Wolfhowler

Green hats, beer and Ireland for St. Patrick's day!

Today we celebrate all things Irish and Patrick of Ireland (430-490). However, last Saturday when I watch the parade in Colorado Springs, I neither saw or heard nothing of the venerable saint. It seems to me that the man behind the name has been lost in our collective minds. 

Let me share about the man and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by reminding us of what he accomplished.

This fifth-century saint, a runaway slave, turned into a liberator, was used by God to inaugurate a movement of His Spirit to establish the Kingdom Of God by making disciples, by establishing church-buildings, developing missions, education, and social and cultural renewal that caught up all of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, and spread throughout the sixth and seventh centuries to bring renewing grace to much of Western Europe. Today, he is being considered around the globe as a model for many who are seeking His ways.

What kind of person is used of God in such remarkable ways? Patrick explains in his Confession that he was a nominal Christian, born into a privileged existence, who loved the good life more than school or church, when he was captured and carried into slavery by Irish raiders at the age of sixteen. Over the next six years, however, as he tended sheep in western Ireland, his faith came alive and his soul was prepared for the great work to which God gave him upon his return to Britain from slavery.

Patrick has left us only two documents from his own hand. His Confession and the Letter Against the Soldiers of Coroticus are undoubtedly authentic, and they afford tantalizing glimpses into the character of the man. 

Among the many ancient witnesses and celebrations of the life of Patrick, however, there is one that appears to have been written by a contemporary of Patrick. This is the poem, Audite Omnes Amantes (Hearken, All You Lovers of God), and it paints a realistic picture of the man, Patrick, giving us a portrait of the kind of people God uses with great effects. In Audite we see more clearly into the deep spirituality and solid character of Patrick, and we gain a sharper picture of his disciplined work ethic as evangelist and pastor. He emerges from this poetic portrait a true saint of God, well worthy of our remembering once a year with geat celebrations and thanksgiving.

Another ancient document called the “Annals of the Four Masters” reports that Patrick’s mission planted about 700 churches, and that Patrick ordained perhaps 1,000 priests. Within his lifetime, 30 to 40 (or more) of Ireland’s 150 tribes became substantially Christian. Patrick’s achievement included social dimensions. He was the first public man to speak and crusade against slavery. Within his lifetime, or soon after, “the Irish slave trade came to a halt, and other forms of violence, such as murder and intertribal warfare decreased,” and his communities modeled the Christian way of faithfulness, generosity, and peace to all the Irish.

In celebrating the day, let us all remember the man and humbly seek to imitate his example no matter where we find ourselves.

From the other side

My friend Chad Livingston sent me a link to Friendly Atheist. What I read there confirmed my suspicions that people were going to jump in the bandwagon excited that Christianity is on its way out in America.

Anyways, I was going to post the second part of y thoughts on ARIS but must wait till tomorrow (I hope). 

In the mean time, the implications of the study are making sparks fly in Colorado Springs. 

Is faith really disappearing in the US?

My analysis of ARIS

A third study (1990, 2001, 2008) by the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) sponsored by Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut was made public on March 9, 2009.

The study, ARIS 2008, is the third in a series of large, nationally representative surveys that track changes in the religious loyalties of the U.S. adult population within the 48 contiguous states from 1990 to 2008.

The report reveals that while the American population self-identifies as predominantly Christian, Americans are slowly becoming less Christian.

One of the most reported facts of the study is about those who identified themselves as having No Religion (None). In the United States Nones represent 15% of the population.

The survey findings were widely reported in the US and global media. The day after the release of the study, I googled “None” and came up with 69 articles, including ones from China, Xinhua; England, Telegraph, and Australia, The Canberra Times,.

The focus of these articles is mostly on the loss of faith in the USA. The impression that emerges from titles like: America is Becoming Less Christian, Less Religious (ABC News), or Where Have All The Christians Gone? (Houston Chronicle) is one of a major defeat for the Christian faith in the US. 

I read all 69 articles and found that while the results of the study are quite telling of a major problem the Christian faith faces as it becomes increasingly irrelevant to the people of this nation, there is another aspect of the “None” phenomenon that must be understood in order to clearly see the full picture.

I’ve lived in Europe, New Zealand and Canada, and during that time worked with denominations and churches (except Canada) to answer the question of “who goes where and who does not care” when it comes to church attendance.

This experience has given me a first hand perspective of the Christian faith in the Western World. It is my opinion that the people of the USA have a tender heart towards the ways of God, however, the ARIS 2008 report shows a growing gap between “church as we know it today” and the American people.

The “None” group represents those who when asked about their religious identity responded saying they had none, no religion, or identified themselves as Humanistic, Agnostic, Atheist or Secular. The report states that this bloc can be described as the non-religious, irreligious and anti-religious bloc.

