tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-310226672024-03-13T04:31:11.181-07:00Alien NationEthics, Theology, Church, Prayerdarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.comBlogger134125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-7653174858593885592011-02-15T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-15T13:40:51.314-08:00Serve God, Save the Planet: an Hour of Work, a Day of RestHow Do We Get Our Sabbath Skills Back?<br /><br />'We confuse working with living' Matthew Sleeth pg 99.<br /><br />In this chapter Matthew Sleeth writes about both the importance of physical labor and of actually observing Sabbath. <br /><br />In my limited experience the American Church is terrible at Sabbath. I've suggested that the church I serve observe Sabbath by not shopping on Sunday's for a month. There were many baffled looks, quizzical looks, and some open verbal skepticism as to the practicality of such a thing. (to be honest, I too am so used to thinking about sabbath as 'day to go to church' and not 'day to be at rest and refrain from producing and even being a consumer' that the very next week I went home and ordered a pizza. What a great 'lead-by-example' guy I am!<br /><br />Sabbath came up again in a recent Sermon Talk-back Session on John 5 in which Jesus asks a paralyzed man, lying by the pool of Siloam if he would like to be well. after telling the man to pick up his mat and walk, (it is Sabbath) a Sabbath controversy erupts.<br /><br />So we started talking about Sabbath. The discussion was a combination longing for the rest and simplicity of a real Sabbath, tail-chasing about what we could and couldn't do if we actually were to try to observe sabbath, some confusion about Saturday Sabbath and Sunday Sabbath, and some 'spiritualizing' of sabbath, (an internal practice that doesn't necessarily connect to skills or practices put to use externally.) The sharing was honest and open and real and we learned a lot but what I learned was how confused we are about sabbath as honestly and earnestly as we want to obey God. <br /><br />It seems to me that we have in a few short years since Sunday Commerce laws were relaxed, we have lost the skills to observe Sabbath. We don't even know how to begin to think about it. <br /><br />I think that Matthew Sleeth begins to approach the re-establishment of Sabbath skills by putting both work and sabbath together. I sometimes wonder if on some level we have a hard time conceptualizing Sabbath because we aren't quite convinced of the value of our work. Yes, we are getting a pay-check, but what are we creating? <br />Perhaps we would be more clear about how to do Sabbath is we were more clear about the purpose of our labor beyond getting the bills paid and the retirement fund safely nestled for the future.<br /><br />Which, by the way, is seems to be suggested by Jesus own answer to those who are angry about the healing on the sabbath. Jn 5:19 the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. I hear Jesus saying, 'God, my Father is still working, creating life, and so am I.' Perhaps if we were clearer about how our vocation fit into the on-going creating and redeeming that God is still doing, we would also be clearer about how to practice sabbath. If our vocation doesn't give us a clear connection, perhaps an avocation will. <br /><br />Which is what makes the Christian's engagement in Creation Care seem absolutely vital to me. As I read Genesis 2, God created us to serve and protect the rest of creation. We were made to be engaged in the rest of creation and not alienated from it as we so obviously are. I have begun learning about, preaching about and practicing creation care, not only because of the damage I see humanity doing to God's glorious creation, but also because I think the Bible tells us that unless we are engaged in caring for creation, we are not quite fully human the way God created us to be. <br /><br />So what am I gonna do with all this mental wandering and pondering?<br /><br />1. As a Pastor, physical labor isn't commonly demanded of me so; come spring, we are going to do some gardening in our back-yard. <br />2. We are going to do some gardening in the form of trash pick-up in our neighborhood.<br />3. I have already stopped shopping on sundays. Instead we invite friends over for dinner or gather with extended family for dinner and game night. <br /><br />How do we get our Sabbath skills back?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-24483298816903736132011-02-10T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-10T13:50:38.644-08:00Will Our Children Have Faith Part 3: A More Dynamic Theology<span style="font-style:italic;">One of my continuing concerns is not being clear on what we desire to achieve through our catechetical (educational) efforts. Our aim, I suggest, is to form Christ-like communal persons and communities. This implies for me clarity of faith, of how we are to perceive God. Many people have unhealthy images of God that need to be healed.</span> (46)<br /><br />One of Westerhoff's concerns is not only the 'school paradigm' in the church's catechesis,but also the wide variety of theological options offered to church-goers today. We need 'Theological Essentials' according to Westerhoff. <br /><br />Westerhoff seems to suggest a level of biblical and theological engagement on the part of every disciple (not just us 'professionals') that is rare in my experience and difficult to cultivate. To make it plain (and I say this with much love) very few adults have time or inclination to devote to study and discussion of the bible and theology. I've been a pastor for 11 years (in New England) and adult bible study/discussion opportunities have been poorly attended whenever and wherever I've been a pastor (which may say more about me than anything). <br /><br />In practical terms what I think is more confusing for the average church-goer is not the wide variety of theological options that come from theological institutions; liberation, neo-orthodoxy, post-liberal, etc, but the wide variety of theological options that come from popular culture. For example,take a peek at this partial list from Brueggemann that I found <a href="http://soupiset.typepad.com/soupablog/Brueggemann_19_Theses.html">here</a>:<br /><br />1. Everybody lives by a script. The script may be implicit or explicit. It may be recognized or unrecognized, but everybody has a script.<br /><br />2. We get scripted. All of us get scripted through the process of nurture and formation and socialization, and it happens to us without our knowing it.<br /><br />3. The dominant scripting in our society is a script of technological, therapeutic, consumer militarism that socializes us all, liberal and conservative.<br /><br />4. That script (technological, therapeutic, consumer militarism) enacted through advertising and propaganda and ideology, especially on the liturgies of television, promises to make us safe and to make us happy.<br /><br />5. That script has failed. That script of military consumerism cannot make us safe and it cannot make us happy. We may be the unhappiest society in the world. <br /><br />Brueggemann's 'script' equals my interpretation of Westerhoff's 'theology'. <br /><br />A church that is not actively engaged in learning, teaching and practicing the faith will not only be unable to 'flip the script' that is, discern its theological script in opposition to the social script, but it will also be unable to recognize the cultural idols, religions, faiths and spiritual scripts that Brueggemann suggests are forming us at every moment of every day. <br /><br />In other words, we are failing to be church because we are allowing ourselves to be formed more in the image of popular culture than we are being formed by faith in God. <br /><br />What to do in order to encourage a more dynamic faith?<br /><br />1. Longer Sermons. Yup, I said it. 15-20 minutes a sunday will not offer enough of a script to undermine the cultural script, especially since there is little to no participation in other study/worship opportunities throughout the week. <br /><br />2. sermon's as dialogue. So I am not suggesting longer lectures, I am suggesting more time spent engaging together in the Word of God. I begin with questions, open ended, and simple... What three things would you tell someone who doesn't know anything about Jesus? What five things would you say about God? What struck you as strange or curious about our scripture reading today? Did you feel challenged or threatened by the reading? What about the reading made you feel that way? <br /><br />3. Devotions. I write devotions for most of my sermons. They most often follow up on the major themes or points of every sermon. <br /><br />4. Action. Every sermon leads to action. Every lesson leads to action. Every Bible discussion leads to mission, ministry, action. What are we going to do with what we have discussed? What would the belief that we have discussed today look like in action?<br /><br />5. Mentoring. Folks who want to join the church enter a One year mentorship that involves bible study, participation in ministries, a mission project, and classes with the pastor. <br /><br />What would you do to encourage a more dynamic theology that 'flips the script?'darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-38390105891801913522011-02-09T18:12:00.000-08:002011-02-09T18:55:25.388-08:00On My Way to a Sermon on Deuteronomy 30: God's Gonna Cut You Down'What three things would you say about God?' I asked my 9 and 7 year old sons. <br />He's cool,He's nice, He's loving... <br />I just want to say right off the bat that I try really hard to use gender non-specific language in reference to God. I refer to God as Heavenly Father AND Mother, and really try not to say 'He' too much. We even sing an inclusive language Doxology in church. So where all this 'HE' stuff is coming from I don't know.<br /><br />But for today, it's the adjectives; cool, nice, loving that I'm thinking about. I'm glad they've got the idea of God as 'loving.' But 'cool' and 'nice'? Especially when we get these edgy descriptions of God, like in Deuteronomy 30 where God offers both blessing and threatens destruction. God watching and waiting to either be our best friend or our worst enemy. I knew guys like that in high school. Since I was a small guy, I liked having them on my side, and occasionally one of them would befriend and protect me in gym class. But you never knew when they were going to change their minds from the friend to the enemy. That isn't a good feeling. So you had to watch yourself around them. And you could never really relax, even when they were on your side. <br /><br />Jim Wallis of Sojourners will sometimes mention the Bible he had in seminary (I think) that he cut all of the verses and stories about money out of, to show people what was left in the bible when we ignored them. What would happen if I cut out all the angry, threatening, dangerous God stories? <br /><br />And don't give me that, 'That is the Old Testament God' stuff. <br />Mt 13:49-50 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. <br /><br />It's in the New Testament too. So we've got to deal with it. <br /><br />I think that if we smooth off the rough edges of the Threatening God, we are left without justice, righteousness, even resurrection, which is the vindication of the wrongfully murdered faithful (at least, initially as I understand it). Without a serious and slightly menacing God, we are left with God as a grandfatherly butler therapist, waiting behind the scenes for us to need a favor, but not capable of demanding our allegiance or obedience. God without some menace is a God who we just don't need to take that seriously, and if the research reflected in Kenda Creasy Dean's Almost Christian is accurate, that is the God too many Christians worship and most American's like to think about. <br /><br />So I'm gonna preach in favor of an angry God (very carefully I might add).<br />The questions to consider; What is dangerous about preaching a Threatening and sometimes Angry God? What is missing in our faith if we skip over these stories of God's anger, destructive power, and menacing presence?