Not Emergent? – Doctrine

I want so bad to like this book…I really do.  I have a lot of appreciation for books/people who challenge my thinking and push me to think about things differently.  But I’m finding Why I’m Not Emergent to be so packed full of generalities it’s almost worthless.  The intentions of the authors are admirable: to describe the Emergent Church Movement and present some of the most troublesome characteristics of it.  But in their attempt, they’ve lumped all Emergent Christians into the same broad categories.

Let me offer this description of the Emergent Church:  While the Emergent Church is frequently placed in its own category (Reformed, Baptist, Emergent), I’m not convinced this is possible.  I’ve always seen Emergent Christianity better placed in categories like Traditional, Contemporary, Liturgical, Seeker, etc.  As such, the broader movement is simply a sub-category of Evangelical/Non-Denominational; however, proponents can be found in virtually any and every Christian group.  This also means that the Emergent Church is not so defined by its theological convictions as it is by its preferred way of “doing” church.  Obviously, “doing” church is always accompanied by certain theological convictions regarding what church is, how to use the Bible, leadership, and others, but those aren’t the primary things.

In chapter 5, DeYoung seems to be trying to point out the inherent contradiction between the common emergent protestation against “propositions” while also affirming various theological beliefs.  The chapter is left with more questions (how emergent ) than answers.

DeYoung is operating with a very basic definition of “propositions;” for him, propositions are nothing more than statements of theological convictions.  In other words, “Jesus is God” is a proposition.  Technically he’s correct.  But what he’s neglecting is the shift that has taken place in how propositions are now being used in many evangelical churches today.  My personal experience is that propositions don’t stop with the basic fundamentals of the Christian faith – i.e. the minimum “requirements” to be a Christian.  Rather, many churches have developed a long list of propositions that include everything from theological convictions to social and political beliefs.  I’m fairly confident to say that that’s where the problem lies.  DeYoung adequately proves that it’s impossible for a church to not have some propositions (in the most basic sense), but fails to address the reality a significant number of Western churches practice.  And yet, I’m not sure there are too many Emergents that would deny the validity of what DeYoung argues.

Filed under: Book Review, Christian Living, Christianity, Culture, Leadership, Ministry, Philosophy, Theology

Not Emergent? – Scripture

Just finished chapter 3 of Why I’m Not Emergent…this book is becoming more and more frustrating to me the further I get.

One thing I’m starting to notice about DeYoung (his co-author isn’t so bad, but he’s really driving me crazy) is that he almost exclusively quotes Brian McLaren as though he were the primary voice of the Emergent Movement.  I won’t argue that many who consider themselves emergent have been highly influenced by McLaren, but not all – probably not even a majority.

Let me back up a minute – in other words pick some things out of chap. 2 (written by Ted Kluck).  At one point in his chapter, Kluck makes a comment about not knowing much about the emergent church in college because he “didn’t live in Portland, OR or Minneapolis, MN” (59).  My wife was telling me today that she ran a search for “emergent church portland” and the top hit was for a realtor in Portland talking about the religious demographics in Portland.  They described Portland as a generally non-religious community with its own “brand” of Christianity: the emergent church.  What’s more, they listed some of the churches considered emergent, citing Imago Dei Community as the most influential.  Imago Dei is pastored by Rick McKinley and is the church home of Donald Miller.  I also have a number of friends who currently either work for Imago Dei or attend.  The church is solid, the pastor theologically conservative, grounded in Scripture, and extremely active in the community…not exactly the Brian McLaren type, yet recognized as a major player in the emergent movement.

Filed under: Book Review, Christian Living, Christianity, Faith, Ministry, Philosophy, Theology

Not Emergent? – Some Thoughts

Last week the authors of Why We’re Not Emergent came to CTS to talk about their book.  While I had intended to attend, life got away and I chose to study for a Hebrew quiz instead.  But I did finally pick up the book and crack into the first couple chapters (this makes two books that I’m now reading simultaneously, the other being – ironically – The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne…my hope is to finish both by the end of Spring Break).  So far, much of what’s said is to be expected – a lot of criticism for Rob Bell and Brian McLaren.  I’m trying hard not to get upset about anything the authors (Kevin DeYoung & Ted Kluck) say; afterall, I tend to line up with the “emergent church” more often than not, and so I’m bound to hear some stuff that I don’t like.  And although many-a-blog has already been written as a review of the book, I want to offer my own thoughts.

