emerging mosaic

Over the weekend Barack Obama resigned from Trinity Church in the wake of another tirade by the pundits about his being responsible for what a preacher said in his church.

Obama Quits His Church - The Caucus - Politics - New York Times Blog

I am disappointed. I’m disappointed because he said he would speak the truth even when we didn’t want to hear it. I’m disappointed because the decision seems more political than principled. I’m disappointed it seems the accessory price or pound of flesh for a black man to  pay to gain credibility. I’m disappointed because I wonder if it is worth it?

While browsing the web I came across this quote. I don’t know if it is accurate or not but It certainly relevant.

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy - Martin Luther King Jr.

I’m disappointed!!!!!

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Faith In Public Life has a link to an article from the Christian Science Monitor asking if the religion conversation in the presidential campaign-is a good thing?. I don’t-think so! Since it has been just more of the same hyperbole and demonizing of the “other” side that has happened in the past. I’m looking forward preaching on the red/blue nature of God in a couple weeks.

Faith has a role in public life but the way that many followers of Jesus have expressed it is off center in my opinion

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It may be self serving but I am encouraged when I see others speaking out for a post emergent future for the emerging church. Here is a snippet of a review from a talk given by Jason Clark titled The Emerging Church: Another Dead-End or the Hope of the Church?

First, it must become a deeper church by valuing old, new and even Christian faith.

Second, following the example and work of such theologians as Stan Grenz, Jon Franke, Scott McKnight, and Ray Anderson, it must become a theological church by developing a theology robust enough not to be either threatened or co-opted by postmodernism.

Third, it must become a Biblically-informed church by reading and re-reading the Bible as the church- and culture- critiquing set of authoritative texts that it is.

Fourth, following the ancient church on the road to depth, it must become a creedal church, checking the individualistic impulse towards fashioning the church in the image of ourselves.

Fifth, it must become a confessional church, not to celebrate sectarianism, but to show the richness and vitality of a deeper church. “Maybe then,” says Jason, the emerging church’s legacy will be that it was “the response of the church catholic to our emerging culture … known for it’s vibrant ecumenical depth, with a life giving theology, rooted in a new Biblicism, growing counter to our individualized culture, as it affirms the creeds, with a plurality of local confessions from communities growing in faith, with new Christians handing their lives over to the way of Christ.” We can only hope the emerging church will have such an impact.

I couldn’t agree more with Jason’s assessment of an emerging future for the church. His observations address the tendency of many in the emergent conversation to act as it they are inventing the church all over again. Furthermore that re-invention tends toward the image of those who are doing the re-inventing that is to say white, liberal, male and academic. While there is nothing inherently wrong with any of that it has not created space for the richness of the church which comes from its history and the diversity of its members.

That has unfortunately caused some to step out of or beyond “the conversation” having become frustrated with perceived the intransigence of the emergent hierarchy, (yes there is a hierarchy) around these issues. Thanks to Jason for being a bold and prophetic. Maybe his voice will be heard and stimulate where others have not. 

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Are you a clueless Christian? That is how Moby describes himself in an interview with sojourners

http://www.sojo.net/special/multimedia/audio/061004_moby/player.html

This is one of the most authentic expressions of faith I have heard in a long while. Check it out.

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Jim Wallis now blogs here

God’s Politics - Jim Wallis blog, religion blog, faith and values, government

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Josh over at Eternal dialogue has created a new blog for Christians to get together a discuss topics relevant to today’s church and faith in the present world. Check it out

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Texas archaeologists believe they may have located the remains of Noah’s Ark in Iran’s Elburz mountain range.

Read article http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/has-noahs-ark-been-found/20060629173309990001?_mpc=news%2e10%2e1&cid=842

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The trinity (the three persons or expressions of God) as expressed in the Christian faith is usually referred to as Father, Son and Holy Spirit or Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer. However the LA times reports

 leaders of the Presbyterian Church (USA) are suggesting some additional designations: "Compassionate Mother, Beloved Child and Life-giving Womb," or perhaps "Overflowing Font, Living Water, Flowing River."   read the article Presbyterians and the Holy Trinity: Let Us Phrase - Los Angeles Times

Several years ago a recent seminary grad referred to the trinity as Home, Host, Hospitality.

So do we need more ways to express the trinity? Do we need the trinity at all? Or as some have suggested is there any real basis for the trinity in scripture? Should we just focus on Jesus and stay away from the God of the Old (First) Testament?

Just  wondering what other folks are thinking?

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In my recent web browsing of things emergent. I came across some posts that suggest that my post emergent perspective is not a fluke.

Jaimie Smith of Generous Orthodoxy ThinkTank: Emergent Reflections Post-Divergent points out several distinctions he recently experienced at an emergent event in Geneva between the US EC and the expression of emergence in Europe and the U.K . Things I have been saying is what makes the EC conversation in the US so limited and uninviting to people of color.

• This is not an “academic” conversation.
• There are hints of post-emergence afoot. 
• There are surprising elements of anti-intellectualism in the conversation

Jamie Arpin-Ricci is posting about being a An Emerging & Affirming Critic From Within

However, the critics we could perhaps learn the most from are those within this emerging community itself. The value of affirming critics from within cannot be overstated, as who better knows the dynamics, intentions and convictions better than those who share them. This should never exclude the other critiques from without, but if we can embrace the necessary humility and patience, we have a wealth of wisdom that could help us move towards maturity. That is where I hope my future lies on this journey- to be an affirming critic from within the emerging culture. I have been deeply moved and encouraged by all that I have discovered on the way.

