eastern iowa emergent cohort

February Gathering

2012-01-29T20:48:00.002-06:00

The cohort will be having it's February meeting on the 15th at noon at Tierra Coffee in Coralville. Our meeting will feature compelling conversation about Kathy Escobar's book, Down We Go: Living Into The Wild Ways of Jesus. Come on out. Invite your thirsty friends :)

Thanks for today!

2012-01-11T16:16:00.002-06:00

Hey, it was great to be with you all today at Tiera Coffee shop in Iowa City. I enjoyed our discussion of "The Politics of Jesus." Wish we could use this blog spot for more discussion in between meetings. Oh well, just ordered the Escobar book on the "wild ways of Jesus" and am already looking forward to our February discussion. See you then!

November Gathering

2011-11-02T15:51:00.002-05:00

We are planning another gathering on November 16th at noon. We will be meeting again at Tierra Coffee in Coralville. I recommend the grapefruit thingy I had last time. Yum!

We plan to discuss Julie Clawson's book, Everyday Justice. So, get your copy however you can and read up, so you can join in the conversation. This time we are trying to have participants share a chapter if reading a whole book is proving a challenge. Let us know which chapter you want to share. Hope to see you there!

2011-09-17T09:10:00.000-05:00

We are planning another gathering on October 12th at noon. We have new digs since our last hang out closed. The new place is called Tierra Coffee in Coralville. I think you will like it and it is still a central location (although, I can no longer just walk across the parking lot :).

We plan to discuss Alan Hirsch's book, The Forgotten Ways: Reactivating the Missional Church. So, get your copy however you can and read up, so you can join in the conversation. Hope to see you there!

September Gathering

2011-08-23T23:10:00.000-05:00

We are planning another gathering in September. This time I have invited everyone to my house in Kalona. We plan to meet Monday evening September 12th at 5:30 p.m. Let's make it a potluck and everyone bring something to share. I will have the grill fired up if you would like to bring some type of meat. Our regular meeting place has closed, but we hope to meet in October at Capanna's new place just a few minutes north on 965 in North Liberty.

September 12th we plan to discuss Tony Jones' new e-book The Church is Flat: The Relational Ecclesiology of the Emerging Church Movement. This is his Ph.D. dissertation, so buckle up. Tony has agreed to join us by video conference. We are going to try and do the Google+ "hang out" group video chat. If you can't come to the gathering, but would like to join in from where ever you are search for me on goggle+ and add me to one of your circles. I will add you and make sure you know about the "hang out". If you are new to google+, email me and I will send you an invite and some info.

Cohort Meeting Wednesday!

2011-08-15T21:53:00.000-05:00

This Wednesday, August 17th we will be gathering again for good coffee (fair trade of course), good conversation and good people. We will meet in the usual spot at the usual time. We plan to discuss Shane Claiborne's book, The Irresistible Revolution. I have to be honest, this guy is the real deal. Many of you remember we have had authors join us over Skype to discuss their books with us. I didn't even try to get him to join us this time. I would be too ashamed of my conspicuous consumption. The Holy Spirit really has been speaking to me through this guy. I'll be interested how some others reacted to this book.

I found an interesting article he wrote for Esquire some time back that is making a comeback on many blogs recently. What is so interesting to me is how it seems to allude to Rob Bell's book Love Wins. The problem is that it was written in 2009. I wondered if Rob got some of his ideas from Shane...

I'm also eager to hear more from Deb about The Wild Goose Festival. She wrote in her blog that she first got the idea from Brian McLaren in one of our cohort Skype conversations. How cool is that? Hope to see you Wednesday :) Lon

"You're Doing It Wrong"

2011-07-09T19:59:00.000-05:00

This coming Wednesday our group will get together again. And among other things, we plan to discuss Rob Bell's book Jesus Wants to Save Christians. When his recent book, Love Wins came out I thought to myself the former was a much more controversial book. I wondered, "why wasn't there much protest about that one?" Well, I guess Rob Bell wondered the same thing. Listening to Bell's interview recently on the Homebrewed Christianity podcast he said as much.

In Jesus Wants to Save Christians, essentially Bell calls out every American Christian and says "how could someone on the right side of the most powerful empire the world has ever known be able to understand, much less take correct action in accordance with a story told from the perspective of a people under the boot of the empire." He says loud and clear, "You're doing it wrong" and then gives lots of examples of how to do it right. It is a book about orthopraxy (correct action). Love Wins, on the other hand, is a book about orthodoxy (correct belief).

I've had some time to think about this and I have a working theory. There seem to be lots of folks that think you have to say the right things, regardless of what you do. If you can recite the creed, or the statement of faith from your tribe, you're in. If you don't, "stay out". It's that simple. Say the right things and we will give you the key to the city. One person recently told me this was his experience of the ordination process. He said, "You have to take a set of approved classes and fill out a document with particularly worded questions about right beliefs. You set before a committee and are questioned further. Very little is discussed in regards to the fruit (or doing) in one's life". The ironic thing is that Jesus said to people, "come, follow me and find out what real life is about." They didn't have to pass a litmus test before joining. For more on this, try googling the terms "bounded set" and "centered set".

Now don't misunderstand. Beliefs are important. They inform how we act. We need both; a balance of orthodoxy and orthopraxy. It just struck me odd there was so much controversy over something that when you read it, there's nothing that is too outlandish. Now mind you, the publisher not sending out pre-release copies of the book and putting out that provocative video didn't help matters. Some Christians are pretty dependable to do stupid stuff when they get worked up. It's just that Jesus Wants to Save Christians seems much more provocative. I'll be curious to get other's ideas on this. Otherwise, Wednesday we will try to discern what it means to faithfully follow Jesus. Hope to see you there.

Next Meeting July 13!

2011-06-29T11:57:00.002-05:00

We will be meeting again soon on Wednesday July 13th from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Fusion coffee in Coralville. We will be discussing the book Jesus Wants To Save Christians by Rob Bell and Dean Golden. If you are like me and like the audiobook you can find it here. Hope to see you then.

Meeting Wednesday June 15 from 12-2!

2011-06-12T20:36:00.001-05:00

We will be meeting again this week on Wednesday June 15th from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Fusion coffee in Coralville. The book this time is The Mystic Way of Evangelism by Elaine A. Heath. Hope to see you there!

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

2011-05-31T10:18:00.001-05:00

Sermon on May 22

I don’t know how many of you may have seen news reports of the latest flap circulating in evangelical circles these days. Now, I don’t mean the obvious fact that Jesus did not return in glory yesterday – no mature Christian, Catholic or Protestant takes these kinds of “predictions” seriously.

No, this has to do with a new book written by Rob Bell, the young pastor of a huge mega-church in Grandville, Michigan, called the “Mars Hill Bible Church.” Rob is the founder and producer of the “Nooma” film series we have been using for the last several years as part of our Adult Education offerings on some Sunday mornings.

His new book is entitled “Love Wins: A Book about Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived.” Not a very modest title, which may be one reason that the book has caused such an uproar in some circles. He has been accused by some of denying the existence of hell and of being a “Universalist” – that is, one who believes that everyone will eventually make it to heaven. He has denied both accusations and staunchly defends his book as not denying the reality of hell, but questioning some of his fellow-evangelicals’ certainty that they know just exactly who is going to hell and who is not!

In one exchange, he argues with a fellow pastor who claimed that Gandhi was certainly in hell. Rob replied, “Gandhi in hell? Really? We have confirmation of this? Without a doubt?”

Of course, those who claim that only Christians -- or even only born-again Christians – will make it into heaven often quote the very passage we have from John’s Gospel this morning: in response to Thomas’ question about how they can know “the way” to where Jesus is going, he replies, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

The first part of that citation is Jesus’ primary point and he goes on in the rest of our Reading today to elaborate on what it means to say that he is the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus is the way to God because, as he says, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father?” (John 14:9)

The point here is that the fact of the Incarnation means that Jesus is the “human face of God.” God is really quite beyond anything we can touch or feel or see or even comprehend fully. But the Christian claim is that all we NEED to know about God can be discovered in Jesus. When we look at Jesus, we know what God is like! Does that exhaust everything about the nature of God? Probably not. But, again, all we NEED to know about God, we believe we have found in Jesus Christ. He is “the way” for us.

Next, we are told that Jesus is “the Truth.” And John’s Gospel goes on to quote him as saying “The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.” (John 14:10) So, when Jesus teaches, he is not just teaching on his own, he is conveying “the truths” he learned from his Father.” Jesus is speaking the truth about God because God is speaking though him.

And finally, we hear that Jesus is “the Life.” Well, I don’t know anyone – Christian or non-Christian – who does not believe that Jesus lived an exemplary life and that if more people lived more like Jesus, this would be a considerably finer world. Or, as Jesus puts it in today’s Gospel, “Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do…” (John 14:11-12) We are to live life like Jesus!

So, we believe that Jesus shows us the way to God…teaches us the truth about God…and exemplifies for us the kind of life God would have us live. He is, therefore, the way…the truth…and the life! But does that mean that only Christians will get to heaven? And, if so, what kind of Christians? Practicing Christians? What about non-practicing Christians?

Catholic Christians? What about Protestant Christians? Conservative Christians? What about Liberal Christians?

Yet, John’s Gospel does quote Jesus as saying: “No one comes to the Father except through me.” What does he mean by that? Well, Peter Marty (our colleague up the street at St. Paul Lutheran) puts it this way in a recent review of Rob Bell’s book in The Christian Century magazine: “the glue holding Bell’s project together is the firm conviction that Jesus is bigger than any one religion. He is the cosmic Christ who will not be co-opted or owned by any one culture. He is supra-cultural.”

“The apostle Paul wrote, ‘In Jesus, God was reconciling the world to himself’ and Bell is not willing to say that what Paul really meant was a reconciliation of the Christian world. Similarly Bell thinks that when Jesus announced that “God so loved the world…’ he actually meant the world. Had John been interested in shrinking the gospel or lessening the scope of the cross, he might well have proposed that ‘God so loved only Christians.’ But John did not.” (May 17 Christian Century, page 25)

No, John did not propose that…but sometimes Christians seem to wish that he had! Some of this debate is new to evangelical Christians, and that’s why Rob Bell has been so roundly criticized by some of his fellows. It’s not a new debate to Catholic, Orthodox, or Anglican theologians. Roman Catholics believe in Purgatory which may allow a way for former unbelievers yet to be recipients of the gift of heaven.

Orthodox and Anglicans often speak of an “intermediate state” called Paradise where we will continue to grow in grace after death while we await the final judgment, and where those who have never heard the word of Christ or who have had it so poorly presented that they rejected it, likewise may have the opportunity to be introduced to Jesus and walk through that “door of the sheepfold” into eternal life with God.

I remember my professor of systematic theology at Seabury-Western once saying “We absolutely must posit the existence of hell…because God will not force anyone to spend eternity with Him who doesn’t want to. BUT,” he continued with a smile, “ if you and I do our jobs, it is not necessary to posit that anyone will actually end up there…finally!”

Well, to be honest, I expect there actually will be those who choose to turn their backs on God once and for all. There are some people who seem actually that self-centered. But let us not join those who criticize people like Rob Bell who at least hold out the hope that, in the final analysis, Love does indeed “win.”

And that those who – knowingly or unknowingly – follow the way, the truth, and the life of Jesus will one day see him face-to-face and (like us) will receive the Gift that neither they, nor we, deserve.

The Gift of Eternal Life!

(Chris Epting)

Next meeting?

2011-04-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

So, I think our next meeting is at noon on May 18. What was the Richard Rohr book we talking about discussing?

