Rev. Frank Ritchie | People Want Irrelevant Churches, Rediscovering Tradition, Culture and Media
In this episode of Lunch on The Way, Rev. Frank Ritchie discusses how places and spaces of worship hold our spirituality when we can't muster it up, his various experiences with different religions and expressions of the Christian faith, how and why Holy Communion is so important for the church, why wearing a clerical collar matters for pastors, how the media are open to Christianity, and why irrelevant churches are paradoxically relevant.Frank is an ordained minister in the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Aoteroa-New Zealand, a media chaplain, and national Christian voice in New Zealand.00:00 Teaser01:28 Introduction06:37 Cathedrals hold our faith13:00 Frank's journey with faith over the decades20:00 Holy Communion holds our spirituality26:32 Why wear a clerical collar?40:01 The Media are not anti-Christian50:32 Challenges in the Media Industry54:20 Irrelevant Churches are attractiveCheck out Frank's Substack for theological, cultural, and formational reflections and insights https://frankritchie.substack.com/Podcast hosts are Greame Flett, Jonathan Hoskin, and Joey Millington.The opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals expressing and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any affiliated organisations or ministries.
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1:00:33
Ministry and its Irresistible Call, People Matter More Than ... with Louise Wernich
Graeme and Joey welcome Louise to the podcast and discuss Louise's journey into ministry and her families immigration to New Zealand from South Africa, the impact of COVID on the South African church and her family, how a call to ministry can't be ignored, Graeme's call into ministry, reflections on pastoring more than 20 decades, how business-church forgets about the people (ironically), and much more.00:00 Teaser1:00 Introduction03:39 Louise's Journey into Ministry, and Family17:33 COVID in South Africa and the church23:13 Louise moving to New Zealand26:58 Ministry is a calling that can't be ignored30:00 Graeme's call into ministry34:40 Louise's reflections on pastoring36:55 The most important part of church is people41:35 Undoing Business-church46:10 What an MBA has can teach pastors55:49 NZ & South African Cultural Observations1:02:40 Adjusting after ImmigrationLunch on The Way is a podcast that deeply discusses Christianity, Church, Culture, and Jesus.Available on ALL podcast platforms https://lunchontheway.buzzsprout.com/sharePodcast hosts are Greame Flett, Jonathan Hoskin, and Joey Millington.The opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals expressing and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any affiliated organisations or ministries.
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1:04:46
Visited a NEW Mormon Temple, Architecture is Theology, Reflecting on Mark Sayers Convo
In this conversation, Graeme and Joey discuss Joey's experience at Auckland's new Mormon Temple, how architecture reveals a church's/religion's theology, the craziness of the world, how Canada and US relations is a microcosm of the disruption the world will feel, and much more.Podcast hosts are Greame Flett, Jonathan Hoskin, and Joey Millington.The opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals expressing and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any affiliated organisations or ministries.
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1:07:59
Mark Sayers | Future Predictions, The Worlds Changed, America's Chaos, Being a Pillar is Dangerous
In this conversation, Graeme and Joey sit down with Mark Sayers and discuss what Mark learned about ministry during the Melbourne lockdowns, why embodied ministry matters so much, how proceduralism has blunted the church's mission, how the church needs to be a pillar rather than a platform in the world, how everything is politically changing in the world, transcendence and immanence, what is means to be human, and how the Trump foreign policy will change Australia and New Zealand.Mark Sayers is the Lead Pastor of Red Church in Melbourne, Australia and contributor to the Rebuilders podcast with Daniel and Liddy. He is an international church thought leader helping ministry leaders navigate through a complex world.Podcast hosts are Greame Flett, Jonathan Hoskin, and Joey Millington.The opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals expressing and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any affiliated organisations or ministries.
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1:14:31
AJ Thomas | Is Preaching a Sacrament? Is Jesus Really in the Eucharist?
In this episode, Joey and Graeme interview AJ Thomas, who is one of the teaching and preaching pastors at Kings Church in New Brunswick, Canada. He also leads the Atlantic Kingdom Alliance which aims to bring together pastors and ministry leader from diverse theological and denominational background for the advancement of the gospel. They discussed his journey from youth ministry to church planting and his current role at King's Church, the importance of preaching as a sacramental act (distinguishing it from teaching), his theological evolution (particularly his engagement with Catholicism and its influence on his understanding of the Eucharist), the significance of communion in his previous church (Deep Water), and his approach to preaching as a craft rather than an art. AJ also mentioned his new role in the Atlantic Kingdom Alliance, focusing on interdenominational cooperation. The conversation touched on theological nuances, the impact of the pandemic on preaching, and AJ's writing of his new preaching book, "Preaching Craft," which can be found anywhere on Amazon.comLearn more about AJ at https://www.ajthomas.ca/Podcast hosts are Greame Flett, Jonathan Hoskin, and Joey Millington.The opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the individuals expressing and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of any affiliated organisations or ministries.
Kia Ora Koutou, and welcome to Lunch on The Way! We're three guys doing theology over lunch, and sometimes we'll do that with others. We talk about church, culture, theology, philosophy, and more, always wanting to be as practical as possible. This is a thinking podcast more than a teaching podcast. We want to warn you, that what's said here is not yet complete, because, like any good conversation, you never want it to end.
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