peculiar postings

the quiet revolution...some christians 'get it'

2009-03-09T18:52:00.003-05:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

For all my complaining about the church - here is one that gets it.

Funny how revolutionary the true message of Jesus really is.

hope in sorrow...making sense of lent

2009-03-02T20:39:00.005-05:00

I haven't consecrated anything this Lenten season. No commitments to abstain, no new habits, no rituals.

This Sunday at the small gathering of Christians I attend - the discussion was on Cain and Abel, and this place called the Land of Nod.

I feel as though I am already in the land of Nod, so I really don't feel led to give anything up for Lent. I don't really need any extra reminders that would cause me to be solemn, introspective, or filled with that sense of dread (that only comes from knowing that the cross looms just ahead in Jerusalem).

At the close of the gathering communion was taken. I slid out of my seat and into the path of those coming forward to accept the bread and wine of the Eucharist. But instead of joining them, I made my way outside to smoke a cigarette.

For some strange reason, I felt closer to Christ than if I were taking part in that mysterious ritual going on inside. I know this sounds odd - (some background: I'm not really a smoker and only enjoy an occasional cigar or a Djarum Clove cigarette) - Again, I know this is strange, but somehow the sweet taste of the clove reminded me of the goodness that I still feel exists in following Christ...while the deep burning of the smoke in my lungs reminded me that I am still here. I am still on this earth. I am still in that land, just East of Eden.

Its a place of wandering, of lonliness...and yet (as we were reminded) it is a place of Grace; the place where Cain was not simply punished, not just given a scarlet letter to make him a marked man. No, Cain was given a chance...Grace.

So during Lent this year, I hang my head with the heaviness of what I am experiencing. And yet, I have hope. I am not forgotten.

honesty

2009-02-28T13:15:00.003-05:00

I think it would be somewhat torturous to know what everyone around you is thinking.

I also think that most of us would have this gift if it were ours for the taking. We want to know what everyone thinks about us - but could we handle the honesty?

I don't think so.

I wonder how many relationships are built of little white lies? Somehow they all form a version of the "truth" eventually...and yet, there is a small mixture of deceit in every supposedly honest relationship.

Why is it we want to hear the truth - even when we know the truth will hurt us? Why do we want all the details, even though we are sure that the details will be like tiny, burning paper cuts?

Of course, our reaction to pure honesty often results in the one being open saying something like, "I wish I had never told you."

And inside we feel that too.

But we still want to know, don't we.

Ignorance is bliss I suppose. But who wants to live that way?

relationships

2009-02-27T04:12:00.002-05:00

I fancy myself a pretty open person...and I think that I have become more open as life continues to evolve around me. So it shouldn't shock anyone that regularly reads this blog that I would feel comfortable using it to vent about some very personal things. BUT in the interest of protecting those who would like more privacy than I require - I'll keep this vague enough that only those who already know fully will completely understand.

I am suffering from some pretty serious relationship issues right now. And I am learning that emotions and feelings can be very complex things.

I think when two people connect - on some deeply mysterious spiritual/emotional level - that its not only miraculous (not to mention beautiful) but its also incredibly fragile.

Do you feel like I feel?
Will you feel like this tomorrow?
Where do I stand with you - now - later?
Do you feel this way about someone else?
Where is this going - what will come of this?

Its as if there is this dance we do with our words and personalities. When the movements follow a common rhythm, when our feet are in step - its the most gorgeous thing imaginable. But when one of us breaks stride or the music begins to fade...it can be the most painful experience.

I just want to say: I miss you. I miss what I thought we had - where I thought we connected. The dance seems over before it ever began. I don't know which one of us is to blame for stepping away from the dance floor...

...

The Sermon We Forgot to Preach...

2009-02-15T16:59:00.003-05:00

Imagine my surprise when I read that the president of the company involved in the Peanut Scandal was from Lynchburg, VA - my old stomping grounds and home of my Alma-mater, Liberty University.

Mr. Stewart Parnell apparently wasn't heavily involved in Lynchburg's business scene. The media have painted him as a bit of a recluse - quietly managing his family run business from a converted garage in an upscale neighborhood near Bedford.

The short of it - for those who aren't newshounds - is that Parnell chose profit above ethics in deciding to ship out contaminated peanut products that sickened hundreds and killed 9. His salmonella laced peanuts were shipped to school children and nursing homes - in spite of the fact that lab tests showed positive resluts for the bacteria.

Mr. Parnell is a classic example of old-fashioned greed.

News reports have indicated that there were some distributors who had long ago decided they just couldn't work with Parnell. He used minimum wage labor, the cheapest sub-grade peanuts he could find, dirty ill-kept buildings, and would "aggressively" seek out other business owners who were struggling so that he could provide the "service" of taking old or low quality peanuts off their hands. But then - isn't that the story of many successful businesses.

As Parnell raked in the millions, he never could have guessed that his unethical methods of doing business would end up costing him everything. Reminds me of some of the things Jesus had to say about greed.

I wonder if Parnell is a church going man? Somehow, I think even if he was - he would still have been able to enjoy most church services guilt free. Yes, he could sit through many sermons preached by most churches and still felt confident that he was a "good businessman". (by the way, this is how Kyle Falwell, manager of Falwell Aviation described Parnell)

I am amazed at how often Jesus talked about the pitfalls of wealth and power and yet we ignore these teachings on a weekly basis. I wonder how many other "good businessmen" attend church regularly and still pay their employees as little as they possibly can? I wonder how many of these fine Christian men secretly cut corners to maximize profit? I wonder if they go to bed at night thinking that it is God who has blessed them in their finances?

I don't really know if Stewart Parnell ever went to one of the thousands of churches in Lynchburg. If he did, maybe its also possible that his pastor truly was faithful to the Scriptures but Parnell just didn't pay attention. I don't really know....but one thing is certain -

there are 9 people dead because of a business man's sin. that sin is called greed.

towards a theology of being

2009-02-09T22:31:00.003-05:00

So moving past my last two posts - that were basically just emotional/spiritual rants and frustrations with God - I am trying to come to a personal consensus (between my mind and spirit) on who I am as a person of faith.

I think that at times I need to take my own advice.

Earlier I had posted about my life-long struggle with doubt, and I had come to the conclusion that it wasn't really necessary for me to erase all doubts because (1) God made me this way, (2) the Scriptures are full of folks who second guess God and are still said to have great faith, and (3) that true faith is really more about belief shown in action rather than simply an empty "truth" claim with nothing to back it up.

So taking these thoughts into the issues that I am having with reconciling the nature of God (as all loving and all powerful) with the problem of suffering - perhaps I can say that faith really isn't there to provide all the answers, that God is big enough to have us ask questions, and that being angry with God is OK.

Once again, if I look at the Scriptures I see a pattern of those who continue to follow God while maintaining this tension of expressing their anger toward Him. David pours out his heart in the Psalms, complaining that God seems absent or that good people suffer. Job finally gets frustrated with his predicament (that is basically a pissing contest between God and Satan) and he begins to demand that God show up and explain. Solomon laments that God has destroyed him - and even claims that life has no point and is meaningless. Jonah pouts when God doesn't reign down hellfire and brimstone on the pagan Ninevites (and we can feel sorry for Jonah - after all, isn't that how God normally handles those who are not His chosen?)

And those are just some of the most obvious examples. The Scriptures are full of those who have a love/hate relationship with their Creator.

Now, I am not saying that its "right" to be angry with God....I am simply pointing out that its Biblical!

While some of you may be content singing the old hymn:

Farther along we'll know all about it -
Farther along we'll understand why -
Cheer up, my brother, live in the sunlight -
We'll understand it, all by and by.

I for one cannot accept that. I want to know now. It angers me that I do not know. And yet, God is not obligated to say one thing to me. I scream at the Heavens and I am engulfed in silence.

So coming full circle - the point I am trying to make is that I understand that faith is not about answers. And somehow, without committing intellectual suicide, I will have faith that God really is good and that this really will work out. Until then, even in my doubt and frustration I have to ask myself - do I want to live like the God I desire to worship, or do I want to live like the God who frustrates me? All the more reason to love Jesus - complete love and compassion to the end...even when He cried out that God had forsaken Him.

am i an agnostic christian?

2009-02-07T21:28:00.003-05:00

I haven't been blogging a lot recently.
Some of it has been business at work (in fact, I'm at the office right now and its 8:30 on a Saturday night...) But really I think that the biggest reason I haven't blogged has been the conflicted feelings going on in my heart/mind/soul.

Its been tough really. We came to Dallas to help start a church and then our plans were totally changed by life circumstances (or Divine plan) and now I am at this place where I am trying to figure out the who, what, and where of my future direction.

I'm listening to the Fray right now. Great new album. They played the House of Blues here in Dallas last month, but it sold out. Bummer. Jaime and I actually got to see them at Longwood college in VA a few years ago when no one had heard of them, so I guess that makes up for it.

I heard a radio interview when they were here in which they were asked about the circumstances that led to the writing of the song, "You Found Me". Above is the video, and here is a link to the lyrics:

http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/t/the_fray/you_found_me.html

I resonate deeply with this song and the questions I have for God.

For some reasons the answers I used to believe aren't making much sense any more. I realize its an old question, but if God is all powerful, and God is all loving, then why is there such suffering in the world?

Why does the God of the Old Testament order people to kill babies and children simply because they are foreign? Why does the God of the New Testament send Jesus to free us from sin and yet punish those who were unfortunate enough to have been born in a Muslim country to eternal, conscious punishment in Hell? Where was God when three MILLION Jews (including infants and young children) were sent to gas chambers or burnt alive in cremation ovens? Where is God when innocent women are raped and little boys have their arms chopped off in the Sudan? Where was God when the last earthquakes, hurricanes, and tsunamis buried elderly and helpless victims beneath dirt and water?

I'll be honest, I'm having a HARD time with this.

I firmly believe in God. I truly believe that the teachings of Jesus are the clearest example of a life filled with good and peace.

But unlike some of my friends, I cannot close my eyes to experience and what I see around me while trusting in a theology that says we will simply "know in the end"; one that preaches a blind trust in a sovereign God who has all of this worked out.

Anyway, I am curious as to your thoughts on this. I know that some will think I am blasphemous in even entertaining these questions. But I figure that God already knows how I feel about this, and so why hide it from you?

i don't believe in God, and God is fine with it.

2008-12-01T23:39:00.004-05:00

I am a doubter.

I live in nearly constant, relentless, nagging doubt. I can pin-point certain times in my life where this has been nearly crippling - laying in bed at night wondering if what I focus my entire life on is really a fairy tale, or struggling to put together a sermon on Saturday night when I wasn't sure I even believed my own notes.

I do not understand those who have no doubts. Often, while I was a pastor, I would start Bible study discussions with, "Do you ever wonder..." only to be met by chirping crickets. It seemed as though I was the only one who just couldn't get past my unbelief. Of course, now I realize that most church folks are either (1) non-thinkers or (2) liars. So, I don't really envy the believers around me anymore.

In fact, I am learning to celebrate my doubt. I think God made me this way (when I believe in God!). Often I wake up in the morning as a follower of Jesus and I go to bed at night an atheist. Sometimes its the other way around. And sometimes - well, I will probably change my mind before the end of this post!

The other night I had an divine epiphany (or an enlightened idea). Hebrews 11 says this:

By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper
time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised

And yet Genesis says this:

Sarah laughed to herself, saying, "After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?"

So the way I figure it - God must find faithless people pretty faithful. I think that we all live in this tension. Even the people who claim to have no doubts certainly don't always behave as if there is a God. It all seems to be part of the human condition. If God truly wanted to leave us with no doubts then God could certainly clear all this up for us.

I'm learning. I think its just as amazing when I struggle with doubt as when I have none. Perhaps I have wasted a lot of energy trying to rid myself of these feelings when instead I should continue to live out the teachings of Jesus. After all, isn't that true belief?

Maybe even on my most atheistic days, when in spite of my doubt I help someone in need I am living out the words to Thomas, "Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed."

The Day After

2008-11-29T12:15:00.002-05:00

The Damour family will celebrate the Holiday Season a bit different this year. Christmas will be forever changed for the family of the man trambled by "savage" Wal-Mart consumers.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27955316/

I wonder how much the people were able to purchased the "Samsung 50-inch Plasma HDTV for $798" from Wal-Mart will enjoy it today?

Of course, we all ignore the lives that are lost or kept in poverty because of put purchasing decisions this Christmas. Before buying that next gift, I wonder if we could ask ourselves:

(1) What living and working conditions am I supporting through this purchase?
(2) Does my friend/family member really NEED this?
(3) Where will they put it?
(4) Where will it be a year from now?
(5) Is there a way I can say "I love you" that doesnt invlove adding more junk to the landfill?

just some thoughts.

the common good...

2008-11-10T22:11:00.005-05:00

Last year I had the privilege of attending Sojourners Call to Renewal in Washington D.C. Along with amazing thinkers like Jim Wallis, Brian Mclaren, Shane Claiborne, Lynne Hybels, Freddie Haynes, Joel Hunter (who is pro-life and recently gave the Democratic National Convention opening prayer) - I was able to also see the three main Democratic contenders at that time; John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama.

(By the way, I ran into and got to speak to Freddie Haynes this week as I was coming out of Whole Foods in Dallas...he is an awesome guy and was nearly chosen to be the next president of the NAACP, but alas he is a disciple of Rev. Jeremiah Wright's brand of black liberation theology and they couldn't stand up to the controversy.)

Anyway, I wonder if you might watch a clip of what I recorded that night from Obama (facebook readers will have to follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQTaaro_Vog -be prepared to turn up the volume -

What Obama is describing is a Christian view of "the common good". It really is a Biblical idea that turns Cain's question to God around:

"Am I my brother's keeper?"

And, of course, the answer is, "yes".

It also strikes at the very center of the central commandment, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

It is unfortunate that we as Christians often base our political philosophy more on Darwinism than we do on the words of Jesus. It is as if we have taken an extreme notion of "self reliance" and personal responsibility from the pages of On the Origin of the Species; preferring laissez-faire capitalism and survival of the fittest over "whatsoever you do unto the least of these, you do also to me."

The Common Good understands that when an individual in our society suffers, we all suffer. The homeless Vietnam veteran I encounter at the intersection near my apartment...is my problem. The single mother of the little girl that sits beside my son in kindergarten - who is unable to miss work for fear of being fired when her daughter is sick should stay home...is my problem. The 500 Dallas teachers who were just laid off. The families I know who are trying to live on minimum wage... These are my problems.

These "personal problems" affect us all.

We ask, "Am I my brother's keeper?" and God says, "Yes."

Often some of my friends will say, "Yes, but it isn't the governments job to __fill in the blank___".
Often, advances in what the "government" provides are demonized as "socialism". But I wonder, who do we think that the "government" is? In this representative Democracy aren't we the government? Isn't this supposed to be a government of the people, for the people, and by the people? If it is we who pay the taxes, we who elect our representatives who pass the laws, and we who are the true "deciders" - then aren't we really saying, "Yes, but it isn't MY job to __fill in the blank___."

Reminds me of another guy who was full of excuses..."Really, God, I mean, am I my brother's keeper???"

Yes, Cain, yes you are.

The next time your kid goes to a public school, you accept an educational grant or subsidised college loan, you collect unemployment benefits, you work 40 hours a week instead of 80, you drive on a public road, go to the mailbox and check the mail, ride in an airplane that doesn't collide into another one, drink water that didn't come from a well, eat out and don't get sick, enjoy the protection of the US military, visit a state park...be thankful that there are a lot of people who believe in the common good.

Now, of course I am not advocating that we sell everything we have and give it to the poor! That would be crazy! But I wonder if we might start taking some steps in the right direction by at least acknowledging that our neighbors problems affect us all...and then on a very local and personal level we do something about it.

The person with the broken down car that you pass in traffic is your neighbor - and his problem is your problem.

The family living with no health insurance - that's not just their problem.

Ahhhh - has Satan convinced you of the myth of scarcity? Do you really believe that there isn't enough to go around? There is - if each of us only takes what we need...but that's another post.

learning to live with less

2008-11-09T11:59:00.008-05:00

I have been on a journey of less for the last two years. There have been stops along the way that have not been easy…or comfortable, but I think it is a divine journey – into the core of defining who I am as a human and who God is as deity. It has also been a journey into the uneasy place of knowing things need to change; with the world, with my family, with me.

I blame the journey (one of desire for a simpler way of living) on a deeper reading of the words of Christ, on books like Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne, maybe even the shock of moving from rural to urban…and I would have to admit a very pragmatic need to spend less money because I have less money to spend.

In late 2006 we decided as a family to reduce our stuff. The battle cry was throw-away, give-away, or ebay. A conscious decision was made that we would no longer collect anything. All of the collectable figurines, glasses, antiques would have to go – they serve no purpose but to take up space, collect dust, and mystically make me feel “happier” simply because I own them.

In January 2007 I decided to see if I could spend an entire year without purchasing any new clothing. By December I had succeed. My only clothing purchases for the year were a couple shirts from second-hand stores and a pair of used sneakers.

This year, we moved to another state. After yard sales, trips to the goodwill, and many ads on craigslist we had reduced all of our belongings so that they all fit inside a 23 foot rental truck. Since the relocation I have made three trips to the pawn shop and even more purging has occurred. I am happy to say that we own less than when we moved. I plan on renting the smallest moving truck possible for the next move.

Two words describe how living with less feels and they are both synonyms: liberating and free. We Americans have become slaves to our own appetite, voracious consumers who never have enough. We need more and more every day. At the intersection of our desire for cheap products in quantities our grandparents could never have dreamed of are the poor in Indonesia who make our clothing and the impoverished in China who make nearly everything else.

I am often frustrated by the sentiment of some of my friends that there is nothing we can do about this. It is as if we have no choice at all in controlling our consumption. Whether it’s through a barrage of advertising that tells us we can never be happy until we have that product or the pride that forces us to compare what we own to that of others (and even the guilt we parents feel at not giving our children the “best”) we have been deceived. They (which is really us) have sold us into the slavery of consumerism.

For those of us who claim to be followers of Jesus – how different should we be living and yet…

I am far from perfect. Yesterday I made a pilgrimage to Ikea where we purchased a bathroom rug for $5, three cheap dog bowls for $0.59 each, and an $18 lamp for the living room. Of course I can arrogantly defend each of these purchases and still feel a bit of superiority to the other shoppers who were only buying junk they didn’t really need. After all, we are never the ones who are greedy are we?

