(e)mergent Voyageurs

While I said I would get back to the review in my next post, I wanted to take this time to say that the 336 consecutive hours of prayer for the children of northern Uganda- the Gulu Prayer Project- officially ended tonight at 8pm.  With hundreds of people praying all over the world, including people from Canada, the United States of America, Bulgaria, Australia, Brazil and Uganda, it was a rousing success.  We have heard stories of people getting involved all over the world with advocacy, fundraising and prayer for this issue.  We have little doubt the impact will continue for some time.

For those of you who were involved and those who wish you’d had the chance, we plan to run another prayer initiative the Fall of this year.  We hope to build on more specific details about the where things have improved and what more needs to be done.  Between now and then, those of us here at YWAM Urban Ministries Winnipeg will be developing our long term initiatives for northern Uganda.

Now that the Gulu Prayer Project is finished, don’t think the work is done.  So much more is happening.  For example, here in Winnipeg, as in other cities throughout North America, on April 29th we will be participating in the Global Night Commute, a night where we walk and sleep as groups in public places to identify and raise awareness about the realities of northern Uganda (for a listing of all cities participating, see the official site here).

Thank you again for all of you who took the time to pray.  It was a good start.  Now the real fun begins.

While I am not finished with the my review of “The emerging Christian Way”, I wanted to take a break from it to touch on a subject that has been bothering me lately: Venting.  All of us have needed to get our frustration, anger, guilt, angst, etc. off our chest at one time or another.  We find someone we can trust and let it all spew forth in all its unadulterated glory.  You know what I am talking about.

However, recently I have been considering the over-all quality of such behaviour.  Is it healthy in the long run to use venting as a regular habit?  While it has been argued by psychologists as to the quality of this approach, more and more professionals are moving away from it.  Dr. Brad Bushman, Ph.D., a psychologist at Iowa State University, says:

“Venting anger just keeps it alive. People think it’s going to work, and when it doesn’t, they become even more angry and frustrated.”

Further, it is shown that repeated techniques for dealing with such emotions can “imprint” themselves on our biochemical make-up.  Therefore, if you require the heated venting in order to calm yourself, your cell receptors get rewired, essentially requiring these outbursts.  While occasional venting might be ok, habitual use of this approach is problematic.  Beyond psychology and biology, we cannot ignore the greater issue of the spiritual impact (though, the one cannot be seperated from the others).

I cannot help but believe that, in our personal and shared pursuit of Christlikeness, such an approach as venting seems ill advised.  Now don’t get me wrong.  I am not trying to moralize the issue.  We have come too far in the area of authenticity and transparency to go back to repressing and pretending.  Rather I am suggesting that we need to pursue the spiritual discipline of confession.

 

 
For many of us, when we hear “confession”, we immediate assume it means the admission of moral failures, which is fair enough.  Yet with this comes the obligatory guilt that comes with revealing our deep dark secrets.  Confession is personal, focused on ones own heart, emotions, expections, etc.  In this context, we must learn to personalize that which we would otherwise vent without restraint.  I am not suggesting we accept fault that isn’t our own, but rather communicate that which we are experiencing and feeling about the situation.

Many people will say horrible things about someone, threatening all kinds of retaliation, then claim they were just sharing how they were “feeling”.  This isn’t actually true.  Articulating value judgments and retaliation, even if you have no intention of communicating or acting on them to the person in question, are responses to feelings, not in and of themselves feelings.  Therefore, when I say that we must learn to confession our personal “feelings”, I am suggesting articulating our emotional state without passing judgment.

This is not an easy thing to do, thus it is a discipline.  Too often, people will hit an interpersonal conflict, vent to someone else, then superficially reconcile the broken relationship, avoiding the core dysfunction at issue.  We fail to see that our emotions are to our being what nerves are to our body’s response to pain- they make us aware of something in need of change, both within ourselves and in our environments (including and especially relationships).  Venting is no different than medicating our problem, sometimes necessary, but in the long term, invariably dangerous to our well being.

