Here and There on a Saturday Night

::.:: Joshua Claybourn reflects on the recent issue with the Ten Commandments in Alabama. He rightly says that the removal of the monument does not need to be a sign of the fabric of our nation coming apart. He ends:

Rise up and disperse among everyone, demonstrating on a personal level the love and grace of God. That, more than a stone slab, will leave a lasting impact.

::.:: (CNN) -- John Geoghan, a defrocked Roman Catholic priest and convicted child molester, died Saturday after he was assaulted in prison, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections told CNN This is not a surprise. It is sad, but the whole issue is sad and hurtful to everyone concerned.

It was forty years ago today.
     JFK was still president. There was an air of hope throughout the country even as the civil rights marches continued and a little known place called Vietnam was barely a household world.
     Thousands upon thousands gathered in Washington to make their presence and dream known.
     I was an idealistic young man just having turned 15. I was about to enter High School (which began in 10th grade then in my school) I knew three African-American families in my small town in rural northern Pennsylvania. I do not remember hearing the words of Dr. King that day. I probably did since watching the news and reading newsmagazines was one of my favorite hobbies. But I know that the words soon became implanted in the depths of my social and religious psyche. They ring out today with as much passion and hope and promise as they did then. I wish they didn't need to, but they need to be heard. We have not gotten as far as we could. We have found new groups to stigmatize. We have managed to keep racism an issue.
     On this 40th Anniversary may the words ring out again. May our dreams be lifted to the heavens and the work of God on earth not be confined to simply feeling good about getting to heaven someday. The making of disciples is for this world as much as the next. The making of disciples will send forth the words of hope that Dr. King so profoundly spoke for all of us that August day.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you today, my friends, that even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow. I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and every mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plains and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

And when this happens, when we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual, "Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."

Click here for complete text.

Strong Words These Be
As I commented earlier in the week Andrew Careaga is back and blogging again. For the moment he has changed his style:

You probably won't be seeing much talk about Christianity, church and religion for awhile. Frankly, I'm tired of blogging about it. Tired of the factions, the petty debates, the inchoate chorus of "God-bloggers" who bully and belittle one another, the church, the faith, and the faith of others. The telegraphic posts. The flotsam of links. The attempts at wit and irony. The caustic, know-it-all, soapbox speeches. I'm tired of being a part of that crowd. I wish to wash my hands of it all. For the time being, anyway. Of course, as soon as I say this, no doubt I'll read a posting somewhere, or a news article, that intrigues me or angers me, and off I'll go, into the fray, arms flailing like nobody's business, adding to the confusion and muddle of the blogging hoard.

Andrew, we'll hardly know ye.

Bits and Pieces At the End of a Week

::.:: It has been a "vacation" week at home and none of the writing I wanted to do has happened. I did take some time goofing off and taking a few naps more than normal. The back porch has been a great place to do some extra crossword puzzles. I have gotten back to my reading of The House of the Spirits by Isabell Allende and am even more amazed as I get further into the book. It is truly a remarkable work of literature- and I'm reading a translation.

::.:: Went to a Twins game tonight with some friends and had a wonderful time together- even though the Twins lost. :>( Haven't been to any games for years and now two this summer in far flung parts of the country. Yes, baseball is a summer game.

::.:: I continue to watch the unfolding story of the Ten Commandments in Alabama wondering why the religious group trying to save them are the Christians who follow another section of the Book that says that the Law (of which the Ten Commandments are just 10 of 613 commands) has been fulfilled and is not what we need to be following. Anyway, the headline is now: Ala. Judge Relents on Monument - Chief Justice Is Suspended for Defying Federal Order Go here for an update.

::.:: Then there's the headline that Clean Air Rules will be relaxed:

The Bush administration has decided to allow thousands of the nation's dirtiest coal-fired power plants and refineries to upgrade their facilities without installing costly anti-pollution equipment, as they now must do.

::.:: Scientists are also telling us that Mars has always been cold and frozen.

The idea that Mars was once a warm place, awash with oceans that could harboured early life has taken a knock - new data suggests it was always cold, frozen and probably lifeless.

Which is of course different than Minnesota which once did have oceans.

::.:: And something to remember and perhaps blog on this weekend:

Groups Gather to Commemorate March on Washington (By LYNETTE CLEMETSON)
WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 — Under a thematic banner of jobs and justice, a coalition of groups dedicated to civil, human and economic rights have converged here this weekend to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the March on Washington, the mass protest that helped bring about some of the most critical social legislation in the nation's history. (more)

To Further Debate
A previous post I did had a link to Alan Brill's summary and response to a series of "outdated" gods as James Fowler explained them.

Someone who has been reading my blog felt that I shouldn't have done that and had a post on his blog which is also one I read and appreciate.

One of the main reasons I blog what I do and at times link to what I link to is to further the type of debate that this one managed to bring. Whether we like it or not we are living in the midst of a great deal of postModern thought. Such thought is neither good nor bad in and of itself. What does it tell us about the world we are living in? What does it tell us about the medium for our message? What is at the heart of who we are? How much of what we have is culture and how much is Gospel? These are critical issues in our world today for the church. These are issues that will bring more people to Christ- or turn more people off- depending on how we face and handle them.

A look at the list of blogs on my blogroll will show some quite liberal and some quite conservative blogs. If you wander into this pmPilgrim's site you will have the opportunity to see what is happening around us in our culture and even within the church. I feel it is essential that we learn to speak to the culture where they are. Not where we want them to be. Paul did not quote the Bible on Mars Hill. He quoted their own Greek poets.

Yes, perhaps too many "Greek poets" are being quoted in some churches today- and perhaps not enough in others.

Yes, perhaps James Fowler and Alan Brill have gone to an extreme- and others of us, myself very much included, get stuck in not being able to speak to those issues. What Brill and Fowler have done is to raise issues. As I said then, it is a good thought provoking post.

To my former readers from the other blog, I hope they return and will continue the debate. I know that they are thinkers with an important point of view- not all of which I would agree with, but all of which I need to continue to hear and be in dialogue with.

Above all and in all, I pray that whoever comes to this site will find a vision of Jesus and of a God who loves us so much that he sacrificed his most beloved Son so that we could be forgiven and have life and hope for this life and the next. All the rest is commentary on that. Some of that commentary is essential, some is non-essential. But it all is given here in love of Him who has loved me and given himself for me.

Strategies for Soldiers of Shalom
This came with today's SoJo Mail from Sojourner's Magazine. It is from the book "Transformed by Love: The Vernon Grounds Story," by Bruce L. Shelley. Discovery House Publishers. Thirteen strategies for Soldiers of Shalom:

1. Pray daily!

2. Keep informed regarding the development of international and national affairs: Be concerned about the world, not just the church.

3. Unambiguously denounce and renounce war.

4. Study and ponder biblical ethics.

5. Critically examine traditional and prevalent viewpoints and doctrines with respect to military policy - e.g., the just war theory, pre-emptive strike, the pacifist and non-resistant options.

6. Recognize that Christians, while grateful citizens of a particular country, belong to a kingdom that is global. Refuse to be an uncritical nationalist or an idolatrous American.

7. Support the historic right to dissent.

8. Take seriously the New Testament demand for Christian nonconformity.

9. Recognize that obedience to our Lord Jesus is the master-criterion of discipleship, not political effectiveness nor pragmatic success.

10. Use whatever political and propaganda resources are available to oppose those forces, ideologies, and institutions that foster an anti-peace mindset and a pro-war mentality.

11. Stress the interconnectedness of justice and peace. Battle injustice insofar as that is possible.

12. Collaborate with all peace-lovers in peacemaking regardless of theological and ideological differences but within the limits imposed by conscience.

13. Seek to be an agent of shalom in all personal relationships.

Alan Brill's blog, The Right Christians as also mentioned.

Andrew's Back Blogging
Good to have Andrew Careaga back blogging over at Bloggedy Blog. He was on a self-imposed exile from blogging.

Deep Sea Preacher
Real Live Preacher is one of my regular reads. He has a way with words and faith that is remarkable. Here is the beginning of a recent post.

There is a deep vent on the ocean floor of humanity, a place of creation between belief and unbelief. On this living ridge is the sacred spot where faith takes its first deep breath. This is the womb of grace.

Go read and be grateful for one who can write this well and is willing to share it.

Huh?

Just spent 15 minutes typing a truly profound thought and

one wrong move with

one misplaced finger

and it's gone.

Just like life at times, I guess. Maybe I'll get it back into my thoughts later.

A Lazy Guest Blogger

Pen at The Gutless Pacifist has invited me to join a distinguished group of bloggers in his guest house. Our task is simply to blog- and not mess up the place too badly. Would seem like a fairly easy thing to do. But I seem to get Blogger's Block when I go to write something for him. Fortunately my guest house blogmates are keeping up their end of the blog. Alan Brill of The Right Christians has a post with a list of the gods that modernism worshiped that are now being moved aside. It is a list from James Folwer of Stages of Faith fame. Alan ends with a question:

Are we ready to let go of all these "gods"? Even if we are, what about the Christians who sit next to us in the pew on Sunday or to whom we preach the Gospel?

