Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Introverts for Jesus, Unite!
While I haven't read the book, Scheller's review strikes me as exceptionally even-handed, noting both the weaknesses and the strengths of McHugh's examination of introversion in our culture, and particularly in our (evangelical) churches.
Scheller ends her review with this quote from McHugh: "When the church is led by introverts and extroverts who partner together, each contributing their strengths and offsetting the others' weaknesses, it is a testimony that the Holy Spirit is orchestrating the community."
That's a nice vision.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Reading Biography as Spiritual Discipline
Monday, August 3, 2009
Evangelicalism and Politics

The podcast is available through iTunes, or you can go to the Speaking of Faith website to find three different versions:
- the podcast version (53.09)
- the full audio version (1:32.05)
- the full video version (1:32.08)
The discussion is a fascinating one, as it illustrates how three godly, thoughtful Christians can understand Biblical teaching on the relationship between politics and the Kingdom of God in strikingly different ways. Ultimately, as Krista Tippett, the moderator, points out, the relationship between the evangelical church and contemporary politics isn't an either/or proposition. Thoughtful Christians can disagree (sometimes strenuously) on this issue, and just as the body of Christ needs the foot, the hand, the ear, and the eye, the body of Christ probably needs all three of the perspectives presented on this panel.
One question not really addressed (at least in the shorter podcast version) is how the church embodies these different perspectives without balkanizing itself into a new denominationalism based upon the relationship between church and politics (e.g., local churches adopting blanket identities as "Colsonistic," "Boydian," or "Claibornean" churches). How does the local church welcome, enable, and embody all of these perspectives without adopting one and squelching or demonizing the others?
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Underlying Assumptions About Ministry
This particular post is titled "If Cooking Slowly and Growing Organically are In, Why Is Rural Ministry Out?" Whether one is connected with a rural church or not, the post generates some provocative questions about the underlying assumptions shaping our attitudes and approaches to the life of the church more generally.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Breen and Gibbs on Post-Christendom
"Get out of your self-serving programs and give more of your time and energy to being the church in dispersion, and to resource the church to be that. Because in a post-Christendom context, I believe that 80 percent of our ministry should be taking place off the church campus."
Here's the shorter clip:
The Medium is the Message
Monday, March 2, 2009
Location for Discussion of _Culture Making_
My apologies for taking so long to nail down a location. I was hoping to identify a space out in the community--a coffee shop, for instance. However, the only potential place that came to my mind was the meeting room at Caribou, which could potentially be a little cramped.
Of course, if folks have recommendations for more community-based meeting spaces, they should feel free to send them my way. The ideal location: coffee, space that accommodates 6 - 26, with a whiteboard for the facilitator, if possible. (Not asking for much, am I?)