I wonder if I can suggest a step in the right direction? I wonder if you might consider participating in this year’s Buy Nothing Day. Each year on “Black Friday” (the day after Thanksgiving) Americans celebrate the beginning of the season where we celebrate the birth of Christ by buying as much crap as possible. Why not try something different this year?

mccain plays with fire...

2008-10-12T09:06:00.002-05:00

If you haven't already seen the clip of Mccain getting booed at his own rally this week, here is is:

and in case you didn't see this one - its a bit worse.

Whould we be suprised? What the McCain campaign has been doing is stoking the fires of fear...and when people actually start listening to what they have been saying, they should expect to get burned.

And the fault doesn't just lie with those directly involved in the campaign. How many emails have we all seen where Obama is shown in a Muslim outfit, or not holding his hand over his heart, or some other silly message designed to make you believe that Obama is not like you and should be feared.

This week, a co-worker (college educated, Baptist, who voted for Clinton in the primaries) actually asked me as a former pastor this week - she was serious, and this was a real question - did I think Obama may be the anti-christ. (again, I'm not kidding - she really wanted to know)

from MSNBC:

At two McCain rallies last week, individuals introducing the candidate referred
to the Democratic nominee as "Barack Hussein Obama," emphasizing his middle
name. Former Oklahoma governor Frank Keating called him a "man of the street."

(by the way, I wonder how many "men of the street" Gov. Keating knows who have graduated from Columbia University, Harvard Law School and were also president of the Harvard Law Review????)

Why is it that we feel the need to HATE those we disagree with?

This isn't a problem that is confined to conservatives for sure. There have been some pretty nasty things said about Palin, for example. The left wants you to think she is an ignorant bimbo who you need to fear because she will impose her judeo-christian values on the nation and take away women's rights. It seems as if no party has a monopoly on using fear to motivate the masses.

Could it be possible - that Barak Obama is really a decent family man (as John McCain said), that he is a Christian who really believes he is following the teachings of Jesus...AND that Sarah Palin is a sincere and intelligent Christian woman who really wants the best for our country...? Isn't that more likely than the stereotyped caricatures we have built up about these people?

Maybe it would be wise for us to focus on issues. Perhaps you could do your part by not giving in to the racist and angry comments of your friends and family. Maybe it would be a good idea to correct your liberal friends when they belittle Sarah Palin by making sexist comments.

If only the campaigns would do the same.

------------------

and by the way - what if Obama really WAS Muslim? Who cares? but...that's another blog post.

on being alone...

2008-10-05T23:36:00.004-05:00

I have experienced a lot of loneliness lately.

Yes, I get to spend a few hours every afternoon with my kids, and my wife and I have a handful of chill periods (when she isn't working and the kids are finally in bed)...but moving to Dallas has put me in a spot I am not used to.

I am not used to being alone.

Its funny how much you take for granted your community. There was always a steady stream of people coming in and out of our house when I was a pastor. These people weren't just my congregation - they were our friends. Some of us didn't really have a lot in common, but there was still this mysterious thing that bound us together.

I miss the Halo parties, the movie nights, the "lets cook some Thai food" times, wake-up-the-neighbors-with illegal fireworks-get-togethers. I miss the Cavalier and grabbing a beer with some good conversation...going to see a good show and coming back with ringing ears...talking theology at Starbucks...

The pastor at the church we have been attending said something a few weeks ago that really struck me. He defined the worst aspect of Hell to be a lack of relationships.

Being alone.

Being alone is hell.

This keeps coming back to me - as if God wants to show me something or help me work through something.

Someone said a few weeks ago - "poverty isn't really about a lack of resources, its about a lack of relationships."

I feel impoverished right now - and need your prayers. There is so much that goes into this - and this blog seems so inadequate to explain it.

There is a proverb in the Bible that says "A friend must show himself friendly". And perhaps that is really the lesson here. Maybe I am at least somewhat to blame. I bet there are a lot of people I have ignored who just needed a friend. I wonder how many people I pass every day that are lonely.

ahhhhh - redemption is always mutual, isn't it?

Why Pro-Life Christians Still Have a Hard Decision on November 4th

2008-09-15T20:53:00.008-05:00

I was bothered by Barack Obama's answer to Rick Warren when asked about abortion.

Warren: Now, let’s deal with abortion; 40 million abortions since Roe v. Wade. As a pastor, I have to deal with this all of the time, all of the pain and all of the conflicts. I know this is a very complex issue. Forty million abortions, at what point does a baby get human rights, in your view?
OBAMA: Well, you know, I think that whether you’re looking at it from a theological perspective or a scientific perspective, answering that question with specificity, you know, is above my pay grade.

I'll be honest. I cringed when Obama put it that way. Above his pay grade??? Ouch. Many people, like myself, find the issue of abortion to be one of the most (if not the single most) important moral issue of the last 30 years. While I truly resonate with Obama when he talks about America's need to focus on the needs of others and that his assertion that we need to obey the call of Jesus when He tells us to protect "the least of these", I wonder how is it that Barack cannot bring himself to make a judgment call on when life begins.

I think most everyone would say that in a scientific sense, "life" begins at conception. The moment a sperm and egg join and the first division of cells occurs - well, that's life.

Is it a "human" life, or more directly, does it have a soul? Well, Barack is correct - that is a spiritual question...and to be fair, one we Christians haven't always answered in the same way we do now. For most of human history, people have believed that babies have souls upon "quickening"; that is, the moment the mother first feels a baby kick. In fact, we still use the term "quickening" even though it originally meant "to become alive". (Think of its KJV Biblical usage; ie. "judge the quick and the dead". )

Obviously this brings us back to science, because (unlike most of human history) we now can detect pregnancy sooner than even the first missed period. Also, ultrasounds are now so common that nearly every mother in America has a blurry black and white picture of a little 10 week old bean shaped fetus...with the word "baby" typed in beside of it.

By the way, 10 week ultrasounds don't really even serve much of a medical purpose (unless there is a complication). They are actually more of a psychological aid - Dr's use them as an unspoken way to encourage women to begin eating right and taking care of themselves. The idea is that if a woman can actually see that she has a new life growing inside of her, that she is more likely to take charge of having a healthy pregnancy. (I suspect they are trying to also pay for that expensive ultrasound equipment as well!)

So we are now aware that long before a baby is felt kicking, she has movement, brainwaves, a heartbeat...

All this to say that Barack Obama's answer to Rick Warren was not only disappointing...but it was nearly insulting. Above his pay grade??? I'm pretty certain that any minimum wage mother who is even a month pregnant would be quick to tell Obama that what she has inside of her is a human life. I guess A Harvard Law degree and a net worth of $1.3 million don't pay for much.

But then there is the rest of his answer:

OBAMA: But let me just speak more generally about the issue of abortion, because this is something obviously the country wrestles with. One thing that I’m absolutely convinced of is that there is a moral and ethical element to this issue. And so I think anybody who tries to deny the moral difficulties and gravity of the abortion issue, I think, is not paying attention. So that would be point number one.
But point number two, I am pro-choice. I believe in Roe v. Wade, and I come to that conclusion not because I’m pro-abortion, but because, ultimately, I don’t think women make these decisions casually. I think they — they wrestle with these things in profound ways, in consultation with their pastors or their spouses or their doctors or their family members. And so, for me, the goal right now should be — and this is where I think we can find common ground. And by the way, I’ve now inserted this into the Democratic party platform, is how do we reduce the number of abortions? The fact is that although we have had a president who is opposed to abortion over the last eight years, abortions have not gone down and that is something we have to address.
WARREN: Have you ever voted to limit or reduce abortions?
OBAMA: I am in favor, for example, of limits on late-term abortions, if there is an exception for the mother’s health. From the perspective of those who are pro-life, I think they would consider that inadequate, and I respect their views. One of the things that I’ve always said is that on this particular issue, if you believe that life begins at conception, then — and you are consistent in that belief, then I can’t argue with you on that, because that is a core issue of faith for you.
What I can do is say, are there ways that we can work together to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies, so that we actually are reducing the sense that women are seeking out abortions. And as an example of that, one of the things that I’ve talked about is how do we provide the resources that allow women to make the choice to keep a child. You know, have we given them the health care that they need? Have we given them the support services that they need? Have we given them the options of adoption that are necessary? That can make a genuine difference. *emphasis mine.

A few things strike me about the rest of his answer.

First, he points out the need to find common ground.

I think most of us can agree that regardless of who becomes president, four years from now, abortion will still be legal. Reagan was pro-life, the first Bush was pro-life, and the second Bush is pro-life...and yet, there has not been one significant step toward overturning Roe v. Wade or outlawing abortion at the federal level. I suspect that this is because, while the majority of Americans want abortion to be rare - very few actually want it to be illegal. Republican politicians have learned that all they need to do is pander to the conservative evangelical Christian base of their party during election time, and then ignore the abortion issue once they get elected - and we will send them back to Washington to do nothing every time. Because, "Hey, he's pro-life!!!" Obama addresses this when he points out that we have had a "pro-life" president for 8 years and abortions have gone UP!

So, yes, we need common ground. Abortion isn't going away so what can the common ground be on an issue that seems so black and white? I think Obama gets it right when he says we need to work together to reduce the number of abortions.

Tony Campolo, in a recent blog said the following:

If 10 children are drowning in a swimming pool, and you can only save six of them, should you save the six? Or, should you wait until help arrives that can save them all, even if you know that the six you could save will be lost in the meantime?

So are we willing to work with those who may hold different beliefs about "choice" in order to actually find the common ground and save lives in the process? Or will we hold dogmatically to our religious and political stance even if it means we sacrifice the unborn - all in the name of being "right"?

On the other hand - John McCain is very clear that he stands on the other side of the abortion issue from Barack Obama. Answering the same question he said:

MCCAIN: At the moment of conception. (APPLAUSE). I have a 25-year pro-life record in the Congress, in the Senate. And as president of the United States, I will be a pro-life president. And this presidency will have pro-life policies. That’s my commitment. That’s my commitment to you.

I applaud McCain's willingness to clearly state when life begins (although it probably didn't take much courage in Warren's predominantly Republican church). But Obama's words still haunt me. Haven't we had a "pro-life" president in the Whitehouse for 8 years and hasn't the number of pre-born babies killed actually increased over that time?

What does McCain mean when he says that his administration will have "pro-life" policies? If, in fact, our goal is to reduce the number of abortions, and we realize that poverty is the number one increaser of abortion, then wouldn't making health insurance available to people of all income levels be a "pro-life" policy? And wouldn't complete funding of the State Chidrens Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) be a "pro-life" policy? Would it also not be a "pro-life" policy to encourage comprehensive sex education - when we have found that the conservative "abstinence only" curriculum doesn't work any better than the liberal teach-everything-but abstinence programs?

I have stated in previous posts that it seems as if many religious conservatives are willing to allow more abortions because they are afraid that their children will have sex if condoms are available in school. There are times when our ass backward stubbornness defies common sense!

Finally, I really feel as though pro-life Christians have a difficult choice in November because the pro-life issue has been too narrowly defined.

I know many pro-lifers who draw a direct correlation between evolution being taught in school and the disregard our society seems to have for human life. The theory is that if students are taught that we are nothing more than evolved monkeys, then no wonder we do not care for the unborn.

But a consistent ethic of life would also question how our acceptance (or even praise) of war cheapens life. If we brush aside the thousands of innocent children who have died in Iraq as simply collateral damage - don't we make it even easier for a woman to end the life growing inside her.

This is a complex issue; one that needs to be removed from the partisan politics of Republican vs. Democrat.

I am sad that Barack Obama feels that it is above his pay grade to decide when life begins...but I am equally saddened that John McCain doesn't seem to understand what being pro-life should really mean.

who i will vote for this november...

2008-09-14T20:36:00.004-05:00

I have tried to talk very little publicly about who i will be voting for this November. Just a few months ago (when I was a pastor) I felt that it was a little inappropriate for me to appear partisan. During the primary season I refused to tell all but my closest friends who I had cast a vote for. To be honest, I had no idea who I was even voting for until I pulled into the parking lot of my polling place.

Before I spill the beans, let me give a bit of history:

I am a card carrying member of the Republican party. My paternal grand-father was a southern Democrat. My maternal grandfather was and is a staunch Republican. My Father voted for Nixon in his first presidential election and later voted for Reagan.

As a family, we were heavily involved in the pro-life, anti-homosexuality, white evangelical movement of the 80's. We were part of a Focus on the Family "Community Impact Committee", travelled to DC twice for the March for Life on the anniversary of Roe V. Wade and I organized "See You at the Pole" rally's at my high school.

So it was a given that when I registered to vote, that it would be as a Republican and that I have voted for both Bush's. It wasn't even that long ago that my wife and I drove around with a Bush/Cheney poster covering up our back windshield. At that time, there wasn't even a hesitation that I, as a pastor, should be a bit slower to advertise my favorite candidate.

To make a very long story short...my politics have changed about as dramatically as my spiritual understanding has. It follows this pattern:

(1) I started hiking and fell in love with nature, read a lot of Sierra Club propaganda and started wondering why the party that supposedly cares so much for the Creator show so much disregard for the protection of the Creation.

(2) I started re-reading and teaching the Bible verse by verse and realized that there are 3,000 verses about Justice and Poverty Issues that I have never heard a single sermon on.

(4) A friend "came out" to me and I began looking at the issue of homosexuality in a personal way for the first time.

(5) Like many Christians who have attached their faith to a political party - the war in Iraq has caused me to ask some very hard questions...

So here I am, less than two months away from another presidential election and I have a choice to make.

Who am I voting for?

I will vote for the candidate who places priority on making sure that children have access to adequate health services.
I will vote for the candidate who rejects torture as a means of national security
I will vote for the candidate who's policies will actually reduce the number of abortions in this country
I will vote for the candidate who's energy policy puts respect for Creation over the profits of oil companies
I will vote for the candidate who's tax plan gives the most relief to the poor and lower middle class.
I will vote for the president who will value diplomacy as the first step towards peace...rather than sanctions, threats and missiles.
I will vote for a candidate who attempts to craft trade policies that would protect workers' jobs here in the United States while making it clear that our purchasing power should reflect our values.

more to come...

she's STILL beautiful.

2008-09-09T17:31:00.002-05:00

She has treated me very poorly. In fact, I have been hurt more by her than I can imagine the 'world' mistreating me.

Of course, there are many many reasons why I should run from this love affair...wise up and realize that there will be more pain in the future, more disappointment, more broken promises. And yet, I continue to fall at her feet. I am her servant - her defender - one of her shepherds.

I often find myself having a judgmental attitude towards those who used to be friends (lovers?) to the Church and now reject her because they feel wronged in some way. Its not that I somehow discount their pain or believe that they have suffered any less wrong than I have...rather, I simply cannot understand how someone who would claim to follow Jesus (who literally died for the Church) could reject something He loves so dearly. Should I not love the things He loves?

I am drawn to her. I cannot let her go. She is in my bones.

I realize that

the Church is full of fragile, incomplete human beings...at least as wicked as myself.
there are many who attend a building we call "the church" who are in fact, not true members of the Church at all - in that, it cannot be said that they have ever committed themselves to following Christ.
regardless of how she treats me - I am committed to her. I have said my vows, I have taken the pledge - not to a building, but to a Savior. He commands me "not to forsake". His loves compels me to serve. If I love Him...
The Church is the central place (outside of my own family) where I can practice the attributes of God. Where better to learn grace, than with a group of people who require it? Where better to learn forgiveness than with those who have wronged me? It is within the walls of these relationships that I become more like my Creator.
Hypocrites? Oh yes, and I forgot....am I not one as well?

She can be such a whore. Hurting me, lying to me, lying about me, kicking me when I am down, passing by on the other side when I am injured, even bringing lawsuit against me...

And yet - this week I will stand beside her, sing praises with her, confide my secrets in her, give her my time, my service...

in SPITE of herself....in spite of ME....she is still so beautiful.

comfort(able)

2008-08-02T12:09:00.002-05:00

we've been in dallas for almost two months now. it's been a big change for all of us. i'm realizing more and more how sheltered my life has been. but i feel like i'm learning a million new lessons every day (think: neo with kung-fu downloaded to his brain in less than 30 seconds.....ok....got it.)

one of the things that's been taking me longer to digest are these issues of wants, needs, and what it really takes for me to be satisfied.

we moved to dallas sight-unseen, got an apartment using the Internet, moved to texas having never been there. the area we moved to is very different from anywhere we have ever lived. at our last house, for example, i took pride in my little organic garden and proudly posted my faux-antique "hippies use the side door" sign - right next door to my rural neighbors living in their run-down trailer park...now, in dallas, we live in one of a hundred neat concrete blocks with swimming pools, tennis courts, beamers and lexuses, and a country club with work-out facilities.

don't get me wrong...i really can't afford all these comforts. in fact, i'm jobless, and if everyone i owe money to came to collect...well, let's hope that doesn't happen any time soon.

but it really gets me thinking about what we require to be satisfied.

food.

shelter.

love.

it's really so much more complicated than that, isn't it? i mean, food - cheap food is bad for you, have you noticed that? and really...how much off-brand mac and cheese can your kids eat before they turn orange?

and shelter - i've noticed one major thing about summer in the big 'D'...it's hot. so, my last electricity bill was $280. should i turn up the a/c? am i fine with it being a little warmer in the apartment?

all of these things (so much more, of course) are a part of this balance of wants and needs. what exactly is comfort? and what do i need to have to be comfortable? not to mention how complicated the question is when you add your family to the equation. how much do i give my kids to satisfy their wants? do i carry unnecessary guilt for not providing more 'things' for my wife?

------

the other night i sat out on the balcony with a smooth imported belgian beer and some great chips and texas salsa. in spite of the bills, being jobless, and worries about paying next months rent - i felt like God was speaking to me. "this is the life." God said. "you've got it made."

God is right, you know? we do our best to figure out the balance...what really is comfort(able)...i don't have the answer. but i think i'm figuring it all out.

thoughts?

just outside knoxville - the boat times with ben...

2008-06-11T20:07:00.002-05:00

we've been mucho busy in dallas since we got here - so I'm behind on my posts - plus i had some trouble posting this to youtube for some reason....

hopefully ill have time this afternoon to catch this blog up to date.

Oh - and yes, 'the boat times is a reference to Old Greg'...google it.

Lynchburg to Dallas (part one)

2008-06-06T07:43:00.002-05:00

here are some videos i've been making along the way:

a simple house blessing

2008-05-22T08:44:00.001-05:00

blessing the house of my truly wonderful friends david, jennifer, and their three awesome children.

