Book Review: Colors of God

What? A post? The summer has kept me incredibly busy, and when I haven't been busy, I haven't really felt like posting . . . so there. I got a book to review from Viralooze as some motivation to post again. I read through the book pretty quickly, and here is the corresponding post. As an aside, I've been thinking a lot about moving my blog to another location and reformatting it somewhat. It's been kind of a kitchen sink approach now for almost six years, and I think a fresh start is needed. Hopefully I'll have some time here in the next month or two to begin working on a new look and I'll definitely post the updated change here. Thanks to everyone who still checks around here, and here's a few thoughts on The Colors of God: Conversations about Being the Church.

Three authors and fellow leaders of the neXus church in Canada have taken their experiences and conversations regarding their church and put them into a book. The book is written in a conversational style (the reader is told which author is speaking throughout) and the style remains loosely dialogical throughout. I found this format to be a little cheesy and corny at times, but overall, it made for a fast-paced book and kept my attention throughout. The authors seemed like likeable and fun guys to hang out with. The conversations stay lighthearted while addressing serious and controversial matters. So much for the format . . . the content is surely what will catch the reader's attention more than anything.

My first observation is that the book title is a bit of a misnomer. I had envisioned a theological/ecclesiological interface with these "four colors" that never really materialized. The four colors they describe are not really about God as much as they are about the church. I would have expected each of the four colors to be rooted in theology proper, and then applied to ecclesiology. That wasn't the case.

The authors are self-professed "emergent" pastors leading a self-described "emergent" church. The influences of emergent leaders is evident (the first part of the book is entitled "The Stories we Find Ourselves in" - Bryan McLaren would be proud), and one of the authors talks about the influence Doug Paggitt and others have had on him. Clearly most impactful in this book has been the work of Robert Farrar Capon (whom I profess being unfamiliar with), and his work on the parables. He is referred to throughout and quoted often. So, in some regards, this may be looked upon as an example of the rapidly evolving second order or second level of emergent theology - putting the ideas of the leaders into practice.

I could ramble on tit for tat regarding many of the specifics regarding the book, but instead I want to make a couple general points. There were some places I found great insight and appreciated their perspective (in particular, I found the first section on grace to be a good articulation of a challenging concept - I love their point that if we are preaching grace like we should, people should think we are being too liberal with it - see Paul), other places I found myself a bit challenged, and a few I was cautiously skeptical.

If I was grading my experience with the book, I'd give it a B-. I like their four-part division as I think the four areas are worthy of discussion and a helpful way to divide the topic (btw: blue is the Gospel faith - the strongest part, in my opinion), green is health - I really, really liked this approach to ethics, as well - it reflects the way I've approached sexuality when talking with teens (they're emphasis is on research - what is destructive, what is healthy as opposed to letter of the law . . . my problem here is that it places a lot of trust in research . . . remember, homesexuality was at one time listed as a mental disorder . . .), red is inclusive community (here I felt that the authors had to do a little hermeneutical gymnastics to make their point and blew through some strawmen arguments while overpassing more challenging texts), and yellow is contextual engagement (which I thought was helpful to hear them address pastorally, but wasn't done as well as many other books that our out now.)

In general, I think this is a book worth taking a look at for church leaders. They will no doubt challenge you (unless you too think cursing isn't that big of a deal and that sexual sins are less devastating than sins of pride and exclusivity - I challenge the authors who say that the Bible teaches the sins of pride and judgmentalism are more detrimental than sexual sins - you could argue the heart of the Old Testament antithesis began with sexual misgivings (Moab and Ammon came from where?) . . . but they raise some very helpful and insightful conversations - like this one regarding sexuality. I think they help raise questions that can push our thinking forward. I also think that they give a little insight into where the church will be heading into the future as younger leaders with different ethical mores, but strong spirituality lead them to cutting edge churches. This may be a good book for anyone fluent in emergent church conversations who feel themselves agreeing with everyone at every point . . .this book should offer a challenge to your status quo at some point.

Book Review: The Naked Gospel

I received a free copy of Andrew Farley's book, The Naked Gospel, a few weeks ago in the mail from Viral Bloggers and didn't know a whole lot about it. The subtitle is enough to stir intrigue - "the truth you may never hear in church." Sounds in line with a lot of the stuff I've been reading. Even the section titles are interesting enough, "Obsessive-Christianity disorder," "religion is a headache," and "cheating on Jesus" to name a few. I set out with high hopes of the book.

About half way through, I kept waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . two-thirds of the way through I actually went to the Viral Bloggers website to seek out some of my fellow reviewers in hopes of finding something positive to say. What I found there, instead, reinforced the opinion I was forming.

The premise to Farley's book is well-intentioned. He confesses to having been consumed with an unfulfilled religiosity that had basically created a monster. He had become a stereotypical evangelical preacher/evangelist and was serious about it - heartfelt, ambitious, and (mildly successful. However, in the midst of all that - he felt as though he was missing something. For the most part, a beginning exercise that prefaces the gist of many evangelical books gracing the new release shelves as of late. However, in my opinion, Farley falls far short of following through.

In hindsight, I think there is a great deal of similarity between what Farley attempts to do with his book and what David Dark does in his book: The Sacredness of Questioning Everything in attempting to get beyond a rules-based "Uncle Ben" (from Dark) kind of God who is lurching in the dark to zap his people for their sins. Unfortunately Farley isn't nearly as adept in navigating this premise. I don't wish to question Farley's ambition or the the relevance of this "naked gospel" for himself and others who have benefited. I am glad that he has found rescue from the oppressive and guilt-ridden past. However, there are so many glaring weaknesses, for me, I did not find this book enjoyable or helpful much at all. To summarize some of my biggest disappointments:
- I found Farley's Reformed theology to be an obstacle to overcome. I certainly have no problem reading material that stands outside of my own preference or belief, but I found Farley's Reformed take to be trite and lacking in several areas.
- While I applaud Farley's desire to rescue Christians from the guilty pretense of salvific works and moralism, I was disappointed by his exclusively individualistic focus. The communitarian (essential - I would say) aspect of faith is all but absent. Salvation remains the outlook solely of the individual for Farley.
- Farley's perspective of sin was also something I found too narrow. Related to the above point, Farley seems to completely overlook the communal nature of sin. What of the sin inherent in the powers and principalities? What of the addictive powers of sin? I could say more about this shortcoming, but I'll leave it at that.
- The disconnect Farley draws between the old law and new law (old and new covenant) is much too sharp. To relegate Jesus' teaching in the Sermon on the Mount as simply convicting the Jews of the impossibility of keeping the own laws with no real moral implication for Christians today since we've been relieved of the law (I think that is a fair take on Farley's presentation) was seriously lacking for me. His Reformed bias didn't do much for me and his treatment of James as well.
- Beyond the theological and ideological shortcomings I saw in The Naked Gospel, if I would have resonated better with Farley's writing style I could have become more engaged. Instead, I found Farley to be often trite with many shallow and random illustrations that didn't flow well and were often over-explained. I found myself saying, "OK, I get it."

Unfortunately, I couldn't wait to be done with this book and move on to something else. There were times when I felt like I was reading some kind of Reformed version of Joel Olsteen - probably more from his style than from his theology. A few words synopsis: Not what I expected, Good intention with poor follow-through.

The Book of the Shepherd

Last week I received a book in the mail to review for The OOZE. I didn't know anything about the book beforehand, so I read free of predilection. The Book of the Shepherd is actually a short, poignant fairy tale/fable telling of a shepherd whom the reader follows on the journey for a better way.

I found the story to be compelling, though not overwhelmingly complicated - it is, however, a parable. The story is engaging enough to draw the reader in from the beginning, and the story reads quickly enough that I read in one sitting.

I read another reviewer who suggested the story is best suited for an audience of children. I think teenagers may especially find the shepherd's tale inspiring. It is a fable encouraging the reader to challenge the moors dominant in society, to go against the flow, and to, well, seek a better way.

I appreciate the author's and publisher's efforts in cover design, book design, and chapter design to maintain the fable or storybook feel. I did have a strange Oprah Winfrey feel when I was done reading it. I thought, "Oprah Winfrey would really like this book." I'm not saying that's good or bad . . . I guess it just depends on how you feel about Oprah (perhaps I was jaded that way since one of the "Extraordinary Advance Praise" for the book on the back cover came from Meredith Vieira cohost of the Today Show).

Overall, The Shepherd's Tale is a unique story relaying a timeless and oft-told message that is refreshing to hear in a unique way.

Words from Brennan Manning

I have seen Brennan Manning's The Ragamuffin Gospel in bookstores and on bookshelves for years. It is one of those few books that I have seen quoted all over the place - in academic books, among musicians, in devotional works, etc. For whatever reason, I have never had much interest in reading it. I found it at the incredible Goodwill in Lewisburg, TN last year (I've found lots of gems there the past few trips) and it's sat on my shelf since.

