Dear Friends in Christ,
As we begin 2008 together, I am aware of what a momentous year this will be for Zion. The change of saying farewell to Pr. John last year after 30 plus years was significant enough; but this year with the anticipation of a new senior pastor’s arrival will also be significant for Zion. As I look ahead, one of my favorite pieces of imagery comes to mind.
One of the joys of living anywhere along the Mississippi Flyway between central Canada and the Gulf of Mexico comes twice a year when we get to observe the migration of geese. Marilyn and I usually get a couple pair nesting on the ponds that flank our driveway; but we missed them this year because drought had dried up the water in those wetlands.
As I watch their comings and going each year I am reminded of a book that was written about 25 years ago by Browne Barr, former dean of the San Francisco Theological Seminary. It is titled High Flying Geese. It is, as the subtitle— Unexpected Reflections on the Church and Its Ministry— suggests a metaphor for life in the church.
One of the primary lessons geese can teach us is the concept of flying in formation. As each bird flaps its wings it contributes lift to the whole flock. Twenty-five birds flying in formation have a range increase of about 70 percent compared to a single bird flying alone. Thus, some species of geese have been known to make the 1,700 mile trip from James Bay in Canada to coastal Louisiana in 48 hours. That’s an average of 35 mph. Try moving that fast by just flapping your arms!
Accepting the metaphor, seems to say that a congregation which shares a common direction can get where it is going if it flies in formation, rather than each individual member going it alone.
Now I know that no goose ever read Paul’s observation in I Corinthians 12:5-7 (yes, you’re going to have to look it up) but Barr has a couple examples of what happens when one goose gets sick or is wounded by gun shot. That goose’s mate will sacrifice its own migratory freedom to tend the fallen one or two other geese will go down to the ground with the one which is affected and wait with it until it is able to rejoin the flock or dies.
I saw that ritual played out a couple years ago when one of a pair that had nested on one of our ponds was struck by a car while walking across the road with its mate and several goslings that we had enjoyed watching from hatch. The surviving goose and its “children” were gathered on the side of the road around the “victim”, trying, it seemed to me, to make sense out of what had happened. Not at all unlike their human counterparts at such times in life.
Researchers have also noted that when the lead goose gets tired that one rotates back in the “V” and another takes its place. I have often wondered why most congregations haven’t learned this lesson and instead tend to work the same core group of leaders beyond exhaustion.
Finally, the honking of geese is more purposeful than we might think. It serves as a form of encouragement to those ahead in the flock— especially the lead bird. Barr says, “By changes in modulation and pitch and frequency they have a vocal network of mutuality and encouragement.”
Over the years of my ministry I have discovered that members of congregations, Zion included, tend to do a lot of honking too. Also from experience I have learned that rather than honking for encouragement congregations can settle for just making noise!
Bottom line: as Paul reminds us in I Corinthians 12:12 (yup, go look that one up, too) the church is a formation and when that is forgotten, it cannot even crawl very fast, let alone fly.
In Faith and Friendship,
Delwayne Hahn
