Trifocal Vision in Vocation
Written by Dr. Blayne Banting
All of us view life through a particular set of lenses. This is particularly true of those of us who live with glasses designed to assist our eyesight. After wearing glasses for decades, first of all just for reading and then constantly, I “graduated” into wearing bifocal lenses. These wonders of modern science allow me to see distances clearly through the top and to read clearly through the bottom. But wait, there’s even more! There are trifocal lenses that facilitate clear sight for far, middle range and close up distances, all in the same pair of glasses. This is hardly revolutionary, I know, but it might have something to contribute to our understanding of how covocationality might be “seen” in the light of ministry vocations.
It is common to refer to univocational and covocational paradigms of ministry because we want to highlight the importance of divine calling in ministry. It’s like looking through bifocals. But what do we do with the majority of followers of Jesus who do not receive any financial support for their ministry? We all know the church is hooped without the contributions of the body of Christ at large, but how does that fit with any understanding of divine calling? God has called us all to serve and we know this even though our practice may lag behind our profession. But how does this majority sync with our understanding of vocation? We have done the average follower of Jesus the grave disservice of referring to them as volunteers. To be a volunteer makes it sound like our involvement is our own idea and we are free to pick and choose our contributions according to our own preferences and availability. Are you hearing what I’m hearing? Doesn’t this sound more like it’s the “called” in control here rather than the “Caller”? Does this not sound a little too friendly with the forces of individualism and consumerism that are wreaking havoc in our churches? I’m sure you can recognize rhetorical questions when you see them.
Maybe the trifocal lens can help us here. We have univocational and covocational servants, so what could we use to describe those who have been called but don’t receive financial remuneration? One candidate might be avocational servants since avocation refers to a passion we cultivate alongside our “day job.” We all know of people who have aspirations outside their 9 to 5 employment: the accountant who is a talented musician, the welder who grows prize zucchini, the nurse who makes custom jewelry, the professional hockey player who is an aspiring golfer (for all your Maple Leaf fans!). That might sound promising until we realize the “a” prefix is a privative, a “negativizer” which states these “hobbies” are not vocations or callings at all. That hardly sounds right, nor does referring to service as a hobby. What to do?
Let me tentatively suggest a term for this larger than life majority of followers of Jesus, the human engine that keeps our churches running: metavocational. The prefix “meta” is coming into prominence recently as signifying something that is unifying and grounding for related categories. We hear of metanarratives, metadata, and metacognition (which is thinking about thinking), so why not metavocational? Doesn’t the calling of all God’s people ground, cultivate awareness, and explain univocational and covocational callings? Don’t all God’s people need a grounding understanding of their indispensable role in the mission of the church? Granted, this term may not stick, or may sound a little pretentious, but it might just provoke more thought and encourage an even better term for Jesus followers everywhere. And what’s the “meta” with that?
Blayne Banting is Associate Professor of Preaching and Christian Ministry at Briercrest College and Seminary. He teaches in the areas of homiletics, church leadership, and spiritual formation, with a particular interest in creativity and humour in preaching. Born and raised in Saskatchewan, Blayne has served as both pastor and professor across Canada. He is the author of several books on preaching, including Taking Up Preaching: The Spheres of the Preaching Life (Wipf & Stock, 2023). Blayne is married to Peggy, and together they have four adult children and six grandchildren.