Summer 2009 - Brethren in Christ Church

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in partPART OF THE WHOLEfocusing on one couples’s faithat home with communityFor Mike and Melri Wright, family life and ministryboth happen under one roofby Lisa BrownIn 1988, as a young adult, MikeWright joined YouthBuilders, ayear-long ministry team that traveledto churches throughout Ontario towork with their youth ministries.“I grew up outside the BIC Churchand had never experienced the kindof love, conflict-resolution, accountability,inspiration, and challengethat I found with YouthBuilders,” hesays. And it was this experience thathelped lead Mike to the Brethren inChrist Church and, eventually, tothe Centre for Student Leadership(Clarksburg, ON), where he and hiswife, Melri, have lived and served asdirectors for the last six years.The main purpose of the Centrefor Student Leadership (CSL) is toprovide ministry opportunities andtraining for young adults, especiallythose taking part in BIC programslike YouthBuilders. Mike, who alsoserves as associate for the CanadianConference’s Student Ministry team,facilitates this by mentoring participantsand providing special instructionon living in community duringthe team’s time together.“Jesus lived in close communitywith His disciples, and His exampleis what motivates and inspires Melriand me to engage student teams in a24/7 communal experience,” he states.In addition to hostingyoung adults, Mike, Melri,and their two childrenwelcome other groups totheir home at the Centrethroughout the year.Although living in constantcommunity can bechallenging, Mike saysthat the tension in the home-worksituation has been minimal. “Havinggroups come to where we live to doretreats feels natural and normal toour family,” he says. His children lookforward to meeting people who visit,and he and Melri have discoveredunique ways to keep their marriagehealthy: “We also hold each otheraccountable to both our marriageand our ministry, and we place a highvalue on daily contact and communicationabout joys and struggles.”Community and accountabilityplay a part in all of Mike’s roles atthe Centre, but he notes that theyare “experienced most fully andcompletely” with his fellow CSLteam members.Composed of three core couplesand a few internss from acrossdenominations, the team connectson a regular basis (sometimes daily)and meets for intense times of communalliving throughout the year.∂Mike and Melri Wright participate in community life in their homeat the Centre for Student Leadership, as well as at their church,New Life BIC (Collingwood, ON).“These periods of communal livingforce us to open our lives up moreand more, extending into areas of ourlife that most leave shadowed. We areopen to challenging each other onareas of family, finances, future lifedecisions, and spiritual development,”Mike says. “This has encouraged meto open up areas of my life that I’vealways thought were the exclusivedomain of my family. I am becomingmore open with others about everyarea of my life so that we can interdependentlyshare burdens, feedback,and support.”And this, according to Mike, iswhat community is all about.Lisa Brown is a freelance writer whoattends The Meeting House and livesin Oakville, ON, with her husband,Kevin, and their daughter. As moviefanatics, Lisa and Kevin see as manyas they can in the theatre every year.∂ PHOTO: Courtesy of Mike WrightIN PARTINPART.ORG
TO OUR COREexploring the central values of the bic churchwhen formfollows faithHow the architecture of oneBIC meeting house revealsan historic commitment ofthe Churchby E. Morris SiderFor the first 100 years of Brethren inChrist history, members met ineach other’s homes as testimony totheir commitment to simplicity andfamily-like community. Then, inthe 1870s, to accommodate theirgrowing numbers, our BIC ancestorsbegan gathering in meeting houses—buildings constructed specifically forworship. In these new settings, the valuesof community and accountabilitythat come with family life at its bestremained strong, and the meetinghouses’ architecture was an extensionof those theological commitments.Looking at the Ringgold MeetingHouse, which was built in Marylandin 1871 and is one of the oldest stillin existence, we can see how theseearly BIC lived out the call to accountabilityin various areas of faith.Accountability to living simply:The simple structure, bare walls andceiling, and plain, unpadded pewsof the Ringgold Meeting Houseillustrate the unadorned constructionand décor of early BIC church buildings.This austerity reminded attendeesof the worthlessness of earthlywealth and the call to modest living.≥ We value integrity in relationships and mutual accountabilityin an atmosphere of grace, love, and acceptance.Accountability to purity: Typical ofall early meeting houses, the RinggoldMeeting House has two separateentrances, one for men and one forwomen and children. It also had apartition running between the twosides of the room. Both of these measuressought to separate members ofthe opposite sex and thus eliminatedistractions so that full attentioncould be given to the Word.Accountability to God and eachother: Unlike most churches today,the Ringgold Meeting House featuresa floor-level pulpit table. Thissymbolized the idea of the fellowshipof believers and suggested thatministers were not elevated abovethe congregants, either in terms oftheir access to God’s truth or theirfreedom from sin and weaknesses.It was a visual demonstration thatcongregants were responsible to holdthe ministers accountable, just as theministers were to guide the flock andhold its members accountable.Accountability to humility: Theoffering box, which was located atthe meeting house’s entrance, harkensback to a time when Brethrenin Christ did not “lift” offerings bymeans of offering plates, as they donow. Rather, offerings were depositedin the offering box quietly andin private. This helped congregantsremain humble in their giving toGod and His kingdom.BIC church buildings today comein all shapes and sizes, and most lookvery different from the RinggoldMeeting House. I wonder what ourdescendants 100 years from now willsurmise about our theology by lookingat our meeting spaces.Adapted from “The Ringgold Meeting House as Symbol” byE. Morris Sider in the December 1995 issue of Brethren inChrist History and Life.E. Morris Sider is the editor of the BICHistorical Society and has penned anumber of books and articles on BIClife. He is professor emeritus of historyand English literature at MessiahCollege (Grantham, Pa.). He and his wife, Leone, arelongtime members of the Grantham BIC congregation.summer 2009
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Summer 2009 - Brethren in Christ Church

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