2 Facets of Community Life to Factor In

I just finished Jim Kitchens' book "The Postmodern Parish: New Ministry for a New Era". There was a whole lot of GREAT material in the book. I thought I would focus on two areas that Kitchens emphasized that really struck a chord with me. The first has to do with an area that is foundational for communities seeking to adjust to postmodern culture: spiritual formation. In stating the case for a move away from the traditional/modern emphasis on programs and knowledge toward an emerging/postmodern emphasis on feeling and experience, Kitchens observes: "It's not information that they [postmodern folks] need, but formation" (61). Well said, Jim. "So what does formation look like in the life of a faith community?" you might wonder. "Formation," Kitchens would respond, "is as much about developing Christian disciplines and practices as it is about gaining knowledge about the Christian tradition. So it will focus," he concludes, "on learning to pray and to pratice Christian hospitality as much as on learning about the Trinity and the Incarnation" (61). One of my favorite suggestions Kitchens made regards how we can incorporate spiritual formation into our so-called new member classes (62-63). The second area I found helpful (and unique in my readings to date) is his emphasis on the adoption of a discernment model to help guide the life of the community. "Discernment is atractive to postmoderns," Kitchens writes, "because of its appeal to the whole person and the whole community" (90). He notes that parliamentary procedure (a favorite practice of the mainlines) was established upon the principles (and assumption of) an adversarial relationship. By adopting a discernment model for decision-making, a faith community could move away from this adversarial way of being. Unfortunately Kitchens didn't make any recommendations for a particular model of discernment to use so this will open a new avenue of exploration for me later this summer. I mentioned in yesterday's post I would be attending an emergent discussion group last night called the Theology Pub so I'll take a moment and mention a couple of reflections I had about the experience. The group of 12 was a little older than some emergent gatherings (members ages ranged from 25-40). The group was pretty homogenous (only two persons of color were present). Half of the group was either clergy or seminary students; the other half lay persons. The group had a topic to explore for the evening (suffering) and was lead by a talented facilitator (Sarah). There were two things that struck me about the emergent discussion group. First, I was struck by how little personal information was shared in the context of the discussion (of course 1/3 of the group was there for the first time so trust and relationship hadn't been built yet). Much of the discussion either stayed at the abstract level or occasional generic case studies were used to make a point. Second, I was impressed by how vulnerable people were willing to be about matters of theology. Given the fact that the group didn't know each other very well (and the fact that the group was made up of members from widely divergent faith traditions including everything from Seventh Day Adventists, Evangelicals, Lutherans, and Mennonites), folks were amazingly candid about their struggles to reconcile their understanding of God with the nature of suffering. There were no egos or judgement involved in the conversation. Just open, honest, and safe conversation. This aspect of the evening was emerging culture at its best. While this may not have been an emergent worship gathering, the evening was definitely full of the presence and Spirit of God! In terms of update on my father's condition, dad is still in ICU. There have been some positive signs over the past 24 hours. I'm hoping he'll make it out of ICU by Sunday. Thanks so much for your continued prayers for him and my family. Til next time...