Last week, I met with one of the senior citizens who meets in our senior small group on Tuesdays, and we decided that we would study Manning's book. I took up chapter one this morning to prepare some opening thoughts for today's study before everyone has their copies. What a way to begin the morning! I can't believe I have waited so long to delve into this work. It has been a refreshing breath of air to my spirit. I am looking forward to reflecting on it in the coming weeks.


I have been busy working through several books lately and have had some blogging topics come to mind. I had planned to spend some time reflecting on a series of articles in this week's Columbus newspaper, following a priest through his seminary trainging at the local Pontifical College. I just finished reading Mike King's Presence-Centered Youth Ministry that had left an indelible mark on my understanding of youth ministry, and coupled with the articles reflecting on entering the priesthood: giving up a family, sex, ten years of your life to training, I started thinking about how seriously I have taken my role as minister/pastor/priest. King notes how when he is in the presence of a Hindu priest he feels like he is in the presence of a holy man, but in the presence of an evangelical minister he feels like he is in the presence of a car salesmen.

It seems to me The Ragamuffin Gospel is going to be just what I need to re-engage my spiritual fervor and remind me of what undergirds my purpose and my position. I found the ending of the first chapter especially compelling:

"Because salvation is by grace through faith, I believe that among the countless number of people standing inf ront of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hand, I shall see the prostitute from the Kit-Kat Ranch in Carson City, Nevada, who tearfully told me she could find no other employment to support her two-year-old son. I shall see the woman who had an abortion and is haunted by guilt and remorse but did the best she could faced with grueling alternatives; the business-man besieged with debt who sold his integrity in a series of desperate trasnactions; the insecure clergyman addicted to being liked, who never challenged his people from teh pulpit and longed for unconditional love; the sexuall-abused teen molested by his father and now sellign his body on the street, who, as he falls asleep each night after his last 'trick,' whispers the name of the unknown God he learned about in Sunday school; the deathbed convert who for decades had his cake and ate it, broke every law of God and man, wallowed in lust and raped the earth.
"But how?" we ask. Then the voice says, "They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."
They are there. There we are - the multitude who so wanted to be faithful, who at times got defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life's tribulations, but through it all clung to the faith.
My friends, if this is not good news to you,you have never understood the gospel of grace."
p. 32 - 33

That reminds me of something a friend told me last week that is especially convicting for my conservative friends, "If Jesus were here to today, you know the kind of people he's be with? He'd find a gay Latino who was in this country illegally, who was suffering from complications from an abortion she had, and had a rare disease that was only cureable by advances in stem-cell research.

Now . . . I must rush back to my suburban existence . . .

Powers

Haven't posted here in a while . . . May - August tend to be a bit slow on the posting front, I guess that's when I actually get some work done :-) I wanted to provide a short book review of Walter Wink's Unmasking the Powers. It is the second volume of his trilogy on the powers. For a more accessible and shorter treatment of Wink's work he summarizes the trilogy in his more recent The Powers that Be.

Over the past ten years, I've read several books that have made an impact on me and have challenged me. However, most provide gentle prods and slight nudges forward in my thinking. Whereas those books can be likened to the aftershocks of an earthquake, there have been a handful that have proved to be the actual earthquake. Brian McLaren's A New Kind of Christian, Stanely Grenz & John Franke's Beyond Foundationalism, Shane Claiborne's Irresistible Revolution, John Howard Yoder's The Potlics of Jesus . . . these all would fall into that category. Wink is one of those authors who is quoted over and over again in the books I have read to the point that I said to myself, "I need to read this guy!"

I found Unmasking the Powers at Half Price books for six bucks, so I bought it and read it first even though it is actually the second book in the trilogy. Even though the entire book fell apart while I read it, it still proved to be one of those "can't put down" kind of books. The book "unmasks" seven of the powers: the devil, demons, the angels of the churches, the angels of the nations, the gods, the elements of the universe, and the angels of nature. Wink challenges so much of what we think we know about the world around us. He forces us to wrestle with texts that we simply disregard, writing them off as a product of pre-intellectualism and pre-scientific age.

Wink profoundly, and cautiously, deals with issues that are often left to science fiction and esoteric spirituality asking more questions than giving answers and providing fascinating perspective on the difficult topic of "the spiritual realm." In reflecting on my first exposure to Walter Wink, I think there are two things that set him apart from others who spend time in the area of angels and demons.

First of all, Wink resists the temptation most authors cannot of limiting the powers interation to the personal level. One of the better known works among Churches of Christ in this area is Joe Beam's Seeing the Unseen. I haven't actually read the book myself, so I can't make any firsthand impressions, but the rhetoric it has spawned among the people I know who have read it seems largely limited to personal interaction with the spirits/powers. Just about anything you find on the matter on the shelves of a Christian bookstore share this. Wink, while acknowledging the personal dimension of the powers, emphasizes, instead, the powers at work in the world.

Secondly, Wink is academically respected and rooted. So often studies of the devil and angels get lost in fanaticalism and extremism born more out of Hollywood than history and the Bible. Here, Wink excells providing examples throughout church history, again asking more questions bore out of the halls of history than brought from the movies.

Wink provides a vocabulary and structure to discuss the unseen in a way that remains open to new revelations (he leaves open theology to enter the discovery of a new dimension) that is at the same time exciting and humbling.)

I would quickly recommend this book for anyone who is open to discovering new ways of thinking and new possibilities. It promises to stretch even the most open-minded theologian, but patient reflection on this work will provide a whole new door of discovery . . . one that is both exciting and frightening!

Reflections on Peter Rollins Lecture & Newt Gingrich's Book

Peter Rollins

I found out a few weeks ago that Peter Rollins was going to be in Columbus yesterday, so I worked things out to be able and go listen to him. He offered a three hour lecture. The whole experience was a little surreal as I joined a crowd of 80 in a dimly lit old theater listen to a post-modern Christian philosopher from Ireland with beer on-tap. I haven't had a lot of exposure to Rollins, but my interest was piqued by some video clips I ran across online a few weeks back. Trained as a philosopher, Rollins has brought to light one area I feel especially inadequate in study. A few years ago I remember being challenged by John Caputo at a conference about the place of philosophy in our faith. To say that it was lacking in my training would be a huge understatement.

I'm not sure I could adequately reflect on Rollins' lectures here, but would strongly encourage anyone who gets the chance to hear him to do so. His group works on the fringes of Christianity and will stretch any Christian in our country with his thoughts. He suggests that his work (with the quasi-faith community called Ikon) has a prophetic voice on the fringes of orthodox Christianity. No doubt many would question his place within orthodoxy altogether, I do believe that he is providing necessary critique for the current state of the modern church. I am very excited to read his forthcoming The Orthodox Heretic (April) as it is a collection of parables created by Rollins to help communicate. Highly entertaining to listen to, Rollins is well schooled in parables from philosophy, rabbinic traditions, and other places - it will be well worth anyone's time to read from his forthcoming collection.

Essentially, Rollins argued in the first section of his lecture that the modern project of reason succeeded in objectifying God . . . the pinnacle coming with Nietzche's "killing of God." Nietzche, in fact, simply proceeded through the modern project. Rollins made use of a helpful image of God always pushing back at theology resisting the temptation to be objectified. I loved his image of God being so close, and so transcendent that we can't figure him out (as opposed to so far away we can see him, what, I'm sure many of his opponents argue). There's more to be said here, but I'm still processing.

Rediscovering God in America

Secondly I wanted to spend a few minutes dissecting a book given to me by one of our elders (thanks, Curt :-) ). The book, Rediscovering God in America, is a tour through the monuments and important structures in the United States which Newt Gingrich has compiled to "rediscover the historic source of American liberty and to rediscover the founding generation's understanding of what is required to sustain liberty in a free society." p. 131. I appreciate Curt giving me this book and offering it as a challenge to the pacifist perspective I argue.

I ackowledge that this book has forced me to reevaluate my considerations for the relationship between the Christian faith and participation in this nation. I believe that I often over-state the ills of our government in order to make the case that a Christian is not called to participate in government. The United States is a rather enigmatic case for Christians to consider when considering the government. I believe what Gingrich is trying to do is to combat the radical left that wants to rewrite history books taking "God out of the founding of our nation" - I would imagine he would say something like that.

Gingrich states that he does not intend for his book to be theological in nature, but for the theologian, everything is theological. To allow a book like to address state concerns or sociological concerns and NOT theology is to create and/or expand an incredibly harmful compartmentalization that deeply affects the American church. Gingrich's observations should be troubling for Christians on multiple accounts. First of all, the unspoken logic of the book is that because Scripture permeates the national landmarks we were indeed birthed as a religious (Christian) nation. It's amazing to me how many evangeicals rush to the frontlines of our nation's beginnings and uphold the founding fathers as born again Christians. It is well documented that many, if not most, of these forefathers were Deists at best.