5/17/08

(background music, unified theory, acoustic version, by "the cobalt season")

2008-05-18T08:03:00.004-05:00

on saturday I had the honor and privilege of baptising one of my best friends.

david and i have been friends and fellow journeyers for several years...being a part of his life makes my time here in lynchburg feel as if it has meaning and purpose.

yesterday was a good day :)

falwell :: one year later :: the changing face of american evangelicalism

2008-05-15T09:25:00.004-05:00

today marks the one year anniversary of the death of Jerry Falwell. thats pretty big news around lynchburg. his picture is even (once again, and maybe for the last time) on the cover of the local news and advance.

the face of american evangelicalism is changing as the old guard gives way to the new, and while the media searches for the 'next' Billy Graham or Jerry Falwell in the likes of men like John Hagee or Rick Warren, it seems as if the days of the "mega"-star evangelist are waning.

sure, there are still a handful of "super" stars among us; newspapers have attempted to anoint Rob Bell as the next Graham and guys like Joel Olsteen are raking in the cash from their t.v. programs and book sales, but there remains to be seen a leader to claim a Falwell-esque mantle

...and i suspect there won't be.

i sense that in certain strains of christianity there has always been a resistance to naming any one person as the "spokesman" for all of us. but i get the feeling that christianity in a post-modern context has an even greater aversion to this sort of hero worship.

take the leading voices in the emergent conversation, for example. these guys are selling a ton of books, and getting a bit of a nod in the mainstream media - and yet they lack the private jets, huge honorariums, and entourage of personal assistants that was common among the old guard. that's a good thing. how much better will it be for us to broaden the voices we listen to, rather than attempting to narrow it down to the powerful few?

so today we pray for the family of Jerry Falwell...and we also pray that we would resist the temptation to anoint a replacement.

attention: church planters / spiritual entrepreneurs / new monastics

2008-05-07T08:11:00.006-05:00

we are in the VERY beginning stages of starting a network to support missional friendships.

this idea started in our frustration that there was little financial and organizational support for folks who wanted to create alternative Christian communities that don't always fit within the modern church mindset.

initially we saw this as a support primarily for "church planters", but then we realized that the context for what defines a "church" is changing so rapidly that we didn't want to lock ourselves into such a closed model or definition.

So yes, we still need help in defining our mission and goals - but the basic idea is that we want to be a part of what God is doing in the world while also supporting other like minded folks.

here's what we have been thinking thus far:

- relational - that we work through friendships and operate with those we have developed relationships with, rather than simply being an organization that gives money
- discipleship - that we provide guidance and direction from folks who have "been there"
- Kingdom centered- we hope to attract those who are interested in being a part of God's Kingdom rather than building our own little version of it
-international - we hope to actively work towards making this network a world wide partnership

If you are interested and want to be a part of this - let us know. We are looking for some folks to be in on this as we explore the possibilities.

"Ironman" and the myth of redemptive violence

2008-05-02T10:53:00.004-05:00

Ironman opens today.

Normally I'm not into comic book movies. But since my little boy is obsessed with superheros, I'm curious and hope to see it.

The story line, in case you live under a rock, is that billionaire playboy and U.S. weapons genius Tony Stark is ambushed in Afghanistan by a group of terrorists intent on having him build his newest weapon, the Jericho missile. Its a weapon full of shock and awe capable of making more than a few walls come crumbling down.

Tony discovers that the terrorist group has been stockpiling weapons produced by his company and subsequently has a change of heart (literally as well as figuratively as he now has a glowing, uber cool device implanted in his chest to keep him alive). Tony decides that he will no longer produce weapons of mass destruction for the military and instead will devote himself to protecting the weak.

And here comes the grand myth. Its amazing that we never stop and think of how silly all of this is - so plain, and yet, we continue to believe it...

Tony Stark becomes Ironman. Defender of the weak and powerless...complete with flamethrowers, rocket-launchers, and sub-machine guns. Because, as we all know - the answer to world peace is in who has the biggest and best weapons. If only we could kill all the killers then there would be no more killing left to do.

I wonder if I will be able to teach my son that violence never ends violence. That "Violence to bring peace is like having sex to bring virginity."

livermush and sin

2008-05-01T07:57:00.002-05:00

so we are headed down to the old tar heel state on friday - and I'm looking forward to a nice liver mush sandwich...

you see, I've been a pretend vegetarian for the past 80 days (40 days of lent and 40 days of Eastertide) ... i have had meat only a handful of times since Easter.

But alas, my favorite food is calling. And so, in a pre-meditated act of willful sin I have my sights set on a liver mush sandwich, complete with toasted bread, mustard, and cheese.

please pray for me.

rev. wright, fox news, race, and why I need to just own up to the possibility that I may be a liberal...

2008-04-29T07:48:00.003-05:00

There's a lively discussion going on at the Emergent Village website concerning race.

This coincides with Rev. Jeremiah Wright's comments yesterday...which i thought was a great example of speaking truth to power and the ignorance of the news media. (the following is part one of three uploaded to youtube - its worth watching the whole thing)

I also couldn't help but respond to a fox news opinion piece about Rev. Wright. and I have included my ill-tempered letter bellow. Re-reading it - i realize that i need to just admit that I really may be a liberal.

Anyways, all this to say - that this issue of race, politics, and religion is so complex and so thick, that I wonder if any of us ever really understand one another.

We have such a long ways to go...

here's the letter (makes a lot more sense if you read the foxnews piece first):

Mr. Moody,

As a pastor in Virginia - as a white Christian... let me simply say that you are so off-base in your assessment of Rev. Wright's statements at yesterday's conference that I am amazed that you and I live in the same country, much less that we read the same Bible.

As Reverend Wright pointed out, the Bible is a book written by an oppressed people within the context of oppression. If somehow you have missed that, perhaps it would serve you well to go back to the Old Testament and re-read the Bible...this time attempting to see its message through the eyes of those who have been mistreated, abused, and enslaved. Too often, privileged white folks like you and I forget that the Bible wasn't authored by wealthy European land-owners and we destroy its message when we interpret it as such.

Rev. Wright is correct in his assumption that most of you in the media have never heard of Liberation theology and it appears (especially in opinion pieces like yours) that you have never set foot in the black church. Yes, the Gospel of Jesus is the same, but the way this is translated by respective preachers of different culture is vastly different. I ask: have you never wondered why prosperity or "health and wealth" preaching is so popular among African Americans??? Are you really so blind to the very sincere differences in both the style of black preaching and more importantly its content???

One final note. You said that your pastor's "job is to help me in my quest for eternal salvation, not to tell me the kind of world he wants to live in until he and I achieve that goal." This is sadly the kind of escapist mentality that plagues American Christianity and does little to relieve the suffering of the oppressed in this world. In fact, I would say that your attitude is a driving force in making the problems of this world worse. You would have done well to sit down with Christians like William Wilberforce, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mother Theresa. How wonderful it is that there have been Christians who understood that Christ's message (and those of the prophets) was more about challenging us to be more than we have become...rather than just providing us "comfort" so that we don't hear the cries of those we have chosen to ignore.

Perhaps you might consider focusing on journalism...and leave the sermonizing to those who know what they are talking about.

Scott Childress
Pastor, Friendship Bible Church
Rustburg, VA

Emergents and Calvinists - response...

2008-04-24T07:29:00.004-05:00

This is a response to an original post by Al Hsu...too big to fit in his comments section.

If there's a question about whether emergents and reformed folks are able to work together...my own experience screams 'yes'.

My friend Jared and i co-pastor to a small faith community just outside of Lynchburg, VA. called 'Friendship'. And while neither one of us love labels, you could reasonably say that i lean toward much of the emergent end of thinking while Jared could be described as Calvinistic and Reformed in his theology.

We have lead music together, co-discipled folks in our church, preached tag-team sermons, and even hashed out a new church constitution side by side.

How has this been possible? With all the bickering that seems to go on between both "sides", anyone looking at these debates would think it impossible for us to come to any consensus at all - much less be co-workers, fellow-laborers, and...well, best friends.

First, let me say that its not all dream land all the time. Sure, there are some very real differences in the way we understand some very large issues. There have been early 5 a.m. discussions about soteriology and very late night conversations on the fallen state of humanity. But through our impassioned (and sometimes tearful) speaches we have been able to achieve unity on basics that I believe both sides share - if they would just stop talking long enough to listen to one another. For example:

We are both missional and see the church as something that should be outwardly focused instead of designed to build up our own little mini-kingdom.
We both believe that modern evangelicalism has cheapened and narrowed the scope of salvation.
We both believe in grace and understand that humans are sinners that need it. Sure, we disagree on the nature and description of the that depravity - but the conclusions are the same at the end of the day.
We both love Scripture.
We both love the congregation.
We both love Jesus.

There is this dance that we are in. Often during sermons we will say, "This is how Jared (or Scott) would say this___" rather than, "This is what Jared (or Scott) believes; because ultimately we understand that we are worshiping and serving the same Creator and that much of these debates is at the very least semantics and at the very most an attempt by fallible human beings to put into words a very infallible (and unfathomable) God.

When will we realize that our faith is made better by those we disagree with? I think we need to realize that there has been a serious amount of humility that has been missing in this journey we call Christianity.

when you are a pastor who is emerging...but your church is not (part one)

2008-04-17T07:40:00.007-05:00

i live in lynchburg, va.

its most famous as the home of liberty university and the late jerry falwell. perhaps the only other lynchburg more famous is a little town in tennessee that produces jack daniels. both locations share a certain intoxicating effect...one from whiskey and the other from religion.

needless to say, my little spot on the map isn't exactly a hotbed of progressive culture (much less theology). locals tend to vote red, attend one of the 200+ churches, and most have never heard of the emerging church.

so as a pastor interested in all things emergent, living here has put me in an unusual situation.

i heard brian mclaren speak a couple years ago at wake forest when another young pastor asked him, "what do I do if I want to lead my congregation in this direction, but they aren't ready for it?" brian's answer was that some folks simply aren't ready to leave modernity, and to push them somewhere they don't want to go can be hard, if not wrong.

so i have basically ignored that advice...and its been tough, painful, gut-wrenching, depressing, and has cost me and my family a lot. not only have i taken a huge financial hit (my salary at the church has been reduced twice - and i have gone a couple months with no pay at all), but we have even been part of nasty (and sometimes humorous) rumors. (by the way, ask my wife about being arrested and running off with a tattoo artist for two weeks - news to us, but according to the grapevine it really happened!)

all of this to say. listen to brian! if you are the leader of an established church and you feel your foundations beginning to shake and you realize that you just cannot be satisfied any longer with towing the party line....

(1) look for another job/church/location.
or
(2) start another ministry on the side.
or
(3) join a cohort, drink some beer with new friends, and be patient.

as true as all of this feels to me, it has been like trying to explain quantum physics to an alchemist...some people are simply not there yet. and thats ok.

i would like to add that God has still been amazing, and lives have been changed, and i would in no way consider my seven years at friendship bible church a failure. as we say around here, "God can hit straight with a crooked stick!"

(next: what to do if you are emerging, but your pastor is not.)

seeds of compassion webcast

2008-04-11T11:08:00.003-05:00

today kicks off the five day 'seeds of compassion' event in Seattle. so for those of you who may not be aware - you can look at a full schedule and watch a live webcast as the events happen by going here.

tuesday (april 15th) promises to really be an interesting day as rob bell and doug pagitt will join a panel of folks including desmond tutu and the dalai lama for 'children and youth day'

head over to the webcast - its pretty groovy stuff.

blogging is so anti-emergent

2008-04-10T12:54:00.002-05:00

please don't go back and read my old posts.

occasionally i make that mistake myself (so so vain) and i end up disgustedly muttering, "what an idiot! i can't believe i really thought that!"

its true.

when i blog, my fleeting and incomplete thoughts become part of internet history...searchable, quotable, and mostly permanent.

so a disclaimer should be added to all past (and future) blogs:

PLEASE NOTE: THIS GUY MOST LIKELY DOESN'T KNOW WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT AND WILL PROBABLY BE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS ISSUE BY TOMORROW. GRAINS OF SALT ARE HIGHLY SUGGESTED.

you think that's a good enough 'cover your ass' statement?

(i already regret using that phrase)

sustainability and the emerging church

2008-04-08T12:51:00.004-05:00

i think we are making a mistake if we try and push emergent ideals into the molds of established institutions. and i'm also beginning to wonder if its possible to be 'partly emerging". what i am trying to say is that i do not believe that emerging church ideals can create a sustainable organization (like a church) unless we are willing to rethink everything from the ground up.

as someone has said, 'everything must change'.

to truly be a part of the future church, means that we have to realize that we are really only at the very beginnings of this paradigm shift into post-modernity. who knows what the church will eventually "emerge" into (and who is to say that the church has ever been a static object that could ever actually arrive anywhere?)

as the economic position of my faith community has changed...its been hard to justify involvement in something that has admittedly caused me a lot of difficulty. as the pastor of a small church in transition, i have come to realize that i cannot feed my family on my ideology -

- and this has caused me to question the sustainability of any faith community attempting to explore emerging church ideals while at the same time trying to maintain a "traditional" organizational structure.

for example, i faced this head-on last year when i wrote on a couple forums about my desire for friendship (my local church family) to be involved in relational tithe. my basic question was, "as a pastor, how can i take part in RT if our small church's main expenses are currently my own salary...especially when I already have another job and am struggling financially as it is?" I was answered by much silence.

i wonder,

are any of you involved or are aware of congregations that are truly emerging (subjective, I know) that really have a sustainable model of community? If so, what, where, who, how?

Creation Care: A Christian's Responsibility to the environment (redux2)

2008-04-04T09:19:00.001-05:00

the "altar call" - practical steps toward Creation Care

The last post ended with a quote from a document signed by 90 evangelical leaders. I would like to draw attention to the last paragraph because it brings out the practical application of concern for God's Creation:

We urge Christians to shape their personal lives in
creation-friendly ways: practicing effective recycling, conserving resources,
and experiencing the joy of contact with nature. We urge government to encourage
fuel efficiency, reduce pollution, encourage sustainable use of natural
resources, and provide for the proper care of wildlife and their natural
habitats.

What would it look like if churches took an active role in leading and living a lifestyle that emphasized less waste and greater concern for the world God has created?

Here are just a few things we are doing as a church to be better stewards:

(1) Buying post-consumer recycled paper products whenever possible (toilet paper, hand towels,

copy paper)
(2) Using bio-degradable cleaning products
(3) Replacing all light bulbs with energy saving compact florescent
(4) Turning the completely electricity OFF during the week

(Its estimated that 75% of all energy used in our homes is from appliances that are

turned OFF! So we have started going to the breaker box and shutting off the power

at the source. Our church electric bill has been cut in half!)
(5) Using real dishware instead of Styrofoam, plastic, or paper products whenever possible

(We have a small church, and normally only need to set out about 40 plates, forks,

spoons, and glasses...in a larger setting this may be more difficult - BUT think of high

volume restaurant buffets; they use real dishware effectively and your church can too.)
(6) Recycling paper products

You will be amazed at how much money your church will save (and be able to give back into the community) by following these tips.

But what about your home? What can YOU do to live a life that shows you care about what God cares about?

1- Repent from living a wasteful lifestyle
2- Repent from being self-centered and selfish
- Living as though your actions don’t impact others
- Living a temporal life instead of an eternal life (one that is focused on getting

temporary, quick fixes without living in eternity today)
3- Realize that Creation is the Creator’s way of introducing Himself to you.
4- LIVE is such a way that is conscious that we are to be connected

the following links provide great resources for living a live of Creation Care:

http://www.thetaoofmakingmoney.com/2007/04/04/311.html

http://www.napsnet.com/child/71308.html

http://www.greenlivingtips.com/

http://www.thegreenguide.com/green_home/

Creation Care: A Christian's Responsibility to the environment (redux)

2008-04-02T11:58:00.001-05:00

Our original relationship to Creation.

Genesis 1:31 And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

(1) Humanity is one part of the whole of creation…The order of creation is not from least to greatest – for example, the birds are created after the sun but are certainly not greater in importance. In this sense, ALL of creation is valuable and the Bible declares that God cares intimately about the grass, the lilies of the field, the sparrows, AND people. We are a part of the whole of creation…not a less important part remember, because we are the one’s created in God’s image – but still one part in a universe of miracles.
This places creation in its proper place – not “very good” because it serves man, but because it serves God. Humanity is part of the whole of creation that exists to bring glory to the Creator.

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

(2) Humanity is from the humus. Adam MEANS “red or ruddy”, the color of dirt and is derived from the Hebrew “Adamah” meaning “from the soil” This continues in the Latin "humus" where we get the word human which literally means “out of the earth”. This idea is wrapped in an understanding that God formed man “out of the dust of the ground” and that “you were made from dry earth (dust) and to dry earth you will return”. So in the beginning, there is an interdependent relationship between man and earth.

Gen 2:15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

(3) Humanity has been given the gift of stewardship over creation.

The word for “dress” is “aw-bad” and it occurs 288 times in the Old Testament. 5 other verses translated as till. 1 time its translated as tiller (in reference to Able). But 59 verses translate it as “served” and 150 verses translate aw-bad as “serve”. If you think of what a steward is, this makes sense…its more than someone who is just in control, it is the function of someone who looks after and takes care of, who serves. When we serve the creation, we serve the Creator.

The word “keep” is “shaw-mar” and it occurs 440 times. It means to guard, protect, preserve, heed, observe, and to watch. It is the SAME word used as a command for Israel to keep the commandants. We are to “shaw-mar” the commandments, “shaw-mar” the Sabbath, “shaw-mar” the Law, and “shaw-mar” the earth.

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

(4) Humanity has been given the gift of “Dominion”. Dominion does not equal “domination”. The word 'radah', is the Hebrew word used in Gen 1:26 that is translated as dominion. It is used only 12 times in the Old Testament, and therefore is has an important meaning.
This rule is not domination but is a charge to be handled in a caring, responsible way. For example, 'radah' is used in Ezek. 34, which shows the wrong type of 'radah'. The use of 'radah' there shows that God condemns a destructive attitude:

"Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled [radah] them harshly and brutally." (2-5).

Our 'radah', of the creation, is not to be with harshness and cruelty and selfishness. Our 'radah' is to be in the spirit of these verses. We should heal those parts of creation that are sick, bind up those parts that are injured, bring back those parts that are straying, search for those parts that have become lost.

