In a spirit of conciseness and establishing a common ground, I'll break into this blog by suggesting a couple of recent articles on the topic of Philadelphia and its future which I consider "must read."
I think they're "must read" in the sense that they are both catalysts for and accurate representations of the spectacular visions for this city's future that condition the current local discussions about politics, economics, crime, re-development, etc.
1. National Geographic Traveler's feature on Philly
2. The now-infamous "Sixth borough" piece from the NY Times
Dec 12, 2006
Dec 11, 2006
The 2007 Emergent Theological Conversation
So - maybe you can tell from my last post - I'm interested in this whole emergent thing - but I think it fails to acknowledge the good that has gone before and does not engage other serious problems (like the needs and ideas of people who don't want to be/aren't the type to be/haven't had the educational options to be in conversation all the time...which in the US means leaving out a huge chunk of the poor and minorities...though I think the movement has done a lot for hearing women theologians who don't normaly get a voice).
Anyway - they're having an event April 16-18...I don't know if I'll be able to - but I want to go:
http://www.emergentvillage.com/events/the-2007-emergent-theological-conversation
registration is limited - sign up now if you want to go...or spend the weekend doing something instead of talking.
Anyway - they're having an event April 16-18...I don't know if I'll be able to - but I want to go:
http://www.emergentvillage.com/events/the-2007-emergent-theological-conversation
registration is limited - sign up now if you want to go...or spend the weekend doing something instead of talking.
young adults and community
I'm a member of Woodland Presbyterian Church - there's been a lot of conversation in the last few years about what church is for and what it means to be a part of it. In the last year or so, it's had some major communication/community problems with younger folk trying to lead the charge towards a more "missional" attitude and activity of the body while the old gaurd (including some younger folk) have been standing their ground asking what was wrong with what was already being done by the body.
I think this is an important question - I'm fundamentally wondering if this is a communication problem, just more energy on the part of younger people, a values difference - really, what is causing this disconnect?
So - here's an article on folk who are 18-34 and their relationship to "the church" http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/article_main_page/0%2C1703%2CA%25253D164481%252526M%25253D200906%2C00.html
Lifeway is a Southern Baptist group and this is one of their research articles.
It talks about the desire on the part of "young adults" to come together in honest community - one that does not appreciate spoonfed truth but longs to be a part of social action. It emphasizes the need both for peer relationships and intergenerational relationships.
What's the problem? Why is it so hard for churches to do this?
I may be crazy, but I highly doubt that it is just our generation that has this problem - every 'movement' in the last hundred years has come from those in the ages of 18-34 (I think)...it's just that a lot of times in the past there have been wars that had drafts.
Come to think of it - if my dad's generation had Vietnam and my grandpa's generation had WWII...how long has it been since the majority of a generation of young adults has not been occupied with fighting a war?
So here we are - most of our young people are still at home - we have plenty of free time compared to our married/famlied older brothers and sisters, a desire to be united over a meaningful cause and the church feels boring and inactive.
Rick Warren wrote a book called The Purpose Driven Life which has since become a comercial boom - I reacted horribly to it...mostly due to packaging. I've come to think however, that there may be little to no difference between what is advocated in that book and what is being advocated by people like this: http://www.emergentvillage.com/ whose mission (in Philly) is:
We are about cultivating an environment where kingdom values, spiritual formation, justice and missional living are taking place, especially in the Philadelphia Area (http://www.phillyemergent.com/about/). What church doesn't want those things to happen?
So then, is it packaging? On a related site (http://www.meremission.org/) a post (http://meremission.org/blog/ten-things-you-should-not-expect-from-missional-churches/) details 10 things we should not expect from a missional church:
1.) Should not expect to regularly come to church for just one hour, get what you need for your own personal growth and development, and your kid’s needs, and then leave til next Sunday. Expect mission to change your life. Expect however a richer life than you could have ever imagined.
2.) Should not expect that Jesus will fit in with every consumerist capitalist assumption, lifestyle, schedule or accoutrement you may have adopted before coming here. Expect to be freed from a lot of crap you will find out you never needed.
3.) Should not expect to be anonymous, unknown or be able to disappear in this church Body. Expect to be known and loved, supported in a glorious journey.
4.) Should not expect production style excellence all the time on Sunday worship gatherings. Expect organic, simple and authentic beauty.
5.) Should not expect a raucous “light out” youth program that entertains the teenagers, puts on a show that gets the kids “pumped up,” all without parental involvement. Instead as the years go by, with our children as part of our life, worship and mission (and when the light shows dim and the cool youth pastor with the spiked hair burns out) expect our youth to have an authentic relationship with God thru Christ that carries them through a lifetime of journey with God.