With our Scriptures stamped all over the landmarks of this nation, I am disappointed more Christians are not disheartened by the early ways these forefathers did not act like Christians, devistating the Native peoples from their lands (in many ways, I believe the horrors inflicted on the Native Americans are every bit as horrendous as what Hitler did to the Jews - by the grace of God, the Jewish race survived the atrocities, but many Native civilizations were destroyed by this "Christian" nation - but becaue it is closer to home, it is not talked about). We are too quick to separate their behavior from their actions. We are too close to the situation. We want to have the Christian underpinnings of society, but to do so, we have some seedy baggage to deal with. Christ has called us to faithfulness to him, period. Not knowledge of Scriptures. Not claiming a land for him. Not policing the world in his name. We are called to love him and love others. By participating in the state, I am not sure we can do that. I see it in the people I care the most for. They cast a blind eye at blatantly un-Christian practices at the state level excusing it as if Jesus holds the state to a different standard.

This brings me to a second important point. I believe the most mis-guided aspect of our discussions about the state in America centers on the concept of freedom. It is vital that we ackowledge that the Bible is no guaranteer of freedom. The United States has propagandized the nation over recent decades, focusing especially on Christians, stamping our fight for freedom in all international conflict under the guise of godly oversight and protection. The Bible does not teach to fight for freedom. NOWHERE! If this offends you, stop reading right now and do a study. There is no guarantee of freedom. I know it's easy for me to say that. I wouldn't trade it for anything. But God has called me to faithfulness, obedience, and love, not the right of freedom. Slaves were told to obey their masters, not fight them or run away. This concept calls into question the very root of our nation - fighting (read killing) for our freedom. Is this what Jesus taught on the sermon on the mount? How dare we give a free pass to those in the military because they do so in combat? Jesus never makes that distinction, how can we? This places the onus on those who wish to argue for military participation, not me.

This is not an easy discussion to be had. I don't know if many are ready to fully open themselves up for the implications of what this means. I believe that Gingrich is narrow-mindly American in his book and potentially sows the seed for a future holy war. Perhaps he will follow it up with a second volume noting all the landmarks of Iran that are covered in verses from the Koran and how their nation is built around a good-peaceful religion gone bad and now must be destroyed. It becomes nothing more than a modern-day crusuade. The cycle of this thought continues. We must spend more money so our military is the biggest so that no one threatens us . . . haven't we misplaced our hope as soon as we do that? And so many of us do that without even thinking about it. My hope is in God. Period.

The idea of kingdom is political. It was the political jargon of the day. What purpose would Jesus have had in using that language unless he meant his kingdom to be an alternative politcal reality? We can praise the outcome of the wars of the state (freeing blacks, defeating Hitler, etc.) but Christians must always do so with a partly disappointed heart knowing that this is not the way of the kingdom. The means must be consistent with the end . . . the end cannot be used to justify whatever means possible. This is not an easy teaching to accept. But, something that Gingrich fails to ackowledge, is that every ruler, every war, is started and maintained by people who believe that God is on their side (is the swastika not a broken cross?) Just becuase we think God is on our side does not make us right . . . or good.

Strange Week

This has been a strange week. We got a pretty good snowstorm Monday night into Tuesday. The 8 or 10 inches of snow wasn't that big of a deal, but the inch solid ice that covered everything was. Luckily we didn't get anything near what they did south of us, but it made for a strange week. The preschool was closed at the church every day but one (Monday), meaning our schedule was completely off. Me being a not real scheduled guy meant I struggled through the entire week. I think I had a bit of depression lingering in too (probably still do). That's a solid family trait so I'm sure it will come around from time to time. More than anything, I think it is an internal anxiety knowing how much our lives are about to change. Within the month now, we'll have the baby. Been there, done it before . . . I think that brings more anxiety instead of putting it to bay. In any case, I haven't gotten nearly what I wanted to get done this week (or probably should have). One of the biggest challenges in ministry is being totally at it alone (know what I mean here, I know God is here, but . . . well, you should get it). It's one of the best parts of it - that side everyone envies, but seldom do those same people acknowledge the difficulty that lies there too. Seldom is there a "right" thing to do. There are several options - some good, others better, and a few wrong, but mostly, the onus is on me. That's burden to carry. Haven't carried it well this week.

Anyway, I noticed I have't posted this week and I am trying to be regular. I appreciate everyone's comments. I have had a couple positive interactions this week from folks that I have met here, furthering reassuring me that this blogging things isn't a total waste of time :-) Due to the weather, I was not able to watch the next installment of the Truth Project. Our church finished with the project Sunday, and I need to go back and watch one episode on the state, one on America, and the final one on community. I'll try to briefly (yeah right) comment about each of the three separately. It seems to have been good for many folks to see some critique of each of the vidoes (though I did miss a few).

I also finished the book Onward Christian Soldiers: Freeing the Gospel from Political Captivity by Charles Marsh. Wasn't my favorite book in the world, and I'm not sure I'd recommend it, but there were a few places where I thought it was great. He just skipped around and the logic of the book was a little tough for me to follow.

In this book Marsh offers a stinging criticism of evangelicals in this country and the way they have sold out the Gospel for political power. I don't have time to offer a review of the book, but I'll say that it was a solid work and offered critique consistent with other books I have reviewed (see Jesus for President, The Myth of A Christian Nation, Mere Discipleship, et at.) This book differed slightly in that he took on the evangelical priaise for George W. Bush a little more directly. For Marsh, Bush's election marked the pinnacle of evangelicalism's selling out for political gain. He offers direct criticism of Bush's claimed evangelical faith (it was a little uncomfortable to read him being critical of another's faith, but I think he proceeded cautiously, and offered rationale for doing so).

For me, the real profit of this work came in Marsh's second to last chapter on "Passing the International Test." I found it incredibly moving and convicting to see how incredibly America-centric evangelicals in this nation have become. His argument culminates with the inclusion of five pages worth of statements from faith communities around the world standing in opposition to the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Brazil, International Movement of Catholic Students, the church of England, Germany, the conference of European Churches, Ghana, the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria and all Africa . . . and on and on . . . groups, churches, brothers and sisters, who opposed the invasion. And yet, at the height of the invasion, the approval rating for going through with the invasion among evangelicals was an incredible 70 or 80 percent. How could they not consider these voices?

Whatever you think about the war, Marsh offers a challenge for you to see the actions of our nation (this war most specifically) through the eyes of the church of the world - something that I know is sorely missing in my church, in my personal faith, and every faith community I've ever been part of. I must realize that I have more in common with the persecuted believer in Djibouti, than I do with my neighbor who votes the way that I do and who likes the same sports teams. That is an important first step forward in our discussions of faith and politics.

Reflection from The Shack author, Wm. Paul Young

Last night Mary Beth and I went to hear Paul Young, author of the book everyone has now heard about, The Shack. The church was charging $10 a person to hear him, which was kind of a bummer, but I have to tell you it was totally worth it. You never know what you are going to get when you go to hear an author speak. Most authors make their money by writing and are not dually blessed with the gift of speaking. Young, however, was quick to point out that he is not an author, but became one on accident. He was humorous and engaging throughout.

He took a few questions from the audience about the book (there were probably about 700 or 800 of us there) and then segued into some personal reflections from the book. If you have done research on him, then you probably know a lot of this, but it was all new to me. He had written the book for his children, not intending that anyone else would ever see it. He has six children (I think he said six), and The Shack was a gift to each of them, and some of their close friends, as the result of a long process of Young's travel back toward his shack. The symbolism of The Shack is especially poignant after hearing firsthand its background.

The entire discussion was worthwhile, but I'll try to offer a few random tidbits from the night that I found memorable. If you haven't read the book, I really would suggest it. Very enjoyable and thought provoking - and if you are a Christian, everyone's talking about it, so join the discussion!

The first question of the night was about the name of the Holy Spirit in the book. The origin came from a phone conversation Young had while working in his previous job with someone in India. He asked her for the different names they had for the wind in Hindi. Sarayu seemed perfect - that unexpected but refreshing wind that all of us love (think of a hot day when it is almost unbearable - and then the freshness of the breeze). I thought it was great!

Another asked whether he was concerned with the controversy the book had stirred. Nobly, he answered that rather than disappointed, he was excited by all the discussion the book had stirred. He did note that some of the criticism had gotten personal which he regretted, but the vast majority of it had been the work of God. He told specifically of a women who had emailed him and just railed the book as a "juvenile piece of trash." Young promptly responded by pasting several responses from others who had emailed him responding with thanksgiving for the life it had breathed into their spirituality. The woman responded by asking for his forgiveness.

William Young spoke humbly as a guy whose life's baggage was now out in the open for all to see. He acknowledged that he had created something that was now way bigger than he was, and his role was to sit back and watch God work, something He is clearly doing.

