How would you define "Book of Faith"?

[Kurt Lammi]

In conversations that I have had with people - particularly other clergy - regarding Book of Faith, I keep noticing that there is a miscommunication about what "Book of Faith" means. In my understanding, "Book of Faith" is the Bible. What the ELCA is doing with this "Open Scripture. Join the Conversation" initiative is trying to get people to read the Bible more, to "become more fluent in the first language of faith: scripture." Some people I talk with think that "Book of Faith" means a specific curriculum - along the lines of "Here We Stand" or "Akaloo" or anything else published by Augsburg Fortress. So they keep asking, "When will more resources come out? Where are the Bible studies? Where is the curriculum?" It saddens me that some people - particularly some clergy - are misunderstanding what Book of Faith is about. This initiative is about a social change, not a curriculum. In previous generations, the emphasis was on sacraments (for example, a societal change from communion every now and then to communion every week), but now the emphasis is on the Bible. Word and Sacrament go together. The emphasis was on sacrament; now it has shifted to Word. Has anyone else needed to explain that what the ELCA is doing here is encouraging people to pick up the Bible and read it rather than publish a bunch of curriculum? Those pastors I spoke with who think it's all about curriculum are also very lazy in their preparation and teaching of the Bible. If that's true of most clergy in general, then it's no wonder why laity aren't digging into it either. If the pastors aren't interested in digging deeper into the Bible themselves, then the laity surely won't be interested either. (However, I think laity _are_ interested in digging deeper into it. They are just scared of it because they don't know how. Maybe that's the fear of some pastors too - they don't know how, so they rely on curriculum.) Am I alone in these conversations I have been having or have others experienced this too? Book of Faith is about a societal change to get people to read the Bible - such as through historical reading, literary reading, meditative reading, and Lutheran theological reading. The Book of Faith is the Bible; it's not a curriculum.

[Darlene Kalfahs]

Kurt: I think all of the advocates are experiencing the same type of response as you have had. I will get people calling my Resource Center and saying I'm not doing Book of Faith because I am doing Alpha. i tell them, they indeed are doing Book of Faith because by bringing scripture into the life of their congregation in whatever study or manner they choose IS the Book of Faith. I am going around to our conferences doing a presentation I created that backs up to the beginning of how the Book of Faith got started and explaining that it is not a program, it is not something with a beginning and an end, it isn't a resource to use, you might say its an "emphasis". I tell them to begin the conversation by looking at their congregational ministries to see what they are doing and what they could do better! I have them look at the whole picture of ministry taking place in their settings and look at what they are lacking. They may do Bible Study, but they have no offerings for the "new to church" or "seeker" group so consider offering something. "Rediscovering the Bible" is a great resource to reacquaint people with the Bible. People won't join a scriptural study if they are not comfortable with the Bible. I have them look at the children's ministry. They may have Sunday School, but are they having the children open and use their Bibles in Sunday School, do they have a program like "Splash" that helps parents to build faith in their newborns through 3 years at home? Is your scripture centered in scripture? Do meetings begin with a Bible Study, etc., Once you begin the conversation and explanation to them that this can be life changing for ALL ages, for an entire faith community they begin to understand better.

Don't know if this helped at all, but that is what we are doing and how we are explaining the Book of Faith.

[Darlene Kalfahs]

I should have typed is your congregation centered in scripture, not scripture centered in scripture sorry.

[Mike Hanson]

I have had some questions about it, since we are so ften a curriculum driven church. And the resources that are being developed give the impression that Book of Faith is a curriculum. I think the confusion is quite understandable. When our members ask about it I just say that we already are taking part; last year we did the One Year Bible with a very strong participation on the part of the congregation, we start all meetings with scripture & prayer (and a devotion of the leader feels comfortable with that), and we have a weekly bible study of the next Sunday's texts. And we have lots of other things planned to get centered in the scriptures.

[Paul Lutz]

You are on to something significant, Kurt

I have attached a document that I have used her in NJ to help folks wrestle with the difference between an initiative and a resource. Recently at a Ministerium Day I invited the rostered leaders to say with me the following paragraph from the document:

"What the Book of Faith Initiative is NOT

The Book of Faith initiative is not a top-down, curriculum-based approach. Book of Faith is not a program, a course, a kit, a method, or a technique. The Book of Faith resources are not the Book of Faith initiative. There is no one way to implement the Book of Faith initiative."

I borrowed most of this from the Book of Faith Initiative webpage.

Peace,
pl

[Rev. Leslie Fox]

Hi Kurt,
In my experience it's been helpful to identify the "Book of Faith" as the Bible, just as you have clarified for folks. When describing the Initiative, I tend to focus on the issue of interpretation. Catholic parishes have done well over the past years to invite their people into renewal. I see The Book of Faith Initiative as a renewal movement that invites participation and provides people with tools to read and engage scripture, in the fine Lutheran tradition that asks, "What does this mean?" As a pastor I look forward to using AFP resources as well as others that help people wrestle with what God is saying through scripture that addresses their lives, their circumstances, and our lives together in community.
The Initiative encourages us not only to read scripture, but to be faithful engaging the task of interpretation, also allowing for scripture to interpret us and our lives of faith! Leslie Fox

[Greg Kaufmann]

I'm pleased with the direction this conversation has taken. We are in the inaugural 5 years of a lifetime of digging into the Scriptures. In our synod we decided that the best way to help folks see this as something far deeper and wider than a program or a curriculum, was to ask Tim Frakes (of Mosaic fame) to come to our synod for a week and film a variety of congregations who are already living into this initiative. We will share them on this site freely for all to use, once they have been shown at our synod assembly in May. They demonstrate that exactly what Darlene has commented on below. There are many ways and tools to be a Book of Faith congregation. I pray that many will share on this site how they have done it!
Greg

[Karen Kaufman]

Kurt
Not in the same words, but I do hear people making this initiative more difficult than what it really is. At the very beginning I placed the emphasis on getting people to OPEN and READ their Bible, because just accomplishing that results in people wanting to know and learn more. And yes, unfortunately, a number of our pastors are uncomfortable with that. And so while yes, new curriculum may spark interest I feel the real energy for this initiative will come as people read their Bibles and engage others in conversation. And so I continue to press for and encourage Bible reading by individuals.