<br /><br />And somehow I'm gonna work some Johnny Cash into it, because as I was reading Deut 30, this song came to mind. <br /><br /><a id="aptureLink_1TJ1wc7z8a" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IHxG8VkiQA">"God's Gonna Cut You Down"</a><br /><br />You can run on for a long time<br />Run on for a long time<br />Run on for a long time<br />Sooner or later God'll cut you down<br />Sooner or later God'll cut you down<br /><br />Well you may throw your rock and hide your hand<br />Workin' in the dark against your fellow man<br />But as sure as God made black and white<br />What's done in the dark will be brought to the light<br /><br />Go tell that long tongue liar<br />Go and tell that midnight rider<br />Tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter<br />Tell 'em that God's gonna cut you down<br />Tell 'em that God's gonna cut you down<br />Tell 'em that God's gonna cut you downdarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-2205649172031496412011-02-09T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-09T09:29:55.823-08:00Serve God Save the Planet Part 4 Chapter 6This time chapter 6 'Too Much Stuff' <br /><br />On no subject is Jesus more clear than on materialism: a life focused on possessions is a poor and misguided life. Over and again, he urges us to seek a spiritual path and a life of loving one another... Real treasures do not rust, run low on power, become obsolete, clutter up closets and garages, or rack up credit card debt. <br /><br />Consumer Therapy is the default faith of a good many folks who call themselves Christians. We find more solace in shopping and purchasing, and devote more time and energy to it, than to prayer, devotion, study and worship. If we were to total up hours spent in a practice of faith compared to a practice of consumerism I bet we would be shocked. <br /><br />I don't say this from a position of moral superiority. I struggle with it too. <br /><br />I think that what Matthew Sleeth does here is get right to the heart of true Stewardship. In the mainline church tradition we tend to think that stewardship is giving money to the church. <br /><br />What I have struggled to do in year after year of ministry and sermon after sermon on money and material possessions is to suggest that the simplest stewardship decision is giving money. The challenge is re-shaping our desires so that we are not wasting money on constant consumer actions that affect the environment in production, transportation and then disposal. Our desires will not be reshaped if we are spending more time in devotion to the mall gods by listening to their television advertisements and little to no time in prayer or bible study. <br /><br />I would further recommend for those interested in this a book by Luke Timothy Johnson <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sharing-Possessions-Faith-Demands-Second/dp/0802803997/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1296854272&sr=1-1">'Sharing Possessions'</a> <br /><br />Although I disagreed with Johnson's initial argument that Christianity was not an ethic, his exploration of the importance of material goods and biblical survey on the topic was excellent. <br /><br />I would also recommend William Cavanaugh's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Being-Consumed-Economics-Christian-Desire/dp/0802845614/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1296855605&sr=1-2">'Being Consumed: Economics and Christian Desire'</a><br /><br />Sleeth challenges the American Consumer Creed which tells us that we have the right to purchase whatever we want and use our money however we desire with this simple and direct statement:<br /><br />The Christian is not at liberty to do whatever he likes. Christians are constrained by conviction to think about their lives, their actions, and their responsibilities...<br /><br />How much we have, how we spend, how much we spend, all of these bear greater testimony to our true faith than the God-talk we utter. <br /><br />So I'm going to do three things<br /><br />1. Clean out the clutter, getting rid of the stuff I just don't need (in as environmentally responsible way as possible.)<br />2. Learn to live with less by filling my time with things that last; reading, music, family, service to the community and Creation<br />3. Observe a sabbath, on consumerism, not shopping on Sundays. Instead, we are inviting folks over for a Sabbath meal, focusing the support of relationships instead of the quick satisfaction of consumerism. <br /><br />What can you do you pry yourself from the hold of consumerism?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-7317734815100555582011-02-08T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-08T07:57:45.590-08:00Almost Christian Review Part 3 or 3 Ways to Live Faith with our ChildrenIf teenagers lack an articulate faith, maybe it is because the faith we show them is too spineless to merit much in the way conversation. Maybe teenager' inability to talk about religion is not because the church inspires a faith too deep for words, but because the God-story that we tell is too vapid to merit more than a superficial vocabulary... <br /><br />If the God of Jesus Christ is a missionary God who crosses every boundary -- life and death and space and time -- to win us, then following Jesus is bound to be anything but convenient. Jesus Christ doesn't tinker; he tears down walls, draws up new plans, makes demands... (Dean 36-7)<br /><br />Jn 5:2-3<br /> Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda…Here a great number of disabled people used to lie — the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. <br /><br /> Charles Campbell, in his outstanding book, The Word Before the Powers, wonders that if one of the ways the Principalities and Powers, the Systems of Domination, keep us under their thumb is by keeping us busy, tired, and diverted. Kyle Childress<br /><br />My poor kids go to church every sunday (that they are with me.) <br />They have learned John 3:16 and 17, the 23rd Psalm, The Beatitudes in Matthew and are working on the 10 Commandments. <br />But aside from going to church I don't think they see me put what I believe into action enough. <br />How does knowing the verses and the prayers invade my normal life, make me different and challenge me to follow Christ and share the gospel. <br /><br />This is one of the growing edges for my church. We have lots of outreach ministries; clothes closet, oil program that provides heating for struggling families, food closet, Summer Lunch Program, lots of really good things. But most of these things are ministries of a few. We need to find ministries for many. But it is not just a matter of participation. It is a matter, I think, of getting out of our normal routines and comfortable lives to be immersed in ministry that serves others and allows us to gain a new perspective on our own lives, ethical and spiritual. <br /><br />In order to lead my church there, I've got to accept the challenge myself, so here are three challenges for me:<br /><br />First a simple daily practice (outside our devotions)<br /><br />We wash the dishes by hand. This gives us an opportunity to talk about conserving water, caring for creation, and pray together to the God who created all things...<br /><br />Second, an occasional practice<br /><br />Go through all the toys and cut them in half (at least). We will sell these in a yard sale and use the money for a ministry. Throughout we will talk about what Jesus said about possessions, being satisfied with less, the effects of the production and shipping of all these toys on the environment, a local or global ministry we want to be a part of, whether the local food closet or Kiva.org which others in our church highly recommend. The point is to interrupt the process by which my children and I are being transformed in Consumers and intentionally open ourselves to be Christians, who are transformed by a giving and sacrificing Christ. <br /><br />Third, Direct Action<br /><br />The boys are 9 and 7 there aren't a lot of ministries they can volunteer at. I can't take them to Rhode Island Food Bank, they can't have volunteers that young for insurance reasons. The same with many other such local missions.<br />But we will start, with others in our church, to clean the trash from a piece of public land in our neighborhood. Again, we can talk about caring for the earth as God's creation. We will also research some volunteer projects for the family that are fairly close to home. Although someday we might plan a 'volunteer vacation'.<br /><br />Any suggestions?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-21192541969526462082011-02-07T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-07T04:37:21.492-08:00Will Our Children Have Faith Part 2 No More Sunday School'There is a great difference between learning about the Bible and living as a disciple of Jesus Christ...Faith cannot be taught by any method of instruction; we can only teach religion. We can know about religion, but we can only expand in faith, act in faith, live in faith. Faith can be inspired within a community of faith, but it cannot be given to one person by another. Faith is expressed, transformed, and made meaningful by persons sharing their faith in an historical, tradition-bearing community of faith.' (Westerhoff 19)<br /><br />Reading this book sometimes frustrates me. Westerhoff suggests, as noted earlier, that the current 'schooling-instructional paradigm' is simply not effective for nurturing faith in children and youth. But exactly what the alternative is, Westerhoff doesn't really explain. Except to suggest that it is the church. The church is the place not sunday school. <br /><br />So I have this idea that we should completely disband the Christian Education Committee and have every other committee carefully consider and intentionally plan how its duties and responsibilities teach the Christian faith. <br /><br />So Finance would start with; what do Christians believe about money? House would discuss; How do we create a hospitable space? Deacon's would talk about what communion means. And then they would discuss how what they do nurtures faith in children, youth, and new adult Christians. Everyone would do Christian Ed instead of a committee and a team of teachers. <br /><br />'tradition bearing community' that is the phrase that interests me. <br />Sunday School leave the tradition bearing to one committee. But as Christians we believe that every member is given by the Holy Spirit gifts that make the church the body of Christ, gifts for the good of all. It takes every member for the church to be, it must take every member for the church to nurture the faith. <br /><br />Now, I'm not actually disbanding Christian Ed. I can't do that. <br />But I am thinking that the church needs to see 'Christian Nurture' as everyone's responsibility and not the duty of one committee. Perhaps my frustration is part of the churches frustration. We just want some new answer, when what Westerhoff is trying to tell us is that there are no easy answers. Sunday School is not the easy answer to passing the faith on to our children, because there is no one easy way to do that. <br /><br />So, in trying to make sense of what Westerhoff suggests about a tradition-bearing community as opposed to a sunday school:<br /><br />1. Be clear about our Christian beliefs and the Christian Practices that follow from them.<br />2. Find the connections between these beliefs/practices and the duties and responsibilities of the committees. Which may mean that duties need to change if they don't reflect beliefs/practices. <br />3. Intentionally plan projects, activities, actions, that embody beliefs/practices and achieve the responsibilities of each committee, and that include children, youth, and families in a meaningful way. <br /><br />What do you think?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-87959367711178514412011-02-03T00:00:00.000-08:002011-02-03T19:45:05.008-08:00Serve God Save the Planet Part 3 Chapter 8Television: More Real Than Real<br /><br />...the average American watches 1,700 hours of television annually, while the average shcool-age child attends only nine hundred hours fo classes a year. by the time the typical person in our country reaches age seventy-one, he will have spent a solid ten waking years sitting in front of a television.<br /><br />Imagine meeting God and answering the question, 'What did you do with your time on earth?' You are handed a time sheet that details the seconds and decades of this precious gift called life. (109)<br /><br />Sleeth's point in devoting a chapter on television is three-fold. <br /><br />First he points out that the purpose of television is to sell us things. <br />The more things we buy, the more impact on the environment; from the energy to produce and ship the product to the trash that goes in the land-fill, consumerism has an adverse effect on the environment. <br /><br />Second he points out the amount of electricity we use in sitting in front of the television<br /><br />Third he points out the spiritual damage. The time we spend watching television is time that could be spent nurturing family relationships, enjoying creation, and serving others. <br /><br />We watch way to much tv in our house. We have started to turn it off more often. Instead we play games, read, and we have family devotion time that includes discussion and sharing.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-37904360946036008292011-02-02T13:21:00.000-08:002011-02-02T14:40:51.506-08:00Faith in God is NOT a massage: Almost Christian Review Part 2Moralistic Therapeutic Deism makes no pretense at changing lives, it is a low commitment, compartmentalized set of attitudes aimed at 'meeting my needs' and 'making me happy' rather than bending my life into a pattern of love and obedience to God. (30)<br /><br />Which reminds me of a song recorded by a folk trio called Cry, Cry, Cry featuring Dar Williams called Lord I Have Made You A Place in My Heart by Greg Brown<br /><br />Oh Lord, I have made you a place in my heart<br />Among the rags and the bones and the dirt.