What’s In A Name: (e)mergent Voyageurs
William Shakespeare
With all due respect to the Bard, a great deal of this blog is defined by its name. I have intentionally chosen the name to act as a guide by which all posts are meant to be written. It has served me very well, keeping me from wandering off course time and again. However, what may be clear and essential for me might be far from clear to you, the reader. Therefore, I want try and explain my reasons for choosing the name “(e)mergent Voyageurs”.
Why (e)mergent?
When I began this blog, I was familiar with the terms “emerging church” and “emergent”, but had not yet grasped how deeply entrenched they were in the (inevitable) branding that would result in the organization Emergent US (and Emergent UK). While I resonate with the conversation coming out of these organizations, I chose the name for this blog with no intention of indicating direct affiliation with any organization or individual leaders in that or other groups.
Regular readers will have noticed that I changed the title recently from “Emergent” to “(e)mergent”. This was to intentionally differentiate my use of the word with the Emergent organization/branding. Again, this is not to reject or discredit them, but rather to be clear that my own path in exploring the emerging church journey is not synonymous with theirs. Unfortunately, due to the cultural dynamics in the US, the conversation there has taken some turns and emphasis that I don’t believe are as central or helpful to the realities I see here in Canada. This does not diminish those sisters and brothers in Emergent US, many of whom I call friends.
Why Voyageurs?
In Canadian history, few figures stand out more uniquely than the Voyageurs (French for ‘travellers’), otherwise known as the Coureur des Bois (runner of the woods). They were the men, most often French Canadian, who explored the wilderness, building trade routes and relations with the First Nations people. When the North West Company faced seeming impossible odds in competing with the well established Hudson’s Bay Company, they developed a new approach. Rather than requiring the Native traders to come to the port cities to trade, they sent their voyageurs out into the uncharted wilderness, dealing directly with the communities. In the end, The Bay used this same technique to rally and overcome Northwest, but their ingenuity is still commended today.
Further, given their willingness to go to the tribes, these voyageurs built far deeper and more respectful relationship than the colonial cities at the ports. Traders would often come together with the Native peoples at Rendezvous (literally, “meet you” in French), where an uproarious party would ensue. It was a time of building relationships, swapping trade routes & secrets and sharing cultures (and a lot of beer). In fact, many married women from the indigenous communities, creating some of the first Métis peoples (people of mixed European and First Nations descent, forming a unique culture).
While not a perfect metaphor, the voyageurs represent powerful imagery that resonate with my own emerging voyage. No longer satisfied to practice a “safe” faith, requiring the world (and God) to come to me to make our spiritual transactions, I seek to discover the fullness of God found in all people, created in His image, and within the larger Creation, while at the same time, bringing that which God uniquely invested in me to share with and be transformed by others. Rather than an institutional faith defined by the “business” of right propositions, it is a celebratory relationship, a joining of the Perichoretic Rendezvous of the Trinity.
To that end, I chose the name (e)mergent Vouageurs to describe my own faith journey in this emerging age. Additionally, it is why I choose the image at the top of this site: “Canoe Manned by Voyageurs Passing a Waterfall” (1869) by Canadian artist Frances Anne Hopkins. In it you see a diversity of paddlers, including the uncommon presence of a woman, possibly the artist herself who often joined her husband on such journey’s with the voyageurs. The participants are in the same canoe, yet at different places on the journey (some Native, some voyageurs, come colonists or traders). While the wilderness may be uncharted to them, it is not, strictly speaking, unknown or undiscovered. My faith journey is similar in all these respects.
In my very first post, I quoted the patron saint of Canada, St. Jean de Brébeuf. Brébeuf was martyred, along with many other early missionaries in Canada’s history. In training the priests under his care, he once shared wisdom I hope we will all follow, regardless of where we are on the journey:
So I invite you to take up your paddle and join me on this journey together into the Great Mystery.
that’s what I figured about the (e).
Cindy,
I knew you’d know. It is strange, though. I was so passionate about this post (esp. the voyageurs aspect), yet it has been a dead thread. Alas…
Peace,
Jamie
I’ve almost always been wrong about which of my posts would generate the most comments. So far, the post about changing my blog name has gotten by far the most attention. who knew.
Cindy,
Too true.
Peace,
Jamie
Not many history buffs among your readers, perhaps.