6.) Should not expect to always “feel good,”or ecstatic on Sunday mornings. Expect that there will ALSO be times of confession, lament, self-examination and just plain silence.
7.) Should not expect a lot of sermons that promise you God will prosper you with “the life you’ve always wanted” if you’ll just believe Him and step out on faith and give some more money for a bigger sanctuary. Expect sustenance for the journey.
8.) Should not expect rapid growth whereby we grow this church from 10 to a thousand in three years. Expect slower organic inefficient growth that engages people’s lives where they are at and sees troubled people who would have nothing to do with the gospel marvelously saved.
9.) Should not expect all the meetings to happen in a church building. Expect a lot of the gatherings will be in homes, or sites of mission.
10.) Should not expect arguments over style of music, color of carpet, or even doctrinal outlier issues like dispensationalism. Expect mission to drive the conversation.
Are they saying that everybody else got distracted while we were all on the journey towards the same things?
Another of my questions is - what about churches like Spirit and Truth, which aren't emergent in language but certainly have the "missional" part down - but still have issues integrating the affluent young adults that flock to them because they have a defined mission? Their young adult problem is different, but soooo real! Are the young adults from the neighborhood experiencing the same needs and desires that the commuter young adults feel?
Anyway my post is too long - but hey - any thoughts?
I think this is an important question - I'm fundamentally wondering if this is a communication problem, just more energy on the part of younger people, a values difference - really, what is causing this disconnect?
So - here's an article on folk who are 18-34 and their relationship to "the church" http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/article_main_page/0%2C1703%2CA%25253D164481%252526M%25253D200906%2C00.html
Lifeway is a Southern Baptist group and this is one of their research articles.
It talks about the desire on the part of "young adults" to come together in honest community - one that does not appreciate spoonfed truth but longs to be a part of social action. It emphasizes the need both for peer relationships and intergenerational relationships.
What's the problem? Why is it so hard for churches to do this?
I may be crazy, but I highly doubt that it is just our generation that has this problem - every 'movement' in the last hundred years has come from those in the ages of 18-34 (I think)...it's just that a lot of times in the past there have been wars that had drafts.
Come to think of it - if my dad's generation had Vietnam and my grandpa's generation had WWII...how long has it been since the majority of a generation of young adults has not been occupied with fighting a war?
So here we are - most of our young people are still at home - we have plenty of free time compared to our married/famlied older brothers and sisters, a desire to be united over a meaningful cause and the church feels boring and inactive.
Rick Warren wrote a book called The Purpose Driven Life which has since become a comercial boom - I reacted horribly to it...mostly due to packaging. I've come to think however, that there may be little to no difference between what is advocated in that book and what is being advocated by people like this: http://www.emergentvillage.com/ whose mission (in Philly) is:
We are about cultivating an environment where kingdom values, spiritual formation, justice and missional living are taking place, especially in the Philadelphia Area (http://www.phillyemergent.com/about/). What church doesn't want those things to happen?
So then, is it packaging? On a related site (http://www.meremission.org/) a post (http://meremission.org/blog/ten-things-you-should-not-expect-from-missional-churches/) details 10 things we should not expect from a missional church:
1.) Should not expect to regularly come to church for just one hour, get what you need for your own personal growth and development, and your kid’s needs, and then leave til next Sunday. Expect mission to change your life. Expect however a richer life than you could have ever imagined.
2.) Should not expect that Jesus will fit in with every consumerist capitalist assumption, lifestyle, schedule or accoutrement you may have adopted before coming here. Expect to be freed from a lot of crap you will find out you never needed.
3.) Should not expect to be anonymous, unknown or be able to disappear in this church Body. Expect to be known and loved, supported in a glorious journey.
4.) Should not expect production style excellence all the time on Sunday worship gatherings. Expect organic, simple and authentic beauty.
5.) Should not expect a raucous “light out” youth program that entertains the teenagers, puts on a show that gets the kids “pumped up,” all without parental involvement. Instead as the years go by, with our children as part of our life, worship and mission (and when the light shows dim and the cool youth pastor with the spiked hair burns out) expect our youth to have an authentic relationship with God thru Christ that carries them through a lifetime of journey with God.
6.) Should not expect to always “feel good,”or ecstatic on Sunday mornings. Expect that there will ALSO be times of confession, lament, self-examination and just plain silence.
7.) Should not expect a lot of sermons that promise you God will prosper you with “the life you’ve always wanted” if you’ll just believe Him and step out on faith and give some more money for a bigger sanctuary. Expect sustenance for the journey.