<br />There's piles of lies, the love gone from her eyes,<br />And old moving boxes full of hurt.<br />Pull up a chair by the trouble and care.<br />I got whiskey, you're welcome to some.<br />Oh Lord, I have made you a place in my heart,<br />But I don't reckon you're gonna come.<br /><br />I've tried to fix up the place, I know it's a disgrace,<br />You get used to it after a while -<br />With the flood and the drought and old pals hanging out<br />With their IOU's and their smiles.<br />Bare naked women keep coming in<br />And they dance like you wouldn't believe.<br />Oh Lord, I have made you a place in my heart,<br />So take a good look - and then leave.<br /><br />Oh Lord, why does the Fall get colder each year?<br />Lord, why can't I learn to love?<br />Lord, if you made me, it's easy to see<br />That you all make mistakes up above.<br />But if I open the door, you will know I'm poor<br />And my secrets are all that I own.<br />Oh Lord, I have made you a place in my heart<br />And I hope that you leave it alone.<br /><br />I believe Almost Christian to be a dangerous book, not just for youth ministers, but for churches. It suggests that many of us who would call ourselves 'disciples' are more interested in 'feeling better' than in allowing our lives to be bent, which means we aren't really disciples at all. At best we are like Peter, hanging around for the reward and running when the following Christ costs us something. Or, as the song suggests, we will make a little guest room for Christ, but want him to leave it alone. What Christ wants to do is Extreme Home Makeover, not hanging new curtains.<br /><br />In The Peaceable Kingdom, Stanley Hauerwas comments that one of central duties of the church is to teach us that we are sinners. <br /><br />Almost Christian causes me to wonder if the mainline church in an effort to remain 'relevant' or at least 'successful' or well, open, has lowered significantly the bar of discipleship. There are easier and less costly ways for folks to feel better about themselves, the shelves are full of self-help books and Oprah is incredibly popular. Talking about sin and suggesting that folks are twisted out of the shape God intended for them, and that church is about bending them back into the image of God, that is dangerous. People might not come if that is what they will hear. <br /><br />Almost Christian suggests to me that we aren't being the disciples Christ calls us to be and that the church has lost is mission and focus, serving the god 'feel better' instead of the living God who burns away the chaff. <br /><br />I found a quote from Walter Brueggemann <br />'Israel (the church) under threat is never an easy 'therapeutic' community, and faith in Yahweh is not a massage. It is the embrace and practice of a destiny that make costly demands in the name of Yahweh. <br /><br />(Essay: Always in the Shadow of Empire. Book: The Church as Counterculture) <br /><br />What do you thinkdarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-71130975805724455442011-02-01T07:26:00.000-08:002011-02-01T13:21:03.641-08:00Will Our Children Have Faith: Reviewing a 'Classic''Will Our Children Have Faith' is not a new book by John H. Westerhoff, III. It was first printed in 1976. I inherited it from a mentor and have found it a very brave critique of Sunday School Culture. You will find much that is challenging in it such as: <br />To be Christian is to ask: What can I bring to another? Not: What do I want that person to know or be? It means being open to learn from another person (even a child) as well as to share one's understandings and ways. To speak of schooling and instruction leads us in other directions and to other conclusions. Should we not ask: Is schooling and instruction in a Christian community necessary for education? Or is living as a Christian with others inherently educational? If we attend to being Christian with others, need we attend to to schooling and instruction? By focusing on schooling and instruction we have ignored these issues and questions that are so important for Christian faith. (17)<br /><br />Westerhoff is criticizing the 'Sunday School' model for trying to take a public school model and apply it to teaching our children faith. In so doing we focus more on creating or finding curriculum, training teachers, training 'experts' in Christian Education, etc. Is applying so much attention to these matters we have placed time, energy and financial resources in a model that simply does not work. In placing so much attention on who will teach my children and what book will they buy and use we are ignoring the most important question, which leads to the most effective teaching model; how am I living my faith with my children? We do not need curricula and classrooms, we need parents and other adult Christians to devote time and effort to their own faith formation and to creating and maintaining relationships with the youth of the church, so that these youth see the adults learning, growing and practicing the faith. <br /><br />We are trying this to put some of this critique to good use at my church. While we do still have the standard sunday school class on sunday mornings before worship, we are now also planning our second 'Christian Family Nurture Project'. For Lent we are going to focus on Communion in worship, in a special adult study and with the children of the church. We are going to bake bread to use in communion, and go out together to visit various church members and take communion to them. The plan is that not only will we be talking about what Communion means, but showing the children what Christians virtues it shapes in us, such as; forgiveness, generosity, and hospitality. The point is not to simply teach information, but together to practice the faith and to create strong inter-generational relationships.<br /><br />What else do you think we could do to focus less on Sunday School and focused more on living the faith concretely with our children?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-87697708260293555342011-01-31T08:03:00.000-08:002011-01-31T14:02:49.527-08:00Serve God Save the Planet Review Part 2; Chapter 5'When asked by pollsters, 90 percent of Americans identify themselves as 'kinder than average.' If we say we care about the least in the kingdom, if we identify ourselves as 'kinder than average,' if we see ourselves as responsible stewards of nature, then we are content. Contentment does not result in change.<br />The content mind is one of the greatest obstacles to a rich spiritual life. The content mind is a proud mind. It has nothing to learn; it has an answer to everything and no more questions to ask.' (62)<br /><br />If you are wondering what this quote has to do with Creation Care I don't blame you for the quizzical look on your face. <br /><br />One of the strengths of Serve God Save the Planet is the connection that its author Matthew Sleeth makes between personal spiritual growth, discipleship and Christian Environmental Ethics. The quote above is included in chapter 5 a Sleeth addresses the gap between concern and caring and action. It includes some interesting exegesis of the parable of the good Samaritan and some compelling statistics about the affects of pollution on the respiratory health of America's children. <br /><br />What I really responded too was Sleeth's call to action, a call which the Church needs to wake it from its therapeutic and emotionally malaise. We are not called to simply have beliefs and be a part of a supportive community (although these are an important component of being church together). We are called to go into all the world carrying a cross and a story of God's amazing, sacrificing love which urges us to repent and live lives of active mercy and justice. Sleeth's firm but gentle critique of a church in the rut of inaction is refreshing...<br /><br />To move from thought to action, we must feel some discomfort with who we are... he says on pg 73 and he is talking about the environment but he could also be talking about poverty, human trafficking, shrinking sunday school attendance, and the list could go on and on. <br /><br />I have long felt that a church that engages in learning about, practicing, teaching creation care would find that the process would challenge other areas of our lives as a church and as disciples that have atrophied. But that the practice of creation care would also inspire deeper and more authentic and intentional forms of spiritual discipline, faith formation and service. <br /><br />the question that haunts me is this; how do you a grow a church that attempts to cause discomfort and not simply be comfortable and comforting?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-20585107706171881072011-01-28T07:31:00.000-08:002011-01-28T07:54:48.210-08:00Almost Christian Review Part 1: 3 Actions which challenge Moralistic Therapeutic Deism'Apart from 'being nice,' teenagers do not think religion influences their decisions, choice of friends, or behaviors. it does not help them obey god, work toward a common good, compose an identity, or belong to a distinctive community. Teenagers do value religion as being personally useful: in addition to helping people be nicer and feel better about themselves, religion can provide comfort amid turmoil, and support for decisions that (by and large) teenagers want to make anyway....Why do teenagers practice Moralistic Therapeutic Deism? Not because they have misunderstood what we have taught them in church. <span style="font-style:italic;">They practice it because this is what we have taught them in church </span><br /><br />Once again I am behind the 8 ball in writing reviews on books that I'm reading, although I am a bit closer with <a id="aptureLink_nBmDqP9CB4" href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51FVdRaiimL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg">'Almost Christian'</a><br /><br />What is most challenging about this book in my opinion is summarized in the phrase quoted above; 'Teenagers do value religion as being personally useful' Although it would be really fun to take a poke at Joel Osteen in my experience this is shockingly just as true a statement for the shrinking mainline (of which I am a part) as it is the burgeoning mega-church culture. Instead of the gospel challenging it is comforting, instead of the gospel calling us to action, it is warm thoughts to get us through our day, instead of re-orienting our lives to living in the kingdom, the kingdom is shoe-horned into cracks and small places between everything else we already do, prioritize and believe. And lets face it, there are much more effective sources of self-help and emotional bolstering than than church; such as Oprah and the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. So it seems ingenuous to me to preach the Gospel as being good for our self-esteem and our productivity and our happiness, when the core of the Gospel is a cross and its sacrifice. <br /><br />So I've done three things to start to challenge Moralistic Therapeutic Deism. It has begun with the language I use.<br /><br />1. Instead of talking about 'getting new members' I have started talking more about gathering and nurturing new disciples. We aren't here to feel better about the membership list, we are called to fish for Christ-followers. <br /><br />2. Instead of talking about 'joining committees' I have started talking about igniting a passion for ministry. We don't just need people to fill a slot on a committee. We need to facilitate experiences where people can serve and make sacrifice for others and in that experience both share the love of Christ and gain experiences that challenge their world-view, assumptions, and personal idols. <br /><br />3. Challenged people to stop talking about 'what church does for me' and begin to talk about what 'church has taught me about serving and sacrificing for others' and what opportunities the church has provided for me to serve and sacrifice.' <br /><br />Do you think MTD is as dangerous as Dean suggests?<br />What needs to change in mainline church to shock us out of our self-centered faith?