In addition to our interpersonal relationships, this has application in our response to the larger Church culture, whether it be fundamentalist Evangelicals or hyper-Calvinist Reformers.  Even in the privacy of our Cohorts, our secure emails and the personal discussions with our spouses, we must learn the discipline of confession- we must learn to extend the uncompromising, authentic and transparent grace of God so freely given to us to those we would rather “vent” about.

Ok, I’ve got that off my chest.  Next up is part 6 of the book review.

 

 Emerging Church

The Great Work – by Thomas Berry

Unlike my previous retiscence, I was excited to read this chapter, as it was the first of several in the book that focused on ecological issues. Thomas Berry, historian, deep ecologist and Catholic priest, is best known for the idea that, in order to function in the world as humanity, an understanding of the history and functioning of the evolving universe is necessary. True to this emphasis, this chapter is a brief, but well rounded look at some of the factors through history that has led us (specifically Western civilization) to a place in history where Creation itself faces its greatest threat at our hands.

The chapters begins with the following:

“History is governed by those overarching movements that give shape and meaning to life by relating the human venture to the largest destinies of the universe. Creating such a movement might be called the Great Work of a people. There have been Great Works in the past: the Great Work of the classical Greek world with its understanding of the human mind and creation of the Western humanist tradition; the Great Work of Israel in articulating a new experience of the divine in human affairs; the Great Work of Rome in gathering the peoples of he Mediterranean world and of Western Eirope into an ordered relaion with on another. So too in the medieval cathedrals rising so graciously into the heavens from the region of the old Frankish empire. There the divine and the human could be present to each other in some grand manner.”

Berry continues to outline several more crucial Great Works throughout human history. In addition to pointing out their unique contributions, he also reflects on their inevitable human flaws and imperfections. Focusing on the development of the Western civilization, he draws a frank, but generous (more geneous than I might have been) picture of the consequences our pursuit of dominance, wealth and pleasure have had on the planet. A key factor in this course of destruction, he argues, is “a mode of consciousness that has established radical discontinuity between the human and other modes of being”. Our failure to see ourselves as indivisibly connected to all of the Created order is one of our greatest downfalls. Further, like no other stage in history, we have the capacity, through this failure, to irreversibly destory the earth.

He continues:

 

 

“In reality, there is a single integral community of the Earth that includes all its component member whether human or other than human.  In this community every being has it own role to fulfill, its own dignity, its inner spontaneity.  Every being has its own voice.  Every being declares itself to the entire universe.  Every being enters into communion with other beings.  This capacity for relatedness, for presence to other beings, for spontaneity in action, is a capacity possessed by every mode of being throughout the entire universe.”

Recounting the modern history of the ecology movement and its growing awareness of Western civilizations global influence, especially where the disconnect for the greater Created order was concerns, Berry paints a bleak, though arguably accurate, picture of the bleak present and future.  He goes on the recount other eras of such darkness throughout human history, pointing out with great hope that some the Great Works of humanity have emerged from the necessity of these crises.  In the same way, he holds out hope that out of this present darkness, a Great Work is waiting to be done.  Never before, he reminds us, have the stakes been this high.

In the end, I found this chapter to be thoroughly readable, remarkably thorough while remaining concise and accessible, and critical in its nature.  Where it perhaps failed is in Berry’s avoidance of framing these ideas within the context of Christian theology and praxis.  Again, this chapter was an editted version of a chapter from a previously published work (“The Great Work: Our Way into the Future”, by Thomas Berry – Harmony/Bell Tower; November 14, 2000), and therefore never meant to stand alone.  Further, in the original publication, Berry may have had no intention of writing this book for the purposes or audiences of Christian persuasion.  However, as this book is entitled “The emerging Christian Way” (emphasis mine), I was disappointed that this dynamic was given no more than a brief inference.

That being said, Thomas Berry brings a deep passion, informed by history, touched by an obvious conviction of the connectedness of all Creation (which I share) and a grounded, realistic hope to the conversation.  Given this great wisdom, I will allow him the closing words:

“We might observe here that the Great Work of a people is the work of all people.  No one is exempt.  Each of us has out individual life pattern and responsibilities.  Yet beyond these concerns each person in and through their personal work assists in the Great Work.  Personal work need to be aligned with the Great Work… While this alignment is more difficult in these times it must remain an ideal to be sought.”