New Perspective Added

Today I started Jim Kitchens' book "The Postmodern Parish". Right away Jim gave me another perspective to factor in my reflections: the phrase post-Christian. While I had encountered the phrase numerous times before, I had not encountered it in such a manner that it was explicitly linked with the issues post-modernism and the emerging culture. The connection was very helpful. Let me tell you why I say that. Living in a post-Christian time basically implies that we live in a period with Christianity has lost its place of power and priviledge within the larger society. In many ways it represents a return to the times before Emperor Constantine gave Christianity a place of power and priviledge within the Roman Empire in the fourth century - a status that Christianity has largely enjoyed in Western societies since that time. I actually see this return as a positive thing as I believe it will bring us back to our spiritual roots as a countercultural movement rather than an expression of the dominant culture. Kitchens quotes Loren Mead as saying because of this shift from the Christian to Post-Christian era we now minister in a time that "has more in common with the apostolic era than it has with the church['s hayday] of the 1950's" (17). This observation will bring a whole new level of insight when I next read the Epistles. Having read just the first two chapters of Kitchens' book, I have already been impressed with his ability to move from the abstract/theological to the concrete/practical. He writes, for instance, that in the Postmodern/Post-Christian/Postdenominational age, "spiritual formation will need to replace education as our model of Christian nurture" (28) - a subtle, but crucial distinction in meeting the emerging needs of the 21st Century. I see this distinction as representing a move away content (i.e. programs) toward actual practices of the faith. He also succintly captures the challenge worship facilitators face these days when he writes, "The postmodern collapse of reliance on reason alone gives rise to people who want to engage their senses and their intuition as well as their reason when they encounter God" (13). In these instances and several other places you can see that Kitchens spiritual gift is one of translation as he constantly moves from the realm of academia to the practice of ministry. For that I am grateful! In the second half of his book Kitchens will use his own church to provide a case study of how a body transitions from a modern to postmodern orientation (something I said I was looking for in my post two days ago). I'll share with you tomorrow how this exploration goes. Tonight I'm off to connect with some emergent folks here in Denver through a gathering called the Theology Pub. That should give me fodder for reflection tomorrow as well. Til next time...

Postmodernism & Beyond

I finished Stanley Grenz's work "A Primer on Postmodernism" today. As I did so, it made me realize that I need to confess a bias. As someone who identified myself as a progressive mainline person, there were a few publishers of religious materials that I avoided like the plague because (even in my seminary training) I was told they featured materials by folks who came from the wrong side of the theological tracks, if you will. Unfortunately I was too lazy to unpack all of the biases that lay behind that assumption. Nevertheless over half of the books I've read to date have come from these publishers. As I finish each book I'm reminded of just how wrong I was to put such limitations on my spiritual explorations. No more! With that brief confession, I'm on to my thoughts for the day. As I finished the last four chapters of Grenz's, I realized there were two things that separate my beliefs from some of the mainstream evangelicals. These realizations sprung from the last chapter of Grenz's book where he evaluated postmodernism from his largely mainstream evangelical perspective. The first difference has to do with one's response to the postmodernist suggestion that there is no single, unified center of reality. While I would strongly agree with mainstream evangelicals that there is indeed a center we have as a people of faith, I would part ways with them regarding our ability to truly know or comprehend the fullness of that Center. It seems from much of the verbiage they use (or verbiage that is attributed to them by the media) that many mainstream evangelicals would suggest we can fully know the Center through the sacred writings of our tradition (i.e. Old & New Testatements) and the historic creeds of our faith. I would disagree. While the God revealed in Jesus is indeed the Center of my life, I believe this God is so expansive that the true essence of God transcends even these resources. This (on most days) leads me to a deep sense of humility about my faith as I try not to confuse my beliefs about God with God Godself. Second, I would differ from some of the mainstream evangelicals in their understanding of the role of community. In many evangelical communities, it seems the role of the community is primarily to impart the faith. I tend to see the role of the community instead as providing additional glimpses or insights into the nature of God - insights that I would otherwise never have given my own inherently limited perspective. Nevertheless, despite some differences between myself and some mainstream evangelicals like Stanley Grenz, I thoroughly enjoyed Grenz's book and would recommend it as an important resource to help provide a philosophical and theological foundation for work on postmodern/emergent worship. Yesterday, I said I hoped that my work in the last four chapters of Grenz's work would provide tangible tools for helping walking a congregation through the transition from worship based on a modern model to worship based upon postmodern models. I found a doozy of an insight in this area. In Grenz's discussion of Richard Rorty's work, he wrote: "The proper goal of philosophy is not to uncover ojective truth but to maintain the discussion among these differing interpretations" (158). "Maintaining the discussion". What a wonderful phrase to use to hold communities together in the midst of important, difficult - and sometimes painful work! Before I close I want to thank those of you lifting prayers for my father following his heart attack last weekend. We've had a series of ups (immediate response to the balloon pump installed in his heart last Sunday) and downs (the need to replace the pump Tuesday). I hope you'll keep him and our family in your continued prayers. Tomorrow I'll start working with Jim Kitchens book "The Postmodern Parish". Til next time...

