What is Emerging? A Wood Between Worlds

"No, I don't believe this wood is a world at all. It's just a sort of in between place..Think of our tunnel under the slates at home. It isn't a room in any of the houses. In a way, it really isn't a part of any of the houses. But once you are in the tunnel, you can go along it and come out into any of the houses in the row. Mightn't this wood be the same?--a place that isn't in any of the worlds, but once you've found that place you can get into them all."--Digory, The Magician's Nephew.

I could say so much about what the Emerging Movement is and probably even more about what it is not (since misconceptions bug me). But instead, I'd like to focus on why the Emerging Movement has been invaluable to my own faith journey. The Emerging Movement has been the catalyst to going deeper with the scriptures, asking harder questions of myself, my community, and my God, and rethinking many of my own perspectives, assumptions, and understandings of the bible, faith, and what it means to be a follower of Christ.

In one of C.S. Lewis's classic Chronicles of Narnia books, The Magician's Nephew, Digory and Polly stumble upon "The Wood Between Worlds," a heavily forested place with an abundance of pools. The trees go so far up that they create a huge canopy that blocks their view of the sky and sun, yet a strange and warm light seeps through the cracks between branches and leaves to illuminate this strange place. They soon discover that each of the seemingly shallow pools of water are actually portals into other worlds.

For me, The Emerging Movement is a sort of Wood Between Worlds. It's not just another church or another denomination, but a place that connects us to something bigger, and by experiencing the other worlds through this place, our own world will never be the same. It's a humble place where we admit our limited view and yet walk boldly within the light that does shine through. A safe place to explore and seek honestly, fearlessly, and even brokenly. A welcoming place that attempts bringing together the vast "worlds" within the church.

My experience within churches, whether it was the Pentecostal churches in my young childhood, the catholic church in my middle school years, the Calvary Chapel movement in my teens and early twenties, or the nondenominational-moderately-charismatic church I'm a part of now, has been rather insular. In each of these faith traditions, I met lovely people (some of whom have become lifelong friends) committed to following God in how they knew to best. However, many in these settings were not only surprisingly unaware of the actual practices, beliefs, and history of other christian traditions, but were WARY of any other christian traditions beside their own. As I travelled between traditions, I found much to be celebrated and faithful people in all of them. But never shaking that "square peg" feeling, I always knew something was missing. Something was off. Something was stifled. Someone was calling me out, to go further up and further in.

When I went through my crisis of faith during my early twenties, I felt utterly alone in my thoughts, questions, beliefs, and understanding of God, the Bible, and what it meant to be a follower of Christ. Because of the insular nature of the traditions I had been involved in, I was completely unaware of any other expressions of the christian faith outside of the circles I travelled in, none of which I fit into very well.

But The Emerging Movement became an inclusive haven for the myriad of christian traditions and faith expressions to be fairly represented and engaged with. It's a place to learn from each other, to walk in each other's shoes, and progress further together in bringing about God's Kingdom. It's a place to wrestle, to challenge, to doubt, to affirm, to reject, to believe, to inspire, to listen, and to emerge as a fuller, more authentic person and community of faith. It's a place to conspire together about how to live out the love of God in our world.

Best of all, it's a place that draws God's diverse people out of their own secluded pools, continually welcoming them to be seated at the same table to encounter each other as a family and as a community.

This post is part of a synchroblog effort organized by Julie Clawson to gather diverse voices about the Emerging Movement. To read more posts on this subject, Julie has linked to all of the posts over at her blog here.

Are We Captives of Babylon?

"I see this same dynamic at play in the church today. So many Christians (both liberal and conservative) are disgusted to be in “exile” amidst the sinful, secular, bastions of empire. They curse the culture, they curse the government, and metaphorically hang up their harps and withdraw from the system. Since the system is evil, they choose to wash their hands of it and refuse to get involved."--Julie Clawson

Julie Clawson, over at Onehandclapping, put together this insightful post about the Jews during the Babylonian captivity and how their situation and attitude unfortunately reflects the Church's today.

Psalm 137 records the prayer/cry of the Jews for revenge against "God's enemies" after being taken into captivity. This is the same psalm that celebrates the enemies' infants being smashed against rocks:

O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, happy is he who repays you for what you have done to us- he who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks.
-Psalm 137:8-9

For the life of me, I could not figure out how God could "endorse" this kind of prayer that advocates murdering innocent children. This is where discernment between descriptive truth and prescriptive truth comes in handy. Head over to Julie's blog to find out why this passage is descriptive of the Jews state of heart and mind and not a prescriptive truth from God on what the right state of heart should be.

The Liberal/Conservative Dichotomy

Brian McLaren is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. He has a way about him, a way of making complicated issues understandable without oversimplifying them. The complexity remains in tact, but you walk away feeling as if you actually understand it. He's passionate without being arrogant. He's thoughtful and unafraid to question the "staples" of Christendom. He recently made some remarks in an interview that I appreciated. I particularly loved his response to the reporter who tried to pin him into the "liberal" or "conservative" box (because don't you know those are our only two options?) The reporter asked if he was "a liberal" and McLaren answered:

"What do you mean by the term? If liberal means you believe ... you should help the poor, and your bias should be toward peacemaking rather than war-making, then I'm a liberal. But if liberal means that government can solve all of our problems and that secularism is better than faith, and that it doesn't matter what you do in your personal life and that morality is up for grabs, then I'm not a liberal. And I could say the same thing about conservatives...When we present Jesus as a pro-war, anti-poor, anti-homosexual, anti-environment, pro-nuclear weapons authority figure draped in an American flag, I think we are making a travesty of the portrait of Jesus we find in the gospels."

And yet it makes people's head spin when they cannot classify someone into a clean-cut, clearly defined category. This is because if they cannot classify someone into some offensive, suspicious, or baggage -laden label, then it becomes much more difficult to automatically dismiss everything they have to say. People will actually have to process new or different arguments and logically and adequately refute them, or heaven forbid, concede to the fact that "others" might just have a valid perspectives.