 

 Emerging Church

Chapter 3 – New Creeds – by Tom Harpur

Most Canadians will be familiar with Tom Harpur, a veteran journalist, TV Host and perhaps the most widely known religious author in Canada.  I have often enjoyed Harpur’s insights, so was eager to see what he would have to say about this “emerging Christian way”.  While I was deeply disappointed with his recent book “The Pagan Christ” (Walker & Company – March 2005), the title of this chapter caught my interest.

Harpur begins by eloquently bemoaning how an overly moralistic and literalist shift in Western Christianity has robbed us of the wealth and beauty of the Imago Dei- the image of God.  Rightly critiquing (in my opinion) what total depravity has done to Christian theology, he calls for a renewal of the Christian creedal affirmations based on a more hopeful, purposeful direction.  He goes on to demonstrate the negative impact this has had by citing the mental health crises that abound, namely low self-esteem.  Though his argument has merit, this “proof” seemed overly simplistic and unqualified.  One could argue, for example, that the dissatisfaction of the consumerist ideal is one of many more significant contributors to this problem.

At first, it seems as though Harpur is introducing a theology of theosis as the premise for this chapter.  However, drawing less from Eastern Christianity than he does from Eastern mysticism, he never mentions theosis.  Harpur’s vision is one that embraces what he calls the “Christ Principle”, or more telling, the “Christ Consciousness”.  This Gospel was the truly Good News of what Jesus discovered within himself, then proclaimed that we could find it within ourselves as well.  Where theosis says we become by grace what God is by nature, Harpur posits that we already have within us the fullness of the Divine nature.

 

 
In providing background, Harpur affirms the critique of other theologians, such as retired bishop, John Spong, who warn (in the words of one of Spong’s books) why Christianity must change or die.  But while he agrees with the diagnosis, he charges a lack of adequate or promising solutions, calling for more positive attention to change.  I found this particularly frustrating, as Harpur seemed to give the lions share of the chapter to oft repeated, oft unfair critiques of his own.  However, in his defense, a footnote revealed that this chapter was, in fact, a slightly altered version of a chapter from his most recent book, “Finding The Still Point”.  That being said, more attention should have been paid to pointing a new way forward.

Harpur argues, the tradition of the Jesus Seminar, that we have not critically or carefully enough examined the Scriptures, especially the four Gospels- the life and teachings of Jesus.  If we would do so, we would discover that Jesus was not instituting a new religion, nor claiming a unique divinity as the Person of God.  Rather, he proclaimed the Kingdom of God, God’s active presence everywhere through the individual (and collective) realization of our own divinity.  Jesus was sent by God to proclaim this discovery to us all.

It is here that Harpur gets to the heart of his thesis- that the ancient creed of the faith (he specifically names the Apostles and Nicene Creeds) are antiquated beyond use, keeping us in the bondage of the ignorance that he claims modernity (including, for example, science) has freed us from.  He exposes the failures and compromises of both liberal and conservative expressions of Christianity.  More accurately, he briefly chastizes the “liberal” church for abandoning its vocation to care for souls in its attempt to communicate relevantly with the secular world.  He then goes on to critique the “ultra-conservative” and “fundamentalist” expression in much more detail and with much sharper teeth.  While it is accuratein some details of some sectors, it ends up characterizing almost all of Evangelicalism with extremes.

No longer able to declare with integrity most of what is in the ancient creeds, Harpur calls for them to be retired.  He advocates writing new creeds together, creeds that affirm this Gospel of our emerging divinity as proclaimed by Jesus.  While acknowledging it as imperfect, he quotes a tentative creed he wrote, as seen here:

“We believe, and put our trust in God, Creator and Sustainer of all things, from the farthest-flung galaxies to the most microscopic forms of life; God is above and around and within every one of us, and yet so far beyond us in transdence that our minds cannot fathom the mystery and our only response is wonder and worship.  And we believe God sent Jesus, anointing him in the power of the Spirit, to declare by word and deed the gospel of personal and social liberation from the power of fear and all injustice and oppression.  Though he was cruelly and unjustly murdered, God raise him from death and God’s seal is set forever on Jesus’ message and ministry.  In him we know that God is love, and that forgiveness and acceptance are ours always.  In him we are called to realize God’s kingdom in our own lives and in the lives of others.  In him we are called to join with God in making all things new.  We believe God has granted to us and to all humanity the same Spirit that was in Jesus, creating community and empowering us to be like him.  We believe in a dimension of existence yet to come.  We seek to build God’s kingdom here, but also look beyond to a day when wars will end and God’s New Jerusalem will be revealed.  We believe.  God help our unbelief.”