8.) Should not expect rapid growth whereby we grow this church from 10 to a thousand in three years. Expect slower organic inefficient growth that engages people’s lives where they are at and sees troubled people who would have nothing to do with the gospel marvelously saved.
9.) Should not expect all the meetings to happen in a church building. Expect a lot of the gatherings will be in homes, or sites of mission.
10.) Should not expect arguments over style of music, color of carpet, or even doctrinal outlier issues like dispensationalism. Expect mission to drive the conversation.
Are they saying that everybody else got distracted while we were all on the journey towards the same things?
Another of my questions is - what about churches like Spirit and Truth, which aren't emergent in language but certainly have the "missional" part down - but still have issues integrating the affluent young adults that flock to them because they have a defined mission? Their young adult problem is different, but soooo real! Are the young adults from the neighborhood experiencing the same needs and desires that the commuter young adults feel?
Anyway my post is too long - but hey - any thoughts?
Dec 5, 2006
Title
...is a joke. Think of a title.
edit 12/7: I changed to Susie's suggestion, instead of "Fluffya" as it was before. Still, suggest titles please.
edit 12/7: I changed to Susie's suggestion, instead of "Fluffya" as it was before. Still, suggest titles please.
Great Expectations Project
I'm sending this out because I've registered to take part in the citizens' forums component of the Great Expectations project (being sponsored in part by Penn in relation to next year's mayoral election). I'm asking that you consider registering and doing this with me... it's just a one-day commitment sometime in January to do one of the citizens' forum events, with possible other events later on (I'm doing either Sat 1/13 or Sun 1/14). Given some conversations I've had with you guys about this city and its future, I feel like this is a valuable way of engaging, speaking up, and taking responsibility at a critical time. Please pass the info along to others as you feel appropriate.
Project site/registration:
http://www.fels.upenn.edu/greatexpectations.htm
Inquirer editorial on the project:
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/special_packages/sunday_review/16149468.htm
love,
matt
Project site/registration:
http://www.fels.upenn.edu/greatexpectations.htm
Inquirer editorial on the project:
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/special_packages/sunday_review/16149468.htm
love,
matt
Blog / Community
I feel like I want to start a blog for all us post-Gateway or Gateway influenced people – of course our conversations and the actual experiments of actualizing these thoughts on the many topics touched on in Gateway continue within our own neighborhood communities, but some cross-pollination of thought or lessons learned from practical implementation is usually fruitful (if it doesn’t take over). Or maybe I should just stick with my new conversation partners – let me know.
I don’t actually know how to start a blog in such a way that I could invite you all to write as well – so – here’s an email with some of my current thoughts on religious communities (your small group – your household) – I would love a response with some of your current thoughts/reads if you have a minute, certainly no pressure – I think the folk on this list are all thinking about this enough (or would like to be) that you could hit reply-all :)
I’m reading Henri Nouwen’s Intimacy – I’ve been reading it for awhile – it walks through different but interconnected thoughts, some transformational for the individual with implications for the community, some transformational for the community with implications for the individual: A discussion of religious growth from a psychological perspective – From magic to faith; a discussion of sexuality – the challenge to love; one on student prayers – between confusion and hope; a discussion of the Pentecostal movement on campus which has a lot to say both to the evangelical and emergent movements as well; a discourse on religious community and depression in seminaries; the priest and his mental health; and lastly, training for the campus ministry {now you know why I picked the book up}.
Here are some notable excerpts from the religious communities section:
“The students all hope to find three things [in seminary-though I think in some ways I see myself at least seeking this from “the church”]:
a) Competence, which enables them to cope with the demands of society.
b) Control, which provides them with channels for their unruly impulses.
c) Vocation, which gives them the conviction that they are called to do what they felt vaguely attracted to.”
Nouwen then points out that to feel competent to the point of usefulness theologically is difficult, the seminary (and I argue, the church) is not unambiguous about the boundaries self-control ought confine us to (he speaks specifically about sexuality), and “If a student comes to deepen his vocation, he finds that hardly anybody can tell him what it means to be a priest.” I’ve found that vagueness in the clashing conversation of what it means to be a Christ-follower as well.
“Many seminarians, who have participated in year-long discussions about every possible basic subject are showing signs of fatigue, disappointment, confusion and even hostility. Some even feel cheated, as if they had wasted their time groping with questions which don’t lead anywhere and are doomed to create frustration.”
He asserts that the methods of dialogue and small-group living as a part of religious education may have overlooked complications which contribute to these frustrations.