With all of that said, the true highlight of hearing Young speak was gaining valuable insight into where the concept of the shack came from. The book amounts to the closing chapter of the healing process he and his family went through. Young was the overlooked child of missionaries in New Guinea where he grew up in a terrible environment. His perspective was a reminder to me to never neglect your family "for the work of the Lord." Quite the contrary, Young's father treated him harshly and allowed him to be severely molested throughout his childhood by the tribal people. Young tells the story of burying this trauma deep below the surface of perfectionism he constantly kept up through his young life.

He eventually married and his whole life of deception and duality culminated with a three-month affair his wife uncovered, setting off 2 years of hell. His wife was committed to keeping the family together, and so committed to being together and spent the next two years beating Young up emotionally and spiritually. She told him she would never believe anything that came from his mouth again - and who could blame her. The process of counseling was intense and long - he spent 8 months in intensive counseling with a counselor Young believes saved his life. He tells the story of his counselor, whose family life Young knew nothing about because of counselor-patient protection, whose son was addicted to narcotics, accidentally killed his father. This crushed Young to the point he could not go to the funeral.

The two years sped through eleven long years of healing and dealing with the matters of the shack, and finally came around full circle when he received a letter speaking to an incredibly healing a woman had received after her son had inadvertently killed her father. Young knew immediately the similarities were too close for this to not be the same person. He emailed her back and asked for her phone number . . . what an incredibly story of grace! He went on to talk of how his marriage was better than ever (something he said at least 10 times at the close). That the woman with whom he had an affair with had a daughter who was now a close friend of their own daughter and regularly at their home. Again, an incredible story of grace.

It was enjoyable and uplifting to hear the incredible story that now is being told all over the world. Hopefully Christians can focus on that and not let our divisive and obnoxious tendencies prevail as they so often do.

I was drawn to my own shack even deeper through Young's personal testimony. I thanked God then and there I didn't have to endure the journey that he has, and I thanked God that he has delivered him from his. However, it still left me to confront what is in my own shack that so often I want to avoid and change the subject. I continue that journey and need prayers in doing so.

Reflections from The Blue Parakeet

I have kicked off my New Year's reading with Scot McKnight's very interesting book on biblical interpretation: The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking how you read the Bible. The book is built around the metaphor of McKnight seeing a blue parakeet in their back yard at the bird feeder - an escapee pet blue parakeet. McKnight uses the concept of the parakeet to apply to teachings in the Bible that don't "fit."

He begins by asserting all of us are inconsistent in the way we read the Bible. I love the brass tacks approach he takes - direct, yet tactful and humorous. He uses several examples of the ways we are inconsistent with our applications - "We all pick and choose" how to apply the Bible, McKnight states. Whether it's the sabbath, tithing, foot washing, surrendering our possessions, or a host of other contentious issues (ie. abortion, war, homosexuality, etc.), we all pick and choose what we want the Bible to say. I didn't find this statement all that earth-shattering, but he dresses his argument in a palatable way that is difficult to argue.

He asserts our inconsistency, and then provides keys for moving forward in our interpretation of the Bible. Central to his proposal is that the Bible must be understood as fundamentally a story (narrative). Contrary to what many critics have accused, reading the Bible as story is actually more involved and complicated than other options. We have become lazy in our Bible reading. Think about how much more time consuming it is to consider the entire biblical story in framing a text as opposed to taking the text as a tidbit of teaching!

McKnight outlines the narratives in what he calls "wiki-stories" (Creating eikons, cracked eikons, covenant community, Christ (the perfect Eikon) redeems, consumation). He states: "The unity of the Bible is this story. It is this story that puts the Bible together. Our grand systems do not form the unity of the Bible; the story that God tells forms and frames that unity." p. 67. This unity and wiki-stories approach to Scripture is how I have learned to frame all of my teaching and preaching in recent years. It is, as McKnight states, much more complicated and involved, and takes deep committment to the stories.

Next, McKnight explores the relationship between the Christian and the Bible. He wants to clearly affirm that the Bible must not be equated to God. "God gave us this papered Bible to lead us to love his person. But the person and the paper are not the same." p. 87. The Bible is a means to an end . . . and too often we have made it the end. I think McKnight really helps to ground us and remind us what the chief end of the Bible's teaching is in the first place. "Our relationship to the GOd of the BIble is to listen to God so we can love him more deeply and love others more completely." (p. 96).

He brings this all to bear in our every day application of the Bible in the final section addressing interpretion entitled "Discernment." In this section he addresses the matter of consistency and knowing how to "apply" teaching and how to "disregard" teaching. He's not so interested in the specifics invovled at this point, but in the process we go through in determining this. I believe this is the most overlooked step in our churches today. We just right in to the "issues" (women's place, homosexuality, worship battles, ethical quandries, etc.) and we fail to realize that these issues are not the issue. The real issue is discernment. How do we do with the teachings that are there. McKnight goes on to address the matter of women in ministry and leadership for the last third of the book. I have seen some reviewers critical of the amount of time he spends on that issue, but I believe it provides a good case study and makes practical the matters he's laid out in the first sections of the book.

One of McKnight's main points throughout the book is that God has always communicated with people in their ways and in thier days. This requires great discernment and process in bridging the gap between their days and our days and their ways and our ways. I think the following statement is a good summary of what McKnight is working towards:

"What is good for Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah, Ezra, Jesus, Peter and Paul is also good for us. But, the precise expression of the gospel or the manner of living of Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah, Ezra, Jesus, Peter, and Paul may not b e our expression or our manner of lving. Living our the Bible means living out the Bible in our day in our way by discerning together God would have us live." p. 143.

For what it's worth, I think McKnight is right on in this book. He provides a way forward in a time when we are quickly nearing an impasse in our churches as our hermeneutics prove insufficient for today's cultural challenges and vicissitudes (I like to throw that word in there whenever I can - thanks to Mr. Johnson my high school American history teacher). What he states about women in ministry I believe will be pivotal for churches to understand. It is something that many churches wish to ignore arguing - that's just the way that it is. However, we must begin asking what God is communicating to us today in our way.

McKnight's thesis in this book reminds me of a more evangelical clothed approach that Luke Timothy Johnson sets forth in Scripture and Discernment (I don't think McKnight ever references the work), and Johnson uses as his case study the more difficult issue, for many Christians, of homosexuality. Discernment is not easy and diversity is difficult, however, I hope that Christians will only become more willing to listen to one another and understand one another instead of demonizing and hating one another. The Emergent Village has gone a long way in increasing everyone's presence at the theological table. As the table becomes larger, those sitting there now will be faced with difficult choices and interesting discussions will abound. I believe we are on the cusp of a revival . . . but it will be a revival that looks much differently than previous ones.

I will be beginning a series of posts next week that will be especially challenging for most to grasp. I am preparing a paper for a conference this summer, and in preparation for it, I will be reading several books on the matters of nationalism and the intersection of faith and politics. If you have read much here, you probably have sensed that I have a strong pacifist leaning towards political invovlement coming partly from my tradition (David Lipscomb, Lee Camp) and also some of the ideology I have been exposed to in recent years (Stanley Hauerwas, J.H. Yoder, et al.) This will be a particularly difficult discussion for many to participate in, and even for some to stomach the reading. I won't focus on this topic exclusively, but that will be a major focus of mine through the next several months. [As a side note, I missed the recent video from the Truth Project entitled "The American Project" and from all that I have heard about it, strikes fundamentally against what I will be affirming in my upcoming project. I find it extremely unfortunate that so many Christians have so easily bowed to the idol of nationalism.] I hope you will give me the benefit of the doubt, that you will hear me out, and that you will allow the discernment process to take place, because much of what I will set forth will probably be new to many of your thinking. I hope you find it beneficial and will be prompted to pariticipation. I'll work on not being so verbose in these things . . . I just type . . . type . . . type my little heart out. That's enough. God bless you.

Good Stuff from Rob Bell

I just finished Rob Bell's newest book Jesus Wants to Save Christians: A Manifesto for the Church in Exile. It was especially interesting to read it just after finishing Jesus for President, because so much of it correlates what Shane Claiborne says. Rob Bell, however, brings a softer and milder tone to the same radical concepts brought out in Jesus for President.

Much like Claiborne, authors Rob Bell and Don Golden retell the story of the exodus and offer that redemptive event as the paradigm for salvation and the foundation of the church. Bell has a knack for language and I connect well with some of his rhetorical devices. In general, however, I didn't find anything especially new or contributing to the areas he addresses. However, due to his creative use of language, it's always a profitable read to journey alongside him through the Old Testament, setting the framework for the redemptive work of Christ.

The authors use the four-fold outline of Egypt, Sinai, Babylon, and Jerusalem to frame the redemptive walk through Scriptures in a way that I found to be especially helpful. While, the overall scope of the book wasn't especially groundbreaking or new, there were a few places where I found myself exceptionally convicted by his words. I would definitely recommend Bell's book for the skeptic of the resurrgent anti-empire theology that has emerged in the post-9/11 days, as he has a way of conversing about these matters is a less confrontational and aggressive tone. As one example, I found it helpful to be reminded that the United States does much good all over the world and that should be celebrated and God should be thanked for that. However, Bell goes on to write, America is still an empire, and the entire Bible is written from the perspective of a people who are under the oppression of the empire. So . . . for us to quickly jump into Scripture, we ought to be careful where we see ourselves.