-----------------
This is an idea that is finding a home even in conservative evangelical circles. 90 Evangelicals including Charles Colson, of Prison Fellowship Ministries; James Dobson, of Focus on the Family; Richard Land, a top official in the Southern Baptist Convention; Don Wildmon, chairman of the American Family Association; D. James Kennedy, the head of Coral Ridge Ministries; Sam Craig, the editor of "Christianity Today,"; Rick Warren author of The Purpose Driven Life; W. Todd Basset, the head of the Salvation Army; and Richard Stearns the head of World Vision signed a document titled “For the Health of the Nation: An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility”:

We labor to protect God’s creation
As we embrace our responsibility to care for God’s earth, we reaffirm the important truth that we worship only the Creator and not the creation. God gave the care of his earth and its species to our first parents. That responsibility has passed into our hands. We affirm that God-given dominion is a sacred responsibility to steward the earth and not a license to abuse the creation of which we are a part. We are not the owners of creation, but its stewards, summoned by God to “watch over and care for it” (Gen. 2:15). This implies the principle of sustainability: our uses of the Earth must be designed to conserve and renew the Earth rather than to deplete or destroy it.

The Bible teaches us that God is not only redeeming his people, but is also restoring the whole creation (Rom. 8:18-23). Just as we show our love for the Savior by reaching out to the lost, we believe that we show our love for the Creator by caring for his creation. Because clean air, pure water, and adequate resources are crucial to public health and civic order, government has an obligation to protect its citizens from the effects of environmental degradation. This involves both the urgent need to relieve human suffering caused by bad environmental practice. Because natural systems are extremely complex, human actions can have unexpected side effects. We must therefore approach our stewardship of creation with humility and caution.

Human beings have responsibility for creation in a variety of ways. We urge Christians to shape their personal lives in creation-friendly ways: practicing effective recycling, conserving resources, and experiencing the joy of contact with nature. We urge government to encourage fuel efficiency, reduce pollution, encourage sustainable use of natural resources, and provide for the proper care of wildlife and their natural habitats.

next: the "altar call" - practical steps toward Creation Care

you have been called out...a defence of rob bell and a finger wagging to his critics

2008-03-31T08:51:00.009-05:00

i don't know what's happened to me...normally i ignore ignorance, but lately i feel a need to answer it. please pray that i would be more like christ... in the meantime:

this old post from emerging church critic ingrid schlueter and the original (?) from ken silva deserve to be answered. and since Ingrid and ken don't allow comments on their blogs and they both don't have time to leave a comment on mine...i think they need to be called out. the criticism comes from this statement by rob bell:

"I love how Nelson Mandela puts it in one of his writings. He says, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.” [underlining provided by Ingrid]

she then goes on to say

"But wait a minute. What did Nelson Mandela supposedly say?...No, no, Rob. That wasn’t Nelson Mandela at all. That was New Age high priestess Marianne Williamson. You lifted it right off the pages of her book A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of “A Course in Miracles“."

the thing she is accusing rob bell of doing is exactly what she does and then some.

the truth is that any simple google search will show that marianne williamson (who is not in any sense of the word a "priestess", by the way) actually did originally say these words, BUT they were made famous by nelson mandela when he used them for his inaugural address. in fact, they are commonly attributed to mandela, with no mention of williamson.

now, i may be willing to concede that bell should have been clearer in quoting mandela and i could even take this a step further and say bell could have revealed the original source for the quote.

BUT

IF bell is being dishonest - it is blatant and outright hypocrisy for these critics to accuse him and then turn around and do exactly the same thing by leaving out the whole truth. in fact, what ingrid and ken do on their blogs on a consistent basis is use outright lies and deception to twist the truth so that they can paint their enemies as negatively as possible. they claim to be defending the truth when in fact they show more disdain for it than they could ever accuse others of having.

shame on you ingrid and ken. you do much to destroy the unity of the body of Christ.

apologetics in a postmodern world

2008-03-25T07:32:00.004-05:00

Just before I throw out an old toothbrush, I always ask my wife if she needs it for anything. The bristles may be worn, its plaque fighting properties gone, but we often rescue the old toothbrush for use on the dogs' teeth, or cleaning grout, or scrubbing hard to get to areas.

And speaking of apologetics, that tired old toothbrush of theological tarter control, i wonder if those of the emergent persuasion may stop and ask if its really best for us throw out what has been (for modernity) a useful tool...perhaps we should instead look for another job it can perform.

Of course, I feel that arguing someone into the faith, or attempting to "prove" Christianity is not only looked down upon in our pluralistic society but it is also ineffective, easily dismissed, and potentially damaging to folks we wish to share the way of Jesus with. And as a nod to the "middle way", perhaps we can go back to the Scriptures and examine where we can keep the toothbrush - instead of tossing it into the trash altogether:

1 Peter 3:13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.

Modernity surely has done a good job of "always being prepared to make a defense...", although most would admit that emerging generations seem to know less and less about the mechanics of their faith in spite the Church's emphasis on it.

What we have not been diligently pursuing is the rest of the passage; suffering for righteousness and putting our critics to shame because of our righteous lives...and especially offering our defense with gentleness and respect.

I wonder if we might not make our lives the "ultimate apologetic"? Surely we need to be ready to give an answer (look at the revival of atheism among the young) so that those around us can see that we at least have a faith that is reasonable. But let us not build our faith on reason.

Can we stop trying to convince the unconvinced by using the tool of apologetics? I think we should. Could we instead use apologetics to inform our own lives - letting our discovery of orthodoxy flow into a righteous orthopraxy?

the resurrection (as historic fact) proves nothing

2008-03-23T21:41:00.003-05:00

there's a stream of thought that's been rolling around in my head for a couple weeks, brought on by attending service at The (most amazing) Common Table and study for this morning's (Easter)gathering at my own faith community.

- the resurrection is generally viewed apologetically as the greatest proof of the validity of Christian faith

- but Jesus himself said that resurrection offers no greater proof than that already given by the Hebrew prophets and the Law.

Luke 16:29But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' 30And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' 31He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.'" (conversation between Abraham and the rich man in hades in the 'parable of the rich man and Lazarus')

so, rather than do our usual mental gymanstics of saying, "well this is what Jesus really meant...", I wonder if we might take him at his word and admit that the historic fact of the resurrection will never be suffucient proof of the claims of Jesus or the validity of Christianity.

this isn't to say that the resurrection of our Saviour isn't important. On the contrary, it is the singular event that binds us most miraculously to eternal life, and is the beginning of our faith...

how?

resurrection is new life. the "proof" is in new life.

resurrection is hope. the "proof" is in people who live into the story of hope.

resurrection is transformation. the "proof" is in lives transformed.

resurrection is victory. the "proof" is found in lives that overcome.

resurrection re-creation. the "proof" is in believers willing to take part in that re-creation.

perhaps an analogy...the proof that I threw a rock into the water is greatest not in the event itself, but in the ripples that continue on - long after the rock has disappeared from view - or memory.

Inclusive Exclusivity : the sub-culture (?) of emergent

2008-03-20T07:09:00.003-05:00

Labels are useful. They help organize, categorize, file...create order. Without even realizing it our brains make a thousand judgments a minute while it tries to find the right labels.

You see a car, for instance, and your brain instantly knows its a car even though it may have never seen that particular model before. You are also immediately aware of the kind of car it is (say, a sports car) and without consciously thinking may even have some expectations about the person driving it.

All that to say that labels help us make sense of the world. We can't live without them.

But of course we also know the destructive risk of labels as well. As soon as we are able to tell what group to place an object or person in, we have also defined where it/she is out.

And so it is with emergent.

In many ways our web sites, blogs, and networks have created a beautiful sanctuary. It is one where we have been able to think out loud without fear while finding the support and love of like-minded individuals. But I wonder- to what extent we are involved in creating yet another Christian subculture?

Even in the recent discussions over whether books that are being published as "emergent" are really emergent we can sense that we are trying to protect our own brand of Christianity. So we have our own web network, publishing houses, conferences, and local discussion groups. And with our good friends The Cobalt Season, now our subculture can even have it's own soundtrack. Even further, a couple weeks ago Christian Peace Witness for Iraq held simultaneous worship services across Washington DC and they asked Brian McLaren to lead an "emergent church service" as one of the myriad of other denominational and sectarian worship choices. Stop and think about that for a second.

Again, not all of this is "bad". I personally have needed this network of friends. Reading emerging thinkers and theologians has been like baptism- discovering those able to articulate what has been stirring in my soul, trapped by my inability to put those feelings into words.

But we should all be careful. We need to discuss how we can avoid just becoming another sub-culture. Ideas?

emergent is DANGEROUS!!!

2008-03-18T09:06:00.004-05:00

I'm really trying to work through an understanding of some of the motivations of emergent's critics. What drives them? (This question is similar to why I can't understand what motivates some atheists to devote so much time to disprove something they don't even believe in.) What are the intentions, goals, and passions that push emergent's critics to spend so much time trying to prove that the emergent conversation is heresy?

I have a few guesses:

Maybe there are a handful of Christian leaders who feel threatened. Could they be feeling that their institutions and positions may crumble if people begin to question the foundations that their work is built on?

Or maybe the fear isn't one of losing power or influence, but maybe a general feeling of 'fear of the unknown'....Its much easier to rest in the arms of what you are certain of than to step off of that solid ground and into the abyss of doubt and mystery.

Still others seem to get worked-up and red faced, declaring that the emergent church is "dangerous". What do they mean? Surely, some thought truly is dangerous; racism, extreme nationalism, nihilism...but a conversation on ways to explain the atonement??? Discussion about ways to understand God's sovereignty is dangerous???

There are plenty of religious and philosophical positions that I disagree with...but I haven't devoted a good portion of my life to attacking them. I don't spend hours on the internet looking for youtube videos, blogs, and web sites that I can stir up trouble on or warn people about...and I'm certainly claiming no moral superiority to those who have done these things - I just want to know what's going on in their minds.

So, with a bit of trepidation I open this up to both emergent and its critics. Why are some folks putting so much energy into being anti-emergent?

(let's practice humility, generosity, honesty, and above all else - let us show love.)

'everything must change' liveblog, 3/9/08 12:00

2008-03-09T10:57:00.002-05:00

well, mr. sleep got the best of me last night, so i have a lot to blog about -

here's what i have been able to post to youtube from brian mclaren's session 3 from yesterday...unfortunately it takes about 5,000 years to upload a 3 minute video so I'll bring part two as soon as i can get it up.

this morning we visited the common table and i have alot to blog about their service...the short of it all is that im pretty happy to have made so many friends in the emergent community - it feels like there is this family of people spread out all over the world - some know each other and some are yet to meet. hope is the common thread.

"everything must change" liveblog, saturday 3/8/08 6:45 am

2008-03-08T06:37:00.003-05:00

the cobalt season - american empire

Im heading off this a.m. for a breafast conversation with other church planters and emergent cohort leaders. Last night I uploaded this video to youtube and it is now available for your viewing pleasure. enjoy!

"everything must change" liveblog, friday 3.7.08 10:30 pm

2008-03-07T22:26:00.006-05:00

I'm back at the hotel after a pretty amazing day...so glad I came.

Tonight's session started off with The Cobalt Season sharing a few songs as people came in. After this, there was a lot of meet and greet with the people around me. I sat next to a Methodist pastor from Winston Salem and there were two women behind me from Richmond. I think this is one of the main differences I have noticed so far (in other "conferences" I have been to). Throughout the night there was at least four opportunities to discuss what was being covered.

Brian opened with an introduction and a call to open mindedness, meditation, and a chance to listen.

The opening song was a canticle led by Tracy Howe. It was a beautiful hymn about joining the sun, sky, earth, and waters in worshipping the Creator God. Brian shared that one man at a previous gathering had been uncomfortable with the song, saying that it was "new age"...he replied my saying that it was "middle ages" and that he was off by a few years!

The Sierra club showed a short video discussing the destruction mining has caused to the Appalachian mountains.

A few highlights from Brian's talk:

-there is a disconnect from the real problems of the world and the concerns with the church. unfortunately a "conversion" to the list of issues the church is concerned about inevitably leads to an abandoning of the list of real issues the world is dealing with - its enough to make you regret religious activity.

- Brian gave a complete explanation of the three major crisis in the world and its underlying "gear", the fact that religion is often what is driving this machine rather than making it better. a call to "wake up!" is needed to get the church to see that there needs to be a different framing story running things.

- part of our wake up call is that we start to disbelieve the old narratives- even as they are cloaked in religious language.

- we also need to start believing in the Kingdom that Jesus talked about.

The alter/altar call involved praying with others, lighting a candle to realize that even though we are just "wax and string" that we can produce light in this world, and opportunity to pray with our hands in polluted soil in order to try and feel as God feels about this earth, and a call to come to the cross - remembering that the Kingdom is about sacrifice not domination.

tomorrow other church planters and cohort leaders have the chance to eat breakfast with Brian and discuss some of these things on a more personal level.

"everything must change" liveblog, friday 4:45 pm

2008-03-07T16:44:00.004-05:00

I'm going to try and liveblog the Washington DC stop of Brian Mclaren's 'everything must change' book tour event. in order to do this successfully, you will have to ignore my lack of punctuation and horrible spelling/grammar....if i worry about making it look nice it will never get done.

today we drove up from Lynchburg and left our car in Vienna so we could take the metro to DC...this also happens to be the same weekend as the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq and they had asked Brian if he could present an emergent church service. The Cobalt Season was also present to help provide the music.

I'm not sure what an emergent church service is supposed to look like - but I'm guessing this was close. there was a lot of quiet and contemplative readings interspersed with a chorus where we all sang about the way of Jesus being something radically different than what we are witnessing in Iraq.

Gilda Carbonaro spoke of her son Alex who was injured by an IED and ultimately died from the explosion that burned over 70 % of his body. It was moving, challenging, and (for me) very difficult to listen to. Hers was the testimony of a mother who deeply loved her son...a mother who still grieves that we are fighting the same unwinnable war 5 years later. Her challenge was that we join in those who are in sin in this conflict when we choose to be silent and not speak up.

Brian Mclaren's message encouraged us to be witnesses. He stated that the disciples were witnesses to the way of Jesus - one of reconciliation and forgiveness rather than revenge. Brian challenged us to continue to be witnesses by living out this message and stated that our presence at this event (Christians united for peace) was ultimately the greatest witness of the truth of the resurrection. Amen.

This afternoon I go to the first sessions of 'Everything Must Change'....

by the way...so good to see ryan and holly again...we truly love them.

liveblogging 'everything must change'

2008-03-06T11:02:00.004-05:00

This weekend Brian Mclaren will be in Washington D.C. continuing the Deep Shift "Everything Must Change" book tour. Also in D.C., the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq will be holding worship services, prayer, and a demonstration.

I hope to liveblog this weekend using this site as well as pictures and video I hope to upload. Here is my schedule:

Friday:

12:00 – 1:30 – Emergent Worship Service, NY Avenue Presbyterian

6:00-7:00 – Reception, art exhibit in digital form, registration and resource center, Vienna Presbyterian Church

7:00–9:30 – Session 1: Waking up from a Bad Dream, with music, prayer, presentation by Brian, and conversation

9:30–10:30 – Concert by Tracy Howe, Restoration Village

Saturday:
7:29-8:19 am - Conversations over Coffee:

Church Planters and Emergent Cohort members with Brian and Grace McLaren: We will dialogue about the church emerging and the importance of co-horts and new church development, as well as share stories and connect with one another.

8:30–9:00 – Art exhibit in digital form, resource center
9:00–10:30 – Session 2: Which Jesus, with Brian and conversation
10:30–11:00 – Break, resource center
11:00–12:00 – Session 3: Local Expressions with Brian and local guests
12:00–1:00 – Lunch and conversation
1:00–2:00 – Session 4, Guided Experience for reflection using art with Linnea
2:00–2:30 – Break, resource center
2:30–4:30 – Session 5: A Revolution of Hope with Brian, music, prayer, reflection, worship and invitation
4:30–5:00 – Resource center, book signing

7:30pm. A coffee house event with Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, also at NY Ave. Presbyterian Church. The Cobalt Season will be performing, along with David LaMotte and several other artists.

Sunday

10am. Since The Cobalt Season is in town, noted emergent church The Common Table will be hosting them for their morning worship service, also in Vienna, Virginia at Jammin Java

a follower of Christ dies.

2008-03-04T08:25:00.006-05:00

Shannon Webb

1973-2008

a friend of mine died this weekend.

Shannon Webb was a true follower of Christ. I worked with him a few years ago at the Campbell County Alternative School in Rustburg, VA. I was an instructor at the school while he worked as a counsellor. Some things I remember about Shannon that mark him as a follower of Christ I will never forget:

Quiet generosity. The time he secretly gave a stranger a $100. Shannon wrote a check and pushed it in the man's hand - telling no one. Later, the man came up to me and told me what Shannon had done and said that the money was an answer to prayer. I never told Shannon that I knew.

Shannon grieved when his brothers grieved and celebrated when his brothers celebrated. When my wife called to tell me that we were having our first child, he was the first person I told. Shannon had been praying with us because we had been trying to have a baby for a year and when I told him the good news he burst out loudly "Praise God, man!"....right in the middle of class change at the public school.

Humility. Stregnth. Perseverance. Love.

The earth says goodbye to a follower of Christ - the heavens say hello to a friend.

Jesus and Woody

2008-02-21T08:52:00.002-05:00

i've never paid much attention to Woody Guthrie,(1912-1967) the american folk singer...

...mostly out of ignorance i must confess. "this land is your land" and "take me ridin' in the car" are a couple of the only songs I have ever heard from this amazing musician.

that said, I came across this song, featured live on the newly released 2008 Grammy winning album, The Live Wire.

here are the lyrics:

Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ was a man who traveled through the land
A hard-working man and brave
He said to the rich, "Give your money to the poor,"
But they laid Jesus Christ in His grave

Jesus was a man, a carpenter by hand
His followers true and brave
One dirty little coward called Judas Iscariot
Has laid Jesus Christ in His Grave

He went to the preacher, He went to the sheriff
He told them all the same
"Sell all of your jewelry and give it to the poor,"
And they laid Jesus Christ in His grave.

When Jesus come to town, all the working folks around
Believed what he did say
But the bankers and the preachers, they nailed Him on the cross,
And they laid Jesus Christ in his grave.

And the people held their breath when they heard about his death
Everybody wondered why
It was the big landlord and the soldiers that they hired
To nail Jesus Christ in the sky

This song was written in New York City
Of rich man, preacher, and slave
If Jesus was to preach what He preached in Galilee,
They would lay poor Jesus in His grave.

----------
today they would dismiss Guthrie as a 'liberal'...of course, they are also the same crowd that crucified Jesus to begin with. (how my congregation puts up with me, I simply cannot say)

;)

the becomingfriendship vision

2008-02-14T10:54:00.006-05:00

In October of last year (2007), Friendship Bible Church was founded.