Whether it is the inclusion of thinly veiled gnosticism or its denial of the Incarnation, I am deeply disappointed with Harpur’s “new creed”.  As in Chapter 1, the critique of Western Christianity shares many dynamics with the “emerging church movement”, but is differences again are far more than nuances, but contradictions that make these two vision incompatible.  Perhaps it was due to it being a part of a larger book, but I found that this chapter offered nothing new or beneficial that has not been stated elsewhere without such compromise.

 

Emerging Church

Chapter 2 – Experience: The Heart of Transformation – by Tim Scorer

Growing up, our small evangelical church did not have a youth pastor, so I often found myself driving over 90 km to a neighbouring youth group at a Pentecostal church. As you can imagine, it wasn’t long before the differences with the charismatic tradition stood in clear contrast to what I had been used to. While there were many elements that I could mention, one that stood out to me was the experiential dynamics. Some dismissed it as “emotionalism” (which, arguably, was a problem on occasion), but I could not deny the power and importance of experience in a faith that had, until that point, largely propositional and “belief-oriented”.

So it was with great interest that I began reading this chapter. While I understand and affirm the wisdom that experience cannot be our primary source of wisdom and authority, we face an equal, perhaps greater danger of minimalizing the created intentions of God. Therefore I was pleased with the unique and refreshing approach that Scorer offer. But I am getting ahead of myself.

Not being familiar with Tim Scorer, I went online to get some background. Shockingly I could find no trace of him at all, not even as a contributor to this book. [It was pointed out to me that I had been searching for Tom Scorer, not Tim Scorer, as his name had been misspelled in the books bio section. Google then produced several links] Thankfully, the book included a brief bio, which I reprint here:

Tom Scorer is just completing a three-year appointment on the Ministry Leadership Team at Penticton United Church, Penticton, British Columbia, where he has had responsibility for a small group ministry and faith formation. Prior to that he was for 24 years a member of the management team at Naramata Centre, Naramata, British Columbia, a retreat and education center of the United Church of Canada, where he worked in the areas of program planning and development, human interaction, leadership development, and spiritual formation. He has just begun to work with Wood Lake Books in support of their initiative to provide resources related to emerging visions of Christianity.

I was immediately struck by the unique voice of this chapter. Rather than a well-rounded presentation of ideas, it was desgined and written to bring readers on a journey into the very topic- the transformation of the heart through experience. Not to be entered into lightly, Scorer invites the reader through a highly personal spiritual exercise. Armed with pen and paper and an open heart, I decided to give it a try.

As you may or may not know, I have been recently going through some of the more difficult few weeks I have faced in years. To be honest, I didn’t much feel like doing an excercise of any kind. But, in the interest of a fair review, I decided to go ahead with it. Through a series of questions, personal reflections and creative reading of Scripture, I found myself being deeply touched by the simple profundity. In fact, it laid the foundation for what I believe is a breakthrough in some of the more challenging aspects of my recent problems.

I do not want to go into detail about the method here, largely because abbreviating it would significantly reduce the impact. Perhaps others will not find it as powerful. Perhaps my desperation predisposed me to being so positive in my evaluation. I’ll let you be the judge. What I will say is this: This chapter offers an excellent example of a new kind of writing, one that engages the whole self, both heart and mind, in pursuit of integrated life transformation. In excellent addition to this book.

 

Emerging Church

Chapter 1 – An emerging Christian Way – by Marcus Borg

As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series, when I saw the title of the book with Marcus Borg’s name topping the list of contributors, I was concerned with what might be, in my opinion, an unwanted association.  I decided to buy and review, despite my hesitation, for which I am already thankful.  However, having already been familiar with Borg, I found it difficult reviewing this first chapter with his previous writings influencing my perspective.  I will endeavour to be fair in my assessment, but will inform my critique with my wider familiarity.

