On May 3, 2012, at 4:16 AM, R Williams wrote:
To the point, what is the state of being of an organization, i.e. the Catholic Church, where people can't go to the bathroom without hierarchical permission? These guys are so afraid of losing control that they're rendering the church irrelevant, and losing control. Just one more sign, I fear, of institutional decay.
There are interesting developments in the historical church: • new monasticism • emergent churches • co-located congregations • independent Catholic churches I know the most about the Ecumenical Catholic Communion (ECC), a 13-year old network organization of nearly 50 autonomous Catholic parishes around the U.S. Think: • Catholic, but not "Roman" • sacramental, eucharistic • married priests, ordained women • welcoming gays and lesbians • transparent, decentralized polity • apostolic succession with clergy-laity parity • acknowledging the Bishop of Rome, but not the Papacy The ECC is wrestling with movemental challenges that will resonate with many of us: • a young, growing organization • local self-sufficiency and decisional autonomy • structural contradictions • the role of symbolic leaders • bureaucratic systems and participatory process • organizational capacity building • depth spirit formation • sharing common memory • rapid leadership development The "bottom line" — the need for an order colleague network to mentor the ECC Are any of you intrigued with making yourselves available to this movement as mentors to individuals, ECC parishes, or projects. I'm exploring a "creative companioning" relationship with ECC colleagues and wish I had a few order colleagues with whom I could consult and collaborate. Be in touch. Let's explore. David Dunn David Dunn 740 S Alton Way 9B Denver, CO 80247 -- dmdunn1@gmail.com 720-314-5991