Take The Blindfolds Off

"There can be a certain dishonesty in christian music."--Dan Haseltine from Jars of Clay.

"There are two great lies that I’ve heard: 'the day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die' and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class republican and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him."--Derek Webb, A King and a Kingdom.

I've been really digging Derek Webb lately, a christian artist whose lyrics are those of a prophetic rebel. No tiresome cliches or "skipping through a field of daisies while holding hands with Jesus" type songs. His lyrics make me uncomfortable, in a good way. He's artistic, creative, blunt, subversive, and asks the tough questions. He knows he doesn't do the church any favors by only being its apologist, but like any prophetic voice, he must also be the church's critic, to challenge the church to be what it ought to be and call it to repentance when its gone astray.

I stumbled across the video for Webb's facetious tune, "New Law." It reminded me that we need to stop trying to control people by teaching them what to think, but need to empower people by teaching them actually HOW to think for themselves. Anyway, the video and lyrics are compelling.

Note:To turn off the automatic music playing on my site so you can actually hear the video, scroll down to the very bottom of the blog where you will find my playlist. Just click pause or stop and then continue on your merry way.

don’t teach me about politics and government

just tell me who to vote for

don’t teach me about truth and beauty

just label my music

don’t teach me how

to live like a free man

just give me a new law

i don’t wanna know if the answers aren’t easy

so just bring it down from the mountain to me

i want a new law

i want a new law

gimme that new law

don’t teach me about moderation and liberty

i prefer a shot of grape juice

don’t teach me about loving my enemies

don’t teach me how to listen to the Spirit

just give me a new law

i don’t wanna know if the answers aren’t easy

so just bring it down from the mountain to me

i want a new law

i want a new law

gimme that new law

what’s the use in trading a law you can never keep

for one you can that cannot get you anything

do not be afraid

do not be afraid

do not be afraid

Uncomfortable Realities

I don't know about you, but after seeing that ad and then looking in my fridge filled with 5 gallons of bottled water and remembering the 20 minute hot shower I enjoyed this morning, I feel spoiled, selfish, over-privileged, and clueless to the unjust realities of how billions of people are living, or trying to live, around the world.

Note:

To turn off the automatic music playing on my site so you can actually hear the video, scroll down to the very bottom of the blog where you will find my playlist. Just click pause or stop and then continue on your merry way.

The Parable of the Lost Sons

What makes the temptation of power so seemingly irresistible? Maybe it is that power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love. It seems easier to be God than to love God, easier to control people than to love people, easier to own life than to love life. Jesus asks, "Do you love me?" We ask, "Can we sit at your right hand and your left hand in your Kingdom?" (Mt. 20:21). We have been tempted to replace love with power.--Henri Nouwen

Henri Nouwen was a Dutch priest and renowned author, who left behind his life of awards, accolades and speaking tours to live among and care for the mentally disabled. On one of his many travels, he experienced a chance encounter with Rembrandt's painting "The Return of The Prodigal Son."

At first glance, Nouwen experienced a mysterious draw to this painting, which lead him to engage in serious reflection on Rembrandt's interpretation of Jesus' timeless parable. Nouwen describes his feelings toward the painting upon his first encounter:

It had brought me into touch with something within me that lies far beyond the ups and downs of a busy life, something that represents the ongoing yearning of the human spirit, the yearning for a final return, an unambiguous sense of safety, a lasting home.

The result of his contemplation on both the biblical telling of The Prodigal Son and Rembrandt's unique perspective is his book, "The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming."

He saw Rembrandt's portrayal of the Father's embrace of His runaway son as representative of God and Humanity and the peculiar expressions on the faces of the distanced bystanders representing our reluctance to get directly involved in what God is doing, in celebrating, embracing, and having compassion.

Nouwen examines the three main characters of the parable: the prodigal son, the elder son, and the father. Nouwen finds himself in both sons and realizes the call to not only allow himself to be embraced by the father, but to become like the father, moving beyond the role of receiver of forgiveness and compassion to the the role of imparter of forgiveness and compassion to others. Nouwen notes that the painting, as well as the parable, could have been titled The Parable of the Lost Sons. His analysis of the elder son's "lostness"is simply brilliant. The elder son externally achieves the right behavior, but internally wandered away from the heart of his father. The elder son resents His father's compassion and unconditional love and forgiveness. which is at the heart of who the father is. Nouwen then translates the perspective of the elder son to how he himself has felt and how many in the church feel throughout times in their lives.

There is so much resentment among the "just" and the "righteous." There is so much judgment, condemnation, and prejudice among the "saints." There is so much frozen anger among the people who are so concerned about avoiding "sin." The lostness of the resentful "saint" is so hard to reach precisely because it is so closely wedded to the desire to be good and virtuous. I know, from my own life, how diligently I have tried to be good, acceptable, likeable, and a worthy example for others. There was always the conscious effort to avoid the pitfalls of sin and the constant fear of giving into temptation. But with all of that, there came seriousness, a moralistic intensity--and even a touch of fanaticism--that made it increasingly difficult to feel at home in my Father's house.

Nouwen's take on this parable and painting--the motives of each son and the father, how it relates to the church today, and the ambiguous ending that calls for the readers/viewers to make their own decision about how to respond to the Father--is filled with rich insight that will stay with me always. This book is truly a masterpiece, a book that I will treasure for the rest of my life.

And since this book is about the prodigal son parable, I thought I would include a clip from the movie, Jesus of Nazareth. It is absolutely my favorite cinematic interpretation of this parable. The filmmakers chose to set Jesus in Matthew's house, dwelling among sinners, while Peter and the other disciples stand outside, refusing to enter, lest they become "unclean." The parable of the prodigal son thus becomes an agent of reconciliation between Matthew (a prodigal son type) and Peter (the elder son type). It's a beautiful truth of the gospel.