In this opening chapter, Borg attempts to lay an admittedly simplistic framework to introduce the reader to the concept of this “emerging Christian paradigm”, or what goes on to call the “transformation-centered paradigm” (as opposed to a “belief-centered paradigm”).  While I was surprised to see him openly identify these concepts with Brian McLaren and the emerging church movement (ECM), with further reading it became clear that the two shared a great deal of dynamics.  Where ECM would most often contrast modernity and postmodernity, Borg uses the “earlier Church paradigm” and “emerging church paradigm”.  Despite the difference in termonology, much of the historic critique were consistant.

Borg begins by describing the “belief-centered paradigm” as one that centers on A) the uniqueness of Christianity, B) Salvation as afterlife, C) requirements and rewards,  D) sin, guilt and forgiveness, E) the Bible (specifically, Biblical authority and Biblical Interpretaton) and F) faith as believing.  Throughout this, he presents a (largely) fair, though simple critque of this historic emphasis, citing it as a reactive paradigm that developed in (often aggresive) protest to the Enlightenment.  Many of his points are echoed in the ECM, such as an over-emphasis on: the afterlife; propositional beliefs equalling spiritual maturity (or security); Biblical literalism; etc.

He goes on to present the “transformation-centered paradigm” as something far more concerned with the implication of Christianity on our way of living than just on tenents of belief.  Rather than protesting the Enlightenment, he describes this paradigm as one that “involves an appreciative and discerning integration” of this history.  While this includes an embrace of many areas of cultural, scientific and religious understanding, Borg points centrally to “a historical approach to the study of the Bible.”  Contrasting the “factual” approach, the historical approach “emphasizes the illuminating power of setting these ancient texts in their ancient contexts- in their ancient literary and historical contexts.”  Further, this includes the “metaphorical interpretation”, which looks for meaning beyond the literal “facts” of a passage or story.  Again, while there might be nuances that differ between this and the ECM, there is a great deal of similarity.

(NOTE: This is not say that there aren’t inconsistancies.  The above mentioned dynamics have brought powerful and much needed new perspective to the Body of Christ, especially in the Evangelical West.  However, as is suggested throughout the chapter and abundantly clear in his other writings, Borg would take these elements much farther than I would.  While I cannot speak for the emerging church movement, I still believe that more of the “earlier Church paradigm” is still necessary than Borg would.  For example, when discussing Biblical authority, he says:

While there is truth in this, I feel he down plays the transcendent role of God through Scripture and history.  Too many concessions are made in the name of this “emerging Christian paradigm”.  I am sure within the ECM there would a variety of positions on this, but I feel safe in saying that some of these differences are not reconcilable- whether it be on the nature of Biblical authority or our understanding of Jesus divinity and the incarnation.  This is not to say that there is not a great deal to learn from this other emerging paradigm. However, I believe there are serious elements that need to acknowledged as more than just one of varying perspectives.)

Perhaps most valuable in this chapter is Borg’s emphasis on the importance on the transformational nature of the emerging paradigm.  He demonstrates that the message and the power of the Gospel is to be worked out in our daily lives, as individuals, communities, even nations.  Pushing positively beyond a salvation for the here-after, he paints an promising picture for the here and now.

As he considers what the church of the emerging paradigm would look like, he describes the following characteristics:

Adult Theological Re-Education.  Acknowledging the negative impact of some of the old paradigm, educating ourselves in this emerging paradigm is crucial.  By using the word “re-education”, Borg clearly indicates that this emerging paradigm is about rediscovering what we have lost.  While I think this is an important element, I find his emphasis on adult re-education to be too narrow.  While his ideas of how this might look lack creativity, it rightly recognizes that it does not have to come from “expert theological leadership”.

Christian Practices.  Focusing on the practice of the faith, such as prayer and worship, Borg demonstrates the importance of rooting these elements in the dynamic relationship with God that He clearly wants for and from us.  While not explicitly stated, the exploration of some ancient Christian practices are implicitly suggested, which I strongly affirm.

