Who in the world are we?

Moving to WordPress

2009-06-17T07:29:00.001-07:00

witwaw* is in the process of being reborn on WordPress. ~~I've no firm relaunch date (though I'm aiming for July 1.~~

I've moved.

~~Launch Date: July 1, 2009 at ~ 8 pm PDT.~~
URL: ~~http://witwaw.wordpress.com/~~

http://www.whointheworldarewe.com/

~~(NOTE: URL will go live on the launch date)~~

The rebirthed blog will focus more specifically on the subjects suggested by the title and subtitle:

The church is in the world.
The identity of the church is critical.
Ecclesiology is about much more than polity.
Communal spiritual formation should be our common practice.
The practices of communal spiritual formation must be doable in the real world.

More information as things become clearer and closer.

* Who in the World Are We?

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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Origin of Variation: Concluding Thoughts

2009-05-18T12:00:00.000-07:00

There is ample evidence for genetic
variation.

First, I offer some examples: The bananas we see in the grocery store are one example of genetic variation, for wild bananas are neither as large nor as tidy. Another example is the variety of household dogs and cats . We are surrounded by genetic variation. There is no point in arguing against it, for such arguments are not only futile, they are foolish.
The extent to which this variation occurs is less clear. So-called microevolution is apparent, as stated above. So-called macroevolution is another matter. We have yet to observe the process of macroevolution and all conclusions regarding it are inference.

Questions of origin are not primarily scientific.

Observational science is not possible, given the unique nature of the events. Speculative science is possible, but it must be submitted to the scientific method for verification. On the other hand, theology-philosophy can speak directly to the issue; therefore, theology-philosophy has a prominent, and I would say primary, seat at the table when discussing issues of origin.

These assumptions make the difference in how the data are interpreted. Naturalistic science assumes the universe is a closed system of natural processes and substances, whereas theistic science¹ assumes the universe is an open system in which the natural processes and substances have been created and are acted upon by an immaterial, divine, uncreated being.

Non-young earthers rightly question why it looks as if adaptation took millions of years.

Honestly, I do not believe there is a young earth answer that will satisfy naturalistic science. Theistic science and naturalistic science disagree on basic assumptions--specifically, the participation or non-participation of a divine intelligence. Further, convincing naturalistic science of a theistic interpretation of the data should not be focus of theologians. Rather, we ought to focus on developing an interpretation that is reasonable and coherent given theistic assumptions.

One reasonable and coherent claim is that God made both the materials of creation and its processes. He created kinds within type and equipped them with the genetic information and capacity for adaptation to various environmental pressures. As time went along, these kinds within types, through the inherent genetic information and capacities, adapted to various environments, resulting in the great variety we see today. ²

Questions of origin, by their very nature, are ultimate questions, best answered by theology-philosophy.

Let me clarify what I am disagreeing with here with regard to humanity. I am not saying that the process of adaptation by genetic variation has not changed humanity; I am saying that at the beginning of those changes stood two human persons, created by God. They may well have looked quite a bit differently than we do today, but I do not believe the Bible allows any other claim: God created human persons.

I clearly and fully admit that this is a theological claim, not a scientific one; I also believe that when we are talking about questions of origin, we are going past the capacity of observational science and into a realm where theology-philosophy has more to say and where what it says carries more weight. We are not talking about the observed data, but inferences made from that data on the basis of assumptions.

Inferences concerning the origin of variation tell us who we are and how we relate to the world and to God. If we are the product of naturalistic processes, then we are mere animals and ethics, morals, and spirituality are adaptations for survival that have no transcendent quality. But, if we are the product of theistic action and are (as the Bible declares in Genesis 1) created in God's image, then humans have transcendent qualities and transcendent worth, for we are related to something greater than anything in the created universe.

Conclusions

Looking at the question of the origin of variation from a theological perspective--that God exists, that he acts, and that he has the power to create by fiat--produces inferences that are coherent and adequately explain the data.
I realize that those who do not hold to theistic science and who look upon the question of origin as naturalistic will disagree with theistic inferences, and probably vehemently. I understand. Do know that we are not disagreeing about the data, but rather about the interpretation of data and the assumptions behind those interpretations. If one holds naturalistic assumptions, then I would agree that an evolutionary explanation of the origin of variation makes sense. But if one holds theistic assumptions--that there is a divine intelligence who has the power and authority to create by fiat--then divine creation logically stands as the origin of variation.
I claim that these theistic assumptions are not merely my opinion; I claim they are true.

Current Position: Adaptation by genetic variation originated with divine creation of kinds-within-type that are imbued by God with the genetic information and capacities for this ongoing process.

NEXT: A Short History of witwaw*

*witwaw = "Who In The World are We?"

By "theistic science" I do not intend to say that those who hold to naturalistic science cannot or do not believe in a god or that those who hold theistic science believe in a specific god. I am speaking here of the type of science, not the type of scientist.
"kind" in the Hebrew Old Testament: Gen 1:11, 12, 21, 24, 25; 6:20; 7:14; Lev 11:14, 15, 16, 19, 22, 29; Deut 14:13, 14, 15, 18; Ezek 47:10

Conclusion: "kind" (Heb meen), seems to refer to categories of plants and animals that are able to produce fertile offspring. My best guess is that "kind" in the OT is equivalent to "species." This does not mean new species could not develop through adaptation; on this point I am unsure.

Postponed: Origin of Variation: basic concepts and theological significance.

2009-05-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

School and ministry responsibilities have expanded to fill the available space this week; the post on Origin of Variation: basic concepts and theological significance should be up next Monday.

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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Refining My Understanding: Origin of Variation, Origin of Life, and Origin of Matter

2009-04-27T13:00:00.000-07:00

Through the helpful interactions on Why I do not believe in macro-evolution, I have learned that I have conflated three notions of origins. With this post, I begin to unscramble the egg.

Origin of Variation

Looks at the genetic variation among living things, specifically the ultimate and continuing source of this variation
Science-under-the-canopy (SciUTC*) offers a purely material origin: biological evolution.
Christian theology offers a divine and material origin: God created the initial types and kinds of living things (Gen 1) and the continuing processes of adaptation by genetic variation. I hold that these continuing processes occur within type and kind, rather than between type and kind.

Origin of Life

Looks at the beginnings of what we know as life
One SciUTC explanation is abiogenesis (“spontaneous generation”), but Pasteur (Benton 15) refuted this.
Another is the Oparin-Haldric model, which theorizes that life arose from chemical reactions in the earth’s early atmosphere (Benton 24).
A third set of theories offer that “RNA was the first genetic molecule” (Benton 26).
Christian theology** claims that God created life (Gen 1) by fiat, speaking it into existence.

Origin of Matter

Looks at the beginnings of matter, space, and time
SciUTC offers the various versions of the Big Bang theory and the Steady State model as possible explanations.
Christian theology offers that God created matter, space, and time by fiat; the specific mechanisms are less clear.

Next week: Origin of Variation: basic concepts and theological significance.

Resources
Evolution: A Very Short Introduction, by Brian and Deborah Charlesworth (Oxford University Press, USA (2003), Edition: 1, Paperback, 168 pages)
Cosmology: A Very Short Introduction, by Peter Coles (Oxford University Press, USA (December 6, 2001), 152 pages)
The History of Life: A Very Short Introduction, by Michael J. Benton (Oxford University Press, USA; 1 edition (December 15, 2008), 144 pages)
Genesis 1-2

NOTE:
If I have misunderstood or misrepresented an SciUTC position, please kindly leave a correction in the comments.

*SciUTC: looks at the substance and processes of the material universe without reference to immaterial (AKA “divine”) inputs.
**The Christian Theology perspectives in this post are my own. Dialogue welcome.

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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

What do questions of origin have to do with who we are in the world?

2009-04-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

If God created humanity as responsible adults to care for an adult earth, filled with adult plants and animals, who are self-perpetuating through sexual or asexual reproduction, what should be our approach to the data being interpreted by science*?

In last Monday's post, I dipped my toe a bit deeper in the evolution-creation pond that I had planned. With this post, I dip a bit further, this time leaning toward the theological end.

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I do not dispute the data; rather, I believe both scientific and theological knowledge must be applied to the data. Our knowledge of the universe since the Scientific Revolution has increased dramatically, as mentioned by Andrew B in his comment: "our knowledge of the universe has been exploding through application of the scientific method, logic, reasoning and mathematics." God has placed us in this world and has given us minds that are naturally curious and that seek to reason things out. These great gifts must not be cast aside, but must be leveraged.

Science has told and will continue to tell us much about our world and ourselves, but scientific knowledge cannot tell us the entire story, for the origin of humanity, the earth, and all living things is beyond our experimental reach. We can also study what is happening now. We can study the circumstantial evidence left by what has happened in the past. These provide a wealth of information, but an eyewitness report is lacking in the scientific data.

If the Bible is inspired by God, then believe Genesis 1-2 provides such an eyewitness account. If it is an eyewitness account, then theological knowledge must be applied to questions of origin. This is not to say that scientific knowledge is discounted; rather, theology must have a place at the table, for these questions have distinct theological/philosophical components.

As it stands, at least from my tiny corner of the world, it seems the scientists and the theologians are having a difficult time at the round table. To quote Francis S. Collins,

The shrill voices at the extremes of this debate have had the microphone for too long. Although they will no doubt continue to rail against each other, the rest of us should find ways to bring together scientists who are open to spiritual truths, theologians who are ready to embrace scientific findings about the universe, and pastors who know the real concerns and needs of their flocks. Together, in a loving and worshipful attitude, we could formulate a new and wondrous natural theology ("A New Theology of Celebration," Search Magazine).

There is much heat in this discussion--too much heat (a small part of which I have cast about). But to quote Collins again, "If we make a serious and prayerful attempt to do this together, perhaps in a few years this new “celebration theology” could eliminate the conflict between science and faith."

Where do we go from here?

As God's viceroys on earth, an interpretation of the available data must conform to our care for and rule over creation. As God's creation, our interpretation of the data must keep in mind his divinity and power; it must serve to increase our understanding not only of the universe, but of its Creator.

Therefore,

I issue a call is to scientists who are Christian: have the courage to take off the canopy when it is academically feasible, even if it is only feasible in your own mind. Look at the available data and ask questions such as these,

Since God is, how should I interpret these data?
If God created by declaration, how would I interpret these data?

Interpretation is a greater issue than the data. If God created by declaration, then God could have created an adult universe that was sculpted with the characteristics of a universe that had developed over time. If God created by declaration, then he could have created human, animal, and plant kinds that the form the bases of all the species in existence today.

I issue a call is to theologians and pastors: have the courage to move from a discussion of the data to a discussion of its meaning, asking questions such as,

If the earth appears millions of years old and yet was created by God a much shorter time ago, then what is the theological significance of his creating an adult universe?
What is the theological significance of the built-in process of adaption and change that we see in the natural world?

Rather than wasting time refuting data, invest time interpreting the data and discussing theological significance.

We are followers of Jesus, but this designation is not to be relegated to Sunday morning rituals or private moments of prayer and Bible reading. We are his followers in this place and at this time. Let us be wholly engaged with God, each other, and his creation.

*NOTE: I am specifically refuting science that does not reference God, meaning science that interprets the available data according to materialistic assumptions.

Next week: Refining My Understanding: Origin of Variation, Origin of Life, and Origin of Matter

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Further Reading
Reliability, Inerrancy, and the Like
Inspiration of the Bible (wikipedia)
Genesis 1-2

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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Why I do not believe in macro-evolution

2009-04-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

Macro-evolution does not adequately account for genetic differences among species. Different species have very different DNA coding and the assumption that a fish became a lizard does not seem tenable. The plethora of DNA evolution theories testifies to the validity of the issue. Such complex and specific changes in DNA seem more magical than anything theology has come up with.
Atheistic macro-evolution does not adequately account for the impossibility of spontaneous generation . How did the primordial ooze become life? Scientists have run laboratory experiments in which they "create" amino acids from some ooze, but these very experiments provide evidence for intelligent design, for the scientists are the intelligent designers of the newly created amino acids.
If the Scripture is an accurate record of God's ways with his people and his creation, then our perceived timeline should not start at zero. Atheistic macro-evolutionists claim that Scripture does not make adequate sense of the data for the data show that the earth is millions of years old. I would offer that if we were able to travel back in time, to the garden and do tests on Adam and Eve, we would find that the tests "proved" them to be in their mid-twenties, despite the fact that they were mere days/hours old. Just as God created adult humans, animals, and plants, he also created an adult earth, stars, and universe. I happen to be a crazy young-earther , but I hold that with very open hands. I hold this position because I believe it makes the best sense of the biblical and scientific data. If one is a theist and believes God has the capacity to create, then frankly it makes no sense for that same person to discount God's capacity to create.
Theologically, the presence of human death is directly connected to the entrance of sin. If death only entered after the entrance of sin, then it is impossible for there to have been death before that. Without death and a succession of generations, there is no way for human evolution to have occurred. Therefore, if one is to take Genesis seriously and not merely literally, then, however else micro-evolution fits into the picture, macro-evolution is theologically impossible.

In sum, these scientific and theological reasons compel me to reject macro-evolution and support intelligent design, for ID makes the best sense of the scientific and theological data. In addition, I hold that a young earth is both theologically and scientifically possible. I believe it is even likely, but I am unwilling to die on that hill.

What do you say?

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Next week: What does this have to do with Who in the World Are We?
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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

If God is gracious and loving, what about the suffering?

2009-03-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

God is gracious and loving; he is also sovereign and just. Too often, we await his grace and love, while ignoring his sovereignty and justice. We bifurcate God's attributes into pleasant and unpleasant because we do not want to be confronted with a God who has the right, will, and capacity to command all and to discipline or punish whomever he deems fit. Somehow we assume a disciplining and punishing God is unfair and his purposes unjust.

We only want his love and grace; we want heaven NOW! His answer is, Not yet.

But what about the suffering?

There is real suffering in the world and something ought to be done. If God is loving and gracious and has the capacity to provide relief, then he should respond. Yet, we do not see his direct involvement in the relief of suffering. Why? I suggest that God expects us to respond.

I see at least three alternatives to direct divine response: theological clarification, human compassion, and human action. Theological clarification provides a conceptual context in which suffering might be better understood. Proper theological clarification keeps in mind those who are in the midst of suffering, for whether deserved or undeserved, their suffering is real and its presence in their lives hurts us, whether we know it or not. It hurts us whether the sufferer is our friend or our enemy. No suffering is good in itself, even if deserved. Suffering requires compassionate theological clarification through word and deed.

But clarification and compassion are not enough. Those in undeserved suffering deserve relief. Rather than waiting for God to swoop down from heaven, let us assume he wishes to deliver relief through us. For those of us who trust and follow Jesus, let us assume (and rightly so, I believe), that he has blessed us by calling us to be his partners. Let us do his work, share his life, and show his compassion to a hurting world. Let us put our backs and our pocketbooks to the work.

It may well be that those searching for hope will see his hope in us.

Related Post: This world is a mess. Why doesn't the Creator intervene?

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Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

This world is a mess. Why doesn't the Creator intervene?

2009-03-03T12:35:00.000-08:00

Jiffy Lube worker charged with rape
Burglary suspect caught in Hawthorne
Man cited for stuffing cat in his bong

Our world is a mess; it has been a mess for millennia. Whether due to natural causes or personal choices, whether on the front page or hidden in the darkness, evil runs amok with restraint running behind, playing catch up. A theist of any honesty whatsoever must wonder, even if silently, what the Creator is up to while the world slowly self-destructs.

Genesis 1 says that the Creator made humanity in his own image (imago Dei). While we struggle to understand what this means, it at least means that by design humanity is glorious and responsible, just like God. Looking around at culture or listening to the daily news, humanity as imago Dei seems a far-fetched dream, for we are a mess and years of trying have not solved even our basic problems. We need help from the Creator, but he so often seems far away.

Some think that the Creator, because he has the power, should swoop down and magically fix us, yet he has not done so. Why? If we assume the Creator is good and has our good in mind, then there must be a just cause behind his apparent inaction. In this post, I offer a cause for your consideration: such a bold, unilateral intervention would violate his creative design of humanity as imago Dei. If it is true that the Creator made humans responsible beings by giving us real choice--the choice to trust him or to trust ourselves--then humanity justly bears the burden of that choice.