Good thought provoking stuff!

Sacrifice in a Non-Sacrificial World

I had a huge "A-Ha" in church the other day. My wife was preaching away about covenant and the importance it has for our relationship with God. She talked about those old standard comments that a covenant is between two parties and that both sides make a commitment. You know- Be my people and you will be as countless as the stars in the sky and all people we be blessed through you. Or- Follow me and I will make you fishers of people. Both sides have a commitment to make.

Then she said it. The key that I have been struggling to find for years. Nothing new, you see, but it was how it was said. She said, "Covenant always includes a sacrifice."

If you never had one of those biblical classes that explain all this ancient stuff, the act of a covenant was a bloody one. (Graphic example coming--->) Animals often lost their lives over it. You didn't "make" a covenant; you "cut" a covenant. You might slaughter an animal and then the two parties would walk between the cut halves. (I warned you it was a bloody process.)

But sacrifice also came to symbolize the act of repentance for sins. A sacrifice was needed when you no longer sacrificed people to some distant angry diety. So the Passover Lamb was slain. It became a powerful image of the freedom from the Angel of Death and of the forgiveness of sins. It was so powerful that a phrase used only twice in the Gospels (John 1:29, 36) became one of the most prominent descriptions of Jesus- The Lamb of God.

But we did away with sacrifices for sins a couple thousand years ago. What we know of it is found in the Bible or books of anthropology. The concept is beyond our experience and therefore our understanding. "So, tell me again," a pre-Christian might say, "Jesus had to be sacrificed because a sacrifice was needed for sin and nothing else would do. That makes no sense."

Unless you also look at it from the view of covenant.

Covenant always involves a sacrifice. The covenant of marriage involved (biblically) the husband leaving his family and being joined with the wife, for example. A sacrifice on his part and perhaps on the part of the parents.

A covenant always involves a sacrifice. Both sides making a commitment and that means a sacrifice of some personal choice, perhaps, or personal autonomy, or of time and energy and love.

A covenant always involves a sacrifice on both sides.

But in this great covenant between human beings and the creator of the universe, what is it that God could even think of sacrificing. God cannot sacrifice his place on the Throne of Heaven. God cannot sacrifice a planet or a star or a galaxy. The God who has everything, made everything, and watches over everything could only sacrifice one thing.

Himself.

So he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became a man.

So he took on himself the form of a servant.

So he humbled himself to death on the cross in the form of Jesus.

If the Trinity is more than some intellectual mind-game (as I believe it is far more than that) and is in reality a poor, human attempt to explain the Father-ness, Son-ness, and Holy Spirit-ness of One Eternal God, then we see what God sacrificed for his part of the covenant just to show us how serious he really is.

And I argue about giving a dime out of each dollar.

Anyway, this was- and is- a great revelation to me. As I said, there is nothing new anywhere in it. But it is a new way for me to put it all together in a way that may open up some doors for the witness I may have to those with a postModern mindset or who have long ago left behind even a hint of human memory of the need for the sacrifice for sin. God sacrificed to show, among other things, how serious he really is about his love for you and me. I am truly humbled!

Thank you, God. Thank you!

Seabiscuit

Went to see Seabiscuit this evening. Wonderful movie, wonderful theme, well done all around. The amazing thing as you watch it is that it is a true story. You don't have to have made-up stories to have the feel-good ending. They are all around us- as are the stories that make us feel bad and afraid. These are all the stories of being human. It is neat when anyone of them is made into a good movie. I was amazed at how Chris Cooper could be Tom Smith here and that bizarre orchid thief in Adaptation. Quite an actor.

Now my daughter thought it went on too long. It had too many times when you expected it to end. She said it felt like a Robert Redford movie. I guess that isn't a bad thing since she mentioned one of my all-time Top Ten movies- A River Runs Through It as another example. But perhaps that also what life is like. Just when you think you've reached the end, you get more and hopefully better.

Seabiscuit, Red Pollard, Tom Smith, Charles Howard are us in many ways. Seeking redemption from the worries and pains and broken legs and souls that we have suffered. "Maybe," as Red says at the end, "we help heal each other."

Promise Keepers Note 3

Mentioning to several people about being at Promise Keepers yesterday, they all mentioned the protesters that were there. They saw it on the news. Now I wasn't watching the TV the past few days so I don't know what they showed. But my comment was "Protesters? I didn't see them." Which is true. Now on Saturday I came in by the parking ramp and across a skywalk. But I never saw the protesters. I have at previous conferences. At one it was those who felt that PK was trying to take away all the advances women have made in society and the church. Sometimes it has been gay activists. Last time it was the atheists association who were protesting the Christian orientation of the conference saying they don't need power from anyone other than themselves.

Now I don't agree with everything that was said at the conference. I especially didn't like the angry tone of some of the comments. But I could set that aside and see the hope of faith that was under it all. As people in 12-Step groups sometimes say, "Take what you need; leave the rest." I cannot take with me the anger and judgmentalism that sometimes comes across from some of the speakers. I would rather take Erwin McManus's call to compassion. There is power in both, but in anger it is not a healthy power or one that can help people see Jesus as one to follow.

Another Serial Sniper?
High in Terrorism?

Just saw a brief report from West Virginia that there may be another serial sniper at work there. Not good. It was followed by a story that the US ranks fourth highest in the threat of terrorism.

The Headline

Friday's headline on the St. Paul Pioneer Press atrracted the attention of many of the recovering alcoholics leaving their meeting at a local restaurant. It was a simple, one word headline that expressed what had happened on the east coast. For the alcoholics it was a word of hope:
Powerless!

That is always and forever the First Step to finding hope-
as an alcoholic- the personal powerlessness over alcohol...
as a human- the personal powerlessness over people, places, things....
as a sinner- the personal powerlessness over sin.

Promise Keepers Part 2
Was not disappointed with Promise Keepers today. The envelope they are pushing seems now to have moved from being men of integrity and doing the right things at home, being a good husband, father, etc. to evangelism. There seems to be a direction toward being the church in mission, picking up on the church as what we are instead of the place we go to. They are still strong on accountability, being the role model of righteousness for one's family, getting free from porn and other addictions. They certainly gave the Gospel message many, many times over the two days in ways I didn't remember from last time I went two years ago.

There also seems to be a movement toward the GenX/Millenial generations. The closing talks were by Greg Stier of Dare 2 Share Ministries and Erwin McManus of Mosaic Church in LA. They both brought a newer and younger face to the stage. Stier had a wonderful method of sharing called 2.6.2 Evangelism. He even talked about working in a local coffee shop for hours. McManus was exciting, challenging, and just plain wonderful! His closing challenge was a call to be global Christians. The friend I was with noticed the differences between McManus and most of the other speakers.

Overall, and I will be blogging more from my notes over the next few days, PK this time was a good and growing experience. They said that over 1850 decisions were made Friday evening of the 8000+ that were there. I can see movement being made into the Gen X/Millenial worlds both from the stage and in the audience. There is still a lot of the "modern world" styles, but they seem to be working on bridging the worlds. My guess is that we will see more emphasis on evangelism and mission as the obvious outgrowth of becoming men of integrity in the world.

A Night at Promise Keepers

Went to Promise Keepers here in the Twin Cities this evening. They seem to have turned up the heat a little since the last time I was at a PK event two years ago. I remembered what a friend of mine said five or six years ago after attending an event. He didn't like being yelled at. I felt like that part of this evening. Not that it was bad. It was good stuff. Real challenging. The first evening of a PK event is always that way- presenting the Gospel and a call to turn from sin.

They started with a dramatic representation of the three crosses at Calvary with the preacher acting out the two thieves and Jesus words as he put the crosses together. Powerful.

He used the cross on either side of Jesus' cross as symbolic of the ways we can respond or not respond to God. His repeated line was:

When it all comes down, the most important thing will be what side of the cross are you on.

The second speaker took us into the fact that church is not a "go-to" place. It is something to be. He challenged us to turn from sin, leave the Devil behind and become the church that the Devil is afraid of us becoming.

But it does seem that they have begun to push the envelope some. They are really making the message stronger than I remember- and it has always been strong!

It was a powerful evening in St. Paul.

More tomorrow. It looks like St. Paul is the only PK event where Erwin McManus is speaking. He's scheduled for Saturday afternoon. Will post more thoughts later.

(Note: I know that I promised more on the Moravian Pentecost, history, and Power from on High. I haven't forgotten. Will get to that next week. I am on vacation at home next week and hope to do some more writing.)

What Would Jesus Drink?

Starting with a post at Signposts and a link to Christian Counterculture Newsletter the question of alcoholic beverages was discussed.