The increase reported by the Nones is a most significant trend. However there are two important elements that need to be understood in order to have a more balanced perspective on the implications this 15% of the population represents.

First of all, the report noted that Americans have had a historic reluctance to self-identify as a None. We must consider the possibility that the loss of this inhibition has impacted the numbers of those identified as None significantly. 

Is it possible that this segment of the population was actually larger than the 8.2% identified in 1990?

The second important element is the growth rate itself. The Nones are reported to have increased from 8.2% in 1990 to 14.1% in 2001 to 15% in 2008. It is clear that between 2001 and 2008, there has been a significant slow down on the growth rate as compared to the increase from 8.2% of the population in 1990. 

It is interesting to contrast this 15% in the US with that of other Western nations. In the European Union, those who identify themselves as “None” represent 52% of the population, according to a Eurostat poll in 2005. “Nones” are represented in New Zealand by 32%, in Australia by 19% (2006) and Canada by 16% (2001) (Census data)

Interesting facts of the Nones in the US:

- Nones have a 60 to 40 ratio of males to females

- Over 70% are under 50 years of age

- A very high percentage were formerly Catholics

- The growth of Nones has the largest proportion in every state

- Vermont has the highest percentage in the nation with 34% of the population

- Colorado saw Nones increase from 13% to 21% of the population

- In contrast California increased from 14% to 18% and New York from 7% to 14%

While the reasons for the change have yet to be explored, the data hardly paints the picture of a group that is about to replace Christianity in the US as the majority of the news articles would leads us to think. 

However, the fact that has Nones have almost doubled from 8.2% of the population in 1990 to 15% in 2008 is reason for great concern. Specially in light of the fact that Christians of all types have declined from 86% of the population in 1990 to 76% in 2008.

Those with No Faith represent the fastest growing religious identity of people in the US. There are approximately 34,169,000 people who have walked away from all forms of religious faith. 

This fact alone should force us to ask...Why? 

Over two months

It has been quite sometime since I last wrote here... a lot has happened...

Most significantly, I turned 50 while in Indonesia. I celebrated with a surprise birthday party that was truly a surprise!

It was most special to celebrate the milestone with my Indonesian family, Vivien and her son Benjamin.

A lot has gone on since then and I have been doing a lot of reflecting and planning while considering my days.

To my friends and faithful readers, I apologize for the long delay but I'm back with much to share, so please return and read on again.

Wolfgang

A quiet day

I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. I'm in the midst of the final details for my plans for this new year. It has been both a time of excitement and of anxiety.

I'm excited with the possibilities that my involvement in the emerging movement towards Social Entrepreneurship provides. While it is an old concept it has been rediscovered in Europe and Asia.

A social entrepreneur identifies and solves social problems on a large scale. Just as business entrepreneurs create and transform whole industries, social entrepreneurs act as the change agents for society, seizing opportunities others miss in order to improve systems, invent and disseminate new approaches and advance sustainable solutions that create social value.

While at the First Summit for Social Entrepreneurs in Hong Kong last November I saw and met people who are loving their neighbors and accomplishing the works of the Kingdom of God as proclaimed by Jesus.

I sense that this will become a new trend in this "change seeking" world and I have the opportunity to help lead the way for this among youth in Asia.

Today was a day of silence and meditation. It was an enriching time and I was blessed with a beautiful sunset. Enjoy the moment with me!

A New Year

It seems like the worst of times but I believe that it is the best of times.

In the last few months, I have met professionals in Hong Kong who have lost lucrative jobs and are looking for new ways to expand their careers by developing new business ventures that will seek to expand people's potential. I have also heard from a friend who has made substantial contributions in the past how he is focusing on a smaller number of organizations thus increasing his own participation into things that he is interested on. I met many who like me decided to keep their Christmas buying to one gift per person. Also a family who decided not to buy anything for themselves but instead give their Christmas gift money to help a project in Indonesia.

Instead of the mall, I went to Sunrise Methodist Church used cloths closet and got 3 pairs of nice pants for under $10! I did not miss the traffic or the crowds at the mall.

All around, I see people reorganizing their priorities to focus on what really matters. For me this makes the difficulties of this time very much worth it.

While much uncertainty lays ahead, I'm looking forward to new partnerships and possibilities. This new 2009 will be a very exciting year.

I would love to hear your own story on how you are dealing with your own load.

Christmas for Biak

Phil and Jaleh have been good friends for several years. They have keenly followed my experiences in Indonesia. In 2006, Jaleh came with a group of friends to Jakarta. While there, she experienced a strong sense of identification with our team and she has stayed in touch with some of them.