All previous membership was dissolved, an entirely new constitution and statement of faith was voted on, and the church's name was changed.
In January we remodeled our gathering location, changed the time we meet, and started to re-arrange everything we do.

Most of you know all of that. But what I feel hasn't been communicated very well is why...Why are we changing? What are the reasons? Where are we going? I don't feel a need to defend as much as I desire to explain -

What is the vision?

I truly believe that a lot of us feel drawn toward something that we sense is broken in our local church experiences. If I had to sum it all up it would possibly be the brokenness that seems to exist between what we say we believe and the way we live out those beliefs. "Church" for most of us, has been simply this place we go to once a week. We maintain a clear line of separation between those things that are sacred and those we consider secular. It is as if we claim to follow a Savior who doesn't really exist. Or at least, our Jesus seems to have a completely different value system than the Jesus of the Gospels.

So the vision of Friendship is to repair that brokenness. We seek to fix all of what needs to be repaired, to seek that which is lost, and save that which is damned. Christianity has called that repairing, fixing, seeking, and saving, the act of redemption. And part of what it means to "become" friendship is that we are to be about the work of redemption. I personally long to humbly parter with God. We have been changed to bring change. We are "becoming" the Church.

Much of what we have done could be described as surface changes, but my desire is that we understand that even these changes are both systemic (as the results of our philosophy of ministry) and symptomatic (as organic and natural extensions of who we are).

A few examples:

We have put the altar in the "front" and the music in the "back". This makes the statement that we as a community reject the notion of coming to a gathering of Christians simply to get our 'playbill', sit in straight rows facing the back of someone's head and a stage where we get to see the performance. We reject the notion that "church" is a building where people come to watch a show.

We sold our pews and purchased sofas. Our sofas are far more than just an aesthetic change - so much more than a desire for people to think we are "different" or "cool". Through the seating we want to say that we reject a gathering where people can come and go without ever interacting with one another. We want our "sanctuary" to be a living room, not some foreign experience detached from our real lives.

Our focus on the altar and on prayer are meant to say that we reject the common practice of leaving this show we call "church" and critiquing the delivery of the actors without ever ingesting the content of their lines. We want everyone to see the focus of our gathering is on God - not man.

The Friendship vision is that no one walks away from our community unchanged. If anyone rejects us, we want it to be because they have fallen in love with the religion of Christianity rather than the message of the cross. If folks decide to join us we want it to be because they realize that discovering the message of Jesus can only be found within the arms of authentic community.

Let there be no doubt: Friendship is Biblical in the sense that we are firmly committed to studying the Scriptures - together, verse by verse. Friendship is Emerging in that we believe that change isn't only inevitable, but its also necessary. Friendship is Communal in that we desire to share our lives with one another - not just attend a meeting together once a week. Friendship is Open because we want to be a community that accepts everyone, right where they are, no strings attached. Friendship is Missional because we see ourselves living out the Gospel right where we live. And finally, Friendship is Experiential because we desire to see God in new and creative ways that break us free from ritual and routine.

Perhaps Friendship isn't for you. That's O.K. But if you feel disconnected, dissatisfied, or distant from a Saviour who offers just as much hope for the world as He did 2,000 years ago...I invite you to become friendship with us.

the problem with romanticizing the past

2008-01-22T08:25:00.000-05:00

"If we could only go back to 'the good old days.'"

I'm reading Justice in the Burbs by Will and Lisa Samson. In the introduction, the authors set up the rest of the book by answering common criticisms towards the ideas of seeking justice; criticism that would most likely come from conservative evangelical Christians - a group that has the right to be more hopeful than any other group in the world, but instead is arguably the most pessimistic.
Will and Lisa make a statement that I resonate with deeply:

Perhaps an overly romantic view of America...keeps us from seeing the struggles that humanity has always faced in seeking to live justly. [emphasis mine]

I was walking with a friend through a grocery store parking lot not too long ago when two black teenagers drove past us with very loud rap music blaring from their car. My friend, who doesn't particularly care for rap (and possibly black people if the truth were known) commented that he wished we still lived in the 1950's.

I know a lot of people longing for a more "simplistic" time, a more idealistic era they believe used to exist, and it saddens me that so many of these people are young...Christians even, who have given up hope that the world can ever be made better and instead long for the 'good old days' of the past.

Is it possible that our picturesque, Norman Rockwell inspired view of the past is just that - a painting that never quite existed? Do we really long for the days when those young black teenagers would have to live in fear because they were treated as second class citizens? Do we long for the days of World War II where the United States government rounded up Japanese-Americans and placed them in internment camps, simply because of their race? Are we aware that Andy Griffith's Mayberry wasn't a real town? Do we realize that the problems of growing up were never neatly resolved in an hour, like they were in Leave it to Beaver?

I am struck by the picture below. Its from that same Norman Rockwell that gave us The Four Freedoms, and Saying Grace. What strikes me is that most of us have seen the former paintings, but this may be the first time you have ever seen Rockwell's painting of a little girl being protected by four men as she goes to school, the word 'nigger' scrawled on the wall behind her. Perhaps that's because we had rather not think of the past as a time where it was perfectly acceptable to assault an eight year old girl because of the color of her skin.

When we accept an overly simplistic and romantic view of the past, along with a completely pessimistic view of the future (believing things will never get back to how good it was 'back then'), we doom ourselves to apathy, believing that there is nothing we can do to improve the world around us. Earth becomes simply Heaven's waiting room where we ignore the very real physical needs of the people God loves.

it IS about hope after all...

2007-12-13T21:09:00.000-05:00

its been a rough couple weeks...

we had a water line break and dump 2 inches of water over our entire kitchen floor; left us with no hot water for almost a week......but unlike over a billion people worldwide (and 740,000 Americans) - at least i have water in my house.

we are having some financial (self-inflicted) problems, and i am late on my son's pre-school bill (among other things I am late on)......then i get a note another child in his school has cancer and his family needs help paying for the treatments.

this morning i found out that another family in our church is leaving. add this to the others that are moving away because of graduating, marriage and all that...have i forgotten the countless lives that have been (and will be) challenged and changed through my meager ministry?

---------------

about three years ago i read a book by Erwin McManus where he asks - 'what if God has called you to minister in obscurity, where no one will ever know your name?' - that question haunts me.

---------------

imagine joseph. his wife is carrying a child he knows is not his. he obviously has no money to afford a decent place to stay. he ends up taking his wife to a barn to have the child.

how depressing.

christmas is about hope. count your blessings....i'm serious, count them. its all about hope.

Why you SHOULD see the Golden Compass (part two)

2007-11-30T09:34:00.001-05:00

'the golden compass' - dangerous for our children?

the comments section of blogger doesn't allow very long posts, so i thought i might reply to a very good question regarding my post on Christians and The Golden Compass.

first, the comment:

part of the body <3> People do have the right to make an anti-God movie if they so choose. But why would you intentionally spend money to support that? I don't spend money to support movies that I know have objectionable content in other areas, so why would I do so for this movie? Pullman may have said those good things about his books, but he also said that they were about "killing God," so I feel it is not accurate to portray them only as positive. We don't have to be afraid of ideas to disagree with and not support them. I don't think our goal should be to create controversy, but I don't think that most people have that as their goal... what is important is to get the word out to Christians about these movies or books so that they can be aware!!If there were no efforts to get the word out about these movies, many Christians wouldn't know they existed and wouldn't be able to use them to stimulate discussion anyhow. This movie is a toned-down version of the first (least problematic) book, however, it will encourage the books to be read, which could be dangerous for kids without the proper guidance. And I do think that reading The Chronicles of Narnia has gotten people interested in Christianity, btw. please, i know that typing can sometimes come out with the wrong impression since the voice and body language is lost. I am not trying to be combative. I just want to hear what you think about my comments... Thanks. :) thanks for your comments :)

i think that's a really good question - why support a movie that is anti-religion or anti-god?

first, i would like to point out that i wasn't portraying the books or Pullman as completely positive - the first few lines point out that the underlying themes of the books are anti-religion and that the author is an atheist. also, perhaps the tone of my post was a bit cynical and sharp because i was reacting to what i feel is a disturbing tendency among evangelical Christians (becoming the very thing we complain about ); a special interest group that whines whenever it is "offended", as if the world is supposed to accommodate us in our own version of political correctness.

but as to why we should "support" a movie that is antithetical to my belief system I have to say that I think Christians need to be informed about the culture they live in. We need to be able to understand what's going on around us and how that affects the people around us. I would never advocate exposing ourselves to media that might cause us to sin - but understanding other viewpoints is critical. There is a sharp difference in a Christian avoiding material that glamorizes violence or has pornographic content and protesting/boycotting something that challenges our ideas.

yes, I can see a conflict when I spend money on something that may potentially be an "evangelism" tool for atheism. That's why I borrowed Richard Dawkin's last book from the public Library instead of buying it. But there are certain instances (and I think this is one of them) where the benefits of having an informed mind outweigh the possible negative consequences.

and once again, i would have to say that the results of people watching these movies or reading these books is highly overrated. I don't think there were very many people, for example, that were driven from their faith (or potential faith) by Dan Brown's DaVinci Code. We need to give people a lot more credit than that.

If anything, we should be glad that these types of things are being discussed. I have read the end of the Book...Jesus wins :) - and that's Good News for the whole world.

all things mewithoutyou

2007-11-28T08:22:00.000-05:00

jaime is heading down to Raleigh tonight to see mewithoutyou and i hope to go see them thursday in harrisonburg (ahh the joys of being married with kids)...

so i thought i might post a few things to educate the world on one of our favorite bands.

their wiki article

a link to the marketing for their latest album

jaime (smiling in the back with dark hair) on stage
when they played at the Cat's Cradle

lead singer aaron Aaron Weiss plays the pot :)
and his brother on guitar, Michael Weiss

their myspace

their website

lyrics to the song in the video:

You were a song I couldn't sing
caught like a bear by the bees with its hand in the hive
who complains of the pain of the sting
when I'm lucky I got out alive!
a life at best left half behind,
the taste of the honey still sweet on my tongue
and I'd run (Lord knows I've tried)
but there's no place on Earth I can hide
from the wrong I've done

then I saw a mountain and I saw a city
steadily sinking but suspiciously calm
it wasn't an end, it wasn't a beginning
but a ceaseless stumbling on
there, strapped like a watch on my wrist
that's finished with gold but can't tell the time
was all or what little pleasure exists
seductively sold and uselessly mine

our horse was fast and first from the gate
with the lead of a length at the sound of the gun
and the last of our cash laid down to fate (at 17 to 1)
but by the final stretch in the rear of the pack
that nag limping bad in the back
we reluctantly gave all the money we'd saved,
a fifth to the commonwealth and the rest to the track
then I saw a forest grow in the city
& a driftwood wall of birdhouse gourds
and I'm still waiting to meet a girl like my Mom
who's closer to my age

the true light of my eyes is a Pearl
equally emptied to equally shine
and all or what little joy in the world
seemed suddenly simple and endlessly mine

I was once the wine and you were the wineglass,
I was once alive when you held me,
but G-d became the glass,
all things left are emptiness
but oh, you're just a little girl
if you look out and see a trace
of a dark red that was once my face
in the clarity of such grace,
you'll forget all about me

rob bell, tofurkey, and christmas trees

2007-11-26T08:37:00.000-05:00

i had a really nice thanksgiving vacation...too bad I am back at work.

it started off Wednesday afternoon with a trip to Raleigh, NC to see Rob Bell and his "the gods aren't angry" tour. Aaron and I had a great time. we got the front row balcony almost to ourselves and really enjoyed the talk. Rob spoke of the sacrificial system and how Jesus, as the ultimate sacrifice, came to offer himself - a radical new system where repentance becomes a celebration of new life. Good stuff.

Thursday was thanksgiving, of course - and Jaime cooked our first Tofurkey (my wife is vegan) while the kids played in the leaves. The "bird" was good, by the way - and we didn't miss having a dead animal on our table one bit.

on Friday we started a new tradition for our family. I needed to redeem myself from last year's Christmas tree fiasco (I bought an eight dollar tree the day before Christmas). We travelled to Cub Creek Tree farm in Nelson county and picked out a pretty Norway Spruce.

it was nice to just relax and hang out with my bride and our children. I'm looking forward to Christmas.

christians and 'the Golden Compass'

2007-11-25T20:53:00.000-05:00

I am a pastor. I love Jesus. I will take my kids to see the Golden Compass.

Hopefully the era of boycotting movies is over - but just in case, a few notes on why you too should go and see this anti-religion movie by self-avowed atheist Philip Pullman.

- Boycotting and protesting movies only makes them more popular. A few years back, you may remember "The Last Temptation of Christ", a movie based on a novel that depicted Jesus being tempted to come down from the cross and live out the rest of his life as a man (married to Mary Magdalene, of course). Needless to say, it wasn't a very good movie to begin with, but its sales were boosted astronomically by Christians protesting it. You dont like a movie? Ignore it.

- The book series on which the movie is based, is not specifically anti-christian...but anti-religion. Pullman himself has described them as anti-authoritarian, anti-oppression, and anti-using religion for political gain...to which I say, "amen"

- WHAT are we so afraid of? Do we not believe that our God is true enough to hold His own against the philosophies of those who would slander Him? Are we now afraid of IDEAS? How long until we call not just for books, but for their authors to burn at the stake as well? Are we afraid of dialog, discussion? I cant think of a better way to open up a conversation about how the real God is nothing like the god of Philip Pullman's books.

- I refuse to be a part of the 'christian' machine that only profits from controversies they help create. Are we really so blind that we cant see that preachers, booksellers, televangelists, and secular publishers masquerading as faith-based companies *cough*zondervan*cough*, have all gotten filthy stinking rich by "protesting" movies/books like The DaVinci Code?

- Do we really think that our children are going to be subtly turned into little atheists by watching a fantasy movie? Of course, we all know how many kids came to Jesus after watching the Lord of the Rings or Narnia...

lets all enjoy a good movie, have some fruitful discussion, and spend our energies protesting things that really matter.

The Cobalt Season - Monday, November 5th

2007-10-29T10:09:00.000-05:00

im merging my interests/hobbies/jobs/obsessions

room180...friendship...central va emergent cohort...

music...food...fellowship

i hope i can encourage you to attend a house concert featuring The Cobalt Season.

their website
their myspace (listen to their music)
what others are saying

here's the down-low on the show:
11.5.07
$10 a person (kidz are free)
admission includes dinner
opening with Between Faith and Thought
and local art
starts at 6:30

gimme a holler for more info:
scottnjaime@gmail.com
434.258.1974

see you monday night!

(directions:map 9577 wards rd. rustburg, va - beside friendship bible church)

an open letter to my congressman about SCHIP

2007-10-19T07:57:00.000-05:00

here is the text of a letter I sento to Virgil Goode, Representative to the Fifth Congressional District of Virginia.

in case you dont know about SCHIP and what happened yesterday, click here and pay particular attention to what happened yesterday. The reality is that our government cares more about lining the pockets of the cigarette industry than it does about health care for our children.

Dear Sir,

As a pastor, parent, and constituent of the Fifth District I am very disappointed in the failure of Congress to override President Bush's veto of the SCHIP re-authorization bill.

I have friends who use the current system to help provide health care coverage to their children. One friend in particular is a History teacher at the Fray Educational Center in Rustburg. His wife is a stay at home mom of three beautiful children. It is a sad commentary on our government and health care system when a working family (and state employee) cannot afford health insurance for their children.

SHCIP is not just another government handout. Every child in America deserves the very best of medical care. Taking this responsibility now, will help make sure they become productive members of society when they grow up.

As a Christian, taking care of "the least of these" is what we are required to do. The values formed by my faith include more than just opposition to homosexuality and abortion and my congregation understands that these are not the only moral issues on which to cast a vote. It is hard for me to understand how we can find all the money we need to kill people, but we cannot seem to find the funds to heal people.

I urge you to support programs such as SCHIP in the future.

Thanks for your time,

Pastor Scott G. Childress
Friendship Bible Church
Rustburg, VA

discussing B.E.C.O.M.E. (part six)

2007-10-10T08:54:00.000-05:00

The very last letter in the acrostic B.E.C.O.M.E. stands for the word 'Experiential'. I think its fitting that since our first word was 'Biblical', and that for us this means it is the foundation for everything else we do at Friendship, that the last word should be 'Experiential'. So while we hold to a core value of experiencing God, we understand that all our experiences have to be rooted in the Truth of Scripture.

We seek to discover the nature of God and deepen our relationship with Him. We hope to connect with the Holy Spirit through new and creative forms of worship, singing, meditation, prayer, communion, and the arts.Sometimes this may take us into areas we aren't familiar with, places and postures that make us uncomfortable. Our church tradition or culture doesn't leave much room for long periods of silence, for example. And we may ask participants to step outside their comfort zones by actively participating in worship instead of just being passive observers.

We seek for our music to be defined by sincerity, openness, and authenticity. We won't limit ourselves to familiar hymns or the usual praise choruses. We simply want to uplift Christ and touch the face of God.

Our goals are not for people to feel comfortable. Rather, we want to stretch and push past boundaries; tear down walls built up by conforming to the christian sub-culture. Sometimes our gatherings may fee silly; at other times mystical or even strange...but we always desire to experience God and be open to the possibility that the Spirit can meet us in new ways.

discussing B.E.C.O.M.E. (part five)

2007-10-08T11:08:00.000-05:00

missional

rather than try and define what amounts to a total way of thinking/living, I had rather give a list of thoughts as to what the characteristics of a missional community should look like (and what we are working to having the friendship community B.E.C.O.M.E.) :

- on mission

- outward not inward

- post-colonial

- holistic evangelism

- concerned with justice

- organic

- giving, generous

- relevant

- contextual

- the atonement as a lifestyle

- missio dei

- people not programs

- not church services, but church service

- sermons as training sessions

- congregants as students

- no orthodoxy without orthopraxy

- love.

discussing B.E.C.O.M.E. (part four)

2007-10-04T07:32:00.000-05:00

open -

last night we had a very interesting Bible study. We discussed evangelism and had a visitor drop in and share with us. Those of you at the service won't soon forget that guy. He told us that evangelism was about building friendships and that, "you know, sometimes you gotta share a couple beers with someone, get to know them..."

I laughed out loud.

But it really made me think more about how one of the core values that we have at Friendship is that we are an open church, a place where everyone can feel welcome, accepted, and loved.I made the comment that if people come to our church and are offended or made to feel uncomfortable, then let it be because we are preaching the Word of God, and not because of our unwelcoming attitude.

