Faithful, Missional, and Sustainable – these are the three words that have emerged from my praying and pondering as we at the Cathedral face up to the economic and other challenges of these days. The three are dynamically interrelated; we can’t think about one for very long without coming to another. And what we think about each shapes and is shaped by what we think about the others. I believe we can use them as a guide as we make our way through these times and beyond.

Faithful. We are a community of faith, a specific faith and practice: Christian, Anglican, Episcopalian. We are not a social club organized because we like to get together, nor are we a service club trying to do some good in the world. Of course we do get together (sometimes we like to, other times not so much) and we do try to make a difference in the world, but those things happen because we are first and foremost a community of faith. Individually we have various understandings and approaches to faith, as well as many questions and even doubts. But together we are a community of faith. I believe matters of faith are deep at the heart of the challenges we are living through. What is our faith – really? What difference does it make? How do we live with people of other faiths or none? How much do we need to reclaim our tradition? How much do we need to change? Everything else traces back to and flows from these kinds of questions.

Missional. This is a rather newly coined word which means that our Christian community of faith is a community of mission. The mission is not the Church as an end in itself (as in trying to get more people to “join” or “come to” Church). Rather it is the Church which serves the end of God’s Kingdom of justice, peace, and love. As we pursue this end, we also worship, pray, and invite others to serve with us. All of this is mission and, while it has always been true, it is abundantly clear in these days that if we are not missional, we will have no future (nor should we).

Sustainable. Environmental, economic, organizational – you name it and the challenge to become “sustainable” probably somehow applies. Economic sustainability is the leading challenge of the present because we know that the way we were doing things cannot continue, and this includes the Church, and that includes the Cathedral of Saint Paul. The future cannot be like the past and, ready or not, we have been tossed into this rapidly changing reality. I think we may see more changes in the next few years (maybe months) than we have seen in a lifetime, not just in congregations, but in many aspects of society.

As we live through our Cathedral version of these challenges, we are discerning, discovering, and determining what our true base of support is. That base certainly has to do with financial and other resources, but most of all it is people. People who are willing in times like these to work, pray and give as a community of faith and mission. There is no denying that we face challenges, but there is also no denying that we have resources and people. Much may change, but the things that matter most will remain the same as we, like those in challenging times before us, strive to be faithful and missional in ways that will be sustainable.

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