Next Cohort Meeting with Brian McLaren

2011-03-11T13:43:00.000-06:00

We had a great time on Ash Wednesday talking about N.T. Wright's book, After You Believe, as well as the Brian McLaren workshop recently in Iowa City. I spoke with Brian at the workshop and he has graciously agreed to join us at the next cohort meeting via Skype to discuss his book Naked Spirituality. We will try again to stream the meeting on USTREAM, so if you can't be with us in person, join us virtually. As always, feel free to leave comments and make unique posts (let me know if you want to become a poster for the blog). Thanks for putting up with my personal posts from time to time. My hope is that all of our personal stories can fit into the larger mosaic of the cohort story and God's story.

So, we will meet again on April 13th from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Fusion coffee in Coralville. Hope to see you there!

Why I like the Mennonites, Part 2: Warts and All

2011-02-23T15:03:00.003-06:00

I wrote a post a few months back titled "Why I Like the Mennonites". Several let me know they would like to hear more when I had been part of the community longer. I think some thought I was being a bit idyllic. I was. Mennonites, like everybody, have warts. And when we have them, we don't like to show them. I read The Naked Anabaptist by Stuart Murray and would highly recommend it. Not just for Mennonites, or people seeking to become Mennonite, but for everyone that wants to see how Anabaptism can enrich your faith. Murray does not hide the warts. The good and the bad are revealed for all to see. Hence, the title of the book.

I made reference to Brian McLaren's book, A Generous Orthodoxy in part-one of my Mennonite musings. His suggestion is that we take the best from all traditions; that each heritage has something to offer, and like the body of Christ, we all need each other. Greg Boyd believes the Mennonites have something valuable to offer the Church, and I agree with him. He says quite eloquently,

"Cherish Your Treasure! Not in a prideful way, of course, but simply as a precious gift God has given you and that God wants to give the world through you. Be daringly flexible on all matters that aren’t central to the Kingdom (e.g. worship styles, dress, etc.), but be utterly uncompromising on all matters that are central to the Kingdom (viz. everything that pertains to living a Jesus-looking life). My Mennonite sisters and brothers, you have what multitudes in the rising Kingdom movement are longing for. You can provide a home to so many who right now are looking for one. If you hold fast to the faith you’ve been entrusted with (Jude 3), you may just find your fellowship exploding in the years to come. For, I believe, the Anabaptist vision of the Kingdom is a vision whose time has come."

I have found the welcoming Mennonite fellowship I have been attending these past few months to be just that. I still feel like I've come home. Recently, I was invited by the Mission and Service committee to join them on a trip to St. Paul, Minnesota to visit Third Way. I spoke about this new church in my last post. They are an intentional community of Jesus followers that have sought out the Mennonite denomination and asked to join as a participating community of faith, adhering to the Central Plains Mennonite conference confession of faith. What is so amazing to me is how an established, traditional church has been willing to listen and learn from a group so different from them. I just soaked in the experience. It was a torrential rain in the desert of my soul.

Like I said before, Mennonites are good at listening. I've seen this first hand and heard some stories told about intractable situations in the past that were negotiated with patience and prayer to the point of resolution. The local congregation I attend has lasted for nearly 114 years without splintering. Amazing as that sounds, I'm guessing some of their toughest days are ahead. There are at least two possible reasons for this: One, at the same time many are discovering the treasure of the Anabaptist heritage, many Mennonites are letting their distinct theological perspective be diluted by American evangelicalism, or co-opted by politics either to the right or the left. This is not the first time a leavening of a Spirit-filled movement has affected a potent work of God. In the 1920's there was great fear about the influence of "modernism" in the Church. Out of that fear grew the evangelical movement which many would say has led to phenomena like the "religious right" and alignment of church and government. And though some might think those are good things, the net loss was the distinctiveness of some spiritual movements in a joining with a generalized evangelicalism largely undergirded by fundamentalist reformed theology. Now that the Church is firmly rooted in modernism, the same kind of fear of "post-modernism" is affecting a portion of Mennonites to mix the Kingdom of God with nationalism, and even soften their long held stance on violence.

A second concern, and seemingly more troubling for Mennonites is the issue that many denominations are in dispute over at this moment: sexuality. This has come up for the Central Plains Mennonite Conference in specific ways over the last 15-20 years. What interests me most is how it has been handled more that what resulted. Remember, the Mennonites have this tradition of slow deliberation. All voices are invited into the dialogue. Much prayer is undertaken. Unity is of prime concern. Community discernment is the process. Trust in the Holy Spirit as guide. These tried and true tools have been employed for five hundred years with effectiveness. Surprisingly, with this divisive topic, all seem abandoned. As I understand it, as often as there has been a conflict regarding sexuality, there has been haste to make a decision.

The Central Plains Conference is facing this problem again. My hope is that fear is not the guiding force in these proceedings. That those involved will not forget where they come from. That Jesus' example of a Third Way will prevail and the long held confession of Discipleship into Faithfulness will hold sway. If you haven't guessed, I'm an optimist. I think we can do it. We can get through this one like we have gotten through martyrdom, harassment during wartime, listening to the radio, women in leadership. All of the tools are there. It's been done before. God help us.

Next Cohort Meeting

2011-02-11T15:27:00.000-06:00

We had a great meeting with Phyllis Tickle last Wednesday discussing her book, Prayer is a Place. What a pleasure to join her in conversation over Skype. I expressed our thanks to her and she wishes everyone who was there the very best!

Our next meeting will be the second Wednesday of March (which happens to be Ash Wednesday). It is March 9th from 12-2 p.m. at Fusion Coffee in Coralville. We had 10 people in attendance as we squeezed around the table for a wonderful time of community and faith stories. That is the most yet and it is very encouraging the support and dialogue that is happening among such a diverse group.

Our next meeting we will be discussing N.T. Wright's book, After You Believe. Pick it up and join in the conversation. You can also find more articles, audio and video from Wright here. We look forward to seeing you at the cohort meeting.

Brian McLaren in Iowa City

2011-01-31T22:40:00.001-06:00

FOLLOWING JESUS in the 21ST CENTURY
A talk by BRIAN McLAREN
7:00 p.m. Friday, March 4, 2011
Cost: FREE

TRANSFORMING CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY in the 21ST CENTURY
with BRIAN McLAREN
ECUMENICAL WORKSHOP FOR LAY LEADERS AND CLERGY
9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., Saturday, March 5, 2011
Registration and Coffee at 8:30
Cost: $15

Location of Events: Zion Lutheran Church, 310 N. Johnson, Iowa City, IA
Free Parking: Ramp Across the Street
More info: Dorothy Whiston, 321-7920, dwhiston@mchsi.com
Registration Form

Next Cohort Meeting with Phyllis Tickle

2011-01-20T14:53:00.001-06:00

Our next meeting is February 9, 2011 at 12:00 p.m. Again, we will meet in Coralville at Fusion coffee shop. This time we plan to discuss Phyllis Tickle's book, "Prayer is a Place".

She will be meeting with us via Skype for a few minutes. What an opportunity to meet Phyllis in person. If you can't come in person join us virtually through our live USTREAM broadcast. Hope you can make it.

Advent Blog Tour

2010-12-13T10:30:00.000-06:00

We are already halfway through this journey - but the good people responsible for the Common English Bible translation have been sponsoring a blog tour. Each day from December 1 - December 25, a piece of the Advent/Christmas story is shared and an assigned blogger shares a reflection.

These stops have been absolutely powerful reflections!!! My Advent journey has deepened just reading them, but also as a result of getting to write one myself - tomorrow's in fact. I hope you all might catch up with the posts and join us for the rest of the journey!

Next Cohort Meet-Up Set

2010-12-03T13:08:00.000-06:00

We had a great meeting last Wednesday. I enjoyed getting together with Chris, Katie, and Jim. We talked about Doug Pagitt's book, Church in the Inventive Age. I think we all would recommend it. It's a good read and is short.

We set out next meeting for January 12, 2011 at 12:00 p.m. Again, we will meet in Coralville at Fusion coffee shop. This time we plan to discuss Carol Howard Merritt's book, Reframing Hope! It looks like a compelling book. She is also the host of a podcast I listen to often, God Complex Radio. Looking forward to meeting again. We welcome your input here on this blog.

EVTC #4

2010-11-03T09:25:00.002-05:00

Our final morning's open discussion with the three presenters provided a fascinating opportunity to see three "philosophical" systems interact with, and challenge, one another. Colin Greene's articulate attempt to deconstruct from within much of Western philosophical thought as "intellectually neutral" is challenged by Musa Dube's concern that Western philosophers only "talk to themselves" without taking on board insights of, say, African sages and thinkers. Richard Twiss' Lakota patriarchal, warrior tradition which is just as comfortable calling God "Grandfather" as it is "Creator" or "Great Spirit" is critiqued by Musa's experience of feminist insights being so necessary. A very rich discussion indeed reminding us that, in all our "emergent discussion" having equal representation (rather than isolated "token representation") of such diverse and multicultural voices and perspectives is so important!
Next and final session will be a "where do we go from here" discussion about which I will post later.

EVTC #3

2010-11-02T19:23:00.003-05:00

Colin Greene, theologian/missiologist from Durham, presented on his book "Metavistas." If we no longer, in the postmodern age, have an undisputed "meta-narrative" (i.e. the Bible) or an agreed metaphysics (view of the universe), how then shall we proclaim the Gospel? Perhaps by looking forward together into the "metavista,"the open space created by the fact that we are living in the dying of one age and the new birth of another. None of us know what the church (or the world) will really look like in the next decades, but does this not invite us to be open to new possibilities for mission and ministry in the days and years to come?
His book suggests several marks of the church in these days -- (1) the sometimes volatile interplay of scripture (narrative), tradition (knowing where you come from and valuing that history), and culture (rather than "reason" or "experience"); (2) grassroots ecumenism with churches cooperating "on the ground;" (3) an interfaith context (respectful conversation between the world's religions); reform of seminary education (incorporating ecumenical perspectives, cultural studies, political science, truly biblical theology, etc. and eschewing "denominational silos"); (4) understanding the upside and downside of globalization; and (5) really being willing to live into a counter cultural lifestyle and reality.

EVTC #2

2010-11-02T10:46:00.002-05:00

Musa Dube -- our presenter this morning -- is a professor of New Testament in Botswana. Her passionate question? 'How do I read the Bible as a woman who has been colonized?' Even in her doctoral training, she was required to learn (in addition to her English, Hebrew, and Greek) German and French but her own language and culture was completely ignored. So many of the texts, from the Exodus narrative to the "Great Commission" are -- or have been used as -- justifications for colonization under the guise of "evangelization."
She told a powerful folk tale of "Princess Africa" as she came under the control of her "colonial masters." The decades-old struggle for African independence as transformed her into "Mama Africa," the strong black woman who was ready for the healing independence was to bring only to find that the new 'sons' of Africa began fighting among themselves. Now came the era of "new colonization" -- international aid, governments, church groups, NGOs -- which goes under name "globalization" and the "global village." This resulted in crushing, unmanageable debt. Along with this came two more blows -- AIDS and climate change. And so today Mama Africa remains sick and bleeding...and perhaps reaching out to touch the hand of the One who once said to a little girl who was already dead, "Talitha cum..."

Emergent Village Theological Conference - EVTC #1

2010-11-01T18:48:00.004-05:00

So, the titles will be EVTC #1, 2, 3...etc.

Emergent Village Theological Conference sessions 1, 2, 3, etc.

Richard Twiss, a Lakota Sioux, who now lives in the Pacific Northwest, began by blessing us with sage incense and having a member of his team dance a healing dance. This was followed by his summarizing his book "One Church, Many Tribes" and his ongoing experience of the American (and global) church marginalizing (and much worse) Native people.

