lifeasmission
exploring the mystery of life and mission as one and the same
-
Archive of "questions" Category
The President, The Jerk at the Grocery Store, and Me
Amy and I have been making our way through the former TV series, The West Wing. If you’re not familiar, the show centers around the lives and work of the President of the United States (Jed Bartlett – played by Martin Sheen), and his key staff.
Recently, an episode about the President and a real-life encounter with a jerk had me doing some personal reflection.
The President
In the show, a situation has developed in the Middle East. A Palestinian terrorist has attacked a US motorcade, killing two congressmen and a retired Admiral, a close friend of the President. This attack, it is suspected, is due in no small part to American support of Israel. The suspected terrorist is then found hiding out in a residential apartment building. Both Palestinians and Israelis are aware of his whereabouts, but neither side is willing to make a move due to their fear of how the other side will respond.
82% of the American public, the whole of congress, and the majority of the President’s staff are calling for the President to order an attack on not just the building where the suspected terrorist is hiding out, but the countries suspected of supporting him. All parties seem willing to accept not just the obvious civilian casualties, but the certainty that this will result in further violence, so long as America, via the President, is willing to exact justice (revenge?) on the supposed perpetrators.
With blatant disregard for all these factors however, the President decides that the only way forward is to negotiate peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. He accomplishes this by shrewdly orchestrating the apprehension, as opposed to assassination, of the suspected terrorist.
Sidenote: This is at least one of the reasons that I have opted not to vote and believe that the prospect of Christians entering into the democratic political system is fraught with difficulty. In cases like this, to whom do you show your allegiance? On one hand, you are seemingly obligated to execute the desires of the people you represent, who elected you to govern for them. On the other hand, if you are a sincere Christian, you are obligated to do justice in keeping with the life and teaching of Jesus. But I digress…
Against the advice of his political advisors and the overwhelming majority of Americans calling for blood, the President negotiates peace talks, believing that violent retaliation on the part of Americans will only play right into the hands of the enemies and beget more violence. I was so proud of my fictitious, TV President!
The Jerk at the Grocery Store
The day after we watched these episodes, I had a meeting at a coffee shop and Amy was getting groceries. She finished and came to pick up – all a-flutter.
Turns out that the guy behind her in the self-checkout line was passive-aggressively verbally expressing his displeasure at the fact that my wife, who had a cart-full of groceries had opted to use the self-checkout line. He made comments about her, not directly to her, but to someone else in line. As she scanned some of the vegetables she had picked up and had to input their corresponding codes to get the right price, he was trying to confuse and mock her efforts. Again, all w/o addressing her, just taunting her and taking advantage of the fact that no one else was there to defend her. Amy isn’t really one for confrontation so she just remained quiet and choked back the tears as she grew more and more embarassed.
Me
As Amy recounted the story to me, everything in me wanted to drive back there, find this guy, and beat him until he apologized. There was this raw flood of emotion and adrenaline that overtook me and I felt like it wouldn’t subside until I forcefully dominated the cause of my wife’s pain and embarrassment.
We didn’t turn around and the feeling subsided, but after it did, I was left with questions…
Why do I react like this?
After years of seeking to internalize and cultivate a spirit of non-violence, why do these feelings still come?
Why is my first reaction to violently end the sources of injustice and oppression rather than to run to the aid of the victimized and opporessed?
At least in part, I venture to guess that the answer to these questions is that I haven’t encountered nearly enough situations in which I can put my theology to the test. Sadly, it seems that had Amy and I been together at the grocery store, I would have gotten an even better glimpse into just how much work God has yet to do in me.
Not to discount the role of personal discipleship in this matter, I am left pondering one final question. What is the role of the church as a community in putting to death attitudes and actions of violence in followers of Jesus? One might wonder whether or not our disposition toward Christian faith has become so accommodating to our broader culture that we don’t even know what this might entail.
Until we do, at least we have Jed Barlett.
The Role of the Bible in Society
As Christendom continues to unravel and the Church loses its privileged role within culture at large, we live in an increasingly biblical illiterate society.
– Quoting Scripture will mean less and less.
– Bible stories will be increasingly misunderstood or forgotten altogehter
– And the battles that Christians wage with one another over the objective nature of Scripture will continue to damage our reputation in a broken world.
For these reasons and more, there is an incredibly important conversation to be had regarding the role of the Bible in society.
In contributing to that conversation, here’s a 40 minute panel discussion from the recent Q conference here in Chicago between Tim Keller, Alastain McGrath, Dempsey Rosales-Acosta, and Brian McLaren (you can find brief bios on all these panelists here) on that topic. I’m anxious to see what kinds of responses others might have to the questions and discussion here.
(For those reading in a feed reader, the video is flash and may not come through, so you might want to click through to the actual post to view or download.)
Where Do You Live?
Just caught this short video from a favorite author of mine, Andy Couch. A while back I took the time to review his latest book, Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling. See what he has to say about the link between idolatry and the questions which define us.
An Interview with N.T. Wright
The guys over at Homebrewed Christianity recently posted an interview they did with N.T. Wright. The interview was full of some really great sound bytes that I went ahead and divvied up to make your life easier
You can listen to or download the interview in its entirety here.