What on Earth is The Emergent Church?!

"In a variety of voices, this group of friends is attempting to sing a song a together."--Tony Jones on The Emerging Church.

What is the Emerging Church?

I've heard this question asked rather frequently as of late. No matter how I try to explain it, I feel like I haven't quite satisfied the inquiry. Part of the reason is because The Emergent Church is so diverse that I never feel like a flat two to three sentence definition suffices. Another reason is because I usually feel a bit on the defensive since I find that people who do not even know what the emerging church "is" are wary of it, have already formed some negative preconceived notions, and are sometimes flat out against it. Since the Emerging Church is diverse and more of an ongoing conversation or movement than a denomination of "the church," people have a hard time pinning it down. However, I came across this post from Mike Clawson over at Emerging Pensees that sums up the history, evolution, various contributors, and main streams of thought of what is known as "The Emerging Church." He also does a superb job of defining some of the "key terms" and principles of Emergent thought.

Here is a more indepth article by Scot McKnight, a professor of religious studies at North Park Theological Seminary, that dismantles some of the prevailing stereotypes levied against Emergents and examines five streams within emerging faith: prophetic, postmodern, praxis-oriented (how faith is lived out), post-evangelical, and political.

Any thoughts? Emergent folks, do you feel this is an accurate summary of The Emerging Church? Traditional folks, does this give you a better understanding of what the Emerging Church is?

And just for laughs, here's a little cartoon dealing with stereotypes....

They Like Jesus, But Not The Church

"I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. They are so unlike your Christ."--Mahatma Ghandi

They Like Jesus, But Not The Church: Insights from Emerging Generations, by Dan Kimball, fearlessly explores the current and emerging landscape of American culture: how these generations are changing, how they view the American church, and how the Church can respond.


Kimball graciously deconstructs the confines of the christian subculture, clearly conveys the most prevalent perceptions found among the young unchurched American population regarding Jesus and the church, and provides practical and loving ways for the church to reach out to a generation hungering for Jesus.

Kimball examines the six perceptions of the church most commonly found among 18-30 years-old people, to which Kimball concludes the church needs to offer both an apology and an apologetic. To some of the claims that are valid, let's apologize and to the claims that are misunderstood, let's put out and live out an apologetic. Much like the early church did when the culture at large thought Christians were incestuous atheists that engaged in cannibalism. The church began explaining their beliefs (apologetics), so these misunderstandings could be cleared up.

Here are the top six current perceptions Kimball takes on in his book:

1. The church is an organized religion with a political agenda

2. The church is judgmental and negative

3. The church is dominated by males and oppresses females

4. The church is homophobic

5. The church arrogantly claims all other religions are wrong

6. The church is full of fundamentalists, who take the entire bible literally

Just to be clear, Kimball DOES NOT advocate altering our beliefs to become more attractive to the outside world. This book is more about being able to communicate with people outside the church, demonstrate love, respect, and kindness to them, and maybe even consider some of their criticisms that may be valid. Are there behaviors of the church that are inconsistent with the teachings and example of Jesus? Well, of course there is, because the church is made up of people, and we are a flawed bunch. That's the beauty of having a Savior. It's like Tony Campolo jokes:

"The Church is the Light of the World and like all lights, it attracts bugs. You're a bug. I'm a bug. We're all bugs."

So, yes, valid criticisms exist from those outside the church. And here's why it's important to consider them. Although it is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit to draw people to Jesus, the public image of the church, whether the church itself has cultivated it or the media manipulates it (I think it is both), our image, well, it sucks. The misunderstandings over what the church IS has become a stumbling block to many people who are interested in Jesus, but are turned off by the church. And it's not just the old "of course the world will hate us because they hated Jesus" line. As Christians called to love those in the world, this should concern us. We shouldn't be something we're not or compromise our beliefs, but we absolutely should make an effort to reach out beyond the four walls of the church: apologize for our faux pas and provide an apologetic to correct the prevalent misconceptions, through open communication, love, example and service.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and HIGHLY recommend it. Kimball puts a face and a story behind the perspectives found in our culture. Smart, sincere, searching people weigh in on the church's image and share their own experiences. Kimball puts forth a brave look at our present dilemma and provides creative ways to go about responding.

To drive the point home about the prevalent perceptions of the church among non-christians, I thought I'd share this clip. This is a clip from Bill Maher, the host of Real Time on HBO, who happens to be the epitome of an "unchurched" generation, only way more bitter. I don't agree with his views in this clip, especially since he's endorsing Hillary Clinton for President (although the personal hatred toward her from many christians disappoints me), but I recognize that his description of evangelical christians is a popular one. Is the church's image a victim of total media distortion or do we in the church perpetuate some of these stereotypes somehow? Does our approach to politics taint our witness? By aligning too closely with the republican party, does the world think that all the tenets of republicanism are the tenets of the church? Does this contribute to the disconnect they perceive between Jesus' teaching and the church? I'm not sure to what extent this plays into it, but let's get out into the world and find out!



WARNING: Maher uses the word "penis" and "ass" during this monologue and makes a few edgy jokes, so you probably shouldn't watch around children. And to clarify, I am not posting this video because I agree with Bill Maher, but because I think his view represents the increasing popular view held by many in our culture.

The Rapture Already Happened!!!

Only instead of being snatched up into the clouds of glory, American Christians have disappeared into secluded church subcultures and comfortable bubbles. Scared ya for minute, didn't I? :)

According to a number of surveys conducted by the Barna Group, a christian research institute, there has been a 92 percent increase in the number of unchurched Americans in the last thirteen years. In 1991 there were 39 million unchurched Americans compared with the 75 million currently. The age group between 21-35 are disappearing from American churches at an alarming rate and they are the least likely age group to be personally acquainted with a christian. Although every survey concludes that the most effective method of evangelism is to build LONG TERM personal relationships with people, it is the least used method employed by evangelicals. Street preaching, tract distributing, media evangelism, and other "one-hit" type methods are the most common evangelistic tools.