I don’t know that I have Jaimie’s patience but I appreciate his humility and I’m glad he is bold enough to be a critic from within. Since I have never felt I was in I guess I will remain an affirming critic from without.

Jason Clark has a post  Love/Hate the emerging church from 2004

Well here in no order, and remember from my experience, in small corner of the emerging church are the things I have learned most, and enjoyed most about the emerging church, and some experiences that make me despair the most about emerging church too.

He really sums up my ambivalence toward the current state of of the EC.

Interestingly all of them have lived and/or experienced the emerging church outside the US. I think it is important that those of us who have roots outside white middle class America tend to see this emergent/emerging church thing a bit differently than the current dominant group. The question that continually arises for me is simple. Is there room in the EC tent for those whose perspective is even a bit divergent from the status quo or has the "conversation" devolved into defense of anti-church, radical liberalism as some critics suggest.

I wish I knew the answer to that but I don’t think post emergence is a fluke! So here is my post emergent must list. It seems to me that;

• We need to be more than rescuers of the Bible and Jesus from modernist theology.
• We need to be more than critics of the fundamentalist evangelical spiritual practice that has distorted much Jesus message.
• We need to be more than purveyors of some new anti prophetic, anti charismatic, anti-church, politically liberal, new expression of the Christian faith.
• We need to be more than spiritual option for people who don’t like church, have been hurt by the church or think the church is unnecessary
• We need to be revolutionary in more than just our thinking and theology.
• We need to have more than just a visual affinity with the poor and underprivileged.
• We need to move beyond warm and fuzzy gatherings where we can all feel good about ourselves, to risking self to be impactful in world so we can see the kingdom of God we hold high begin to be revealed in our world

This is just a start what can you add?

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Technorati Tags: divergent, emergent, emergent_church, emerging church, emerging_church, faith, post_emergence, theology

the da Vinci code

Year: 2006

Writer: Dan Brown/Akiva Goldsman

Director: Ron Howard

Producer: Dan Brown/Brian Grazer

Category: Drama

Studio: Columbia Pictures

Distributor: Sony Pictures

Rating from MPAA: PG-13

Cast:

Robert Langdon: Tom Hanks

Sophie Neveu: Audrey Tautou

Sir Leigh Teabing: Ian McKellen

Silas: Paul Bettany

Bezu Fache: Jean Reno

Lt. Collet: Etienne Chicot

Bishop Aringarosa: Alfred Molina

Rating: 2 out of 5

OK let me say that I didn’t get the chance to read the book before had so I can’t compare it. Which may be a good thing. After all the hype and hyperbole about this destroying the Christian faith DCV feels more like a second rate thriller than a life changing movie. This is no Matrix in terms of its spiritual overtones. it is more of a journey in to history and lots and lots and lots of convoluted theories and speculation. From a movie making standpoint I was disappointed.

This is not Ron Howard’s best work and Tom Hanks is not at the top of his game. French actor Jean Reno and Hank’s costar Audrey Tautou do a fair but unimpressive job. Alfred Molina also does a passable job as the single minded Bishop Aringarosa. By far the most outstanding cast member is Ian McKellen who plays his role as the Priory of Scion expert Sir Leigh Teabing with relish and enthusiasm without going over the top. Paul Bettany is effectively scary and convincing as the albino “servant” of the Opus Dei Silas. There are some interesting special effects related to cryptography. But the story could be difficult to follow and tends to drag, despite a couple of car chase scenes. There is only minimal character development done through flashbacks which I found more distracting than helpful. The historical flashback are presented in an interesting though not always effective way. There are several historical inaccuracies on which the basic premise of the movies is based. Maybe I should say that much of what is presented as historical fact is more like conjecture about historical events.

As to the problem of the movie attacking the Christian faith I think that the people who have the biggest axe to grind is the Roman Catholic church, in particular the Ops Dei group. Members of this group are presented as manipulative. deceptive and immoral in there effort to keep the secret that would destroy the faith undiscovered. There are some interesting questions posed about the import of the divinity of Jesus, the origins of the biblical canon and the role that doctrine play in faith. But all in all the is nothing ground shaking unless one has a completely literal an fundamentalist view of scripture faith and Christian practice

It strikes me that with all the conjecture buried layer on upon layer very few people of faith are going to turn away from their faith because of this movie. In fact I think it takes more faith to belief in circuitous trail of theories and conjecture in the movie that it does to belief in than the seemingly unbelievable aspects of the Christian faith. Those who are spiritually searching my well go down the rabbit hole trying to follow this trail but it could also lead then to seek more information from Jesus followers and ask more question of friends of faith.

Bottom line is it is an OK movie nothing to write home about from a spiritual perspective and so so film making. But my wife enjoyed it and she was not really exposed to all the hype and has not read the book. Doctoral studies will do that to you.
There are some pretty graphic scenes of self flagellation, violence, brief nudity, and sexual references and drug use that make this unsuitable for anyone under 13 so the rating is justified. This will not destroy the Christian faith or harm it in my opinion any more than the Last Temptation of Christ did. But all the hype will sell a lot of tickets. My opinion if you have some spiritually searching friends who are dying to see it go take it in with the and talk about it afterward. Use the opportunity to have conversations about spiritual matters with others. If you aren’t just dying to see it then wait for video. Though it might be a while because I do expect this to be in the theaters for several months. Can you say DVD release hype to come?

Tags: christianity, dan_brown, da_vinci_code_the_movie, faith, faith-&-culture, movie-&-tv, opus_dei, reviews

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