Compassion and a Passion for Justice.  While not nearly articulated in enough detail, this emphasis is one that I strongly resonate with.  Including issues like poverty and ecology, Borg describes it best when he says: “Thus it would be a community that moves towards inclusion, practices charity, and advocates justice and peace.”

Political Consciousness.  Flowing naturally out of the previous point, this is another strong similarity between Borg’s vision and the ECM.  Dissatifaction with the status quo and Evangelical indifference, along with a strong critique of the pervasive individualism in Western culture, provides a strong foundation for articualting a more informed political worldview.

Living Deeply into the Bible and the Christian Tradition.  Perhaps one of the more unfortunate casualties of the Reformation, tradition and its impact on the way we relate to Scripture provides a wealth of wisdom for the Body of Christ today.  While there has historically been distrust or open rejection of tradition by many expressions of the Church (namely Evangelical and Anabaptist traditions), it is exciting to see this being slowly explored and restored.  (On a side note, I recently heard of a Mennonite church using liturgy in their services- now tell me things haven’t changed!)

Commitment and Intentionality.  In this vision Christians are no longer mere butts in pews, but active, committed and intentional participants in the community of faith.  It also refocuses that commitment and intentionality to the dynamics of the paradigm described above.

In the end, this chapter was surprisingly concise and helpful in introducing a basci framework for the emerging Christian paradigm.  While the significant differences between Borg’s vision and the emerging church movement cannot be ignore, neither can the shared roots and influences be denied.  With the provision of qualifying some aspects, I find little that I would find objectionable, offering a fair introduction to emerging concept of faith.

 

Emerging Church

Hey all,

Greetings from the snowy streets of Winnipeg. I had planned on having Part 2 of the book review up already, but had a major systems failure on my laptop last night (resulting in the permanent loss of 2 unfinished manuscripts), following one of the toughest weeks we’ve had in years.

So, I would ask that you please pray for us, as we are experiencing some serious discouragement. I won’t go into detail here, but we need God’s intervention and peace. Also, if I could beg your patience, I hope to have the post up by tomorrow. Thanks for all your faithful support.

Peace,

Jamie & Kim Arpin-Ricci

P.S. You will notice that (upon the request of a friend), we have add a PayPal donation link to the sidebar. This is for anyone outside of Canada who wants to help support us in our ministry. For Canadians who can receive tax receipts, Click Here for more information.

As I wandered through the bookstore this weekend, I spotted a new title being featured in the “Christianity” section.  I was excited as I read the title, “The emerging Christian Way: Thought, Stories, & Wisdom for a Faith of Transformation”, a collection of essays about a “new kind of Christianity”.  However, upon closer inspection of the contributors, I hesitated in my enthusiasm.  Top of the list: Marcus Borg, Matthew Fox and Tom Harpur (of a total of 14 writers).  I knew that Borg had been using the term “emerging” for many years, but I would never have associated it directly with the “emerging church movement”.  So, while I was sure there were parallel dynamics in the use of the concept, I presumed the use of the word was more coincidence than anything else.

That was until I opened the first page.  In the opening chapter, written by Marcus Borg, the paradigm of the “emerging Christian way” was articulated.  In the first paragraph, Borg talks about all the places this emerging paradigm can be found, closing the first paragraph with:

“…and is a minority voice in evangelical circles, where it is commonly known as ‘the emergent church.’  There its most prominent proponent, Brian McLaren, speaks of ‘a new kind of Christian.’”

With that, the book was off the shelf and in my shopping basket.  Therefore, over the next few weeks, I will be reviewing the book here.  As each chapter can stand alone, I will be reviewing each chapter independently.  It promises to be enlightening and provocative.

