"Conversely, the emerging church movement may provide hope for reformation to Baptists ignorant of the difference between modern truths and Truth incarnate."
Lloyd Allen, 2nd Opinion: Emerging Church: Threat or Ally?, Baptist Standard
« October 2009 | Main | December 2009 »
Posts from November 2009
November 14, 2009
November 13, 2009
Lausanne Pulse and Emerging Church
I was just reading the June 2006 edition of the Lausanne Pulse, which suddenly appeared without reason on my 'emerging church radar' and I noticed that the word "emerging" is quite prominent. There are articles on reaching the "emerging generation" and mentoring "emerging leaders" and even an article by Leighton Ford entitled "The Emerging Church - Then and Now"
But the best read by far is an interview with Brother Fred Flack, a 100+ year old gentleman missionary, and the other part of UK's oldest twins, who spent over 40 years overseas helping to develop an indigenous church movement in I*ndia.
Which they have in bucket loads at the moment. In fact, there was a conference that happened this week in that country where some friends gathered to discuss and celebrate the efforts of organic simple house church movements. Some have arrived home already. I was hoping to be there myself but BUUUMMMMERRRRRR! I could not make it. The indigenous church there has so much to teach us. But I really don't think a national indigenous movement on this scale would not have been possible without supporters and cheerleaders, over many decades, like Brother Flack, Brother Bakht Singh, E. Stanley Jones, Sadhu Sundar Singh, thousand of anonymous servants, and the leaders of the Christian Ashram movement that enabled an indigenous theology, worship and emerging church forms to arise. This is the country that inspired Lesslie Newbigin and Donald McGavran to think differently about church and mission.
But back to the interview, Brother Flack: Missionary offers insight to Younger Missionaries
Chacko Thomas - What advice would you have for missionaries going to the mission field?
Brother Flack - "Go as a learner. Be prepared to learn from the national people and from the culture of the country. Do not try to make the churches like the one in your own country. Do everything you can to develop indigenous growth. Do not be masters; be servants. Identify in every way you can with the people God puts you among. You are there to establish self-supporting; self-governing and self-propagating churches.
Do not go first to the villages. The Lord and the apostles started in the cities and towns. They were less conspicuous there. When missionaries are mostly among the poor, their converts will be “rice Christians” and any developing leadership will be “yes men.” This is fatal for spiritual development. . . .
Missionaries must be prepared to live a very simple lifestyle. Only then will the people feel we are one of them. National believers who are sent away to Bible school abroad for training are of little use when they return because they have developed a different lifestyle. Our Lord Jesus and the apostles did not establish institutional centres, Bible colleges or schools."
Now is it just me or is this guy not the PATRON FLIPPIN' SAINT of the emerging church?
Previously on TSK: I have talked briefly on the house church movement in this country at Slice of Nicolatia and What can Europe learn from 1ndia? as well as an article I wrote for Christianity Today entitled What did you go out to see?
November 12, 2009
One Day's Wages and Eugene Cho
Speaking of my Korean-American friends making the headlines, as I did in yesterdays post, another one is stirring things up in the USA.
Eugene Cho, whom I met at Tom and Christine Sine's house in Seattle, is part of a church called Quest and a regular blogger and speaker on all things emerging and missional.
Recently, Eugene started an initiative to end global poverty through tiny gifts. Its called One Day's Wages and its hitting the news big time right now. Which is pretty impressive considering it was launched only . . like . . . last month!
Here's a snippet or two:
"He [Eugene] asked a village elder what it would take to retain teachers, and they said about $40 each. Not a week. Not a month. “I realized he meant per year,” said Mr. Cho. “It hit me: $40 can make a huge difference.” New York Times
"He wanted to do something. So he thought: Why not start his own global poverty initiative?" Seattle Times
BLOGGERS LISTEN UP. Eugene sent me an email this morning, suggesting that bloggers create a "FUND" via One Day's Wages and "decide collectively where to invest it" and even have ODW guys meet us halfway. Interested? Put some response down in the comments below.
