The emergent church and the end of the "sage on the stage."

Brian McLaren recently lamented Sunday morning experiences that can be evaluated like a consumer experience. “How was worship yesterday?” McLaren opines that the question usually means “how was the sermon” and/or “how was the music?” In an era when technology can transfer knowledge 24/7 in multiple languages, is an hour listening to a lecture from the sage on the stage really our best use of time? OR Would we be better served if we spent that time in a “lab.” Getting out of the church building and into the neighborhoods to practice what we already know? Come join the conversation and voice your opinion. We'll experiment with a new venue this week. We'll meet at the Wendy's on Custer in front of Starbucks - and some of us may show up as early as 6:30 to share supper...hope you can join us.

August 22, 2013 Was Jesus political?

The cohort group will meet on Thursday, August 22, 2103 to begin a discussion of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, by Reza Aslan. If you don't get a chance to get a copy of the book by Thursday,just Google the book title and you'll see plenty of articles, blogs and videos to whet your appetite. Here is one blog that suggests that Jesus was apolitical. Aslan takes the opposite view, suggesting that Jesus was radically political. It should be an interesting discussion. Larry will lead the first session and then Woody will take over. Hope to see you on Thursday.

Next Meeting will be August 22, 2013

As is our tradition, we'll take the summer off and plan to meet again on August 22, 2013. Feel free to reply to this post to keep the cohort up-to-date on your schedule and your summer reading.

June 27, 2013 Cohort Recap

We had a very special treat on the 27th when the cohort and a few guests met with pastor, author, wife and mom Danielle Shroyer. The cohort had started a discussion of her book, The Boundary-Breaking God a month or two ago, and we were delighted that she was able to join our conversation. Topics ranged from the influences of the Permian Basin and Juger Moltmann on her theology to insights on Journey church in Dallas to glimpses into her next projects. We pondered the tensions that seem to always arise between spiritual "pioneers" and "settlers" and "what do you do with the children in a small church?" As noted in the next post, we'll take the month of July off and meet again on August 22, 2013. Hope to see you then.

Effective June 2013 - we'll meet on the fourth Thursday

Last month we decided to change our meeting date from the second Thursday to the fourth Thursday to accommodate some schedule conflicts. Make plans to join us on Thursday, June 27th!

April meeting update

We'll meet on the 18th instead of the 11th. So you still have time to pick up a copy of Danielle Shroyer's book The Boundary-Breaking God and read the first two chapters. Hope to see you Thursday.

April Meeting moved to the 18th

Due to a schedule issue, we are moving our April meeting from the 11th to the 18th. I hope you will be able to join us on the 18th.

March 2013 Meeting Recap

Are you (still) emergent? This question was sparked by Bruce Reyes-Chow's blog post and the conversation seemed (to me anyway) to follow 3 tracks: A. Answering the question "am I emergent?" b. discussion about the controversy stemming from Phyllis Tickle's closing remarks at the emergent gathering in Memphis. c. questions about privilege, including can we get beyond our own blinders about how our privilege impacts our view of the world. Track one: We discussed that being "emergent" certainly means different things to different people. Clay summarized his position as being still emergent because he sees Jesus as being emergent. More than anything, Clay wants to be like Jesus. Woody said that he's still interested in learning more about emergent and that he thinks emergent describes where he is at the moment. I (Larry) said that I see my life in terms of a journey, and that at this point in time emergent folk and I seem to be on the same path. Terry opined that the three or four emergent groups he's in meet most of the needs filled by traditional church, so he's still emergent. (If you think I misquoted you or misstated your position, please feel free to clarify via a comment.) Track two: At the end of the recent emergent gathering in Memphis, Phyllis Tickle made some comments that some found to be offensive. None of us were present at the meeting, so we had to rely on some who were. Phyllis was speaking of the period following World War II and she stated something to the effect that the use of the pill changed the way that the faith was transmitted through families. Some heard her say that believers should go back to that day when more women worked at home. I say "some heard her say" because if you read the blogs of those in attendance, not everyone heard or interpreted her statements the same way. To my knowledge, Phyllis has not yet offered an elaboration on her comments, but if you have seen one, please comment on this post with the link. Emerging Christianity has been controversial since its beginning, and as a new generation of leadership steps forward I am not surprised that it continues to spark heated discussion. The group discussion Thursday night seemed to be surprised that Phyllis would head in that direction. However, she is a historian, not a theologian. As a student of history, I think that the history of the last 50 years is still being researched and analyzed. Personally, I find the discussion interesting but not offensive. Which as a white man, may be easy for me to say, and which leads to... Track three: Can any of us effectively set aside the filter of our privilege and see the world as others see it? What would it take to be able to do that, and what would we look like after we set aside our privilege? The group agreed that this is a problem to discuss and we decided to take this up in a future meeting. For April: Pick up a copy of Danielle Shroyer's book The Boundary-Breaking God and read the first two chapters. Hope to see you in April.