As a race we have chosen to trust ourselves and that has caused no end of trouble. When we trust ourselves as if we were gods, we willfully, intentionally set ourselves off from the Creator, the only source of life and good. In trusting ourselves, we offend him, the Sovereign Ruler of the Universe, and make ourselves his enemies. Now, a sovereign must deal with enemies; they cannot be patted on the head and told, "There, there, you're not that bad are you?" No! Either enemies must become friends or they must be removed. If they are not willing to become friends, then they have chosen, by their own will, to be enemies, disconnected from the Sovereign. Since life is in the Sovereign Creator, to be disconnected from him is death.

There is a truth here that we hesitate to admit: in the Creator's mind our having real choice is more critical than everything here being pleasant. He created us for relationship and true relationship requires the willing participation of both parties. The Creator honors humanity by giving us the choice to participate in relationship with him. In choosing self over him, we choose to rebel against the Sovereign Creator.

As a race and as persons, we have chosen rebellion. Because the Creator is just, our willful rebellion cannot simply be forgotten. Because he is love and acts for the good of the other, he has made a way for humanity to return, trust him, and have life. The Sovereign Creator, the only one with the capacity to fix humanity, has fixed it, all the while maintaining human responsibility.

We can get angry and frustrated that he does not fix us the way we want him to. We can rant about and pant about and shake our fists at heaven, and in his grace, he allows us to do so without being smashed. But the truth is, without him, we are dead and as corpses, we have neither right nor capacity to demand how life is given to us.

An accurate view of our circumstances depends on an accurate view of the Creator. We all bring our assumptions with us and those assumptions can distort our perceptions. With a more accurate view of the Creator, are we able to magnify and deepen our understanding of and emotional response to his grace. Grace, understood in the context of his sovereignty, glory, and justice, brings us to our knees in gratitude because we finally realize that it did not need to be so. We realize that he had every right to crush us all and start afresh, but he chose to rescue, over and over and over, and then finally and fully in Messiah.

Humans who do not trust the Messiah and the way that he has made, are disconnected. Those who are disconnected from him have no life. Trust in the resurrected Son of God, Jesus the Messiah, is the only way for humans to return to the Creator and have life.

"This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
Acts 4:11-12

Mission without the Sacred-Secular Dichotomy

2009-02-10T08:02:00.000-08:00

UPDATED 2/11/09

Question: Given the identity of church, what are the activities that would express that identity and by what criteria are those expressions to be evaluated?

For too long, the church has separated its activities from daily life; we have conformed to a sacred-secular dichotomy that does not exist. God is Creator and Ruler of all and we are his people in all of life. We--his church--ought to bear his influence through regular life in our neighborhoods. I do not mean the sort of influence that we often package as programs, but rather an influence had by joining existing services in our neighborhoods, working together in the community as a powerful expression of church in the world.

How should we decide which services to join? General grace is one criterion: "For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45b).

As we consider participating in this work, let us ask, "Will we demonstrate God's mercy, grace, and rule before the world?"

If the answer is yes, then let us join the work.

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I hesitated in posting this, because it is an indictment of and a challenge to me more than to any who read it, for I have separated myself from my neighborhoods.

In self-defense, I offer a usual excuse: time. But I must ask myself, "If I am too busy to be a neighbor, them am I not too busy?"

I also offer the excuse of calling, for I am called to minister to the church. But does this excuse me from service as the church? I think not.

Now, the million-dollar question: Will I take the next step?

Related
Robert Campbell:

Being a Local Church "...discern those few key points of dissension that will communicate what it means to live the gospel of King Jesus most clearly to our people and our place."
Finding Your Way With the World "...[1] use truth rather than opinion...[2] change the existing culture...[3] shape the arriving culture"

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Open Letter to the Sanctify! Dreaming Team

2009-02-07T14:55:00.000-08:00

As we have seen in Isaiah, God holds individuals and communities responsible for their behavior. In addition, individuals may experience discipline for community behavior, even if their own behavior is good.

As TNBS and Sanctify go forth this year, possibly transforming into something beyond what we had envisioned, we need to function with this in mind. We need to remember that we are responsible for the behavior of our community and are obligated to do something about it. Within that task, we must not let loose of the fact that we are also responsible for our relationship with God. We must strive to be holy persons.

I, for one, know how difficult it is to act against our habituated ways of being. But God's Word is clear: he expects our lives here, together and alone, to correspond to his ways. God is Lord and Creator of all. Whether it is entertainment, employment, politics, community service, or friends and family, how we live must correspond to God's ways. Living a life that corresponds to his ways means living a whole life, not a few moments here and there.

We, as individuals and as a church, are so engulfed by our own ways of being and our culture's ways of being that we do not know how to be who we are. This must change.

To bring it down locally, for that is all we can really do, if TFB is to become what God wants us to be, we must remember two things: who God is and who we are. Apart from this knowledge, we have no criteria for change.

According to Ephesians 4:15-16, spiritual maturity happens in community as we exercise our grace-gifts in connection to Christ and one another. Our becoming who we are has everything to do with our connection to the Head and to one another. These connections accomplish the work of growth.

In 2009, let us struggle to maintain our connections to the Body and the Head. Only in doing so will we as a church become who are are.

Inputs
Isaiah 24-27
Ephesians 4:7-16

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

sketchpad Communal Formation and Disciple Making as Systems

2009-02-02T17:05:00.000-08:00

Update: Feb 4, 2009 (Thanks to input from Jeff, Prib, and Plock)

Initial version

Changes

"discipleship" merged into "Disciples in Training"
"conversion" --> "Trusting to repentance"
corrected direction of disciplers-to-Disciples in Training influence arrow

Initial version

Changes

added "perceived walk" and "discrepancy"
changed "functioning body" to "functioning members" and made "APEPT" a subset
Not knowing how to depict the Head, I created an all encompassing footnote.
changed title to "Disciples in Training"
Added Ephesians 4 references

yellow box = stock
yellow arrow = flow
black arrow = influence
"B" = balancing feedback loop
"R" = reinforcing feedback loop

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Identity of Church: by divine definition or human decision?

2009-01-26T08:00:00.000-08:00

Inputs: Horrell, Viola, Isaiah 24-27, Sunday sermon 1/11

Who we are is a defined thing and the definition (laid down in the apostolic tradition comprised of the normative beliefs and practices in the New Testament) cannot be changed by our decision. It is not culturally conditioned; who we are does not change across history, country, or language. The particular suit of clothes might change with time and culture, but our identity, expressed in normative beliefs and practices, is definitional. If we step outside of that definition, we become something other than who we are. One of the key ideas, picked up by both Horrell and Viola, is the notion of communality: that God designed us to be a people, not a collection of individuals, but a gathering around a person for whose work we structure ourselves. We do his work, not our work. He comes first.

The institutional church has gotten off track by forgetting who we are and who he is. It may well be that our doctrine is in good order. It may well be that our behavior conforms to biblical morality. But if we do not express Christ and who we are in Christ, then we are not church. The uncomfortable conclusion is that many organizations, quite certain they are churches, are actually something altogether different; they are religious organizations, but they are not churches.

What do we do with that once we know the truth?

Related Posts
Being the Loyal Opposition in the Institutional Church
Among the Loyal Dissatisfied

Key Ideas from the week:

Christ-centered
part of the one people of God, distinct from but not divided from Israel
shaped as specifically Christian by belief and practice
being dancers, creating on a sure theme, rather than docents, merely relating the theme and its history

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Being the Loyal Opposition in the Institutional Church

2009-01-12T22:04:00.000-08:00

Thoughts after reading the preface and introduction to Frank Viola’s Reimagining Church, in which he makes a case for church life outside the institutional church

Regarding Viola’s assumption, that in the institutional church the structure should not be reformed or renewed because the structure is the problem. Though I think the structure is a major problem, I also think structure is more a symptom than a source of the problem. Leaving the institutional church to its own devices will not solve the problem. I hold to another solution: remaining in the institutional church as the bold, yet respectful, loyal opposition.

My reasoning is this. If it be true that the persons inside the institutional church are Church and that the Spirit in them in witnessing to their spirits that Jesus is the Christ and the center of our corporate being, then change—including complete reconstruction—is possible (however likely or unlikely). Some first steps are redefining things and positions and removing the business/marketing template.

For example, if we say that the large Sunday gathering is worship and celebration rather than the primary event, then we free that definition (“primary”) for application to smaller gatherings throughout the week. These smaller gatherings would include learning groups, serving groups, and everything in between. If these smaller groups redefined themselves as primarily Christ-centered communities with specific tasks I think, the institutional church would begin to change. Of course, there are some things that must be rebuilt from the ground up. [1]

I realize even as I say this, that those who are fully committed to organic or house church will likely consider this a compromise. And indeed it may be, but I think the community of persons inside the institutional church is worth it.

[1] One thing that we must change is the solo senior pastorate being one (which I believe to be unbiblical and wrong). We need a plurality of elders (“older holy one”) who really do lead—stepping out there first, putting themselves on the line, and living lives that look so much like Jesus that we cannot help but follow.

Related post: Among the Loyal Dissatisfied

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology frank viola

The Necessary Primacy of Theology Proper in the Missiology-Ecclesiology Discussion

2009-01-11T20:00:00.000-08:00

In the discussion regarding the relationship between missiology and ecclesiology, I am going to go off the rails and say that theology proper is the only primary theological element. Everything else is part of the web and in direct and constant relation to theology proper; further, everything else is in dynamic and flexible relationship with all the other elements. The connections vary in strength, intensity, and prominence.

Those who say Trinity is first are on the right track, but that is not all. In theology proper, we have trinity, attributes, missio Dei, Creator, Paterology, Christology, and Pneumatology. All these are subsets of theology proper. Radiating out from that, with direct connections to the core, is everything else.

On any given day and in any given circumstance, the individual elements relate to one another, sometimes as influence, but always with reciprocation. This means, for example, that missiology does not come before or after ecclesiology, but that these are in a reciprocal relationship, where each influences the other. Depending on the specific need, one or the other has more influence. The question is what exactly does this have to do with our practice?

Learning and worship are primary, but they are incomplete in and of themselves. If they are only internal to the community of faith or to the individual person, they are incomplete; they are not true learning and true worship. Worship, by its very nature, always leaks out in holy living in the context of community. Learning always leaks out in proclamation and purity. If this is the case, then the sometimes critique of the centrality of worship and learning in the “non-missional” church is actually a critique of incomplete learning and worship.

What needs to be created-innovated are opportunities for and means of complete worship and complete learning—both of which need to be considered outside of the constraints of our current forms. What we need to consider, then, is how we actually live in the world (keeping in mind the restraints of holy living) and determine which forms the four functions –worship, learning, fellowship, and mission—might take.

Worship and learning never exist by themselves in a healthy community; fellowship and mission will always accompany them. The vertical worship of God is completed by fellowship with our brothers and sisters (and, at a different level of intimacy, with those who do not trust Christ). Vertical learning is completed by horizontal mission, proclaiming the good news within and beyond the community of faith. If, in our practice, we only have one dimension—whether vertical or horizontal—we do not have Christianity; we have something else, which is a pale imitation at best.

Written in conversation with From the Ground Up: New Testament Foundations for the 21st-Century Church, by J. Scott Horrell

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

Are We Sacrificing the Mission of the Church for the Missions of Her Members?

2009-01-04T20:00:00.000-08:00

As a body, the Church performs the work of her Head, receiving his instruction and being his presence in the world. Maturation occurs as the parts fulfill their proper functions in the presence of proper and adequate nutrition. Work and Word are both necessary for health and growth.

As a community, the Church reflects the unity and diversity of God in the unity and diversity of her internal relations. Maturation occurs as she learns and works in the context of relationship. The parts must function together and for one another in order that the growth, which flows only from Christ, might occur.

As a storyteller, the Church tells the story of God’s grace and justice. It is a story of grace, for eternal deliverance and presence are gifts paid for by God alone. It is a story of justice, for those who reject these gifts by failing to trust the Giver will not be delivered and will not live in his presence. The will not do this forever. Maturation occurs as the members hear God’s story and respond by being and doing that story among themselves before the eyes of the world.

---

I am finding a decided inwardness arise in my research into the identity, function, and maturation of the Church in the world. While I believe that the Church must be salt and light, I am not finding that individual believers are to be so intentionally. Rather, individual believers function for the good of the body and for the glory of the Lord.

Perhaps focus on the missional function of individual believers has actually reduced the missional influence of the Church. Perhaps refocusing our efforts on body connections and properly functioning persons will produce the missional influence we so desperately need.

What does it look like to focus on the growth and health of the body for the purpose of communal work, reflection, and storytelling in the world?
What would we add to our programs?
What would we remove?
What would we change?

Related Site: Missional Tribe

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology missional

LEARNING TRUTH THROUGH INTUITION

2009-01-01T20:00:00.000-08:00

Intuitive Knowledge as Leveraging Empirical and Rational Knowledge

Through intuitive knowing we innately process the empirical and rational knowledge we have built into our hearts. We leverage this by intentional intuitive knowing in all three domains.

Cognitive

Know the belief types
Analyze by coherence/correspondence
Correct our beliefs

Affective

Know perspective types
Analyze by trust
Correct our perspectives

Volitive

Know response types
Analyze by righteousness
Correct our responses

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

skethpad--CHURCH: THEME and VARIATIONS

2008-12-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

We are the community of holy ones, called to be holy in the world for Christ's sake and to mature through cooperation with the Holy Spirit and remaining in Christ.
We are in process, called to show what it means/looks like to be fit for God's presence and to mature through behaving as ones being made fit.
We are warriors, called to fight Christ's battle against all forms of evil and to mature through training in discernment, declaration, advocacy/intercession, and emergency care.
We are heralds, called to introduce God's order and to mature through knowledge, practice, and graciousness.
We are dancers, called to show that submission to God's ways is freedom and to mature through the disciplines and through "loving God and doing as we please."
We are scholars, called to know truth deeply and behave accordingly and to mature through holistic study and integrative education.
We are followers, called to reveal God's fullness in our life together and to mature through increasing knowledge of who God is and through submitting our behavior to that knowledge.
We are in the world but not of it, called to point to Christ in his incarnate fullness and to mature through intellectual, relational, and personal knowledge of him.

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

sketchpad—FOUR-WAY BIBLE READING FOR SPIRITUAL GROWTH

2008-12-22T20:44:00.000-08:00

The Church is the Body of Christ; the individual members belong to that Body only by virtue of their connection to Christ. He alone is the founder of our faith; he alone is the completer (Heb 12). The Body, therefore, is not a mere collection, as if a part might be removed without consequence. Each person, each connection, each function, each purpose makes the Body what it ought to be. Similarly, persons, connections, functions, and purposes not inherent to the Body contaminate the system and make it what it ought not to be.

As the Body, the church functions at the communal and individual levels. In addition to saving grace (Eph 2:8-10), Christ measures out functional grace (Eph 4:7), equipping each member to serve the local and global church. Persons practice grace so that the church might mature and expand. The Body practices grace that is greater than the sum of its parts; a properly functioning church will have influence beyond what is logical from member’s participation.

How does this maturation take place in the world? An important step is to take a clear, focused look at Jesus and confess that we, as his Body, are not behaving in accordance with our identity in him. Only then, after knowing where we are and where we ought to be, can we plan and begin our journey. If the church is broken, the problem is not external; the problem is in the church itself.

A major internal contributor is the unbalanced, haphazard way many persons receive biblical input. Too may subsist on pre-chewed pablum. Too many read only emotionally. Too many read only intellectually. If growth results from knowing and speaking truth in the context of love, then adequate biblical input is necessary for life and growth.

This biblical input must go beyond mere hearing, mere emotions, or mere intellect. Each person, each community must take responsibility. The following matrix (developed after skimming Life with God by Richard Foster) offers some suggestions.