I thought I would include the passage below (forgive the length), but I found of the entire book, this selection below stands out as challenging to me personally and my ministry setting. I believe this strikes at the heart of the challenge before many of us in the suburban context. This section (for me) was worth the price of the book, and reflects an issue that I will be working and studying in the coming months in connection for a paper I've proposed for next year's Christian Scholar's Conference in regards to youth, empire, and pacifism. This speaks volumes (as well as some others below): Read herein the challenge before all youth pastors:

"And the students in this church, these are good kids. They are from families who just want to see their kids become good Christians. Imagine just how much is available to them. They hgave more at their finger-tips than any generation in the history of the world - more information, more entertainment, more ideas, more ways to kill time, more options.

Many of them own more than one pair of shoes.

There are even some among them who have eaten at least one meal every day of their lives.

So we are talking about a miniscule minority of kids in the world.

At the exit off the highway near their church their is a Best Buy and a Chili's and a Circuit City and a McDonald's and a Wal-Mart and a Bed, Bath and Beyond, much like the other towns in thier state and in their country. The music they listen to is distributed by one of five major corporations, which also own the movie studios that create the movies they watch, which are also connected to the corporations that create the food they eat and the commercials they watch, which also have signifricant ties to the clothes they wear and the cell phones they own, and the ring tone on their cell phones, the one by the artist who is signed to the record lable that is owned by teh same company that owns the cell phone company and the advertising agency that announced the artist's new album, which is owned by the same company that owns the beverage compalny in whose advertisement the artist appeared, drinking the particular beverage, singing the song that is now a ringtone on the students' phones that they purchased at the mall across the street from the Olive Garden next door to the Home Depot on the other side of the Starbucks.

And so each week they gather to hear a talk from the pastor.

Their pastor tells them about the Jesus revolution.

About Jesus resisting the system.

About the blood of the cross.

About many of the first Christians getting arrested.

About Jesus having dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors.

About people sharing their possessions.

About Jesus telling a man to sell everything.

About the uniqueness of their story in the larger story of redemption.

How do children of the empire understand the Savior who was killed by an empire? How does a twelve-year-old who has never had hunger pangs that lasted more than an hour understand a story about a twelve-year-old providing fish and bread for thousands of chronically hungry people? How do kids who are surrounded by more abundance than in any other generation in the history of humanity take seriously a Messiah who said, 'I have been anointed to preach good news to the poor?'

How do they fathom that half of the world is too poor to feed its kids when their church just spent two years raising money to buy an addition for their building? They gather, they sing, they hear a talk from the pastor, and then they go back in the car with their parent and they go home; the garage door opens, the car goes in, and the garage door goes down.

This is the revolution?

This is what Jesus had in mind?

And so the youth pastor turns to you and says again, 'I just can't get my students to engage with Jesus. Do you have any suggestions?

What do say?

How do you respond?

Your only hope, of course, would be to remind him or her that there is blood on the doorposts of the universe!" (p. 136 - 138)

Back from Maine and Caught up . . . Almost

Whew . . . what a couple of weeks. I've been able to sit back and really appreciate our blessings over the course of the past two weeks. In a matter of two weeks I've been able to spend some good quality time with my wife. I suppose it is the last hoorah before Astird (after last night's episode of The Office, our unborn child will be known until Astird until further notice - if you missed it, watch it on line!). We spent a week in Maine. We flew to Portland, spent a day there, and then drove up the coast through L.L. Bean land in Freeport, ME, and enjoyed the rest of our trip at the Oceanside Meadow Inn bed and breakfast on the ocean in Prospect Harbor, across the harbor from Acadia National Park. It was one of the most incredible places I've ever been. I'd tell you all about it, but I'll let the pictures do the talking. They are on another computer - I'm hoping to upload them to my new flickr account soon. We also took a really neat side trip we weren't planning on taking further up the coast and, actually entering New Brunswick, Canada, visited Campobello Island - follow the link to learn about it - it was really neat.

Monday night we went to the Monday Night Football game in Cleveland where the Browns took on the Giants in a beat down that lit that city up unlike I have ever seen. We hung out and tailgated a few hours before kick off with some friends. It was incredible. Got to my parents house at 4:00 am - that was kind of rough - but well worth it.

Tonight ends our little two-week escape from reality as we will be attending our first musical of the season (we have season tickets again this year) Frost/Nixon. Neither of us know much about it, so it will be interesting. Our social calendar has never been this full, but it has been nice to enjoy that time. We'll come crashing down to reality tomorrow. My last j.v. football game is tomorrow and I'll be done for the season. I am taking the advancement test on Nov. 1 to become a class 1 official to be able to do varsity contests next year. That'll be fun - if I pass.

I have a few things that have been rumbling in my mind to post here. One involves a book that everyone has been talking about. Another is a reflection on my current political status. And just some other ramblings. Since I've already posted at length here today, I'll think I'll just comment a bit about the book and get political next week - I'm sure you're disappointed!

Everywhere I look folks are talking about The Shack. Just Google it and I'm sure a million blogs alone will come up. I didn't really know anything about it other than everyone was talking about it - apparently I wasn't listening to them! So, I picked it up and Mary Beth and I read it together in Maine. In many ways it wasn't at all what I thought it was going to be - but at the same time, I didn't have a clue what to expect. Anyway,

It's the story of a father wrestling face to face with God over demons of his past - a poor relationship with an abusive father and the horrible murder of his daughter. Wm. Paul Young uses a vivid narrative to wrestle with some of the most challenging points of faith. There is a flury of folks debating over the intricacies of Young's theology. Interesting, as a "trained" theologian, I didn't spend much time reflecting on that (probably means I'm not trained very well!) , but instead engaged the story as it was. Without giving much away, God shows up in the story as three separate people: a large black woman, an intriguing and mysterious Asian woman, and a joe schmo Jesus. I loved the depiction of the three members of the trinity! It had to make you smile, and at the same time think!

I don't want to delve much into the book other than to say that I didn't like it in the beginning, but it grew on me. It was a bit cheesy at first, but as I worked through it, it grew, and then I thought the ending was great - fitting and provacative. On the cover of my copy Eugene Peterson's comment is, "This book has the potential to do for our generation what John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress did for his. It's that good!" I'm not sure that I share his enthusiasm quite to the extent that he does, but it is a good book nonetheless.

I think the true modernists will really struggle through the work focusing not on the well-described narrative and instead labor through -ologies and -isms that don't seem quite to fit into the "correct" box. I think it's funny how people freak out about stories like this instead of allowing them to simmer and transform us. I have already found myself using it as a solid reference work for people who have dealt with tragic, traumatic situations and severely wrestle with the "why?" and the "How could he?" questions - something we all at times have to address.

In the end, it left me reflecting on my faith and challenging my transparence and commitment. I enjoyed it and think it will be profitable for all. And . . . that's all I'm going to say about that.

Book Review: The End of Memory

I have heard Miroslav Volf's name several time and have seen his books at the bookstore, but this was my first attempt at one of his works. To say that I was impressed with this book would be an understatement. He is a very talented and gifted theologian who has much to offer our world and whose background is unique enough to ensure him a listening audience.

In The End of Memory, Volf intertwines theological and philosophical reflection on violence, memory, and reconciliation with his own personal struggles through the same in the former Yugoslavia. His book treats subjects which will become more and more significant as the voice of the oppressed become vocalized. He doesn't wrestle so much with the forgiveness aspect (something that has probably been dealt with more frequently), but instead deals with what may be even more complicated - do we forget?

Philosophically he deals much with Nietzsche and Freud, theologically he is refers Kierkegaard and Dante, and personally he has much interaction with the Czech soldiers who submitted him to hours and hours of interrogations and psychological torture.

How are we to remember those who have wronged us? It is this biting question that Volf comes at head on. With his own personal experience lingering over the entire volume, he resists the urge to de-humanize the discussion. No, suffering and wrongdoing necessitate suffered and those wronged. Feelings of confusion, revenge, and hate are always only a breath away. How do we treat these feelings? What are there place in God's kingdom?

While drawing much from Freud and Nietzsche, Volf is also quick to point out there shortcomings (Nietzsche's fatalism and Freud's narcissism), though, Volf takes the good with the bad (something many other theologians could learn from) and uses them as jumping off points.

Having had some time to reflect upon this really unique work, I would best describe it as a theological extrapolation of St. John of the Cross' "Dark Night of the Soul." Volf wrestles with many of the same kinds of emotions and struggles, and ends up at the same beginning place that St. John does - suffering wrongdoing forces us to wrestle with our own frailty and sin. It is quite the uncomfortable place to be.