To see an outline of the table of contents, see below:

Part One – the emerging Christian Way

Chapter 1
An Emerging Christian Way, by Marcus Borg

Chapter 2
Experience: The Heart of Transformation, by Tim Scorer

Part Two – key perspectives

Chapter 3
New Creeds, by Tom Harpur

Chapter 4
The Great Work, by Thomas Berry

Chapter 5
Consider the Lilies of the Field: How Should Christians Love Nature?, by Sallie McFague

Chapter 6
On Being a Postdenominational Priest in a Postdenominational Era, by Matthew Fox

Chapter 7
Paying Homage: Being A Christian in a Word of Many Faiths, by Bruce Sanguin

Chapter 8
Radical Inclusion, by Anne Squire

Chapter 9
Social Justice and a Spirituality of Transformation, by Bill Phipps

Part Three – emerging forms

Chapter 10
Worship: Pilgrims in the Faith

Chapter 11
To Sing or Not to Sing: That is the Question, Bruce Harding

Chapter 12
Christian Education and Imaginative Spirit, by Susam Burt

Chapter 13
Pastoral Care for the 21st Century, by Donald Grayston

Chapter 14
Spiritual Discernment, by Nancy Reeves

Conclusion
Inclusion in the Midst of Evolution, by Michael Schwartzentruber

Endnotes

 

Emerging Church

Of late I have been considering the future of the Church, the contribution the emerging church movement and what role will I play in it all, if any. I truly and deeply believe that we are in a crucial place as the Body of Christ, one that it at the same time tenuous and promising. As we move forward toward the ultimate intentions of God, wisdom is a treasured commodity.

It is times like this, as I read Scripture, consider Church history and seek God in prayer, that I also turn men and women who have stood as examples for me. With that in mind, I want to share a few quotes from them, taking a little time to reflect on how I see each other applying to our shared journey. Please share with me your own perspective in the comment section:

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

-Martin Luther King Jr.

 

This, perhaps, is what ulitmately gave rise to the emerging movement- an unwillingness to remain silent about that which we feel is too important to ignore. While we can too often come across as though we are arguing from a spirit of critical superiority, I truly believe that the most sincere voices in this conversation are motivated because they love God and His Church. We would do well in the midst of our enthusiasm and frustration to remember that original purpose that inspired us.

“All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem.”

-Martin Luther King Jr., ‘Strength to Love,’ 1963

All of us, both those involved in the movement and those critiquing it, must remember this. If we become too impatient, too simplistic or too ungracious, we will negative impact the “progress” that we work for inch by inch. As Gandhi titled his autobiography, we are engaged in “experiments in truth”. We cannot expect instant or constant success. Rome, after all, was not… Well, you get the picture

“The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.”

-Martin Luther King Jr., “Strength to Love”

This is one of my favourite quotes. In this simple sentence Dr. King reminds us of the need for “tempered radicals” (to borrow a brilliant term from Debra Meyerson). Our “nonconformist” nature must be guided by true discipline. The results we aim towards are not about being right, but bringing restoration of God’s intention. We live in an “argument culture”, so the temptation to emphasize proving our position can be very real, perhaps the biggest fruit in the emergent garden.

“Be nice to whites, they need you to rediscover their humanity.”

-Bishop Desmond Tutu

Though it may be selfish, this is why embracing diversity is such a strong emphasis in most of my writing and ministry. By no means have “white males” suffered like so many others have, so often at our hands. However, we cannot forget that we have also been deeply scarred by our own sins. This is another reason why I feel I need what is happening in the emerging church movement.

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”

-Bishop Desmond Tutu

There are times when the emerging conversation becomes heated, even argumentative. Many times it stems out of the realization that many of the issues being addressed are ones that relate directly to the well being of others. If we are right about the racialization of theology or the subtle (or blatant) misogyny in our ecclesiology, then there are real people at this very moment suffer for it most. Silence and neutrality condemn us.

“The greatest challenge of the day is: how to bring about a revolution of the heart.”

-Dorothy Day

While we deeply need to be exploring theology, examining Scripture and engaging new ideas, we must never forget that it is the heart, the womb the carries the promise of praxis, that should remain our central focus. In our desire to be heard and validated, we can easily become that which we are trying to transform.

“Tradition! We scarcely know the word anymore. We are afraid to be either proud of our ancestors or ashamed of them.”

-Dorothy Day

As the emerging church conversation has centered significantly around a critique of modernity, this quote has serious implications. While Day was referring to tradition within her own Roman Catholic faith, the application is clear. Many of us cannot deny that our emerging faith grew from the fertile soil of modernity. We must never stand on the shoulders of giants and mock them. Grace, appreciation and honour should be the foundation of any critique.

