March 30, 2008
Children of Men...again!
(Trailer)
Last night I watched the movie Children of Men again. Every time I watch it, something new comes to me about the film and about the way the movie speaks so graphically with wisdom about the folly and tragedy of our age.
One of the things which I discovered on the DVD after this watch however, was a short film done by director Alfonso Cuarón entitled "The Possibility of Hope". It was hidden with the extras. In it he has numerous philosophers, scientists and futurists giving commentary on the film. One of the most notable voices, at least to me, was Slavoj Zizek. Throughout the years, my friend Peter Rollins and others over at the church and postmodern culture have engaged with Zizek's teaching and thoughts. So for me, it was a fun find.
Below is part one. There are two more parts online: Part Two, Part Three.
I have also blogged about Children of Men here and here.
To quote Zizek from part three, "The magic is to turn a desperate situation into a new beginning."
have hope?
joshua
Posted by joshuacase at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)
June 03, 2007
Seriously good conversations...
Here are a couple of conversations that made me laugh or, that i enjoyed following this week. They are not all funny, just like me;) I did need a little bit of lighter stuff this week as we had two major fundraising events on Friday and Saturday. They were good, but there was quite a bit of busyness going into them.
Enjoy and reflect:
The Tall Skinny on 'Offensive language: I Think My Mother Taught Me'
Josh Brown's honest reflection at 'I'm Back'
Thinking Outside the Bunn's 'memorial tournament's fashion critic'. All I can say is LUCKY!!!!!
SmuloSpace's "Questioning the logic of not drinking'.
And last but certainly not least: PrezVid's 'More mouths, more babes'. Wisdom of youth?
jc
Posted by joshuacase at 11:26 AM | Comments (2)
April 25, 2007
A New Shema Series and More
In the next few weeks we'll be starting a new series at Shema which we feel has some pretty important implications for how we do life with others in Geneva.
Lammert has been blogging about them here a little and you can follow the Shema blog as well.
I'd also like to add this song as a bit of a teaser/taster for where we'll be headed. Thanks again to our patron Saint.
please....jc
Posted by joshuacase at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)
April 21, 2007
Seriously good conversations...
Here are a few from the last week....
Nicholas Fiedler's Another Vlog
Josh Brown's Faith & Science (Part One)
Jason Clark's Heresy is an attitude
Mike Clawson's Is Science More Ethical Than Religion?
Posted by joshuacase at 11:06 PM | Comments (0)
April 20, 2007
In Memory of Kurt Vonnegut
While i was away, Kurt Vonnegut passed away. I need to mourn this. He shaped much of my college experience. One of the best professors I ever had was good friends with him, was shaped by him, is mourning today as well.
If you are not familiar with Vonnegut, I highly suggest his works. Although, if you are not into literature that takes you off a beaten path, don't go for Vonnegut. He'll take you places...good, dark, deep, and back again.
For a first read try Cat's Cradle.
Here is also an article written by Ryan Beiler at God's Politics on Vonnegut entitled: Kurt Vonnegut, 'Christ-Worshipping Agnostic'.
I'm not an evangelical who reads only what affirms my theology, or failing that, tries to pretend that the artists I like somehow conform to my beliefs. (I tire of the endless debates in evangelical circles about whether Bono is a "real" Christian or not - as if meeting certain criteria would make his music or his activism any more or less legitimate.) I prefer to engage artists on their own terms, and allow them to challenge, provoke, and encourage me to hone my own beliefs - even if my faith is the target of their criticism or satire.
Kurt Vonnegut, who passed away last Wednesday at age 84, was and is my favorite author. If I'm honest, it's mostly because he's hilarious. Yes, he uses coarse language. Yes, he seemed to have difficulty with women, both as characters in his books and in his real-life relationships. But his ability to engage a suffering world with humor is what has endeared me most to his work. As he wrote:
Laughs are exactly as honorable as tears. Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion, to the futility of thinking and striving anymore. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward - and since I can start thinking and striving again that much sooner.
That quote comes from Vonnegut's book Palm Sunday, from a sermon he delivered on Palm Sunday in 1980. I recently bought this book after some belabored indecision among the decaying stacks in the used book store, really wanting a funny novel for honeymoon reading more than this compilation of essays and biography. But it was the day before my wedding on Palm Sunday Eve, and I couldn't resist the convergence. Perhaps because of these deliberations, the book ended up costing me $256 due to a ticket I received for unwittingly parking in a poorly-marked handicapped zone. In the spirit of Vonnegut, I could only curse and laugh: So it goes.
With his death following only 12 days later, I'm glad now to have the added insight into his life that this book provided, filling in the cracks that before I had only pieced together from the biographical fragments present in his fiction. So, as my new wife and I enjoyed our first Sunday as a married couple at a remote West Virginia cabin, Vonnegut provided our Palm Sunday sermon, which I excerpt for you free of charge:
I am enchanted by the Sermon on the Mount. Being merciful, it seems to me, is the only good idea we have received so far. Perhaps we will get another idea that good by and by - and then we will have two good ideas. What might that second good idea be? I don't know. How could I know? I will make a wild guess that it will come from music somehow. ...