This can make the "professional" Christian nervous. Just who are we going to invite? Who are we going to show love to? What if a gay couple comes in holding hands? Are we going to greet them warmly and encourage them to come back? How are we going to react when someone with tattoos and piercings enters the door? Just as friendly as if they were wearing an executive suit and tie? On the other hand, what if a very conservatively dressed homeschooling family visits? Are we going to reach out to them in the same way we would some college student sporting his Starbucks and fashionable clothes?How open is Friendship willing to be?

My prayer is that one of our core values is that we are as open as Jesus.

Country music singer Toby Kieth sings a song called "I love this bar" - it describes the kind of church I want to belong to. Replace the word "bar" with "church" and you will see what I mean:

We got winners, we got losers

Chain smokers and boozers

And we got yuppies, we got bikers

We got thirsty hitchhikers

And the girls next door dress up like movie stars

Hmm, hmm, hmm I love this bar

We got cowboys, we got truckers

Broken-hearted fools and suckers

And we got hustlers, we got fighters

Early birds and all-nighters

And the veterans talk about their battle scars

Hmm, hmm, hmm I love this bar

[Chorus:]I love this barIt's my kind of place

Just walkin' through the front doorPuts a big smile on my face

It ain't too far, come as you are

Hmm, hmm, hmm I love this bar

I've seen short skirts, we got high-techs

Blue-collar boys and rednecks

And we got lovers, lots of lookers

And I've even seen dancing girls and hookers

And we like to drink our beer from a mason jar

Hmm, hmm, hmm I love this bar

Yes I do like my truck (I like my truck)

I like my girlfriend (I like my girlfriend)

I like to take her out to dinner

I like a movie now and then

But I love this bar

It's my kind of place

Just trollin' around the dance floor

Puts a big smile on my face

No cover charge, come as you are

Hmm, hmm, hmm I love this bar

We got divorcees and a big bouncer man

An old jukebox and a real bad band

We got waitresses and we got barflies

A dumb-ass and a wise-guy

If you get too drunk just sleep out in your car

Discussing B.E.C.O.M.E. (part three)

2007-10-03T10:11:00.000-05:00

Communal - I see community as one of the top goals of any group of believers.

This is something that we have worked hard to achieve at Friendship. We changed the format of our Wednesday night Bible study toward a discussion lesson. We began eating together more often (this is sometimes a joke around Friendship - how we have food at every service). We started offering coffee and snacks before service to encourage conversation. We open every Sunday with a chance to greet people you don't know, and give a hug to those you do. We open our homes to one another - and Sunday night services were cancelled specifically for this purpose.

But we need to do better. The word "communal" suggests living life together, sharing everything...no one goes without, no one lacks any resources, we give, borrow, and work - together. So we need to be radically committed to that.

As a church, we should seek to live close together, to call one another, pray for one another, spend as much time with each other as we can - become a real family. Becoming a true community means that we must grow to love one another - to appreciate our differences, and reach out to each other.

discussing B.E.C.O.M.E. (part two)

2007-10-02T13:33:00.000-05:00

I spoke on this Sunday - and hope to go into a bit more detail here. If you want to know (1) where our church is headed, (2) what our core values are, and (3) what I specifically believe - this is a great topic to keep up with. the first 'E' in BECOME stands for "emerging"

Emerging - first off, some definitions. The "emerging church" is a broad conversation and exchange of ideas involving Christians of every kind...mainline protestant, evangelical, charismatic, and reformed. Those on the journey are taking a strong look the what and how of Christian belief and practice - and are committed to authentically living out an ancient faith in the post-modern context. DO NOT believe everything you read about the emerging church.

On the other hand "Emergent" (notice the 't') is an organization that describes itself as a "generative friendship". It tends to be more progressive (or liberal, if you want to use the word) in its theology and is sometimes controversial in fundamentalist or reformed circles.

As a church, I see Friendship as "emerging". I do not want our church to be labeled an "emergent church", rather I hope we do see ourselves as constantly changing and questioning. Emerging implies that we are in a state of metamorphosis but that we haven't yet arrived in our final form. I hope that we are constantly challenging the way church has always be done, examining why we believe what we believe, and doing the real work of re-discovering our faith in new ways.

To clear things up, yes, I am personally involved in Emergent. I have taken part in a few conferences and lead a local emergent discussion group. BUT I like to keep these activities separate from what we do at Friendship because I do not want us to be tagged with anything that could cause unnecessary division.

so...Friendship is Emerging - we are committed to constant change.

discussing B.E.C.O.M.E.

2007-09-28T07:14:00.000-05:00

as our church transitions to a new phase of organization and growth - i thought it might be good to define our core values - this info can also be found on my blog, which i would love for you to read. I also encourage you to comment and ask questions - this is a safe place and no question from an honest heart is off limits -lets start with the 'B'

Biblical - we are committed to the Bible. Our new statement of faith defines that commitment like this: "We believe the Bible, consisting of all the books of the Old and New Testaments, is the Word of God, an inspired narrative of God’s relationship with humanity and of humanities’ relationship with God. The Word of God is without error or misstatement in its record of history and in its moral and spiritual teachings. We trust in the truth of the Bible to guide us without error as we seek to apply it to our lives."

I feel that the beautiful message of the Bible is downgraded when we have simply viewed it as a set of rules to follow or simply some guide-book to show us how to be successful and happy people. Instead, the Bible is this amazing (his)story where we get to see real people live out their real lives while encountering a real God.

At friendship, we strive to teach 90% of the time in an exegetical, verse by verse style. We are convinced that the Bible was meant to be read as a whole - not picking and choosing which verses simply back up the point. Our sermons start with scripture and then get the main idea, not the other way around.

And you are likely to hear passages taught that aren't getting much time in other churches - that's because we believe in teaching the whole Bible, not just the parts that get an easy 'amen'.We look to the Bible as our authority - over creeds and doctrines and statements of faith. As it has been said, "God has spoken...the rest is just commentary."

We realize that ultimately the Bible is a conversation. Its the dialog of God and man, and we are to wrestle with it, fall in love with it, and explore what those ancient words mean in a modern day context.

final post on emergent "defense"

2007-09-13T06:26:00.000-05:00

honestly, I'm tired of this discussion. And I think that is evidenced by my lack of blogging in the past couple weeks...so to wrap it up - here is my final response. If you are just now coming to the discussion, be sure to locate the first post on this topic and begin there. enjoy:

Marcus, once again, I hope that this does not turn into a debate as much as it is a discussion - although I am not sure where the line is sometimes. So, thanks in advance for your gentle tone.

I feel that we haven't made much headway on the few items we have been discussing and so I want to go back and look at those. To risk sounding argumentative I feel that some of your statements lack consistency so I would like to point those out as well. Let's start here.

"I wanted to take a moment to go over the comments you stated about CS Lewis. I do not know if he really believed those things you stated, and the passages may in fact be taken out of context, but if what you said is true that he believes that other people outside of Christianity will go to heave, then CS Lewis would be a Heretic...By Definition. I will refrain from calling him one, as I do not have enough information to affirm the claim."

I encourage you to read the last chapter of Mere Christianity. Lewis states that the world is not neatly divided up into christian and non-christian and that there are many who are slowly becoming that and many or are ceasing to as well. He then gives the example of a Buddhist who holds on to the true aspects of his faith, while slowly rejecting (maybe even unconsciously) the false ones. This person, Lewis says, may belong to Christ "without even knowing it". Read it. It is not taken out of context in any way. This and other writings clearly show that Lewis, while not being a universalist, was certainly not an exclusivist.

The inconsistency here is that in a previous post you have said,

"Which brings me to the whole discussion of what Makes a Heretic? It seems as if we are afraid to label someone a heretic now a day's. What makes one, are there heretic's participating in the Emergent Discussion... I will leave that unanswered. But I will say this if there are people who stray from the central message of the Word,"

You have tossed around the word "heretic" a lot without actually calling someone that. You mention that we are "afraid to label someone a heretic now a day's" and then you seem afraid yourself to do so. Was the question "what makes a heretic" rhetorical? Would you like to discuss this at all? You already seem to know the answer but are unwilling to apply it. You said:
"I also believe that in order to be a Christian, you have to believe the entirety of the Bible is God's word. As it states in the Matthew "If you deny one part, you deny it all..." There are people in the Emergent Movie who "Deny one Part"

I believe that what you may really be implying is that "in order to be a Christian, you have to believe the entirety of the Bible is God's word" as you feel it needs to be interpreted. Brian McLaren and Rob Bell teach and believe the Bible is God's Word. But they don't interpret it the way you do and they don't take some of it literally the way you do. Where have they said that there are parts of the Bible that are not God's Word? I don't like the tone of this discussion when we begin to malign our brothers and sisters in Christ (those who love Jesus and are preaching the Gospel of hope in His name) by denying that they are even Christians.

Once again, you are inconsistent because you have claimed that "in order to be a Christian it requires Repentance and Faith, in Jesus Christ who is God." Who in the emergent church isn't claiming that??? Do you really want to add to the Gospel by saying that Genesis needs to be interpreted literally, that you have to have a proper understanding of "absolute truth", that you have to accept street preaching and Ray Comfort's method of evangelism in order to be a Christian? Are arminians not Christians? If Lewis did indeed believe that there will be others saved who have never heard the name of Jesus - are you willing to say he isn't a Christian? In "Bullhorn", does Rob Bell prove to you that he's not a Christian because you are bothered when he says that bullhorn man is doing more damage than he is good?

You speak of the emerging church being "dangerous." Hasn't fundamentalism proven to be not just dangerous...but deadly? This idea that we are the only ones who are right, that the Bible has to be literally interpreted in one specific way, that "heretics" need to be dealt with severely - has lead to "bible believing christians" accepting slavery (because the Bible CLEARLY and in black and white condones it), massacring the "savage" and god-less Indians because God has ordained we take this land, murdering those we disagree with at abortion clinics, using hate-filled and angry speech against homosexuals, and has made the people of peace the biggest supporters of unquestioned military action. What exactly is dangerous? That people would discuss what the Bible actually says? Its dangerous to question if our doctrines are man-made rather than God centered???

And you haven't answered my question of how you get around not following certain black and white passages in the New Testament with commands that are clearly drawn out. Don't you believe in every part of the Bible? Or would you admit that there are parts of the Bible that were written in the context of the day and to a specific people and that we might actually have to discuss what they mean and how to apply them?

Moving on, you said: "The whole idea of "New Revelation" from the Emergents is dangerous. Sure you can have new Idea's, New Way's of Worship and New Church Services and Music (As Long as it is to glorify God) but new idea's and revelation is a Problem."

Can you show me where any major leader in Emergent or the emerging church has claimed to have a "New Revelation"? I'm not sure where you are getting this idea.

you close by saying...Just Because someone claims to be a Christian, Act's Like a Christian, Knows all the Scripture and Goes by all the Creed's does not make that person Saved.

Very well put. I agree. You sound very emergent. I think everyone in the emerging church would agree with you. I wonder why you have such trouble accepting that someone can not claim to be a Christian (calling themselves a follower of Jesus), not always act like a Christian (do any of us), not know all the scriptures or keep all the creeds (most of the people I know)...and yet still be saved.

peace.

scott

emergent "discussion" second reply

2007-08-29T07:11:00.000-05:00

Marcus, thanks for your genuine tone. I pray that we continue to keep this discussion on the highest level possible.

Your closing statement makes me want to reassure you that I have not, nor will I ever forsake my faith in my Savior. The last thing you need to worry about is my soul!

Also (and you aren't going to like this) but extensive quotations of Bible verses aren't really necessary. Verses about false prophets, heretics, and teachers who have fallen away have been applied to everyone and in every situation and you can make them say anything you want them to say. Luther, Wesley, Calvin, Surgeon, Finney...don't you think these very same Bible verses were used against them by their critics? I am totally aware of what the Bible says....the issue here is (1) how we interpret it and (2) the framework we use to interpret it.

Speaking of which, I am curious to know your response to my charge that most fundamentalists are guilty of selective literalism - picking and choosing which Bible verses need to be followed - and which others are not for today.
I would also like to respond to this:

"First I want to correct some errors in your reply, and then I will ask some more questions.

It is a large and varied movement that includes everyone from reformed and Calvinistic Mark Driscoll

This is an error. Mark Driscoll used to be apart of the Emergent Church movement. He then back away from it after he saw the dangers, His theology is sound... In fact he was recently at a Conference with John Piper who is very much anti-emergent movement. The conference Mark was at was called Desiring God 2006. Infact he said the following (although he did later apologize) about Mclaren.

"'Well, it seems that Brian McLaren and the Emergent crowd are emerging into homo-evangelicals.'"

He has simply distanced himself from the movement although he may still partake in the "discussion" but only as a negative force. "

As you may have already discovered, but are forgetting here: There is a difference between "Emergent" (which is an organization) and "emerging" which is a broader movement of ideas. It wasn't my intention to say that McLaren and Driscoll agree on theology. In fact, I pointed out that they are part of a wide spectrum of thought. Even though Driscoll has since distanced himself from Emergent, he still takes part in the discussion and offers different viewpoints (and yes, many times they are against the theology of the more progressive side of the emerging church). I think you may have a problem, however, in thinking that Driscoll's theology is sound. Were you aware that Driscoll doesn't hold to a premillenial view of eschatology? That he doesn't believe in the rapture? That he is certainly not a creationist? That he advocates alcohol use and even hosts secular bands at his Mars Hill church? Driscoll is part of the emerging conversation that embraces a missional view of the church while maintaining a strict reformed view of scripture. I was not in error when I said that he was a part of this conversation. If you will go back and look at the video from "desiring God" where he talks about this - you will find that it is Emergent and its theology that he has rejected.

Next you say "Anytime an Emergent writer borders/steps across the lines of Heresy, the response from the followers and the writer is "Oh I/He did not mean it that way"
This is because emergent's critics are LOOKING for something wrong...in the same way that you were probably frustrated as you poured over SexGod to try and find something that Rob Bell says that could be called unbiblical..and then when you find something, you interpret it in the most negative way possible without considering its context or giving the benefit of the doubt. This is easy to do, especially in theological circles where words can mean so many different things and where statements with no context can mean something entirely different. An example would be a sermon by John Piper where he makes the statement "Jesus did NOT die for you." On the surface, that's heresy, but what Piper means is that Jesus died to bring God glory to God and not to glorify mankind - something a lot of Calvanists would agree to.

Your example is from SexGod where Rob Bell says something about all of us being possessors of the image of God. Bell is NOT saying that we all are little gods. He is NOT saying that we are basically good. He is simply stating that humans still have a the marks, the fingerprints, or the original spark of divinity that was given to us from God. We bore His image in the garden and still bear some of that today. In that sense we all "contain" God. This isn't pantheism any more than saying that God is omnipresent. Even if I said God was in a rock, that wouldn't be pantheism...rather if I said the rock was God or was part of God - then feel free to say what you like. Now, you may not agree with that. You may believe that man is totally and completely depraved and incapable of even the slightest good deed....but that doesn't make someone who disagrees with you a heretic. I'm afraid that if you feel that the only people who have "sound theology" are the Calvinists, then there are a lot of heretics in this world, and heaven is going to be pretty empty.

You seem eager to label the leaders of the emerging conversation heretics. I wonder, was CS Lewis a heretic? He didn't believe in Biblical inerrancy, the rapture, dispensationalism, eternal security. He also suggests in Mere Christianity that people will go to heaven who have not trusted in Christ - even Buddhists who hold to the "truer" aspects of their faith. How is McLaren that much different than Lewis? I have looked at your statement of faith on your Transplant Ministries web site. With the exception of the word "inerrant" (which is a whole other conversation) I am certain that McLaren and Bell and 99.9% of those involved in the emerging church would agree with those core values.

Doesn't it concern you that by your definition millions of people in the Eastern Orthodox church, the Roman Catholic church, the charismatic and pentecostal movement, nearly all of the millions in mainline denominations (episcopal, Lutheran, Anglican, Methodists...), and now those in the emergent church are all heretics? I may disagree with these people - but to think that they are all heretics and the only ones who are right are a handful of western, American evangelicals with methods less that 200 years old are the only ones who are the real Christians???

picture: augustine refuting heresy

Marcus' response

2007-08-27T07:49:00.000-05:00

First I want to correct some errors in your reply, and then I will ask some more questions.

[scott said] "It is a large and varied movement that includes everyone from reformed and Calvinistic Mark Driscoll "

This is an error. Mark Driscoll used to be apart of the Emergent Church movement. He then back away from it after he saw the dangers, His theology is sound... In fact he was recently at a Conference with John Piper who is very much anti-emergent movement. The conference Mark was at was called Desiring God 2006. Infact he said the following (although he did later apologize) about Mclaren:

"Well, it seems that Brian McLaren and the Emergent crowd are emerging into homo-evangelicals."

He has simply distanced himself from the movement although he may still partake in the "discussion" but only as a negative force.
The question I need to ask up front, is why in the world do the Emergent's write in a way that leaves them unaccountabel for their actions and able to back away with no responsibility. Anytime an Emergent writer borders/steps across the lines of Heresy, the response from the followers and the writer is "Oh I/He did not mean it that way" This seems very Dangerous. The whole writing and let people interpret it how they feel is not helpful, it also does not leave room for a Regenerates view of scripture as opposed to the unsaved view of scripture. In Rob Bell's Sex God he states that We were created in the Image of God and somehow out of know where pulls the popular word of faith heresy that we all have God inside of us. This is not True, God does not dwell in everyone he only dwells in those that have the Holy Spirit. To say we are created in the Image of God, and then say that we have God in us is along the lines of Pantheism.

Which bring's me to the whole discussion of what Makes a Heretic? It seems as if we are afraid to label someone a heretic now a day's. What makes one, are there heretic's participating in the Emergent Discussion... I will leave that unanswered. But I will say this if there are people who stray from the central message of the Word, The Book of Jude is very very clear on how to handle such people.