Now, a disclaimer before I go any further:
:: I am a recovering alcoholic and have been so for 15 years.
:: I come from an alcoholic family.
:: I am a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor.
:: My earliest faith experience was as a non-practicing Jew and the appropriate use of wine at meals and rituals like a Seder.
:: My faith experience when I became a Christian was in a non-drinking fundamentalist faith.

I see nothing wrong with the idea of using wine in worship settings where appropriate.
I see nothing wrong with people gathering at places where alcohol is served for religious groups, small groups, discussions, etc.
I whole-heartedly agree that too much of what has been seen and used and done in relation to alcohol use is un-biblical. It is cultural.

But so was Jesus' use of wine. Wine was a major and important part of the culture.

So let us not make the same mistake in the opposite direction. Let us not make wine anything more than it was or is- an alcoholic beverage of great antiquity. Let us not elevate the use of alcoholic wine to a requirement.

Be careful that alcohol (or any beverage) not become a central tenet of the faith.

Yes, I agree that Jesus would probably drink wine. Yet, he would probably also be at the bar inviting the alcoholics into new life without alcohol. Yes, we should not allow the cultural taboos to set our agendas, but neither should we allow our cultural desires to set them either.

And please, remember that alcohol abuse and addiction is a very serious issue around the world. Remember that there are many who are alcoholic and who have a great spiritual yearning. Remember that alcohol is a powerful drug that can be a harsh mistress and take one into depths that any who are not alcoholic cannot even begin to comprehend. It is a disease, not a matter of will power.

Why Start a New Church?

Leighton Tebay has a good post on why he will be involved in a new church. He ends with this excellent reason:

Ultimately we want to start something new because we have hope that we can become part of something much bigger and more powerful than ourselves. Our convictions about the scriptures lead us in the direction we’ve taken. We find accountability, strength and encouragement by opening ourselves up to a number of different relationships.

Power From On High

On an August morning in 1727 the group of refugees in Herrnhut, Germany, gathered at the nearby Lutheran Church in Berthelsdorf. Their community had been in difficulty. They were a mish-mash of theological and other groups and factions. They had originally arrived on Count Zinzendorf's land looking for refuge and a new place to practice their 250 year old Protestant faith expression. But they also attracted others looking for the same freedoms.

Earlier in 1727 their young patron, the Lutheran pietist Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf, had the brainstorm of visiting all the homes in the community and finding out what it was they agreed on. He wrote them down and then had them sign what he called The Statuten, now called The Covenant for Christian Living They then started to pray. A 24/7/365 Prayer Meeting that lasted for the next 100 years.

Then came that day in August. They started with confession and a message followed by Holy Communion. Then it happened. The Holy Spirit came upon them and all they could later say was:

"We learned to love."

It was the Moravian Pentecost and the Renewed Moravian Church was born. The ancient faith founded by followers of the martyr Jon Hus had found a new expression.

August 13, 1727. May August 13, 2003 be a renewal of that same faith and faithfulness.

[More later]

A New Quiz to Take...
What Country Am I?....

You're Spain!

You like rain on the plain, as well as interesting architecture and
a diverse number of races and religions.  You like to explore a lot, but sailing,
especially in large groups, never really seems to work out for you.  Beware of pirates
and dictators bearing bombs.  And for heavens' sake, stop running around bulls!
 It's just not safe!
Take
the Country Quiz at the Blue Pyramid

I love Spain. I just wish I could habla espanol. Thanks to A Minor for the link.

An Outsider's View of AA

Thanks to StumpJumper at Resurrection Song for a truly moving and spiritually accurate report on Alcoholics Anonymous. Maybe it's time for me to get back to some blogging about what the church can learn from AA.

On Church and Superballs

Only Real Live Preacher can make sense out of all this- and what sense he makes.

When life seems chaotic, you don't need people giving you easy answers or cheap promises. There might not even be any answers to your problems. What you need is a safe place where you can bounce with people who have taken some bad hops of their own.

You need love and understanding and lots of room.

That's what church should be.

That's just the tag line. As a preacher, I find his insights into the world of the preacher and church are nothing short of remarkable. Of course, his "anonymity" helps him to be able to speak of things that are deeper than any outside the church may realize.

The Value of Dialogue

Fellow Moravian blogger, Athanasius, over at Ecumenical Insanity is bringing a number of our "family disagreements" into the open. But he is doing it while allowing for dialogue. As I wrote to him, blogs are by nature personal places to post ones own opinions. While we may have comments on our blogs where differing opinions get posted, Athanasius has been posting some emails of differing opinions right in the posts.

The modern Moravian Church has been known as a church that values dialogue and diversity of opinion. Sometimes that diversity brings tough questions and even tougher challenges. Dialogue is threatened, fellowship undermined, unity broken. While Athanasius and I will probably disagree on some of the critical issues and agree on others. But I think it is essential to link to his blog (there on the right) and continue the dialogue. Thanks, Athanasius.

Pray for Peace

Thanks to Pen at The Gutless Pacifist for the link to this story that makes me stop and feel very sad and angry at what can happen in my name as an American. It seems that the US did use a new and improved version of the banned weapon, Napalm, in Iraq. (Of course, the US never signed the treaty that made banned it.) Here is one part of the story:

Marine pilots and their commanders have confirmed that they used an upgraded version of the weapon against dug-in positions. They said napalm, which has a distinctive smell, was used because of its psychological effect on an enemy.

A 1980 UN convention banned the use against civilian targets of napalm, a terrifying mixture of jet fuel and polystyrene that sticks to skin as it burns. The US, which did not sign the treaty, is one of the few countries that makes use of the weapon.

"We napalmed both those [bridge] approaches," said Colonel James Alles, commander of Marine Air Group 11. "Unfortunately there were people there ... you could see them in the [cockpit] video. They were Iraqi soldiers. It's no great way to die. The generals love napalm. It has a big psychological effect."

I am not surprised. Any war, even one that may be needed, will still lead us into places and situations and actions that we cannot be proud of.

A Good Word on Minnesota

Joshua Claybourn quotes from James Lileks Bleat on Minnesota small towns as he drove from Minneapolis to Fargo:

Well. The Interstate isn’t the only road in town, you know. There’s Old Highway 10, which for decades was the main highway from Fargo to Minneapolis. It began as a two-laner, but now it’s all grown up - mostly four lanes from here to there. Best part: instead of avoiding towns like plague sites, it walks right up, knocks on the door, and saunters through every burg on the road. Four lanes narrow to two, the speed limit drops, and you’re strolling in the center of a map-blip, looking the locals square in the face.

To the modern small town in Minnesota, a lake has the value a railroad line once had. They bring the tourists, and the tourists like to golf, too. They like to eat. They like to hunt. They buy bait in the summer and bullets in the fall and Miller Beer all year round. Add the needs of the local farmers - insurance, implements, hospitals, groceries - and you have a petri dish of urban life. If the town’s big enough to have a north side and a south side, you have rivalries and reptuations. You can't imagine how much you'd learn if you stopped and spent a year.

He has more coming this week as he has made a trip to Fargo. Lileks really does have one of the great blogs around.

Jordon Cooper Blogs On...
and we are all better for it!

The last couple weeks Jordon Cooper has had to figure out what to do with his blog after some nasty responses and comments. I am glad he is continuing! Just today's posts alone are worth the price of admission. He has a really good review of and insights from the book, Liquid Church. There are also various church, religion, political and other issues. Keep blogging, Coop!

In Exile

Andrew Careaga has been on a self-imposed blogging exile since last Wendesday.

The Truth of the Bible

Ken Pierpoint has a wonderful illustration of the truth of the Bible. Truly wonderful.

Back on Track-I Hope

Well, last week is over. Thank goodness. By the time I returned from the last action of the weekend- delivering the last group to the airport, I was wiped. A lot of emotional and theological and spiritual wrestlings took place for me. I will probably blog on some of my thoughts over the next few days as they sort themselves out. To say the least, it was interesting.

Probably the scariest thing had nothing to do with the meetings. I found out what choking is like.

Sunday morning I was taking my vitamins and the big, honkin' C got stuck. Sideways.

It wouldn't go either direction. I panicked and am not sure whether I could breathe or not. I tried in the panic of the moment to remember the Heimlich maneuver, but just wanted to get the thing out. I finally managed to gag it up, and then started really coughing.

The thing was -- I was all alone.

My wife was away for the weekend at a wedding. The "what if...." question went through my mind.

After coughing awhile, and re-gathering my senses, I head off to church with a raspy throat. I pushed it all to the back of my mind until getting back home at 4:30. I then realized I was really freaked out by it all. We all know how quickly accidents happen. We all know that some of them are dangerous or even fatal. I guess the vitamin would have dissolved or broken in two fairly quickly. I know it wasn't far enough down to block the air-tube.

