A Church For All Nations

What?

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An Ignoble Beginning

I have mentioned before that I came to faith in a church of The Salvation Army.

William and Catherine Booth

The Army was founded in 1865 in London by a former Methodist preacher named William Booth and his wife Catherine. Booth was drawn to open air evangelism and is famous for preaching out front of the Blind Beggar tavern in Miles End Waste. With Catherine, he then founded the East London Christian Mission. In 1878, Booth reorganised the mission, becoming its first General and introduced the military structure which has become the movement’s tradition.

Ordained by the Methodist New Connexion denomination, Booth became a wild-fire of a preacher throughout England. Invitations to preach deluged him. The denomination’s leaders knew Booth was a star, nevertheless they remained ambivalent about him. Several denominational authorities disapproved of his methods.

Early in his ministry denominational authorities rebuked Booth for welcoming so-called riff-raff to worship. He had been told they could attend services if they entered and left by the rear door of the chapel, and, once inside, remained behind the pulpit platform where they could not be seen.

The Salvation Army's main converts were at first alcoholics, morphine addicts, prostitutes and other "undesirables" not welcome in polite Christian society. This opposition from the denomination’s leader prompt the Booths to start their own church.

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Why?

While, on one hand, we might understand the aversion to such undesirables as being a natural response, on the other hand, we must also see this as a sinful response which treats those who are the least, the lost and the lonely as being unworthy of love. And that attitude and action is itself unworthy of the friends of Jesus.

Having considered together our Vision and Mission statements, the only thing left for us to consider is how we might be a community of faith where all who are members and friends now, as much as those yet to be so, are welcomed unreservedly and included unconditionally.

So What?

Being Poor in a Rich Church (Ian)

me in my SA uniform

We read in The Letter of James,

James 2:1–13 (CSB)

My brothers and sisters, do not show favouritism […] For if someone comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and a poor person dressed in filthy clothes also comes in, if you look with favour on the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here in a good place,” and yet you say to the poor person, “Stand over there,” or “Sit here on the floor by my footstool,” haven’t you made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Didn’t God choose the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?

Besides coming to faith in a Salvation Army church, I may have mentioned that I grew up in a rather poor family. Because of this I was very conscious of the difference between my poverty and low social status compared to the middle to upper class privilege of most others in my home church. To their credit, they never gave me reason to feel any less than they.

I was often invited to their homes for lunch, included in social activities, and even allowed to play solo saxophone at a Sunday School Christmas concert, which really was their mistake because I had just only started learning to play and was just awful! 🙉

That Salvation Army community truly was a church that did not in any way reflect the passage read for us from The Book of James. Astonishingly to me then and even now, they did not show favouritism, but welcomed me unreservedly and included me unconditionally.

It is easy to see how this passage applies to the rich and the poor in a church but what about when the issue is one of ethnicities? What happens when a Canadian walks into an Australian church?

Being Canadian in an Australian Church (Ian)

Well, pandemonium ensues of course! 😂

pic at Parramatta

When I received a call to ministry as a Youth Pastor in a Salvation Army church here in Sydney back in ‘94, I was once again astonished and thoroughy grateful. What an opportunity I never imagined for myself!

Yet, I was also completely terrified. I had never traveled overseas. I left everything behind, even a beautiful motorcycle, to venture into the unknown. I watched as much Paradise Beach soap opera episodes as I could to become informed of the Australian culture and read The Lonely Planet’s Australia tourist guide for Australian history, and information on things to see and things to do.

While most Australians were very kind to me and helped me to assimilate, others were not so kind nor welcoming. Often people would joke about my accent, which is harmless enough; others would joke about how my name resembled that of the famous movie character Forrest Gump; others would condescendingly ask me what part of the States I was from.

The worst experience of this kind happened when I was invited to be the guest speaker at a church’s weekend retreat. Many of the people attending the retreat were outwardly critical and challenged me unreasonably. I couldn’t help but think I was a victim of the notorious “Tall Poppy Syndrome”, but was told this was how Australians showed affection. Sadly, I could not receive their barbs as affection. I was made to feel very unwelcome by this group because I was not Australian, even though I was the invited guest.

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Being Filipino in an Australian Church (Noel)

Australians and Canadians usually get along very well, as the general personality and cultures of our countries is quite similar. And let’s face it, if I keep my mouth shut I can almost pass for an Aussie!

But is the experience of those who cannot pass as Aussies because of their skin colour?

invite Noel to come forward

I have invited a member of our church, Mr Noel Labordo, to share with us some of his story.

pic of Noel with his church

In ministry for 20 years in The Philipines, as an Evangelist, Music Director and then Pastor from 2010.

Came to Australia in 2017 as a tourist, at invitation of sister Erma. His wife and 2 kids remain in The Philippines.

Began studying Early Childhood Education.

Experience of being a Filipino in Australia:

Communication was often difficult due to having a different accent and not being used to the Australian accent.

Becoming comfortable in the Australian culture was often difficult, most especially when dealing with the aggression of Aussies.

Experience of being a Filipino in a White Anglo congregation:

Welcome was often less than warm until he joined the Music Team.

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Now What? (Ian)

Sometimes local churches welcome the poor unreservedly and include those of different ethnic backgrounds unconditionally. Other times, we fail miserably.

The apostle Paul wrote,

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Galatians 3:27–28 (CSB)

For those of you who were baptised into Christ have been clothed with Christ. There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male and female; since you are all one in Christ Jesus.

From this we can understand that, with regards to faith and salvation, God does not hold any regard for the distinctions between us. He wants everyone to be saved, period. Yes?

Arguably, diversity was part of God’s plan.

In Genesis 1, our Creator God blessed the first humans, telling them to “be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it” (Gen 1:28). Surely our Creator God understands the biological and social processes that would evolve a multiplicity of skin colours, languages and cultures? He even sped up the process at the Tower of Babel when he “confused their language” and “scattered them throughout the earth” (Gen 11:7-8).

Despite this diversity, we also know God’s plan is to draw all nations to him in reconciliation where they will worship him (Is 45:22–25; Jr 3:17).

Therefore, diversity is not an issue for God but something for us to celebrate, that people of different colours, languages and cultures are able to all gather from the ends of the earth and form one people under his banner of love.

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Therefore let us celebrate our diversity, for it is the glory of God. While we may not understand the differences between us, but those differences enrich us all when we welcome each other unreservedly and include each other unconditionally.

And let us remember it is harder for newcomers to feel like they belong than for members to make them feel welcome. That fact places the onus on those who are here already to prepare for those whom our Lord God may draw to this community of faith if, and only if, he can trust us to care for them with sensitivity.

Let us pray… (Noel)