So, the emerging American "unchurched" culture has no "inside" experience with everyday Christians and large numbers of everyday American Christians are spending the majority of their time with other Christians in mostly christian settings.

What are the unintended consequences of such a reality? Well, for one, our culture's impression of the church is largely dependent on evangelicals in the media (most of whom, I wish would get raptured already) or the horror stories from people who have been burned by the church and left. Now, most christian people and leaders are wonderful people, trying to live their lives in accordance to the teachings of Jesus and to love God and each other the best way they know how. But it is SO easy and SO common for believers to get sucked into the christian subculture, that most of the world does not get to encounter these people on a regular basis. We church folks have created such an extensive, safe, and comfortable bubble that it becomes completely possible to enter through the church's door and never come back out again. Somehow, I don't think that is what Jesus had in mind...

We have our own everything: churches, schools from pre-k to college, book clubs, music, stores, christianese jargon, odd bumper stickers, businesses, movies, retreats, concerts, conventions, coffee houses, theaters, magazines, news outlets, youth groups, youth centers, and even alternatives to myspace and youtube (hi, Godtube!). None of these things are sinful or harmful in and of themselves, but add them all together and we've created a comfy, isolated empire that too many Christians retreat to LONG TERM. And MANY get sucked so far in, that they make little contact with the culture at large, if ever. We might as well be raptured.

People outside the church get a distorted view of Christianity because they form their perception of Christianity based on the few glimpses we allow, and it ain't pretty. There's the TV evangelists that prey on the the poorest and most vulnerable members of society to swindle their money in exchange for false hope. The world watches as these charlatans reduce the name of Jesus to a magic trick or a lottery ticket, taking money FROM the poor to build crystal cathedrals and fund their decadent lifestyles of BMWs and mansions on hills. Or people hear mega-preachers like Pat Robertson, who blames every natural disaster on gays and liberals, calls for the assassination of leaders who he disagrees with, who famously said, "gays want to come into our churches, throw blood on us and give us all AIDS," and then later said gay people's presence at Disney World would cause a meteor to hit earth. Oh, how about when Jerry Falwell claimed the purple teletubby was gay and blamed 9/11 on liberals, gays, and the ACLU? Or what about Gary Demar, who wants to establish the Old Testament law as American Law, so gays can be executed. Or the Westboro Baptists that go around the country protesting military funerals with signs that say "God Hates Your Tears," "God Hates Fags," and "God Killed Your Sons." Or savvy politicians, who may or may not be Christians, but do not hesitate to use Jesus to "sanctify" the republican party and all that comes along with it. Or when Bob Jones University, a christian college that attracted such notorious speakers as G.W. Bush and John McCain, just lifted their longstanding official ban on inter-racial dating in 2000! Or people like Ann Coulter, who talk about Jesus constantly and then advocate the use of nuclear weapons, just to send a warning to the rest of the world. Or how about the long string of scandals involving high profile Christians, going all the way back to Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Bakker up to Benny Hinn and Ted Haggard? Or sometimes people's only experience with church people are when they watch Christians organize over shallow issues, such as boycotting stores that say "happy holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Or if people are really lucky, they might just be told they're on their way to hell through a comic strip track left on the windshield of their car. These are just a handful of examples...

Do you see where I am going with this? Do you see why people scratch their heads and think there is a disconnect between Jesus and The church? And in some cases, they are right, there is a disconnect between the example Jesus set and how the church behaves. Christians know that there is so much diversity within the church, so many denominations and viewpoints, and one sector does not speak for the whole. But to an outsider, it could easily seem like "the church" is full of money-hungry, power-hungry, war-mongering, male-dominated, pro-rich, judgmental, calloused, legalistic, politically partisan (bordering on theocrats), hypocritical Pharisees, who want to force their religion on others, reject and condemn those with whom they disagree, and eagerly await heathens' future smiting...

People who have never known down-to-earth, loving Christians to off-set these wacky portrayals (perhaps "betrayals" is a more apt description), will inevitably form this type of caricature of the church. It's human nature. We Christians are guilty of the same. How many Christians who never take the time to know gay people personally paint them as promiscuous, leather-wearing, rainbow-clad, cross-dressing, parade-marching transvestites that are after our children? (I heard this description verbatim...)

All the incidents I pointed out do not represent Christianity as a whole, but the world will never know that if we Christians continue to barricade ourselves within our safe subcultures, listening to CCM (barf) while reading the Left Behind Series. If we do not make the vulnerable move to go out AMONG the people--not just inviting people to church--and build real, trustworthy relationships, where we listen just as much as talk, where we become transparent, humble, and sacrificing--Christians and nonchristians alike will suffer. Nonchristians might never get past their horrible impression of the church to even consider or fully understand the gospel. Our PLACE is to be in the world--smack dab in the middle of the muck and mire of human dysfunction (John 17:5). Christians will never experience essential growth without heeding to this call, to be IN the world. We can attend church services every Sunday, mid-week prayer groups and bible studies, attend our christian colleges, wear our scripture-clad t-shirts and WWJD bracelets, and do the "hit and run" evangelizing from time to time, but unless we get out and live among the people as Jesus did, reach out to the outcasts and marginalized, start publicly defending the cause of the poor and needy, and use what influence we have to demonstrate service-based christianity, we will become stagnant, disconnected Christians, twiddling our thumbs until Jesus comes back....and I wonder what He'd say?