Yet it threw me into a real scary place. I am now more aware of what people who live alone might face. And it is one of those events that in its own small way reminds me that I am mortal.

A Shortage of Blogging

I am noticing that many in the blogosphere have been slowing down recently. Vacations (or holidays in some places), church camps, power outages, and just plain old life seems to have been spreading. My personal stuff that came down on Monday, two days of continuing ed seminars to keep my counseling licenses were yesterday and today, and now two 12-hour days of denominational meetings coming on Friday and Saturday. I have been scribbling a little and doing a lot of listening and reading about the Bishop Robinson affirmation. I have been trying to get ready mentally for the meetings that promise to be long and potentially uncertain.

In the midst of all this, the worship team rehearsal tonight was awesome. I am the pastor this Sunday since my wife will be away at a wedding. So it was neat to sit and listen as they rehearsed and truly worshipped together. We had a few of the out-of-town-visitors for this week's meetings show up. They loved it! Considering we are doing an uncommon style of worship for many Moravian churches, that felt good.

Did take good personal time last evening. My wife and I went with two old friends to the movies. First time since New Year's. After the ups and downs of the past week or so, it was great to be with friends for dinner, the movie and then dessert. We saw Pirates of the Caribbean and really enjoyed it. Johnny Depp was wonderful and there even was a message about greed and evil and being compassionate. Who would have thought that a movie inspired by an amusement park ride would have been so good. Gotta get back to the movies. Have missed too many.

So, I may try to catch up a little on by leap-blogging and my own reflections. Until then, we'll just keep on keeping on.

No Comment- Just the Confusions

Bishop-elect Robinson was confirmed tonight.

I wish there were easy answers to all of this, in spite of what people on both sides will say.

May God grant us all wisdom as we seek to find the answers to our own questions in ways faithful to the God we all say we know and trust.

When Life is a Roller Coaster

The past few days have been a major roller coaster. Without all the details, it boils down simply to having things go differently than I had planned, hoped, or wanted.

Don't you just hate it when that happens?

It becomes a real challenge to my understanding of what I am doing and why. It causes me to stop and take another inventory of what I want to do and where I want to be. It causes me to get on my knees and talk things over with God. Well, maybe a little bit of heated discussion with God. Or as a friend would tell me, a little bit of Job-like rantings.

Job does become a major source of inspiration and direction at a time like this. He wants answers, and he wants them now. In spite of the mis-translation of the passage in James, he is not "patient." He perseveres in his faith. He rants through the feelings of loss and fear and anger. And through gritted teeth he can still say that he believes. This is not the mamby-pamby, let God abuse me approach to faith. It is a faith that is willing to challenge God, even when we know that God is right and we have no way of seeing the answers ourselves.

"Stand up like a man!" God then says to Job. "Look around and tell me if you can do what I have done." God will not give Job the answers. God will only reaffirm that GOD is God and Job is not. Answers are not always easy to see or understand. They take a much bigger view of world and life and salvation than any one of us is able to have. Job as God? Me as God? Would that mess things up or what?

So, I will get back on the roller coaster. There will be more ups and downs. I will continue to seek God's will and direction each day. I will report in to God each morning as a humble servant waiting for the days directions. In the end it is always about trust... trusting God for the right direction and guidance and experiences... trusting God for being God and thankful that I know that I am not God.

Some Catching Up

Gee, what a difference a whole week makes. I missed a bunch of stuff while I was at camp.

Pen at Gutless Pacifist got himself into the thick of things with a post on the Kobe Bryant situation.

Justin Baeder at Radical Congruency posted a wonderful summary of moving beyond worship. Here is his outline:

-Almost all churches, traditional, seeker, and postmodern, focus heavily on the worship service
-When we focus exclusively on the worship service, we ignore many other possibilities for our time together, from ancient spiritual practices to modern educational methods
-The worship service only allows a few people to exercise their spiritual gifts
-The worship service is not biblical, either in example or instruction.
-The worship service is expensive and time-consuming to produce.
-The sermon, the didactic portion of a worship service, is a terrible way to teach
-Worship services are mostly about music, which tends to divide people along the lines of their musical preferences rather than unite them in Christ.

Bene Diction posted a great mini-video that isn't to be missed.

Bob Hope died. Ian's Messy Desk has a neat collection of quotes.

Fred Peatross posted some thoughts about the emerging church as an Acts 29 movement.

John Adams is ready for college. (Good luck, John)

And Real Live Preacher has come back from vacation.

Back from Camp

A great week with 90 soon to be high school freshmen and sophomores. Wonderful relationships, good weather and lots of time to reflect on life. More coming in the week ahead- unless life gets in the way of blogging again. More later.

Building the Kingdom

As I was finishing up this weeks class session on evangelism, I came across another section in that challenging book Jesus With Dirty Feet: A Down-to-Earth Look at Christianity for the Curious and Skeptical by Don Everts. Since we had dealt with Matthew 13 and all of Jesus' images of sowing, netting, planting, growing, and planning for the Kingdom of God, it appealed to me and what I have just finished doing at Camp.

One time Jesus talked about

    the secret of the kingdom

…and when he spoke,
    the words he spoke
        the message that he had for the
            hundreds of wide-eyed faces turned out to be…

a plain story about a farmer sowing seeds.

The hero of the story was
the good soil.

The good soil received the seed,
took it in,
responded to it.

It was a simple story. Agriculturally sound…
But these folks weren't interested in an agricultural refresher course!
    They wanted some easy answers-
    at least some familiar boxes to fit ideas into!

So most just walked away disappointed.

But a few were intrigued. And after the dust settled,
It was just Jesus and these few people.

Jesus looked around at that intimate group,
    smiled
        and said,

"You just figured out the secret, the mystery
of the Kingdom of God."
They had responded to Jesus. They had gone to Him.

You see, to have a kingdom…
you need a king and a people.
    Once you have a king who will rule
        and a people who will respond to the king…
    you have a kingdom.
Jesus With Dirty Feet by Don Everts. IVP, Copyright 1999

So simple. We have a King.
     ~~ Do we recognize Him as such?
We are part of the people.
    ~~ Are we responding?
    ~~ Are we inviting others in order to help the Kingdom grow?

O great and awesome High King of Heaven and Earth- I give you thanks and praise for the possibility of being in your kingdom with you. I will seek to respond this week in humble love and loving service to your call. Thank you, thank you. For your grace and love, Amen.

Becoming an Old Timer at Camp

It has been 32 years since my first time at church camp- and I was a staff person. I had turned 23 that summer and had never been to any kind of camp, church or otherwise.

It was conference-style camping. We stayed in rustic cabins covered with graffiti and names and memories from the years right after WW II and then, the end of the 60s. I was not a church-goer. I was invited to go along with a friend to help him teach a course on the church and war. I was scared to death.

Two things happened that week.

I fell in love with church camp

and I heard my call into the ordained ministry.

It is now 32 years later. And as has been the rule for at least one week of almost every summer since, I am again at church camp. Only now I am the oldest of the program staff. Many of the counselors here this week have been campers under my camp leadership. I sat at a picnic table this afternoon and thought back to Camp Hope, NJ, in August, 1971, and thought about who at that camp was then the age I am today. I thought about the pastors and others who have touched me who were entering their last decade before retirement in 1971. Milo and Thor and John. Jimmy, Bernie, and Gordon. I gave thanks for their ministries.

But I also realized the relative rarity of one my age being at church camp today. I realized the uniqueness of the opportunity I have to be here and to be part of the lives of these 8th and 9th graders. My thoughts and opinions of the church have changed greatly over these 32 years. The culture and society, thanks to my generation, has taken some very different paths. At least in this week I am able to be here hopefully sharing some wisdom from the past. And more certainly gaining more wisdom from a group of young people – the staff who are the age I was then- and the campers who will have the incredible task of finding and rediscovering new ways to be the church in the next 32 years.

I am a very fortunate and graced person. I am honored to still be used in this work. For that I am deeply grateful and profoundly humbled.

At Camp.. Blogs Posts May be Reduced
Film at 11:00

Actually, the posts may continue since the trusty laptop will be along for some Geek/photo/Powerpoint work. First time in MANY years that I have been with 8th and 9th graders. Have been High School/Post-high for years and years. Maybe it's true- the older you get the more likely you are to revert to younger behavior. Should be fun.

