Recombinant Church Consulting

A project of Heart’s Rest led by Rev. George Meier, principal consultant for churches committed to ministering in the emerging spiritual ecosystem

Purpose

To walk faithfully on the “knife edge of uncertainty” in a radically changing world and spiritual ecosystem.

To rise in hope in the midst of our community contexts.
To Engage in Spirit led ministry without regard to sustainability.
To joyfully and courageously reinvent the church as we go.

Our purpose is informed by these understandings:

“Facing reality is an empowering act – it can liberate our mind and heart to discern how best to use our power and influence in service of this time.” (Margaret Wheatley)
Denominational institutions as currently organized are not capable of addressing our changing world and developing spiritual ecosystem.
Through prototyping, networking and communities of practice within and beyond normal accountability structures, churches can adapt in new ways to serve God, share the good news of Jesus Christ and model possibilities.
In collaboration with our communities, the Gospel can emerge in life giving ways not dependent on denominational organizations. We are not the only ones interested in love, compassion, justice and healthy community.

Reframing Ministry: The Recombinant Church

Katherine Prince, Vice President of Strategic Foresight, KnowlegeWorks, in collaboration with George Meier, succinctly summarizes our findings:

“We forecast that, in ten years, it will no longer be necessary for an individual to adapt to the institutional church as it has so far existed. Indeed, we forecast the emergence of a recombinant church in which people will be able to put the pieces of the spiritual ecosystem together in new sequences, potentially creating a living system that can keep evolving as people’s needs and the world that we inhabit change.” Katherine Prince, “Exploring the Expanding Spiritual Ecosystem” (Cincinnati: KnowledgeWorks, 2015).

Widespot.ca and video: A rural approach to community based ministry.

See more …

Learning from Educational Research

The narratives and metrics of success and achievement that shape people’s aspirations, choices and behaviors are becoming increasingly detrimental to individual and social health and are contributing to growing toxicity in systems and institutions. (Forecast-5-futue-learning-drivers-change-poster Cincinnati: KnowledgeWorks, 2018).

Currently Reading

Richard Rohr, The Universal Christ: How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For and Believe, 2019.
Brian Clarke and Stuart Macdonald, Leaving Christianity, Changing Allegiances in Canada since 1945, 2017
Amy Zalman, Strategic Narrative: A Framework for Accelerating Innovation, 2017
Richard A. K. Lum, 4 Steps to the Future: A Quick and Clean Guide to Creating Foresight, 2016

Resources

Wheatley, Margaret J. Who Do We Choose to Be? Oakland: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2017.

Music for the Journey

Birdtalker, One (official lyric video)