Random stuff like Bibles, toilets and London
Bible and Toilets: The Poverty and Justice Bible has been released. It highlights 2000 verses on poverty and even talks about TOILETS. I have been offered a few copies for readers. So leave a comment below, AND send your full postal address to my email [tallskinnykiwi at gmail dot com] and the first five requests will get a free BIBLE, courtesy of American Bible Society.
Trip to London: Your $5 raffle ticket could win a trip for two to LONDON including accommodatio. And you will be suporting Shannon Hopkins the energetic missional entrepreneur behind Soul Cafe (Texas), Sweet Notions and the Truth isnt Sexy. The drawing is Dec 15, 2009. Email Cathers for details.
November 11, 2009
Global Leadership Summit: Worth Attending?
The Global Leadership Summit comes through our town this week and I am wondering if I should go along and witness this huge, ambitious multi-nation tour project created by Bill Hybels and the Willow Creek Team. They are hoping for 300.000 people to attend in the various countries. Sounds interesting but its hard to see if it is all streaming video of Bono and Tim Keller and others or if some real people are actually going to turn up to speak at these events. And will they be presenting an American style of top-down motivational leadership or a more grass-roots collaborative entrepreneurial style.
Have you attended? Is it worth going?????
[UPDATE] OK - I am going on the 13th. Watch this space.
Verge: Missional Communities Conference
Verge is a "Missional Community Conference" in Austin, Texas, Feb 4-6, 2010. They have offered to bring me over to blog it and I have tentatively accepted. Hard to resist because church planting guru George Patterson is one of the speakers. And Austin rocks!
Related: Small missional communities is a social network that was just started by Ian Adams in the UK. Expect some good resources in the near future including how to start your own small missional community.
November 09, 2009
Claude Lévi-Strauss (1908-2009) and Christian Missions
“I hate traveling and explorers.” Claude Lévi-Strauss in "Tristes Tropiques", NYTimes
French anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss passed away on October 30 at the age of 100. He was one of the greatest thinkers of last century in regards to mythology, anthropology and understanding culture. His bias towards structuralism led him towards universal patterns rather than local particulars so he was at odds with later [post-structural] thinkers like Derrida, Lacan and Foucault but I would imagine that one day we will see it all from a wider perspective and not as incompatible as we now see. In fact, I see in Ferdinand de Saussure the origins of both schools of thought, and many of the influential friends of Lévi-Strauss included people influenced by Saussure.
Since Lévi-Strauss was considered the "father of modern anthropology" I was curious as to what extent he had impacted the cultural anthropology taught in Christian seminaries and mission training institutions. I had already encountered Lévi-Strauss briefly in Paul Hiebert's "Cultural Anthropology", which I studied at Western Seminary. Hiebert's influence on the anthropological training of missionaries was huge, but perhaps more so in USA than other countries
A few years ago, during the final days of Dr. Hieberts life, I was asking how much Hiebert was influence by Levi-Strauss, as well as Saussure, and a blog reader passed on my question to him. Tenny Farnen responded:
"Since I called him up everyday, in the midst of finishing my dissertation with him, I did asked him this afternoon about some of the questions you raised up in the article. With regards to your query whether he is influenced by the anthropology of Claude Levi-Straus, the answer is no. He said that he is more influenced by the classic anthropologists like Hoebel, Spencer, Cliff Browne, and read a lot of Malinowski’s writings. Moreover, he says he has no direct connection with Ferdinand de Saussure. In Hiebert’s book, Missiological Implications of Epistemological Shifts: Affirming Truth in a Modern/Post Modern World (1999, Morehouse Pub. Co), he rejects de Saussure’s structuralism which to Hiebert does create real problem that leads to relativism."
But my curiosity continues. Can anyone else tell me, perhaps from their countries' point of view, what impact the writings of Claude Lévi-Strauss had on the training of their overseas Christian missionaries?
HT: Society of Biblical Literature, who btw are hosting a 'Forum on Missional Hermeneutics' on Nov 21 in New Orleans.
Recent Comments