Friday Love Poem TO God

San Juan de la Cruz En una noche oscura

St. John of the Cross On a Dark Night

En una noche oscura, con ansias, en amores inflamada, ¡oh dichosa ventura!, salí sin ser notada, estando ya mi casa sosegada; a escuras y segura por la secreta escala, disfrazada, ¡oh dichosa ventura!, a escuras y encelada, estando ya mi casa sosegada; en la noche dichosa, en secreto, que naide me veía ni yo miraba cisa, sin otra luz y guía sino la que en el corazón ardía. Aquesta me guiaba más cierto que la luz del mediodía adonde me esperaba quien yo bien me sabía en parte donde naide parecía. ¡Oh noche que guiaste! ¡oh noche amable más que la alborada!; ¡oh noche que juntaste, Amado con amada, amada en el Amado transformada! En mi pecho florido, que netero para él solo se guardaba, allí quedó dormido, y yo le regalaba, y el ventalle de cedros aire daba. El aire del almena, cuando yo sus cabellos esparcía, con su mano serena en mi cuello hería, y todos mis sentidos suspendía. Quedéme y olvidéme, el rostro recliné sobre el Amado; cesó todo y dejéme, dejando mi cuidado entre las azucenas olvidado.

On a dark night, Kindled in love with yearnings --oh, happy chance!-- I went forth without being observed, My house being now at rest. In darkness and secure, By the secret ladder, disguised --oh, happy chance!-- In darkness and in concealment, My house being now at rest. In the happy night, In secret, when none saw me, Nor I beheld aught, Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart. This light guided me More surely than the light of noonday To the place where he (well I knew who!) was awaiting me -- A place where none appeared. Oh, night that guided me, Oh, night more lovely than the dawn, Oh, night that joined Beloved with lover, Lover transformed in the Beloved! Upon my flowery breast, Kept wholly for himself alone, There he stayed sleeping, and I caressed him, And the fanning of the cedars made a breeze. The breeze blew from the turret As I parted his locks; With his gentle hand He wounded my neck And caused all my senses to be suspended. I remained, lost in oblivion; My face I reclined on the Beloved. All ceased and I abandoned myself, Leaving my cares forgotten among the lilies.

from a Loreena McKennitt page.

The Good, The Bad…

Item on the TV news this evening (no link): The Internet has passed TV as the #1 entertainment medium for teens and young adults.

The good

: They like the Internet because they can have control and a sense of interactivity.

The bad

: Sitting at the screen (plus the hours with TV) will probably lead to more obesity.

I like the idea of the interactivity and ability to control the medium. Somewhere down the line, of course, the different media will merge into more interactive TV and radio, but for now, the boob tube has lost some of its power with the younger groups. But, as an overweight Internet-potato, I am also aware of the issue of obesity. But when I was young I sat around all summer and read books. Not much more active.

… and The Ugly

The posting of pictures of the Hussein brothers is nothing short of grotesque. I can understand the reasons. I know that in many parts of the world such pictures are common-place (which is really scary!). I know that we are fighting a(nother) battle for "hearts and minds." But somehow or another to lower ourselves to such a level of graphic horror is just one more step in a very difficult direction.

Yet it is not the government that is entirely at fault. We see more graphic pictures and violence on the news today than at any time during the Vietnam War. That, you may remember, was the first war that came home to our living rooms at dinner time each night. And it was those then awful pictures that many felt led to some of the dissent over the war. Now we see pictures that are far worse on a regular basis. With the release of the pictures today we have taken another sad step. We are becoming more and more immune to the awful horror we see on TV.

Pray for all of us that we never become so immune that violence no longer turns us to find a better way.

Book Thoughts

I either have to slow down my reading (not a chance) or change the template for this blog more often to keep up to date with what I'm reading. I realized that a book moved from the ~~books on deck~~ to the website listing of ~~books finished~~ and never made it to the current reading section. So, I thought I would spend some blog space tonight talking briefly about what I've been reading.

Jesus Drives Me Crazy!- by Leonard Sweet
Another in a growing list of books in which Len takes us on a postModern journey. He is not trying for deep theology. He is making his points about the changes that have been happening and continue to be happening. AND about how being a follower of Jesus can be just amazing. An easy, short read that has lots of good stuff for just pondering as you read.

Blue Like Jazz-by Donald Miller
I don't even know how to talk about this book. I was attracted (as a jazz fanatic) by the title. The book is an improv riff on what it means to follow Jesus. It is done in human, honest, non-linear, non-religious language. I should have blogged more about it. It is a great read that will help you see Jesus and the church in truly post-modern ways. He even has a new-fashioned altar call.

Big Dreams in Small Places - by Tom Nebel
Tom is a Baptist (BGC) church planter in Wisconsin who has written this manual and description of starting churches in rural to small towns. None of that big suburban stuff for him. Too often we have overlooked the possibilities of church plants in small places. Tom opens a lot of avenues. While not a postModern approach, it sure fits the indigenous culture of the communities, which is what it's supposed to be about.

The House of the Spirits- by Isabel Allende
I cannot read this book in long, extended sessions. It is far too rich, powerful, satisfying. I have to savor it and then let it sit. I wish I knew Spanish so I could read (and appreciate) the language and the story in its original. A wonderful example of the genre of magical realism, it is also the story of Chile (and much of Latin America) over the 20th Century with remarkable characters as the allgorical stand-ins. It may also have a lot to say about the whole modern world of the last century as well. I am in awe of someone who can do what she has done in this book. Anyone who says that fiction is just a bunch of lies doesn't know the power of story.

I notice that the non-fiction (not faith-related) list is empty. Hmmm. Have to be looking around a little better and making notes.

Anyway, that's about it for tonight. Got to go do some more reading.

Helping Another Sinner Find The Way to Salvation

In Sunday's discussion group on evangelism, we got talking about how to know what to say when talking to people about Jesus. I realized that the key is to have Jesus be so natural in your life that you just talk about Him as if he were your best friend. It is so important to know what and why and how we believe so, when needed, you can just talk about it.

Which got me thinking back to the 12-step group / Church posts I had a few months ago. One of the values of the regular 12-step meetings is that almost everyone talks every time. The more often you go, the easier it becomes to talk. You talk about what your life was like before you got into recovery. You talk about what happened. You talk about what life is like now.

Or, when things aren't going as easily you talk about what is happening in your life and how it relates to your addiction-related issues. You learn through talking and listening to the other people around you how you can then apply the steps to yor situation, life, or worries.

I have to admit that I have very seldom been in a situation in church where that happens. To most of us in the mainline Protestant tradition (and perhaps others as well) we go to church to be with friends and to sing and pray. But then we listen to one person tell us what the Bible means and how we should apply it. We don't have the opportunity very often to talk about it and then try to apply it to what's going on today. In fact, most of us probably don't even think that way on a regular basis.

Which is where small groups come into the picture. Whether it be a house church setting or a small group from a "traditional" church, it may the best way to learn how to apply the wisdom of the Gospel to our lives. We get to share with each other how we have discovered the power of Jesus in our own lives. We will listen and pray and seek to avoid advice and easy answers. We will recognize that we are all just a bunch of sinners who are helping other sinners find their way to salvation.

I have a hunch that I would be less able to forget where I have come from. I know that I am daily aware of my addiction. Perhaps I need to be as aware of my sinfulness- and of the gift of grace that God has given me- and gives me daily in Jesus, my Lord.

I would remember since each time we got together I would say, humbly and honestly,
Hi, I'm Barry and I am a forgiven sinner.

No Thoughts
Perhaps

I have been leap-blogging for a couple of hours. Catching up on what people are saying and seeing, looking up blogs that I haven't found before. I was sitting here wondering if I have anything worth saying tonight.

In fact, I am not sure. This is looking like it will be an interesting week for reasons I can't divulge at this point. New opportunities for ministry are appearing on the horizon. Perhaps new opportunities are always there, it's just sometimes I get blinded to them.

One is actually exciting. We announced in church yesterday that our boards have okayed a project for us to develop, fund, organize, and hold a free community Thanksgiving meal in November. What a great and exciting opportunity to live the Gospel.

But what really has been running around in my soul is the need to keep my life in the presence of God. In her sermon yesterday, my wife talked about one of the pre-requisites for seeing God- get into the dust. In other words, get down on your knees, touch his garment, ask him for healing for your daughter. Or Ezekiel knocked down by the wind and flame only then to hear the still small voice in the quiet as he looks up to recover from his pain.

That continues to be a tough lesson to learn. The humbling of myself before God. I am like the person I heard recently who actually said...
:.. I don't mean to brag but I was a humble person....

To become humble means to recognize that I am in need. To become humble means to know that I need to be taught more than I need to teach. To become humble means that the world will continue today with or without my input. And God will continue to be God. Thank God!

So I have worked hard again at turning things over. I have resisted the temptations to push and prod and impose what I thought my will was on a situation. I walked away from the door that I wanted to keep knocking on, banging on, pushing on. Then, after I let it go, it re-opened today. Hmmmm.

So, the week will tell. I am humbled, at least momentarily. Until the next time I try to take control again and expect to determine the outcome of all things connected to me. Until the next time I act human- Adam like- looking to be like a god. May I find the wisdom to know sooner than later when it is happening.

Biblical Interpretation

Leighton Tebay has an excellent post on biblical interpretation. Here is part of its beginning...

