In a sense - think it through - had the decision been to allow virtual conventions when the question was asked a year or so ago, we would all be getting ready for a normal convention cycle right now, and would not have had to delay. Boom.
Dave Benke
Yes. The Black Swans in life can be a royal pain. (ref. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_swan_theory)
This is an important post. First, the quote including the then-deemed-non-existent black swan is the very quote from Juvenal that begins "rara avis," the rare bird. Secondly, when Hus, the original Gray Goose, prophesied that a century after the goose was gone a swan would appear, and it was Luther, Luther himself was that rare bird. Although not deemed a black swan originally (although they had always existed, the first black swan was not identified - "discovered" - by a European until almost 1700), the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Guyana has the Swan as its mascot. And in recent times, the swan has been referred to as a Black Swan, since the membership of the ELCG is over 90% people of color. It's on the ELCG hymnal, which I use for house blessings and bhajans like Yissu Ne Khaha, Jiwan Ki Roti.
Your reference, though, gives ear to the real reason Luther is the Black Swan - he was the game-changer, the one who flipped the script.
In terms of the Synodical convention timing, of course, the script has already been flipped to add the extra year, which gives time for fellowship, reflection and fresh starts locally but hopefully all the way to the national level.
We could try a true upsetment. All of our other things that can be done as a group could be like the Lutheran Fair, beer provided by Sponsorships. The only thing we would retain virtually would be the business and election segments of conventions. With the Zoom thumbs up-thumbs down button. That would be a true and durable game-changer.
Dave Benke