On being a bishop.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On the unfortunate split between church and academy.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On returning to fulltime academic work.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Bart Ehrman.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Marcus Borg & John Dominic Crossan.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Jurgen Moltmann.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On E.P. Sanders.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Karl Barth.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Stanley Hauerwas.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On his most recent book, After You Believe: Why Christian Character Matters and why he chose to write about eschatology before ethics.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On the difference between Aristotelian virtue and Christian virtue.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On the role of character and virtue in other religions.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On cultural virtue.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On the renewing of our minds when they have become largely detached from the rest of who we are.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On Christianity Post-Postmodernity.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
On the after-after life.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
What NT Wright is reading, thinking, and planning for his “big book on Paul” as the next in his Christian Origins series.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
What we can expect from NT Wright in his new role.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
God is as God Acts
I once heard a story of a man who was speaking with Dallas Willard. In the course of conversation, the man divulged a sin, but commented that it was, “completely out of character” for him. To which Dallas replied, “No it wasn’t. If you did it, that IS your character.”
I listened to that and thought to myself,
This expresses well why I love God so much. Because God is as God acts.
God doesn’t get to be called “loving” if God doesn’t love. Nor does God get to be named “just” if God doesn’t act justly. We are as we act and God is as God acts.
Instead of taking this in my own personal direction, I was wondering how others might respond to the idea that “God IS as God ACTS.” What are your thoughts? What does it mean for how you live your life and interpret your reality?
Transitioning Traditional Churches into Missional Ones
A little over a week ago, my cousin-in-law Josh, asked how one might go about transitioning traditional churches into “something more missional at its core.” Since I have banged my head against this wall for years in several different churches, my response will be a mixture of, “here’s where I failed,” and “here’s what I think is most helpful.” For anyone who might have missed them, my posts on, “The Move: The Journey from Attractional to Missional,” and “What is Missional?” would be really helpful in understanding where I am coming from.
I should say a few things at the beginning to help frame my thoughts.
1) This is a wine skins issue (Mt. 9:17). Anyone considering this topic who thinks (whether they realize it or not) that this is basically about getting new wine into old wine skins is destined for frustration and failure – I speak from experience! Missional churches represent brand new wine skins, not just new wine.
2) This takes a long time. The most experienced people will tell you 8-10 years minimum. When we are talking about changing the core identity of, not just a person, but a community, we have to expect a long hard road. An apt analogy – God got Israel out of Egypt in pretty short order, but it took another 40 years to get Egypt out of Israel.
3) No one person is capable of maneuvering this transition. Solo pastors are dead in the water in this regard. And this isn’t to say that the better way is having a team of top-down leaders – this will end up being damaging as well. One of the keys to instilling missional DNA in a church community is inspiring and encouraging new imagination from the bottom.
Those things being said, what does it take? What might the process look like?
My short answer is,
A Spirit-guided intermingling of communal practices, teaching, and prayerful reflection.
Here’s my slightly-longer expansion on those three things.
I take for granted that fundamental to the distinctions of “traditional” and “missional” is a vision of what it means to be the church in Post-Christendom vs. Christendom. My personal opinion (others may disagree) is that there is no point in talking about what it means to be a missional church until Christendom has been rejected as a cultural value. Thus, transitioning traditional churches to missional ones is a non-linear process of deconstruction and reconstruction. Communal practices, teaching, and reflection are the tools which assist in this ongoing task. It would be a (classically modern) mistake to think of this as a mainly intellectual enterprise. Instead, in the integration of these things, deconstruction and reconstruction happen alongside one another.
Since there is no universal model to apply to this topic, we are better served by asking general questions that need to be answered in specific contexts. Here are some questions which I think would serve us well in maneuvering this sort of transition.
– In both small numbers as well as large, what are the practices we can engage in as a community that will shape us into people and “a people” who think and act like Jesus?
– As we try to be honest with ourselves, what things are we doing as a community that don’t seem to be contributing to our spiritual formation?
– How do we incorporate space in our times together (in homes, in meetings, in gatherings) to intentionally reflect on and respond to what we sense God is speaking and doing in our community?
– Who are those in our community who seem most gifted to teach (identified by the fruit of their teaching helping people become more like Jesus)? How can we encourage these people to engage with authors and speakers who are dealing with the subject of missional ecclesiology on our behalf?
– How do we make incremental yet strategic changes in the percentage of money that goes to those things which ensure our security as opposed to those things which necessitate faith in the midst of great risk?
Over and above questions like these, I would also suggest these sort of biblical principles for those who shoulder the responsibility for a transition like this:
– Find people of peace who can be trusted and are willing to commit to the journey. Ask for their help.
– Demonstrate servant leadership by being open, transparent, and broken.
– Commit to structures of biblical conflict resolution. Entrust to God’s care those who choose to leave (there will be many and this is not necessarily a sign of poor leadership).
OK, there’s some initial thoughts. I’m sure I’ll have more so I hope to continue the discussion by way of comments.
Popular Posts
recent posts
Recent Comments
- jrrozko on Little Promptings
- Lana on Little Promptings
- Henriet on Little Promptings
- jrrozko on Little Promptings
- jrrozko on Little Promptings
tweets
- from the lifeasmission archives: Missional Learning Commons http://t.co/E0VwX1ai #FB 17 hrs ago
- Fantastic post w/ important implications for @missionaledu. We Care about Different Credentials - http://t.co/w9EYWYnL #FB 1 day ago
- from the lifeasmission archives: Suburbia http://t.co/jWKtdZNM #FB 1 day ago
- This is how you rig the gear when you have 2 sets of tech-impaired grandparents dying to see their granddaughter ;) 2 days ago
- from the lifeasmission archives: The "Mega-Problems" of Mega-Churches http://t.co/mLgGjcbm #FB 2 days ago
- More updates...
Toward a Missional Vision of Theological Education
Important Female Voices
Ecclesia Bloggers