March meeting on the 14th

We are back on our regular schedule of meeting on the second Thursday of the month, after making some accommodations in February for St. Valentine's day. This Thursday we will follow Clay's suggestion to consider the question "Why are you (still) emergent? Of course positive and negative answers are acceptable. Clay's suggestion was inspired by this blog So read the blog and bring your thoughts. Woody suggests that we read The Boundary-Breaking God: An Unfolding Story of Hope and Promise by Danielle Shroyer in April or May. Danielle is the pastor of Journey Church in Dallas and she blogs at danielleshroyer.com Our meetings are always open to guests and the curious, so come check us out.

February meeting on the 21st

This February we'll meet on the 21st and discuss Frank Schaeffer's blog post saying that emergent christianity is broken. Here's a link to the blog: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/frankschaeffer/2013/02/progressive-christianity-is-as-broken-as-evangelicalism-heres-how-to-fix-it/ Come prepared to discuss whether or not you agree with Frank and why... Enjoy your Valentine's Day...

January 10, 2013

Our cohort will not meet in December, but we will meet on January, 10, 2013. Once we decide on a topic, I'll post it here on the blog. I didn't want you to go a whole month with nothing to think about, so I thought you might find this sermon interesting: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/missionalshift/2012/11/my-sermon-on-what-is-the-missional-church/ Scott Knight was speaking at The Table, a new emergent church in East Dallas. His thoughts on being missional prompt me to ask, "are you more or less missional today than you were four years ago?" (Can you tell that yesterday was election day?)

Thursday, November 8, 2012

We'll meet at 7:00 PM at Starbucks to discuss Phyllis Tickle's latest book, Emergence Christianity. Even if you haven't read the book, you'll find the conversation interesting. All are welcome.

Doug Pagitt at Journey Church Oct. 22

Doug Pagitt will be hosting a discussion of role and future of Christianity and hanging out with the good people of Dallas, Fort Worth, Texas on October 22 7:30pm at Journey Church and Heritage Church. Event is free and open to all. If the stars align there will be music (if you have a lead contact Doug) Doug Pagitt suggests that we live in an exciting time of change in every area of our culture including religion. He suggests that this current period, that he calls "The Inventive Age" is a fertile time not only for new expressions of faith, but for new theology in Christianity as well. Join Doug for an evening of positive conversation about the age we live and the bright future that is ahead. Journey Dallas 13154 Coit Rd. Suite 101 , Dallas, Texas 75240

October 11, 2012 Meeting

The cohort will meet Thursday, October 11, 2012 to discuss McLaren's latest book, "Why did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha and Mohammed Cross the Road?" Here's a video that covers the main points of the book: http://www.theworkofthepeople.com/index.php?ct=store.details&pid=V01124 Watch the video and come join the conversation. Everyone is welcome.

June 14, 2012 meeting

The North Dallas Area Cohort will meet on Thursday, June 14th at 7:00 PM at Starbucks at Custer and Parker in Plano. To get ready for our conversation, read and think about your answers to these ten questions: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/missionalshift/2012/06/10-questions-to-ask-if-youre-wondering-am-i-missional/ One of the characteristics that distinguishes emergent/missional fellowships from traditional fellowships is their view/approach to evangelism. What do you think? Hope you can come and share.

May 10 - Spiritual Formation

Larry Rathbun will lead the discussion Thursday night about spiritual formation. He'll provide a handout.

Join us May 10, 2012

Larry Rathbun will lead the conversation on May 10. Come check out the new location.

I'm dogmatic about not being dogmatic - April 2012

We had a lively discussion in April regarding the role of dogma in religion. Interestingly, all of the on-line definitions we viewed framed the term(s) in the context of either religion or politics. Why are we so dogmatic about religion and politics, and is that a good thing? Some general observations: all of us have been dogmatic about something at some time in our lives. Most of the April cohort admitted to having experienced a change in what we are dogmatic about. Some of us claim to be less dogmatic today than we once were (or perhaps dogmatic about fewer things.) And of course there were several joking comments along the lines of "Larry, you sound pretty dogmatic about that..." This may become a topic we return to from time to time since we couldn't seem to discuss it fully in an hour or so. Some food for thought: Should I ever be dogmatic about a subject about which God is silent? Can I be dogmatic about just those things about which God is dogmatic? Since I've changed my opinion in the past, should I go easy on the dogmatism today? Is the fact that some of us acknowledge that we've changed our minds evidence that we're getting better, or worse?

New Location

We thought we'd move the meeting to a Starbucks in Plano, so that perhaps a few more might join our discussions. Please note the details in the upper right corner of the blog's first page.