The real truth is what we get taught in Sunday school is often very narrow, very shallow and I would say dishonest. We sacrifice our intellectual integrity when we consistently offer one simple interpretation of scripture while ignoring all other valid ones. Some may answer back with “well then you can make scripture say anything you want”. This is often true; people do this all the time. However I don’t believe you be honest and not go deeper with the text.

Meanwhile, over at Signposts, Dan talked about an article about the Uniting Church in Australia and goes in the same direction. Here's part of what she said..

It frustrates me when the advocates of a particular position say or imply that to hold any other position does not take the bible seriously. This makes a mockery of the complexity of Biblical understanding and study. It also means that anyone who tries to introduce into the discussion an examination of the Biblical basis for this belief or that belief is immediately accused of cultural relativism and of bending the Bible to their own viewpoint. If this is the standard, then you can say that you are taking the bible seriously when you support slavery, capital punishment, polygamy and racism, as all are clearly supported by the bible. If you don't want to do that, then at least admit that two people who take the bible seriously can still disagree about what it says.

Last week I posted here from my journaling about accepting the Gentiles into the church in Acts. We discussed this section in our study/trainin on evangelism this morning. And it fits into what Leighton and Dan posted about biblical interpretation.

The acceptance of the Gentiles was preceded by one of the most revolutionary actions in the still young church. Peter went to Cornelius's house and ate supper. We don't know if pork or shellfish were on the menu, but simply being there and eating food prepared in non-Kosher ways was enough. Imagine Peter's incredible tension. He had this dream, this vision, that allows him to eat everything.

BUT, the Bible says, very, very clearly that if you do what Peter is doing you will be expelled from the People of God! You have broken the law of God!

As the denominational officials from Jerusalem came to find out what was happening, they came quoting scripture. The Bible says.... Peter, what you have done is sin.

Looking back from 2000 years later we know that the dream was from God. Peter knew because he dream was affirmed by what Cornelius also knew. The community had to learn. The community had to discover that the Word of God is alive and active. They came and discovered that the Gentiles were in the Spirit. Here is how Luke tells it:

15“As I (Peter) began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?”18When they (the officials from Jerusalem) heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.”

Bottom line - the law of God was changed. They knew it by the fruits of the Spirit's arrival on the Gentiles.

Now, I learned a few things in the discussion this morning.
... First, there are people who don't realize that the "Jewish Law" that is often referred to is all from the Bible. One person said that Peter was just moving beyond "man-made laws." That person didn't know that the Kosher laws are in scripture. (This is part of the issue of Biblical interpretation- people don't know the Bible as deeply as they could.)
... Second, to Peter and the early Christians, to break the Jewish Law was the same as saying that the Bible doesn't hold true anymore. Paul had to dance around that issue, and left it somewhat undecided as far as Jewish Christians were concerned. He, in essence, said that those laws were not meant for the non-Jews. (I know that's over-simplifying, but that was the effect.)
... Third, to take this to its logical conclusion, would get me into a deep debate from which there is no escape. What if we see someone who we believe to be a sinner (Gentile) who has been given the Spirit and exhibits the fruits and power of the Spirit? Would we say- that can't happen. They're still a sinner? Or would we at least stop and consider that God is moving in ways far beyond the scope of my poor human understanding. I know I am not giving an example here. I think I am still afraid to go that far.
... Fourth, I need to evangelize, share the story of Jesus and the promise of His power and hope, without regard to issues of the sinfulness of the person I am talking to. I am not there to be a judge, jury, or the one to decide they are to be excluded. I am to share the Good News. Focus on Jesus. Share Jesus as my personal experience, strength, and hope.

If God would then bring them in, just as they are, and give them the Spirit, who am I to say that God can't, won't, or shouldn't? I am still working on this but thanks to LT and Dan, I have at least made some movement.

Friday's Love Poem

Absolutely Clear

Don't surrender your loneliness
So quickly.
Let it cut more deep.
Let it ferment and season you
As few human
Or even divine ingredients can.
Something missing in my heart tonight
Has made my eyes so soft,
My voice
So tender,
My need of God
Absolutely
Clear.

Hafiz
from The Path of Love website

Into the World

Thanks to Fred Peatross I found an article on Six Ways I Quit Church by Chad Hall.

It's counter-intuitive, but we must find ways to disconnect from the church way of thinking, feeling, and living so that the pre-Christians in our community stand a better chance of being influenced by Christ and the church.

1. Get out of the office. Leaders who spend nine to five in a church office inevitably dry out to the rich rhythms of life on the outside. My main office is a bagel shop where I write sermons, do planning, and have meetings. I can't quite explain it, but I take on a whole different attitude when I trade ministry books, seminary diplomas, and last Sunday's bulletin for real-world surroundings and lots of fish-talk.

Since February that has been my arena of ministry. My wife (and co-pastor) does all the internal stuff- worship planning, administration. My job is in community outreach and ministry. Kind of like a church planter for an established church. One of the guidelines was that I not be in the office. I found an office at our local Caribou Coffee. I read and write and visit there. Or I go to lunch at a local fast food and watch and listen and pray. I have run into interesting people and situations. I watch children play with their parents and workers at lunch relaxing. I see people who aren't part of my church but are seekers. Or I just read or journal.

A lot of people don't entirely understand how what I am doing is "ministry." In our modern church world it is hard to see that what happens outside the church is ministry unless it is visiting the sick or doing some kind of door-to-door evangelism. It doesn't appear to be benefitting the church. It isn't as visible to the members as Sunday worship. Yet, it is right where I think Jesus would be going to meet people and let them know that they are cared about. Not that what I am doing is anything like Jesus. But I'm trying. And as Chad Hall talks about in the article, it is a whole different world than what I have been living in.

A Couple Bits

A New Sunday Elective
Found this thanks to Blog4God at Upward Way Press

If you were to announce an elective Sunday morning class in your church on "Knowing God's Will for Your Life", probably 50-75 percent of all adults would choose that elective. Almost everybody wants to know and do God's will. Those who don't will be among those who don't attend the class, I guess.

The call here is for us to make ourselves a living sacrifice. It is an earnest call. It is reasonable for God to ask it of us, it is spiritual, and it is for God's sake we do it. The outcome is that we are changed. As Peterson has it, we are "changed from the inside out". We are transformed.

This renewal, this transformation, leads to an ability to figure out God's will. It is as simple as that. The class mentioned above wouldn't take long to get through. "Hey, guys, just make your lives a living sacrifice, let God transform you, and you will start getting it." The class wouldn't take long, but the homework would.

More on Post-Christendom
Phil and Dan at Signposts are continuing their images from Charles Bayers' book - A Resurrected Church. Here's their latest:

Christendom - the use of biblical texts as a weapon against outsiders.

Post-Christendom - the use of texts as stories, metaphors, celebrations and testimonies to God's grace.

Charles mentions that old game. You know the one... I quote a biblical reference to support my position, you quote on to support yours and we keep going until someone runs out. The person who last used a biblical text supposedly wins. Charles, thinks that this game of "Biblical gotcha" is not played even by conservatives. In the light of our experience with S11 and what it has revealed about attitudes towards Muslims, and also the recent issues over homosexuality and the Church, I am not as convinced as Charles that we have moved past this game.

What marks Christendom, Charles argues, is "the need to construct boundaries defining who is in and who is out, and having marked that designation, to produce Bible verses supporting the exclusionist claims." The post-Christendom church, Charles says needs to position itself with the outsider, the marginalised and non-person. It is much more hesitatant to say this one is in, and this one is out.

As we look at Jesus' depiction of the reign of God, I think we need to regain the same sort of fluidity, fuzziness and the benefit of the doubt that Jesus seemed to offer outsiders. I always become uncomfortable when I see that whenever someone said that "those" people are out, Jesus went and stood with them and said no you have it wrong, they are in. It makes me reassess my own tendencies to categorise people.

Thought that was appropriate follow-up to yesterday's blog on who are the Gentiles?

Who Are Our Gentiles?

In working on my postModern Journal blog tonight I came to Acts 11

1 The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”

By the end of the section, the Jerusalem powers-that-be were convinced and agreed that these Gentiles truly had received the Spirit.

18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.”

- - The revolution pictured here cannot be overstated. This is BIG! Peter has broken the Law. He has gone into unclean places. He has eaten with unclean people. He has eaten unclean food! I cannot even think of something that is as equivalent- at least not without really getting into trouble myself. The repercussions of this will echo for a while through the book. God has made a move that makes no sense to those raised in the faith. God has seemingly broken His own laws. The Gentiles, it appears, do not have to accept the Jewish Law in order to be accepted by God!

- - We know that God is at work, it would appear, when the Holy Spirit comes on people and is seen as being present. In this case, it would appear to be the Pentecost-type tongues speaking, just as at the beginning. This only reaffirms that this is something new, as seen by Luke. This is the beginning for the Gentiles. The church will never again be the same!!!