He moved from rejecting his reservation upbringing, to re-discovering his heritage and hating white people, coming to faith in Christ through evangelical churches, walking away again from his heritage, to re-re-discovering his Native culture and integrating it into his faith.

The hope is, he will help us begin to lose our "need for innocence," the unfounded conviction that we have done nothing wrong to Native people. We need to understand our nation's, and our religion's, role in the cultural genocide of the original inhabitants of this land.

Creating Liberated Spaces in a Postcolonial World

2010-10-31T16:14:00.002-05:00

So, Susanne and I are off tomorrow to the 2010 Theological Conversation sponsored by Emergent Village in Atlanta. Conversations with Richard Twiss (One Church, Many Tribes), Musa Dube (Post Colonial Feminist Interpretations of the Bible), and Colin Green (Meta Vistas).

Workshops will be "Herding Cats: Non-Authoritarian Models of Leadership for a Post-Colonial World;" "Everyday Justice as Liberation;" "Practicing the Way of Jesus;" "Stories that Compost;" and "The Art of Transformative Worship."

We won't be able to get to everything, but I'll try and leave some nuggets of observation on this blog for those interested.

Happy All Saints' Day!

Chris Epting

Some Good Content

2010-10-28T08:20:00.001-05:00

This is a great sermon by N.T. Wright just given on 10/10/10 at Duke. He speaks on "Walking Alnog the Border" referring to our precarious position between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of this world. And, if you don't know about it, there is a great website for keeping up with all things N.T. Wright on the web at ntwrightpage.com!

Also, if you are a connoisseur of continental philosophy, or just like John Caputo (What Would Jesus Deconstruct), Tripp Fuller of Home Brewed Christianity has made available some audio files of a class Caputo is teaching on deconstruction and Derrida.

Why I like the Mennonites

2010-10-19T10:24:00.051-05:00

I've always liked the Mennonites. I have a childhood friend that came from the Anabaptist - Mennonite tradition that introduced me to their "peace and justice" ways. I married someone who attended a Mennonite high school and has remained close to many of her classmates. They have become my friends too. A few years ago I read Brian McLaren's book, A Generous Orthodoxy where he speaks very highly of the Anabaptists. I've heard him praise their orthodoxy and orthopraxy several times since.

I'm a Nazarene by blood. So is my wife, although she spent four years enjoying a community of four-part harmony. My friend Eric came to our Nazarene church with his parents when their Mennonite church closed. Brian McLaren says Mennonites emphasize personal commitment and the centrality of Jesus Christ. These are two reasons Nazarenes and Mennonites get along. When you spend time with both groups you begin to sense other comfortable reasons as well. McLaren groups the Anglican and Anabaptist theology together in his book. Nazarenes claim a Wesleyan heritage. Wesley was Anglican. I took one of those surveys on the internet that tells you which theologian you are most like. I turned out to be most like Menno Simmons. My Mennonite friend Holly turned out to be most like John Wesley.

In the last few years I have been intentionally identifying more with the emergent conversation. Finding a community of faith, centered in Christ that affirms a generative dialogue is not easy. I've done my best to read books, blogs, listen to podcasts, go to conferences. Being part of this emergent cohort has been an effort to nurture my own soul. Recently, through some decisions to move to a smaller community and have our children go to the Mennonite high school my wife did we have started attending a rural Mennonite church. I don't know why we didn't do this sooner. It has been a wonderful experience. The community has been so welcoming. It really feels like we have come home.

Last Sunday, I was amazed to see this young man walk to the pulpit in cargo shorts, untucked shirt, horn rimmed glasses, and goatee. He told how he was part of a small community of 35-40 in St. Paul that had intentionally moved to a particular neighborhood to be part of a hurting world, together in worship and service. He said they were in conversation with the Mennonite church and had joined the Central Plains Mennonite conference after learning about Mennonite theology from books like The Politics of Jesus by John Howard Yoder. I later learned this group had been birthed from an emergent church in the Twin Cities whose pastor I admire and have listened to via podcast. This church is also in conversation with the Mennonites to see how they can support and encourage each other.

This just blew me away. Here I was sitting in a rural church, in an established denomination, with people of all ages, backgrounds, shapes and sizes - and the emergent church was coming to us? All I've been hearing is that denominations are dying. I even heard Brian McLaren compare denominations to the music industry's insistence on an old model of music distribution in an age of digital devices and downloads. Who are these people of Peace and what is so attractive about them that a self described recovering evangelical would be drawn to become one of them?

I like the Mennonites because their theological tradition is built on what I would call classical Christian theology. All the important stuff is there, the resurrection, Trinity, creation, Jesus. They also practice moderation in life and belief. They don't get too weird. Phyllis Tickle, in her book The Great Emergence talks about some people wanting to remain within a denomination seeking to reform the Church from within. I've heard terms like Presbymergents, Episcomergents, Methemergents (can i say that?), the Nazarene equivalent call themselves emergent Nazarenes (Nazimergents just doesn't work). Fellow cohorters: Jim, Chris and Katie share this desire with me. The thing that strikes me about the Mennonites is the startling development of an emergent church seeking out a denomination, a tradition to join.

Something else I like about the Mennonites is their welcoming, hospitable attitude. Yes, they have solid beliefs and know who they are and are not. But, they do a really nice job of listening. I once asked my friend John what they would do if someone in direct contrast to their confession of faith wanted to join their church. He said, "we would have a discussion." This idea is refreshing. In a world where competition and control of power is supreme, a position of humility and curiosity is very attractive. This hospitality extends to everyone within and without.

Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father. That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. Ephesians 2: 17-22 MSG

Also, the Mennonite's position on pacifism and Peace being vital to entering the Kingdom of God is compelling. I must admit, I need to learn more about this. I will tell you that their commitment to Peace is not just political rhetoric. It is woven into their very fiber. They exude Peace. My experience has been that Mennonites are Peacemakers in every action, every relationship, every thought. I recently watched the remake of "The Karate Kid" (which is really about Kung Fu). Mr. Han says to young Dre Parker. “It lives in how we put on the jacket, how we take off the jacket. It lives in how we treat people. Everything is kung fu.”

I like how the Mennonites view leadership and ministry. They talk about a "shared responsibility", and making decisions in "the community". They see everyone as a minister with gifts and abilities. They view the "Pastor" as a resource, a "resident theologian" as such. It is not his or her role to do ministry for the church. It is the church's job. We actually chose to attend a church that is between pastors. We never heard the previous "lead pastor" preach or even met him. I was struck by this vibrant congregation in an historic building of both new and old components; the full range of ages and backgrounds worshiping together, serving together out in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road (I'm a city boy, so please forgive me). We were drawn by the community, the warm welcome, the openness to whatever God will do and the willingness to see it if it shows up.

One last thing I'd like to comment on about the Mennonites is their attention to God's creation. I haven't delved too deep into this with them directly, but I observe a reverance for all. There seems to be a notion that this world matters. Mennonites serve in the world versus pulling out of it. This is very refreshing in light of the tendencies of some groups that are focused on getting out of here as fast as possible and on to a bodiless heaven somewhere else. I enjoyed N.T Wright's books Surprised by Hope and After you Believe. He does a wonderful job of explaining a biblical and common sense view of a Christian eschatology. Jürgen Moltmann is the master theologian of this with his epic work, Theology of Hope. I was taken by the words to a hymn we sung from the Mennonite hymnal recently: "Here in this place, new light is streaming... Not in some heaven, light years away, but here in this place, the new light is shining; now is the Kingdom, now is the day."

‎

Here is a link to part 2: "Why I like the Mennonites: Warts and All"

Next Cohort meet-up set

2010-10-13T16:17:00.001-05:00

We had a good meet-up this morning. The conversation was good, but the continuing challenge has been finding a time when all interested can come. We decided to set the next meeting and let everyone know so you can begin planning to carve out the time to meet. We plan to get together on Wednesday, December 1 at 12:00 p.m. at Capanna coffee shop (now known as Fusion) in Coralville. We also decided to suggest a book for those interested to read and maybe discuss next time. It is Doug Paggitt's book, Chruch in the Inventive Age. It looks like there are some pretty good prices on Amazon for this. I plan to download it digitally through the Kindle app on my iPad. Here is a great review of this book.

Also, please keep reading and contributing to this blog. The conversation has been good here as well!

Rural Emergent 2

2010-09-13T09:20:00.002-05:00

Hey Katie Z (and others):

For a discussion on "rural emergent" check out this link for a good article:

info@emergentvillage.com

Chris Epting

Po-Mo take on Job.... coming to a theater near us!

2010-09-01T23:16:00.004-05:00

Tim asked me to share this with the group. He's pretty excited about it!

(and what I failed to notice the first time I posted it is that Tim is a co-writer for the musical!!)

(also - the link to the article is the title of the post...)

Rural Emergent

2010-09-01T20:05:00.000-05:00

I had a phone call this week from someone who is thinking about how emergent church/theology/thought applies to rural settings.

I have to admit, this was a subject of my own exploration as I thought about leaving the big city of Nashville and heading to this small town congregation to be a pastor.

What are your thoughts about how emergent church works in rural settings?

The Justice Project

2010-08-13T11:03:00.002-05:00

Hi friends,

Hope you're enjoying some vacation-time this summer. Susanne and I are...and we know Lon is!
Here I go again - suggesting more resources for our conversation! Last time, I think it was "An Emergent Manifesto of Hope" edited by Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones.

Now comes a companion piece entitled "The Justice Project" edited by Brian McClaren, Elisa Padilla and Ashley Bunting Seeber. Like "Emergent Manifesto" this is a series of essays, but this time they are cries for justice from across the world. If the Emergent Manifesto was about renewal in theology and worship and community, this book is about renewal in our attention to the justice issues which permeate the Bible and yet are often so neglected.

Check it our at the Emersion Books site above. Some other good stuff there as well. Blessings on the rest of your summer!

Big Tent Christianity

2010-07-28T14:58:00.001-05:00

Subject: SPECIAL OFFER FOR COHORTS: Big Tent Christianity, Sept. 8-9

Hey everyone,

I wanted to let you know about a special offer we’ve been given for $20 off the registration price for the Big Tent Christianity conference coming up September 8-9 in Raleigh, NC. You can find out more about the conference here:
http://www.facebook.com/l/259eeXUXAh7yNxULPqJrLhivSCw;www.bigtentchristianity.com/

Become a fan of Big Tent Christianity on Facebook for regular updates:
http://www.facebook.com/bigtentchristianity

Main speakers include Brian McLaren, Shane Claiborne, Phyllis Tickle, Peter Rollins, Tony Jones, Spencer Burke, Tim Conder, Diana Butler Bass, Greg Boyd, Jay Bakker, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Anthony Smith, and a bunch of other great people!

I’m also working on organizing a TransFORM Network party/cornhole tournament on Wednesday, September 8 in the evening at Mike Morrell’s house in Raleigh. It's going to be fun!

Contact me (Lon Marshall) before August 6 if you are interested and want a discount. There is more of a discount for 3 or more. It's $89 to start with, but every little bit helps.

Emerging Women

2010-07-17T07:31:00.000-05:00

I found a great post with a list if women writers we all need to be reading. Two of my favorites are on it, Phyliss Tickle and Diana Butler Bass. I will have to check out the others. Brian McLaren wrote the post.

The other day I found Phyliss Tickel on Facebook. On a whim I asked her to add me as one of her friends. She did! What a world we live in.

2010 Emergent Village Theological Conversation

2010-07-03T19:52:00.002-05:00

Hey gang,

Susanne and I just actually registered for the 2010 Emergent Village Theological Conversation in Atlanta November 1-3!