October 13, 2011 Conversation

These thoughts were compiled by Clay Youngblood after the recent "Four cornerstones of emerging churches" seminar in Dallas. We'll discuss these thoughts Thursday evening, October 13, 2011. Suzanne Stabile -- Liminal Perspective ... Background 60, Educator, SMU professor One of the creators of ... Life in the Trinity Ministry Married Joseph Stabile, who left the priesthood to marry Suzanne Mother of 4 (one who is gay, one who had a child out before marriage - all very spiritual!!) We are all searching (spiritually) for two key things .. Meaning Belonging Hunger for Meaning ... (3 spheres of increasing awareness ...) This is ME I have rights I have a need to my rights This who WE ARE We have responsibilities We collectively react as a group based on certain values This is the GREAT I AM I have responsibilities tot he Kingdom We are all in Liminal space ... At the threshold of something we can't see, a transition space In between where we've been and where we are headed The beginning of a journey - uncomfortable to some degree ... State of increased consciousnesses Church today is in liminal space ... Question: "Are you a fan or a follower of Jesus?" Concern: "I want to leave a church for my children ... right now I'm not sure what that is ..." Three questions to ponder ... Does the world need for you to be fearless? (Note: fear is the opposite of love ...) How will you name yourself? Can you bear witness to what it is? How do you offer manifest your worth? Several things to consider ... "God has the ability to to join us in our darkness to take away our fears that we can't let go off ..." "The church (as we have known it) is dying ... we're now in liminal space ..." Uncomfortable and exciting at the same time Nadia Bolz-Weber Background Early 30's Ordained Lutheran Minister (priest) Passionate, gorgeous very elaborate tattoos - everything a "gray hair" is not Out of the box, almost irreverent, passionate, ... yet very effective Established the inner city church in Denver ..."Church for Sinners and Saints" Most of her presentation material was a video of last year's Easter service Full traditional liturgy - Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Lay people all took active roles in delivering the "Easter message" -- traditional, but through their eyes ... Lay people play a big role in scheduling and delivering the service - Nadia is involved, but does not do all the "heavy lifting ..." Local Lutheran diocese supports her efforts Question: "Is the church dying?" No, not if you are focused on ... Teaching the good news gospel Reaching the lost sheep Bringing the grace and compassion of God to those in need Yes - for the institutions we've known in the past Highly market focused Corporate in approach Everyone over 50 seems to want to "target/market" a population for salvation versus working together to grow and build something ... Simply doesn't connect with the Gen-Xers / Gen-Yers - their suspicious of your motives and approach - they don't see anything different ... Today's church is an unnecessary display of wealth, power and authority - think of all who could be helped .... Nadia's perspectives ... How can you be a producer versus a consumer You will search for the truth regardless of what authority has led you to believe ... Church plant efforts need to be more focused on the sociological factors than marketing approaches Brian McLaren Brian started out his presentation with a reflection on VacLav Havel's The New Measure of Man Vaclav Havel First president of the new Czech Republic Writer, reformer, "thinker" ... Helped end the Warsaw Pact with peaceable approaches Compared to Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela Recipient of various peace awards The New Measure of Man (July 9, 1994; Ne York Times article) ... There are good reasons for suggesting that the modern age has ended. Many things indicate that we are going through a transitional period, when it seems that something is on the way out and something is being painfully born. It is as if something were crumbling, decaying and exhausting itself itself while something else, still indistinct, were arising from the rubble. The distinguishing features of transitional periods are a mixing and blending of cultures and a plurality or parallelism of intellectual and spiritual worlds. These are periods when all consistent value systems collapse, when cultures distant in time and space are discovered or rediscovered. New meaning is gradually born from the encounter, or the intersection, of many different elements. Today, this state of mind, or the human world is called post-modernism. For me, a symbol of that state is a Bedouin mounted on a a camel and clad in traditional robes under which he is wearing jeans, with a transistor radio in his hands and an aid for Coca-cola on the Camel's back. McLaren suggested that instead of "Four Cornerstones" there were actually "Four Wheels" of emerging Christianity ... Return to active community Fresh vision of Jesus Renaissance of spiritual practices Engagement with social justice Active Community Ethics, doctrine, a witness to our mission Ethics are the practice of community Safe place Place where you can ask questions Differences are held Greater friendship Liturgy "Convivality" ... " ...not our fault, but our opportunity ..." (i.e., the way we find things today ...) Lot of work to do in this area ( i.e., Active Community) - we are very immature at this type of community interaction We shouldn't punish ourselves for the way we find things today (with the church) - we now have the opportunity to change and move forward ... Generous Orthodoxy / Everything Must Change Fresh Vision of Jesus We need to place more emphasis on how Jesus' ancestors saw him versus the views of his descendents Their views reflect the magnitude of his message AGE Scriptures a very different and compelling when we take this perspective .. Few examples Exodus: Liberation and Formation Genesis: Creation and Reconciliation Secret Message of Jesus / New Kind of Christianity Renaissance of Spiritual Practices Liturgy Prayer (all forms: group, reflective, open, ...) Seasonal calendar reflective of key events in Christ's life Finding Our Way Again Engagement with Social Justice Integral to our mission in the emergent church We'll be judged by the way in which we promote and accept change Everything Must Change