His study culminates in reflecting upon the place of memory considered eschatologically - how will God remember the wrongs done to us? For to remove the memory of wrongs done, is to remove the ills suffered by the those afflicted. He finds the answer in Dante's take on the place of memory in Paradiso.

In the highlight chapter of his work, chapter nine fleshes out Dante's understanding of the place of memories of wrongs in the afterlife. His take: "We must reconcile - we must name the wrongdoings that were committed, we must agree about their nature, we must forgive and receive forgiveness, and we must affirm to each other the goodness of our being there together." (p. 181)

This was one of the better books I have read this year. It is a challenging read, don't get me wrong, but he succeeds at making this subject accessible to the non-academic (as opposed to Exclusion and Embrace, which I am reading now, not nearly as accessible). There are many side discussions and stories that keep one's interest, in addition to being unique and dynamic in its presentation.

Lesslie Newbigin's The Gopsel in a Pluralist Society

I have created a blog of resources where I plan to do most my book reviews leaving this space for things that are more authentic to my own creativity. However, since it has been so long since I last posted, I thought I would post a few quick reviews from my summer reading and make a few personal notes extrapolating on the material. I begin with a book I first read close to 10 years ago in an undergraduate class at Lipscomb University.

Lesslie Newbigin has become a very significant contributor to the area of missiology. Our intern who worked with me this summer is forgoing her sophomore year at Eastern Michigan University to pursue a mission program she will begin sometime in 2009. My hope was to expose her to some perspectives in missions that she had not previously been exposed to, in order to help her discern her direction in the mission field. So, we spent a good part of the summer working through what is probably Newbigin's best-known book.

The first half of the book is quite tedious. Newbigin weighs through much philosophy relying heavily on Michael Polanyi's work to ground his direction. He has an interesting perspective to provide as an Englishman, he lived in India for 40 years and thus is in the unique perspective to be able to critique his own culture. He tells the great story of walking into a Hindu temple in India and seeing the many gods they idolized - including Jesus. Every year, on Christmas, they would pay homage to Jesus and pray to him. Newbigin pointed out the error-ridden syncretism of this practice and acknowledged that this is not even a beginning point for the Gospel. It led him to ask the many places in his own culture he has practiced syncretism. It's easy to see from the outside looking in, but from the inside - where does that leave him?

A key for Newbigin is seeing that the Christian faith is already at work within all cultures. He speaks very firmly against the concept of "bringing Christ to the nations," and instead seeks a paradigm shift that aims to "reveal the Christ already at work within the nations." This is a significant paradigmatic shift. This perspective affirms what we already say we believe - the Bible is universal, transcending culture and time. We should avoid the feeling of needing to "civilize" the nations or bring other (usually) Western traditions to the land, but instead see how Christ fits into the people who are already there. Missions is at the core of who we are as Christians - "It follows that the test of our real belief is our readiness to share it with all peoples" (p. 126)

Another aspect of the shift Newbigin proposes has to do with moving from declaratory solely, and acknowledging the role is performatively as well - "The true missionary dialogue, in other words, is not initiated by the Church. In a secondary sense it is initiated by the outsider who is drawn to ask: What is the secret of this new reality, this life of praise, of justice, of peace?" (p. 134).

Chapter 12 moves to the heart of what Newbiggin is address: contextualization - understanding the culture is key, embedding oneself in it is the priority. Described this way: "How can the gospel 'come alive' in all these different cultural contexts, and still be the same authentic gospel? That is the problem of contextualization." (p. 142) We must realize that everything we do is conditioned by our culture. The very act of communication is conditioned by culture, leaving us with the tedious but vital task of weighing the substance of our faith - what is Christ, what is culture? Some highlights from what I feel is the most significant chapter:

"There is no such thing as a pure gospel if by that is meant something which is not embodied in a culture . . . The gospel always comes as the testimony of a community which, if it is faithful, is trying to live out the meaning of the gospel in a certain style of life, certain ways of holding property, of maintaining law and order, of carrying on production and consumption, and so on. Every interpretation of the gospel is embodied in some cultural form." (p. 144)

"We must always be ready to recognize that we have misrepresented the intention of Jesus because of our own interests." (p. 151) - Just chew on that one for awhile. That's a tough one, but really important one to swallow.

One of my favorite lines: "The content of the gospel is Jesus Christ in the fullness of his ministry, death, and resurrection. The gospel is this and not anything else." (p. 153)

From there Newbiggin addresses some anticipated challenges when the Gospel confronts new cultural barriers (specifically the relationship between Christianity and other religions - he critiques John Hick's pluralism and especially finds Karl Rahner's "Anonymous Christian" a plausible alternative (something I've written on here before). This is definitely not the strength of Newbigin's work, but is a helpful sidebar in considering the breadth of issues within the construct of missiology.

This is not the best review of Newbigin's work, but hopefully gives those of you who are unfamiliar with him a taste of what his perspective is. He has a shorter and more concise volume entitled Foolishness to the Greeks (which might be more advantageous to read as a first-time intro to Newbigin. As the Western world continues to further in is pluralism, the work of Newbign has become more and more significant as we have realized the concept of contextualization is not simply an overseas issue, but simply moving from the East coast to the West coast, from rural farms to inner city concrete gardens, from immigrant populations to the increasing minority numbers, and many, many demographics in between - contextualization is a vital first step in our aims of evangelism.

OK, hopefully the others will be a little shorter . . .

Back to the Grind

Summer is officially over as our youth ministry goes. We are finishing up on what has been my busiest summer ever . . . whew . . . the result has been seldom a post here. I'd like to spend some time refocusing on my blog, so hopefully, people will want to stop by and read once in awhile. I only have a minute right now, but in the next few days I will be reviewing a few books I found time to finish up the past few weeks:


Newbigin's book I read through with our intern this summer. It's a challenging, though very significant contribution to missiology.

I'm quickly becoming a huge Miroslav Volf fan. I finished this book up a few weeks ago and currently am tackling his much acclaimed book Exclusion and Embrace. This is a fascinating and unique book on reconciliation and the place of memory for those who have done us wrong.


This book was a real quick read through some simple, substantive programs, projects, causes that Christians can join in their commission to change the world. Written as a no-holding-back, get-out-and-get-busy guide, it's a great encouragement to see great things happening in our world.

I'll have more to say on these in a few days, but thought I would start to get back at it today. Thanks for stopping by if you read this!

Book Review: They Like Jesus but not the Church

Over the weekend I got to spend some time with Dan Kimball's book, one that has intrigued me since I first saw that it had come out last year. I got the opportunity to listen to Kimball talk about one of his previous books, The Emerging Church, and was very impressed with his demeanor, humility, and approach to ministry. I would have to say that this book is one of the more unique books on ministry that I have read. Kimball's philosophy of ministry is one that really resonates with me and has convicted me to reevaluate my approach to the daily grind of ministry.

More than anything, this latest installment from Kindall (there is a forthcoming sister volume called I Like Jesus but not the Church directed toward unchurched folks) is the result of a identity crisis he describes in The Emerging Church. He realized that he had no contact with the outside world - that is the world outside the Christian subculture. He confesses that he was spending too much time in the office. As a result, he set out to work within non-Christian environments, hoping to build relationships with non-Christian folks. He has been successful in doing so and the result is this book. He has realized that many of these folks have a high respect for Jesus, but an accompanying low respect for the church and for Christians.

The book is built around six presuppositions that members of the "emerging generation" (his term) tend to have about the church: they are an organized religion with a political agenda, judgmental and negative, dominated by males and oppresses females, is homophobic, arrogantly claims that all other religions are wrong, and is full of fundamentalists who take the Bible literally. Throughout, Kimball is quick to argue that the reader may feel these judgments are unfair, and he agrees, but his point is not to address the reality, but the perceived reality from outside of the church. It is a chilling and convicting testimony to what we are doing in the church.

Unfortunately, as difficult as some of the chapters were to hear, and how quick I wanted to defend what some of the "outsiders" say, I have found that Kimball is right on track about us. More of our members than not are driven toward a political agenda that creeps into our public image, tends to be negative and judgmental, and on and on with the others.

I felt throughout that Kimball was fair and honest through some especially difficult topics. Through his experience, he provides a good sounding board for both sides to see the other - an honest look at a real Christian who loves and cares for others, and an empathetic brother who cares for those who are "lost." My favorite chapter was about the impression that the church oppresses woman. Kimball said that every person he interviewed for the book brought up this issue. He is careful not to delve into theological battles as this is not the concern of this book. His viewpoint was that no matter what your theological bent, you have to consider the image you are portraying to others. This is a very critical issue for all churches, especially those of the complimentarian view of the women in ministry issue (those believe the Bible teaches against women as elders and pastors). What's the harm in women making announcements? What about praying before the congregation or reading Scripture? In being biblical, can we really make an argument that women should be barred from these positions? I'm a little further along than this (and I think Kimball is too), but he makes the point that no matter where you are in the discussion, you have to realize that what those outside the church are saying isn't true, but we give that impression.