I've been reading this book, "They Like Jesus, But Not the Church: Insights from Emerging Generations" by Dan Kimball, about how the present "secular" culture views Jesus and the Church, and the vast difference of opinion between the two. It's a book that provides great hope for the church to break out of its bubble and reach out to a generation hungering for Jesus (more to come on this book).

I don't know about you, but I haven't been raptured. I am here on earth, called to pray for and bring about God' will ON EARTH as it is in heaven. I am flawed and inadequate for such a task. I struggle with selfishness, fear, doubt, and a million other areas on a daily basis. Nevertheless, I am not ready to disappear from the world. I want to be here to sow peace, forgiveness, and reconciliation. I want to extend a hand of friendship to the other--the Muslim, the Jew, the Hindu, the atheist, or a gay person. I want to encounter Jesus in the least, the lost, and the last of this world. After all, that is where He said we would truly find him.

"Christians are now the foreigners in a post-christian culture, and we have got to wake up to this reality."
--Dan Kimball

Which Story Shapes Your Worldview?

The following article, "The Story We Tell Ourselves," written by Brian Mclaren appeared in last month's issue of Sojourners/Call To Renewal Magazine. It struck a chord with me by reminding that the lives we live, the choices we make, the realities we accept, the action we take, or the indifference we cultivate, are all framed by our perspective of the world, the story in which we find ourselves. As Christians, what are our perspectives shaped by? Do we rely on God's story of the kind of kingdom He yearns to be established here on earth? Are our perspectives tainted by the world's stories of political ideologies, nationalism, power, fear, violence, greed, practicality, despair, distrust, etc.?

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

By Brian McLaren

Any society or civilization at any given time lives by a dominant framing story, a story that gives its common life a coherent shape and direction. That story will no doubt evolve and adapt over time, for better or for worse, borrowing from or reacting to the stories of its neighbors. To understand a society, then, and certainly to change it, we must make its covert framing story more overt and realize its power—sometimes awe-inspiring, sometimes awful.

For example, if our framing story tells us that we humans are godlike beings with godlike privileges—intelligent and virtuous creatures outside a limited environment of time and space, without potentially fatal flaws—we will have no reason to acknowledge or live within limits, whether moral or ecological. Similarly, if our framing story tells us that the purpose of life is for individuals or nations to accumulate an abundance of possessions and to experience the maximum amount of pleasure during the maximum number of minutes of our short lives, then we will have little reason to manage our consumption.

But if our framing story tells us that we are free and responsible creatures in a creation made by a good, wise, and loving God, and that our Creator wants us to pursue virtue, collaboration, peace, and mutual care for one another and all living creatures, and that our lives can have profound meaning if we align ourselves with God’s wisdom, character, and dreams for us, then our society will take a radically different direction, and our world will become a very different place.

In this light, our growing list of global crises, together with our inability to address them effectively, gives us strong evidence that our world’s dominant framing stories are failing. We might say that they are too weak. They don’t provide strong enough inspiration and motivation to transcend the greed, class conflict, sexual irresponsibility, ethnic hatred, religious bigotry, or nationalistic militarism that threatens us. We could also say that our framing stories are too strong—but strong in a misguided way, in that they actually catalyze and energize those same self-destructive forces. Either way, we can safely conclude that our societal systems, driven by their framing stories, are perfectly designed to yield the results we are now getting. If we attempt to change the results without changing the system, starting with its framing story, we will fail. Consider how our current dominant story is failing us:

The Prosperity Dysfunction. Our story does not guide us to respect environmental limits, but instead inspires our pursuit of as much resource use and waste production (also known as economic growth) as possible, as fast as possible. As a result, we burn through nonrenewable resources without concern for their eventual disappearance, draw down renewable resources faster than they can be replenished, and produce more waste products than our environment can absorb, manifesting a host of negative symptoms, some realized, others largely invisible to us as yet. Rapid and extravagant resource use (with corresponding waste production) is so profitable for some people that they can avoid or remain in denial about most of these negative symptoms for a very long time. In fact, their “success” makes it highly improbable that they will ever be willing to acknowledge the unsustainability of their way of life.

The Equity Dysfunction. Our framing story does not lead us to work for the common good. Instead, it legitimizes the growing gap between rich and poor in a variety of ways. For example, the story may imply that God has blessed and favored the rich and powerful, or that the poor and vulnerable are lazy and irresponsible and therefore are getting what they deserve. All the while the bellies of the poor and vulnerable ache from hunger, and their children die of treatable diseases. Every social grouping—national, religious, ethnic, tribal, political, social, or educational—is drawn into a vortex of rich/poor conflict. Each group becomes a competing us/them faction that seeks advantage for “us,” not a common good for all.

The Security Dysfunction. Our framing story does not lead these competing factions to reconcile peacefully. Instead we find, nested in the larger framing story shared by both rich and poor, a huge bank of patriotic and religious stories that celebrate how “redemptive violence” has helped good people (“us”) to defeat evil people (“them”) throughout history. Thus when push comes to shove, good people and evil people alike trust violence as the way to peace, and our framing story squelches the search for creative, peaceful alternatives. When more and more nations (or religious or ethnic militias) arm themselves with more and more lethal weapons—not to mention when some groups acquire biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons—everyone feels less secure, and every regional conflict contains the seeds of terrifying escalation, resulting in an increasingly anxious global society. Gradually, the world becomes locked in a vicious cycle of tension between an anxious global empire of the rich and an angry global terrorist revolution of the poor.

ALL ATTEMPTS TO resolve these systemic crises—the prosperity crisis of the planet, the equity crisis of poverty, and the security crisis of peacemaking—fail because they fail to address the fourth crisis, the spirituality crisis of purpose. Tragically, the framing stories that program and drive our societal machinery toward suicide are too frequently aided and abetted by our world’s religions and the various stories they tell. Instead of inspiring us with a framing story of hope (true good news), our religions more often camouflage existing destructive narratives in various religious disguises. They preach a far-reaching covert curriculum of fear and violence; they teach a coherent and comprehensive global “orthodoxy” of greed, self-interest, religious/ethnic/ cultural supremacy, and struggle for domination and conquest.