I realize some may cast doubt on my emphasizing biblical input, placing great importance on spiritual experiences. Such experiences can be important; they can also be false. Others will emphasize listening to the Spirit. This is, of course, crucial and necessary. But to both I must ask, How do you know the experiences or the voices are from God? One cannot merely say, I just know, for we all have personal and cultural filters that skew our perceptions. The only sure way to know God’s voice is to listen to him in community as we gather to read the Word with head and heart, going deeply into smaller portions and gaining breadth in larger chunks.

Relevant Readings and Writings this Past Week
blog post: Pursued by and Dwelling in God
book: Biology of Human Starvation
blog post: Blitz the Me-Prayer
Scripture: Daniel 9, Psalm 23, Psalm 119:105-112
book introduction: Thinking in Systems
blog post: By Guidance and Intention
ideas in blog posts: monkey bars

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

sketchpad...LEAKING TRUTH

2008-12-01T21:40:00.000-08:00

ponderings from the Moleskine, November '08

The truth leaked from our life together in Christ is the necessary precursor to our proclamation of God’s worth.

Knowing begins in relationship with God.

The triune Creator, Covenant-Maker is foundational.
Our fear of and love for God develops wisdom: truth lived well in the world.

Knowing grows in relationship with others.

Community provides the training and correction needed for growth in truth.
Working and playing alongside our brothers and sisters adds what is missing in our knowledge and removes what is false.

Relational knowing leaks truth in the world.

The methods of relational knowing show that God’s truth is both conceptual and relational.
Modeling relational knowing before the world bypasses intellectual and emotional barriers, though resistance and acceptance remain matters of volition.

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

RESTRUCTURING FOR INTEGRATIVE EDUCATION

2008-11-13T09:03:00.000-08:00

Reading this week

Restructuring for Integrative Education: Multiple Perspectives, Multiple Contexts
Edited by Todd E. Jennings
168 pages
Publisher: Bergin & Garvey (July 30, 1997)

Chapters

"Developmental Dialectic of Students, Faculty, and Higher Education" (Ivan D. Kovacs and Helen J. Shoemaker)
"Service Learning and the Liberal Arts: Restructuring for Integrated Education" (Robbin D. Crabtree)
"Confronting the Ultimate Learning Outcome: We Teach Who We Are" (Susan Drake)
"Transforming School Psychology: Paradigmatic Assumptions and Impediments to Holistic roles" (Dudley J. Wiest and Dennis A. Kreil)
"Restructuring Classroom Management for More Interactive and Integrated Teaching and Learning" (Barbara Larrivee)
"From Alienating to Liberating Experiences: A New Comer's Learning Experiences in the New Culture" (Danling Fu)
"Recent Mexican Immigrants: Forgotten Voices in the High School Restructuring Process" (Rosalie Giacchino-Baker)
"Restructuring as an Integrative Process" (Sam Crowell and Renate Caine)

My Focus Chapters

"Developmental Dialectic of Students, Faculty, and Higher Education" (Ivan D. Kovacs and Helen J. Shoemaker)
"Confronting the Ultimate Learning Outcome: We Teach Who We Are" (Susan Drake)
"Restructuring as an Integrative Process" (Sam Crowell and Renate Caine)

LEARNING TO LEARN

2008-11-03T13:39:00.000-08:00

Reading this week

Learning to Learn: Toward a Philosophy of Education
Jerry H. Gill
262 pages
Publisher: Humanity Books (August 2000)

Referenced Persons
Michael Polanyi
Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Jacques Derrida
Richard Rorty
Hans-Georg Gadamer

Key Thinkers
John Dewey
Alfred North Whitehead
Paulo Freire
Carl Rogers

WADING IN THE KIERKEGAARDIAN POOL

2008-10-01T12:28:00.000-07:00

I've begun to wade in the Kierkegaardian pool over at Laura's Writings and will be posting any ecclesiology-related thoughts here as they arise.

Basics: "Kierkegaard" on wikipedia

Comments are closed on this post. Comment at LW.

Resources for the Study of Ephesians 4:11-16

2008-09-17T22:09:00.000-07:00

Updates as they are found...

Arnold, Clinton E. Ephesians, Power and Magic: The Concept of Power in Ephesians in Light of Its Historical Setting. Cambridge ; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1989.

________. "Ephesians." In Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary, ed. Clinton E. Arnold, 3, 301-341. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 2002.

Best, Ernest. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Ephesians The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, ed. J. A. Emerton and C. E. B. Cranfield. London ; New York: T & T Clark, 1998. Reprint, 2004.

Liefeld, Walter L. Ephesians The I V P New Testament Commentary Series ; 10. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1997.

McComiskey, Douglas S. "Exile and the Purpose of Jesus' Parables (Mark 4:10-12; Matt 13:10-17; Luke 8:9-10)." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 51, no. 1 (2008): 59-85.

O'Neill, J. C. "'the Work of the Ministry' in Ephesians 4:12 and the New Testament." The Expository Times 112 (2001): 336-340.

Page, Sydney H. T. "Whose Ministry? A Re-Appraisal of Ephesians 4:12." Novum Testamentum XLVII, no. 1 (2005): 26-46.

Saucy, Mark. The Kingdom of God in the Teaching of Jesus: In 20th Century Theology. Dallas, Tex.: Word Pub., 1997.

Vooys, John. "No Clergy or Laity: All Christians Are Ministers in the Body of Christ Ephesians 4:13." Direction 20, no. 1 (1991): 87-95.

Wells, David F. "Christian Discipleship in a Postmodern World." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 51, no. 1 (2008): 19-33.

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

THE CONTINUING WITWAW MAKE-OVER

2008-09-15T20:56:00.000-07:00

I continue to work on the structure and purpose of this Who in the World Are We? This is the latest.

As of September 15, 2008, the purpose and structure changed once again. Because I am now working on pieces for publication, I am hesitant to post specific pieces on this blog. Further, the question-resource structure from 8/20 was formulaic. In the new re-formulation, most posts will be bibliographic, with some comment. Once in a while, I may post an essay or article, but this is still up in the air.

The new subtitle: Resources for the Study of Ecclesiology in General and Communal Spiritual Formation in Particular

See the About post for the whole deal.

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

HOW DO CORPORATE AND INDIVIDUAL FAITH WORK?

2008-09-12T17:06:00.000-07:00

Launching Quote

A vital point about Isa 6:9-13 that is fundamentally important for our treatment of Jesus' quotation is that the repentance and healing mentioned in verse 10 is not about individual salvation. The reference is to corporate hardening, corporate repentance and corporate healing.
Douglas S. McComiskey
"Exile and the Purpose of Jesus' Parables (Mark 4:10-12; Matt 13:10-17; Luke 8:9-10)"
Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume 51, No. 1, March 2008 (59-85)
pg. 65

Ponderings

Assuming McComiskey is correct and God does hinder corporate repentance for his own purposes, what are the responsibilities of persons in that community?
When a community comes to the point of corporate repentance, what is its responsibility toward unrepentant persons?
When an individual person in an unrepentant community repents, by what criteria should that person decide whether to remain in or leave the community?
Assuming the decision to remain, what are the primary functions of the repentant person in the life of the unrepentant community?

Resources

ONE SCREEN OF TEXT

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

WHAT MUST THE COMMUNITY DO WITH THE SCRIPTURE'S DEMANDS?

2008-09-11T22:05:00.000-07:00

Launching Quote

The meaning of biblical revelation is substantive, not adjectival, as Nicholas Wolterstorff has said... It is precisely this captivity to our own selves, to our own autonomous subjectivity, that God must break if we are to hear his Word aright otherwise we hear it not at all.
David F. Wells
"Christian Discipleship in a Postmodern World"
Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Volume 51, No. 1, March 2008
pg. 26

Ponderings

When an interpreter claims illumination as one basis for an interpretation, by what means or criteria should the community evaluate the claim?
What role should the history of interpretation play in discovering the meaning of Scripture?
When Scripture makes a specific demand upon an individual person, what are the responsibilities of that person re: bringing the demand before the community and making it a demand of the community?
What responsibility does the community have re: the demands of Scripture upon individual persons?

Resources

Is There a Meaning in This Text? by Kevin J. Vanhoozer
The Drama of Doctrine by Kevin J. Vanhoozer
"Bibliology" on Theopedia
"Postmodernism" on Theopedia
"Discipleship" on Theopedia

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

ARE UNDERSHEPHERDS FOR NOW AND ETERNITY?

2008-09-08T21:21:00.000-07:00

The image [of the shepherd in Ephesians 4:11] is vague; its OT and pre-OT usage would suggest that primary emphasis would lie on shepherds as those who led..., provided and protected those in their care.
Ernest Best
Ephesians: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary
T. & T. Clark Publishers; Ed. 2004 edition

Comment

leading: This is an obvious statement, but leading requires that the shepherd first go where he wants the flock to go. A second and equally important requirement is that the flock must know the shepherd and must find his leadership trustworthy.
providing: The largest portion of this task is getting food and sheep together. Actually feeding the sheep is unnecessary, except for the young and the sick. if the sheep are not feeding themselves, something is horribly wrong with the flock.
protecting: The flock lives in constant danger of illness, attack, or foolishness. The shepherd protects the flock by seeing to its general health, by fighting off enemies, and by caring for the injured and sick.

Ponder

How much, if any, of this metaphor carries over into eternity?
Either way, what is the significance for how we behave now?

Resources

The Five-Fold Ministry and the Birth of New Movements
Christian Unity (Ephesians 4:1-16)

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

WHAT MAKES US FULLY DEVOTED FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST?

2008-09-04T22:15:00.000-07:00

In preparation for this coming Sunday sermon, Pastor Charlie has asked us to consider what we think are the most important things we can do to develop ourselves into fully devoted followers of Christ.

It may be a matter of knowledge. An increase biblical and theological knowledge increases spiritual maturity . But this is not necessarily true. Many Christians know Scripture and doctrine and yet remain emotionally disconnected and behaviorally bland.
It may be a matter of emotion. Emotional experiences and a desire to help others increase spiritual maturity. But, like knowledge, this is not necessarily the case. Many Christians have deeply felt experiences and yet remain ignorant of Scripture and focus more on experience than on service.
It may be a matter of doing. Practicing good works, religious rituals, and spiritual disciplines increases spiritual maturity. This is also not necessarily the case. Many Christians do all these things and yet remain ignorant of Scripture and unmoved by the needs of others and the glory of God.

So, if knowing, feeling, or doing are insufficient, what is the answer? What is our part in our own spiritual formation? In the spiritual formation of our brothers and sisters?

~~I'll be posting my thoughts on Monday after the sermon.~~

Post-Sermon Thoughts
All three are necessary and, by themselves, insufficient. Even so, it seems that knowledge must have priority, for by knowledge we are able to interpret feeling and doing. That being said--given my own Christian context--I must say again: knowledge alone is insufficient for discipleship. Because we are whole persons, we are disciples as whole persons--following Christ takes place via knowing, feeling, and doing. A fourth piece is intention--this is the most neglected. In TFB's REVEAL results, not making discipleship a priority was a top barrier for those who are growing in Christ and, to a significantly greater degree (34% higher than for growers), those who are NOT growing in Christ.

Knowing, feeling, and doing only work when intention and proper goal are in place. Intention is our decision to be disciples. The proper goal is Christlikeness.

Resources
Spiritual Formation in Christ by Dallas Willard
Renovare founded by Richard Foster
Institute for Spiritual Formation at Biola University
Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care

Related post on Laura's Writings

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

HOW SHOULD WE DISAGREE?

2008-09-03T22:03:00.000-07:00

How--that is, by what reasoning standards--she [an author] introduces these observations, defends them, and allows them to build into a coherent, defensible, and ultimately persuasive statement is the book's argument...

...The indispensable predicate for effective argument is command of your subject matter...

...For every conclusion there must be a trail of facts available in the text...

...Your research is trying to tell you where your argument lies. You just have to learn to listen.
Susan Rabiner and Alfred Fortunato
Thinking Like Your Editor
W. W. Norton and Co
(C) 2002
pp. 145-152

In their book on writing serious non-fiction, Rabiner and Fortunato instruct writers to shape proper argument. Authors must provide a "coherent, defensible, and ultimately persuasive" line of thought, showing the reasonableness of their conclusions. There are three prerequisites for such an argument: (1) clear grasp of the broader subject, (2) a trail of evidence supporting the author's thesis, and (3) willingness to listen to the evidence, even when it contradicts the thesis.

What does this have to do with the church? Followers of Jesus have a variety of opinions, many of which are strongly held and vigorously (if not visciously) defended. Some of this stems from our finite nature--we just don't see things clearly. Some stems from the corruption--some of our deep beliefs don't allow us to get it. Whatever the cause, love for Christ and for others demands we agree respectfully.

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

IF GOD IS THE SUBJECT OF FAITH, WHAT THEN?

2008-08-28T22:55:00.000-07:00

God is not the object of our faith. God is the subject of our faith.
Karen Baker-Fletcher
Dancing with God: The Trinity from a Womanist Perspective
Chalice Press, (C) 2006
pg. 18

As my initial thought, I would suggest, in contradiction to Baker-Fletcher and Tillich (with whom she is conversing here), that God is both object and subject of our faith. God is the subject of our faith because, as Baker-Fletcher rightly notes, theology is necessarily about God and his creation. But faith is more than theology; it is also action. The act of faith has God as its proper object.

The content of faith and the act of faith are distinct, but they are never divided. Faith is always content and action.

Possibly refuting my own notions, since God is personal, can he properly be an object? If so, how?
If trust is person-to-person, and therefore subject-to-subject, does our faith have an object? If so, what is it?
If faith is indeed a relation to God as person, how should worship and fellowship change in your church?

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

THE PLACE OF EMOTIONS IN COMMUNAL SPIRITUAL FORMATION?

2008-08-25T12:47:00.000-07:00

As interpretive perceptions, emotions can be right or wrong about the situation, true or false of it. And they are motivational. As concern-based, the are affected by what the subject cares about, what is important to him or her; and many emotions tend to move their subjects to action in a way that is suggested by the concern that is basic to the emotion, along with the particular way of construing the situation that the emotion involves.
Robert C. Roberts
Spiritual Emotions, (C) 2007
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
p. 11

Emotions are not merely responses to the world, they are also ways of seeing that carry meaning more than they carry fact. As carriers of meaning, emotions are shaped by the particular concerns of individual persons. As motivation, emotions move individual persons toward behaviors and produce understandings/explanations of the world that are in keeping with each person's concerns.

How are emotions, concerns, behaviors, and understandings shaped by community?
What is the influence of spiritual emotions on the functioning of the ekklesia?
What is the influence of the ekklesia on the development and functioning of emotions in individual believers?
How does the godly exercise of affections prepare us for life in the consummated Kingdom? As individuals? As community?

Resources

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

IF COMMUNITY IS OUR END, WHAT NOW?

2008-08-22T20:28:00.000-07:00

Strictly speaking, God alone is not the ultimate end toward which we should direct our lives. That end is integral communal fulfillment in God's kingdom, which will be a marvelous communion of divine Persons, human persons, and other created persons. Every human member of the kingdom will be richly fulfilled not only in attaining God by beatific vision but in respect to all the fundamental human goods.
Germain Grisez
"The True Ultimate End of Human Beings: The Kingdom, not God Alone"
Theological Studies, 69 (2008), 38-61
pp. 58-59

When the truth of God as he is in himself falls upon the human intellect, the end is met and all other desires are thrust aside--or so Aquinas claims. Here is the ultimate end, beyond which satisfaction flows over the edges of the soul: God himself.

Grisez disagrees. As Christ, in flesh even while in glory, enjoys God and saints and creation, so we who are transformed into his image enjoy--even desire--these things. So, humanity's ultimate end is not in God himself, but in God's kingdom: that communal enjoyment of God and persons and creation. This is integral communal fulfillment.

Assuming ICF is ultimate--or even penultimate--what must change in the structure and practices of your church to bring the community toward that end?
What of our enjoyment from and blessing toward God? Persons? Creation?
How do you live these out in your faith community?

Resources

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

KINGDOM NOW, THEN, and WHEN?