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-91690741179238251092011-01-26T15:37:00.000-08:002011-01-27T05:49:03.150-08:00Serve God Save the Planet Ch. 4 Technology, Social Networking and Babel TowerI know, I'm behind the 8 ball as usual. I don't blog on the latest publications, I'm something like 5 years behind getting to this book. Why chapter four? that is where it started to get interesting for me. <br /><br />'We have forgotten that we have far more in common with the honeybee than we do with our SUV of DVD...Do you know in which direction the Milky Way traverses the sky? As the phases of the moon progress, does the light go from right to left, or left to right? Can you identify a greater number of trees or cars? If the Bible says God knows every flower and bird, why do we spend so much effort knowing the names of man-made items. Maybe we're paying attention to the wrong things.' (60-61)<br /><br />Matthew Sleeth, MD <br /><br />Should the church and its leaders be embracing technology, devoting time, energy and financial resource, to facebook pages, websites, twitter and worship services that feature prominently videos and images, OR, should we be presenting a respite from all this technology and an alternative way of being together. I know, I sound like a Luddite. <br /><br />What I think is beautifully done in Sleeth's book is that he manages to do some really interesting exegesis, as I will show in future posts, give some really creative options for becoming more environmentally conscious, and he also tackles food ethics, consumerism and our technologically obsessed culture. And he shows quite clearly how they all are connected. <br /><br />In this case our increasingly technologically focused lives are also using more and more electricity, getting less exercise and spending less time with the people and the creation God created us to relate to in order to be fully human (he says, typing on his laptop, while his kids play DS). <br /><br />I think Sleeth is suggesting that all of our obsession with cell phones, social networking, video games, etc, takes our attention away from the things that really keep us connected to our humanity, such as the world that God created for us to live in. Could all of this technology, social networking, ipod-ing, Word-of-Warcrafting, be a Babel Tower we are constructing, hoping to reach the heavens, when the connection to God we need is right in the backyard? <br /><br />And if so, is the church really presenting an alternative to this idolatry it if follows suit by using more and more technology in worship, in ministry? <br /><br />So I again I ask, should the church jump into all this technology or abstain from it? Is there a middle way?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-7493374505165358282011-01-26T14:39:00.000-08:002011-01-26T15:55:55.857-08:005 Things I will Say About Jesus; Answering the Question Who do You Say I Am, On My Way to a SermonFive Things I will Say in Telling Someone about Jesus<br />1. Crucifixion<br />2. Resurrection<br />3. Incarnation<br />4. Revelation<br />5. Prostitution<br /><br />We played a game in our family devotions the other night. The boys, aged 8 and 6 were challenged to say 3 things about Jesus. Mom had to say five things (she is still pretty new to this Christ-follower thing.) They made me say 10 things since I'm the professional (wink, wink). <br /><br />It was an interesting exercise because it showed me what I still had to teach my kids, how much Mom has learned in a few short years and how beneficial lists can be to organizing thoughts. The list above is not what I thought of that night, but the question has been haunting me ever since and I came up with my top five list (think John Cusack's High Fidelity)<br /><br />1. Crucifixion: Obvious answer really. This is where Paul says to start. N.T. Wright suggests (I can't remember where to be honest) that the cross was Paul's answer for every question and problem of the early church. <br />I would want people to know that Crucifixion makes us look sin square in the eye. We can't hide from it. <br />Crucifixion also puts God's great love for us front and center. <br />Crucifixion challenges the power of empire and reminds us of the danger of violence in word or deed. <br />Jesus was God's power incarnate, but that incarnation was service and sacrifice, not violence or greed. People who think that Church or religion is about wealth, power, and controlling the masses need to hear about crucifixion.<br /><br />2. Resurrection: Resurrection for me is about God honoring the faithfulness of the disciple. Resurrection gives me hope so that I can follow Christ even though it seems like a bad idea to; forgive seventy times seven, turn the other cheek, put away my sword, sell all I own and give to the poor, touch lepers, order pizza with whores, etc, etc. I wouldn't have the courage to do all this (I'm still trying to do all this) if I didn't have the hope that grief and pain I get in this life, trying to do these things wasn't the whole story, and that someday, this insignificant life would be honored with resurrection because i tried to be faithful every day. Christ was faithful and obedient to the degree of self-sacrifice. God defeated human sin symbolized in the cross and the separation it caused between Creator and creation with resurrection. God empowers us with the hope of the resurrection. <br /><br />3. Incarnation: Now you will really see how poorly I did in systematic theology. I'm sure more could be said about incarnation that what follows. but to me incarnation is about presence. The fact that Jesus is not just a man, but the Word of God made flesh means that presence is important. God loved us enough to be like us, to stop calling for us to come back through the prophets and just come take us by the hand and lead us back. For me Incarnation means I have to do more than have ideas about the Trinity, I have to embody what I believe. So incarnation pushes me to do more than pray about someone or something, or write a check for someone or something, and roll my sleeves up and get dirty practicing God's love. <br /><br />4. Revelation: Probably what I mean by Revelation really should be called repentance, but that would mess up my cool '-tion' thing that I got going on. Jesus words have authority. Jesus shows us how far we have fallen from being the humanity God intended us to be, and challenged us to repent of all that. But Jesus also gives us wisdom to turn and follow the way which is life in the Kingdom of God. Jesus confronts sin but also delivers the good news we are loved. Revelation challenges me to be honest with myself and others, and also to be merciful with myself and others.<br /><br />5. Prostitution: I threw this in here for what I hope is a bit of a shocker! While Jesus came to call everyone, rich and poor, morally upright and morally bankrupt into a relationship with God, the Jesus I read about in the gospels spent most of his time with outcasts, expendables, the sick, the poor, the forgotten... all the wrong folks. Which reminds me of two things; I have to occasionally risk a good reputation in order to go be with the wrong people, that is what Jesus did. This discipleship thing will definitely take me out of my comfort zone and cause me to do things and be with people that society around me will not approve of, and I will not always be popular. this isn't a popularity contest, it is a faithfulness marathon. <br /><br />This certainly isn't an exhaustive list. More things could be said, should be said and probably could be said better. But this is my list. What do you think? What is on your list? darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-91436640252819197822011-01-24T05:22:00.000-08:002011-01-24T05:23:47.031-08:00Sermon John 21: Do You Love Me? Reflecting the Love of GodWhy does Jesus ask Peter three times about love. <br /> I think Jesus has his doubts about Peter<br /><br />This is the Peter, you recall from last weeks sermon, who didn’t want to accept Jesus call to follow by laying down his life and picking up a cross. <br /><br />More importantly this is the Peter who talked a good game just before Jesus arrest; he would fight and die for Jesus. But when the soldiers showed up Peter ran and hid. And when confronted by someone who recognized him as one of Jesus’ disciples he denied knowing who Jesus was…. Three times. <br /><br />Frankly I’m surprised that Jesus would sit down to breakfast with Peter. <br /> I don’t think I would have. <br /> Why would I open myself up to that kind of disappointment again.<br /> Why would I trust only to run the risk of betrayal again.<br />I don’t need to stay up all night thinking about how Peter’s fear or distractions got the better of him<br /> I trusted this guy to be the rock of the church,<br /> But he was too busy fishing to get started<br /> <br />I don’t want the pain of being stabbed in the back again<br /><br />I’m tired of stickin my neck out for this guy, <br /> Taking his hand when he sinks in the stormy sea<br /> Going out of my way to find him when he is lost in Galilee<br /> Giving him a catch of fish even…<br /> A gift he definitely doesn’t deserve<br /> and this is the kind of thanks I get<br /> is him saying he doesn’t even know me.<br /> <br />We don’t know if these thoughts ran through Jesus head as he was quizzing Peter<br />But they would be running through mine<br /><br />And this little imaginative exercise gets us to the really uncomfortable center of this story.<br /><br />The risk that God took in loving us<br /> And the long history of disappointment.<br /><br />We may operate under the assumption that God loves us because we are decent folk<br />But that isn’t the story the bible tells<br /><br />Adam and Eve chose to listen to the advice of the serpent<br /> And you tell me how hard it is to keep on loving someone who<br /> Listens to the advice of a bad friend, <br /> And insists on making bad choices and then<br /> Calling you for consolation<br /><br />Israel is freed from slavery in Egypt<br /> God smashes their shackles<br /> And breaks their chains <br /> And leads them across the red sea<br />And how do they thank him?<br /> By complaining about the menu in the desert<br /> And wishing they could go back and put the chain on again<br /><br />You tell me how much ingratitude hurts<br /> Does it make you feel like being loving?<br /><br />The love that is recorded in the Bible is a risky and costly king of love<br /> It isn’t the magical and mysterious emotion that makes everything seem beautiful<br /> It isn’t the high of dopamine washing through your brain<br /><br />The love of God in the Bible is soul wrenching, gutsy work.<br /> Love isn’t about emotions or chemicals<br /> And it isn’t reserved for those who have earned it or deserve it<br /> Or even return it<br /><br />As Rob Bell says, God loves us just the way we are, and too much to let us stay this way<br /><br />The love of God is a gift given not for who we are, <br /> But for who we might be,<br /> To transform us into the beautiful creation we were meant to be<br /><br /><br />From Genesis to Revelation we are given story after story of God’s great undeserved love for us<br /> Like Jesus love for the lepers, willing to risk his own health<br /> Like Jesus love for the woman caught in adultery, <br /> willing to sacrifice his reputation<br /> Like Jesus love for the Geresene Demoniac, willing to lay aside safety.<br /> Like Jesus love for the Romans, choosing to die instead of fight back.<br /> Like Jesus love for Peter, willing to be betrayed again<br />In the hope that God’s love will transform them <br /> Into the beautiful creation they were meant to be. <br /> <br />It is kind of strange really,<br /> That not only does the Bible redefine love,<br /> From chemical reaction<br /> And sappy emotion<br /> To this selfless, risky choice, over and over and over again<br /><br />But also, that when you stop and consider it<br /> The Bible seems to suggest that there are lots of good reasons NOT to love<br /> Because this kind of love costs something, perhaps everything. <br /><br />The story is told that Clarence Jordan, that great Southern, social prophet, visited an integrated church in the Deep South. Jordan was surprised to find a relatively large church so thoroughly integrated, not only black and white but also rich and poor; and this was in the early sixties, too. Jordan asked the old country preacher, "How did you get the church this way?"<br />"What way?" the preacher asked. Jordan went on to explain his surprise at finding a church so integrated, and in the South, too. <br />The preacher said, "Well, when our preacher left our small church, I went to the deacons and said, 'I'll be the preacher.' The first Sunday as preacher, I opened the book and read, 'As many of you as has been baptized into Jesus has put on Jesus and there is no longer any Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, males or females, because you all is one in Jesus.'<br />Then I closed the book and I said, 'If you are one with Jesus, you are one with all kind of folks. And if you ain't, well, you ain't.'"<br />Jordan asked what happened after that. "Well," the preacher said, "the deacons took me into the back room and they told me they didn't want to hear that kind of preaching no more." <br />Jordan asked what he did then. "I fired them deacons," the preacher roared.