SO::
:: Who are the Gentiles that we would not expect to see given the Spirit? Who are the people that we would throw up our hands in fear and judgment and criticism if they suddenly were accepted as the people of God, too. Who are the people that God would even break His own laws to bring into the Kingdom?

:: This is not a philosophical or theoretical set of questions. These are very practical questions.
   ... It deals with perceptions of sinfulness (the Gentiles were, by their nature, unclean and therefore unapproachable.)
   ... It deals with cultural conflict (the Gentiles had different ways of seeing the world and responding to the world.)
   ... It deals with acceptance of persons who are different.
   ... It deals with the same issues we will face when we leave our churches and go out into a postmodern world that doesn’t look, think, or act like we do in the church. We will probably come up against the same problems, criticisms, and fears that the early church faced.

At least we can know that the times we live in aren’t unique.

Language of the Sacred
Language of the Secular

Spain. From the 8th Century through the 15th Century. A land of Muslim, Christian, and Jew. Especially Al Andalus- Andalusia.

I fell in love with Andalusia last year when we went to visit our daughter who was then studying in Seville. When you visit Andalusia you know something exciting and unique once happened there. It is still in the air.

What happened was a true cultural melting pot that was almost unique in world history. Maria Rosa Menocal subtitles her book Ornament of the World- How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain.

It was a culture where
:: a Jewish prime minister served a Muslim leader
:: a Christian warrior for hire fought for local Muslim leaders against other Muslims or other Christians
:: the riches of the old Greek world were preserved for future civilizations by being brought (already translated into Arabic) from the Middle East and placed in libraries beyond the wildest imagination of Europeans from where they would be available for those same Europeans when the time came
:: the oldest continuing version of the Mass (in Arabic) had to fight to keep from being replaced by the young, upstart, Latin Mass.
:: Hebrew, the language of Holy Scripture, was transformed into a language of poetry and wonder.

It is this last one that struck me in a postModern way. And perhaps may even have something to do with our “worship wars.”

For centuries prior to the ascension of Al-Andalus, Hebrew had been only a language of the sacred- scripture. No one would have considered writing secular poems, songs, or even stories in Hebrew. In medieval Spain the arose some remarkable poets and story-tellers whose native language was Arabic. They discovered the wonders of language through the wonderful lyricism of Arabic. It was both the language of the Koran and the marketplace; of talking to God and of talking to your lover.

Maimonides, an Andalusian Jewish philosopher had written that when they “prayed in Hebrew, [they] were unable adequately to express his needs or recount the praises of God without mixing Hebrew with other languages. Menocal continues:

It was not that Jews should speak other languages but that the Hebrew they spoke was no longer the language of true love, of complex emotions, of seemingly contrary ideas and feelings: maternal, erotic, spiritual, material, transcendent. Maimonides, Andalusian that he was, believe that God needed and wanted to be spoken to in a language alive with that whole range of emotions. It was an attitude that later allowed English to find its voice in the love sonnets of Shakespeare as well as in the prayers on the King James Bible. The prayers prove more satisfying, perhaps even more true, for being in the language of the love songs.

Because they had absorbed, mastered, and loved the principles that made Arabic easily able to sing to God and Beloved in the same language, they had been able to revive Hebrew so that it could, once again, sing like the Hebrew of David’s songs, and Solomon’s songs.- Ornament of the World, pp. 161-162

Some felt, however, that the two languages should be separate. One is for the holy and it would be awful to express one’s devotion to God in the same words as one expressed base human emotions or even the language of the street.

Consider the parallel with our modern music. Church music has been the language of the sacred- the separate- the expression of devotion to God. That language is not the language of the streets anymore. It is not a language that the person on the street would recognize as expressing emotion. It is special, even elite. Like the King James English, what may have once been a powerful language of love has become outdated. It has lost its original ability to inspire and express passion to most people.

That in strong contrast to the music of the streets. Whether rock and roll, heavy metal, country and western, or jazz these are “vulgar” languages. These are not words or styles that one would consider using to express one’s love for God. We must keep the God-music separate.

The problem is that in many ways the music of the people is the music of emotion and devotion. Goose-bump producing music that can make one remember or cry or laugh. We don’t want that language in church.

But we do. We have even taken some of the sacred songs and made them emotion-laden. The power of Amazing Grace is not just the words. Consider how that would not be popular were it written to a marching song. No, the power is in the music. It is a language of the people, not of the church. Many of the most popular hymns are similar. They are in a musical language that people understand and respond to.

The contemporary Christian worship movement has done what the medieval Spanish Jewish poets did. They have revived a dead- or at least separate- language, church music, through infusing it with modern style and postmodern rhythms.

Of course, we have also “institutionalized” our Christian music in an era when music changes rapidly. What “baby-boomers” call “contemporary” has become a “traditional” style. New, edgier music are mixing with new, edgier understandings of faith to produce new worship. Others are merging with older styles to bring an ancient-future perception.

But it is always an attempt to express in language the often indescribable emotions of love and commitment. The best way, I feel, remains the same language we use to tell others that we love them.

A Blog Quilt

Rachel has had another great idea- a blog quilt. Here is my quilt block.



It is the seal of the Moravian Church, the Lamb who has conquered that we are to follow. It may not be a straight-line, in fact it may look like the wanderings of a postModern Pilgrim. But if we follow the Lamb who was slain, we may discover that Jesus has already gone ahead of us and is just wondering and waiting why we're taking so long.

Thanks Rachel!

Falling in Love With Jesus

Donald Miller has written a wonderful book on non-religious thoughts about Christian spirituality called Blue Like Jazz. In his chapter on Jesus he talks about reading through the Gospel of Luke, coming to the end of the book and being overwhelmed. Here is what he said:

   ...I remember sitting at my desk, and I don't know what it was that I read or what Jesus was doing in the book, but I felt a love for Him rush through me, through my back and into my chest. I started crying...

   I remember thinking that I would follow Jesus anywhere, that it didn't matter what He asked me to do. He could be mean to me; it didn't matter, I loved Him, and I was going to follow Him.

   I think the most important thing that happens with Christian spirituality is when a person falls in love with Jesus.

   Sometimes when I go forward at church to take Communion,... the thought of Jesus comes to me, the red of His blood or the smell of His humanity, and I eat the bread and I wonder at the mystery of what I am doing, that somehow I am one with Christ, that I get my very life from Him, my spiritual life comes from His working inside me, being inside me.(Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, 2003, Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

Donald Miller knows the truth and power of what we have read about this week. He knows about the power of unity in and with Jesus. He knows of the power of conversion like Paul. He knows of the deep, overwhelming love that God has for all people because he opened himself to God. Do we have this to share? Do we know that same joy and awe that lets us know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is in our lives? This is what will compel us to be witnesses for Him.

A Love Poem from God

Wherever You May Look

Wisdom is
so kind and wise
that wherever you may look
you can learn something
about God.

Why
would not
the omnipresent
teach that
way?
St. Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)
--from Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West by Daniel Ladinsky

Basilica Block Party

This is the weekend for the Basilica Block party in downtown Minneapolis. Hosted by St. Mary’s Basilica, there is great music, name bands, youth and young adult orientation.

Over the eight years they have been doing this party, the number of young adults and young adult households who are members of the parish has more than doubled. It has been one of the fastest growing “young adult” congregations in the Twin Cities.

Hmmmmm

I may not know much about God, but I'd say we built a pretty nice cage for him.

Homer Simpson, after helping some island natives construct a chapel.
Thanks to Rachel at cre8d.

Another Quiz

Which Peanuts Character Are You Quiz

The Reasons Have Changed

Came across this article thanks to Dan Hughes at They Blinked. Donald Rumsfeld now tells us that what they said wasn't what they said or what we really thought they said. Hindsight is such a wonderful skill. It can even change history- after it has happened.

I am not surprised. Deeply saddened. Deeply disturbed. I had truly hoped that we could at least admit errors and take responsibility for what we have done. This article doesn't seem to look like that.

I hate to be one of those Jesus People, but I wonder what Jesus would say or do?

Some Thoughts

The Joy of Hospitality
Realized I missed another day yesterday. Not so much that I have nothing to say (that never happens). More like my mind and body are still renewing from the week in Miami. Maybe I'm not as young as I used to be, but a week of short nights and long, hot days got to me. Then we made a major effort at cleaning our house for guests.

I had forgotten the fun of having good house guests. This time it was my sister-in-law and her husband. Had a great conversation about the church and sin and being Christian and witnessing and how the world doesn't want to hear what we have to say. It is easy at times to get caught up in our own lives and problems and forget about the joy of having good guests to talk with. Hours fly by. We can agree, disagree and attempt to settle all the problems of the world, then go to bed. What a wonderful thing.

Another friend coming tomorrow- and now the house is clean!! Maybe I'll get some blogging done.