2008-08-21T22:48:00.000-07:00

The first stage [of the Kingdom] was the presence of spiritual power in the Holy Spirit under the intercessory ministry of a heavenly Christ, and the second stage [is] the future, visible return of the Lord in his glory to reign with his saints judging and putting his enemies under his feet... [The first stage] suggests that we see church as the sphere in which the coming eschatological Kingdom's power is active. This power of the coming Kingdom is today visible in the church.
The Kingdom of God in the Teaching of Jesus
by Mark Saucy
Word Publishing
(C) 1997
pg. 347

Here, in this last section , Saucy draws a picture of the Kingdom--offered by the incarnate Christ, rejected by the Jewish establishment, gone underground in mysteries (like a hidden seed, growing covertly), and yet awaiting the physical, political, historical, and ethnic fulfillment: The King will sit on his throne!

In stage one (the in-between-time of covert operations) where is the Kingdom active? With Son as the seated Intercessor and the Spirit as the indwelling Advocate, the power of the Kingdom of God leaks--indeed, pours--through the life of the Church.

What are the means through which the Kingdom's power is expressed through the church?
Given society's opinion of Church in the West, it does not seem a stretch to say that Kingdom power is not evident. Which beliefs, affections, and behaviors might be hindering the expression of Kingdom power?
How can we better submit to and live by in eschatological Kingdom power?

Doctrine of the Holy Spirit articles on bible.org
UnChristian by David Kinnaman
Kingdom in Matthew (passages)
Kingdom in Matthew (article at bible.org)

Tag(s): ecclesiology church christian theology

ALMOST BACK FROM BLOG SABBATICAL

2008-08-21T09:07:00.000-07:00

I've pondered, made some decisions, updated the About post, and will post fresh tonight.

I am ready to look at the question afresh: Who in the world are we?

VACATION BREAK

2008-07-18T17:56:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a bit of a break this summer. I'll be back in August.

DEEP BELIEFS DETERMINE OUR BEHAVIORS AND EMOTIONS

2008-07-02T07:34:00.000-07:00

In a person of integrity, stated beliefs and behaviors correspond to deep beliefs, which in turn correspond to the way things actually are. For most of us (all?), this correspondence is mixed at best. Deep beliefs, which are often unknown to us and to others, reveal themselves in emotions and behaviors that may be inconsistent with stated beliefs and values. These deep beliefs are the framework upon which we make sense of the world. We interpret events and perceptions according to our deep beliefs and that interpretation drives our emotions and behaviors. Our response to these emotions and behaviors provides feedback that either reinforces or undermines deep beliefs.

Example

Say someone claims that something I hold to be true is actually false. I respond in anger and either sulk or explode. If we look behind the behavior (sulking or exploding) and the emotion (anger), we may well find the contours of the deep belief that my being right is the only way I can hold my self-worth intact.

If I respond by questioning my emotions and behaviors, my erroneous deep beliefs are undermined. If I respond by claiming my right to behave and feel thusly or by doing nothing, my deep beliefs are reinforced.

Questions

How can we correct false deep beliefs?
How can the faith community participate in this process?

Tag(s): theology "christian education"

UNPACKING THE DANCE--Dykstra and Bass on a theology of Christian practice

2008-06-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

Idea for Dancing on the Monkey Bars: The dance is lived theology, the indivisible intermixing of theoria and poiesis that is summed up in praxis (reflective action). Theoria informs poiesis and poiesis informs theoria. In the living of it, the dancers, when honest to the true dance, increasingly become like Jesus, the Master Dancer.
====================
The chapter summary has been moved to Stuff I've Read.

There is an inherent and essential holism in a truly Christian way of life. In this way of life thought, behavior, and affections function in mutual influence. This holistic way of life forms Christians as persons in community to be conformed to the image of the Son, for the glory of the Father, by the power of the Spirit.

Dykstra and Bass' proposal for a systematic and theological way of thinking about Christian Practices involves theologians and practitioners in an intentional praxis that can assist the Body as it incarnates God's gracious gift of life abundant. Their proposal aims at a way of life that is whole, connected, and transforming.

Intentional and public partnership between theologians and practitioners models holism before the community.
Such partnership may also decrease the tendency to overemphasize one aspect of life over another.

====================
Related "monkeybar" posts on Laura's Writings

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology "teaching method" "christian education" praxis

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

Rubric for the Theological Evaluation of an Ecclesiology

2008-05-20T10:05:00.000-07:00

The rubric below was created on a matrix consisting of a protestant understanding of the four marks of the church in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed and my own three-part ecclesiological perspective. This rubric is an evaluative tool that can be used to assess the practiced ecclesiology of a theologian, a local congregation, ecclesiological movement.

Excerpted from
AN ARTICULATION AND EVALUATION OF AN EMERGING CHURCH ECCLESIOLOGY
By Laura K. Springer
Th.M. Thesis, May 2008
Talbot School of Theology, Biola University
Reader: Robert L. Saucy, Ph.D.

The Church is One

The church is one in her connection to Christ.
Individual churches have structures and practices that express and encourage internal, local, and global connection.
Individual churches model and draw others toward the unity of the people of God.

The Church is Holy

The church is holy in that she consists only of those who are in Christ, those who are and are becoming holy by God’s grace.
Individual churches have structures and practices that expect and nurture corporate and personal holiness among those in Christ.
Individual churches model the right belief and right practices that glorify and reflect God.

The Church is Catholic

The church is catholic in that she consists of all those who are in Christ.
Individual churches have structures and practices that provide for and encourage breadth of proclamation and depth of cultural expression.
Individual churches declare and glorify the grace and sovereignty of God.

The Church is Apostolic

The church is apostolic in that she attends and submits to the Scriptures, received and recorded by the Apostles of Jesus.
Individual churches have structures and practices that provide for and encourage personal/corporate submission to and alignment with Scripture.
Individual churches experientially and verbally declare the Good News of God in Christ.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

AN ECCLESIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

2008-05-20T09:58:00.000-07:00

Excerpted from
AN ARTICULATION AND EVALUATION OF AN EMERGING CHURCH ECCLESIOLOGY
By Laura K. Springer
Th.M. Thesis, May 2008
Talbot School of Theology, Biola University
Reader: Robert L. Saucy, Ph.D.

The content of the faith. We know the story of God. The story of which we speak is the story of God, stretching back to the very beginning and forward to the consummation of the Kingdom. We hear the story authoritatively in Scripture and derivatively in tradition. We participate in the story by following Jesus and we tell the story through words and actions.

The nature of the church. We are the people of God. We are peopled through our connection with the Triune God, not by our affinity. Community is essential to our being and our essential communal nature shapes our structures and practices.

The purpose of the church. We expand the kingdom of God. This kingdom is the spiritual and physical rule of God and it includes obedient subjects, a kingly blessing, and a kingly realm. The kingdom was proclaimed by Jesus during his earthly ministry and he called his followers to enter the kingdom. The Kingdom of God has come near but has not yet fully come. Jesus proclaimed its proleptic presence, but it will only be consummated in the eschaton. For now, Christians expand the Kingdom through regular life together, centered on Jesus, and for the sake of the world. Together we proclaim the Kingdom’s King until he comes.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

REVISITING MY MEGACHURCH "FEELINGS"

2008-05-13T12:17:00.000-07:00

Apparently, my in-process feelings toward the mega-church idea has drawn a bit of attention. A blogger (Ken Gurley) on Chron.commons has mentioned my post (I'm the "downright hostile" one in the following quote):

Not everyone is convinced of the worth of megachurches (see 1, 2). Some are downright hostile in their views of these super-sized congregations. (Me doth think some of the hostility might be tinged with a wee bit of jealousy.)

Three brief comments:

Gurley's final question, "What should be a church's basis of success?" is an excellent one--one my allegedly hostile post actually considers.
I question whether Gurley read the entire post, for the bulk of my post consists of me eating crow for my presumption-based opinion.
Finally, I live in Southern California. If I wanted to attend a mega, there are several at my disposal. But I have been called by God to partner with Torrance First Baptist (currently as a lay teacher and worship band member) and I shall not be moved unless God gives me a clear push and pull to go elsewhere. My friends can correct me if my self-assessment is in error, but I see not even a wee tinge of jealousy in my posted perspective--(sometimes too) blunt passion, yes, but jealousy, no.

Finally, for those who choose not to read my entire original post, here is the summary paragraph (emphasis added).

So, what is the bottom line? I am finding that I do not object to the mega church, per se. What I object to is the human tendency to equate size with success, self-protective clinging with faithfulness, and rote imitation with God-following. I willingly admit that there is nothing unbiblical about the mega church. On the other hand, given our “super size me” culture, leadership teams in mega churches (and, in fact, in all churches) must take special care to create room for all four relational spaces, must intentionally—and repeatedly—focus on God’s mission, and must actively pursue God’s ways for their particular community context.

In even shorter terms, what I object to is smaller churches who model themselves after megas (or businesses, or anything else) with no apparent regard for God's measures of success (love God, love people, make disciples) and megas who sell their unfiltered "product" to smaller churches, thereby exacerbating the problem.

Let us be thoughtful, biblical, and wise in our ecclesiological choices.

NOTE: I would converse with Gurley directly on his post, but it appears one must register with Chron.commons in order to comment. That is unfortunate.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology mega church

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE EC

2008-04-30T16:27:00.000-07:00

Excerpted from
AN ARTICULATION AND EVALUATION OF AN EMERGING CHURCH ECCLESIOLOGY
By Laura K. Springer
Th.M. Thesis, May 2008
Talbot School of Theology, Biola University
Reader: Robert L. Saucy, Ph.D.

ECs come into being by the process of emergence and do so along a shift continuum that runs from a shift in practices to a shift in the reasons for these practices. Most ECs likely fall in the middle of the continuum, having a shift in practices based upon a shift in the reasons.

The purpose of this shift process is nothing less than the reformation of the church. Reacting to the ineffective processes of program modification and development, ECs see the postmodern turn as an opportunity for systemic change in church.

Two theological ideas form the theoretical basis for the process of shift. First, ECs consider the church inherently missional, living the gospel for the sake of the world. Second, ECs consider church to be inherently incarnational, being the Gospel in their neighborhoods for the sake of Christ.

In sum, ECs are characterized by bottom up, reformational change in theory and practice for the purpose of incarnational mission.

Related Posts:
A TENTATIVE IDENTIFICATION OF EC
HUNTING FOR TAXONOMIES
DEFINING THE EMERGING CHURCH

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology emerging church

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

NEW TESTAMENT LEADERSHIP: task, position, or what?

2008-04-09T09:01:00.000-07:00

Biblical Input

1) presbuteros ("elder"), episkopos ("bishop, overseer")
qualifications--1 Tim 3:1-7; 5:17-19; Tit 1:5-9
tasks (narrative)--Acts 20:17-38

2) diakonos (minister)
qualifications--1 Tim 3:8-13
tasks (narrative)--Acts 6

3) APEPT as gifts to the ekklesia
Eph 4:11-14

4) Olders and Youngers
1 Tim 5:1-16; Tit 2:2-8

Questions:

Are 1 and 2 offices?
What is the relationship of 3 to 1 and 2?
How are each of these and all of these related to the local church?

Related Posts
beginning questions

This post is subject to change without notice.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

TRINITY AND COMMUNITY--some conclusions

2008-04-08T10:37:00.000-07:00

LONG POST ALERT

Back in 2006, I wrote a paper on Trinity and Community for Church and Family. Here are my conclusions and the bibliography.

Excerpts from
The Economic Trinity, the Missio Dei, and the Church

How can we know the Triune God as he is in himself? There are, of course, many avenues for revelation. There is general revelation: “the way of an eagle in the sky” (Proverbs 30:18) or the rain that falls “on the just and the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). These things tell us something of who God is, but do they reveal the Triune God as he is in himself?

There is also special revelation: the written Word and the Incarnate Word. The incarnation of the second person of the Trinity tells us that the written Word was not the final revelation. So, what of the Incarnate Word? Jesus, the last and best revelation of the Father, is a prime candidate. But there is an issue: Can the incarnate Son be the image of the Logos? This seems unlikely.

Some offer the church as the image of the Triune God. Can something that is temporal and subordinate image God as he is in himself? This also seems unlikely.

Our understanding of church is grounded in a proper understanding of the economic Trinity and the missio Dei. The economic Trinity is the image of the immanent Trinity and this image is most clearly seen as the Son and Spirit work in the missio Dei. Similarly, the new humanity is being conformed to the image of the Son and this conformity to the image is most clearly seen as the new humanity partners with God in the missio Dei.

The Economic Trinity as the image of the Immanent Trinity

The economic Trinity images the immanent Trinity (Sanders 2005: 172). Warfield and Warfield agree when they write that the incarnation of the Son and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit are the proof of the Trinity (Warfield and Warfield 1929: 146). In his book, It Takes a Church to Raise a Christian, Bolsinger also points in this direction when he says that the mutual participation of the three Trinitarian persons in the work of salvation reveals the unity and communal nature of the Trinity (Bolsinger 2004: 62-63). Finally, Rahner himself says that the economic Trinity is known through our experience of salvation history and is most clearly understood in the context of Christology and the doctrine of grace (Rahner 1974: 82). The economic Trinity, not the church and not Christ, is the image of the immanent Trinity.

Jesus as the Image of the Father

In his gospel, John presents Jesus’ imaging of the Father as declaring the Father’s glory (Grenz 2001: 207). A short theology of “glory” in John’s Gospel provides ample evidence for Jesus as the image of the Father. Jesus images the glory of his Father as an only Son (1:14). This is a glory that comes from God (5:41-44), the One who sent Jesus (7:18). The Father himself glorifies the Son (8:54) and the Son lives to glorify the Father (8:49-50).

During his earthly, Jesus manifested the Father’s glory through signs. After the first such sign, turning water into wine at the wedding of Cana, his disciples responded to the display of glory by believing him (2:11). The resurrection of Lazarus (11:4, 38-44), also declared God’s glory and resulted in belief (11:45). The death of Jesus was by far the most powerful manifestation of the glory of the Father (12:23; 12:27-28; 13:31, 32; 17:1).

As powerful as the signs were, Jesus’ glory would only be complete after the resurrection. (7:39; 12:16). At that time, the Son would be glorified in the works of the disciples (17:10). In fact, the Son's glory with Father would be shared with disciples after the resurrection (17:22).

As Jesus works to glorify the Father, so the disciples will work to glorify. The glory Jesus manifested during his earthly ministry and beyond was not for himself, but for the Father. The Father was glorified in the works of the Son (14:13; 17:4, 5) and those who follow Jesus share the honor (15:8). After the resurrection and ascension, Jesus sent the Spirit who glorifies the Son (16:14).

In the work of salvation, the Son declares (or brings glory to) the Father and the Spirit declares (or brings glory to) the Son. Thus, the Father acts in the salvation work of the Son and Spirit. Therefore, the economic Trinity is active in salvation history, imaging the immanent Trinity.

Two additional passages also teach that Jesus is the image of the Father. The author of Hebrews begins his letter by declaring that the Father has revealed himself most clearly in the Son.

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs (Hebrews 1:1-4).

This clear revelation of the Father is placed squarely in the Son’s work of Salvation by the phrase “after making purification for sins.” In Colossians, Paul says that Jesus is the image of the invisible God, Creator, head of the church, and the reconciler of all things (Colossians 1:15-20).

The Church as Conforming to the Image of the Son

Biblical evidence (and, indeed, mere observation) tells us that the image in humanity-in-Adam has been corrupted by sin. Since the choice to sin in Genesis 3, all humanity exists in a state of corruption (Psalm 14; 53). Left on its own in this corrupt state, humanity further corrupts itself by serving its corrupt desires (Galatians 6:8; Ephesians 4:22; 2 Peter 1:4). Law and instruction are not able to solve the problem (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16). Humanity needed a new humanity, and what humanity needed, the Son’s work of salvation provides.

The New Humanity-In-Christ

The church is the new humanity-in-Christ. The New Testament teaches that Jesus creates one new humanity in himself (Freedman 1992: 6: 750). He has created the one new humanity out of Jew and Gentile (Ephesians 2:14-16; Colossians 1:21-22). In fact, in this new humanity, all divisions are removed (Galatians 3:28). Those who follow Jesus cooperate by putting off the old humanity and putting on the new humanity, which has been created in the image of God (Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-11). The church partners with the Spirit to bring this new humanity to maturity in Christ (Ephesians 4:13-16).