<br />"Then what happened?" asked Jordan. <br />"Well," said the old hillbilly preacher, "I preached that church down to four. Not long after that, it started growing. And it grew. And I found out that revival sometimes don't mean bringin' people in but gettin' people out that don't dare to love Jesus." (As told in Hauerwas and Willimon, Where Resident Aliens Live, Nashville: Abingdon, 1996, p. 103).<br />That is the bad news. <br /> <br />But maybe it is also good news.<br /><br />Maybe Jesus challenges Peter with three questions about love<br /> Because he sees in Peter the ability to love<br /> Yet unrealized potential, but great potential nonetheless<br /> Perhaps he knew that the image of God <br /> Lying dormant in Peter, was the image of risky, self-sacrificing love<br /> That God could give Peter the power to love others<br /> And to teach others to love<br /> Perhaps Jesus knew that Peter could be the rock upon which the church would be built.<br />Perhaps it wasn’t doubt, but belief, or hope.<br /><br />Belief and hope that Peter would respond to the challenge<br /> Throw off his own fetters of fear and self-preservation<br /> The comfort of the life he knows at the seashore<br /> The convenience of going back to life the way it was<br /> To go out and take the risk of carrying God’s long story of risky love to the world.<br /><br />The challenging question remains,<br /> Do we dare love Christ this much?<br />The inspiring promise remains<br /> The love that protected Adam and Eve<br /> That guided Israel in the desert<br /> That healed the lepers<br /> Sheltered the shamed woman<br /> That forgave peter and embraced him<br />That shocking, world creating, life changing love<br /> Is waiting for another Peter in this day and age<br /> Looking for another disciple to say <br /> <br /> Yes Lord, I love you<br /> Despite the costs,<br /> Including the risks<br /> Because of the hope it brings<br /> I love youdarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-69334245446244187952011-01-18T18:40:00.000-08:002011-01-19T19:58:19.922-08:00Love, Peacemaking, and Potluck: On My Way to a SermonI used to write sermons by trying to discover itch and then the scratch of it. <br />For instance, one possible itch of the Parable of the Good Samaritan would be the apathy humanity can have toward those who are other, outsiders, outcasts. The scratch is that all humanity is outside of God's will for us, but still we are accepted by Christ. Therefore as outsiders welcomed into God's grace, we are called to embrace the outsider.<br /><br />I suppose I still do this to an extent. But the other day I found a really interesting blog called <a href="http://thehardestquestion.com">the hardest question </a> I really wish I'd thought of this myself. Various bloggers write posts on the coming weeks lectionary. There are lots of blogs that do this. What I think is unique is that the bloggers are highlighting the most challenging, perhaps even offensive lessons to be drawn from the readings (this is my take on it, the folks at the hardest question might want to put it differently). So this is what I am looking for as I write a sermon now. What will be the hardest thing to hear in the lesson, what will challenge us most, be the most difficult to carry out, what is the painful change being commanded of me, in this story.<br /><br />So I'm on John 21 for this sunday. <br />Jesus makes a post resurrection appearance to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberius. He loads down their empty net with fish and then invites Peter to breakfast. <br />This is followed by Jesus questioning Peter's love three times.<br /><br />do yo love me, feed my sheep.<br /><br />I found it difficult to identify anything terribly troubling in all this. <br /><br />Until I started to think about Jesus inviting Peter to breakfast when Peter had denied even knowing him less than a week before. That kind of love goes way beyond sentimentality and romance which is the popular understanding of love. It is risky and probably stupid, to trust someone who has let you down, disappointed you and stabbed you in the back. <br /><br />John is closing his gospel with a picture of Jesus being reconciled with the person who hurt him the most. Love is redefined from chemical reaction in the brain or sappy emotions to a courageous act of forgiveness and the reforging of a broken relationship. We build the church on this kind of love in action. This is the foundation of the church's ministry of peace-making, to be willing to create peace, day after day, week after week with the one's we love and who sometimes let us down, hurt us, betray us. <br /><br />I found this quote by Thomas Merton. I'd read it long ago, and have never forgotten it:<br />As long as we are on earth, the love that unites us will bring us suffering by our very contact with one another, because this love is the resetting of a Body of broken bones. Even saints cannot live with saints on this earth without some anguish, without some pain at the differences that come between them… It is principally in the suffering and sacrifice that are demanded of men to live together in peace and harmony that love is perfected in us.<br /><br />What will I do with this lesson.<br />Start inviting more folks over for lunch after church, or dinner during the week. Not necessarily just in the case of a break in the relationship, but just to build strong relationships and in so doing to give and receive the love of Christ.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-51183108714006000092011-01-14T11:34:00.000-08:002011-01-14T12:18:07.640-08:00On My Way To a Sermon; Lay Down Your Life, Take up Your Cross;For What will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?<br />matt 16:26 <a href="http://bible.oremus.org/?passage=Matthew+16%3A21-28">(to read the whole passage follow this link)</a><br /><br />It seemed pretty obvious to me from the outset that these word's of Jesus were meant to challenge and inspire an apathetic faith and urge the disciples to greater depths of service and sacrifice. <br /><br />But it was an uncomfortable message to try to craft for two reasons:<br /><br />1. Every church has a core, some say 20%, who do all the work. Will a sermon urging more sacrifice, more service, really inspire devotion or will it instead just sound ungrateful for their efforts and inspire a feeling of 'never being good enough.' So the challenge; do not soften the challenging edges of Jesus' words, but do so in such a way that also offers grace to those who do devote great amounts of time and energy to the ministry of the church. <br /><br />2. The first discomfort leads the second; that the faith Jesus intends to inspire would be perceived as effort, will, work. To me, this is the balance that is so difficult to strike when it come to teaching, not to mention living the faith. On the one hand we can become so focused on doing the right thing(s) that we forget that gift of grace which is given and not earned. this leads to Christian service which is simply self-serving. On the other hand we can become so enamored of faith as belief that we observe very few practices of the faith. <br />Jesus was not teaching that we had to earn grace, but that to follow him is to go where he goes and to do what he does (as best we can) So how to strike the balance.<br /><br />while watching a television show about helping hoarders clean their homes, one of the home owners said, 'I thought you were coming to help me, not take away the things I love.' That seemed to me, to somehow bring this passage into focus. Christ isn't simply saying, 'do more.' Christ is saying, choose carefully what it is that commands your time, attention, passion, finance. If these are focused on things that ultimately will not deepen your relationship with God and with humanity, best to lay it down and replace it with something that will deepen one's faith and connection to those whom Jesus devoted a life to. <br /><br />Something else that entered my mind as I was working on this sermon was a quote from Kenda Creasy Dean's book Practicing Passion: Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church. 'If the church is going to make sense to adolescents, then our ministry must be predicated on passion-the passion of Christ, the passion of youth, and the passionate faith that is made possible when these two things come together.' (22). <br /><br />This is what Jesus is trying to inspire, a passionate faith, in the face of a passive faith. <br />These words of Jesus challenge a church that is so focused on self-help and self-esteem that it has lost its true mission, which is to see God's purpose done in the world<br />These words of Jesus challenge a discipleship that is assumes it already knows the right answers to the doctrinal questions, but is not put into action in any intentional way<br />These words of jesus challenge the church that as satisfied with 'be good' and <br />be nice' to accept the challenge of the cross. <br />These words of Jesus challenge a discipleship that treats the church as ok when it is convenient, but not all that important, not something to sacrifice for, with a warning of the consequences of an apathetic faith, the loss of life.<br /> <br />How has this affected me? <br />What do I need to lay down? despite my story, I watch too much tv. So the formation of this sermon has challenged me to lay down TV and technology time. Let some of it go. <br />What will I pick up as a cross? To start I am going to take some of the time spent in front of TV and Computer memorizing and meditating on the beatitudes. There are other things I will do. game night with the family, reading, when the winter is gone, a walk in the woods. Ultimately it will lead to a family practice of service in the community, like cleaning trash from the side of the road and inviting others to join us. <br />Picking up the cross does mean service to others, but for me picking up the cross begins with time for devotion and prayer, which will strengthen me for works of service.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-22697770645950048762010-08-08T10:28:00.000-07:002010-08-08T10:30:48.930-07:00Sermon onConsumerism and Possessions; Material GirlLuke 12:22-34<br />The Spirituality of Pants II or We are Living in a Material World and I am a Material Girl.<br /><br />Intro to the problem: <br />I’d like to begin this morning by jumping in the pop music time machine and going back to the days of my youth; the days of jelly shoes and leg warmers, up-turned collars, learning to do the Thriller dance and really bright neon colored clothing… the 80’s…<br />VERSE 1:<br />G<br />Some boys kiss me, some boys hug me<br />F G<br />I think they're O.K.<br />G<br />If they don't give me proper credit<br />F G<br />I just walk away<br />G<br />They can beg and they can plead<br />F G<br />But they can't see the light, that's right<br />G<br />Cause the boy with the cold hard cash<br /> F G<br />Is always Mister Right, 'cause we are<br /><br /><br />CHORUS:<br />C D D Em<br />Living in a material world<br /> C D G<br />And I am a material girl<br />G <br />You know that we are<br />C D D Em<br />living in a material world<br /> C D G<br />And I am a material girl<br /><br />[Note; Yes I did sing this... No I did not sing it well]<br /><br />Our first reaction as a Christian Community is… No we are NOT materials boys and girls. We are spiritual. We do not over value possessions and we know that there is more to life than having stuff. <br /><br />On the other hand we are all familiar with George Carlin’s classic rant about stuff…<br /><br />Now, its funny, because we do identify with it. We do collect stuff. We throw away lots of stuff. We ease our troubled souls by shopping for more stuff. And we feel a little conflicted about our stuff and the amount of stuff we have because of Jesus’ words today….<br /><br /><br />Lk 12:22-23<br /> "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23 Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.<br /><br />Lk 12:32-33<br /> 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. <br /><br />Don’t worry about your stuff… its sound’s like Jesus is saying… Get rid of all your stuff… which sounds impossible, impractical and well, no fun at all. Like you I feel conflicted about the amount of stuff that I have collected, but I also find comfort and meaning in my stuff…<br /><br />What Jesus is talking about in saying ‘don’t worry about food and clothing’ is that the pull of the security of possessions is subtle. We don’t think consciously that cars and computers, cells phones and shoes are more secure than God. But without thinking about it, we can act like it. <br /><br />But what exactly does Jesus mean? What are we supposed to do with these commands to not worry about what we eat or what we wear? And wouldn’t following these commands cause us to end up on the doll waiting for a state check?