Emergence from the "Church" Culture
I'm convinced that this emergence is really an emergence from the "church" culture, however that is defined locally. When those cultures are the most obvious is when they collide, and they collide all the time, maybe not head on, maybe just a bump, but you see it all the time.
A man came to church (church shopping) with his adult daughter. They said they had checked up out on the web, but he in particular looked very unhappy. They sat right next to the door and I didn't see them afterward. But the daughter had left a jacket for which he came back to get while we getting ready to lock up the building. As he entered, he encountered my wife and asked, "Did you buy those Bibles because they were the cheapest?" She did a great job engaging him in conversation, which was of course, why didn't we use God's translation of the Bible, the King James. It is a strict part of his culture and he will not operate outside of it.
My wife teaches freshmen at the high school. In conversations with the science teachers, they told her they absolutely do not teach evolution. My wife was very surprised. Why? They told her because it isn't worth the parents going ballistic. The parents live inside of their culture, which absolutely will not tolerate any legitimacy to evolution.
The emergent person begins to wonder why these issues are such issues. I'm not sold on evolution, but I can never seem to shake how the church literally persecuted Gallileo because he said the sun did not revolve around the earth. Christians could not grasp the concept. It was totally unbiblical and spat in the face of God to even suggest the earth rotated around the sun and even then was not the center of the universe. Is it possible in 400 more years, we'll come to understand the importance of evolution?
I'm most interested in culture at two levels -- micro and macro might describe these levels. When people come into our church, it is a new culture for them. There aren't a lot of church cultures like ours. They will have to assimilate to our culture and that isn't the easiest thing to do. This is the micro level. The macro level is when we try to participate with larger church organizations. This was presented to me in the most real way when my daughters two best friends communicated they couldn't take communion at her church. It is a culture issue on a more macro level.
If there was a key to my emergence, it might have been when I realized that Jesus didn't need me to defend him. The church often communicates that without them, Jesus will be overrun. When I realized Jesus was safe without my intervention, it freed me up to walk outside of the walls and talk to the people beyond. It also gave me a much stronger Jesus to talk about with them.
posted by Brian at 9:04 AM
4 Comments:
I saw this quote from Scot McKnight today, from "The Future or Fad: A Look at the Emerging Church Movement". He said,
"the EM [emerging movement] is a missionally shaped ecclesiology that seeks to unite Christians for the sake of unleashing the gospel to change the world, rather than a theological movement designed to demand conformity on specific theological issues."
That made a lot of sense to me. As does your assertion, Brian, that 'emerging' is about emerging from the 'church' culture. I think some people think it's about who's right and who's wrong, and I think that misses the whole point. Right?
Dan,
As you know, I can't avoid thinking about life issues in terms of truth (theology) and history. Certainly, the emerging church is not a theological movement. Any work of the Spirit will be holistic. It will touch the whole person and every component of human existence.
But, to diminish the theological component of discipleship for the suggestion that what we are about is something other than truth focused is dangerous. It'd be easy to attempt. But, it could never fully engage both God and world.
Jesus didn't only say, "I am the way and the life." He also said, "I am the truth." What we are about must be holistic and balanced. It can't be "a theological movement designed to demand conformity on specific theological issues." But, at the same time, it can't be something that is a 'missionally shaped ecclesiology' to the disregard of the truth.
Brian
I like your statement "Jesus doesn't need me to defend Him". It does put us in the proper relationship with Him. God is so much bigger and a lot less rigid than He often gets portrayed as by the church or the world.
An easier emergence to note is the economic emergence of the world and the confusion it is bringing to the US economy. The previous understanding was the US made the best products and sold them throughout the world. Made in China or Korea or Japan meant it was cheap junk. Now made in China, Korea, and Japan means quality and the US can't compete. However in my opinion, most of America refuses to acknowledge the new paradigm. The world has emerged beyond the economic culture of the United States. If the US doesn't adjust, it will suffer even more intensely. It is a collision clash of cultures.
The emerging church is global. The global church doesn't carry all the same distinctives as the American evangelical church. When it was just us holding firm against the liberals, that seemed understandable and noble. Now we seem to becoming much smaller with the emergence of Christianity so strongly all around us in the world.
Not a perfect analogy but something to consider.
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