Conforming to the Image of the Son

The church images the Son who is the image of the Father. The incarnate, glorified Son of God has created and will complete a new humanity that perfectly bears the image of God. Therefore, conformity to Christ, not affection, is the basis of ecclesial unity (Smail 2006: 289). True humanity images God by reflecting the inter-relationality (Smail 2006: 153) and works of the Triune persons (Smail 2006: 157-158). The church is not the image of the Trinity. Rather, the church is being conformed to the Son who is the exact image of the Father within the economic Trinity and the immanent Trinity. What then is the relationship of the church to the Trinity?

Participation in the Missio Dei

The historically-situated, earthly gatherings of the new humanity (local churches) are a part of the missio Dei, and the various missions of the local churches flesh out the church’s identity as the mission of God. Understanding the church as the image of the Trinity and the sender of missionaries, tempts the church to think of itself more highly than it ought to think (Newbigin 1989: 117). Such temptations often end in the church functioning under the impression that it is the sender of missionaries; that it is the bringer of salvation. But the mission is and remains the mission of God. The church is privileged to participate in the missio Dei. The missio Dei precedes and determines the church and missions. The church is sent on mission by God (Bosch 1991: 370).

The economic Trinity is the image of the immanent Trinity in the missio Dei. The church participates in the missio Dei through the work of God. The Father sends the revelation of his love, mercy, and justice. The Son embodies that revelation, veiled in the incarnation. The church participates in the veiled revelation of the Son as God the Spirit works to bring about the eschatological kingdom of God. Spirit’s work takes place in the church (Newbigin 1989: 118-119).
The missions of the local churches, whether local or global, are temporal and temporary instances of the missio Dei. These missions are the working out of who we are in Christ. As Christ glorified his Father, so the Spirit, who works in the church, glorifies Christ.

Conclusion

Fred Sanders makes a compelling case for an eikonic interpretation of Rahner’s Rule. Understanding the economic Trinity as the image of the immanent Trinity returns the focus of ecclesiology to the person of Christ and the work of the missio Dei. As the new humanity, being conformed to the image of the Son, the church is composed of historically and geographically located instances of the missio Dei. As such, our understanding of church changes from the church being the image of God and the purveyor of salvation, to being the proclamation and embodiment of the missio Dei. The structure and functions of the local church can then be shaped to live out that identity in the context a particular faith community in a particular location at a particular time. The local church is given a theological framework that better allows for flex and contextualization, and God is better served.

Bibliography

Bolsinger, Tod E. 2004. It takes a church to raise a christian: How the community of god transforms lives. Grand Rapids: Brazos.
Bosch, David Jacobus. 1991. Transforming mission: Paradigm shifts in theology of mission. American society of missiology series; no. 16. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books.
Freedman, David Noel. 1992. The anchor bible dictionary. New York: Doubleday.
Grenz, Stanley J. 2001. The social god and the relational self: A trinitarian theology of the imago dei. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press.
________. 2005. The named god and the question of being: A trinitarian theo-ontology. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press.
Hoekema, Anthony A. 1986. Created in god's image. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.
Newbigin, Lesslie. 1989. The gospel in a pluralist society. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans;.
Rahner, Karl. 1974. The trinity. New York: Seabury Press.
Sanders, Fred. 2005. The image of the immanent trinity: Rahner's rule and the theological interpretation of scripture. Issues in systematic theology ; v. 12. New York: Peter Lang.
Smail, Thomas Allan. 2006. Like father, like son: The trinity imaged in our humanity. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co.
Volf, Miroslav. 1998. After our likeness: The church as the image of the trinity. Sacra doctrina. Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans.
Warfield, Benjamin Breckinridge and Ethelbert Dudley Warfield. 1929. Biblical doctrines. New York [etc]: Oxford university press.

THE OFFICE OF PASTOR AND OTHER NT MYTHS--beginning questions

2008-03-28T16:22:00.000-07:00

Despite, or maybe due to, the class I took last fall, many questions remain. I have opinions on each of these questions and I even have biblical answers for some. Others remain uninvestigated or overly tinged by presupposition. So, poked in among the thesis, the Doctrine of the Kingdom, teaching (here, here, and here), and too little sleep, I shall be pondering these and other pesky gender-leadership-ecclesiology topics.

Can a woman be a senior pastor?
For that matter, NT-speaking, can anyone (except you-know-who) be the Senior Pastor?
Does the "office" of Pastor even exist?
Can a woman be an elder?
Can a single man with no children be an elder?
Are elders pastors or something else or what?
Can a woman be a deacon?
What are deacons and how are they different from elders (assuming they are different)?

Each of these questions stirs opinions, and often much heat. Opinions are welcome. Heat is not. If you comment, be on topic, be fair, and don't preach (if you want to preach, post on your own blog and leave a link).

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology hermeneutics

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

How should evangelicals “do” theology?

2008-02-12T08:43:00.000-08:00

How should evangelicals “do” theology? » Theological Method » Theology » Christus Victor Ministries » Greg Boyd: "I thus hold that Christian theology needs a foundation by which its truth claims can be anchored and assessed. Unlike the traditional evangelical model of Carl Henry, I do not see this foundation as a body of revealed information. I rather see it the historical witness to Jesus Christ as the definitive revelation of God. All theology is to be centered on Christ and epistemically anchored in historical considerations that ground the claim that he was, and is, the revelation of God to humanity."

Dipping my toe in the pool...

But is not the Scripture "revealed information"? To say it is "information" does not take away from it's function as witness nor its direct relationship with Jesus Christ. In John 5:39-47, Jesus says that the entire Scripture speaks of him:

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. I do not receive glory from people. But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?"

There appears to be no dichotomy between the so-called "revealed information" and the witness to Jesus. Mind you, I do see the postfoundationalist point--though I do not agree with it. But it seems to me that in replacing the revealed information with historical witness, Boyd is merely replacing one foundation with another and giving the new "foundation" another name.

Yes, the foundation is Jesus (or rather, the Triune God), but Scripture makes no clear division between the authority of God himself and the authority of his Word.

Am I missing something?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology hermeneutics

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

TRANSITIONING TO POST ThM THINKING

2008-02-12T08:14:00.000-08:00

I am in the last term of my ThM (given I pass all the requirements...not that I'm unsure; I'm just being wise), the first draft of the thesis on an EC Ecclesiology has been turned into the reader (and, yes, waiting is no fun), and I'm beginning to look ahead to a PhD in Educational Studies (again, given I get in the program...same caveat as above). While I love ecclesiology, it is time to ride the monkey bars and see how other topics fit into the dance.

To that end, Who in the World Are We? will be changing its focus. Likely topics include theological method, hermeneutics, and teaching-learning methodologies.

To that end, the subtitle has been changed (in case you've not noticed, there's a subtitle):

As we ride on the trajectory from creation to consummation, how do knowledge, experience, and passion prepare us for eternity in the Triune God?

I'll post a running bibliography and ponderings when time and brain permit.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): theology hermeneutics "teaching method" "christian education"

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

An Emerging Church Ecclesiology

2008-02-01T09:53:00.000-08:00

Vineyard Church, UK
Moot Community, UK
Church of the Exiles, Saskatchewan, Canada (link non-functioning as of 11/21/08)
Grace London, UK
Church of the Apostles, Seattle
Solomon’s Porch, Minneapolis
Vintage Faith Church, Santa Cruz

A tentative and partial ecclesiology is below. My ecclesiological vantage point is on Laura's Writings.
=======================

The content of the faith. The church knows the story primarily through submission and obedience, which are also described as “following God in the way of Jesus.” The story is variously understood. Some see is rather generally as God’s truth while others see it more narrowly as the Word revealed in Scripture. All hold that Scripture has some level of authority, whether as the very Word of God or as a standard by which we live corporate life. Most add experience and tradition as truth sources; the perceived authority of these sources varies. The story is engaged and appropriated through a variety of means. For some, in-depth study of Scripture is the primary means. For others, participatory encounter through worship experiences and dialogue are the primary means. Most use a combination. Two responses are most common among ECs. First, ECs intend to be safe places for spiritual investigation. Second, ECs intend to call members to faithful and obedient life together in the world.

The nature of the church. The church is church by virtue of its connection with Jesus. This connection is the source and intended end of the church’s communal nature. As a people, church has an essential communal nature founded in the communal nature of the Triune God and the communal nature of humanity created in the image of God. ECs place high value on community, seeing members as one people, not only within local churches, but also among churches across time, culture, and tradition. This high value has great influence on EC practice and structure. Most practice communal spiritual formation, especially through alternative worship and biblical/theological conversation. Most also call for communal obedience, placing a priority on plurality in ministry, service, mission, and life.

The purpose of the church. The church proclaims Jesus through actions and words. Proclamation is essential to church identity; it is not an additional ministry. The content of the proclamation is the person of Jesus and, for most, the Kingdom of God. Many in the EC proclaim Jesus by means of holistic, communal life; they often prioritize orthopraxy over orthodoxy. This lived proclamation denies any sacred-secular dichotomy, insisting that Jesus is Lord of all. Mundane activities, like table fellowship, conversation, and artistic expression, become sacred. This translates into (and flows from) a view that members are missionaries and that church is mission.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology emerging church emergent church ecclesiology

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A TENTATIVE IDENTIFICATION OF EC

2008-01-24T16:40:00.000-08:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

ECs are characterized by bottom up change in theory and practice for the purpose of incarnational mission.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology emerging church

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

CUTTING DOWN THE RESEARCH POOL

2008-01-16T20:45:00.000-08:00

I've come to a difficult point in my writing. The description section has already expanded the paper to 142 pages (the limit is 150). It seems two churches have to be cut.

First on the block is Bangsar Lutheran Church. I'm having some difficulty finding sufficient number of voices writing on ecclesiology. So, despite the fact that this will only give me five more pages, it will decrease my stress significantly. The downside is that losing Bangsar means losing a Malaysian church.

Second on the block is Mars Hill Church. As will Bangsar, I have found it difficult to find a sufficient number of voices writing about ecclesiology. The downside here is that I will be losing a very conservative emerging church. (I realize MHC's emerging status is disputed; see the comments on Defining the Emerging Church for my reasoning.) I am sad to see it go.

In addition, I'll need to do some radical edits. I realize that this is an opportunity to tighten the paper. This does not make the process any more comfortable.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

HUNTING FOR TAXONOMIES

2008-01-15T14:32:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: TSK added 1/25
UPDATE: Links to journal and book citations added 4/19/09

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

I've gathered buckets of definitions from various sources (more on that later), but I'm in the market for EC taxonomies. Here's what I've collected so far:

C. Wess Daniels

Deconstructionist Model
Pre-modern/Augustinian Model
Emerging Peace Church Model (Or Open Anabaptism)
Foundationalist Model

Scot McKnight

Prophetic (or at least provocative)
Postmodern
Praxis-oriented
Post-evangelical
Political

Darrin Patrick

Emerging Conversational
Emerging Attractional
Emerging Incarnational

Ed Stetzer

Relevants
Reconstructionists
Revisionists

Mark Driscoll (which looks vaguely familiar...)

Reconstructionists
Relevants
Revisionists

Andrew Jones (Tall Skinny Kiwi) (added 1/25/2008)

Big like a Miracle-Gro Garden
Healthy like a Greenhouse Garden
Pure like an organic garden
Free like a wildflower garden
Whole like an English country garden

This post is cited in Evangelicals Engaging Emergent, By Adam Greenway, Thom S. Rainer, "The Emergent/Emerging Church," by Ed Stetzer, footnote #56, page 72.
and
"The Emergent/Emerging Church: a missiological perspective" (pdf), by Ed Stetzer, in The Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry, Fall 2008, Vol. 5, No. 2, footnote 56, page 82.

Am I missing any?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

DEFINING THE EMERGING CHURCH

2008-01-07T08:29:00.000-08:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

The first chapter of my thesis is, "Defining the Emerging Church." Here is a Venn Diagram I've developed upon which I might hang some thoughts.

Comments? Corrections? Adjustments?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

IS EC FOCUS TOO NARROW?

2007-11-19T10:27:00.000-08:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

A History of Research is one chapter currently under construction. I have decided to gather and analyze a collection of EC definitions in an attempt to distill common themes and emphases. A few tentative commonalities have risen to the surface already:

missional contextualization/indigenous expression
relationship/community
postmodernism

The first two, I think, are good and necessary features of church. The third, postmodernism, while applicable at present, may unnecessarily limit EC. It is, after all, quite likely that postmodernism, like all eras, will fade from view. Of course, some echoes will remain and the various cultures touched by postmodernism will be forever changed. But I do wonder if the EC has given itself an as yet unknown "sell by" date. This is unfortunate, for the first two themes are important and a much needed corrective to an all too often "if we build it they will come," individualistic church culture. EC's vision is too important to limit to postmodern cultures; therefore, those who reject this limitation ought to be encouraged in their development.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

INITIAL LIST OF CHURCHES

2007-11-12T17:33:00.000-08:00

Vineyard Church, UK
Moot Community, UK
Opawa Baptist Church, Christ’s Church, New Zealand
Church of the Exiles, Saskatchewan, Canada
Grace London, UK
Church of the Apostles, Seattle
Solomon’s Porch, Minneapolis
Vintage Faith Church, Santa Cruz

Removed due to space and time considerations:
Bangsar Lutheran Church, Malaysia
Mars Hill Church, Seattle

Draft Criteria

Church website with sufficient description for analysis
Evidence of EC connection (links, logos, etc) of church and/or leader(s)
Pastoral leaders who are published voices (via blogs, articles, books, etc) in the emerging conversation

Some of these churches do not claim to be emerging, yet one or more of their pastoral leaders have added their voice to the emerging conversation. My intention is to understand these churches in connection with their pastoral voices, and vice versa and to develop as broad a picture as possible of the emerging church. Such a project necessarily involves those who exist at the fringes and may have differing opinions among themselves regard their EC status. Every effort will be made to understand each church and each voice on its own terms before attempting to articulate any commonalities.

Clarifying questions, comments, and suggestions are, as always, quite welcome. In addition, if you participate in any of the above churches, I'd love to read your stories, insights, etc.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

MATCHING METHODOLOGY AND SUBJECT

2007-11-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

You know the sort of thinking you do when you're waking up, when the deep ponderings of sleep-thought bubble to the surface, grasping for expression? This happened this morning.

I've been struggling with the research plan. So far, the various plans have been rather like an ill-fitting shoe: you can walk in it and arrive at the destination, but the process is anything but comfortable and you know it simply should not be like this.

My plan has gone from online survey, to primary voices in EC, to voices and their churches...and none of these fit. This morning a clear DUH! rose to the surface: I'm researching the theology of the church, so why am I focusing on individuals? Of course, there are important, influential voices that need to be heard, but these voices do not stand alone. They are members of churches. So, I'm starting with churches. The wheel is officially reinvented...

NOTE: Church suggestions welcome. (I'll post a list of the ones I'm considering in a week or so.)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

DEPTH OR BREADTH

2007-10-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

I've hit a bit of a speed bump this week. Having completed the research for the rubric and having moved on to formulation of the rubric and research of EC ecclesiology, I am held up by the question of breadth and depth. Here are some issues:

I need sufficient breadth to insure the broadest possible articulation.
I need sufficient depth to go beyond surface issues.
I only have 150 pages and a few months to research and write.
I cannot do both equally.
Therefore, I am leaning toward deeper research on an international selection of ECs whose pastors seem to have broad influence.

Thoughts?

Recommendations?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

ONE REASON THEOLOGY MATTERS

2007-10-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

The Ongoing Adventures of ASBO Jesus posts pointy graphics on a regular (as in more than daily) basis. This one caught my ecclesiologically tuned eye.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

DISCOVERING COMMONALITY

2007-10-13T20:35:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

One of the difficulties faced is creating an ecclesiological rubric that can receive broad acceptance. Positively, there is broad acceptance of Scripture as at least theologically informative. This being the case, a clear a modest Scriptural basis should broaden acceptance. Negatively, there are vastly different definitions of the four marks of the church, especially "catholic" and "apostolic."