[Mark I. Wegener]

I'm finding some of the same frustration within the Minneapolis Area Synod, as well. People seem to think that if there is no particular curriculum or course, then anything can be called "Book of Faith." Which, of course, would be detrimental to the initiative. My read on it is this: If we use anything produced by Augsburg Fortress which bears the BFI imprint, then, obviously, it is part of the BFI. If we want to make something else part of the initiative--whether it's a home-grown study, or someone else's material--we can treat it as BFI if we are intentional about identifying and using the four approaches: devotional, literary, historical, theological. Recognizing that these four approaches can be distinguished from each other, and yet are complementary, valid ways of reaching Scriptures is, in my opinion, what distinguishes BFI from other approaches.

Three quick comments: (1) My copy of the new Lutheran Study Bible arrived two hours ago. It's good. I like it. I wish the titles, etc. weren't such a pale blue. And I miss the apocryphal books. Just using this resource--especially its marginal Lutheran Perspectives notes and Faith Reflection questions--for a Bible study will make it an "authentic" BFI experience.

(2) Paul Lutz's thing (see above, or below, or wherever) is right on target.

(3) I'm adding my own BFI "white paper" which I've been sharing around the synod. Maybe something from this "Path into the Book of Faith" will be helpful to someone else.

[Libby Howe]

In the La Crosse Area Synod we are in the middle of our first round of the initiative's introductory events and are running into some of the same issues. What our advocacy team concluded last week at the end of the workshop is that we are really swimming upstream with this initiative. The folks who are disappointed in what is presented are those who are looking for the right ANSWERS, the magic SOLUTION and the latest FAD in Bible Study. I love that this initiative, while generating some very good resources, is none of those things. We must not lose heart when we hear the criticism and remember that those comments are coming from the place that got us to where we are now with Bible Study. We have to keep finding ways to challenge people's assumptions about scripture, its (limited!) place in our lives and our (narrow, boring & largely irrelevant) ways of studying it.

[Anna Marsh]

Great responses, all!

I'm sorry to hear that there is some frustration around the foundational principles of the initiative, but I'm not surprised...and, more importantly, I'm thrilled that all of you who have responded are totally on board! You've got it exactly right!

I look forward to more thoughts that will be shared--we're all learning from each other as we go how to best talk about what we're up to in these inaugural five years (thanks for recalling that essential language, Greg)!

[Amy J Finney]

As a lay person (and the first lay leader of this initiative in my congregation of membership; I'm in the suburbs of NYC), I found the language of the initiative off putting. I read avidly and edit for a living, so I consider myself a good reader, but when I first started reading about the BoF Initiative, I didn't "get" it, either. I just couldn't make sense of phrases like "becoming fluent in the first language of faith" (is that German? Swedish? Aramaic? Is there a "fluency" test?). Fortunately, the pastor of the church I work at explained it to me in clear, everyday language. Book of Faith = Bible. Becoming fluent = opening and reading it. I am thinking of it, in some ways, as "demystifying" the Bible and encouraging conversations about it. Now that I get it, I'm explaining it to others in plain, straightforward language, and there's interest! No one I've talked to thinks it's a specific curriculum, and they like the idea that we will offer different "courses" led by various lay people, with different approaches and topics. The only mention of "resources" so far has been a suggestion to compare several versions of the same passage or book. I'm energized from attending a short BoF overview session this past weekend and am off to talk to more people about it right now.

[Roger W. Anderson]

It seems to me that that Kurt’s analysis is quite good. There seems to be some disconnect between how the initiative is being portrayed and how it is perceived. One aspect is the difference in language. The portraits of the BOF seem to suggest that familiarity and understanding of the Bible are at the center of what we are emphasizing. However, many people in congregations seem to think that what is coming is another study series that will emphasize some new idea or understanding of scripture. This difference of understanding needs to be straightened out so that familiarity and understanding become the points that people look for as they read scripture. It is our responsibility as advocates, it seems to me, to lead that conversation and shift the understanding in the Synod in conjunction with our Bishop. This is what I am trying to do.

Also, I have had conversations with a few lay people who have a difficult time reading and understanding Opening the Book of Faith. Their view is that the material is too difficult to understand and goes over their heads. I have put together a workgroup to develop the workshops and the first discussion centered on Opening the Book of Faith. Several of us have seminary and graduate level training in theology, Bible, and eastern Mediterranean studies. Our group decided that indeed the material in the Opening book is written to the insider, so to speak, or the choir and not the people in the pew. We are trying to find ways of utilizing the concepts and change the presentation and language so that congregational members may understand what it means to have a Lutheran hermeneutic. We will share these ways as we ourselves discover how to utilize the material better.