In many ways it’s refreshing to see two guys like DeYoung and Kluck writing a book like this.  There are a number of people who make the assumption that every Christian under the age of 35 is “emergent” (or “emerging” – the book does not make a distinction between the two terms.  The purpose is not to necessarily lump everyone together, it’s simply for simplicity’s sake.  There are a number of differences and nuances between the two, but every now and then you get someone like me – or Mark Driscoll or Rick McKinley – who don’t really fit nicely into one of the two.  I’m fine with being whatever you what to call me; I’m mostly concerned with being a follower of Jesus whatever that means.).  Viewing the “conversation” that way automatically turns the whole thing into a generational issue; in reality, it’s just not that clean.  And so, the existence of this book is refreshing in that it shows the church that there is diversity even within generations – some are, some aren’t.

Filed under: Book Review, Christian Living, Christianity, Church, Culture, Faith, Ministry, Philosophy, Theology

Missional Church Planting

In preparation for Assessment Center in February, I’ve been asked to read the book Planting Missional Churches by Ed Stetzer.  I don’t want to be too critical, keeping in mind that I’ve never been the lead-guy at a church plant and Ed has planted (at the time of writing) three churches throughout the East Coast.  Ed is a career church planter and professor of church planting.  He’s affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention and considered to be one of the foremost experts on church planting in North America today.

Although currently anchored Grand Rapids my ambitions are to plant a church in Portland, OR.  And so, everything I do and think about church planting is geared toward planting in that context.  The odd thing is, the best way to get a feel for church planting in the Pacific Northwest is to read books by people like Donald Miller who aren’t even vocational pastors or church planters.  There’s very little material dedicated to planting in the Northwest; it’s almost as if there’s a reality that if you need to ask, you probably don’t belong there to begin with – which to a certain extent is true.  

But as I’m reading this book and looking over the companion website www.newchurches.com I’m realizing that Ed is operating with a fairly “traditional” approach to church planting.  Throughout PMC and the material on his website is an underlying presupposition that bigger is better when starting a church.  In other words, Ed is fully convince of the “old adage” that the bigger the core team the more likely the church is to succeed.  He has yet to raise any concerns about the traditions/assumptions those members will bring with them and how that will affect the over ministry.  Granted I am only half-way through PMC but I have looked over nearly every inch of the website and have found nothing addressing this potential pitfall and the chapter titles seem unlikely to address it in the book.

Filed under: Book Review, Church Planting, Ministry

Lord Save Us From Your Followers (Book Review)

I’m sure plenty an angry atheist had their curiosity piqued when they stumbled across this title.  Right off the bat, I both empathize and shutter at the mention of this “prayer.”  I understand the point – in fact I often feel the same way toward Christians.  A few posts back (“Christian v Follower of Jesus”) I gave a short explanation of why the term “Christian” bothers me form time to time.  But I also shutter at the thought of this petition when uttered by a non-Christian.  As a Christian myself, I’m embarassed by the actions of the many people in this country (U.S.) who do very unChristian things in the name of Christ.  And because I openly admit that I am a Christian, the post title represents the very reason why so many of my conversations never get beyond my disclosure of my faith.

But this post is ultimately a book review about a book about a documentary made by a guy in Portland (Dan Merchant) about the reason the Christian message of love usually gets lost in translation and seldom makes its way into the public eye.

I finished this book earlier this evening at (where else?) Starbucks.  For anyone reading along on my blog, you may have noticed that this book has inspired a number of posts over the past month or so.  After reading the final few chapters, I’m left with this odd feeling of having so much to say yet completely speechless all at the same time.  What’s really wierd about that is that this book is not what I would consider to be a standout thesis on Christ-like love (Much like Blue Like Jazz [It's okay to be screwed up; God still loves you], the thesis is fairly simple: Christian love needs to be practiced, not discussed).

Filed under: Book Review, Christian Living, Christianity, Church, Culture, Evangelism, Ministry