“I have long since come to believe that people never mean half of what they say, and that it is best to disregard their talk and judge only their actions.”

-Dorothy Day, The Long Loneliness, 1952

I believe in the study of theology, the commitment of contemplatives and the role of academy in faith. However, I also believe that we are at a place where our theological reflection must be born out of praxis. I am not suggesting that we blaze ahead ignorantly, but recognize that we have laid a strong foundation in more than 2000 years. It is time that we act. Let our witness have the authority demonstrated through incarnational theology.

 

Emerging Church

Several years ago, as I was staffing a Discipleship Training School (DTS) for YWAM in BC, one of our guest speakers was Richard Twiss, a member of the Rosebud Lakota/Sioux Tribe, who spoke on the topic of contextualization of culture in faith, using his First Nations context as an example. The students staff, made up of people from Canada (including white, Hawaiian and First Nations), Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Finland and South Korea, were quickly captured by his message. However, I noticed that many of the white Canadians were subdued in their enthusiasm, myself included, but we could not put our fingers on what it was.

In the following week of teaching, during one exercise, the group was make collages about their identity using magazine photos. When we were finished, a startling trend emerged from the results. Almost every collage made by the white Canadians contained the exact image: a large, full tree floating above a rich green field, its vast root system not touching the earth at all. I was stunned. Each of us, while excited about seeing culture and race celebrated as a gift, not only to individuals, but to the larger Church, we felt lost, disconnected to a defining identity.

I hesitated writing this post, as so many cultures and races have faced long histories of subjegation and oppression, often at the hands of dominant white cultures. The last thing I want to do is diminish the significance of those realities in society and especially in the emerging church. However, if we are going to address the issue of the racialization of faith and move towards an inclusive and embracing praxis, I believe it is crucial that we put all our cards on the table.

While there are many aspects to this I could address, I want to focus on two. First, many white Canadians, like myself, have a widely diverse culture heritage. Though this is true of many American’s, I think the Mosiac culture of Canada magnifies this lack of rootedness. For example, more than half of my heritage is French Canadian, but since I do not speak French, it is a culture I cannot turn to for identity. Additionally, as we consider the history of white (male) culture, a topic of regular discussion in there emerging church (and rightfully so), a heritage of misogyny, slavery, colonialism, consumerism, etc. is not something to look to for identity. Some suggest that we should only look to Christ for our identity, but while I agree in general, the statement usual fails to acknowledge the God-given significance of the diversity He has created. Even postmodernity, while the closest I have ever come, is too young and ill-defined to be called an identity.

I find deep resonance with both First Nations culture (especially Ojibwe & Cree) and Celtic culture, neither of which are my own. I long to find expression to my faith that I have not found within a history of modernist Evangelical religion. Yet, to draw upon these cultures for myself can (arguably and legitimately) draw criticisms of again appropriating what is no mine to take, like so many white men before me. And yet I desperately long for a rootedness that I suspect may never be relieved.

Second, as a white male in this emerging conversation, I am left with a deep uneasiness on how to address many of the issues of race that are being raised. Granted, the Canadian experience, while ripe with its own racial failures, differs greatly from US experience, particularly where the African American community is concerned. Anyone who knows me knows that pursuing, celebrating and embracing the richness of diversity is one of the single most significant driving forces of my life & faith. And yet I find myself often torn about how to move forward.

There is a constant tension between relinquishing power to make space for those who been held back and using that same power to inform and bring the very change. There is the risk of abadoning the very important and God-given uniqueness of our own cultural diversity (which “white” hugely fails to encompass), offset by the reality that sacrafice is often necessary to achieve restoration. We need to move forward in our pursuit of reconciliation and restoration with the urgency it deserves, but we mustn’t downplay the massive steps forward we have through God’s grace and power.

I firmly believe that in order for us to address these important issues- issues in which we all have much at stake, regardless of race- we must be willing to go ahead side by side, never ignoring the inequities of both the past and present, but not allowing them to define our relationship. It will require grace, patience and mutual, intentional appreciation. And who knows. We just might enjoy ourselves on the way.

 

Emerging Church