It is at this profound and pivotal level where Jesus confronts our suicidal system. His essential message, which he called the good news of the kingdom of God, confronts this suicidal societal machinery and seeks to transform it from a suicidal system into a sacred global community. It does so by providing a radical alternative to the dominant framing story that currently drives human society.

To the prosperity system, Jesus says we are fellow creatures in one global ecosystem, created and sustained by God. Jesus calls us to seek the common good, not simply the selfish interests of our own ego, family, religion, race, nation, or species.

To the equity system, Jesus’ good news says we are neighbors in one global community, related to each other as fellow citizens in God’s kingdom. He calls us to seek justice for all so that God’s compassionate will is done on earth as in heaven.

To the security system, Jesus’ message says we are siblings in God’s family, called to reconciliation, not competition or domination. He calls us to be active peacemakers who respond to our enemies through love and service, not victors who eliminate them through revenge or preemptive violence.

Jesus communicates this alternative framing story of the kingdom of God in a variety of ways. First, it comes through parables, artistic works of short fiction that seek to abduct the human imagination from the dominant, destructive, and confining framing story currently at work in human society, and to free human beings to imagine and pursue new possibilities. Second, it comes through dramatic enactments called signs and wonders that convey God’s desire to bring peace and health to humanity through healing rather than war. Third, it comes through his ethical teachings, which should be seen not as laws through which one earns hell or heaven, but rather as practices through which people can seek and participate in God’s kingdom.

Perhaps most powerfully of all, Jesus’ liberating message is embodied in his own life and example, in his interactions with people, and most decisively in his crucifixion and resurrection. As he is misunderstood, arrested, falsely accused, tortured, and crucified, he manifests an unflinching attitude of forgiveness, enacting the essential drama of his story: The evil of human beings may break boundary after boundary, but the grace of God is always wider, deeper, bigger, and more powerful than human wickedness. God’s grace will surely triumph over human evil, and the story of the resurrection celebrates the power of faith to triumph over the machinery of societal suicide.

JESUS CHALLENGED people in his day to stop believing the empire’s empty promises and stop fearing its threats through a brilliant strategy. First he lured its dark machinery into the light, so to speak, so it could be seen for what it was, exposed, named, rejected, and defected from. After praying “your will be done” in the garden of Gethsemane, after choosing self-sacrifice over self-protection, he walked like a lamb into the middle of the forest, so the wolves would come out of the shadows and circle around him. Then he stretched out his neck, as it were, inviting them to pounce, and they did. Ironically, though, as he exposed his own neck, he also exposed their vicious wolfishness and in that way he sabotaged them, defeated them, rendering them ugly and incredible. After all, they could no longer claim to be agents of peace and promise after torturing and killing a good and peaceful man so violently and shamefully.

Just as the wolfish powers breathed a sigh of satisfaction at nailing yet another challenger to a cross, Jesus’ quiet but real resurrection validated to his disciples that the liberating king was not defeated, but rather was on the move, quietly, at the margins, where all revolutions begin. His resurrection told them that Caesar’s muscle couldn’t conquer God’s vulnerability, that Caesar’s spears couldn’t conquer God’s forgiving heart, and that Caesar’s whips and nails and crosses couldn’t overcome God’s way of love and reconciliation.

So in the shadow of Caesar’s ruthless kingdom, witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection could never live by Caesar’s framing story again. It had become disgusting to them, despicable, pathetic, exposed. Liberated from Caesar’s false promises and fear, they chose to live in the framing story of a new Lord, in his “in-but-not-of-this-world” kingdom, as citizens in his “kingdom from another place,” with headquarters not in Rome but in the heart of God. They withdrew their trust from the domesticating and domesticated narratives and counternarratives that energized the empire, and they chose instead to believe Jesus’ wild, untamed good-news story about the kingdom of God—as a story of hope that could frame and transform a better future.

Perhaps now, with them, we can begin to envision what it would mean for us to confront the suicide machine of our world in the way of Jesus, to expose it and deconstruct it, to intercept its trajectory and turn it to a better way, to reclaim its potential for ends more in line with their original creation. Perhaps we can see ourselves in a new light too, not armed with an ideology but infused with a new imagination, part of a peaceful insurgency seeking to expel a suicidal occupying regime, gardeners working with God to tend the holy ecosystem so it continues to unfold anew day after new day. We can be agents of a secret revolution of hope, a global movement unleashing coordinated, well-planned acts of unterror and healing, producers in a new economy of love—an economy so radical that old terms like capitalism and communism seem like two sides of a confederate coin left over from a fading and discredited regime. Doing so will require one radical, irreplaceable thing in us: faith—faith that the old narrative of domination is suicidal, and that a new story (good news, an invitation to reconciliation) is available if we will only rethink everything and believe it.

Brian McLaren, board chair of Sojourners/ Call to Renewal, is the author of The Secret Message of Jesus and A Generous Orthodoxy, among other books.

The Upside Down Kingdom

Don't let the recent phenomenon of The Da Vinci Code color your interpretation of the title of this book. Brian McLaren's, "The Secret Message of Jesus: Uncovering the Truth that Could Change Everything," is no fanciful creation of a conspiracy junkie, but a revolutionary exploration of the radical teachings of Jesus and the contexts in which they originally emerged: socially, religiously, politically, and historically and what it means for us today.

McLaren examines how the church throughout history has defended itself against the teachings of Jesus...keeping them at arms length, constructing practical qualifiers and rationalizations to tame the wildness of His message, control its controversial core, neutralize its radical nature and implications, and to "wisen up" its foolishness.

