Pluralism and the Witness of an Open Community (with more academic details)
Pluralism and the Witness of an Open Community: Take 2 (For mortals)
“I wish to contend that John Howard Yoder shows us all the way forward as how to be missional in the tsunami of pluralism we find ourselves in. Yoder tells us we should not seek first one on one arguments based upon a common reason with folk of other religions (especially if they are coercive), neither should we seek tolerant conversation where we encourage the pursuit of each one’s own spirituality (especially if said spiritualities are demonic), rather we seek to be open non-violent, hospitable and humble communities which seek to engage “the other” vulnerably in order to both learn from them and display the gospel before them all the while entrusting the world’s salvation to the Sovereign Lord.” Lots to chew on.
cultural distance
“loving attentiveness ” and “all our attempts to communicate the gospel are now cross cultural.” … this is enough to sit down and put on our thinking cap and also explore some new models for our mission.
Amos Yong Interview: Pneumatology, Hospitality and Religious Pluralism
Good interview .. here’s one Q & A that stood out for me …
“MM: Evangelical theologies tend to be strongly influenced by European and American perspectives. Is there something valuable to be learned by engaging a broader, global perspective on theology, particularly theological reflection from Asia and the Two-Thirds World?
Amos Yong: Of course; we can’t avoid globalization; we can’t be parochial; we can’t be in denial that we live in what I’ve called the “post-al age”: post-western, post-colonial, post-patriarchal, post-Enlightenment, post-Christendom (in terms of Christianity being at the center of political power as in the age of Constantine), etc. In this “post-al” time zone, then, to ignore the scholarship, etc., coming from the rest of the world is to be left behind the times and to become increasingly irrelevant. Of course, there is much out there that is immaterial – and we must be discerning about which voices and perspectives we engage – but that goes for whatever is being produced in the “western world” as well”
Forming a Scripture-Shaped Congregation
More and more I’m convinced that this is crucial … Good questions to get us started:
“There are several questions which can serve as criteria to guide a theologically aware Christian community. The church should continually be asking itself:
· Where is Christ moving in our situation?
· What is God saying to us, now?
· What is the Spirit calling us to take notice of, to respond to, to discover or do, in conformity with Christ?
· What then shall we do—individually, collectively and cooperatively?”
Three posts on clergy life (1) – clergy stress
Three posts on clergy life (2) – “If you meet George Herbert on the road, kill him”
Three posts on clergy life (3) – visiting
I need to keep an eye on my stress levels. Ok … breathe slowly … relax … get ready for a swim … have a good nap …. breathe slowly again … 🙂