Coming from a decidedly conservative Protestant position and a non-creedal tradition (Baptist), it is likely that I do not understand the related issues. I cannot--and frankly should not--please everyone (for, if we disagree, some or all of us are wrong). The most I can do is be as biblically sound as I can and let the chips fall where they may.

Question: How might one find the ecclesiological commonality without sinking to the lowest common denominator?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--transitioning from rubric to articulation

2007-10-10T11:56:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

I have officially arrived at a transition point: inputs for the rubric are done (via Clowney, Barth, Berkhof, Brunner, Berkouwer, and Hammett) and I move on to processing the ideas and producing the actual rubric.

The next input phase involves EC practitioners and thinkers, accessed via books, articles, blog posts, and a survey (TBA, pending PHRRC approval). Here I move to a definite sack and pillage methodology, gleaning from the vast supply a distillation of EC answers to two questions (What is church? and What is its purpose?).

Funny, as much as I've read, I'm not sure what I'll find in this phase. It is possible that the variety in perception will require a change from singular (ecclesiology) to plural (ecclesiologies). Not sure what I'll do with that. But then, that is the nature of discovery: you can only find what is there.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--then, now, and when

2007-10-05T16:10:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Reflecting on Emil Brunner's discussion of "apostolica" in Dogmatics Vol. III

When we look at church, we see form--or forms. Brunner insists that form is not an essential aspect of church and that a church is not apostolic if it concretizes its forms (social or dogmatic) rather than critiquing them according to the apostolic witness. Forms of church and dogma are subject to adjustment and correction. Three factors must be considered in the process: the "then" of church, its essence as the Ekklesia witnessed by the Apostles; the "now" of present culture and history; and the "when" of the eschatological future.

Are these three (especially the first and the last) clear enough for the several traditions to agree upon?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--unam apostolicam ecclesiam

2007-10-04T12:59:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Apostolicity is a subject of much disagreement. Some traditions hold to a specific form of apostolic succession. Barth refutes this as external, insufficient, and false.

For Barth, apostolic means the community listens to and is subject to the Scriptures. Through the Word, the Holy Spirit works and brings the Church into alignment with the work and will of God.

As such, apostolicity is the concrete measure of the other three marks. We cannot know whether a specific church is one, holy, and catholic outside of its following or not following the Scripture.

Here is his summary from page 712 of IV.62 (peruse an excerpt here)

Una describes its singularity. Sancta describes the particularity which underlies this singularity. Catholica describes the essence in which it manifests and maintains itself in this particularity and singularity. And finally, apostolica does not say anything new, in relation to these three definitions, but describes with remarkable precision the concrete spiritual criterion which enables us to answer the question whether and to what extent in this or that case we have or have not to do with the one holy catholic Church.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--unam catholicam ecclesiam

2007-10-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Continuing with Barth…

The catholicity of the church, by which is meant that which is general and comprehensive, the essence of which true church is recognized as true, is found only in the union of the church with her Head, Jesus Christ. Any church having a different essence—as in its ecclesiastical structure or doctrinal commitments—is not the true church. Catholicity, therefore, is not a matter of human wisdom, but is a matter of trust and is known by revelation. It is found in the real, essential connection between the body of Christ—the church—and the Head—Jesus.

The first three marks are given by revelation and understood by faith. This puts them beyond human reach and places them squarely in the purview of the Holy Spirit. The question is, how can we know whether a specific congregation bears the marks? Barth answers this question with apostolicity…but more on that later.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--credo sanctam ecclesiam

2007-10-01T08:09:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Continuing Barth's discussion of the four marks:

When I look at myself with earthly eyes, I do not see a holy person. When I look at the church with earthly eyes, I do not see a holy church. I am filled (to a lesser or greater degree) with a mixture of worship and doubt. The church is filled (to a lesser or greater degree) with a mixture of worship and doubt. This is evident to earthly eyes. Yet, something else is evident to the eyes of trust. Hidden within the earthly/visible church (of which I, as a follower of Jesus Christ am necessarily a member) is the holy, indestructible body of Christ. This is a matter of revelation and is seen and known only by trusting the Spirit.

Each of us is holy only in Jesus. Only Jesus determines our relationship to him. All we can do is trust. This same trust must be exercised as we relate with those who profess trust in Christ. It is only when we accept one another's profession that we can confront one another's practice and belief.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--credo unam ecclesiam

2007-09-28T15:00:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Unity (and too often uniformity) and division seem to be constants in the church. At the very moment when the church is striving for ecumenism, denominations are splitting. Barth shows us (in Church Dogmatics) that a unity based on external conformity or agreement is a false unity. True unity is only gained by a radical and intentional trust in the One Head, Jesus Christ. Barth also shows us that in its visible/earthly for, the one church will have historical, cultural, national, etc. differences. Unity is not gained by the removal of such differences--or even by forced doctrinal conformity--but by relationship in and participation in the One Head. Such unity--and confession of disunity--is the responsibility of each local gathering.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--criteria for holiness and catholicity

2007-09-26T13:31:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.
(continuing with Clowney)

In his chapter on holiness and catholicity, Clowney brings us back to the Scriptures and past traditional doctrine. Drawing on Paul’s epistolary salutations, he discerns two movements in holiness. In the initial movement, those who trust Christ are given Christ’s righteousness and are made holy. In the continuing movement, those who trust Christ are commanded to live accordingly and be holy. The church (the gathered holy ones) is holy in both movements.

In his discussion of catholicity, Clowney goes against merely inclusivist notions and grounds his definition in the Church’s connection to Christ. The church is composed of all those who are in Christ. While this is seemingly inclusive, Clowney goes on to note that the church is composed only of those who are in Christ. This is decidedly exclusive and goes against such documents as Vatican II.

The question is, by what visible/knowable criteria are holiness and catholicity discerned?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--having missions vs doing missions

2007-09-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

The first work pillaged for the rubric is The Church by Edmund P. Clowney.

In the midst of Clowney’s discussion of apostolicity and holiness as marks of the church, he makes the point that the church has the apostolic mission; it does not exist in this mission. By this, he contrasts partnership and commission with the liberal (his designation) notion that the church is composed of those who recognize their salvation (in other words, every one is saved, but not everyone knows it). I fully agree with his contrast and his conclusion—we have a mission. But it did raise a question concerning the missional church: How does being mission compare with existing in mission? I also note that none of these speaks of the church doing missions. This is an important distinction. This distinction is an important critique of the historic (evangelical) church, which tends to concentrate on doing missions.

So, might an important distinction be between having/being mission and doing missions?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--pondering the plan

2007-09-22T22:13:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Today I pondered the plan. Somehow, the gathered bits must coalesce into an articulation that can pass through an evaluative rubric and result in biblically robust and culturally nimble ecclesiologies. Three types of inputs are crucial: practitioners, thinkers, and participants. The challenge is allowing myself sufficient time and imagination for these various beliefs and descriptions to self organize and reveal the inherent themes and criteria by which one can recognize emerging as emerging. Another challenge is to create a rubric that is sufficiently grounded and yet allows for creative, indigenous expression of truth to pass through unscathed.

Next week, I begin the rubric in earnest.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--searching out the rubric

2007-09-19T12:17:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

Among the tasks I have set before myself in this thesis is the creation/discovery of a rubric by which one might evaluate various ecclesiologies. The rubric must avoid extreme generality and extreme specificity. It must avoid an extreme specificity that rejects a true ecclesiology because of variances in non-essentials. Likewise, it must avoid an extreme generality that accepts a false theology despite variances in essentials. So, the task before me—and it is rather like that famous proverbial meal of elephant—is to discover an essential ecclesiology. I have set the New Testament images of the church and the four marks of the Nicene Creed as my search area. And so it begins.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THOUGHT BUBBLE--ECM's challenge

2007-09-17T10:20:00.000-07:00

As the researching and writing of my ThM thesis continues, I will be posting some "thought bubbles" for the purpose of critique and clarification. Questions, comments, and corrections are welcome.

To date I've "plundered" a nearly 3-foot stack of books and articles by and about the emerging church and/or ecclesiology. Though the results of my plundering remain a rather disorganized scattering in the memory of my laptop, I shall hazard my first speculated conclusion:

The ECM is contributing a crucial critique and challenge, and the historic church ought to listen: Each local congregation is a gathering of local missionaries, committed to and equipped for disciple-making in the local and global communities.

Too many historic churches have forgotten, neglected, or refused to obey Jesus' command to go make disciples. Too many have become focused on drawing in members or on maintaining internally focused programs. Of course, this is not true of all historic churches, but it is true of far too many. ECM's call for a missional ecclesiology must be heard and answered.

The danger within the ECM is that too many in the movement may become enamored by a culture of openness and will exchange the biblical warrant for a clear communication of the gospel for a pragmatic warrant for cultural compromise. Therefore, the ECM must hear and answer its own critique and challenge.

The command of Jesus requires it.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE IDENTITY AND FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

2007-06-08T09:47:00.000-07:00

Excerpt from “The Identity and Function of the Church in Lesslie Newbigin’s Missionary Ecclesiology,” my paper on Newbigin's ecclesiology.

One might think of ecclesiology as an identity-function grid upon which specific expressions of church are practiced. The identity axis describes the unchanging essence of the church’s being. The function axis describes the overarching purpose of her existence. The essence of identity and function remain throughout time and across culture.

The ground of the church’s identity is the sovereign will of the triune God. Everything the church is flows from God’s decision to glorify himself by creating, redeeming, and glorifying a people for himself. Our very life is from him. Humanity receives its identity from the triune God. The church—the new humanity in Jesus—receives her identity from the triune God. The decision of God is therefore the ground upon which the church’s identity proceeds.

The telos of the church’s identity is Jesus Christ, the One who has ultimate authority. Ultimate authority is defined as authority that is trusted, rather than proved. Every belief system trusts an ultimate authority beyond which no proof is needed. Christians trust Jesus as the ultimate authority. Since Jesus is the ultimate authority, the only answer to the question of authority is the story of the work of the triune God in Jesus, told in the Scriptures and proclaimed through the ages.

The church’s function is grounded in her participation in the missio Dei, proclaiming the kingdom of the Father, embodying the presence of the Son, and following the sovereign grace of the Spirit. Her work in time and eternity, in witness and worship, flows from this participation.

The telos of the church’s function is a holistic praxis-theology determined by the ultimate authority of Jesus. Praxis-theology does justice to the nature of God and involves humans as whole persons in community and in history. In the biblical view, the human person is a single reality, consisting of soul and body; humans exist in the real world as real, whole persons. The goal is praxis-theology because humans exist as material-immaterial persons in community. The life of the body and the life of the mind are one. Humanity is whole at the individual and corporate levels. The life of the church ought to reflect this God-given wholeness.

BIBLIOGRAPHY (for the whole paper)

Goheen, Michael W. ""As the Father Has Sent Me, I Am Sending You": J. E. Lesslie Newbigin's Missionary Ecclesiology." Doctoral Dissertation, Universiteit Utrecht, 2000.

Newbigin, Lesslie. The Household of God; Lectures on the Nature of the Church. London,: SCM Press, 1953.

________. Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1986.

________. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans, 1989.

________. The Open Secret: An Introduction to the Theology of Mission. Rev. ed. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans, 1995.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 8

2007-05-24T08:24:00.000-07:00

Spring 2007 has been a semester of Newbigin. I have read The Open Secret, Foolishness to the Greeks, and The Gospel in a Pluralist Society. One result of this study is a series of questions I shall be considering as I research emerging church ecclesiology this summer and fall. Please note that these questions are actual questions. Therefore, any insight into an emerging-missional perspective is greatly appreciated. The goal here is conversation and discovery.

Does the emerging church clearly declare the Jesus as the ultimate authority?
Does the emerging church call for radical commitment?
Does the emerging church strive to maintain the tension between the already and the not yet?
Has there been conformity for the sake of relevance? If so, what is the justification? If not, what protections are in place?
Is the emerging church’s self description as “followers of God in the way of Jesus” a sufficient definition of the church?
How does the emerging church explain their intense focus on Jesus in light of the Trinity?
How does the emerging church practice their cultural shaping in the context of divine promise?
How does the emerging church answer the charge that they have a low interest in theology?
Is the emerging church faithful to valid traditions?
Does the emerging church have a verbal and practical witness?
How might the emerging church join in conversation with its detractors so that its theology and practice would more accurately proclaim the kingdom?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 7

2007-05-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society
by Lesslie Newbigin
255 pages
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (December 1989)

ECCLESIOLOGICAL INSIGHTS

The church is...

a community of peace, overflowing reverence for and gratitude to Jesus in the presence of others.
a community of truth, proclaiming the ultimate truth of Jesus with modesty, sobriety, and realism.
a community that lives for the neighborhood, acting as God’s embassy in that specific location.
a community of priestly training, standing before God on behalf of people and before people on behalf of God, all in the context of daily life.
a community of hope, living as the hermeneutic of the gospel: a congregation that truly believes the crucified and risen Messiah is the ultimate authority.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

SOMETHING TO PONDER--perichoresis and vocation

2007-04-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

Someone found my blog looking for "interaction of the perichoresis with vocation in ministry"--intriguing topic (which I may look into later). But, if whoever was looking for it finds anything, it'd be great if you'd post a comment sharing your findings.

reference.com encyclopedia entry on perichoresis
"a term used to express the existence of multiple divine persons in one another" (go to link for more)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology trinity ministry

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 6

2007-04-18T22:53:00.000-07:00

NOTE: this post has been rewritten

Foolishness to the Greeks
Lesslie Newbigin
160 pages
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (April 1986)

Post-enlightenment culture, chapters 1-2

Modern culture has three key features: the public-private dichotomy, the fact-value dichotomy, and the abandonment of teleology. In this culture, it is assumed that one's public and private worlds operate independently. One has little influence on the other. In this culture, facts are public matters whose validity is determined by science. Values are private matters determined by personal choice. How should the church proclaim the gospel in the language of this culture and in a way that radically calls it into question?

The gospel and its missionary encounter with culture, chapters 3-5

The Christian testimony is that Jesus is the ultimate authority. All of life is ordered under him and finds its explanation in him. From the perspective of modern culture, this testimony is foolish, meddlesome, and dangerous. Yet it must be proclaimed. Modern culture--its science and its politics--must be called into question and all persons must be called to submit to the one by whom all things consist.

Implications and applications for missionary encounter, chapter 6

The church is...

an advance community of the kingdom of God to yearn publicly for the consummation of the kingdom.
a witness of the ultimate authority of Jesus to engage in honest conversation with others.
an earthly and temporal outpost of the kingdom to speak a theology that flows from daily life.
one church to witness to the one truth.
one church to engage with one another so that we may more accurately declare the one God.
composed of those who trust Jesus as the ultimate authority to declare him in a culture that rejects the very notion.
a community of praise to broadcast the overflow of our praise as a witness to the nations.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THEOLOGY AND MISSIOLOGY

2007-04-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

Tallskinnykiwi is having a great discussion on the relationship between theology and missiology, asking if mission is the mother of theology. I chimed in a bit over there and won't repeat those comments here.

Honestly, I'm posting this here to add it as thought fodder for my thesis (on emerging church and missional ecclesiology).

I'm thinking theology--what we know about God and God's work, explained in human language--and missiology--"the Spirit-prompted alignment with God's redemptive plan in Christ's work of redemption" (McKnight's comment on TSK Apr 11, 2007 3:01:17 AM)--are perspectives of the same thing rather than two different things.

Could it be that theology moves from cognition to volition and missiology from volition to cognition?

A bit from John's gospel to ponder:

John 5:16-19

And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am working."

This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.

I'm not sure where this is going. It will be exciting to find out.

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): missional ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 5

2007-04-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

Question to Consider from my reading of Newbigin's The Open Secret

If the Trinity is best understood through the narratives of salvation history and if the ecclesia exists only in relation to the Trinity, then what do the Trinity-revealing narratives of salvation history tell us about the identity and function of the ecclesia of God?