This book explores the multi-dimensional content, contexts, and crux of Jesus' message ("The Kingdom of God is at hand..."), the style in which the message was delivered, and what that message means for our beliefs and strategies for evangelism, social reform, politics, war, church, eschatology, epistemology, and relationships.

Chapter 17: "The Peaceable Kingdom of God" was an absolute Godsend for me because it dealt with the topics of violence and war. I severely wrestle with the validity of war for a Christian, so it was extremely beneficial to explore the various perspectives adhered to throughout our 2,000 year history of faith and the biblical interpretations those perspectives arose from.

I was thoroughly challenged by this book and it's commitment to rediscovering the heart of Jesus' message and finding ways to truly live it out. I HIGHLY recommend this book, especially for group settings, such as book clubs, bible studies or home groups. You may not agree with everything, but you will be forced to reexamine your assumptions and preconceived notions, dig deeper into the scriptures, challenge the prevailing values of the status quo, and ponder the ways in which we are called to live and BUILD Jesus' upside-down kingdom.

To Emerge or Not To Emerge?

The Emergent Church. It's a diverse movement of Christians that has both been a Godsend to the many questioning the current state and role of "traditional church" and a repellent to many traditionalists wary of open-ended questions, embracing of mystery, and call to change. Some call it a necessary and healthy progression of active faith, reaching out to our very own culture, time, and place. Others deem it a dangerous faction spiraling downward the slippery slope of universalism and moral relativism. The fact is, because The Emergent Church has an affinity for mystery and grey areas, refuses to settle for pat answers concerning the more complex dilemmas of life, encourages questions and ongoing conversations between diverse viewpoints about faith, the bible, and how a Christian should live out his or her life, it is tough to nail down a precise black and white creed of must-have beliefs. This frustrates some and encourages others.


I committed the ultimate critical-thinking sin and listened to the criticism of outsiders of the Emergent Church, before finding out about the Emergent Church from those in it, developing it, and living it. Recently I've interacted with quite a few Emergents and experienced how faithful and committed they are to furthering the kingdom of God and how very similar their beliefs are to my own. That's why I read this book, "An Emergent Manifesto of Hope," to give a fair listen to a group of Christians that yearn to transform the world through the foolishness of the cross: with love, humility, and sacrifice.

Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones, two prominent leaders of the Emergent Movement, compiled a variety of short essays on various topics from key leaders in the Emergent community. Contributing writers include: Brian Mclaren, Dan Kimball, Sally Morgenthaler, Will Samson, Tim Keel, Barry Taylor, Samir Selmanovic, Karen Sloan, and Ryan Bolger. Topics covered in this book include: importance of community and relationships, personal experiences of becoming emergent, parenting, postmodernism, existing church and emergent church matrix, social justice, environmentalism, how the biblical ideal of hope translates to today, and biblical interpretation.

One of the main tenets of the Emergent Church is to go out among the people and be the hands and feet of Jesus in one's own community. The old structure of getting the people to come to "church" is scrapped, and Emergents seem to be dedicated to go out to the people, meeting their needs on their turf. The concepts of "missional living," "the Kingdom of God," and "incarnational lifestyles" are cornerstones of the Emergent perspective.

Chapter sixteen: "The Sweet Problem of Inclusiveness: Finding our God in the other" is an imperative chapter that expresses some of the fundamental differences between the mindset of traditionalists and emergents concerning the differences between Christianity the religion and the kingdom of God. It gave me MUCH to think about.

Regardless of what conclusions you arrive at about the Emergent Church, give Emergents an honest chance to explain and live out their viewpoint of faith in Christ and what it means to be His follower in the context of the time we live in.

This is a great intro to the Emergent Movement and the various viewpoints within it.

The Spirit Moves in Mysterious Ways

Soul Survivor: How Thirteen Unlikely Mentors Helped My Faith Survive The Church is written by Philip Yancey, the editor of Christianity Today and author of numerous books, including: The Jesus I Never Knew, What's So Amazing About Grace? and Disappointment With God. I read this book about a year ago, but picked it up again because of my recent musings concerning how "perfection" fits into the Christian life, how and to what extent do the imperfect fit into God's Kingdom, and the reality of messy spirituality that all believers are ravelled up in, whether they admit it or not.

Soul Survivor is one of my favorite books because it tells the compelling story of Philip Yancey, who said, "I spent most of my life in recovery from the church." He rejected Christianity after escaping his 1950s childhood "fundamentalist" church in Georgia, that blatantly embraced racism, sexism, and hatred. Yancey recounts the lives of thirteen unconventional public figures, some Christian and some not, who helped lead him back to faith.

The thirteen mentors that lead Philip Yancey back to faith include: Martin Luther King Jr., G.K. Chesterton, Dr. Paul Brand, Dr. Robert Coles, Leo Tolstoy, Feodor Dostoevsky, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. C. Everett Koop, John Donne, Annie Dillard, Fredrick Beuchner, Shusaku Endo, and Henri Nouwen.

Each chapter is devoted to one of his "mentors," humanizing their larger-than-life, often idealized personas, separating reality from legend, and honoring their lives without editing out their flaws. Yancey brilliantly conveys the work and lives of these men and women as he intertwines his own life into their remarkable stories.

Each unique examination of the eclectic mentors highlights the strengths and weaknesses of humanity, the mysterious paths faith can take a person, and God's ultimate grace and faithfulness constantly reaching out to every life.

The chapter on MLK was intriguing because of how it recounts Philip Yancey's own deliverance from racism. Yancey skillfully and somewhat frighteningly recreates the 1950s and 1960s racial landscape of the South. He recalls the divisions, the rhetoric, and the oppression ultimately overcome through nonviolence. Yancey also tells of MLK's personal struggles and weaknesses that are rarely mentioned in other works about him. I find this important, because those who have accomplished great things, tend to be immortalized, idealized, and have their humanity annihilated. The acknowledgment of imperfection, conflicts, and struggles reminds each of us that God uses the insufficient, the weak, and the flawed and yearns to use the rest of us that fall into those categories as well.