My husband enjoys buckskinning, which you must know something about… His chosen persona is a Californio, a fur entrepreneur in the early 1800s, but in the Southwest rather than the Northwest. I understand there were quite a few of them in the mountains of New Mexico, particularly, but also in California. So I’ve read a bit about the phenomenon, and we have a favorite yearly Rendezvous we attend, seven miles south of the Oregon state line. Jed Smith tramped about these parts in his travels.
Keep your title and your painting. It means more because it’s so meaningful for you. I’ll have to look up information on Hopkins. Love what you’ve shown us of her work.
Dana
Dana,
Thanks for sharing that. History provides such a rich treasure for us if we pay attention. I think you would greatly enjoy the novel “Voyageurs” by Margaret Elphinstone, as it was also a source of inspiration for me.
Peace,
Jamie
Sorry for not commenting, bro, I read the post and was just enjoying the excellent use of metaphor!
And Cindy’s nailed it (again). The posts that I think will generate a lot of discussion are often the ones that generate the least. And vice versa.
For example, I wrote a post — tongue in cheek — dissing the Ranch Tooth commercials, and the #1 Google search that led to my blog for months was…. (go on, guess!).
Not quite how I wanted to have people discover my blog (and the fact that most of them <b>didn’t</b> comment is probably for the best)…
Rob,
LOL! Thanks for the encouragement.
Peace,
Jamie
Outstanding!
The metaphor is terrific, Jamie. And it certainly stands in solidarity with the “ancient-future” phenomenon.
After reading this post, I couldn’t help but run, pull out my wooden chests, throw on my point-blanket “capote”, don my silver fox hat, fill my tankard, and cozy up next to a fireplace with my copy of “The Shaping of Things to Come.”
You (and Dana) might be interested in a little known fact about “moi” – I, too, am a buckskin and beadwork wearing, blackpowder shooting, rendezvous attending Western Mountain Man (although, my comments above betray the fact that I sometimes moonlight as a voyageur!). And LONG before I was blogging or posting as DesertPastor at TheOoze, I regularly participated with an online role-playing group which chose as their setting, a fictitious 17th century fort in the French-occupied Northeast. lol!
Final thought: Jamie, I have come to respect your perspective and contribution very much. (e)mergent Voyageurs fits you well, my friend. Continued blessings to you and your ministry, both here and everywhere else the Lord has you.
- Chris
Chris,
Glad that the metaphor resonates with you. I barely brushed the surface of what it means to me, but that’s a book waiting to happen (wink).
Thanks for the kind words.
Peace,
Jamie
Bring on the book!
Hi, I’m first-time commenter, previously lurker.
When I first visited your site, I have to confess that I was quite put off by the title — first, by the emergent thing. I’m not against Emergent or anything, and I understand the usefulness of labels, but I’m skeptical of people who cling to them. That said, your explanation of your use of the term is fair enough.
Second, the voyageur bit. I’m still not a fan. It makes sense, based on your description of the voyageur lifestyle, but I guess I see that chapter of history quite differently. The voyageurs were the front-line workers of the imperialist forces. And while I accept that imperialism and colonialism is part of Canadian history, it’s not something I enjoy dwelling on today, and something I’m definitely not eager to associate with Christian faith. I’m a Winnipegger, and I grew up with the same romanticism about the voyageurs as you write here. There are cool things about voyageurs, but remember that originally they were called <i>correurs du bois</I> and the company changed their moniker to “voyageurs” after the correurs developed a very bad reputation.
Anyway, my point: I’m not big on the name, but I still read the site.
Jenny,
I guess I will have to respectfully disagree. While there were voyageurs who could be described (with a stretch) as imperialist forefunners, I think that is a broad generalization and oversimplification. In fact, many voyageurs were the most vocal and active European forces against colonialism, but due to factors (not the least of which is the class system of which they were the lower half) they had little impact.
I find that there has been some revisionist history that makes these generalizations more PC. However, it isn’t a fair and balanced representation. Even some of the most progressive forces against colonialism would be considered bigoted by today’s standards.
Many First Nations elders have shared stories of rich traditions of friendship and mutuality with many of the voyageurs. I stand by these in my use of the name. That being said, I did say that I was using them as an imperfect metaphor. Let’s not forget that the name Christian has far more negative history than the voyageurs, yet we do not abandon that name.
Thanks for visiting and I hope you will return frequently.
Peace,
Jamie