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I know the attached article doesn’t directly apply to us, but I think it has some merit. As I reach mid-life in our religion, I am amazed how many young leaders there are on the local level. Everyone in my ward Bishopric is younger than I am – and I am not ancient. Their kids are younger, when I mean younger I am talking about primary aged kids. I know it isn’t just my ward. I have tons of thoughts on how this article applies to us. I am curious if you see any parallels too. Nice article, quite a bit of that spoke to me. I think a lot of the pitfalls that are mentioned are not necessarily age specific. Quote:I want deeper relationships with fewer people
I don’t know if this feeling is universal or if it’s related to personality type. One thing that’s crossed my mind is how much more I have enjoyed my time in church when I was a member of a branch rather than a ward. A branch had a more intimate feel whereas in a ward it was much easier to feel like a nameless fish in the sea. I wonder what it would be like to cut all units down to the size of a branch… and scale the number of callings waaaaay back to match.
The workload was the one aspect of being in a branch that was extremely difficult. The relationships with others were more meaningful but there was still the expectation of filling all the callings a ward would have with far less people. Burnout, inactivity due to burnout, more burnout in the rescue efforts for those that remain. Part of me would say that the reason the relationships with others were more meaningful in a branch was the result of that elevated level of service that one has to provide. I’m sure that’s a part of it, but I’m also sure another part of it is that it’s simply a more intimate setting. I know everyone’s name, they are family.
Quote:Many of those who’ve downshifted their involvement with the church – or left the church entirely – suggest that this reevaluation has led them to strengthen their faith.
Interesting, I can totally see that. Just like the article mentions people get burnt out. In the quest for perfection there’s always more to give, regardless of how much one is currently giving. There’s real pressure to give more and more and one never feels at peace with their current level of effort. There’s always this nagging feeling about not magnifying a calling hanging over people’s heads. Or at least that was the case with my personality type.
Maybe people are reaching a certain age or gaining certain life experiences and reaching a point where they recognize the pattern and decide that it’s no longer for them. Time does appear to be more and more finite as one ages.
Heck, I could about quote the entire article and make a comment on each paragraph. I had to hold back.
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