Dialogue:
He says we presuppose that “free and open sharing of ideas and feelings brings people closer together and, secondly, that a high degree of verbal interchange facilitates existential decisions by clarifying the issues involved. Our first question therefore is: Does verbal communication bring people closer together?”
Citing the graded students’ sense of self-consciousness, he says, “Instead of trying to better understand the speaker’s position, the listener is thrown back on himself, and is busy figuring out his own position.” - so people convince each other of ideas they don’t hold because they feel like they have to enter the conversation with something they think. {so feel no pressure to respond to this email}
“How far does the clarification of pertinent issues help to solve existential problems?” He says, “analysis means a temporary delay of participation” and that existential problems aren’t solved by our limited rationality in theology but points to the meditation practices of the nonreligious and “incense and other stimuli, auditory and visual” as striving to “reach a higher degree of participation with the basic sources of life.”
Small group living:
a) No possibility for private process: “Whatever you do and don’t do can become highly charged by very personal connotations.”
b) Meaning of a team: “The common task is what determines the nature of the team…In a formation setting, however, the team often is not task-oriented.” “And although it might be very important that individual anxiety and confusion be expressed at certain times, the main purpose of the whole formation is to encourage students to grow away from this self-interest and to become free and open, to be really interested in the life and concerns of their fellowmen.”
c) Unrealistic desires for intimacy - “it is very important to prevent the team from becoming a clique which is allowed to act on primitive needs and desires.” “The main danger is that a task-oriented team degenerates into a self-oriented clique in which sticky relationships drain the psychic energy of the students and allow regressive behavior.”
d) Fatigue – “This so-called neurotic fatigue is the result of a way of living which is characterized by hyperawareness, by which man does not rely any longer on his automatic processes, but wants to know what he does from moment to moment…Somehow man in that state of fatigue has lost his basic confidence that life is good and worth living and acts as if he has to be constantly awake, always prepared for unexpected traps and dangers.” The solution is not rest from study as it encourages the analytic cycle.
Proposed therapy for these drawbacks:
a) An authority structure that is “authoritative without becoming authoritarian” – leaders who are competent, mature, who have faith and are willing to criticize, reprimand and even punish “But the authority by which this happens should be based not on subjective feelings and ideas, not on abstract rules and regulations, but on a critical, competent and objective understanding of the students’ behavior.”
b) Good leadership which is able to take responsibility in the “highly moral activities” of dialogue and small group living.
A vision:
“Religious community is ecclesia, which means called out of the land of slavery to the free land. It is constantly moving away from the status quo, searching for what is beyond the here and now. As soon as the community becomes sedentary, it is tempted to lose its faith and worship the house-gods instead of the one true God who is leading it in a pillar of fire.”
“He who promises hard work, long hours, and much sacrifice will attract the strong and generous but he who promises protection, success and all the facilities of an affluent society will have to settle for the weak, the lazy and the spoiled.”
“The task of the religious community is to constantly move away out of the comfortable situation and to look for areas where only one who is willing to give his life wants to go.” Don’t loose contact with the pillar of Pentecost fire.
Peace to you – inward and outward,
Sef
p.s. if you like Donald Miller/McLaren/Peterson – you can also look up Rob Bell http://www.beliefnet.com/story/172/story_17290_1.html (not advocating the site, but the interview is ok – and it is a fascinating Petri dish of a site)…also…Mew is a great band…also, read the Book of Common Prayer :)
p.p.s. after you’ve read the Celtic Book of Daily Prayer too – try a fun Viking raid game where you can raid the abbey at Lindisfarne: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/launch_gms_viking_quest.shtml
I don’t actually know how to start a blog in such a way that I could invite you all to write as well – so – here’s an email with some of my current thoughts on religious communities (your small group – your household) – I would love a response with some of your current thoughts/reads if you have a minute, certainly no pressure – I think the folk on this list are all thinking about this enough (or would like to be) that you could hit reply-all :)
I’m reading Henri Nouwen’s Intimacy – I’ve been reading it for awhile – it walks through different but interconnected thoughts, some transformational for the individual with implications for the community, some transformational for the community with implications for the individual: A discussion of religious growth from a psychological perspective – From magic to faith; a discussion of sexuality – the challenge to love; one on student prayers – between confusion and hope; a discussion of the Pentecostal movement on campus which has a lot to say both to the evangelical and emergent movements as well; a discourse on religious community and depression in seminaries; the priest and his mental health; and lastly, training for the campus ministry {now you know why I picked the book up}.