I'll be happy to bring back whatever insights/resources there are which might look promising. At the very least maybe we can have some dialogue about the topics here on our blog.

Even better, why don't some of you consider signing up as well. Check it out at the Emergent Village web site above.

Doug Pagitt's new Book; What do you think of his Quadrants?

2010-06-26T13:42:00.000-05:00

What door did you enter by?

2010-06-19T11:49:00.000-05:00

At our little meet-up a couple of weeks ago, one of the interesting things we talked about was how we got involved in the emergent conversation.

What was your entry point? emergent worship? theological conversations? secular postmodernism? books by Brian McClaren?

Resources for Continuing the Conversation

2010-06-08T09:07:00.003-05:00

Colleagues:

It's great that Emergent Village is resuming the podcast, especially with the Moltmann conversation. See www.emergentvillage.com/podcast. Maybe we can use this to fuel our own Eastern Iowa conversation.

I also just re-read "The Emergent Manifesto" of Hope edited by Tony Jones and Doug Pagitt. Fascinating collection of essays from "emergent thinkers and practitioners" from around the country. It's probably available on Amazon, and well worth the read!

Have a great summer, everybody!

Chris Epting

Rate of Change

2010-06-03T11:04:00.000-05:00

In Lon's post on "The Great Emergence" by Phyllis Tickle there is disucssion about these pivotal moments every 500 years or so. A wave of culture shifting occurs... even if it takes 150 years to accomplish.

But something I'm wondering in the back of my head is if change occurs faster these days. On NPR's Weekend Edition, May 1, there was a story about how small generations are becoming. It is an interview with Larry Rosen, a professor of psychology at California State University, and he talks about how the cultural generation gap has shortened from 25 or so years to only 6-7 years. Now, much of the story has to do with how technology is impacting the learning and relating styles of these youth... and because technology changes so quickly, so does culture. But my question is... if culture is rapidly changing, how will that impact the rate of change of church culture? Can we expect this "great emergence" to happen faster than others? Or is the church a giant slow tortoise? Will we be able to keep up?

something about truth?

2010-06-02T08:25:00.000-05:00

In prep for our meeting tonight, I (at the last minute of course, that's something to know about me), read the email about posting something about ourselves.

Yesterday as I sat in a small group with others from my church, the youngest person by probably forty years, our topic was the unchangeable, the constant. I just about laughed out loud. I think my adventure into postmodern thought and the emergent church conversation came when I realized that Truth was not constant, not black and white... and yet, here it was, the first point of three in a conversation about what we can count on. The second bullet point was Love - and I'm much more okay with love being a constant - as long as we realize that love is dynamic and moves and changes and grows. The third was God. Now, they had just spent the entire conversation on Truth talking about Jesus (the way, the truth, the life) and then they talk about God being the constant... didn't we sort of just have the conversation?

My main interest in these conversations is going to be ecclesial. How on earth do I reconcile the thoughts of my head and heart with what I share with my congregation? Where and how can I stretch concepts and problemetize what we have always known... in a pastoral way? But I also love to read and need to do that more. I love talking theology and need to do that more. And I'm a big fan of the emergent - missional conversation and more than anything want to help enliven the thought/praxis connection.

So, that's a little about me!
Peace,
Katie Z.

The Great Emergence

2010-05-22T17:57:00.010-05:00

I recently read (or in my case listened to) Phyllis Tickle's book The Great Emergence. It's quite interesting, and as some might say, even prophetic. I often say that I am lucky to be living at this "hinge" in history. It's not that way for everyone. There are a lot of people that are afraid. They seem to see the changes as threatening and are circling the wagons, as it were, to try and stop the tsunami. It won't help.

I'm having a little deja vu. In the 80's and 90's there was a revolution going on in my field, counseling or psychotherapy as some call it. The theories of the 19th and 20th century were being supplanted by more post-modern approaches like solution-focused and narrative therapies. It was an epistemological shift. Many resisted and still do. The revolution happened. It's over. There is no turning back. I remember being at a conference with one of the pioneers of these approaches. He's dead now, but at that time he was quite provocative as well as innovative. The health insurance field was pushing "brief therapies", so most clinicians went to a conference to learn a "technique" to add to their "eclectic" approach. The first day the place was packed. Each day after the numbers dwindled, until the last day there were only a handful of people. It was too threatening for the clinicians who had invested years and thousands of dollars in their approaches. I was young and willing to jump on the bandwagon with little to lose.

I'm 45 now. I still find I'm drawn to innovative ideas, fresh ideas. Not everyone is like me. Christianity is changing in some profound ways. If you've been paying attention for the last 50 years, notions like the atonement, eschatology, ecclesiology, harmartiology, the trinity, these are all morphing. For the most part, what I'm finding is richer, deeper, and more meaningful - not to mention they make more sense. But like I said, not everyone is like me.

As Tickle describes, this is about a 150 year process. By my estimation, we've got some time to go before we reach that calmer period between "hinges". So, hold on for the ride. In the meantime - I'm getting closer to wanting to talk about what the Great Emergence will be, versus what it isn't. Most of what I think about now is what I don't like. That takes too much energy and it's not as energizing as talking about what I do like. Anybody have any ideas? I have really been enjoying N.T. Wright's books "Simply Christian", "Surprised by Hope" and now "After You Believe". His hopeful take on eschatology and the affect it has on us now is encouraging.

Trying to get the Cohort going again

2010-04-28T11:57:00.001-05:00

I've had some recent inquiries regarding the cohort. Several have expressed interest in getting together and having some dialogue over the internet regarding emergent conversations. I was thinking about scheduling a meet up in or around Coralville, maybe in early June, and maybe having a Skype conference sometime in May for those who want to participate.

Are you interested? Please leave comments or send me an email. Also, if you know of others that would like to be involved in this, send me their email addresses, or forward this post on to them.

Discover the Bible: New Episode Half-Baked Theology Podcast

2009-12-12T20:59:00.003-06:00

A conversation with George Larsen and Tim Isbell about "Discover the Bible", a tool George developed on the web. Besides being a great resource to engage postmoderns in conversation and introduce people to the Bible, Tim and George share stories of how they have used it and particular stories of God's leading in their lives. The new music is by the band, Church of the Beloved. Their album, Hope for a Tree Cut Down is being offered for free on their website. The song is called Given.

You can watch the video at the Half-Baked Theology webpage or listen to the mp3 version here.

Organic Church Network Interview: New Episode Half-Baked Thology

2009-07-23T09:03:00.006-05:00

This episode is a real treat! I had a chance to sit down with Darrell MacLearn, Director of The Organic Church Network, via Skype. He got to kick back in his digs, a local coffee shop in a Dallas suburb, while I was on my back patio. We discuss the Organic Church, while getting to hear Darrell’s story of transformation from 4th gen Nazarene pastor to out of the box, church paradigm changer (or career suicide as he puts it). Darrell gives us his forecast for Christ’s Church, and shares some great resources for this innovative ministry. The music is One Last Mistake, from The Republic’s new album Kingdom of Noise.

You can watch the video at the Half-Baked Theology webpage or listen to the mp3 version here.

Emergent Nazarenes Backlash

2009-06-25T22:33:00.002-05:00

Check out the new Half-Baked Theology podcast episode two. We discuss this YouTube video among other things. I talk with Kyle Stickens and Travis Marshall. Kyle is a recent Organic Church planter, and Travis a pastor of a non-traditional church with a focus on community needs versus congregation needs. We debate the transitional capabilities of the general Church of the Nazarene as well as institutional obstacles to Building for the Kingdom of God. New music is “Closer Than You Think”, a song from a one time project by Switchfoot lead singer Jon Foreman and Nickel Creek guitarist Sean Watkins.

Half-Baked Theology Podcast debuts!

2009-06-11T09:13:00.004-05:00

In this inaugural episode, Lon talks with Eric Lapp and Tim Stidham about the Emerging Nazarenes, the opposing Concerned Nazarenes, and the Unconcerned Nazarenes. Other topics include Pauline Christology, N.T. Wright's escatology and the new iPhone and software coming soon. The show is capped off with music from Derek Webb, This Too Shall Be Made Right. Check it out here.

Film Imitates Life

2009-02-06T19:19:00.008-06:00

A pastor friend of mine told me that the 1952 movie High Noon, was the story of one of his pastorates. A few years ago I saw the movie Babe and told my sister in law it was a movie about social justice. The movie takes place in Australia, so I said, "Australians are very political." She and her husband have never let me live that statement down.

The other day I watched the old Dr. Seuss story, now made into a movie, Horton Hears a Who! This is a story about maintaining the status quo in groups. It is a tale about a band of souls united for a common purpose, but somewhere along the way they lose their vision, become apathetic, and the movement becomes stagnant. What's worse is that they get comfortable there. Incredibly, some actually thwart efforts to get things back on track. In this movie, the ones trying to help (Horton and the Mayor) are labeled as "boobs" and pursued like early church heretics burned at the stake. I was moved to tears in this animated story of an elephant because it imitates life too well.

I saw this process first hand at a legislative law making session at the state capitol today. These rabble rousers showed up out of nowhere and started making accusations, and demanding things that threw the proverbial monkey wrench into the works. Our elected representatives surprisingly gave them more power than they deserve and slowed down an already slow process.

The same friend from High Noon showed me the well known bell shaped curve, the life cycle of too many churches. I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry when I see it. What you miss when you see the facts of the graph is the stories of power brokers, and party line politics, and heartache.

Today I listened to an interview with Phillis Tickle about her book, The Great Emergence. She contends we are at a hinge in history, much like the Reformation, the Great Schism, etc. Times in history where our entire culture (and thus, faith) was (and is now being) rewritten. This seems to happen about every 500 years, give or take. Listening to this podcast affirmed that I'm not a boob. We all need that once in awhile. I'm looking for a few like minded souls out there. Any takers?

Happy New Year

2009-01-07T15:05:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year To All:

I am really kind of wondering where people are at with committment to posting to the blog. I know everyone has been crazy busy but I would like to see more diveristy in hte posting. I don't want to be the only one.

Please think about it as we begin the new year.

Ruth

Holiday musings

2008-12-18T10:24:00.002-06:00

I have no idea whether it is my turn to post a gain but since there aren't others clammoring to do so , I will .( what a run-on sentence).

First of all I want to wish everyone a blessed holiday season. There are many occasions to gather with friends, congregations, members of other faith traditions and our families( biological or created). As we venture what some Christians celebrate as Advent we are reminded that it is a season of expectation- of waiting and watching. A season of believing in those things whose form we may not be able to see.

Remember that throughout our faith traditions we are constantly told that things may not be as they seem through our earthly eyes. We are called to mystery, confusion and joy in equal parts throughout our lives.

My hope for the new year is that we can become more accountable to taking time out of our otherwise busy lives to post here as we are able. I would like to see an honest open discussion of what we are called to do with the knowledge that the message of our faiths is alive in each one of us. We have the responsibility to make the changes we hope to see.

If we shake our heads and fingers at the institution that is only half of the battle- God provides us with glimpses of Wisdom so we can do something about them- not only discuss them and preach to the choir but to enter into a personal dialogue with what such information is calling forth from the depths of our hearts and souls.

We are called to community- not a self-protecting individual exegesis of what Wisdom might mean. There is evil in the world( perhaps not where may think it is) but it not just individuals making bad choices. It is the collective actions that we as faith communities take or don't take. There are collective sins and the only way to respond to them is to collectively choose to do things another way.