Resources for answering the question (to be updated as resources are located):

Fred Sanders on Trinity also here

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 4

2007-03-31T18:21:00.000-07:00

Gleanings from Newbigin's The Open Secret, chapters 9-10

Key Ideas

The church is

the community of those who acknowledge Jesus as the ultimate authority, existing to trust and participate in the Holy Spirit's work, bringing all of humanity into conformity with the Son.
a culturally-located, christologically-defined community existing to proclaim Christ and his Kingdom within and against culture.

Précis of key ideas on the missional identity of the church

The calling of men and women to be converted, to follow Jesus, and to be part of his community is and must always be at the center of mission. (p.121)

Newbigin sees the Church Growth Movement (Donald McGavaran) as raising questions in three areas:

I. The relations of numerical church growth to the message of the kingdom.
II. The meaning of conversion and the relation between discipling and perfecting.
III. The relation of gospel and church to culture. (p.124)

p.124-130

While the book of Acts reveals some interest in numerical growth, the message of the Synoptics, John's gospel, and the epistles is much more concerned with faithfulness and integrity. Indeed, church history shows us that treating growth as the criterion of health too easily leads to the implementation of worldly methods and a reliance on human ability. The missionary is therefore sent not to grow the church, but to raise up a community that acknowledges Jesus as Lord and then to move on.

And how can we defend a form of evangelism that has nothing to say about the big issues of public righteousness and talks only of questions of personal and domestic behavior? (p.135)

Mission, as I have insisted, is not just church extension. It is an action in which the Holy Spirit does new things, brings into being new obedience. But the new gifts are for the whole body and not just for the new members. Mission involves learning as well as teaching, receiving as well as giving. (p.139)

The day-to-day worship and word and witness of the local church has to be developed in relationship to all of these in such a way that it becomes credible to the inhabitants of the local culture as sign, instrument, and foretaste of that one universal reign of God that is the true origin and goal of this and every human culture. It must communicate in the idiom of that culture both the divine good that sustains it and the divine purpose that judges it and summons it to become what it is not yet. (p.150)

The foundation of Christianity is not a set of culturally shaped propositions. The foundation of Christianity is a person in a specific place at a specific time in history. The foundation of Christianity is Jesus of Nazareth. This historical foundation is always interpreted within a culture. Therefore, our particular understandings can only be corrected as we meet with others from other cultures at the cross. It is not our understandings, but Jesus alone who has authority.

...religion is intended to denote all those commitments that, in the intention of their adherents, have an overriding authority over all other commitments and provide the framework within which all experience is grasped and all ideas are judged...[It] has final authority for a believer or a society, both in the sense that it determines one's scale of values and in the sense that it provides the models, the basic patterns through which the believer grasps and organizes his or her experience. (p.160-161)

The truth is that my meeting with a person of another religion is on a much humbler basis. I do not claim to know in advance his or her ultimate destiny. I meet the person simply as a witness, as one who has been laid hold of by Another and placed in a position where I can only point to Jesus as the one who can make sense of the whole human situation that my partner and I share as a fellow human beings. This is the basis of our meeting. (p.174)

p.174-182

In seeking to understand the religion of conversation partners, Christians must come with several understandings. First, Jesus is Lord of all and the light and life of all humanity (John 1:9). Because we love the Light, we will look for it everywhere. Second, there is a dark side, for humanity continues to intentionally cut itself off from God. Third, the way of salvation is not any particular religion, but a particular person: Jesus. Fourth, God has given everything that is good and everything belongs to the Son. Fifth, the church is not the owner of salvation, but a first fruit of the salvation which God intends for the whole of creation. Sixth, Christians enter into dialogue with other religions by setting aside religion and focusing on Jesus.

This purpose [of entering into dialogue with persons of other religions] can only be obedient witness to Jesus Christ. Any other purpose, any goal that subordinates the honor of Jesus Christ to some purpose derived from another source, is impossible for Christians. To accept such another purpose would involve a denial of the total lordship of Jesus Christ. A Christian cannot try to evade the accusation that, for him or her, dialogue is part of obedient witness to Jesus Christ. (p.182)

p.188-189

The church is a steward of the mysteries of the gospel. This gospel is the open secret. "It is open in that it is announced in the gospel that is preached to all the nations; it is a secret in that it is manifest only to the eyes of faith" (p.188).

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 3

2007-03-24T21:55:00.000-07:00

Gleanings from Newbigin's The Open Secret, chapter 8

Key Ideas

The church is

the death-transcending people of God in Jesus by the Spirit to bear before the world a fully embodied praxis-situated theology.

Précis of key ideas on the missional identity of the church

p.95-101
Current culture and the rejection of the colonialist mentality require that the church honestly consider a missiology of liberation. Such a theology holds that theology begins with praxis, not with ideas. Liberation from injustice is the primary focus of this praxis and the exodus from Egypt is the paradigm. Salvation, therefore, pits the exploited against the exploiter and always involves the liberation of the exploited. Gustavo Gutierrez, a liberation theologian, speaks of three types of liberation: political, cultural, and spiritual. These three are part of salvation, but no one is the whole of salvation.

In this view, "religion" concerns a particular aspect of people's lives, namely, that which is private, personal, interior. It concerns the "soul." It looks for a "salvation" that is outside of history. From this point of view the events of political and cultural liberation are only significant insofar as they contribute to or hinder the development of the soul considered as a spiritual monad...

In contrast to this ancient and dominant view, the Old Testament insists on seeing the human person as a single reality in whom body and soul are two aspects of one being. (p.102)

p.103-113
Human experience makes it difficult to accept Old Testament anthropology. Death severs us from the shared experience of history. Therefore, individual experience becomes all too important. Christianity provides a solution by providing a way through death and by making us a continuing people in the Spirit. Therefore, in Christ suffering is not submission to evil, but rather a witness against evil. In the Eucharist, we each acknowledge our sin, our need for grace, and the fact that oppressor and oppressed both stand in need of salvation.

There can be no "academic theology," if that means theology divorced from commitment, faith, and obedience. On this issue the liberation theologians are right. Where I think they are wrong is in the identification of this commitment with acceptance of the Marxist analysis of society. The commitment is not to a cause or to a program: it is to a person. At the heart of mission there must always be the call to be committed to Jesus Christ in his community. (p.120)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 2

2007-03-21T12:12:00.000-07:00

NOTE: theological caveat added at bottom

Gleanings from Newbigin's The Open Secret, chapter 7

Key Ideas

The church is

chosen in Messiah to bear the blessings and good news of the kingdom in the world.
the recipient of the revelation of the story to proclaim the story, its meaning, and its significance in the world.

Précis of key ideas on the missional identity of the church

p.68-77
Throughout the Old Testament we see that God chooses one person or one people to be the bearer of his blessing for the many. The universality and particularity of the good news of the kingdom are understood in the context of this choosing--this election. Understanding election as choosing one for the sake of all does justice to the biblical understanding of human nature as necessarily relational. The good news of the kingdom and the offer of salvation are thus communicated only in relationship. Christ is the chosen one and we have been chosen in him. The fact of election is not grounds for any claim of rights or blessings. Rather, election is a solemn responsibility and the elect are held to a higher standard that are those who have not heard.

The Christian's confession is the confession of a faith regarding the meaning and end of the human story as a whole. This confession compels one to challenge every understanding of the human story that looks to an end other than that which is disclosed in Jesus (p.89).

The Christian confession about the meaning and end of history can make good its claim to truth over against other interpretations of human history only through action in which this confession is embodied in deed--and in suffering. If the Christian confession is true, the Acts of God do not cease with the Acts of the Apostles.

We have now, therefore, to go on to ask: What are the actions by which the believing community will fulfill God's purpose for it as the community chosen, called, and sent with a view to the salvation of the world? (p.90)

[Theological caveat: I have issues with Newbigin's take on election and must consult others for insight. I believe the Scripture does teach a form of individual election and the persistence of the saints.]

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 1

2007-03-16T09:38:00.000-07:00

Gleanings from Newbigin's The Open Secret, chapters 1-6

Key Ideas

The church is

a community with the commitment that Jesus' authority is ultimate and who announces this ultimate authority to the world.
a community existing by the authority of the Father for the purpose of proclaiming the Father's Kingdom to the world and remaining aware in the process.
a community existing by the grace and intention of God in Jesus for the purpose of embodying Jesus' presence--his incarnation and passion--in the world.
a community existing by the power of the Spirit for the purpose of following the Holy Spirit in the way prepared by his prevenient grace.

Précis of key ideas on the missional identity of the church

p.13-18
All understandings of and responses to the human condition are based on commitments. Christianity and Christian mission are based upon the commitment that the authority of Jesus is ultimate. Therefore, when asked, “By what authority?” we respond, “In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” We answer thusly because we believe, because Jesus is the supreme authority, and because we have been commissioned to do so. Therefore, the announcement of the gospel is the answer to the question, “By what authority?”

What does proclamation mean? The reign of God is not a new “movement” in which those interested may enlist. It is not a cause for support, a cause that might succeed or fail according to the amount of support it attracts. It is, to be precise, the reign of God, the fact that God whom Jesus knows as Father is the sovereign ruler of all peoples and all things. The announcement means that this fact is no longer something remote—far up in the heavens or far away in the future. It is an impending reality, in fact, the one great reality that confronts men and women now with the need for decision. (p.34)

p.38-39
The proclamation of the Kingdom of the Father requires us to offer an interpretation of world events, putting into context happenings that seem opposed to God’s Kingdom. The Little Apocalypse in Mark 13 provides insight. The announcement of the Kingdom gives hope for full liberation, and opens the way for false messiahs bringing temporal liberation. Therefore, the evidence of the Kingdom’s breaking in is not peace, but war. Matters are made worse when evil usurps the throne. Then, when things seem at their worst, the final triumph of God comes. Therefore, those to whom the truth has been revealed must remain awake and aware.

Mission, seen from this angle, is faith in action. It is the acting out by proclamation and by endurance, through all the events of history, of the faith that the kingdom of God has drawn near. It is the acting out of the central prayer that Jesus taught his disciples to use: “Father, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” ( p.39)

The church is a movement launched into the life of the world to bear in its own life God’s gift of peace for the life of the world. (p.48)

p.49-55
The embodiment of the presence of the Son is the embodiment of the Kingdom. The church, even in its mixture of faith and doubt, embodies the presence of Jesus and, thus, the Kingdom. The church is not the Kingdom, but is the embodiment of Jesus’ presence. This is possible because what has happened in the incarnation and passion is larger, more complex, and more wonderful than we can grasp. It is possible because the time-bound, geographically located historical events surrounding the incarnation and passion of the One who is sovereign over all must and does have significance for all times, places, and peoples. It is possible because the presence of the Kingdom is revealed, not in a book, but in a faith community bearing in itself the incarnation and passion of the Son. It is possible because the Kingdom of God is both hidden and revealed in a people who bear it, not by any merit of their own, but by the grace and intention of God.

Because I believe in one God the Father, one Lord Jesus Christ, and one Holy Spirit, I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. And I believe that the reign of God is present in the midst of this sinful, weak, and divided community, not through any power or goodness of its own, but because God has called and chosen this company of people to be the bearers of his gift on behalf of all people. (p.54)

p.61-65
Trust in the prevenience of the Spirit requires we recognize that the mission is not ours and that we must follow where the Spirit leads. The Spirit is the guarantee that the Kingdom of God is here and will be complete. The church’s necessary response is to live in and proclaim that hope in the world. Our task is to follow the Spirit.

The church exists to proclaim the Kingdom of the Father, embody the presence of the Son, and follow the prevenience of the Holy Spirit. Our identity as church is defined as this mission.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE COMPLEX CHRIST chapter 4

2007-02-04T21:43:00.000-08:00

In the interlude, Brewin takes a step away form his direct discussions of church as the embodiment of the complex Christ to wonder about the shape and characteristics of an Emergent Church. A key idea in his discussion is illustrated by slime mould. This particular mould is morphed as a direct result of its environment--radically morphed. This causal relationship--mould and environment shaping each other--is, according to Brewin, the condition of the Emergent Church. Just as Christ was incarnated into first century Jewish culture, so each church today incarnates into a particular culture. The church is changed by and changes the culture, and a new thing is constantly happening.

Quotes from The Complex Christ:

p.75
What is important for our purposes is to understand that this change-from-within is triggered by the environment in which the slime mould is existing, and that central to its survival is its ability to read and respond to this environment.

p.87
The truth of the Church needs to become 'open source', with distributed agents able to feed in solutions, rather than it being left to a closed clique of experts.

p.91
...the role of leaders in an emergent system should be to 'change the perceptions of a situation.' This is very different from stating what changes ought to be made and telling everyone what the new deal is. They are not there to announce change, but to resource change; to provide environments whereby change can happen naturally from the bottom up, as described above.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology kester brewin complex christ

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

THE COMPLEX CHRIST chapters 1-3

2007-01-29T08:37:00.000-08:00

According to Brewin, the journey of emergence involves three movements. Advent consists of realizing where we are—exile. Advent remembers the past, but is not tied to it. Rather, the past enables and prepares us for change because it reminds us that there has always been change. Incarnation is “…the embryonic cooperation of divinity and humanity.” Incarnation lives out the complete presence of both divinity and humanity in the present context. Emergence is the self-organization that takes place in the space between anarchy and rigidity. Emergence allows for real growth and health, while both rigidity and anarchy inhibit both growth and health.

Quotes from The Complex Christ:

p.35
But we must do it, we must stop all the programs, stop the meetings, stop the denials, stop the machinations, dismantle the structures, face our fears and disappointments and weep for the absence, weep for the emptiness, weep for the pretence, weep for the fiction. Weep until we can see our barrenness clearly, for only then will we have made room for newness.

p.48
If we are to become wombs of the divine, then what we give birth to will not only take a great deal of careful nurturing, but will also be very specific to the culture and place where it is born.

p.60
…somewhere between these two poles of anarchy and rigidity—a spectrum with death at each end—there exists a place where a system begins to live, to self-organize, to become more that the sum of its parts, to develop a character, a culture, a soul if you will—as if some breath has entered it and commanded it to live.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology kester brewin complex christ

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

FIVE STREAMS OF THE EMERGING CHURCH

2007-01-19T09:19:00.000-08:00

Scot McKnight's article in today's Christianity Today online looks to be worth a read.

After defining the movement using the definitions and characteristics from Bolger/Gibbs Emerging Churches, he goes on to describe five steams: prophetic, postmodern, praxis-oriented, post-evangelical, and political.

more later...

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

EMERGING ECCLESIOLOGY abstract-esque

2006-12-05T10:58:00.000-08:00

AN ARTICULATION AND EVALUATION OF EMERGING ECCLESIOLOGY

A SURVEY OF THE ISSUES

What is the emerging church? Some Definitions

Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger, Emerging Churches

"...emerging churches are missional communities arising from within postmodern culture and consisting of followers of Jesus who are seeking to be faithful in their place and time" (pg. 28).

"Emerging churches are communities that practice the way of Jesus within postmodern culture" (pg. 44).

Mark Scandrette (ReIMAGINE!) quoted in Gibbs/Bolger: "The emerging church is a quest for a more integrated and whole life of faith. There is a bit of theological questioning going on, focusing on kingdom theology, the inner life, friendship/community, justice, earth keeping, inclusivity, and inspirational leadership. In addition, the arts are in a renaissance, as are the classical spiritual disciplines. Overall, it is a quest for holistic spirituality" (pg. 42).

Gibbs and Bolger see three primary practices in the emerging church: "(1) identify with the life of Jesus, (2) transform the secular realm, and (3) live highly communal lives" (pg. 45).

Bob Whitesel, Inside the Organic Church

"An emerging congregation is an appellation attached to churches populated largely by young adults under the age of thirty. Though attendees and especially leaders may be over thirty, an ability to effectively reach out to those under thirty years of age characterizes these congregations" (pg. x).

Whitesel sees four melodies behind the emerging church: (1) the melody of orthodoxy, (2) the melody of authenticity, (3) the melody of engagement, and (4) the melody of missional church growth.