This Christmas, Phil, Jaleh and their fours kids wanted to do something to encourage the team in Indonesia. They came up with the idea to invite their neighbors to join them in making a special gift for the team.

Since our involvement in Biak, we have become aware of the difficulties the people there have with the basic support systems needed for a productive life. In the district of Supiori, where our team is located, there is no electricity. The few generators there are sufficient to run the most basic of things. However, they are expensive to run and often break down.

Fishing is the main source of income in Supiori but the locals have no capacity to refrigerate anything. Therefore they are very limited in what fish they can preserve to sell.

We began to look for ways to deal with this situation and found a solar powered ice-maker! Ice will enable them to preserve their catch longer and help them increase their capacity. This was the special idea this family was looking for!

This weekend they posted the above sign in front of their home and the kids have passed flyers to every house in their street. They are hoping that their community will come up with the funds necessary to make this dream a reality. 

A miracle in Denver

Today I took Zak to enjoy a day in Denver, he has been waiting for a long time for this trip. He was so excited to go. On the way there, I used my debit card to pay for the gas, instead of putting it back on my wallet, I left it on my pocket , I was rushing... Once in Denver, I parked and Zak and I looked for a place for to eat. We took our time and when I was going to pay, I realized that I did not have the debit card in my pocket. I frantically looked in my wallet and it was not there. We quickly left the restaurant and went to the car, somehow I hoped that I had left it there. It took a while since the car was park far away. The card was not in the car as I hoped. It had been at least two hours since we had first got off the car. I was discouraged but I had been asking my Father in Heaven to just help me in anyway He wanted. I began to walk away from the car and I called the bank to cancel the card. As we walked down the street, I randomly looked to one side and surprisingly, there in the ground was the card! The bank confirmed that no one had used it. My Father in Heaven, as always, was looking after me! I'm facing major challanges right now, the economic situation is making it very hard for me to raise the funds needed to go on. At times, I have wondered what shall I do. To put it mildly, it has been hard. Today, I heared the quiet whisper of His voice reaffirm, I will take care of you. Thank you Father!

Inside of me

At the moment of crisis we discover what we are made of in more ways than we can imagine...

These last two weeks, I have experienced several ups and downs. It has been an interesting roller coaster ride.

I spent the first days sharing my life with 300 young adults from 16 nations. It was a very exhilarating time. I shared lessons from my experience of failures and grace. I was able to spent actual time walking, in subways and eating with a few who drew close to me and experienced issues in real time.

I was able to see that truly God can use people like me who walk with a limp and are willing to live in transparency.

The last night night we worshiped God with a dance to trance music, no one wanted it to end except for the folks who had to clean the place.

The youth conference was followed by a more serious meeting with pastors. While no longer particularly fond of these type of events anymore, I went there to again share from my life.

I explained how after many years of involvement in promoting and implementing nation-wide church planting projects, I have come to realize that the time has come to shift from the method “church planting” to the objective “the Kingdom of God”.

I have yet to figure out the full implications of all of this but I learned many new things in this regard.

After of this was over, I went into a time of deep consideration of my personal issues and future, this is complicated and convoluted. I have made some things way more complicated but such is life. 

While this, I was preparing for a colonoscopy, which I could do a lot cheaper in Hong Kong than the US. They removed a polyp which thankfully was not cancerous.

I then came to Jakarta to deal with other intense challenges our team faces and a three day conversation with like-minded friends. It was overpowering and challenging to see the fire in the hearts of people who are ready to give it all for the cause.

I now sit alone by a cafe. I’ve had to write a difficult email, I had the chance to chat with my daughter on Facebook and I’m asking God what next...

I actually face the fact that I have no more money to continue the work here. I have no more money to even pay my own bills. 

I need to know how to carry on. I’m finding out more about my personal capacity to trust God and it is hard to see how little I really have. 

At least I have the assurance that He knows!

Together with the next leaders

For the last couple of days I have hung out with about 300 guys from many countries in Asia.

I have met people who are in situations far beyond my experience but in spite of it all they press on to share the the good news they have.

Today is the last day of the Youth Conference. It has been a productive event.  I'm here with 300 young people from 30 nations, coming mostly from Asia. 

I have shared my experiences in Indonesia and relating to global culture.

Last night we ended with a celebration dance. It was a first for most of these guys. It was great to see them come alive after sitting for so long!

We have no break in between. Tomorrow is the start of the Global consultation. I was here 10 years ago when this movement started and this year the leadership has agreed to reinvent itself into a new form. I'm looking forward to a new beginning.

I have really enjoyed being able to relate and share with the younger generation my passion for loving ourselves and our neighbors as the way to love our God.