<br /><br />What gets complicated, I think, is that we tend to interpret what Jesus says as meaning we shouldn’t care too much for things… so we try not too… but we are also in a society where stuff is cheap, easy to get, and constantly thrown at us. And stuff can be easily discarded and replaced. How many of us call a tv repairman anymore, or go to a cobbler? So as Christians we don’t really know how to fit what Jesus is saying into our existence. We don’t over-value stuff, which is what Jesus is saying… but we also collect a lot of stuff, and discard a lot of stuff. We don’t know where it was made or if the workers were paid or treated with dignity. As long as after it has run the course of usefulness it is out of our house we tend not to think about where it is, although we have a vague sense that the world, the natural world is increasing clutter with all of our cheap plastic crap. <br /><br />As a parent I see it. It causes me anxiety. I do worry about the amount of stuff that get accumulated in a house with kids…. All those toys. And on the one hand, they make the kids happy and in some cases cause enjoyment and even intellectual and physical development. On the other hand a growing pile of stuff in the basement shows me that most of the stuff doesn’t get used. The thrill was the getting and not the having and using. The high is pursuing something new and once the new has worn off, we discard it and move on to something else. And that does concern me. What is that teaching my children about living carefully in God’s creation? What is that teaching them about using money? What is that teaching them about other things like relationships? The connection may not seem obvious, but recall the story of Esther. (explain)<br /><br />And I know that adult too consider these things and worry over them. We buy something, a car, a motorcycle, jewelry, clothing… because it makes us happy and we enjoy it… but we also feel a little guilty about spending when we could have used that money for someone in need or for a cause that we believe in and support. <br /><br />We are bothered by what Jesus says about stuff, his warning that we place too much faith in things through our actions, but not exactly sure how to navigate through the conflict of needing, wanting, caring for others, enjoying things for ourselves…<br />We don’t want to keep up with the Kardashians, but neither do we want to become Amish…<br /><br />What struck me about Jesus words is the fact that to my ears, he is reminding us of the creation story. I know it is subtle and scholars would probably disagree with me. But notice how Jesus encourages us not to place too much value on stuff by calling our attention to the beauty of Creation. In the midst of the anxiety we feel about our stuff Jesus reminds us of the story of God Creating.<br /><br /><br />Lk 12:24-28<br />24 Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? <br /><br />27 "Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, <br /><br />God speaks and the constellations are cast in the heavens; God breathes and the planets flow on their courses through space. At a word from God all this exists and part of this story is the story of Adam and Eve being invited to participate. Name the animals, serve and protect creation. <br />It seems as if jesus is saying, God is still creating and you are invited to participate in that creating. <br />Come on…<br />That is exciting stuff…<br />You and I were created by God and called by God to join in the creating. <br />It isn’t just about getting stuff… it is about being creative…<br /><br />In a world where we read stories of violence around the globe, the shooting of aid workers in Afghanistan, oil spills not just in the gulf, but in china and Michigan, surrounded by unemployment and the poverty that it spawns, it is so tempting to feel overwhelmed, to feel unimportant, to feel that we have nothing to contribute to such overwhelming and complex brokenness…<br />I just need to go home and forget about it all with some of my stuff…<br />For me that stuff is brownies and my Lord of the Rings DVD’s…<br /><br />But Jesus is saying that we have a place in Creating and Redeeming all this brokenness… we are called participate creatively in the healing of the nations…<br /><br />And I think that point for Christians today is that our stuff, our possessions is not outside or separate from this calling, this healing this creating… our stuff is a part of our call, a part of our message, a part of our creativity with God. <br /><br /><br />Let me ask you a question. In your high school year book under my picture was a list that summarized who I was at that point in time… a list with items like… Most prized possession…<br /><br />Did you have that in your yearbook?<br />If you did, can you remember what your most prized possession was? <br />My most prized possession was my collection of Dokken tapes. <br />Dokken was a heavy metal hair band that was kinda popular, but not terribly popular. <br />It was my prized possession because of what it said about me. <br />I was NOT into pop music like Michael Jackson or Madonna or NKOTB…<br />I was into an edgier, more musically complex, slightly more esoteric type of music…<br /><br />Our stuff, our possessions are important because they do say something about who we are.<br /><br />I drive a Prius. Now if you think that I drive a Prius because I love it you are wrong. (I do love the gas mileage) but I do not like the size, its very cramped with three kids and the performance is lacking. I do not love stepping on and the gas and watching joggers, bicyclists and residents of Ashton court out walking their dogs pass me by as the Prius whispers up to top speed. <br /><br />I have the Prius because I do believe that humanity is having a negative impact on God’s Creation and because I worship the Creator God, part of that worship means the practice of caring for Creation. The Prius means that I care about the Earth because God created the Earth and if I must sacrifice performance for loving care of what God created, so be it. The prius tells people a bit about who I am and if they ask, it is an opportunity to tell people about my faith. <br /><br />Our stuff means something. Possessions are not only things that we own or have, they are an extension or an expression of who we are and what we are becoming. <br /><br />I remember a moment that really made this apparent to me especially the difficulty on our consumer culture of maneuvering through the meaning of our things. I was visiting a friend at work, stopped by for lunch and he said, come out and meet one of my clients. Now I want you to look at the pin on her coat and then her vehicle. Ok. So I go out into the parking lot, shake hands, exchange pleasantries… on her coat a button that says NO FUR. So, she is taking a moral stand against the use and abuse of animals for conspicuous consumption. She was driving a Cadillac Escalade with a leather interior. <br /><br />My point is that it is easy for us to think consciously that our values and beliefs are embodied in our lives by our thoughts and our ideas, but to connect that to actions and possessions, takes careful planning and thought. AND, without careful consideration and awareness we can contradict what we believe with what we have, pursue, value, own…<br /><br />To best honor what Jesus is saying to us today, I think we need to embrace that we are Material boys and girls. <br /><br />And instead of keeping our spiritual life separate from our stuff, we need to let the Spirit invade our stuff. <br /><br />If you think about it, that is the heart of our faith. The word became flesh and dwelt among us, John says. The spirit invaded, flesh, stuff. God doesn’t want faith and stuff separate, but together, working in concert, for the renewing of Creation. We proclaim it every month when we say together, this bread is my body, this cup is a new covenant. Spirit and stuff, together creating us, recreating the world.<br /><br />Over the next few weeks I’m going to start taking a spiritual inventory of my stuff and how I use my stuff. The biggest struggle for me will probably be the TV, I can so easily become entranced and addicted to TV. But I will honor both my spirit and the Creative Holy Spirit if I turn it off and have game night with the boys, or take Anna for a walk with Bert, or read a book. <br /><br />Your inventory will be different. There will be different things that cloud the image of God that you were created to be, and different things that help you to realize your creative potential. The struggle will be to rid ourselves of the things that twist us, subtly out of the shape God is trying to mold us into. The challenging but hopefully redeeming practice for us as Christians embracing the spirit of our stuff, will be to pause and ask ourselves, when we are thinking of getting more stuff, is how will this stuff feed my spirit? How did its production affect the spirit of the one producing it? Will this develop the image of God within me or distort that image? Will others see my faith through my stuff?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-73789379466450840212010-04-13T12:18:00.000-07:002010-04-13T13:04:52.256-07:00Earth Day, A Celebration of God's Love<a style="float: left; padding: 0px 6px;" id="aptureLink_6UBnKFWXZZ" href="http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:I1KHCb5NSOFT9M::www.rps.psu.edu/probing/graphics/earth2.jpg"><img title="Research|Penn State: Why does the Earth rotate?" src="http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:I1KHCb5NSOFT9M::www.rps.psu.edu/probing/graphics/earth2.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="116px" height="116px"></a><br /><br />Should Environmental Concerns be a part of the gospel proclamation of the church?<br /><br />This week I am working on a sermon for Earth Day Sunday. Having done some environmental justice sermons before what most often seems to be the hurdle to jump is the political overtones. In trying to encourage Christians to think about the environment from a Biblical perspective, I often hear responses from a political perspective, from the left or the right, republican or democrat, conservative or liberal. While I must admit that my own awareness of the environmental 'movement' came after watching Al Gore's video, I very quickly began to study the bible with eyes open to what it had to say about Creation, so that the theology of the church I serve would be shaped by theology and scripture as opposed to politics. <br /><br />This weeks sermon is inspired by a number of sources;<br /><br />First; John 13:34-35<br /><br />34 "A new command I give you: Love one another . As I have loved you, so you must love one another . 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another ." <br /><br />Second; Lk 12:27-28<br /><br />27 "Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!<br /><br />Here is the point I am considering. We are commanded by Christ to love one another in John. The text from Luke illustrates God's love for creation by caring for creation. (I know that isn't the overall point Jesus is trying to make, but he is using God's love of creation to illustrate God's watch-care over humanity)<br /><br />If we are commanded to love, to participate in the love of God as illustrated by Christ, and Christ himself refers to God's love and care for all of creation, even the lilies, are we too then, not called to love all of creation?<br /><br />Three: Willis Jenkins in his book 'Ecologies of Grace' refers to the work of James Nash and summarizes Nash's thoughts with this; 'by learning to love nature, we participatively imitate God's love. <br /><br />Caring for Creation then, becomes a spiritual practice in which we contemplate God's love for us through the beauty of creation. By making creation care a part of our spiritual lives, even through simple things like recycling, gardening, participating in farmer's markets, walking or biking instead of driving when we can, etc. we are imitating God's love and learning how to love more fully.