The Shunning – Pearland Style

I have been thinking about the ostracism and exclusion that I have been going thru and I have realized it is really a shunning.

From what I understand, a shunning is primarily an Amish practice. When children come of age and don't join the church or someone breaks the rules of the church, they are "shunned" – no one is to have any contact with them. If you are shunned and speak to someone, they don't respond or even act like you have spoken. The books I have read indicate it is just like you are not there. That's what this feels like to me.

If you know me, if you work with me, then you know I am all about working together. For years, I have tried to encouraged unity and community in Pearland. I organized a youth ministry alliance and tried to encouraged youth pastors and youth ministry professionals to get to know each other, build relationships and hopefully, develop a vision that included working together. I participated in anything that even had the hint of a coming together, including the former Pearland Ministerial Alliance, any youth ministry function that was community wide and of course, my beloved Baccalaureate. And of course, my support of on campus Christian Clubs, with snacks, speakers and curriculum. And if you like you can go even further back, to the on campus lunch time program I organized and operated for years, inviting in various youth pastors and pastors, encouraging students to connect with a local church.

After I handed over the leadership of the Pearland Youth Ministry Alliance in March 2010, it became the Pearland Student Pastors Alliance and was only open to church youth pastors, not ministry professionals. This was my first shunning experience.

The second was that the PSPA took over Baccalaureate, See you at the Pole and the club ministry I was doing. There were no conversations, it was just done. There were some hold outs – some sponsors who still wanted me to be involved with their club.

This is from Wikipedia:

Shunning can be broken down into behaviours and practices that seek to accomplish either or both of two primary goals.

1. To modify the behaviour of a member. This approach seeks to influence, encourage, or coerce normative behaviours from members, and may seek to dissuade, provide disincentives for, or to compel avoidance of certain behaviours. Shunning may include disassociating from a member by other members of the community who are in good standing. It may include more antagonistic psychological behaviours (described below). This approach may be seen as either corrective or punitive (or both) by the group membership or leadership, and may also be intended as a deterrent.
   
2. To remove or limit the influence of a member (or former member) over other members in a community. This approach may seek to isolate, to discredit, or otherwise dis-empower such a member, often in the context of actions or positions advocated by that member. For groups with defined membership criteria, especially based on key behaviours or ideological precepts, this approach may be seen as limiting damage to the community or its leadership. This is often paired with some form of excommunication.
   

Since I am all about working together and community, it has been like they have taken my life's blood. My entire purpose, my either life's work has been taken from me. The project I put my heart and soul into, I can have no part of. It is truly a sad chapter in my life.