Enough Preaching

Peace and Grace

Ruth

Transformation

2008-11-06T20:04:00.004-06:00

While I am new to this blog, I am not that new to all things emergent. My journey in becoming part of the emergent conversation began roughly three years ago, during my transition from seminary into serving as a solo pastor of a small PC(USA) congregation in Cedar Rapids.

As a pastor, I was privileged earlier this week to get away for a 48 hour spiritual retreat put on by the Transforming Center. The retreat centered on the sacred rhythms of solitude and silence, just two of a number of rhythms essential for Christian leaders to develop in order to maintain any level of 'success' in ministry.

One theme that kept cropping up during the two days was the hostility of the church, as an organization, to the spiritual life and the general well being of its leaders. Part of the blame can be laid on leaders for not taking care of themselves, but part of the blame can just as equally be laid on the church for demanding so much of its leaders.

During our discussion, we looked at a number of issues in the modern church that contribute to this reality. When all was said and done, I came away thinking that the emergent conversation has a leg up on tackling some of these issues:

Seeing ourselves and others as human "doers" instead of as human "beings."
Spinning a situation to 'protect' someone's interest vs. telling the truth about how things really are.
Doing what is practical and expedient vs. doing what promotes right relationships and love.
Favoring measurable goals (baptisms, attendance, cash) vs. engaging in spiritual transformation.
Maintaining the organization vs. creating a true community.
Promoting an easy discipleship process vs. involving ourselves in the mystery and messiness of spiritual transformation.

A lot of these issues are systemic to our churches. They will require that at some point we as leaders directly challenge them. But, in what may seem like a catch-22, we won't be able to take on those issues if we don't commit ourselves to do whatever it takes to care for our own souls.

Are we going to keep posting in rotation

2008-10-29T15:30:00.001-05:00

Are we going to start the rotation again or can I continue to drone on?

Blown away by Frank Viola

2008-10-17T17:10:00.002-05:00

I encourage anyone who is interested in learning more about the concepts discussed in Pagan christianity to check out his web page and to listen to the talks he gave to the 2007 and 2008 Dallas conferences.

He seems to have a good head on his shoulders and the narrative he gives to the story of the Samaritan woman at the Well brought me to tears.

Peace and grace
Ruth

the concept of ordination

2008-10-16T10:51:00.003-05:00

I picked up a copy of Pagan christianity and was very fascinated by how it deals with ordination. I would like to throw out some of the questions to the group.

For those of you who have been ordained- how do you react to the ideas about ordination presented in the book.

If someone were seeking ordination what advice would you give them.

Would you ever ocnsider being part of an intentional community that shared leadership roles the way suggested in the book.

Do you think there could be a group of people like the ones assembled here who morph into something different than church as it is practiced today- what would it look like- what would its challenges be?

Peace and grace
Ruth

I blog therefore I am

2008-10-14T14:09:00.002-05:00

Well it would appear that God is shining on me today as I have figured out how to post- I think. Since noone has posted for this week yet I may try after all.

The concept that is getting stuck in my craw this week is the whole "will of God " thing. Now bear with me here.

I was told by someone after hurrican Katrina that it was God's will that New Orleans perish because of its immorality.

I have been told that while a certain party was in office that it was a manifestation of God's will.

When the other party one the election I was told that God was turning us over to out selfish desires.

My questions is : what is it to hear God's will and how are we sure that we are not merely manifesting the desires of our own egos.

I have not heard anyone say that the floods of 2008 were the will of God in response to the direction our country has gone.

I have not heard that the stock market crashing was the will of God because people got too greedy and were forsaking relationships with each other for money.

How do we know on a personal level God's specific will for our lives? Other than to Glorify God and Praise and honor God- do we really need to know any more than that?

When we are considering a choice between two otherwise equal careers do we pray to find God's will and expect a concrete answer?

How many people explore a call to ministry for selfish reasons? ( I only ask as that is my current question of struggle.)

More later
In Peace and grace
Ruth

My Story

2008-10-09T12:29:00.003-05:00

For those of you who don't know me here's a very short intro. I've been a Follower of Christ for 35 of my 54 years. Almost from day-one I've been a member of the Nazarene church. I have three main passions: Jesus Christ, my family, and information technology (yes, I'm a Good News Geek). Within my faith I believe in holiness living (thus my Nazarene affiliation) and a God who is HOLY, loving, merciful, and full of grace (but not a pushover).

For years I have tried to encourage the church (the organization) to find new ways to relate to our culture and keep lines of communication open to everyone. I like open dialog because I don't feel a need to defend my God. He is more than able to defend (or reveal) Himself. I love my church but I understand why people don't like or don't trust the church - I'm sorry to say that most have good reasons. I believe we need to go from being a church (organization) to being His Church (the body) but I know that the implementation of this concept is challenging.

Tom, I understand and appreciate your feelings. The book Pagan Christianity by Frank Viola and George Barna confirmed a lot of "under the table" feelings I had about the modern church - just like the ones you expressed. I see some benefits to having a church organization but, to be honest, I see more disadvantages. The thought of abandoning the modern church doesn't set well with me but the current church seems to be ill equipped to effectively communicate the message of God's forgiveness and love. Why? In my opinion; it carries too much baggage. It is junk that we, as fallen humans with good intentions but limited wisdom, created. It is an organization that is only loosely (actually, very loosely) based on God's Word.

So, what is the answer to this problem? That is THE question. The answer is in God and I believe He will provide it. It is just so hard to hear Him over the roar of our life styles and western culture. But I plan to keep trying until that day when He has my full, undivided attention forever and forever.

A Confession

2008-10-06T15:52:00.002-05:00

I guess I’ll begin with a bit of autobiography – and a brief confession. I was ordained a Lutheran pastor in 1993. I’ve since served three regular congregational calls (Sheffield/Ludlow, PA 1993-1997, Davenport, IA 1997-2000, Albia, IA 2003-2008) and two short-term interims in 2001 & 2002. I recently resigned my pastoral call in order to be a full-time student again, specifically to complete my dissertation within the next two years. However, I will also admit I’m thankful to have had a reason to disengage myself from formal ministry. Recently while at church with my family, I asked myself if I desired to be up front again – preaching and leading worship. My instantaneous and almost visceral response was, “No way! Not a chance!” You might ask, “Why do I feel this way?” I think it is because I no longer believe…

I no longer believe in the church as we currently experience and structure it. I no longer believe it works – that it accomplishes what it is supposed to do. I no longer believe that the large amounts of time and money we invest in “ministry” is really ministry at all. Lest you think I’m just grumbling about my own denomination, let me assure you that I’m not. I grew up in a sectarian, fundamentalist sort of tradition (Apostolic Christian); I attended an evangelical college (Wheaton); I received my theological education at a mainline seminary (Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN) and at a European university (Tübingen, Germany). I’ve seen and experienced a broad spectrum of Protestant Christianity, worshipping over the years in a wide variety of churches (Bible, Covenant, Episcopal, among others). The issues that disturb me about the contemporary church seem to be true across the board, i.e. in just about any and every context: congregations as we currently conceive of them invariably exist only to exist. They construct buildings, create budgets, hire paid staff, etc. supposedly to propogate the Gospel, but too often wind up only striving to perpetuate themselves. So, I find that I have become a doubter.

I doubt whether or not Jesus ever intended for buildings to be built, maintained, cooled, and heated for the purpose of being used 1/168 or 2/168 of the week. I doubt whether Jesus ever intended for his followers to be defined by the consistency of their church attendance or the amount of their giving. I doubt that Jesus ever intended for pastors to be paid a fulltime salary (complete with full benefits & a free house) or the minstry of the laity to be reduced to filling slots like ushers, greeters, and lawn mowers. I doubt that Jesus ever intended his followers to reduce all the complexities and mysteries of the Godhead into a set of three or four talking points that must be memorized, recited, and repeated verbatim. I doubt that Jesus ever intended for an entire for-profit industry to develop around selling “Christian” books, clothing, chocolates, diet plans, etc. I doubt all of these things because…I’ve read through the Gospels, and that’s just not what I see Jesus doing there.

Sure, I know that doing church in these assorted manners is easier than attempting to creatively and uniquely face each day as it presents itself to us. Besides, it fits with our way of doing business in this day and age. Yet, perhaps the time has come to question this “business-as-usual” approach, instead of uncritically modeling our religious enterprises after business plans. Maybe it’s time to question the institutional approach to faith, instead of quarreling about which form, or name, or size budget our institutions should take.

You might ask, “What are the alternatives?” I don’t know for sure, but I’ve got a couple of ideas to throw out for the cohort’s consideration. What if instead of believing that the main function of a congregation is to stage an entertaining, edifying, and aesthetically pleasing performance each week in the hopes that more and more people will attend it and get goosebumps during it, we were to gather weekly with family and friends and neighbors and even complete strangers in small groups/conventicles/house churches (choose the name of your choice) in order to be communities of forgiveness – concrete incarnations of God’s love in Christ? What if we gathered not primarily (and selfishlessly) to fill up our spiritual tanks, but rather to creatively give away whatever we’ve found in Jesus (knowing that this will vary from person to person and group to group)? What if each of these small groups/conventicles/house churches pooled their money locally (as they were able and led) and mutually decided to help end world hunger, eliminate poverty, heal addictions, and/or reduce greenhouse gas emissions however they could? What if we gathered together with other small groups/conventicles/house churches every once in awhile (say on major church holidays like Christmas, Epiphany, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, Easter, Ascension and Pentecost, to name a few) to have a big party (worship & fellowship) to which anyone could come? I wonder if living out our faith in this manner together with our children and friends would prove a more “effective” approach to Christian education and nurture than most pre-packaged Sunday School lessons. What if we were known not as the people who declare that they believe this or that about God, Jesus, faith, etc., but as the people who simply practice kindness, compassion, and justice on account of God, Jesus, faith, etc.? What if?

So, what draws me to the emergent conversation? It’s the only conversation I’ve encountered to date that seems to be asking these kinds of questions. It’s the only broad-based commmunity I’ve found to date that’s willing to take a critical look at what’s right AND wrong with contemporary assumptions about the church in all of its current forms. It’s the only community I’m currently aware of that’s willing to take an honest look at the burning issues of 21st century existence and to begin its conversation and ministry there.

Returning to my original confession: why am I relieved to be out of traditional ministry? Because I’ve chosen to opt out of a system I no longer believe in. The questsion facing me now is: what will I opt into? Does an alternative currently exist or is a new one waiting to be created? What do you think?

Tim

Let's Get It Started... Again!

2008-10-01T22:11:00.003-05:00

We are going to try to get this started again. For those that wish to post on this blog, please introduce yourself in the comments for this post. Jim asked in an email if we could share some about ourselves. Allen replied to that email and he may copy that to this post, but I will jump in too.

I have been a Christ follower since childhood. I grew up in the Church of the Nazarene and have been ordained in that tradition. I have spent time as a pastor early in my career, but always planned on being a family therapist. I now own and operate a small group private practice in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

I have been happily married for 19 years and am the proud father of three daughters; a freshman in high school, fifth grader, and kindergartner.

I am a mystic at heart. I love the deep mystery of the eucharist, silence, solitude and contemplative prayer. I long for a deeper, more meaningful spirituality than I have experienced in the traditional protestant church. I am searching. I am drawn to the ideas and dialogue of the emergent movement.

I am looking forward to this conversation and all each participant has to offer.

Lon

The Kingdom of God

2008-04-24T22:17:00.002-05:00

I had the privilege to attend the 2008 Goodwill Awards Dinner tonight. All the regional Goodwill stores, employees, and clients converged on the Marriott in Coralville. There were 560 people there. One of the honorees invited me, so I got a great seat at his table right up in the front.