The final section of the book focuses on what kind of church the emerging generation is looking for. Kimball is quick to point out that this is not a list of what the church needs to do. This is just an exercise in listening. He says that when he presents this material in a seminar, he gets to this point, then turns off the projector and offers no insight. Instead, he encourages those present to go and listen to those in his or her own community. Build those friendships.

And therein is the great strength in what Kimball is bringing to the ministry table of discussion. He challenges those of us in ministry to build relationships with those outside of our walls. He challenges us to do it so those outside of "professional ministry" will also do it. We need to spend time with them. Recreate with them. Listen to them. Not try to convert them. A relationships built on an agenda is not a real relationship. We want them to change their fundamental philosophy, but often we are quick to speak, and slow to listen. This generation needs us to be slow to speak, quick to listen . . . hmm sounds biblical.

In the end, I think Kimball has challenged us all. My only critique of the book, and I think he works hard to battle this, but the reality is what it is: he tends to over-generalize this generation. His book is really a conversation with a very limited number of people - people he met in a coffee house and who connected to his personality. While I believe very much that his conversations point out very important insight into the emerging generation, there is such a diversity in our nation demographically it is limiting. The "emerging generation" Kimball is referring to seems to be the college educated, middle to upper class surbanites/metropolitans (his interviews take place in California). Where do inner city "emerging generations" fit into this discussion? What about the rural "country" emergers? I think Kimball would be sympathetic to these varieties, though he does make continual references like, "and through my conversations with 20 somethings throughout the country, these reflections are consistent." I believe that, but I also feel like he tends to be a little too quick to generalize from his discussions.

But, I will say this, I think that is the point of what he is doing here. These are the people that he has conversed with. He isn't encouraging us to listen to him and fix our churches, he's encouraging us to listen to OUR people, and take note of the message we are sending to the emerging generations watching our churches.

If more ministers will consider the words in this book, the face of ministry could completely change . . . for the better!

Book Review: Christ Plays in a Thousand Places

"As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies draw flame;
As tumbled over rim in roundy wells
Stone ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell's
Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name;
Each mortal thing does one thing and the same:
Deals out that being indoors each one dwells;
Selves - goes itself; myself it speaks and spells,
Crying What I do is me: for that I came.

I say more: the just man justices;
Keeps grace: that keeps all his goings graces;
Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is -
Christ. For Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the Father through the features of men's faces."

Thus writes Gerard Manley Hopkins in his sonnet Eugene Peterson uses as a backdrop for his wonderful approach toward a spiritual theology. I have been working through this book for the better part of two months and have really enjoyed it. Written in a way that appeals to the layperson and the scholar both, Peterson does well in achieving his goal of intertwining disciplines and mixing academia and the every day life. Throughout the book the reader is reassured in references to history's greatest theologians, but also comforted by parallel references of the birth of Peterson's first grandchild, his project of handcrafting a cradle, and the church family that brought up Peterson.

From the outset, Peterson is clear to assign spirituality a place free of esoteric mumbo jumbo that often accompanies contemporary discussions, and root it where is should be rooted - practiced in every day real life. In the introductory chapter, Peterson addresses the cultural milieu in which the concept of spirituality has become bogged down in mysticism and consumeristic offerings. He spends time clarifying what exactly he aims to discuss. His approach to spirituality is thoroughly Christocentric, communal, and Spirit-driven.

Peterson takes a three-pronged approach to his discussion of spiritual theology. He begins in creation. I found Peterson's appreciation and love for all of creation to be a refreshing addition that is often lacking in approaches to spiritual theology. He compares the childlike awe that we all have as children to what lies at the heart of spiritual theology - awe. His grounding texts for this discussion are Genesis 1 - 2 (of course!) and John 1 - 2 (of course!!) He begins where we often do not - the creation of ALL THINGS! God creates time, rhythm (there's that word again, see how often that comes up in my recent posts over the past 12 months or so), place . . . and of course, the human. The wonder and awe of the things around us . . . they beg the question, "Why is there nothing?" That question, for Peterson, is the great jumping off place for his discussion. Stopping at Genesis 1 - 2 leaves us stunted in kind of a quasi-God-is-everywhere, God-is-nowhere theology. John roots meaning and purpose in the creation. Christ becomes the great clarifier of what this all means.

He ends each section with a connection between church practice and connection with the spiritual theology he is pursuing. With creation he expresses Sabbath as that practice. Sabbath and Wonder. Sabbath makes us stop and smell the roses . . . and it is a built in reminder of who makes the roses smell! It is a reminder of our place as creation . . . not Creator!

To stop at creation, however, is to leave too much in limbo. Peterson seeks to further express his spiritual theology in history. Focusing exclusively on history leaves one naive about the world's reality. Even a brief jaunt into history reveals the misery of the current state of the world. There are problems here that creation itself is ill-equipped to answer. Peterson's answer these to this difficult scenario is this: "We begin with the 'what's wrong with the world' at the place where the gospel deals with it: Jesus dead and buried." (p. 142). God always works in a specific time and a specific place. This is obvious, but its implications are great. God didn't fix things outside of our existential world . . . instead it happened one day at a time, through one specific person, in a specific place . . .

There are two important grounding texts for Peterson here: the Exile (Exodus ) and the life, death, and resurrection of Christ (Mark). These are the two instances in history where we are given insight into history for what history really is. We learn that world leaders are not in control (Moses is not killed as a baby, Jesus is not killed as a baby). We get to see the workings from behind the scenes. They ground us in the reality that is not what we see, but what we believe in Christ.

The church practice (sacrament) that grounds us in history for Peterson is the Eucharist proclaiming/practicing hospitality. It is that great celebration which, in small ways each week, reminds each of us of the great working of God behind the scenes. It is the place were worldly divisions do not divide (rich/poor/different races) everyone is welcomed at the table. It is the great jumping off place for the place of hospitality in the kingdom - a counter-cultural hospitality. (He has a great section about the current culture of meals in our world and how the idea of hospitality (and the inconvenience that is often hospitality) has been taken away in our world of stream-lining and fast food.

Finally, Peterson addresses community. We fall short in focusing on creation as it leaves us empty, and, while spirituality seen in the eyes of history is acknowledges place and time, without community it is but a dream. We cannot escape our communal nature. This section alone is worth reading the entire book. Peterson laments the fragmented world of the church - a place that should be more united than anything in the world. He pulls no punches in his laments: "Sects are termites in the Father's house." (p. 244).

Peterson grounds his discussion of community in (perhaps surprisingly) Deuteronomy and (more expected) Luke/Acts. His section on Deuteronomy is great. He offers several pages discussion on the Ten Words (Commandments) and emphasizes that they are best understood as how they related to the community. The Law, Peterson contends, is most significantly communal. It is how the people are to live with each other. "The Ten Words are often individualized as a code for personal morality. That is a weak way to view them; these are conditions for community living, living as God's people entire." (p. 259) Seeing spirituality through creation and history are great, but without the praxis of living it out in community - that's where the rubber meets the road.

His comments from Luke-Acts is more typical of what people think of when discussing community in Scripture: the early Christians in Acts moving forward with in their relationship with God as they have seen emulated through Luke in the disciples relationship with Christ.

This section ends with the sacrament of baptism providing the sacramental foundation for community acted out - love. What is the community if it is not love? I thought this quotation on love was very powerful: "In no other human experience do we fail so frequently, get hurt so badly, suffer so excruciatingly, and get deceived so cruelly as in love. Still we continue to long for love, dream of it, attempt it." (p. 310).

Through the long journey in these areas Peterson ends where we tend to begin: love. What are the people of God if not a loving community committed to loving their savior and their Creator through the Spirit that is . . . love?

I think Peterson has provided the field of spiritual theology a lively and important work that may provide a new format and direction for future discussions.

Easing back

The Metz family just returned back from 10 days in Florida. It's the longest I think I've ever been away from home at once. It was our first vacation in quite some time and was an amazing time. We all flew to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for $180 - not going to beat that with a stick (thank you Skybus.) We stayed with our friends the Bergmans (thanks to you guys for putting up with us and our kids for a week) from last Tuesday night until this past Sunday night in Miami. We then drove to Key West and spent two nights in the Southern Most city at the Southernmost Hotel. It was a great time and we are very refreshed . . . though I am kind of dragging today after getting into bed at 1:30 this morning and not working for a week and a half. Whew . . . refreshed mentally and emotionally but not physically, I totally understand why people would bring a babysitter on a vacation! We got to do a lot of cool stuff and see a lot of cool things, but the weather was probably most memorable (especially in light of the ice storm looming west of us). Since I am slowly getting back into things, thought that I would offer a quick post here today.

I think the best part of the trip for me (in addition to the warm weather) was watching the sun set in Key West. That was really one of the coolest things I have ever seen in my life. We'll be sure to update the photoblog with pictures from there soon. It really was incredible. We didn't get quite as much beach time as we had hoped. Both days that we tackled the beach in Miami were cold and really windy. We did get a nice day in at Key West's Southernmost beach. Even was graced to see a topless senior citizen . . . that was worth the price of the flight.