<br /><br />To see a previous Earth Day Sermon: <br />http://alienationchurch.blogspot.com/2009/06/glacier-and-grace.htmldarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-80984656807808041082010-04-07T06:27:00.001-07:002010-04-07T06:55:23.132-07:006 Prayer Steps to Healing Broken Relationships: The Painful Exercise of Building CommunityThis is Lenten Update 9:<br />Ok, so first of all, I know that Lent is past. <br />Here is the thing. During the final three weeks of Lent I got so distracted that praying the Office, Memorizing Scripture and abstaining from TV completely fell by the way-side. <br />First I spent a great deal of time for a week or more at the bedside of a dear friend and member of my congregation who was dying. Lots of long days and nights in the hospital with him and his family. It was a sad time to say the least, but an honor and a privilege to be included in such a intimate time with this man and his family. I did a lot of praying, but not the Office. I don't regret it one bit, although I'm still saddened by the loss of such a wonderful man. In these times caring for others had to take priority. <br />After that I had two weeks of flu-fighting and frankly, I couldn't be bothered with anything but sleeping and well.... other flu connected activities that I won't describe. <br /><br />So I've decided to make my Lenten Disciplines my Easter Disciplines. <br /><br />So two brief notes. <br />First, I ran across this beautiful post<a style="margin: 0pt auto; text-align: center; display: block; padding: 0px 6px;" id="aptureLink_xEycApw6EY" href="http://blog.sojo.net/2010/04/06/searching-for-community-in-a-hyper-mobile-culture/"><img title="Searching for Community in a Hyper-Mobile Culture - Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove" src="http://placeholder.apture.com/ph/400x270_WebClip/" style="border: 0px none;" width="400px" height="270px"></a> by <a id="aptureLink_LO9rfQ2yWr" href="http://<a style="margin: 0pt auto; text-align: center; display: block; padding: 0px 6px;" id="aptureLink_xEycApw6EY" href="http://blog.sojo.net/2010/04/06/searching-for-community-in-a-hyper-mobile-culture/"><img title="Searching for Community in a Hyper-Mobile Culture - Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove" src="http://placeholder.apture.com/ph/400x270_WebClip/" style="border: 0px none;" width="400px" height="270px"></a>">Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove</a><br /><br />In this post he speaks about how we react to our culture by wanting community, but then want it to come instantly and easily. But Community only comes through time and effort. I have experienced this personally and more profoundly as a pastor, as my church has a wonderful track record for welcoming the un-churched and the church-damaged, but still struggles with how to hold these folks long enough for them to develop the relationships they so earnestly seek. Building community can be messy and painful. We disappoint one another. So often I have witnessed folks new to the community of church distance themselves because of tension within the community. <br /><br />How to rebuild fractured relationships?<br />1. accept that it is not something that you alone can do. In prayer you must trust that God can speak again to the chaos and create life.<br />2. Meditate on God's love for you. Otherwise the dialogue with the other will seem like competition or fighting. When we are firmly rooted in God's love for us, we can accept the criticism and pain of others as a gift.<br />3. Be silent. Don't respond. Don't form a defense or an argument. First, just listen. Perhaps the criticism is unfair or inaccurate. but that will only be clear after.<br />4. More prayer. Return in prayer to God's love and then ask God to reveal the wisdom of the other's words. <br />5. Pray for this other person. That God will allow you to see them as God sees them. That God will allow you to remain with them a moment in their pain, even if you haven't done anything to cause it, and it is being projected at you. Perhaps you didn't cause it, but your calm loving presence might be the gift God wants to give them to allow them to heal from this pain. <br />6. Keep up the holy conversation. express yourself truthfully. Listen carefully. Don't give up or give in and isolate yourself, but stay open. Read Phil 2 for a guide. <br /><br />Blessingsdarinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-48777983620625073362010-03-16T08:17:00.000-07:002010-03-16T08:35:10.784-07:00Lenten Discipline Update 8: Ps 63; dry and weary prayerSometimes I just don't feel like praying, there I said it...<br /><br />O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you<br />my soul thirsts for my <br />my flesh faints for you<br />in a dry and weary land where there is no water<br />Ps 63<br /><br />that is how prayer feels to me sometimes... like a dry and weary land. Prayer is dry and I'm weary.<br />That is why I haven't posted any Lenten Discipline updates... I've been in the dry and weary land of not feeling prayer. <br /><br />Part of my own practice for Lent is silence and solitude in prayer, so that I can listen. <br />Which is that much harder when I'm not feeling like it. <br />When I'm doing 'talking' prayer, at least I can talk about not feeling like praying<br />When its silent prayer, what can I do?<br />so random thoughts float into my head. <br /><br />What was the name of my first cat when I was a kid? Pussy-willow. Why did I name a cat pussy-willow? <br />Bacon, I like bacon. <br />which reminds me I like fruit loops too. but Michael Pollan says fruit loops aren't food because they change the color of the milk. <br />I bet we need milk.<br />DAMN! I did it again... <br /><br />I fill in silent time because I want prayer time to be effective. <br />There must be a result, if not an instant result than a result within a reasonable amount of time, and I get to define reasonable. <br /><br />That is why prayer became dry. <br />I wanted to define prayer,<br />wanted it to be what I wanted, which is effective.<br />I wanted there to be some result to my prayer.<br /><br />Just wait<br /><br />that is what I heard after I finally pieced together about five minutes of silence..<br />just wait. <br /><br />this isn't about what you want, it isn't about results yet.<br /><br />just shut up and listen<br /><br />Let the thoughts go, do worry that you them, just let them float on through<br /><br />Don't try to accomplish anything or learn or discover anything<br /><br />Just listen and wait<br /><br /><br />That is what I got. I should wait. Prayer isn't a task to be completed or a tool for the accomplishment of some item on my agenda. Prayer is for its own sake, and therefore it takes time. It isn't about benefits and rewards. not instantly anyway... Not right now for me anyway. Right now it is about the discipline of being still and silent for no other purpose, whether I like it or not.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-40029266845864071942010-03-11T17:37:00.000-08:002010-03-11T18:20:27.906-08:00Haiti and Tony CampoloTony Campolo in an essay entitled <a id="aptureLink_zM3mdB1JXH" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-campolo/making-matters-worse-in-h_b_482858.html">'Making Matters Worse'</a> suggests that the mission work done by thousands of American Christians is Haiti is the reason for the poverty of the country; 'thousands of church groups that have taken "mission teams" to Haiti to build schools and churches in Haitian villages across that little country. Yet Haiti has continued in a downward spiral into greater and greater poverty and social disorganization, not in spite of all these "good works," but in great part because of them. So much of what has been done in Haiti has disempowered Haitians and diminished their dignity by doing for them what they could have done for themselves.'<br /><br />I'm all for incisive and intelligent criticism, and I think one could also make some critique of some of these mission trips. But in this case Campolo's critique is woefully lacking in any historical or political perspective. Now I'm no expert in Haitian History, but here is a sample of what I do know<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Haiti was a slave plantation controlled by France. In 1804, inspired by Toussaint L’Ouverture (after whom the now barely functioning airport in Port-au-Prince is named), the slaves rebelled, founding the world’s first black republic. Under military threat from France in 1825, Haiti agreed to pay reparations to France for lost “property,” including slaves that French owners lost in the rebellion. It was either agree to pay the reparations or have France invade Haiti and reimpose slavery. Many Haitians believe that original debt, which Haiti dutifully paid through World War II, committed Haiti to a future of poverty that it has never been able to escape. (While France, as part of the deal, recognized Haiti’s sovereignty, slave-owning politicians in the United States, like Thomas Jefferson, refused to recognize the black republic, afraid it would inspire a slave revolt here. The U.S. withheld formal recognition until 1862.)</span> <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Loans from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) imposed “structural adjustment” conditions on Haiti, opening its economy to cheap U.S. agricultural products. Farmers, unable to compete, stopped growing rice and moved to the cities to earn low wages, if they were lucky enough to get one of the scarce sweatshop jobs. People in the highlands were driven to deforest the hills, converting wood into salable charcoal, which created an ecological crisis—destabilizing hillsides, increasing the destructiveness of earthquakes and causing landslides during the rainy season.</span><br />this comes from a piece entitled '<a id="aptureLink_Ht2xr3hgaS" href="http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/haiti_forgive_us_20100209/">Haiti Forgive Us</a>' by Amy Goodman. <br /><br />another essay on this issue by <a id="aptureLink_qOkK54RaKB" href="http://ijdh.org/archives/10066">William Fisher</a> In this essay Fisher says, 'Aid to Haiti has been marked by frequent interruptions, particularly in assistance from the U.S., for political and ideological reasons. Within Haiti, massive and continuing government and private corruption has siphoned off large chunks of funding and misdirected money to people who didn’t need help.' <br /><br />My point is this. It is easy to blame small church groups, even though there are thousands of them, for Haiti's poverty and corruption. But what Campolo's essay does is over-simply a terribly complicated issue (more complicated than I understand I'm sure.) There is no mention of the historical injustice imposed by France or the lack of support from the U.S. There is no mention of the corruption of government which is surely not the fault of the citizens. No mention of the policies of our own government, and no mention of American consumerism, and its role in this isseu. Campolo provides smoke and mirrors to keep the public from learning of the another possibility; that governmental policies, our own governmental policies for hundreds of years, and our own ongoing interests, not to mention institutional racism have caused Haiti to find itself in poverty. <br /><br />What so many of the world's poor need is for American consumers to better research their purchases to ensure that slave labor wasn't used, as well as the American consumer to stop consuming so much. If Tony Campolo challenged the U.S. government to create more just policies or American Christians to live lives of justice and generosity in solidarity with Christian sisters and brothers around the world, now that would have been radical, risky and prophetic. <br />But this essay falls far short of prophetic.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-79773475172238036312010-03-11T14:28:00.000-08:002010-03-13T08:08:11.081-08:00Glen Beck, Jim Wallis and Social Justice<a id="aptureLink_sjTvsSPZxb" href="http://ourtownreport.com/images/Glen_Beck.jpg">Glen Beck</a>. Everybody is talking about what he said about social justice. <br /><br />Its been blogged about already, I'm late to the party. I found out about Beck's rant against 'social justice' through <a id="aptureLink_6ubJo0v0pJ" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/08/glenn-beck-tells-listener_n_490301.html">The Huffington Post</a>. <br /><br />There have been many responses such as <a id="aptureLink_E07rt1Myjv" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-james-martin-sj/in-defense-of-religion_b_494797.html">Rev. James Martin</a>, <a id="aptureLink_oWwjgTY6lA" href="http://experimentaltheology.blogspot.com/2010/03/glenn-beck-social-justice-at-church.html">Dr. Richard Beck</a> and of course <a id="aptureLink_fMPsGCfNwo" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jim-wallis/biblical-social-justice-a_b_493875.html">Jim Wallis</a> . <br /><br />Acknowledging that much smarter folks than I have responded, I will say a few quick things on this issue. <br /><br />Leviticus 25:10And you shall hallow the fiftieth year and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family. 11That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: you shall not sow, or reap the aftergrowth, or harvest the unpruned vines. 12For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you: you shall eat only what the field itself produces. 13 In this year of jubilee you shall return, every one of you, to your property. <br />The Entire Exodus Narrative, Matthew 5, Matthew 25, Acts 4, the list goes on and on of texts that Christians have interpreted as teaching Social Justice.<br /><br />One of my favorites is <span style="font-style:italic;">16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:<br />18‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,<br /> because he has anointed me<br /> to bring good news to the poor.