Remember that story in the Bible of the banquet the guy has. None of the dignitaries show up, so he invites the poor, the oppressed, the grieving, the marginalized. This was that party. I saw the Kingdom of God tonight. It was amazing. The love, the grace, the joy. I can't even tell you with words some of the sights and sounds I saw. But I know this. God was there. I was reminded that the meek, those that mourn, the peacemakers, the people at the end of their ropes... These are the ones that are blessed. Have you seen the Kingdom of God recently. It's all around us.

Cohort on hold

2008-04-15T15:52:00.004-05:00

I'm sorry to report, but because of a general lack of interest, participation and focus, the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort is on indefinite hiatus. No meetings or regular blog postings are planned, though we'll keep the lights on for you in case those with permissions want to post something from time to time (and the comments section is open to anyone who wants to post).

Take heart, however, those who have come to this site looking to connect with others in the Emergent movement. I've gotten a number of emails recently from people who attended the Brian McLaren "Everything Must Change" book tour, most notably in the Quad Cities, and they seem excited to explore emergent/missional church in their areas. I have a couple of their emails and would be happy to forward your name to them if you'd like.

So while the Iowa City group isn't doing much right now, there may well "emerge" a conversation group elsewhere in Iowa. I hope so; it would be nice to keep this going in some fashion.

Peace.

Meeting Wednesday

2008-03-24T15:25:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder that we're scheduled to meet Wednesday, but a conflict has come up and I won't be able to attend. Lon, do you plan to be there? I sent you an email but I'm not sure you received it.

Meeting one week from today

2008-02-20T10:39:00.003-06:00

Just a reminder that, in keeping with our now-regular schedule of holding meetings on the last Wednesday of every month, the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort will meet next from 6-7 p.m. next Wednesday, Feb. 27 at House of Aromas coffeehouse, 119 2nd St. in Coralville. A map may be found here.

Come share your story and meet others who are exploring the Christian faith with fresh eyes and open hearts and minds.

Unbeliever turned Episcopal turned Orthodox Christian speaking in Iowa City

2008-01-31T22:07:00.000-06:00

This was passed along to us by our friend in the Kansas City satellite office of the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort, Nancy Weikal (thanks, Nancy!):

Frederica Mathewes-Green will be speaking on Thursday, Feb. 7 and Friday, Feb. 8 at the University of Iowa. At 7 p.m. Feb. 7, in the Illinois Room of the UI’s Iowa Memorial Union, she will tell her own story of becoming an Eastern Orthodox Christian in a talk titled "Facing East: A Pilgrim's Journey into the Mystery of Orthodox Christianity.” She will detail her journey from unbeliever, to a dabbler in eastern religions, to the Episcopal Church and finally to the Orthodox Church. This event is co-sponsored by the UI Orthodox Christian Fellowship and St. Raphael Orthodox Church.

At 1:30 p.m. Feb. 8, she will be speaking at the Gerber Lounge of the UI English-Philosophy Building on "Freelance Writing as a Career” and then at 7:30 p.m. at the Shambaugh Auditorium of the UI Main Library in a talk titled "Faith, Film and False Assumptions: Christians and the Transformation of Culture." These events are sponsored by Geneva Campus Ministry and the UI Communications Department.

All talks are free and open to the public.

Mathewes-Green is a wide-ranging author and regular columnist for the multifaith web magazine Beliefnet.com who also writes movie reviews for National Review Online and Christianity Today Movies. Among her books are “Facing East: A Pilgrim's Journey into the Mysteries of Orthodoxy” (HarperCollins, 1997) and “The Illumined Heart: The Ancient Christian Path of Transformation” (Paraclete, 2001). She and her husband, the Rev. Gregory Mathewes-Green, live in Baltimore, where he is pastor and she is "Khouria" ("Mother") of the church they founded, Holy Cross Orthodox Church. More information at www.frederica.com.

[Side note: You can read Mathewes-Green's review of the film "What Would Jesus Buy?" here. The film just finished its run today at the University of Iowa's Bijou Theater. Unfortunately, I missed it and hope to catch it when it comes out on DVD.]

looking forward to our meeting

2008-01-29T21:32:00.001-06:00

I'm looking forward to our meeting tomorrow night. (I'm writing this late on Tuesday night) I'm hoping to meet some new friends at the meeting that want to join the conversation. You can get directions and more information at the earlier post about the meeting.

I will not have read the entire book (Everything Must Change, by Brian McLaren) that we plan to discuss. But, I am making my way through it. I wanted to comment on chapter 6. McLaren talked about two sides of a Postmodern coin. One side is informed by the over confident (that's us in the global north or West), the other is informed by those who have been dominated and colonized by the over confident. (I think you know who that is). The former focuses on epistomology. The latter focuses on equitable use of power. McLaren believes both are important. I do too.

You see, I have been implementing postmodern principles for over 16 years now in my work as a professional therapist. I pretty much scraped traditional psychology near the time I started practicing. I got turned on to "post-structural" and "narrative" metaphores for helping people solve their personal and relational problems. I have never looked back. Over the years religious types have sometimes looked at me like I have three heads. They are much more comfortable with "modern" approaches to counseling and therapy. The kind that use systematic methodologies that try to cure people's "issues".

It has been a breath of fresh air to read Brian McLaren. I think he must know some of what I am talking about here. Other "emergent" types may not be able to see the use of post-modern thinking in counseling and therapy arenas yet. Especially, "Christian counseling" (I never liked that term, but I digress).

Anyway, there are these two sides of the coin in my post-modern therapy philosophy world. I tend to lean toward the "epistomology" side. But, I do like the work of those investigating the uses of power too.

I say all that to say, we are living in a different world, where different language and "framing stories", as McLaren puts it, are required to make a difference in the world. And that is why you are reading this blog and considering coming to our meeting tomorrow night, and even maybe just joining this conversation.

Brian Mclaren interviewed on the Sierra Club Pocast

2008-01-26T14:58:00.000-06:00

Brian McLaren was interviewed on the Sierra Club Podcast. Some conservatives might think he has gone off the deep end connecting with "liberal groups" like this, but actually he is one of the few who call themselves evangelicals that is bridging a conversation with others and serving as a true ambassador of Christ about important topics we followers of Christ should be addressing. His interview starts about 15:40 into the podcast.

Eastern Iowa Peacemakers Conference

2008-01-26T10:25:00.000-06:00

I'll be honest, I don't know much about this conference -- just read about it in today's Iowa City Press Citizen -- but one event during the weeklong conference caught my eye, a Nonviolent Atonement Seminar. It takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29 at First Mennonite Church, 405 Myrtle Ave., in Iowa City. Cost is $20, which includes a light lunch. Here's the description. "Explore new trends in understanding the death of Jesus from a peace perspective. Speakers include J. Denny Weaver (author of The Non-Violent Atonement Willard Swartley (author of Convenant of Peace: The Missing Peace in New Testament Theology and Ethics) and Michael Hardin (editor of Stricken By God? Non-Violent Identification and the Victory of Christ)."

Local sponsors of the conference, which runs tomorrow through Feb. 3, are Faith United Church of Christ, First Christian Church (Disciples), First Mennonite Church, New Song Episcopal Church, St. Thomas More Catholic Church, Soul Friends Ministry, Trinity Episopal Church and Zion Lutheran Church.

You can find a full schedule for the week by downloading a Word document here.

You can kinda find more information on the organization offering the conference -- Preaching Peace -- here.

What kind of church would you belong to?

2008-01-24T11:44:00.000-06:00

Larry Vaughan, one of my favorite bloggers, just posted his answers to the question: What kind of church would you belong to? It’s a good question, an excellent question, and it’s terribly relevant to the emergent conversation.

To my mind Larry’s an ideal person to answer this question. He was a pastor for 17 years. Did the whole church scene: associate pastor, worship pastor, youth pastor, senior pastor, education pastor. Even has a degree from a Christian university. But church-going burned him out, ate his lunch, broke him down, whatever metaphor works for you. Gave it all up eight years ago and hasn’t belonged to a church for five years. Says he feels healthier than he’s ever felt before. I’m guessing he’s not alone.

Today Larry counsels emotionally and psychologically broken people, tries to keep them safe from themselves and keep them from harming others. Tries to treat them with dignity, to build them up, show them what self-respect looks like, even when they’re kicking him, screaming at him, making colorful remarks about his lineage. You’ve gotta wonder if he’s doing more now to serve the Kingdom of God than he ever did in his 17 years of pastoring.

In any case, read his list below. Or read the whole essay (recommended) here. Then let’s discuss – what kind of church would YOU attend if you could start from scratch?

I hope to put a list up of my own soon.

Here’s Larry’s take:

1. I would belong to a church that didn’t own any property. Well, they could own property but it would only contain either a massive garden or a softball field that didn’t allow church leagues to play on it.

2. I would belong to a church that gave 100% of my offering to projects selected by the leadership to improve the quality of life for lower stratum individuals. Operating expenses (such as salaries and rent) would be paid directly by ministry partners.

3. I would belong to a church that did not hijack the work of the Holy Spirit. By that I mean I believe in the power of God, and the power of God to draw people to Him. What is right for me is likely wrong for my neighbor and vice versa. Entire denominations have been built on the premise that what is right for me is right for you.

4. I would belong to a church that did not count the number of people in attendance.

5. I would belong to a church that existed primarily for those who were not a part of it.

6. I would belong to a church that understood Love as a verb.

7. I would belong to a church that viewed obesity and gossip as more heinous than alcohol or the lottery.

8. I would belong to a church that promoted the quiet practice of spiritual disciplines. Key word: Quiet.

9. I would belong to a church that fully integrated Galatians 3:28 into its theology. How many church arguments would be dead in the water if we understood and accepted the abolishment of racial, social, and gender distinctions? About all of them.

10. I would belong to a church that would expressly forbid Icthus symbols on member’s cars. I guess it would be OK if we brought them back in the event that Christian worship were outlawed and the penalty for ignoring the law was death.

11. I would belong to a church that valued authenticity before purity. It has been my experience that the church has gotten this backwards, creating an environment that encourages you and I to do everything we can to hide all that is wrong with us.

12. I would belong to a church that understood the carnality of humanity. All humanity.

What Would Jesus Buy?

2008-01-23T13:14:00.000-06:00

The "Shopocalypse" is coming to Iowa City Friday, when the University of Iowa's Bijou Theater will begin a six-day run of What Would Jesus Buy?, the new "docu-comedy" by producer Morgan Spurlock (of "Super Size Me" fame). The film follows "Rev. Billy" and his "Church of Stop Shopping" on their crusade against American consumerism. The reverend is actually performance artist Bill Talen dressed in a white suit, with bleached hair and the flamboyant mannerisms of a televangelist or used car salesman (take your pick).

Here's a synopsis of the movie:

Bill Talen (aka Reverend Billy) was a lost idealist who hitchhiked to New York City only to find that Times Square was becoming a mall. Spurred on by the loss of his neighborhood and inspired by the sidewalk preachers around him, Bill bought a collar to match his white caterer's jacket, bleached his hair and became the Reverend Billy of the Church of Stop Shopping. Since 1999, Reverend Billy has gone from being a lone preacher with a portable pulpit preaching on subways, to the leader of a congregation and a movement whose numbers are well into the thousands. Through retail interventions, corporate exorcisms, and some good old-fashioned preaching, Reverend Billy reminds us that we have lost the true meaning of Christmas. What Would Jesus Buy? is a journey into the heart of America – from exorcising the demons at the Wal-Mart headquarters to taking over the center stage at the Mall of America and then ultimately heading to the Promised Land … Disneyland.