Jude 22Be merciful to those who doubt; 23snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.
Jude makes it very clear that people who do preach a Gospel other then the correct one should not be allowed even a part in a discussion. But in the beginning he states that
Jude4 For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. These people are going to claim to be Christians, They are going to impress you with knowledge, but if people are waiving flags and saying HEY HEY, this movement is dangerous, caution caution... and you brush these people off as Arrogant, then there is a serious issue here. I can ramble all night long and I will probally add more to the discussion later but I will end this letter with these thoughts that are not the Word's of mere Man, but from the very instrument of God. Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1)And Elijah came near to all the people and said, "How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him." And the people did not answer him a word. (1 King 18:21, ESV)For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions. (1 Timothy 1:6-7)

I would say this stuff to you pleading, on my hands and knee's if that is what it took.Marcus Pittman

"defense" - first response

2007-08-24T09:57:00.000-05:00

the following is my response to Marcus (sorry its so long):

Hi Marcus,

I hope that you never think I am being snide or hateful in my postings - I just like to provoke a response from you and get you to think from a different perspective because I feel that we are very much on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to a certain framework of thinking. Brian Mclaren would call it our "interpretive grid"...Josh McDowell would say its our "worldview." I wonder if we might continue this discussion in public - would you allow me to post our responses on my blog? I think it would be interesting reading and would give both of us a chance (as friends) to question what we believe. What do you think?

I am going to attempt to answer your post one part at a time. I am active in the conversation of the emerging church. I facilitate a local discussion group under the banner of Emergent Village (called a cohort). BUT I would like to open this by saying that there is no one (especially me) in the emerging church who is its official "spokesperson". It is a large and varied movement that includes everyone from reformed and Calvinistic Mark Driscoll to the very "squishy" (your words) Brian McLaren. Guys like Dan Kimball would sit somewhere in between. And then there are people like Don Miller who nearly reject being labeled as "emergent" all together. This isn't a denomination. It doesn't have a creed or statement of faith. Its just the beginnings of people exploring new and ancient ways at looking at a faith that has become entrenched in western, enlightenment modernism. Don't assume that just because one "leader" in the emerging community says something that the rest of the community agrees. In fact, agreement isn't even the point. Conversation is.

By the way, I will refer to the emerging church as "we" in this reply...not because I speak for them, nor am I any sort of expert - but I count myself as part of the conversation - and it makes it easier ;)

Your first statement is about "Absolute Truth". There is no way that I can sum up how many in the emerging church feel about this phrase. To say that those in the emergent community do not believe in absolute truth is not totally accurate. I can tell you that the origins of the phrase "absolute truth" are more post-enlightenment and scientific than they are Biblical. It is unfortunate that the AT phrase has been used as a weapon in the American culture wars. In seeking to define the differences between Christianity and the pluralistic society that we live in, writers like Josh McDowell have wielded AT as a club to fight off what they see as moral relativism. But what exactly is "absolute truth""? First off, what is truth? When a person stands in a court of law and promises to tell the "truth" what is he saying? Is it possible for him to have the perspective of God and tell the "absolute" truth? Of course not. He tells the truth as best he can in the way he has experienced it. You mention that the Bible is AT. Further, a "literal" interpretation of the Bible. But I wonder if ladies in your church wear gold jewelry or braid their hair? Do you allow them to speak in church services? Have you sold all your possessions and given them to the poor, or does your congregation live communally and equally, freely sharing all your wealth? How do you justify ignoring strict, black and white, and "absolute" commands that women are to pray with their heads covered in church? Very simply, Christians have said that the Bible is True, but that God has given us the freedom and the ability to interpret it. ALL scripture has to be interpreted. And who interprets the Bible? Infallible people who are never wrong? Consider the following quotes:

This fool [Copernicus] wishes to reverse the entire science of astronomy; but sacred scripture tells us that Joshua commanded the sun to stand still, and not the earth." (Martin Luther)
"We indeed are not ignorant, that the circuit of the heavens is finite, and that the earth, like a little globe, is placed in the center." (John Calvin)"But as to the fable that there are Antipodes, that is to say, men on the opposite side of the earth, where the sun rises when it sets to us, men who walk with their feet opposite ours, that is on no ground credible. And, indeed, it is not affirmed that this has been learned by historical knowledge, but by scientific conjecture." (Saint Augustine)

My favorite one is from Luther, who uses the Bible to call Copernicus a fool for not believing the earth is the center of the universe. He held the Bible to be literally true as well. You don't think he was committed to "absolute truth"? Surely. But he was absolutely wrong.
And Truth as a concept is so deep and beyond our understanding that when we add a qualifier to it like "absolute" - it becomes even more difficult to define. Might I suggest that you take a pen and paper and write out all the things you know to be "absolutely" true? My feelings are that if you are honest - it will be a short list. Again, its not that those in the emerging church don't believe in truth that is absolute, nor do we believe that the Bible is any less true, its just that we realize that the only real truth is in God, not in man.

Next you make this statement, "Brian McLauren have no solid theology and use the emergent church to appeal to Post-Modernism." and "the Emergent Church is very very squishy, I think this goes back to the post modernity of the whole situation. Nothing is clear."

I wonder what your definition of "solid" is. If you mean by "solid" that his theology is not "sound", well that would depend on your theological leanings. Just because I may not agree with a Mormon would not mean that his theology wasn't well-developed. But I suspect that you are implying that McLaren (and later Rob Bell) are sometimes vague and less than direct in their statements of belief. I would have to agree. Even those in the emergent community get frustrated at the way these guys skirt around controversial topics and leave such room for questions and uncertainty. All I can say is that at the very heart of the emerging way of thinking (and maybe even post-modernism in general) is a desire to embrace the unknown. To stop acting like we have it all figured out and begin to accept that its OK to ask questions. I suspect that you have done the same thing in certain areas of theology. Take free-will verses predestination for example. Can you explain that? It it possible to completely come up with the "final word" on those apparent opposites? What about the Trinity? You can't honestly tell me you understand that key doctrine. It doesn't make any sense and yet I know its true. We have embraced it as a mystery - and even the hardest fundamentalist is OK with that.
So what the emerging church has done is to simply say that there is a whole lot more that we don't know. And its not that its unknowable - its just that its not possible to ever end the discussion...that God put us in community and gave us the Holy Spirit and minds and intellect so that we can keep searching and keep asking and keep looking and keep talking. For many people, including me, this doesn't diminish the value of God or Truth - it gives them a proper respect.

Along with this you point out that in SexGod that Bell "gives a very wrong (half) definition of sin, and Hell. Sin Separates us from God, yes this is true but it is more then that, Sin Angers God, it breaks his Law." First off, SexGod isn't an evangelistic book. Its not written on systematic theology. Nowhere in it does Bell claim to give the complete soteriological definition of sin. Really, he isnt even defining it when he says that sin separates us from God. He is simply stating one of the main results of sin. And this is "very wrong"? You want Bell to talk about all of the effects of sin or to define sin - but that's not what the book is about. Its about the relationship between Sexuality and Spirituality. Regardless of what his critics say, Rob Bell does talk about sin and he has sermons online that are completely about hell. Its just that Rob spends more time talking about the sins you and I are guilty of; greed, anger, materialism, pride, self-righteousness, violence, lack of forgiveness...I wonder if some of his critics would also have been critical of another famous teacher. Perhaps it bothers us that almost every time Jesus mentioned hell or sin he wasn't talking to prostitutes, drunkards, pagans or homosexuals...he was talking to religious people. Ouch.

You mention that, "The Emergent Church over emphasizes the value of Humanity". I understand how you might see that. Especially having read SexGod. But this (along with your closing comments) isn't something I want to debate because its much larger than just the values of the emerging church. There are plenty of good Bible Believing Baptists who do not hold to a Calvinistic view of salvation. This message is much too limited to begin debating Calvinism and I personally try and stay out of those debates because no one ever changes their mind. I will say, however, that Jesus must have seen some value in us to become one us us, live among us, cry over us, and die for us. John 3:16 does say that God gave up his only Son because he loved the world. So I'm thinking He must really care about us a little bit. And sure our worth only comes from God. And any goodness that we have is only there because God gave it to us...but I don't know anyone who is arguing the opposite.

A little note: when you mention, "This is what catches me off guard about the Rob Bell Tour "The Gods are Not Angry" Notice God(s) is Plural." You missed the fact that the 'G' in gods is lowercase. And having read and listen to Bell a lot I'm assuming that the topic of this tour is based on elevating Christianity past the pagan views of an angry god who has to be appeased. Think about it: Some tribe in a jungle somewhere feels the rumbling of the earth and figures that the gods must be angry - so they pick a virgin, tie her up, and throw her into the volcano hoping to appease the wrath of the gods. How is that different than our over-simplified (and very modern) telling of the Gospel? Don't we teach that "God is soooo pissed off and He needs to punish someone - somebody has got to pay...oh, wait! there's Jesus! Let's beat him up and nail him to a cross (basically the entire theme of The Passion of the Christ)...OK, now God isn't angry any more...accept that Jesus took your beating and you can go to Heaven." Maybe saying it like this is offensive, but this is exactly the way it has been presented in most evangelical circles. And its no different than the way people in other religions have viewed their gods. Do you see how we may need a different narrative to explain what Jesus did for us? That maybe the Gospel needs to be elevated out of the jungle?

And finally, I would like to encourage you continue to examine all sides of every issue. Its very encouraging that you are reading and listening to people you don't agree with. I wish more people would do that. Also, the emerging church "movement" is not about being relevant. Dressing down, rock n roll worship, and silly youth activities are the products of the modern church - not the post-modern one. What most emergents would preach is simply being ourselves. The modern church would suggest being someone else in order to reach a target audience. The emergent church says reach the culture you are in right now. Its the modern church that says be hip and dress cool so you can market the Gospel to a hip and cool culture not the emergent one. The nooma videos were so well done because they reflected the personalities of the people who produced them - not becuse they were some marketing scheme or an attempt to be cool. I think there is a whole lot of "truth" you may have been missing in the emerging church.

peace.

Scott

"defending" the emerging church

2007-08-24T06:19:00.000-05:00

a good friend of mine, Marcus Pittman, lives in VA Beach and runs "Transplant Ministries", an outreach specializing in video media and cultural review. I think the more I have explored the emerging church the further he has gotten away from it.

We have started at dialog of sorts and I asked permission to post our discussion on here. It can be a bit longer than my usual posts, but I think you will enjoy reading them.

from marcus:

Hey Scott this it Marcus Pittman. I know we haven't talked a lot and when we have talked it seems to be in a discussion with very little replies, but I wanted to know what you think og the Emergent Church. It is not intended as a form of debate but mainly so I can find out from someone I know as a first hand. I will tell you from what I have personally read, heard and discovered.

My main concern with The Emergent Church is the lack of Absolute Truth, people like Brian McLauren have no solid theology and use the emergent church to appeal to Post-Modernism. I believe the Word is the Absolute Truth and we cannot sway on that, and yes I do take the bible literally. Second the Emergent Church is very very squishy, I think this goes back to the post modernity of the whole situation. Nothing is clear. When I read SEX GOD by Rob Bell, he gives a very wrong (half) definition of sin, and Hell. Sin Separates us from God, yes this is true but it is more then that, Sin Angers God, it breaks his Law. God Stores Wrath. I think The Emergent Church confuses the singular term for Love and doesn't distinguish between the three separate types. I can easily explain this by saying this quote from an unknown pastor "Of Course God Loves You, but it's not some sort of Pampering Love, it's a Perfecting Love" It just seems to me that many leaders in the Emergent Church are "Emo" and they have thrown that humanistic form of Love/Relationship upon God. It is a very Puny view of God. Second Rob Bell stated "God is in You, He is in Me God is In Everything" and he used the whole Were Created in the Image of Man out of context to form a Pantheistic view of God. Pure and Simple this is Heresy.

Finally The Emergent Church over emphasizes the value of Humanity. Now social issues aside, I am simply talking about the value they hold human beings to. Sure God holds us in value but remember all of human kind is inherently wicked. To look upon ourselves and place value upon ourselves limit's the Gospel. The Greater the Sin, The Greater the Savior, Romans 5:20 God is so much more then feelings and emotions. He is not a squishy teddy bear, he is the God who flooded the Earth because he was angry at Sin. This is what catches me off guard about the Rob Bell Tour "The Gods are Not Angry" Notice God(s) is Plural. The bible says that God is angry and he is storing his wrath for Judgment Day. When we limit the Wrath of God we make the salvation very insignificant. I guess it is also up for debate on the whole "Does God love EVERYONE" but God also hates people. Esau for example. How can God love the World, yet Hate the Wicked? I heard it best put like this "God Loves Humanity but hates the wicked, just as I love Vegetables but hate Asparagus" I hardly hear any emphasis on Hell, and without Hell there is no Glory givn to God fro saving us...If Christ died to save us then what did he save us from. Anyways these are just my ramblings as I am very torn between this whole movement which sounds good, and some parts may be, it's just if some of the Emergent Leaders are preaching a false Gospel, then we need to throw them Out...The Book of Jude says "Certain men have Crept in Unnoticed" instead of accusing Fundamentalist of despising the Emergent Church because it brings forth change, maybe it is because there are some corrupt teachings sprinkled around a lot of truth. I'll end with this, The Reason I am so against this whole Movement is because I was at one time so for it. As you know I have come along way since I attended your church over a year ago. I LOVED the Nooma Videos, as someone who is into video production they are the best videos available in Christianity... But after hearing that people were against people like Rob Bell and Donald Miller I really wanted to find out why. I thought it was just angry fundamentalist who like hymns sort of thing. But upon peronsla investigation and reading "The Truth War" by John MacArthur I found out that it is in fact far more serious, gravely serious and I am thankful God called me out of that, in fact My Youth Group dropped to two people, but the strong Christians stayed with me even with the absence of Games,and we just studied the Word, now we go street preaching and do some Open Air and slowly we are gaining more youth back but our foundation is so much stronger.

There is just such a demand to be relevant, but really The Word is timeless, and culture less. The Word is Relevant...Sola Scriptura. The Word Alone. Anyways I really would like to hear your opinon, I am not arguing for arguing ake, I just really want to hear from someone I respect their opinion. Marcus

its easier to stick your head in the sand...

2007-08-17T09:46:00.000-05:00

I am coming to realize that in matters of love, life, and especially faith - its so much easier to just bury your head all the way up to the neck in a beach somewhere than it is to confront a world that doesn't fit nicely into little boxes.

I often talk on this blog about this "journey" I have been on. Some of the path has been paved by my heredity, with my dad being the slightly rebel fundamentalist. Some of it has been actually breaking free from my family and exploring what I really believe for myself. An even bigger section of this trail (into the great unknown) is the blatant hypocrisy and corrupt nature of the "faithful"around me. And then there is a feeling that I have been pushed, rather forcefully onward down the path.

Last night I was reading a book about textual criticism ("Misquoting Jesus - the story behind those who changed the Bible and Why") and I came to a section that kicked me in the head and really challenged what I hold to be true. And to be honest, my first instinct was to shrug it off, ignore what I had just read, and move on.

Because its easier to stick your head in the sand...

A friend of mine (who has experienced about 10% of what I am talking about here) said to me a few months ago, "You know, I'm tired of feeling like I don't know anything. I tired of feeling like I'm falling, floating, with no ground beneath me. I just want to find out what I know and then hold on to those things and just live my life without all this doubt."

Amen. Sounds nice...however, that is the safe path. Its the wide path. There are plenty of (most) people who take that.

I think I'm gonna keep fighting the high weeds and poorly marked Way.

picture: family hiking trip

im a jerk

2007-08-14T13:46:00.000-05:00

im realizing more and more that friendship is the most difficult thing on earth...well, relationships in general.

in the past few days i have had conversations with two different people about problems in our friendship. its tough.

i think a lot of the problem, if not most, comes from pride and selfishness. i seem very eager to have people serve me, but i have a hard time serving others.

and relationships are the principle way we become like God. i am certain that we were meant to live as social creatures - not alone from our own kind - not just to fix the problem of loneliness, but also because it is the ultimate tool for self-transformation.

in the context of relationship we get to practice the god-like characteristics of love, forgiveness, sacrifice.

and the more i think about it - the more i realize how unlike God that I really am.

picture: friend bear

mute math on tour /w eisley!!!

2007-08-09T07:17:00.000-05:00

two of my favorite bands are touring this fall together...i will not miss these shows. check out the video to see one of the reasons I love mutemath so much.

amazing

the gods arent angry

2007-08-09T06:54:00.000-05:00

Rob Bell will be going on tour this fall. looks like they picked mid-sized venues this time. i wanted to go see him when he was at cat's cradle in carborro, nc - but every where Rob went, it sold out...i have a feeling these venues will do well for him as well...its being advertised through concert promotions. from the site thegodsarentangrytour.com

Part anthropology, part history, part deconstruction - this is new material that Rob hasn't taught before, exploring how humans invented religion to make themselves feel better.\

I'm excited....need to decide if i want to go to D.C. or Raleigh for this one...

at the breast...

2007-08-08T12:01:00.000-05:00

its about time....

the New York Post reports that 11 hospitals run by the city's Health and Hospitals Corp. have decided to STOP giving out free samples of formula and pro-formula promotional propaganda when new mothers leave the hospital.

"Instead, new mothers will get a tote bag stuffed with disposable nursing pads, a mini-cooler for breast-milk bottles, and pint-sized T-shirts for the babies that proudly declare 'I eat at mom's.'"

awesome. next week is 'national breastfeeding week'.

our family is very pro-breastfeeding. my wife nursed both of our children past a year of age.

its best for the child. better for the mom. more environmentally sound. and is a punch in the eye to these mega-corporations like nestle' who spend billions every year encouraging women not to provide the very best to their children. Not only do they hand out free samples in US hospitals to encourage the bottle habit (and line their pockets), but they have hurt the nutrition of children worldwide by getting women in third world countries to give up breastfeeding - all in the name of making a buck.

i look forward to your comments on this one ;)

don miller interview

2007-08-07T07:13:00.000-05:00

check out this new article in Christianity today about Blue Like Jazz author Don Miller. Good stuff.

police wear hello kitty

2007-08-07T06:53:00.000-05:00

speaking of communication vs. violence....how about using "shame" as punishment?

The AP reports:

Thai police officers who break rules will be forced to wear hot pink armbands featuring "Hello Kitty," the Japanese icon of cute, as a mark of shame, a senior officer said Monday.
Police officers caught littering, parking in a prohibited area, or arriving late — among other misdemeanors — will be forced to stay in the division office and wear the armband all day, said Police Col. Pongpat Chayaphan.

Simple warnings no longer work. This new twist is expected to make them feel guilt and shame and prevent them from repeating the offense, no matter how minor," said Pongpat, acting chief of the Crime Suppression Division in Bangkok.

so I'm thinking if we just make all the terrorists wear pink...problem solved?

lets talk about this?

2007-08-07T06:30:00.000-05:00

how effective is dialog when someone wants you dead? i think that's huge question of division among those in the "culture wars". on the left, there are many who advocate dialog and discussion to prevent, deal with, and end conflict. but the war hawks on the right are insistent that force is the only way to make people listen.

two current events highlight the differences...the Korean hostage situation and comments about Pakistan by Barak Obama.

