A friend from my "old days" in Grove City Vineyard is blogging about why the missional church plant he has been working on in California has not gone the way he envisioned. There are several really interesting things he says. In my opinion, he is cutting through to the root of what following Jesus' teachings in a committed community really looks like. Check out some of the "Pastoralia" posts here and here
One quick quote:
"It's easier to build coalitions for restoring former glory than it is to lead people into the uncertain possibilities of what could be. I'd rather fail at the latter than succeed at the former."
Also, at the end of this post he talks about the challenge of leadership plurality.
One reason I think this is relevant to the cohort is that, while we don't spend a lot of time talking about being "missional" or being some sort of "church" - I truly believe that we are doing a new kind of Christian thing in Columbus. We have chosen to live out our faith in a different way for different reasons. We are experiencing the pros and cons of our decision every week. Kel and I talk about it all the time. You probably do too. We may not always realize it, or talk about it, but we are pushing into the future of Christian faith in bold new ways.
Christian Identity and the Hegemony of Mammon
2 years ago
Posts
2 comments:
Would someone consider explaining what "missionally-minded, post-Christendom community of faith" is. It's the post-Christendom that I'm still not sure about.
And wow what is he fighting in the cartoon future of Christendom? Evil?
With that said, I did like his openness and humility in sharing what he tried and didn't work.
And I especially liked this...
"Someone must take responsibility for the work of creating that safe, enriching, more egalitarian environment. Because it is work and it requires gifting, character, time, and most of all, willingness. If you don’t want to call that someone a “leader” because you can’t find that word in scripture, or because it’s too laden with corporate/power baggage, fine (I’m sympathetic). But you’re still going to need those people, they still have to shoulder a weight of responsibly that most folks eschew.
In order to avoid the attractional tide, no one person (or couple) can fill this role. You must refuse to do it, and you must establish some form of plurality early on"
Did anyone check out his "Top 10 Least Popular Posts of 2010"
Really awesome thought provoking posts and would be great for a discussion day.
Hi Nancy,
Post-Christendom refers to that slice of Western culture that has evicted Christianity as it's ruling authority.
As to your question: "And wow what is he fighting in the cartoon future of Christendom?"
Why, the devil of course. Which is to say, I'm fighting myself.
; )
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