I did get a quick book read I thought I would post a few words about.

Under the Overpass: A Journey of Faith on the Streets of America by Mike Yankoski.


Mike Yankoski tells an interesting autobiographical tale of his four-month journey living as a homeless man. What's especially interesting about this story is what prompts this "experiment." Mike was moved by his vigorous college-age faith to challenge his convictions. "I sat there in church struggling to remember a time when I'd actually needed to lean fully on Christ rather than on my own abilities. Not much acme to mind." So . . . to help him answer questions about his faith, Yankoski sets out on a four-month journey to live homeless on the streets of six of America's largest cities accompanied by his traveling partner, Sam.

The stories from the streets are enlightening and honest. From the beginning of their experience in Denver at a drug rehabilitation house (he participated in this program as help acclimate him to the culture of homelessness rather than be dropped off on the street somewhere) Sam and Mike spend their time interacting with men who eat out of garbage cans, sleep under overpasses, and spend their time begging for food. Sam and Mike spend their time on the street playing worship music on their guitars with an open case out for money. They would often play for an entire day to earn enough money for a couple of 99 cent hamburgers for dinner. Their trips took them to soup kitchens, shelters, and churches, but mostly they slept on the streets.

While Yankoski's experience wasn't extensive enough to provide an "insiders" look at life on the street, they stayed long enough to provide snippets of what living homeless is like. It didn't take them long to realize the considerable problem that mental illness plays in the live of homeless men, as they frequently meet afflicted people. They develop an interesting mix of empathy for them men living beside them on the streets, and also frustration and despair for the plight of the addictions and numbing agents used on the streets. After but a few months spent on the streets Yankoski could already understand why so many turn that direction.

The book offers a quick glimpse at some of the realities of the street: drugs and alcohol, systematic failures by church and government, Christian apathy for the homeless, and the great extent and complexity of the issue.

I also found a helpful insight at just how influenced we are by our experience. Here, in a short term experience of faith, the lives of these two man are forever changed by the things they saw and experienced. This was brought to light to Yankoski as he meets a Christan devoted to helping the plight of the poor who the entire homeless community acknowledges as a man of God . . . subsequently take a long drag from a joint. From Yankoski's pen,

"Sitting there with Sugar Man, I felt my carefully established definitions of a Christian crack and expand. Here was an admitted addict and user openly proclaiming Christ in his community and asking how he could serve us." p. 106

For anyone interested, this book is an interesting look at the topic of homelessness and will forever change the way you look at the beggar at the street corner.

Settling Back in

Hard to believe the blog post drought is over a month long now. I'm trying to get settled back in to work and the daily grind again - always a difficult task following the holidays. For the Metzes, this is especially a difficult route since our past month is so full - our anniversary was on December 18 -8 years already, so hard to believe (we went and watched Sweeney Todd at the Palace Theater in Columbus and had steak at Mitchell's - nice), then was the Christmas Eve service, and of course Christmas, New Years, and . . . as if all that's not enough, a week later is Clark's third birthday - January 7. We've been to Defiance, Lewisburg, Murfreesboro, Nashville, Mt. Juliet - drove over 1,000 miles, stayed at 3 different houses, and are really glad to be home! It still amazes me how the holidays can be so busy. I am trying more and more to slow down - not be so busy, but in reality, the holidays were what they were - busy.

Reading continues to be a challenge with the baby and with the schedule. I didn't get nearly the books read I wanted to in 07 (is that a resolution I hear . . . nah!) but I did finish one that I haven't had a chance to review here and it fits nicely with an end of the year/holiday reflection.

I ran across this book last year as I was preparing for a Christmas sermon. It was about a year ago that I really began to appreciate the Christian calendar in my spiritual formation. As I studied the Old Testament and saw the natural relationship the people of Israel had with nature and with their annual festivals, I saw the basis for such in my own life. Coming from a Christian tradition that has eschewed the liturgical calendar, it is taking me some time to acclimate myself and my routine. It was in my studies last year that I came across the concept of the "rhythm of life." I find this to be an intriguing concept. Life, indeed, has a rhythm to it. Why had I never acknowledged this before?

There can be no doubt our lives all have rhythm. This rhythm is what Gary Eberle tackles in his very intriguing and provocative memoir. Sacred Time is an interesting mixture of philosophy, personal reflection, biblical teaching, and devotional. While I think some will find Eberle a little too out there [I just can't forget the point he makes in discussing the rhythm of life as he talks about how even in our conception rhythm is involved - I just can't get pas the sophomoric giggle that comes to mind in thinking about that], the bulk of his work will be beneficial for any reader serious about changing the way he or she understands time. It swept me in immediately. My pen went crazy underlining and marking important points along the way. Eberle does a great job reflecting on time in the modern world. In the midst of this crazy, frantic, non-stop world, Eberle reflects on the need for sacred time. This sacred time, however, is not merely some quiet time to "get away for a little while." Sacred time is a realization that sacred time is real time. It's not something to get away to, but rather its always there, always a part of us, we just fail to acknowledge or realize that. In Eberle's words:

"Sacred time is what we experience when we step outside the quick flow of life and luxuriate, as it were, in a realm where there is enough of everything, where we are not trying to fill a void in ourselves or the world, where we exist for a moment oat both the deepest and the loftiest levels of our existence and participate in the eternal life of all that is." (p. 7).

Utilizing a metaphor from Edward T. Hall, Eberle critiques the way we typically view time: like an un-ending conveyor belt of empty bottles given to us constantly, in different shapes (minutes, seconds, hours, months, decades, etc.) all needing to be filled. If we fail to fill one, we feel we've let someone down, not been effective, whatever. This is a concept of time we must move beyond. We are part of something much more significant, much broader.

Eberle acknowledges the rhythm that exists in our world. I can't help but think of the Africa drum that beats, constantly, mimicking the rhythm that all of us live by. The rhythm, however, is different for each of us. Many of us, Eberle points out, live according to the rhythm of the television schedule. New shows, new season . . . "season" - interesting choice of word! And then there's sports . . . a season . . . or eve commerce as there is a holiday shopping "season." Isn't there a better choice?

In subsequent chapters Eberle examines the roll that day planners have played in scheduling our time and how strict we've been in "keeping our time." He discusses how computers have completely altered our concept of time and productivity and information. Modern conveniences now dominate our lives to the point where we are always available, always on-call, and never unreachable. The irony of it all, says Eberle, is that the modern day clock had its origin in the monastery. It was a device to help keep the hours for the sake of prayer. Once the sun went down, it was difficult to know when the midnight prayers should be offered and the morning office should be followed. Thus the invention of the clock helped keep time in the monastery. However, the monastery couldn't hold it. Eberle follows the evolution of time through history, perhaps most exacerbated by our Puritan forefathers who saw "time as money" and the now-embedded notion that to waste time is as wasteful as throwing money out the window. The clock now dominates all of life. It has sped out of control.

In a great analogy, "Like people who eat to much junk food, we have filled our lives with the wrong kind of time, and rarely if ever do we avail ourselves of the kind of time that will truly nourish our spirits." (p. 127)

Eberle ends the book by exploring the different experiences of sacred time in various different faith traditions. (Eberle comes from a very interfaith-ecumenical position looking for experiences of God in all faiths.) He mentions the melodic tone of bells ringing through the small town (the church being the center of time, ringing so all the town knows the time), the architecture of a cathedral or temple creating some sacred "breathing space," the Jewish bar mitzpah celebrating the passage from one "time" to another, Christian baptism, the eucharist, the sabbath, festival sand feast days. There are glimpses of sacred time here, Eberle sees, but only small glimpses crowded out by the noise and bustle of our culture.

Sacred time provides respite from the many vicissitudes that flow freely in our current cultural milieu. Eberle offers a corrective: "There is so much we can say no to in this life - the war, violence, crime and greed of humanity, the apparently random cruelty of the natural world - and a cheap and easy cynicism about all this is a hallmark of our age [and the church too, I am afraid]; but those who experience the delights of the Sabbath will be able to say yes in spite of all, and to affirm the value and worth of living, even if they have had to fast and save in order to stage the festival itself . . . Like an underground stream, sacred time is always present, even if hidden, always ready to be tapped into to quench the thirst of the time-weary traveler." (p. 151 - 153).

In the final chapter Eberle (who by the way took a year sabbatical from his teaching duties to research, write, and experience), reflects on a life lived according to the Christian calendar. As someone who is relatively unfamiliar with the calendar, I found this part of the book to be insightful, encouraging, and convicting. There is more I can do to follow this calendar. It can add such value and depth to my life.

I don't often strongly recommend books, but I think this is one that many, many Christians would do well to read (or really anyone for that matter). It's ironic that Christians are often the busiest people you'll ever meet. What a shame! Let's find peace in the midst of a culture of hurry.