In advance of the screening, Iowa Public Radio's "The Exchange" will feature an interview with Rev. Billy from 10 to 11 a.m. Friday (hear it locally on WSUI 910 AM). Admission to Bijou is $5. For showtimes and more information go here or call 319-335-3258. Go here for more about the movie.

Emergent group to meet Jan. 30, discuss 'Everything Must Change'

2008-01-14T15:48:00.000-06:00

Please join the Eastern Iowa Cohort of Emergent Village at its next meeting 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 30 at House of Aromas coffeehouse, 119 2nd St. in Coralville, where we'll discuss Brian McLaren's new book, "Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis and a Revolution of Hope." Click here for a map and gallery of photos showing the location.

In the meantime, Brian's Website has some resources to help people put into action some of the ideas he proposes in his book. Here's a PDF to a discussion guide that will eventually be on a page where visitors can swap ideas and stories about their own efforts. I encourage you to print off a copy and bring it to the meeting -- it's loaded with some great, practical ideas for living out the Gospel of Jesus!

Those who haven't read the book are still welcome to participate in a growing, generative friendship among missional Christians seeking to love the world in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. For more information, call Stephen in Iowa City at 319-621-5263 or Lon in Cedar Rapids at 319-393-6796.

2008 and the collapse of the Emerging Church

2008-01-04T12:12:00.000-06:00

There's an interesting discussion thread on the main Emergent Village Web site (posted in part and linked to below) in response to a prediction by Kester Brewin, author of the book "Signs of Emergence: A Vision for Church That Is Always Organic/Networked/Decentralized/Bottom-Up/Communal/Flexible/Always Evolving," that 2008 will see the collapse of the "emerging church" as a popular project. Says Kester:

It’s just a hunch, but I sense that some of the key players are less and less willing to work with that particular language. I think that, whereas a few years ago people were excited by the prospect, people are getting used to/bored/fed up with ‘emerging church’ as a concept, and will thus leave it behind. Not that I think that that means ‘game over’ for all that people like Emergent stand for — far from it actually — but I think people may increasingly assimilate those ideas into their practice without taking the name. (I think for some time this has been foreseen in the collapse in usefulness of the term ‘emerging church’, which is so tired as a phrase it has begun to mean nothing.)

As new as I am to the Emergent discussion, Kester's comments strike a chord. I, too, find the term "emergent" wearing a bit thin. And I wonder if, by holding this converation largely outside of our respective churches, we aren't missing an opportunity to engage our faith in a rich, meaningful way within our churches.

Like many people, I sought out conversation partners via the emergent movement because I'm dissatisfied with my church's seeming disinterest in challenging its members to radically live out the faith in Jesus that we profess. I want and need to be held accountable for my life -- not just for my behavior in the pews, but for the way I reflect Christ in my home as a father and parent, at my workplace as a supervisor, in the voting booth as a citizen, walking past the homeless, how I earn and spend my money, who I invite into my home and show hospitality, what food and entertainment I consume. And I strongly believe that should be the role of the church, both lowercase and capital "C." My hope was, and is, that together we in the emergent discussion can prepare, instruct and encourage one another to go back to our churches and enact our vision for Christ's body. When all the coffee is drunk, all the talking is done, all our hopes and fears are laid out on the table, all our wounds licked and healed, in the end we have to be the kinds of church we're all hungering for, to show our fellow congregants what a truly dynamic, engaged, biblical kind of faith life can look like.

For all its many qualities, and despite Kester's mistaken (I believe) reference to the "emerging church," this wonderful conversation is not a church. In some cases it's inspired people to form new churches, but really it's a means to an end. It's a communal effort to examine the Gospel with fresh eyes and to develop a vision for Christian living and mission that binds up inextricably personal salvation with social and political and economic justice. It recognizes the Kingdom of God is a present reality today and demands our participation, that God's kingdom is not simply a place where pious people aspire to spend their eternal rest.

Unless we put this emerging vision into action in our own lives, in our own churches, the emergent conversation will amount to a flash that generated considerable heat and yet failed to shine any light.

Archives added

2007-12-30T18:06:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note to say that I've added archives to the left margin to make it easier for blog readers to find older posts. Cheers!

Stephen

Book tour, cohort networking opportunity

2007-12-30T13:29:00.000-06:00

Speaking of "Everything Must Change," Brian McLaren is taking his book tour/discussion/networking opportunity to 11 cities in the U.S., including Chicago Friday, April 4 to Saturday, April 5 and Kansas City Friday, April 25 to Saturday, April 26.

First United Church of Oak Park is sponsoring the Chicago event. And YouthFront and Jacob’s Well Church are cohosting the Kansas City event. Here's a link to the main tour site. And here's the schedule, which is essentially the same for all cities:

Friday

6 to 7 p.m. -- Reception, art exhibit in digital form, registration and resource center 

7 to 9:30 p.m. -- Session 1 with music, drama, prayer, presentation by Brian, and conversation 

9:30–10:30 p.m. – Q&A, Book signing, art exhibit in digital form, musical concert

Saturday

7:29 to 8:19 a.m. -- Conversations over Coffee…first come first serve sign-up on-site:

Church Planters and Emergent Cohort members with Brian and GraceMcLaren: 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.

Faith Community Leaders interested in exploring Deep Shift coaching with Linnea Nilsen Capshaw: We will dialogue about the shifts needed for new and established organizations in this significant time of transition in our world and churches, and connect with one another.

8:30 to 9 a.m. – Art exhibit in digital form, resource center 

9 to 10:30 a.m. – Session 2 with Brian and conversation 

10:30 to 11 a.m. – Break, resource center 

11 a.m. to 12 p.m. – Session 3 with Brian and local guests 

12 to 1 p.m. – Lunch and conversation 

1 to 2 p.m. – Session 4, Guided Experience for reflection using art with Linnea 

2 to 2:30 p.m. – Break, resource center 

2:30 to 4:15 p.m. – Session 5 with Brian, music, prayer, reflection and conversation, worship and invitation 

4:15 to 5 p.m. – Resource center, book signing, art exhibit in digital form

The Kansas City gathering will include a chance Sunday afternoon to "Connect This" with all we've learned and experienced at the tour. Tour sponsors, including the Sierra Club, Sojourners and Faith at Work, will be hosting these outings unique to each city, from about 1 to 4 p.m., to create an immediate opportunity for conference participants–with the sense of community that has already been established during the conference–to observe the principles discussed during the tour and how they are inextricably connected to one another…integration and application.

I'm interested in carpooling if anyone else is interested in going to either of those locations (I'm partial to the Kansas City tour) -- email me and let me know, even if you're reading this and aren't formally part of the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort.

Apparently we've already missed the 'early bird' sign-up, but we can still get a "just in time" rate of $99. Students can get in for $79 with a student ID. Also, scholarships are available for anyone who can't afford to attend. For more info on that, fire an email off to EMCscholarship@gmail.com.

Everything Must Change

2007-12-27T22:22:00.000-06:00

A belated Merry Christmas to my Eastern Iowa Cohort group and any visitors. And a wish for the new year -- that we can rejuvenate our group, increase and broaden participation in our conversation, commit to regular meetings and post much more regularly to this blog. I'm eager to see us get back on track, and I invite anyone reading this to email me or post to let me know if you're on board. I especially urge any "lurkers" to step out of the shadows and introduce themselves. We'd love to have you join us!

In the meantime, I'm reading through Brian McLaren's new book and am interested in knowing if anyone else is reading it and what they think.

Let's keep the conversation alive!

Peace.

Stephen

A Great Awakening?

2007-09-26T13:32:00.000-05:00

Here's some good news that dares my heart to hope. Listen to Will and Lisa Samson, authors of Justice in the Burbs: Being the hands of Jesus wherever you live—

We both grew up in good Christian homes. ... We figure, between the two of us, that we've heard about 4,000 sermons. ... We went to Christian schools, Christian college, Christian camps. We were involved in Scripture memory programs. And when did we memorize a verse about God's concern for the poor? [...]

And so one day we began to read Scripture with an open lens. One day we began to read Scripture for what was [really] there...

Oooh-hooo, that causes trouble. Watch them tell it:

Justice in the Burbs

Ah, the mercy of God! Day after day, I see American Christians awakening from a long sleep, suddenly aware that their Bibles tell of a Jesus whose incredible passion for justice shouts from every page, and they have not known it.

Many of us—I speak of myself—have not well followed this Jesus. We've followed instead the less troublesome, personal-salvation-obsessed, who's-our-enemy-now religion deduced from evangelical dogma and 20th-century eschatological novelties—and so startlingly absent from the Gospels. And now we scarcely know what to do when we look afresh at the breathtaking things Jesus says and does.

But something's up. There's a change in the air, I think. And I don't know that I've sensed anything quite like it before. These things are subjective; I certainly could be wrong.

But dare we wonder if it might be so, or what it means?

Tags: Will+Samson, Lisa+Samson, evangelicalism, religious+right, emergent+church, Christian conservatives, social+justice, Justice+in+the+Burbs, Christianity+justice, Christianity+poverty, Bible+poverty, Bible+justice, Monte Asbury

Meeting Postponed

2007-09-17T15:16:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the late notice, but it looks like enough people have conflicts tonight that we'll need to postpone our cohort meeting, which was scheduled for 7 p.m. at the House of Aromas coffee place in Coralville. My humblest apologies to anyone who happened to show up for the meeting only to find no one there! Lon, Phil and the gang, please let me know when we might get together next.

And thanks, Monte, for the new entries! It's great to have a fresh voice here. Hope to comment soon!

Blessings.

Stephen

Inerrant discomfort

2007-09-15T11:59:00.000-05:00

I came upon a discussion about inerrancy, and decided to wonder "out loud" about it. Here's the comment I left:

I guess the thing that kills me about the way I have, in the past, defended this issue is crystallized in the phrase: "All Scripture is God-breathed."
In the last few years, I've realized I have very little idea what that means. God is, somehow, and to some degree, the originator (at least of those Scriptures to which the verse refers). But did those who wrote it hear correctly? Did they hear words or concepts? Did they write through their own cultural and theological zeitgeist (how could they not?). And isn't it a tad arrogant to assume I know the answer to any of these?
The implications are huge - for unless we hold to a word-for-word dictation theory (as the early Mormons did regarding their books), a literal translation is often not the best rendering. Indeed, literal translation, even among modern languages (say, Spanish to English), is horrible translation, and what's being said is more often obscured than clarified.
What we're after is the heart of God. How we get to it, ironically, may not be in ways that fundamentalism finds "safe," and is inescapably subjective. But making it "safe" with baseless assumptions is worse, for we know such assumptions must be partly wrong.
I guess I find "safe" unsafe. To quote C.S. Lewis: "He's not a tame lion!"
Thanks for the opportunity to reflect!

Watcha think? Should the D.S. take me out for "stakes"?

Iraqi Christians greet Muslims before Ramadan

2007-09-14T18:18:00.001-05:00

Ramadan began yesterday. Here's a story that seems consistent with an Emergent outlook, to me (not to mention, heroic).

Think so? And if so, is there an Eastern Iowa corollary?

clipped from www.speroforum.com

“We need signs of dialogue in Iraq, otherwise, all is lost”. This is what the Chaldean Archbishop of Kirkuk, Msgr. Louis Sako maintains ...

[He] invites the Christian faithful of his diocese to unite themselves in prayer to their “Muslim brothers” in Iraq, during Ramadan, Islam’s holy month. ...

The prelate – who yesterday issued a copy of his greetings in Arabic ...

has published a calendar of Ramadan rites and has distributed it to over 3 thousand families in the city ...