The LA Times reports this morning that Steven Kwon, a Korean American who had worked in Afghanistan delivering nutritional aid to children and families has written a letter to the Taliban, urging them to provide "forgiveness of the South Korean Christian aid workers for "holding the Bible on Afghan soil" and [allow] their return to their families."

does talk work? do terrorists really care about dialog?

Barak Obama caught heat from Hillary Clinton (of all people) when he said that he would sit down and talk to the leaders of "rogue" nations like Iran, Cuba, and North Korea. He then pulled a complete 180 by suggesting a military invasion of Pakistan. A Presidential candidate can't seem weak now can he?

and talk seems so weak...to the systems of this world anyway. I think Ghandi would disagree. I think Martin Luther King Jr. would too. And I'm pretty sure I know what Jesus would do. thoughts?

when having babies is sin (?)

2007-08-03T07:55:00.000-05:00

the arkansas Duggar family has had its 17th baby. Jim Bob and Michelle's new little girl joins the homeschooling brood and mom says she's not about to stop.

now first, let me say that I am NOT against having a lot of kids. we have two children, but that's by choice, and in case you were wondering we don't use chemical birth control for personal ethical reasons. AND I am not on the population control side of things because I feel that a few extra children born in the rich United States have at least the potential for more good than harm to the world's resources and ecology.

BUT, I have some misgivings - and it would be nice to generate some discussion and perhaps another spin-off post.

First, it can be unfair to your first children when you continue to have more of them. Not only do you have less time to invest in them, but they grow up very fast - taking the responsibilities of surrogate parent. The Duggar's oldest child is 18 and she carries the load of changing diapers, handling feeding times, arranging naps, cooking meals, cleaning the house, homeschooling...I wonder when any of the older children have had time to be children? I wonder how many kids these kids will have when they grow up?

Second, I question - why? People collect all kinds of things. Stamps, Records, antiques, kids ...but at some point their collecting can turn into sin. Idolatry when we nearly worship our "stuff", covetousness when we always want what someone else has, greed when enough is never enough, and pride when we get our value from our collection rather than from God. More is not always better.

I would also like to comment on the style of discipline for this family - but will save that for another post.

a martyr: to be or not to be

2007-08-02T06:35:00.000-05:00

so Thursday's update on the Korean hostage situation is that nothing has changed. And I'm not too sure why we should expect it to, since the Afghan government isn't going to release any of its Taliban prisoners (as they have said from the start), the US government doesn't even negotiate with terrorists (as they have said from the start), and the militants keep setting "deadlines" that keep being broke...

two men have died. twenty one hostages remain. no military action is planned. why do kidnappers do this? are they ignorant of the consequences? do they ever get their demands? (OK, well sometimes they do - and that's why they keep on taking hostages)

but it begs the question: Should Christians even be going into mostly Muslim Afghanistan? I have read reader comments and news commentary suggesting that it is not only foolish to send Christian missionaries to dangerous areas, but may also be wrong (after all, these people don't need Jesus shoved down their throats, right?)

but I think the answer is "yes", Christians need to be there even more than before. Modern mission work is culturally sensitive. Open proselytizing isn't happening. And the services offered are humanitarian. Are we to label the too men who have lost their lives (and become martyrs) as foolish - when they were in Afghanistan to teach children, provide medical assistance, and improve living conditions for people who didn't choose the war they find themselves in? Of course not, these people are heroes...and the message of the Gospel will be spread more in the high cost they have had to pay for loving as Jesus loved - because they were willing to die as Jesus died.

picture: the body of Sung-min, 29, he loved Jesus and he loved people

good news

2007-07-31T20:13:00.000-05:00

finally a bit of good news in the world.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown spoke to he UN today and urged "people power" to remember the UN's Millennium Development Goals - a plan to end extreme poverty by 2015.

My wife, some friends, and I attended an Episcopal u2charist and was impressed by that denomination's emphasis on those goals - lets hope the rest of the world jumps on board.

AND...

the UK reports: Gordon Brown scored a dramatic first foreign policy victory last night when the UN security council voted to deploy a 26,000-strong international force to Darfur, with a mandate to stop the massacres of civilians which have driven 2 million people from their homes.

kudos for mr. brown -

hostage video released

2007-07-31T13:21:00.000-05:00

the following video was released to al-jazeera today...

lets mock the emergent church

2007-07-31T06:46:00.001-05:00

a link to these posters is on the emergent village - i thought you might enjoy them. very well done and nearly offensive because they distort what the emerging church believes. i like 'em. and besides, this one makes me thirsty....

check out the rest of them and have a chuckle.

another hostage killed

2007-07-31T06:30:00.001-05:00

From reuters news service:

The body of another South Korean hostage was found today. It is Shim Sung-min, 29, a former employee of an IT firm who did volunteer work to help the poor. Shim's mother cried hysterically after hearing the victim may have been her son. "Why did you kill him? Please save his life," she said through her tears.

Shim's father, a provincial assembly member, described his son as a gentle soul. "He had a good heart and did a lot of volunteer work. My son also wanted to help the poor and disabled," Shim Chin-pyo told reporters.

The Taliban shot Shim after other deadlines they had set for the release of rebel prisoners expired.

hostage situation drags on...

2007-07-30T11:50:00.000-05:00

Taliban militants have said they will hold off on killing any more of the Christian Korean hostages until Wednesday at 4...

from a Bangkok media source:

The body of Bae, [the pastor killed last week] who is survived by his wife and a 9-year-old daughter, was flown back to Seoul on Monday.

One of the female hostages has pleaded for help from the government in Seoul in a telephone interview published in Monday's JoongAng Ilbo newspaper. "We are sorry to have caused this trouble. We want to get out of here as soon as possible," Lee Ji Young, 34, was quoted as saying.

"Don't worry too much about me," she also said in a message to her parents. Lee had to consult with the kidnappers during the telephone interview that was conducted with a journalist on Sunday evening, the newspaper reported.

"We have not been threatened in any specific way," Lee said. JoongAng Ilbo said that Lee had been in Afghanistan since 2006 to teach children how to use computers.

She was working as an interpreter for the abducted church group from South Korea.

exorcism

2007-07-30T07:30:00.000-05:00

...police found a disturbing scene when they answered a call from neighbors in Phoenix on Saturday. Pushing their way into a bedroom blocked by the bed against the door they discovered an 18 year old naked women covered in blood and her shirtless grandfather who held the woman's three year old daughter in a choke hold. They were performing an exorcism and the man refused to let go of the little girl, falling back on the bed and kicking a police officer who used a stun gun on him. Another officer came in and tazered gramps who ended up dying at the hospital because he had stopped breathing.

I'm pretty certain is wasn't the little girl that needed to have a demon cast out of her.

Korean hostage was a pastor

2007-07-26T06:25:00.000-05:00

the south korean hostage killed yesterday was Bae Hyung-kyu, a pastor and leader of the group who was murdered on his 42nd birthday.

Apparently, 8 prisoners where NOT released and it looks like that was bad information. So the fate of the remaining 22 has yet to be seen.

According to a news report from India: Negotiations on 22 South Korean hostages are going "very well" despite some "technical problems", and they might be freed later Thursday,

Afghanistan's Ghazni provincial police chief Alishah Ahmadzai said. He did not elaborate on the "technical problems", saying he would speak in detail after the hostages were released.

picture: Villagers participate in a rally demanding the release of hostages in Ghazni, Afghanistan, Tuesday.

whats wrong with torture porn???

2007-07-25T12:48:00.000-05:00

i have plenty of friends (christian friends) who have seen the 'Saw' movies. A few others have been delighted by 'hostel' and the other gross-out/slasher knockoffs.

its a poor trend in popular filmaking. And its frightening too, especially when the taget audience (studios wont admit this) is teenage boys. The films have become so popular that a new term has been floating around: torture porn.

And thats just what it is.

definition of pornography: "obscene writings, drawings, photographs, or the like, esp. those having little or no artistic merit."

horror films have often mixed sex with violence...how many times have we seen the co-eds sneak off for some making out before the serial killer puts a knife through someone's temple? But the new breed of torture porn takes this more than a step further - not even bothering to scare the viewer, the goal seems to be disgust and titillation.

and while I am pretty progressive when it comes to the actual roal media plays in shaping culture, I would have to say that I for one do not see much hope for the real-life oppressed, exploited, and abused when an entire generation is being exposed to extended scenes of blood, torture, and nudity - calling it entertainment.

picture: 'captivity' - where the only character developement we have for our victim who gets tortured for an hour and a half is that she loves her dog.

Hostages: 1 killed, 8 released

2007-07-25T12:11:00.000-05:00

the body of one of the hostages has been recovered, while 8 others were released and are now at a US military base... AP reports: six women and two men had been taken to the main U.S. base in Ghazni.

lets continue to pray.

picture: "South Koreans light candles during a rally demanding for the safe return of their kidnapped compatriots and the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, in Seoul July 25, 2007. " - reuters

Illegal immigration and OUR corruption

2007-07-25T06:36:00.000-05:00

you really must read this article on First Things...one of the best commentaries on immigration that I have ever read. Regardless of where you stand on the issue - writer Michael Linton exposes our own humanity (or lack thereof).

He states: While it’s our opportunity and freedom that draws illegal immigrants to the United States, it’s our greed that shackles and corrupts them. That shackles and corrupts us, as well—in more comfortable but more damning ways.

Taliban says "patience running out"

2007-07-25T06:31:00.000-05:00

and yet another deadline has been set by the Taliban...5:30 this afternoon (EST). They said that by that time Afghan prisoners need to start being released or people are going to die.

I can only imagine what the family members of these Korean Christians must be going through.

picture: family awaits news reports

missionary hostage update

2007-07-24T12:19:00.000-05:00

the Taliban is holding off on killing any of its 23 Korean Christian hostages as the Tuesday deadline passes, and are now demanding a list of 8 prisoners be exchanged for 8 hostages. Officials are describing the negotiations as in the "critical" stage and the Taliban has said it will not extend the deadline again.

meanwhile, the National Council of Churches in Korea is calling on all missionary activity in Afghanistan to stop because of the current danger to Christians. This begs the question of when it is appropriate to risk one's life for the Gospel? When does faith pass reason?

on a side note, Radio Free Europe reports that "Some 1,000 Afghans took to the streets of Kandahar today to protest the kidnappings. Chanting anti-Taliban slogans, the protesters said the abduction of the mostly female Christian aid workers is un-Islamic."

hope.

starbucks evangelism

2007-07-24T11:04:00.000-05:00

im sitting here thinking:

i bet i can visit 171 churches in one day in my town. (sad)

when does a company become a virus?

what can we learn about materialism and our land of prosperity?

are we all really this bored?

can the church learn anything from this?

Deadline for hostages this afternoon

2007-07-24T07:26:00.000-05:00

the extended deadline for captured Christians working in Afghanistan is this afternoon at 7:00 (sundown in Afghanistan)...that means by noon American Eastern Standard we should have another update.

i came across this BBC article while looking for sources. It warns of danger to relief agencies working in Afghanistan because of instability there - two days before the Korean hostages were taken.

I wonder if we had not sent more aid workers around the world before Sept. 11th if we wouldn't have solved a few problems. As Freddie Haynes preached at Sojourners this year - we have plenty of money to KILL people, but we cant seem to find the money to HEAL people.

picture: a family member of one of the hostages reacts to news report

Defense Against The Dark Arts

2007-07-23T22:12:00.000-05:00

what would a Biblical 'Defense Against the Dark Arts' curriculum look like?

My friend Auri has a blog (link on this page) in which he recently explored the poor state of our christian 'light' - concluding that our adversary really isn't afraid of the spiritual wands of many Christians.

Without taking the Harry Potter theme too far - I wonder what many of you feel about spiritual warfare...what is it? And how do Christians participate in it, and does God really want/need us participating in this wizardly battle?

thoughts?

hostage deadline extended

2007-07-23T10:25:00.000-05:00

Taliban militants have extended the deadline for the Korean hostage situation so that the Afghan government can have more time to meet their demands. I'm not sure how much more time they have given, and news sources are sketchy.

The hostages are reportedly in strong health at this point as they have been treated very fairly thus far with the exception of the fact that they have not been released. Reports are that is the rebels see any attempt of force by the government to free them that they will kill the hostages.

picture: the group in a February 13th photo

monday morning 8:30 am hostage update

2007-07-23T07:29:00.000-05:00

The AP reports this morning that "the militants were giving the Afghan and South Korean governments until 7 p.m. (10:30 a.m. EDT) Monday to respond to their demands.
Afghan elders leading the hostage negotiations met with the kidnappers Sunday and reported that the Koreans were healthy, said Khwaja Mohammad Sidiqi, the police chief of Qarabagh district in Ghazni district, where the Koreans were kidnapped Thursday while riding on a bus from Kabul to Kandahar on Afghanistan's major highway.

The Afghan military has the region surrounded in case the government decides the military should move in."

picture: South Koreans are protesting for the group's safe return

23 Christian hostages held over weekend

2007-07-23T06:17:00.001-05:00

The 23 Christian Aid workers kidnapped by the Taliban over the weekend in Afghanistan are still being held over demands that the government release Taliban prisoners held in Afghan jails.

Korean media outlet 'The Chosum llbo reports:

Since the end of the U.S.-led war in 2002, 400 to 500 Korean evangelicals have visited the country every year for medical volunteer work and to offer education for children and youths, advice on information technology, and advice on agriculture.

During the vacations, many go on short-term missions. Local missionaries help each church or organization locate the targets. The kidnapped members of the Saemmul church in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province were apparently on such a short-term mission.

In an interview with the Arabic satellite TV channel Al Jazeera on Saturday, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a purported spokesman for the Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, said that the detained Koreans were carrying out "missionary activities." He added, "Afghanistan is an Islamic republic where conversion from Islam or attempting to convert Muslims is regarded as a serious crime in several areas." Islam experts say this is not based on hostility to Christianity itself but because Islam condemns apostasy.

we have a long way to go....

please pray for these hostages - my guess is that much of the media will forget about them...

pray and lose your job

2007-07-22T20:54:00.000-05:00

the associated press reported today that a dozens of Somali workers at a meatpacking plant have been fired or harassed into quitting because they desired to pray the maghrib, a Muslim prayer performed at sun-down.

Jama Mohamed, 28, said he was fired in June for leaving a production line to pray. Supervisors would not allow him a break, he said.

"Some of them took the (prayer) mat from me; they started shouting, they started telling me to stop it, and one of them grabbed me by the collar of my shirt," Mohamed said through an interpreter.

"I was crying at the time this was happening to me, and when I finished I told them while they were doing that I was in the middle of a prayer."
Mohamed said he was then called to an office, where a supervisor fired him.

Dan Hoppes, president of Local 22 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, said he had not heard of many Somali workers being fired or harassed since May. Prayer breaks are not in the contract, he said, but he hopes to revisit the issue in negotiations in 2010.

that's comforting...only three more years to wait for religious freedom!

Tammy Faye - emergent christian?

2007-07-21T20:41:00.000-05:00

Tammy Faye ended her battle cancer this afternoon and joined her Savior.

For all her surreal campiness, Tammy Faye was a picture of a faith that not only embraced culture...it was culture. She was someone we wanted to disavow as "one of us" and yet someone we couldn't take our eyes off of. And through the televangelism scandals of the '8os only God knows how many people found faith in Christ through the bizarre lifestyle of Tammy Faye and her husband Jim Baker.

In 2005 she appeared on the WB reality show "The Surreal Life," co-starring with former rapper Vanilla Ice and ex-porn star Ron Jeremy. She told Larry King that she didn't know who Jeremy was when they met and they became friends.

Maybe Tammy Faye could teach us all about what real Christianity is.

abortion no longer the key issue for Christian voters?

2007-07-21T19:25:00.000-05:00

it will be interesting to see how the abortion conversation evolves over the next couple years, especially as we get close to election '08.
AP reports on Friday that Giuliani has said, "Abortion is not a litmus test. Roe v. Wade is not a litmus test. No particular case is a litmus test. That's not the way to appoint Supreme Court justices or any judge."

Meanwhile the "new Reagan" Fred Thompson (a Christian conservative favorite) has been rumoured to have once lobbied for the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association and his private senate correspondence shows someone who seemed to believe that abortion was a private moral issue.

On the other side, Democrats look like they are softening their stance as well. Hillary Clinton, in remarks she made at the Sojourners Faith forum I attended, made the statement that "the pro-life and the pro-choice communities have not really been willing to find much common ground, and I think that is a great failing on our parts, because for me there are many opportunities...and i would be willing to find some common ground".

i hope Christians find voting a lot harder in 2008.

a Christian Harry Potter?

2007-07-21T08:39:00.000-05:00

potter mania has struck again with the release of the last book in J.K. Rowling's amazing series and while some Christians have laid down the protest banners, others have discovered a fantasy series of their own.

Wayne Thomas Batson, along with Thomas Nelson publishers, have produced a quality trilogy called "The Door Within". The series was completed last year and even devout fantasy fans were impressed (not just devout Christians). Batson is set to release his latest work the "Isle of Swords" next month -

sooo much better than protests...

now onto reading 'the deathly hallows' while I wait for Batson's new book.

new blog experiment

2007-07-20T13:02:00.000-05:00

im rethinking the purpose and scope of this blog...and am going to begin setting up an experiment...

i feel like there is a need for news and commentary on world religion (with Christianity as a focus) and filtered through an emerging perspective. So.....lets see how it goes.

listen to: the cobalt season

2007-07-17T09:36:00.000-05:00

i'm pretty excited. one of my new favorite

groups is on a tour of sorts (doing coffee joints, churches, house shows) and they are passing through our area.

my family will be hosting them in our home for a fun night of music, fellowship, and conversation.

they have been featured on Emergent Village and much credit goes to Brian Mclaren for the following endorsement:

“I just got back from Africa and have been listening to In Search of a Unified Theory nonstop for a couple days. I’m totally blown away. I really liked "But I Tell You", but this one just soars. The lyrics are powerful. The songs themselves are so strong, so well structured. The vocals are perfect. And the arrangements are completely amazing. I thought of several of my favorite bands - Innocence Mission, the Weepies, and Sigur Rós. This CD should win a bunch of awards. Thanks for making it, man!”

the event will be on november 5th (one day before our (phoebe and me) birthday) and Ill keep you posted with more details

http://thecobaltseason.com
http://www.myspace.com/cobaltseason