Other fascinating aspects of the book include the section on Dr. C. Everett Koop, the controversial pro-life Surgeon General under the Reagan Administration, who would not sacrifice honesty for the cause he believed so deeply in; Dr. Paul Brand, who wrote about the blessing of pain after witnessing the curse of the pain-free existence of leprosy victims; and Mahatma Gandhi, whose assertion of the disconnect between Christ and Christianity forced Yancey to look at faith in a whole different light.

There is an eye-opening and heart-wrenching chapter on Henri Nouwen (the wounded healer), the priest that worked among the poor and paralyzed, who struggled with homosexuality his entire life. Yancey highlights Nouwen's writings that ministered to many, while hinting at his own inner turmoil and weaknesses. This man took a vow of celibacy, and though at times was lonely, learned a deeper dependence on God and a love for the least, the lost, and the last of this world.

Soul Survivor is an honest account that teaches the lessons learned by the author and the thirteen people who guided him back to faith. It's a book that will inspire grace, challenge opinions, and reveal the presence of God in the midst of the most unlikely people and places.

Elvis Has Entered The Building

Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith is written by Rob Bell, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Michigan.

Do not be fooled by the short width of this book, for inside lies a thought-provoking and daring examination of the 21st century Church, the evolution of Christian history, and how today's believer interprets scripture.

The term "Velvet Elvis" is referring to an old, worn out painting collecting dust in the author's basement and is his metaphor concerning the old, out-dated, and increasingly irrelevant MECHANICS of the Christian faith, not the faith itself, (that is a crucial distinction to understand when reading this book).

Rob Bell whole-heartedly plunges into somewhat uncharted territory (well, at least territory that is not usually vocalized publicly). With candor, whit, and humility, Bell ventures to illuminate the interpretations of scriptures throughout history, examine the past interpretations that serve as building blocks for continual growth that is essential for a living religion, and to probe the concept of "binding and loosing" prescribed in the Gospel of Matthew. Some reviews of this book insinuate that Rob Bell treads on thin ice, dangerously close to breaking through into the cold waters of heresy. This is microscopically understandable, since one must proceed with great caution when anyone advocates changing God's Word. However, an honest reading of this book will reveal that the premise is not to change God's truth into yet another form moral relativism, but to build upon the unchangeable foundational truths of Christianity that change our understanding of God's truth, in some cases, broadening it, in others, narrowing it.

The author puts it like this:

"God never changes, nor do the central truths of Christianity. But our understanding of those truths is in constant flux. Christians will always be exploring and discovering what it means to live in harmony with God and each other."

To me, anything worth reading has to be somewhat "controversial," because one of the marks of truth is indeed, controversy. Besides the stirring of constructive controversy, another much-appreciated strength of the book is that the author does NOT gloss over tough questions and touchy issues with the usual mind-numbing christian cliches or christianese jargon. It's raw. It's honest. It wrestles. It's left open to be tested and questioned.

Being the opinionated gal that you all know and love, ahem, I did not jive completely with everything in this book. However, the brilliance of Rob Bell is that he is NOT dogmatic and is NOT claiming to have all the answers. The gist is: Seek the truth for yourself and test all things that you find to be true...and false. I would recommend this book to anyone who is not afraid to break out of box, to anyone who is tired of checking their brain at the theological door, and to anyone who desires to examine the roots of their own beliefs and interpretations.

Living in the Real, Striving for the Ideal

I just finished reading "Messy Spirituality: God's Annoying Love For Imperfect People" by Mike Yaconelli, the founder of Youth Specialties and The Door, the only existing Christian satire magazine. Sadly, the author was tragically killed in a car crash in 2003.

The book is a quick read that is simple in concept, but more difficult in practice. The premise is: "STOP PRETENDING!" Mike Yaconelli, who pastored an unconventional church, advocated honesty in the church. It sounds funny that honesty would need to be advocated in the church, but it did and still does. The author articulates the dangers of image, denying the reality of our messy relationships with God and each other, and pretending to live in the ideal instead of striving for it.

I've never read an account from a pastor that is so UPFRONT about his own shortcomings, struggles, doubts, and spiritual state. It is so honest, it's uncomfortable; it makes you squirm a bit. But the sentiment could not be more true. It's a shame that the pretenses of image pressure so many believers to deny the real and pretend the ideal (and you know it's true because it rhymes!).

I wouldn't call this book life-changing, but it is a refreshing encouragement about God's continual use of imperfect, unfinished, doubting, struggling, stubborn people and the need to be real about our earthly and spiritual state to cultivate real intimacy with God and each other.

Messy Spirituality was written for the silent majority of us who have been convinced that we just don’t do Christianity right. We spend most of our lives worried about what we don’t do instead of what we have done, focused on our imperfections instead of God’s fondness for the imperfect. Why? Because we’ve been bombarded with books, tapes, talks, seminars, and movies convincing us that real Christianity is all about perfection. Michael Yaconelli dares to suggest that imperfection, infiniteness, and messiness are, in fact, the earmarks of true Christianity; that real Christianity is messy, erratic, lopsided . . . and gloriously liberating.

What if genuine faith begins with admitting we will never have our act completely together? Maybe messy disciples are exactly the kind of imperfect people Jesus came to earth for and whose company he actually enjoyed--and still enjoys. If you want to find Jesus today, look for him in the midst of burned-out believers, moral misfits, religious incompetents . . . men and women whose lives are, well, messy.

Messy Spirituality is a strong antidote for the spiritual perfectionism in us all. Here are truths that can cut you loose from the tyranny of ought-to’s and open your eyes to the deep spirituality of being loved, shortcomings and all, by the God who meets you and transforms you in the midst of a messy and unpredictable life.