor of educational ministries and leadership at Dallas Theological Seminary. While in the introduction Hillman and Reece joke that “John is a “business guy who loves Jesus” and George is a “ministry guy who doesn’t know a thing about business” (1), they make an important observation about business and ministry saying “the business world and ministry world have different languages, and sometimes it feels like cross-cultural ministry” (2-3).
Unfortunately, church leaders do not always get it right; they may not use the right words, they do not know which words to use, or they use the right words with the wrong heart.
Sometimes the church and a business use different words to talk about the same thing. For instance, in business the good and services provided to customers are generally called ‘products’ and ‘operations’ whereas in the church they’re generally referred to as ‘programs’. When a business needs to raise money (through debt or equity) they call it ‘financing’ whereas the church calls it ‘fundraising’, a ‘capital campaign’, or a ‘stewardship campaign’. Additionally, in business communication intended for those outside of the organization is generally called ‘marketing’ or ‘public relations’ whereas in the church it may be called ‘evangelism’.
Sometimes church leaders use words and concepts from the business world inappropraitely. In Budgeting for a Healthy Church, Jamie Dunlop notes how church leaders tend to measure success or failure of the budget by whether the budget is “balanced”. If the church is ahead of budget, the church is successful; if the church is behind budget, the church is failing. This is similar to how business leaders measure success or failure by comparing revenue and profit budgeted amounts to actual amounts. If the business exceeded revenue and profit goals, the business is successful; if not, the business is failing.
Sometimes church leaders use the right words, but they do so maliciously. They use words to manipulate and control. As Merritt notes, “human beings don’t always wield our words well. We often speak without much thought. We spew hate speech and blaspheme, transforming the sacred act of speaking into profane behavior. We speak deceptively and unkindly. We use words to curse, tear down, discourage, blame, and judge” (45). The letter from James says, “sometimes [the tongue] praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!” (James 3:9-10 NLT).
The problem is when church leaders mix up business words with spiritual words.
In Love Does, Bob Goff says, “[Christians] take what use to be authentic friendships and use them like a networking cocktail mixer. They call what the rest of us call normal acts of kindness “ministry” or go on a wonderful adventure to see another country and call it a “mission trip.” It can come across as formulaic and manipulative to toss out some buzz words and slip past the bouncers into the club. But these folks run the risk of downgrading a genuine and sincere faith into an infomercial for God or their own status” (101).
In Learning to Speak Go from Scratch, Merrit writes, “part of the problem in American society is the proliferation of Christianese, a term that refers to common slang inside the Christian communities. These words do not translate well in secular spaces or make sense to those from other religious traditions….most often the label is attributed to weird phrases that are unique to modern forms of Christianity but rarely or never appear in sacred texts of Church history” (21). Merrit argues Christianese '“words and phrases give the appearance of authentic spirituality while fostering the opposite. Cliches, Christian or not, are unable to convey the true heart of an individual’s story” (21).
The words church leaders use and the way church leaders talk about church administration affects the way people see and experience God.
I have previously discussed the connection between the spiritual and administrative life of the church. When church leaders use the wrong words to talk about church administration, when church leaders mix up business words and spiritual worlds, people may walk (or run) away from a church, the church, or maybe their faith entirely. As Merrit writes, “religious leaders who mishandle or misuse sacred words can deeply damage people’s lives” (25). Merrit continues saying, “when we lose our spiritual vocabulary, we lose much more than words. We lose the power of speaking grace, forgiveness, love, and justice over others” (30).
Words matter for church administration not just theology and spirituality because talking about church administration is talking about God.
As church leaders, it is important to think about the words we use and the way we talk about church administration. A budget is not just dollars and cents, it is ministry. A strategic plan is not just mission, vision, and values, it is the work of the Holy Spirit. Human resources is not just managing people, it is discipleship. At the same time, efforts to promote the church is not evangelism, it is simply marketing. Stewardship goes beyond fundraising and being fiscally responsible to what it means to be created in the image of God.