During this period – Msgr. Sako has invited [Christians] “to respect the feelings of Muslim citizens, not to eat and to drink publicly during this month, and not to ware [sic] indecent dress, and to join them in praying for ... unity, stability, and the safe[ty of] the lives and dignity of Iraqis”...

“Ramadan – continues his message - is a special time of prayer and progress in virtue, reconciliation and forgiveness, compassion and peace ...

"to realize a society of love, harmony, truth and justice" ...

Made it!

2007-09-14T18:00:00.001-05:00

Thanks, friends, for your welcome - finally made here, after getting a little befuddled by old and new gmail accounts and Blogger accounts and WordPress accounts. I'll be looking for a chance to write a "real" post soon! Best wishes!

Jim Wallis in Iowa City Sept. 13

2007-08-28T09:36:00.000-05:00

Jim Wallis, founder of Sojourners and author of "God's Politics: Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It," will give a free, public lecture 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13 in the Main Lounge of the University of Iowa's Iowa Memorial Union, at the corner of Jefferson and Madison streets. The title of Wallis' talk is "Biblical Faith and Political Values: A New Vision for America."

Here's a synopsis: "Jim Wallis senses a profound hunger in America for a politics that appeals to our deepest hopes and values, that unites rather than divides. As an evangelical Christian, he shows how a full biblical faith can contribute to resolving the great moral and political issues of our times: poverty, peace, security, abortion, care of the earth, immigration and the rest."

Something the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort may want to attend, individually or as a group. It'd be fun to meet for coffee and dessert after and discuss the lecture.

Our next meeting

2007-08-24T11:48:00.001-05:00

The next meeting of the Eastern Iowa Emergent Cohort will take place at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 17, at the House of Aromas coffee house at 119 2nd St. in Coralville. Click here for a map and gallery of photos showing the location. If anyone has any "agenda items" -- proposed topics for discussion, etc. -- feel free to post them as a comment.

You're invited to a Party!

2007-08-23T09:05:00.000-05:00

I was listening to this Jesuit prayer podcast this morning. There was this cool african music that when translated was talking about the Kingdom of God and no more suffering or pain. Then the scripture text read was a parable Jesus told as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. A King has a son that is getting married and none of the people the King invites, RSVP to the party.

Then, I remembered this video I saw recently where Brian Williams on NBC is interviewing Bono from U2 (you will need iTunes to download it and use the link). Bono is in Africa, and I will never forget what he says, "One thing we know for sure, God is with the poor."

So then I think to myself, "what if the Kingdom is God is with the poor?" What if I'm invited to the wedding party, and the party is in taking care of, being with the poor? How many times have I turned down the invitation? This hit me like a ton of bricks. Next month we will meet again, details forthcoming, and talk more about what on earth is emerging in the Kingdom of God. Until then, I will be watching for signs of it in a little bit different way.

A hopeful way forward

2007-08-07T21:32:00.000-05:00

Great meeting Monday night! I'm looking forward to meeting again next month, hopefully with a few more "emergers" and a bit more diversity.

Meanwhile, having read a bit further into "An Emergent Manifesto of Hope," and following up on our agreement to keep this blog fresh, I wanted to cite a few passages that -- upon rereading tonight -- strike me as particularly relevant in light of our conversation. For brevity, I'll just focus on one recurring theme in the book: the deep desire among people of faith for a safe place where they can discuss their dreams and hopes -- as well as fears and nightmares -- about church as it's practiced in mainstream denominations in 21st century America.

From Thomas Malcom Olson's chapter, "Jailhouse Faith:"

Every person needs one safe place where he or she is able to stop pretending, a place of ruthless honesty and unconditional love where no one is allowed to fly underneath the radar.

Later, in Tim Conder's "The Existing Church/Emerging Church Matrix:"

...so much of our theological dialogue is in the potentially punitive, high-consequence categories of inclusion and exclusion. ... Encouraging theological dialogue in safe places would reveal the magnitude of theological and lifestyle diversity in our fellowships. Questions, doubts and concerns would be transformed from painful secrets to catalysts for community spiritual formation.

And later still, in Adam Walker Cleaveland's chapter "Presbymergent:"

We strive to seek alternative visions and third ways beyond the polarities that have so dramatically seeped into our culture and our faith. This involves a true openness to the Spirit and a desire to avoid squelching anything that might be from and of the spirit. This openness leads to safe places where friendship thrives, where people can come and be involved in the process of deconstructing ideas and practices, all the while remaining open to the movement and new wave of the Spirit that can bring about renewal and reformation with the church today.

Funny, isn't it, that the one place Christians would think of as safe -- as sanctuary -- would be the church. And yet, so many drawn to the Emergent conversation say the church is the last place where they'd feel comfortable expressing a new, vibrant, bare-knuckled vision for living out their walk with Christ. Samir Selmanovic, in his chapter "The Sweet Problem of Inclusiveness," sums up the challenge before us -- and the church universal -- best, I think:

Christianity cannot regain credibilty or recaptivate human imagination until it learns to exist for the sake of something greater than itself.

I'm eager to see how our group will reignite our personal and collective faith and how we might, in turn, find ways to commit our lives more fully to Jesus.

Can we put off the next meeting one week?

2007-07-26T18:52:00.000-05:00

Phil and I (Lon) realized we have a conflict next Monday that can't be rescheduled. We committed to work at the Salvation Army that night and didn't put the two engagements together when we were planning this meeting. Leave a comment on this post and let us know if you can meet Monday, August 6 at 7:00 p.m. at Buffalo Wild Wings in Coralville (see links in previous post).

next meeting and a sundry other things...

2007-07-12T15:59:00.000-05:00

Looks like we will have our next meeting on Monday, July 30th at 7 p.m. This time lets do Buffalo Wild Wings near I-80 and hwy 965. I look forward to meeting some new people, talking about our summer reading and having some good wings!

Also, listen in to Good News Geeks Podcast on Friday night, July 13th at 9:00 p.m. CST. This will be a live show, so you can participate. We will definitely be discussing the emergent church and related websites, free software, podcasts and tech tips. Hope to meet you at both gatherings.

What I'll be reading on my summer vacation...

2007-07-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

Inspired by a visit this past week with my brother-in-law, a very progressive Evangelical Free pastor from Atlanta, and a recent invitation to help conduct research as part of my Methodist church's re-visioning process, I ordered a few books from Amazon.com that arrived today and thought I'd share the titles in case any of y'all have read them and have opinions:

"The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church," by Reggie McNeal.

"The Shaping of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the 21 Century Church," by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch.

"Rethinking Christ and Culture: A Post-Christendom Perspective," by Craig A. Carter.

"Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine," by Wayne Grudem.

"Halley's Bible Handbook With the New International Version," by Henry H. Halley.

Actually, this is a good two summers' worth of reading, I'm sure!

Peace,

Stephen

Church as a safe place

2007-07-01T18:03:00.000-05:00

I’m half-way through “Emergent Manifesto” and hope to comment more thoroughly, and thoughtfully, after I’ve finished and processed it all. But one common theme that occurs in several of the essays is the need for church to be a safe place where people can “come clean” with their doubts, their questions, their dreams for Christianity and their struggles and still be accepted. One chapter by an addiction counselor says he finds that prisoners and AA meeting attendees tend to be best at these kind of raw, honest and often very fruitful exchanges, and suggests that in most churches people speak very cautiously – if at all – about the serious challenges posed by actively living out one’s faith for fear of being marginalized or outright rejected.

I have found this to be true in my own experience in Catholic, Presbyterian and now Methodist churches. Outside of the formal worship service (which is itself highly formalized and scripted), serious, vivid talk of God is rare in church. I don’t know if, because this is Iowa, modesty is at play, or whether church-goers tend to be shy or embarrassed about trying to discuss the ineffable. But as this book suggests, I’ve yet to really feel either safe or encouraged to go deep, and I've found that truly disappointing.

I think the real challenge facing traditional churches isn’t that they ask too much of their members, but that they ask – and expect – so very little.

Our First Gathering

2007-06-26T20:03:00.001-05:00

We had a great first meeting last night. Albeit, there were only three of us, it was quality conversation. We got to talking about epistomological crisis and how to navigate one. I mentioned this qoute by Stanley Hauerwas, a theologian and editor of a book entitled Narrative Theology.

"The solution to a genuine epistemological crisis requires the invention or discovery of new concepts and the framing of some new type or types of theory which meet three highly exacting requirements. First, this in some ways radically new and conceptually enriched scheme, if it is to put an end to epistemological crisis, must furnish a solution to the problems which had previously proved intractable in a systematic and coherent way, Second, it must also provide an explanation of just what it was which rendered the tradition, before it had acquired these new resources, sterile or incoherent or both. And third, these first two tasks must be carried out in a way which exhibits some fundamental continuity of the new conceptual and theoretical structures with the shared beliefs in terms of which the tradition of enquiry had been defined up to this point." pg. 11

We discussed the future of the eastern Iowa emergent cohort, we commiserated with our ideas we are afraid to mention in other circles, we had good coffee, Jesus was there. Please join us next time. We are looking forward to what this can become. We are taking it slow and focusing on the conversation. That reminded of Brian McLaren's emergent evangelism idea to count conversations instead of conversions. We decided to trust God with the outcomes.

Lessons from the Main Line & Beyond

2007-06-25T13:40:00.001-05:00

Hi friends

I just listened to a great podcast of a lecture given by Diana Butler Bass. She is a church history PhD who, in this talk, is addressing a group of main line emergent folk. Though you may not be a "main liner", I think you'll find it helpful, especially if you lead in any context where you have persons of varying worldviews - ie. post-modern, modern or pre-modern - trying to coexist.

Click here to listen to DBB's lecture.

a new kind of christian

2007-06-08T14:14:00.000-05:00

Hey friends. I just finished reading McLaren's book "A New Kind of Christian". Once again, I find myself soothed by the fact that someone else out there is thinking and processing things that I'm dealing with. If you haven't read it, do so. (thanks Monte for pointing me to the book!)

There is a lot to process, but I'll just start by saying that being a leader on the front edge of this shift is exhausting and sometimes crazy-making. I want to and need to be true to what God is doing in my heart and mind, yet I'm scared to lay it out there for the people I lead. Part of me fears getting the boot, part of me is just uncertain because it is still so much in process, part of me is still scared because I'm still undoing my deep constructs of faith & theology...how can I sound articulate and clear when I'm in a bit of a fog?

The one thing that strikes me hardest as I write this is a need for courage to lead. What are the chances that those we lead are also processing these questions and fearing they are losing their faith or finding Truth, but see that their new found Truth won't be able to survive in their old context of church life. Don't people like that need us to bravely articulate the struggle, the fear, the hope, and the vision for living lives deeply devoted to Jesus and full of love and redemption for the injustice of this world? I think so...

Midwest Cohorts Gathering in Chicago

2007-05-28T13:34:00.000-05:00

This gathering looks like something we could do for a field trip. It is the first annual midwest cohort gathering and it's in Chicago! Looks like many of the pioneers of the emergent movement are going to be there. It takes place July 20-21. We could take a group. Any takers?

First Gathering

2007-05-26T15:44:00.000-05:00

Even though life's busy and summer schedules are often chaotic, I thought it would be good to get a meeting time on the slate. It will be a nice opportunity to meet and put faces with names.

So here goes - Monday Night June 25th 7 pm @ Capanna Coffee on the Iowa City ped mall (southwest corner of the public library). We can get acquainted and hit some highlights of the book we're reading. As always, spread the word and bring a friend.

Summer Reading

2007-05-24T17:10:00.000-05:00

Hi Friends

We'd like to kick off our cohort by having a virtual book group. Come back to this space to post your comments on the book "An Emergent Manifesto of Hope", a collection of essays by emergent voices.