Five Emerging Churches

Church of the Apostles, Seattle, WA (http://apostleschurch.org)

Pastor: Karen Ward
Associations: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, The Episcopal Church
Size: 40-55

Mars Hill Bible Church, Grandville, MI (http://www.mhbcmi.org)

Pastor: Rob Bell (teaching)
Associations: Nondenominational
Size: 10,000

Solomon's Porch, Minneapolis, MN (http://solomonsporch.com/)

Pastor: Doug Pagitt
Associations: Evangelical Covenant Church
Size: 250+

Tribe of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA (http://www.tribela.com/)

Pastor: Rebecca Ver Straten-McSparran
Associations: The National Association of Congregational Churches
Size: 25-55

Vintage Faith Church, Santa Cruz, CA (http://www.vintagechurch.org/)

Pastor: Dan Kimball
Associations: Nondenominational; assisted by Santa Cruz Bible Church
Size:375-450

Practiced Ecclesiology: Some Repeated Themes

Know the Story

The story of which we speak is the story of God, stretching back to the very beginning and forward to the consummation of the Kingdom. We hear the story in Scripture and tradition. We participate in the story by following Jesus. And we tell the story through words and actions. Emerging Churches intend to know the story, telling it and living it as followers of God in the way of Jesus. Three practices revealed this theme:

Commitment to truth and Scripture
Holistic view of knowledge (especially in regard to physicality)
Commitment to tradition

Be the People

We are the people of God. We are peopled through our connection with the Triune God, not by our affinity. Community is essential to our being. Emerging Churches intend to be the people, structuring gatherings and practices to make space for and encourage relationship. Three practices revealed this theme:

Communal decision-making
Communal practices
House Church

Expand the Kingdom

The kingdom was announced by Jesus during his earthly ministry. He called his followers to enter the kingdom. The Kingdom of God has come and has not yet come. Jesus announced its in-breaking, but is will only be consummated in the eschaton. For now, Christians expand the kingdom through regular life together, centered on Jesus, and for the sake of the world. Together we declare the Kingdom until Jesus comes. Emerging churches intend to expand the Kingdom in all of life, living a life that demonstrates and declares the reign of God in Jesus. Three practices revealed this theme:

Contextualization of the message and practices
Commitment to missional identity and practice
Commitment to holding believers responsible for their faith practice

Evaluation Rubric

The remainder of my thesis will evaluate emerging ecclesiology using the following questions:

Does the practiced ecclesiology of the emerging church correspond to their stated theology?
Does their ecclesiology properly interpret their stated biblical underpinnings?
Does their ecclesiology properly interpret their stated theological underpinnings?

Needed Research

Theology of the Kingdom, especially as revealed in the Gospel of Matthew
Relationship between Trinity and the communal nature of the church (Fred Sanders on missio Dei, the Trinity, and the church)
Missiology of Lesslie Newbigin
Emerging theology books due out in 2007: Soul Graffiti: Making a Life in the Way of Jesus, by Mark Scandrette; Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches, by Robert Webber; and An Emergent Manifesto, by Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones
The international emerging-missional church, especially in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand

Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures
by Eddie Gibbs, Ryan K. Bolger
Baker Academic (November 1, 2005)

Inside the Organic Church: Learning from 12 Emerging Congregations
by Bob Whitesel
Abingdon Press (August 2006)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

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Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. http://www.esv.org/

TRINITY AND COMMUNITY

2006-10-31T16:14:00.000-08:00

Is there a relationship between the Trinity as community and church as community? If so, what is the basis of that relationship?

Here's my current thinking in bullet form:

Perichoresis (co-indwelling or interpenetration) is an essential feature of the Triune God (John 15:1-16:4).
The Economic Trinity is the image of the Immanent Trinity (Fred Sanders' take on Rahner's Rule; see here for a bit on economic vs immanent (aka ontological)).
Humanity is created in the image of the Triune God (Genesis 1:26-27).
Jesus Christ is the image of God (Colossians 1:14-16)
The eschatological people of God are the new humanity in Christ (Romans 5; Ephesians 4:11-16).
The church is the earthly gathering of the eschatological people of God.
The church reflects the image of God, therefore the church ought to behave according to its essential communal nature.

The paper is due Nov 8 (yikes!), so I'll have more after that. For now, questions, critiques, and ponderings are quite welcome.

UPDATE: 110106 additional points added; 110206 edits and still more.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology trinity perichoresis

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“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

WHAT I'M WORKING ON

2006-10-25T13:05:00.000-07:00

School is bearing heavy upon me. (Which explains the current lack of posting.) Things should slow down in a week or so and I will post my current ecclesiological ponderings at that time.

I am working on

A portion of my thesis, tabulating and interpreting some empirical research on emerging church ecclesiology drawn from church websites, blogs, books, and articles.
A paper looking at the relationship between the doctrine of the Trinity (especially the notion of perichoresis) and church as community.

I will not be posting the paper in their entirety (they will be much too large and are a part of my thesis), but will post abstracts and outlines (probably in late November/early December). I'll put up some ponderings before then.

[NOTE: links to Theopedia are for informational purposes. I have not necessarily read the articles, so I claim no agreement. Read wisely.]

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

IMPORTANT IDEAS FROM THE CHURCH COMES HOME

2006-10-04T11:24:00.000-07:00

By Robert and Julia Banks
Hendrickson Publishers, 1998
260 pages

On page 32, the authors ask what would happen if members made a commitment to stay connected. This is an important “what if.” Dr. Gary McIntosh offers a guideline for pastors and ministers that might apply here: before you leave a ministry, you must have both a push and a pull. There must be a compelling reason to leave and a compelling call elsewhere. While this is most easily applied to pastors, the priesthood of all believers requires that we apply this to members as well. Members are ministers in a local church. They are not merely observers or recipients of religious goods and services. As such, members ought to consider themselves called to a local church and behave accordingly.
The interpenetration of a vertical relationship with God and a horizontal relationship with fellow believers is a distinctive feature of Christianity (p.33). The participatory format of home churches offers many opportunities to live out this distinction. On the other hand, the main worship gatherings of traditional churches offer little opportunity. The physical structure of our worship centers and the non-participatory design of our services hinder this interpenetration and teaches its opposite. Even if traditional churches do not apply this to the same degree as do home churches, we have much to learn from them.
The room layouts on pages 36 and 37 brought the impact of space design into stark relief. I serve as the college director for my church. In recent months, I have noticed an increase in audience mentality during the weekday gathering. Upon reading this section, I realized we had been using the small group layout. The physical distance between people was hindering participation. After rearranging the space according to the home church layout, participation increased. Of course, other changes were made, but the impact of space design was clear.
The commitment to remain connected (p.32, discussed above) is important but not sufficient. An additional layer of commitment ought to be added: the commitment to be the people of God (p.85). This commitment is both intriguing and frightening. It is intriguing because God created humans to live as a people, reflecting his Trinitarian nature. It is frightening because it means removing our carefully crafted masks. Commitment to be the people is worth the risk, but it is a risk. Church leaders can help by creating safe spaces, by designing relational structures within existing programs, and by equipping members with the knowledge and skills to live as a people.
The commitment to be the people has both internal and external impact. Internally, this commitment fills a deep need inherent to humanity. Those who participate in such a commitment receive very real consolations. Externally, this commitment embodies the kingdom of God before a watching world (p.108). Those who participate in such a commitment are as much the people of God on Monday nights as they are on Sunday mornings. Implementing such a commitment in the traditional church may require a dismantling of some internally focused programs that use a disproportionate amount of limited resources. It may mean freeing up the weekly calendar, moving some gatherings off-campus, and making a commitment to communicate the priority of being church over doing church work.
The authors invest considerable ink to the place of children in the church (p.205ff). Most important in their discussion is the elevation of parents to their rightful place as the spiritual leaders of their children. The church’s responsibility is to equip and support the parents in this task. Involving children in the life of the whole church rather than shuttling them off to children’s church is a large part of the equipping and support. A large traditional church may have difficulty implementing such a change, but it ought to be held as a benchmark.
The way church lives life together declares the kingdom of God to a watching world (p.229-230). Our declaration may be accurate or inaccurate, but it is a declaration nonetheless. Our post-Christian culture requires us to decide to declare accurately God’s kingdom. Emerging churches have decided to do this. Traditional churches must not “leave it to the youngsters.” We must search the Scriptures and risk responding in a way that may challenge some beyond what they can bear. Changes must be made with wisdom, but they must be made. Being who God created us to be is more important than remaining comfortable in our traditions.

A short review of this book will be posted on the book blog when I can get my nose above the flood of homework.

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

EMERGING CHURCH SUB-GROUPS

2006-10-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

I am considering using Pagitt's categories (as referred to in Gibbs/Bolger*, p.42) for my history of research chapter:

Sub-Group 1: Returning to the Reformation (exemplar: Mars Hill Seattle)
Sub-Group 2: Deep systemic change, yet church is central (exemplar: University Baptist Waco)
Sub-Group 3: Church is not necessarily the center of God's intentions (exemplar: Solomon's Porch Minneapolis)

Thoughts?

*Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures
by Eddie Gibbs, Ryan K. Bolger
Baker Academic (November 1, 2005)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

THESIS: HISTORY OF RESEARCH plans

2006-09-19T08:38:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: voices and links added

Summarize and evaluate (per a rubric yet to be designed) the ecclesiology of important emerging voices (list under construction):

Eddie Gibbs
Ryan Bolger
Brian McLaren
Doug Pagitt
Mark Driscoll
Steve Taylor
Darrell Guder
Andrew Jones (blog)
Maggie Dawn (blog)
Karen Ward (blog)
Rachelle Mee Chapman (blog)
Scot McKnight (blog)
Jason Clark (blog)

As I read, I intend to ask, what is the theology behind and beneath the values and practices common to emerging-missional churches?

The type of theology intended is an ontological and teliological ecclesiology. In other words, what is church and for what purpose/end does God intend it? Our understanding of these two facets shapes our structural and practical ecclesiology (whether we know this or not).

Who should be added to the list above?
What other questions should I be asking?

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

WORKING BIBLIOGRAPHY

2006-09-10T20:10:00.000-07:00

092609: additional descriptions added to introductory section
091306: resequenced by pub. date
091106: del.icio.us link added
----------------------

Well, I am at the very beginnings of my Th.M. thesis. This semester I will be writing a history of reasearch, researching/interviewing/blog-surfing a number of emerging church practitioners and theologians and distilling the ecclesiology beneath and behind emerging church belief and practice.

The topic: an articulation and biblical evaluation of the ecclesiology of the emerging-missional church.

This is a very rough draft of the bibliography for the history of research chapter and will be updated as I go along.

thesis links on del.icio.us

Inside the Organic Church: Learning from 12 Emerging Congregations
by Bob Whitesel
Abingdon Press (August 2006)

How (Not) to Speak of God
by Peter Rollins
Paraclete Press (MA) (July 6, 2006)

Breaking the Missional Code: Your Church Can Become a Missionary in Your Community
by Ed Stetzer, David Putman
B&H Publishing Group (May 2006)

Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures
by Eddie Gibbs, Ryan K. Bolger
Baker Academic (November 1, 2005)

Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church: Understanding a Movement and Its Implications
by D. A. Carson
Zondervan (May 1, 2005)

The Out of Bounds Church?: Learning to Create a Community of Faith in a Culture of Change
by Steve Taylor
Zondervan/Youth Specialties (February 1, 2005)

Future Church: Ministry In A Post-seeker Age
by Jim L. Wilson
B&H Publishing Group (September 30, 2004)

The Complex Christ
by Kester Brewin
SPCK (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge) (August 23, 2004)

Mission-Shaped Church
Church House Publishing (January 20, 2004)

Being as Communion
by John D. Zizioulas
Darton,Longman &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp; Todd Ltd; New Ed edition (January 12, 2004)

The Emerging Church
by Dan Kimball
Zondervan (March 1, 2003)

The Church on the Other Side
by Brian McLaren
Zondervan (January 1, 2003)

The Difficult But Indispensable Church
by Norma Cook Everist
Fortress Press 2002

The Missionary Nature of the Church
by Johannes Blauw
Lutterworth Press; New Ed edition (September 2002)

Announcing the Reign of God
by Mortimer Arias
Wipf and Stock Publishers (June 2001)

Houses that Change the World
by Wolfgang Simson
Paternoster Publishing (March 6, 2001)

In Search of Authentic Faith: How Emerging Generations Are Transforming the Church
by Steve Rabey
WaterBrook Press; 1st edition (January 16, 2001)

The Essence of the Church: A Community Created by the Spirit
by Craig Van Gelder
Baker Books; Reprint edition (April 2000)

On Being the Church: Essays on the Christian Community
by Colin E. Gunton (Editor), Daniel W. Hardy (Editor)
T. & T. Clark Publishers, Ltd.; New Ed edition (May 1999)

Confident Witness-Changing World: Rediscovering the Gospel in North America (Gospel and Our Culture Series)
by Craig Van Gelder
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (April 1999)

Sanctorum Communio: A Theological Study of the Sociology of the Church
by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Clifford J. Green, Nancy Lukens
Augsburg Fortress Publishers; New Ed edition (November 1998)

Postmodernity: Christian Identity in a Fragmented Age
by Paul Lakeland
Fortress Press 1997

The New Testament and the People of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God)
by N. T. Wright
Augsburg Fortress Publishers; 1st North American Ed edition (September 1996)

The Open Secret: An Introduction to the Theology of Mission
by Lesslie Newbigin
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Revised edition (February 1995)

The Open Secret: An Introduction to the Theology of Mission
by Lesslie Newbigin
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Revised edition (February 1995)

The Church
by Hans Kung
Hyperion Books (December 1994)

The Church in the Power of the Spirit
by Jurgen Moltmann
Fortress Press 1993

The Church in the Power of the Spirit: A Contribution to Messianic Ecclesiology
by Jurgen Moltmann
Augsburg Fortress Publishers; 1st Frtrss edition (October 1993)

Gods Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church
by Charles Van Engen
Baker Academic (August 1991)

Incarnational Ministry: The Presence of Christ in Church, Society, and Family (Essays in Honor of Ray S. Anderson)
by Christian D. Kettler, Todd H. Speidell
Alba House (July 1990)

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society
by Lesslie Newbigin
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (December 1989)

Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture
by Leslie Newbigin
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (April 1986)

Be My Witnesses: The Church's Mission, Message and Messengers
by Darrell Guder
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (October 1985)

The Church
by Wolfhart Pannenberg, Keith Crim (Translator)
Westminster John Knox Pr (March 1983)

A Community of Character
by Stanley Hauerwas
University of Notre Dame Press (October 1981)

The Company of the Committed
by Elton Trueblood
HarperCollins (paper) (December 1979)

The Incendiary Fellowship
by Elton Trueblood
HarperSanFrancisco (September 1, 1978)

NOTE: This is a rumination ("1. The act of pondering; meditation. 2. The act or process of chewing cud." American Heritage Dictionary) in search of synergy ("1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects.")

Tag(s): ecclesiology

See CC License

“Unless otherwise noted Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.” http://www.esv.org/

Who in the world are we?

Moving to WordPress

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Postponed: Origin of Variation: basic concepts and theological significance.

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Why I do not believe in macro-evolution

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This world is a mess. Why doesn't the Creator intervene?

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Open Letter to the Sanctify! Dreaming Team

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Identity of Church: by divine definition or human decision?

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THOUGHT BUBBLE--transitioning from rubric to articulation

THOUGHT BUBBLE--then, now, and when

THOUGHT BUBBLE--unam apostolicam ecclesiam

THOUGHT BUBBLE--unam catholicam ecclesiam

THOUGHT BUBBLE--credo sanctam ecclesiam

THOUGHT BUBBLE--credo unam ecclesiam

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THOUGHT BUBBLE--having missions vs doing missions

THOUGHT BUBBLE--pondering the plan

THOUGHT BUBBLE--searching out the rubric

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THE IDENTITY AND FUNCTION OF THE CHURCH

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 8

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 7

SOMETHING TO PONDER--perichoresis and vocation

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 6

THEOLOGY AND MISSIOLOGY

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 5

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 4

THE MISSIONAL IDENTITY OF THE CHURCH 3