Encouraging Start

One of the things I've been somewhat critical of the emerging movement is the near hero-worship of some of the leaders of the movement. After getting 2/3 through Brian McLaren's "A Generous Orthodoxy", however, I can see where the excitement and enthusiasm for leaders like McLaren come from. Brian is able to articulate things in ways that I truly haven't heard before - especially in the mainlines). He definitely is naming and addressing needs that have been unmet for the last couple of decades. While I wouldn't necessarily elevate McLaren to hero status, I will take a moment and share some things that have greatly helped me in my conceptualization of aspects of the emergent movement. McLaren's christology is far more accessible to folks from a variety of positions than I earlier realized. In his first chapter titled "The Seven Jesuses I Have Know", McLaren begins by spelling out the various modern approaches to Jesus he has encountered during his lifetime: (1) the Conservative Protestant Jesus, (2) the Pentecostal/Charismatic Jesus, (3) the Roman Catholic Jesus, (4) the Eastern Orthodox Jesus, (5) the Liberal Protestant Jesus, (6) the Anabaptist Jesus, and (7) the Jesus of the Oppressed. Instead of forging a christology based primarily upon one of these approaches, however, McLaren invites us to consider what it might mean to forge a christology that weaves the approaches together. While such an endeavor might seem an overwhelming task, it's not. You'll have to read the book for yourself to see why I say that. After exploring the christological task before him - before US - he concluded: "I'm finding a new simplicity on the far side of complexity". I love that phrase "on the far side of complexity". We in the mainlines have done a wonderful job revealing the complexities, and a substandard job at pointing toward the simplicity. I believe it is the role of the worshipping communities - to help worshippers connect with that life-giving, life-affirming sense of simplicity. I also loved McLaren's radical take on the challenge of living as a Christian these days. He writes that in many worshipping communities, "Our domesticated, romanticized, and spiritualized Jesus has become ... the orthodox Jesus". I have seen this domestication happen in faith communities of all theological and political stripes. it's certainly NOT the purview of just conservative communities! In progressive communities we have all too often treated Jesus' life and mission simply as a set of propositions to CONSIDER and been all to satisfied to leave things there. The sense of immediacy and urgency in resonse to God's grace and mercy has largely been lost. The task of the worshipping community then is to be honest with itself (individually and collectively) in our assessment of what we have done with (and TO) the God of Jesus. McLaren proved remarkably adept at addressing issues that I thought I would strongly disagree with him. In addressing the challenge of living in an interfaith world, for instance, McLaren framed his response by citing the words of one of his mentors: "Remember, in a pluralistic world, a religion is valued based on the benefit it brings to its non-adherents". In addressing questions about the after-life, he wrote: "I'm more interested in a gospel that is universally efficacious for the whole earth before death in history". At nearly every juncture of his spiritual journey, McLaren intentionally chose a "both/and" approach (an approach more in line with the Orthodox tradition of the East) rather than an "either/or" approach (most notably associated with the Catholic and Protestant traditions of the West). I LOVE this! Having had a New Testament professor in seminary from the Greek Orthodox tradition, this is very much in keeping with my theological approach. I find it revealing, however, that now this approach has been "discovered" by the West, we are sticking new labels on in (i.e. "post-modern") rather than acknowledge its ancient roots within a branch of our own Christian tradition. "Guess new labels tend to sell more books and generate more speaking opportunities," says the cynic in me. I'll stop todays ramblings with a sentence that McLaren used to capture the goal of all worship opportunities. He writes on page 122: "We must rejoice that God cares for the whole world and set our hearts to join God in caring." Ain't that the truth!!! Til next time...