Here are a couple practical principles to apply:
Try new words - Some commonly used words have a complicated history with so much baggage they are easily misunderstood. As noted by Shauna Niequist in the introduction to Learning to Speak God from Scratch, “there are several words we’ve overused, and in doing so stripped them of their meaning…[and] there’s a troubling amount of jargon – words that we kind-of-sort-of understand but are mushy, imprecise, careless” (ix). The challenge for church leaders is to “sift through all the denomination and historical and regional in speak to communicate meaningfully about something as both universal and deeply personal as God” (x). However, Merrit highlights two temptations to avoid: the substitution temptation to “stop using any words they feel have become tainted and replace these terms with less offensive expressions” and the fossilization temptation to “protect [some] vocabulary by preserving ‘traditional’ meanings,” which can be rigid and inflexible with the possibility of alienating anyone any may disagree or have questions (64). Instead, Merritt argues for a transformational approach. Merritt says, “we do not have a problem with the word…we have a problem with the meaning of the word and how it is being used” (68). What is needed is for church leaders to “wrestle with [the] meanings [of words] and allow them to change over time. There may be circumstances that require choosing new words. But some words cannot be replaced” (74). Relatedly, Bob Goff whimsically says his favorite book is a thesaurus because “there are hundreds of words, probably thousands of words that can capture an idea or thought and propose words to describe those thoughts or ideas with greater precision, which would add much more clarity to what I’m trying to say” (102). Goff attempts to “explain my faith in much the same way a thesaurus does and see if I can’t swap a word that is used far too much for another that might add more meaning, more life” (102). The goal is simple, to help people grow closer to God when talking about church administration, so do not be afraid to try some new words.
Ask questions - There are a lot of buzzwords in the church and in business so knowing which word to use in church administration is challenging. The most important thing church leaders can do is ask questions about the words being used. In the professional world I have people . I ask questions like: how is my tone? how does this come across? am I communicating my idea clearly? is there a better way to say what I am trying to say? My wife even proofreads all content before its posted to the blog, and I (and the content) am better as a result. When someone uses an unfamiliar word, ask what it means. When someone (or you) uses a word that does not sound quite right, ask for clarity on what was meant. When you do not know how to communicate an idea, ask for feedback and input from others. Leaders, in particular church leaders, may not be an expert at everything and may not always know the right words to use at the right times. Asking questions allows church leaders to demonstrate grace while seeking to build mutual understanding over words and their definitions.
Use stories - Often when church leaders talk about church administration, the words used from the business world can feel cold and impersonal, relying too heavily on numbers, facts, and statistics. If we only talk about church administration in cold impersonal business language, there’s a tendency to miss the beauty of what God is doing in and through His people. Merritt writes, “we often approach language like chemistry or algebra rather than like poetry or painting” (77). In The Story We Find Ourselves In, Brian McLaren’s character Neo says,“language is the best tool we have, but it keeps getting in the way. So in science, we revert to mathematics. And in theology, we revert to poetry. Mathematics and imagination are two ways of talking about things beyond normal language” (41). It is important for church leaders to tell stories when talking about church administration. In Not Your Parents’ Offering Plate, J. Clif Christopher makes the point that because “in business to change lives for the sake of the gospel” and “not in business to balance budgets or manage money” (13) one of the most important things the church can do is share weekly testimonies about how the church is making a difference in the lives of the congregation and community (84). In the business world, there is a growing trend on the importance of storytelling (Donald Miller’s StoryBrand or Nancy Duarte’s DataStory. Storytelling allows church leaders to connect the administration of the church with the mission of the church.
To summarize, talking about church administration is talking about God. The words church leaders use matter because they affect the way people see and experience God. So try some new words, ask questions, and most importantly, use stories.
References
The Story We Find Ourselves In by Brian McLaren
Not Your Parents' Offering Plate by J. Clif Christopher
Learning to Speak God from Scratch by Jonathan Merritt
Budgeting for a Healthy Church by Jamie Dunlop and Tim Challies