Here are some notable excerpts from the religious communities section:
“The students all hope to find three things [in seminary-though I think in some ways I see myself at least seeking this from “the church”]:
a) Competence, which enables them to cope with the demands of society.
b) Control, which provides them with channels for their unruly impulses.
c) Vocation, which gives them the conviction that they are called to do what they felt vaguely attracted to.”
Nouwen then points out that to feel competent to the point of usefulness theologically is difficult, the seminary (and I argue, the church) is not unambiguous about the boundaries self-control ought confine us to (he speaks specifically about sexuality), and “If a student comes to deepen his vocation, he finds that hardly anybody can tell him what it means to be a priest.” I’ve found that vagueness in the clashing conversation of what it means to be a Christ-follower as well.
“Many seminarians, who have participated in year-long discussions about every possible basic subject are showing signs of fatigue, disappointment, confusion and even hostility. Some even feel cheated, as if they had wasted their time groping with questions which don’t lead anywhere and are doomed to create frustration.”
He asserts that the methods of dialogue and small-group living as a part of religious education may have overlooked complications which contribute to these frustrations.
Dialogue:
He says we presuppose that “free and open sharing of ideas and feelings brings people closer together and, secondly, that a high degree of verbal interchange facilitates existential decisions by clarifying the issues involved. Our first question therefore is: Does verbal communication bring people closer together?”
Citing the graded students’ sense of self-consciousness, he says, “Instead of trying to better understand the speaker’s position, the listener is thrown back on himself, and is busy figuring out his own position.” - so people convince each other of ideas they don’t hold because they feel like they have to enter the conversation with something they think. {so feel no pressure to respond to this email}
“How far does the clarification of pertinent issues help to solve existential problems?” He says, “analysis means a temporary delay of participation” and that existential problems aren’t solved by our limited rationality in theology but points to the meditation practices of the nonreligious and “incense and other stimuli, auditory and visual” as striving to “reach a higher degree of participation with the basic sources of life.”
Small group living:
a) No possibility for private process: “Whatever you do and don’t do can become highly charged by very personal connotations.”
b) Meaning of a team: “The common task is what determines the nature of the team…In a formation setting, however, the team often is not task-oriented.” “And although it might be very important that individual anxiety and confusion be expressed at certain times, the main purpose of the whole formation is to encourage students to grow away from this self-interest and to become free and open, to be really interested in the life and concerns of their fellowmen.”
c) Unrealistic desires for intimacy - “it is very important to prevent the team from becoming a clique which is allowed to act on primitive needs and desires.” “The main danger is that a task-oriented team degenerates into a self-oriented clique in which sticky relationships drain the psychic energy of the students and allow regressive behavior.”
d) Fatigue – “This so-called neurotic fatigue is the result of a way of living which is characterized by hyperawareness, by which man does not rely any longer on his automatic processes, but wants to know what he does from moment to moment…Somehow man in that state of fatigue has lost his basic confidence that life is good and worth living and acts as if he has to be constantly awake, always prepared for unexpected traps and dangers.” The solution is not rest from study as it encourages the analytic cycle.
Proposed therapy for these drawbacks:
a) An authority structure that is “authoritative without becoming authoritarian” – leaders who are competent, mature, who have faith and are willing to criticize, reprimand and even punish “But the authority by which this happens should be based not on subjective feelings and ideas, not on abstract rules and regulations, but on a critical, competent and objective understanding of the students’ behavior.”
b) Good leadership which is able to take responsibility in the “highly moral activities” of dialogue and small group living.
A vision:
“Religious community is ecclesia, which means called out of the land of slavery to the free land. It is constantly moving away from the status quo, searching for what is beyond the here and now. As soon as the community becomes sedentary, it is tempted to lose its faith and worship the house-gods instead of the one true God who is leading it in a pillar of fire.”
“He who promises hard work, long hours, and much sacrifice will attract the strong and generous but he who promises protection, success and all the facilities of an affluent society will have to settle for the weak, the lazy and the spoiled.”
“The task of the religious community is to constantly move away out of the comfortable situation and to look for areas where only one who is willing to give his life wants to go.” Don’t loose contact with the pillar of Pentecost fire.
Peace to you – inward and outward,
Sef
p.s. if you like Donald Miller/McLaren/Peterson – you can also look up Rob Bell http://www.beliefnet.com/story/172/story_17290_1.html (not advocating the site, but the interview is ok – and it is a fascinating Petri dish of a site)…also…Mew is a great band…also, read the Book of Common Prayer :)
p.p.s. after you’ve read the Celtic Book of Daily Prayer too – try a fun Viking raid game where you can raid the abbey at Lindisfarne: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/launch_gms_viking_quest.shtml
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