Taking it to the Streets
James Swanson Sr. isn't the author of what he says is the greatest story ever told, but he certainly is one of its vocal messengers. As newly appointed bishop of Holston Conference, he wants to see the story of Christ's birth and resurrection expanded beyond its regular readership.
By Melanie Tucker
The (Maryville) Daily Times
"It's like the Doobie Brothers - taking it to the streets," Swanson said from his office at Cokesbury Center in west Knoxville. The 54-year-old Houston native and former pastor of churches in south Georgia said evangelism is one of his passions. "You have to find a way to take what I think is the best story ever told and take it outside of those walls so people will hear," the bishop said. "I believe when you tell the story in a person's language - and I mean the language of their heart - I think people will respond. That is what we have to do."
Rallying the team
Swanson took over as bishop of Holston Conference on Sept. 1. He said Holston's 925 member churches need to muster as much enthusiasm for their team as fans do for University of Tennessee football. He said too many people in churches develop a defeatist attitude, believing the church is barely holding on.
"In this conference, I want to help them understand they are on a winning team," Swanson said. "I want them to have the same enthusiasm that I saw at Neyland Stadium last Sunday evening. That's what I want to see."
It was energizing, Swanson said, to attend a recent breakfast where he was "knocked off his seat" by ministries the conference participates in. Mission work is going on in countries in Africa, in Australia, Alaska, Latvia, Lithuania and elsewhere.
Close to home, economic development projects are underway at Jubilee Project in Sneedville, Tenn., while a pastor in Kingsport, the Rev. Charles Kilbourne of Community UMC, is working on a mission of his own.
"He has decided to go into a section of the city nobody else wants to go into and is doing a ministry to people that folks have forgotten about," Swanson said.
Those things are worth cheering about, Swanson said. He said part of his job will be to help Holston Conference take on a spirit of joy and celebration about the work they are doing.
Adding to the flock
That work translates into church growth, something Swanson is familiar with as former pastor of St. Mary's Road United Methodist Church in Columbus, Ga. When he took over as St. Mary's pastor in 1987, the church had an average attendance of a dozen people. When he left in 2001, that same church had more than 525 regular attendees.
"The church decided early on what its focus was going to be," the bishop said. Children, youth and a commitment to be active in the community were the keys. It was a commitment on the part of membership to act as one evangelism committee, Swanson said.
Swanson's appointment to St. Mary's UMC was historic for south Georgia and Columbus. He was the first African-American appointed to an all-white congregation there. The crowd on his first Sunday, including curious journalists, swelled to about 70. They hadn't printed enough bulletins.
Before graduating from Southern Bible College and C.H. Mason Seminary in Atlanta, Swanson's Christian roots actually took hold within the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church as a small youth and then within the Church of God in Christ, where he was first ordained. He said he felt more in line theologically with the United Methodist Church as an adult, although he brought with him a melding of ideas.
Whole person ministry
Swanson admitted he tried to "divorce himself" from the other stuff he had learned in order to become a true United Methodist. A friend set him straight.
"He basically called me out," Swanson recalled. "He told me, 'You need to bring all of you into your ministry. Every experience that God has allowed you to be exposed to needs to be used in your ministry.'"
The experience in the AME Church helped Swanson understand the importance of making the message simple enough for children to understand, he said. His involvement in the Church of God in Christ influenced how he preaches today and gave him insight into how to interact with his congregation.
"The Church of God in Christ helped me understand no matter how gifted you might be, in each and every circumstance you are still totally dependent on God," Swanson said. ... "It also did something I wish more and more churches would do - insure that young people had an opportunity to be involved in the ministry."
That involvement, for Swanson, included singing in a youth choir and teaching Sunday school, in addition to being a junior pastor.
What went wrong?
Today, as a bishop in the United Methodist Church, Swanson looks across the country and sees failure on the part of mainstream churches to keep the faith line flowing. It started, he said, within the baby boomer generation.
"In the baby boomer era, we were lulled into a false sense of security," he said. "We had children running around all over the place. We thought we would just pass it on so to speak. We didn't do a very good job of helping our kids to understand what church could really mean for their lives."
As a result, a lot of that generation was lost, the bishop said. That group was part of the Vietnam protest, Civil Rights Movement and women's liberation.
"They were listening to great music by Peter, Paul and Mary," Swanson said. "They were influenced by a whole different genre of music. When they arrived back in our churches and we were still singing the very slow version of 'Amazing Grace,' I don't think they felt at home."
When the baby boomers started having children, Swanson said many of them felt unprepared, but the church didn't help them with that task so they went elsewhere.
Now many mainstream churches are trying to woo the "baby buster" congregation inside. Contemporary worship services are being offered, causing a rift within some churches whose members see it as a sell-out.
With the older generation, the point of entry into the church was Sunday school and small groups, Swanson explained. For the younger set today, that point of entry is worship.
"They want to come to worship service leaving with a sense they have encountered God, not a liturgy," Swanson said.
The battles will continue as churches try to find a way to bridge the gaps. It's important the true message isn't lost, Swanson said. "I tell people, 'There is really only one customer in the church and that is God,'" he said. "When you please God with your worship, God responds by blessing the congregation and by allowing his Spirit to help draw persons into the family of Christ."
Transforming institution
The United Methodist Church and other denominations have struggled with the gay/lesbian issue that garnered so much attention for the Episcopal Church after a self-avowed practicing homosexual was elected bishop. Swanson said the United Methodist Church's stance - that the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching and practicing homosexuals will not be ordained or appointed to serve - isn't a statement against a person.
"It is not a commentary on the worth and value of the person," he said. "It is commentary on behavior and practice we think is incompatible with a person representing Jesus Christ."
That doesn't mean gays and lesbians aren't welcome in the church. Swanson described the church as a "transforming institution," saying, "You can't clean the fish until you've caught it."
You shouldn't expect people to get right before they join the church, Swanson said. Let them join and then work with them.
Swanson said he believes homosexuality is an issue churches will be struggling with until Christ returns. In the meantime, there is more work to do, the bishop said.
Any given Sunday
The United Methodist Church needs to celebrate its commitment to reach all people, Swanson said. There are many positives that he can point to as indications that it is being done. On any given Sunday there are people worshipping in the United Methodist Church all over the world in almost every language, Swanson said.
"The very fact than an African-American is sitting in this office right now ought to be a testament to people that this church is serious about the fact that Christ came and died for everybody and that we can overcome our traditional prejudices if we live in Christ," the bishop said.
Swanson has no problem taking on the role of a cheerleader. He is like those UT fans at Neyland Stadium. It may be an 0-5 season and the No. 1 team is coming into town, but UT fans believe they can win.
"You name it and we are doing it, but we don't celebrate that," Swanson said. My mother used to say 'It's a poor frog who doesn't praise his own pond.' We have to get excited about what we are doing." There is no room for arrogance, just the realization that God makes all things possible, Swanson said. "I want this conference to celebrate the fact they are doing some wonderful, wonderful things. They ought to be proud, and I am proud to be their bishop."
Reprinted with permission, The Daily Times
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