Postmodernism & Worship

Before I get into today’s topic, I thought I would begin by answering a question I raised a couple of days ago. A few days ago I wondered how postmodern/emergent communities – with there emphasis on community – would avoid the pitfall that many existing churches fall into where community becomes an inwardly focused phenomenon. Stanley Grenz answered the question for me when he wrote in his book “A Primer on Postmodernism”, that postmodernists have “a corporate understanding of truth” (14). This means (at least in theory) that postmodernists would never be able to sit back and be self satisfied with their current communal make-up since at any given time many voices/perspectives would be missing. These missing voices/perspectives would then limit their understanding of truth. This hunger for truth/God would then motivate them to continue to turn outward and bring missing voices/perspectives into the community’s conversation. Now let me turn to the topic of the day. Yesterday, I said that I would explore postmodern theory and its affect on the worship life of the community. For the sake of time and space today, let me do that in two areas: architecture and visual arts. The modernist approach toward architecture is predicated upon the value of efficiency. Anything that is perceived of as extraneous is often eliminated. Not so for postmodernists. Their value of things like beauty and space cause them to abandon efficiency and turn their attention on affect. The implication on postmodernist worship leaders is a very freeing one. Instead of focusing on issues such as seating capacity and flow of service, facilitators are now encouraged to explore options that can enhances worship experiences through the creation of things like worship stations and free space. A similar dynamic is at work in the field of visual arts as well. Modern artists tended to emphasize consistency both in terms of subject and style. This is apparent, for instance, in most existing churches’ banners that emphasize one particular theme and style. Postmodernists challenge such an approach by intentionally engaging contrasting themes and styles within works. That’s one reason why collages are a favorite of many postmodernists. This sense of freedom would give postmodern/emergent worship facilitators greater freedom to explore both a variety of approach to a service theme and use a variety of styles (or even mediums) within the worship space. Grenz’s second chapter does a good job of encouraging similar reflection on a variety of other areas such as technology, music, and movies/television. I would recommend that chapter to all. Tomorrow I’ll look at the theological underpinnings of the modernist and postmodernist movements through the lens of Grenz’s fourth, fifth, and sixth chapters. I’m hoping this exploration will spur ideas for pastors about how to help their congregations navigate this difficult transition. Til next time…

Starting Phase 2

I returned from Washington State last night after a great three-week experience up there. What a weekend, however! My father had a heart attack and spent my last day there (Sunday) in ICU. Things are looking more promising for him today. That's good news!!! Needless to say, it's been a bit difficult for me to focus. I did, however, start my foray into Stanley Grenz's book "A Primer on Postmodernism". I have enjoyed it a great deal. The way I see it, the emergent movement is a subset (if postmodernism even has subsets) of the postmodernist movement. Let me tell you why I say that. There are some obvious parallels between postmodernism and the emergent movement. Both, for instance, are suspicious of using reason as the sole source of authority (both believe one should consider the context reason is used, and both would balance reason with intuition and emotion). Both see the importance of community over and above the individual. This is a drastic departure from modernists. Both also acknowledge the existence of more than one perspective or worldview. There are some ways, however, in which the movements seem different than one another. Postmodernism as a whole seems to take a more pessimistic view of things than the emergent movement. The emergent movement seems a bit more geared toward one generational demographic (i.e. predominantly white, middle class twenty-somethings) than postmodernism which isn't primarily generationally defined. It would seem, though, that the two movements share more similarities than differences. I can see why both movements are perceived of as a threat by more fundamentalist pockets of the Christian community since each movement seems comfortable with the notions of relativism and pluralism - concepts many fundamentalists would reject outright. What I've most appreciated in Grenz's book thusfar (I've only made it through his first two chapters) is that Grenz puts the movements within broader cultural parameters. He talks about postmodernism and its impact on art, music, architecture, film, television, and many other realms. His broadbased discussion of postmodernism has already given me several ideas about how to adapt worship to meet the needs of postmodernists. I'll share some of these with you in coming days as I move through the rest of Grenz's book. Til next time...