<br />He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives<br /> and recovery of sight to the blind,<br /> to let the oppressed go free,<br />19to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ </span><br />This is Luke 4:16-19 and Jesus is quoting Isaiah 61. <br /><br /><br />Language is all about context. Beck is claiming that the words 'social' and 'justice' were part of communist and nazi rhetoric. History isn't my expertise. However, to understand the meaning of words we must watch the context in which they are used. The scriptures I mentioned above provide the context for what 'social justice' means in the Church. While communists and nazi's may have used the same words (although, I doubt Beck knows history any better than theology)the context is very different. By context I mean, violence. The words 'Social Justice' IF they were used by communists and nazi's in those cases would have been used in the context of violence, imprisonment and enslavement as opposed to the Scriptural context which is peace, freedom, and prosperity.<br /><br />Think about the phrase 'Shut-Up.' <br /><br />Now, we don't really know what that means unless we know the context. We have to know the conversation that preceded using the phrase. We have to know the tone of voice and the facial expression. 'Shut-up' could be an expression of anger demanding that the other stop talking. 'Shut-up' could also be a friendly expression of surprise or disbelief, or even delight. It depends on the context.<br /><br />Or 'He's a friend of ours.'That could be a coded way of speaking about being Mafia, OR, I could simply be introducing a friend to another group of friends. Beck is suggesting that one use of the words social and justice, one possible context, Communism and Nazi Germany, is the only possible context for understanding the words. While there is a rich biblical narrative and church history that provides a very different context for understanding the words. In this case Beck is either putting his ignorance on display or purposefully misrepresenting social justice.<br /><br />But why should we care? I have read some bloggers criticize Jim Wallis for speaking out against Beck. Why bring more attention to him? Here is the thing. Recent polls have shown that fewer and fewer people attend worship or belong to a church or even claim association with any particular faith... BUT they still 'believe' in God. As if that was the point. It appears as if the predominant view of 'faith' is that it is an intellectual activity, or perhaps emotional. If I hold the 'right' idea, that there is God, and 'feel' peace because of that idea, I have faith. <br /><br />But that is a very different idea of 'faith' than what Jesus himself taught when he told the disciples to take up your cross. Discipleship, or, faith, is about idea's and beliefs, but it is also about actions and practices that follow from these new ideas. Social Justice is a vital part of the Christian Tradition because it is a voice reminding us that we are not called just to think different thoughts, but engage in alternative practices, such as generosity, forgiveness, peace-making, and compassionate care. And this is why Wallis is right to do what he is doing. He will not change Beck's mind and he will not succeed in a boycott of Beck's show... but perhaps he can help re-establish the fact that Christianity is not just about a personal emotional and spiritual experience, but about living a life of justice and mercy in the world.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-7340437410507164022010-03-07T14:39:00.000-08:002010-03-10T04:50:43.943-08:00Social Networking: Web 2.0 vs. John 15.1 or Are Virtual Relationships Authentic RelationshipsWill facebook kill the church? Has it already? <br />This is an interesting question posed at <a id="aptureLink_tW2IiEGvTK" href="http://experimentaltheology.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-facebook-killed-church.html">Experimental Theology</a> Richard Beck, who posts this blog offers much to consider. <a id="aptureLink_eVBzlVcNgX" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation%20Y">Millenials</a> are leaving the church in droves and Beck thinks it has to do with facebook and other social networking options on the internet. Millenials, like other generations find the church annoying, but have no need of church for socializing because they have twitter, facebook and myspace. <br /><br />This came up in Adult Sunday School today as we considered John 15.1:‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower.' Particularly the bit about the pruning of the vine. Will the church really die? I don't think so. But it may change radically. If social networking via the web is the preferred way of relating for Millenials and younger generations (?) having a church building, a regular meeting site and time may not be a priority. One could simply twitter a bible study, worship, mission time and place and work with whomever gathers. Is this really relational though. In John 15 Jesus seems to suggest that the intimacy of the community of faith is integral to the working of the Holy Spirit, which is in turn integral to the presence of Christ. <br /><br />John seems to present a very high ecclesiology especially in chapters 14 and 15. Jesus is one with the Father, and his glorification will enable the Paraklete or Comforter to come to the church. Where disciples gather, the spirit is present and so then is Christ. This is a slightly confusing, but strangely comforting web of relationships that promises the ongoing creative presence of God with the church, but also places a high priority on human relationship in the worshiping community. Does this <a id="aptureLink_fP77qqjLUa" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christology">Christology</a> and Ecclesiology adapt to twitter and facebook relationships?<br /><br />I am eagerly awaiting 'You Are Not a Gadget: A Manifesto. I'm borrowing it from a friend and from what I've read, Lanier offers an interesting critique of web 2.0 connectivity.<br /><br />Right now I'm experimenting with twitter, facebook, blogs and a website for the church. But I am not as optimistic as Richard Beck seems to be in his essay about the reality of social networking relationships. Briefly, I find that fewer and fewer people know how to live in community or intimate relationship. Influenced by Hauerwas I'm sure, I'm of the opinion that twitter and facebook are an extension of the consumerization of relationships. We want to feel connected, but post-modern consumers do not seem to really want to be committed to any long-term relationship. We want to be free to buy any product we want, and to change brands if we wish, and I think we see this influencing our ability to socialize and the way in which we socialize. regardless of what Beck says, I'm not convinced that even the very best of friends that I have on facebook or twitter, would be such if we relied on internet social-networking. Facebook is a useful tool, but not legitimate replacement of life together in community, like church. <br /><br />What do you think? Are Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace and YouTube the future of the church, tools for the church that cannot replace a time and place and community of worship, or a phenomena to be resisted?darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-19163184449543185252010-03-05T17:59:00.000-08:002010-03-05T18:44:13.017-08:00The Mind of Christ: Lenten Discipline 7Which is the more valuable <a id="aptureLink_Q03ou35uwT" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtue">virtue</a>; Certainty of our beliefs and perspectives, or, the courage to question our own opinions and willing adopt new understandings?<br /><br />As a preacher I should be sure of what I believe right? I should be the one with the answers. But I don't. It frustrates me. Sometimes I can't make up my mind. I don't mean boxers or briefs by the way. I can't make up my mind about real issues. <br /><br />Like music in worship. Sometimes it just seems like the traditional hymns do not speak a language that people understand; I mean, what is an 'ebenezer' and how do I raise it anyway? from the hymn 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing'<br /><br />On the other hand, so much of modern worship music has no theological content. I don't mind if the music is simplistic, but most of these songs, understandable thought they are, don't communicate anything of value. I can't make up my mind.<br /><br />Or a serious issue. Abortion. I was raised in a more biblically literal church in which abortion was always wrong. Just look at Jeremiah. God knew him while he was in the womb. Those who follow God should hinder the ongoing creation of God, ever. <br />Then I started to run in more 'liberal' circles, where we talked about women's rights, are pregnancy due to abusive 'relationships'. I changed my mind. But now it seems like we are doing theology more focused on 'human rights' than on the call of God, and I go back and forth, I can't make up my mind.<br /><br />I just changed my mind again recently. Didn't even realize it. two conversations in a week on the same topic... two different opinions. Wasn't trying to be political for my own gain, or play games with people. I really just couldn't seem to decide where I was. <br /><br />Should have been silent.<br />Which is the connection with my Lenten Prayer Discipline.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">1 Corinthians 2.16:<br />‘For who has known the mind of the Lord<br /> so as to instruct him?’<br />But we have the mind of Christ. </span><br /><br />I pray the Divine Office so that I can seek the mind of Christ. that is hope anyway. I'm just not as certain as Paul seems about the whole thing. <br />Seeking the mind of Christ means quieting my own mind, and the more I think of it, my mouth too. <br /><br />Prayer as time to have my mind changed. Prayer as time to wait and listen for wisdom that just might change my opinion, my perspective. If I only get around to prayer when I have time, or when I am frightened or frustrated, might have a purpose. But I'm not sure that prayer changes me. Paul seems to think we will have the mind of Christ. That takes time, patience, silence, and a willingness to change.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31022667.post-68475944025987907252010-03-03T09:41:00.000-08:002010-03-03T09:56:10.490-08:00Lenten Discipline Update 6The current challenge of the Divine Office is that even though I find myself in the rhythm, carving our 20 minutes four times a day for prayer, my thoughts do not always cooperate. Especially during the work week, yesterday and today for example, as I close my eyes to breath and center, and then go to the book of prayers, my mind wanders to all the other things I 'should' be doing. I find myself watching words go by as my mind is planning the activities to pursue after this brief interlude. Especially when I begin to recite Ps 63 which I am memorizing for Lent, I am bombarded with frustration at the interruptions of the day that have prohibited the work I hoped to get done, and then I begin to recite the list of things undone, the things that are important, but I can't find time to do. Then come regrets at choosing some things over others. I have been studying Paul for a bible study, but perhaps I should have been preparing the Mark study guide for new members and their mentors. Then find frustration slowly becoming anger as I imagine the people who would criticize these decisions and the use of time and it almost becomes unbearable to pray... it is a waste of time. <br /><br />I came upon this reading by Nouwen that I go back to again and again...<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">a life without a quiet center, easily becomes destructive. When we cling to the results of our actions as our only way of self-identification, then we become possessive and defensive and tend to look at our fellow human beings more as enemies to be kept at a distance than as friends with whom we share the gifts of life.</span> <br /><br />I've been reading this during my prayer time. Prayer time is slowly changing, the list of things to-do going away. I find that I enjoy prayer because my day is no longer so much about what I must be doing so as to prove my worth to God or the church or others. My day is about this quiet time in which I am worth something just because I am. I needn't do anything to be loved and cherished by God. As a matter of fact, sometimes the work and the list of things to accomplish, inhibit this relationship... the relationship, even minstry, is more about getting things done than about growing closer to God. What am I teaching folks at church about faith, if I live a life of constant action that really doesn't accomplish the goal of the Christian life, to grow in God's love. <br /><br />The benefit of this time is that the rest from planning and thinking and doing and acting has allowed me both the time to prioritize my tasks, and to find peace to respond when others might not understand this prioritizing. That is a benefit, but the ultimate gift is simply the quiet time.darinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14967318206246981795noreply@blogger.com0