Another Book Finished
Finished Year Zero- on the book list this past week. While one has to suspend a lot of logic to accept the premise, it is interesting, challenging, and disturbing and generally a good read. It seems there is this virus that has been let loose upon the world by some rogue archaeologists who have stolen bones and artifacts from a discovered crypt of bones under the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In other words, the bones of Golgotha. The virus has mutated over the 2000 years and no one is immune to it. It spreads quickly and is 100% fatal.

The scientists have all gathered at Los Alamos as a last stand, an Alamo, against the virus, seeking to find a cure. They do this through the now highly developed science of cloning. What will happen as the virus spreads and threatens to wipe out all humanity? Will there be a cure? And is one of those clones really Jesus?

As I said, it is a fun read if you like sci-fi-type thrillers. Suspended belief helps, but as a lover of sc-fi and fantasy, I have no problem with that. It is an edge-of-the-seat story with a great deal of humanity in it.

What made it more scary than it might have been was the recent SARS scare. Out of nowhere came a disease that was, at times, fatal. At first no one knew where it came from. What would stop it? What are its long-term affects? At least with HIV/AIDS we now know it is only transmitted in certain clear ways. SARS seemed to be airborne.

So, what if....
Could humanity be threatened with extinction because of a previously unknown bug? Might we all be in danger- not today, but someday- of getting the incurable disease?

Sure it's far-fetched. Sure it won't happen. Yet, I realized as I shivered at times while reading the book, we do have that incurable illness. It is called life. And it ends in death. Someday it will be over. So what then is the purpose of life? Why live in the first place? Those are the real questions struggled with in the book. It is not a great work of literature. But it is a good read and made me think about what living is all about.

For me, it is about living in a way that brings honor to God and others. It is about living in such a way that I can sleep most nights with a clear conscience. It is about confronting my demons and shortcomings and failings and sins- honestly. It is about trusting that there is a power greater than myself that will bring sanity to the midst of the insanity. Life is not pointless. It has a purpose- found for me in God in Jesus Christ. That is not the ending point, it is both the starting point and the center point around which all else is to revolve.

How would I deal with a doomsday virus or an apocalyptic disease threatening me and all humanity? I will only know that when I trust God for this life and the next when I have already been infected with such a disease. May God grant me the wisdom, courage, and serenity to live for him, no matter what.

Going Global

Jordon Cooper posted an interesting blog today on the change he has been going through toward a more global understanding. After a long and excellent quote from Thomas Friedman's book,
The Lexus and the Olive Tree he ends with this:

For a long time I was the "the most narrow of pastors." I was reading just the stuff that would hopefully make my church run a little better. Wanting to visit other churches so I knew who they do it. As I awoke to a new world around and went looking for answers, I realized my questions were wrong and too narrow. I realized that not only my answers were wrong but also my questions. In addition to that I had a horrible feeling that there were questions out there that I should be asking but I hadn't found yet.

An expanding worldview is what he calls all this. I agree in its importance for us in this postModern world.

The theme for our Moravian Young Adult Convo last week was Global Voices::Global Choices. We spent a great deal of program time dealing with this New Global World of globalization. Whether it's Friedman's book or Philip Jenkins The Next Christendom, the change is being reported. We need to be ready and open to the changes and find ways to be Christian in this new globalized world, especially those of us who are "western, northern" Christians.

Miami- A Vision of the Future?

At the end of our Moravian Youth Convo on Saturday evening, a pastor commented to us that in Miami we have seen what the rest of the country will one day look like. The diversity of peoples and languages and human color. It is remarkable.

It was truly like being in a foreign country. The weather, of course, was not like Minnesota which gives Miami a real tropical attitude. But it was also the stores and the languages. At the church we were at on Saturday, the pastor who welcomed us was an American white person. The pastor who read the call to worship was from Surinam and read first in Dutch. Worshipers and leaders were from Jamaica, Nicaragua, Barbados, Honduras.

It was an exciting experience at church and throughout Miami. At times it was work to understand the dialects and accents. But it was worth it. I was reminded, since it was the 4th of July Weekend, that this is clearly the result of being a nation of immigrants. We are a country that is rich in diversity. We are not a melting pot with some innocuous mixed color or style. We are many as one- E Pluribus Unum. For that I am grateful.

A Love Poem from God

The Perfect Stillness

Love is
the perfect stillness
and the greatest excitement, and most profound act,
and the word almost as complete
as His name.
Rabia of Basra (c.717-801)
--from Love Poems from God:Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West by Daniel Ladinsky

Just a Post of Thanks

Well, this is the first time in a few months that life has truly trumped blogging. I'm still in Miami and still doing the web site for our Moravian Young Adult Convo. It has been fun. A small group this time around- only about 25 or so young people. We are looking at what our program leader calls the New Global World- the impact of globalization and its technologies on all of us. We are working on how are we to be Christians in this globalized world.

I am personally struck by the way the blogosphere has impacted my life and has given me a couple of things.
:: First there's just the opportunity to write and actually think that someone might even care about what I am writing. It has allowed me to in some small way publish what I am thinking.
:: More importantly is the world-wide community that develops here. We are scattered around the globe. At first I was amazed when I saw that I was getting hits from New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, and other places. Then I realized that I am reading some of your thoughts from those places. Talk about the ability to maintain and spread the thoughts and ideas of a changing world.
:: Probably most important for me is the faith-based aspect of this for so many of us. We may very well just be talking to each other right now, but we are developing the very basics of a system that may just might be a whole new way to be evangelists, Christians, and disciples. When Gutenberg invented the movable type printing press he didn't know that Martin Luther was in the wings to use it to make a huge shift in faith. Who is waiting in the wings- or perhaps already blogging- who will be the next Martin Luther?

So, I guess I am trying to say thanks to all of you for what you have helped me do and how we all, in humility and trust look to Jesus as the author and finisher of our faith. I haven't had much chance to read around the blogosphere this week, but I know I will have a chance to do so next week. And I do have a Friday love poem already in the computer so that will be posted to.

Have a great and blessed weekend.

A Weather Jinx?

At 1:00 p.m. EDT today there was a heavy thunderstorn and rain in Miami with a temperature of 73. At the same time the Twin Cities, MN temperature was 86 and sunny. I'm in Miami. Hmmm.

A Travel Day

As often as I may do it, it never fails to amaze me. Less than 12 hours ago I was in Minnesota. Tonight I was at a baseball game in Miami. (More later.)

It was a quiet trip- after I got on the plane. I got 90% of the way to the airport (in morning rush hour, no less) and realized I left my digital camera under some papers on the couch. So, we made a quick trip across the back way to home, picked up the camera and came rushing back to the airport.

Where there was an airport police officer with a radar gun aiming down the road from where I couldn't see him. Pulled over within 150 feet of where I needed to be. No ticket, just a warning.

Made it to the plane on time and it was a quiet flight.

Oh well.

Baseball

Had a chance to go to the Marlins-Braves game tonight at Pro Player Stadium. Not many people there to see the Marlins set a club record for both runs and hits (final score: 20-1, with 25 hits for the Marlins.)

I have been a baseball fan for years. There is something about the pace of a baseball game that is good for slowing down. (I know- some would say going to sleep.) But I have always been a Field of Dreams kind of person. Can't play the game to save my life. My buddy Wilson and I would love to play right field in High School Phy Ed. Nothing ever happened out there. I was the only left-handed batter in my class, I think.

But I have always loved to go to games. The first one was years ago when the Braves played the Dodgers- at Ebbets Field. I wish I remembered more about that fabled place. But that was what got it in my blood. Have not be a rabid fan, but have been to a World Series game (Philadelphia, 1980). Became an American League fan when I moved to Wisconsin and got to games at County Stadium with the Brewers. Didn't make the switch with them to the National League and have found myself a Twins and Yankees fan the past few years.

There is always that first moment for me when I walk into the stadium from the walkway around the outside. The grass is green, the seats are brightly colored, the sounds and the people and the lights and the sky. It is magic. Summer magic. Sitting out in right field tonight behind the foul pole, I could sit and meditate on the beauty of the evening. The warm but comfortable Florida air. The Dads and Sons, Moms and Daughters, Friends and Lovers, Retail Groups in the picnic area, a group of Jewish young people with kipot and fringes. People were having a wonderful time. It helped that the Marlins walked away with it.

I didn't feel rushed. The friends I was with talked and visited and cheered and just watched the game. I found myself sitting and watching the field, the players and the pitches and hits and outs. It was calming. It was summer.

Yes, I love football. I lived in Wisconsin for too long to be anything but a Packer fan. I can tolerate basketball and hockey. But those are winter sports. In the winter you have to move fast to keep warm. You have to be on your toes or you might get frozen in place.

Summer is for baseball. The World Series (now pushed far into the fall) was the end of summer. It brought a close to the ease of summertime. But it was still the Boys of Summer coming to the end of their season. What a way to spend a night in Miami in July.