I choose as my text the first eight verses of John 12, which deal not with Palm Sunday but with the night before - with Palm Sunday Eve, with what we might call "Spikenard Saturday." I hope that will be close enough to Palm Sunday to leave you more or less satisfied. ...
Now, as to the verses about Palm Sunday Eve: I choose them because Jesus says something in the eighth verse which many people I have known have taken as proof that Jesus himself occasionally got sick and tired of people who needed mercy all the time. I read from the Revised Standard Bible rather than the King James, because it is easier for me to understand. Also, I will argue afterward that Jesus was only joking, and it is impossible to joke in King James English. The funniest joke in the world, if told in King James English, is doomed to sound like Charlton Heston.
I read: "Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. There they made him supper; Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those at table with him."
"Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment."
"But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was to betray him) said, 'Why was this ointment not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor?' This, he said, not that he cared for the poor but because he was a thief, and, as he had the money box, he used to take what was put into it. "
"Jesus said, 'Let her alone, let her keep it for the day of my burial. The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.'" ...
Whatever it was that Jesus really said to Judas was said in Aramaic, of course - and has come to us through Hebrew and Greek and Latin and archaic English. Maybe he only said something a lot like, "The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me." Perhaps a little something has been lost in translation. And let us remember, too, that in translations jokes are commonly the first things to go.
I would like to recapture what has been lost. Why? Because I, as a Christ-worshipping agnostic, have seen so much un-Christian impatience with the poor encouraged by the quotation "For the poor always ye have with you."
...
This is too much for that envious hypocrite Judas, who says, trying to be more Catholic than the Pope: "Hey-this is very un-Christian. Instead of wasting that stuff on Your feet, we should have sold it and given the money to the poor people." To which Jesus replies in Aramaic: "Judas, don't worry about it. There will still be plenty of poor people left long after I'm gone."
This is about what Mark Twain or Abraham Lincoln would have said under similar circumstances.
If Jesus did in fact say that, it is a divine black joke, well-suited to the occasion. It says everything about hypocrisy and nothing about the poor. It is a Christian joke, which allows Jesus to remain civil to Judas, but to chide him for his hypocrisy all the same.
"Judas, don't worry about it. There will still be plenty of poor people left long after I'm gone." Shall I re-garble it for you? "The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have Me."
My own translation does no violence to the words in the Bible. I have changed their order some, not merely to make them into the joke the situation calls for but to harmonize them, too, with the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount suggests a mercifulness that can never waver or fade.
This has no doubt been a silly sermon. I am sure you do not mind. People don't come to church for preachments, of course, but to daydream about God.
If you doubt our evangelical creds for reading an agnostic to observe Palm Sunday, you may be alternately reassured that we watched The Passion of the Christ on Good Friday, un-reassured that we watched Life of Brian on Holy Saturday, and were once again sanctified by reading N.T. Wright on Easter as we drove the six hours back to D.C. We've now gone an entire week without sacrilege, and we could use a good laugh.
Posted by joshuacase at 02:08 PM | Comments (3)
March 31, 2007
Seriously good conversations...
This week's SGCs (and there are a few) are (in no particular order):
The Evolution of Faith at Danutz
Subversive Syntax by Tony Jones at Church and Postmodern Culture
John Smulo on Capital Punishment and the Bible
Brian T Murphy- March 25
Ryan Bolger on 'Continuing Jesus' Mission Into the World (Part Two)'
How Might Scripture Read Us? by Prodigal Kiwi
Hope you enjoy this week's seriously good conversations! I know i did!
Posted by joshuacase at 08:23 AM | Comments (1)
March 14, 2007
Video Blog Wednesdays
Posted by joshuacase at 09:02 PM
March 03, 2007
Seriously good conversations...
I wanted to take a blog as i do often, and highlight a couple of what I am going to start labeling (as if it is necessary) 'seriously good conversations'. They may not seem like conversations that everyone wants to be involved with; however, to me, they are really important conversations which seem to be authentic, redemptive in approach, or/and fresh in their expression.
Today, I want to highlight three:
Paul Mayers' An exclusive inclusive Christ, and subsequently, Restoring my humanity: personal experiences of Jesus as way/truth/life...
Nicholas Fiedler's (A)gnosticism, Part I- Is it even worth thinking about & (A)gnosticism: Part II- What is in a name?
Josh Brown's Reimagining Capitalism Series. I wish had the funds to hire Josh to do headers for all the series i think up...But hey, you can't have everything. But maybe he can do a "seriously good conversations" header for me;)
Read. Listen. Engage.
Posted by joshuacase at 11:00 AM | Comments (0)
March 02, 2007
The Tomb of Jesus' clan..and body?
Soon, there will be a new documentary for people to scream about, laugh at, call into question, and say all kinds of nasty things about. It will be the Da Vinci code on history. The bones and tombs put to film like the Titanic. History brought to life or fictiomentary of epic proportions. It will be, I believe, a further opportunity for people who have often wondered about Christianity to ask, can i follow this Jesus?
There is a pretty good conversation on Jesus Creed going on (or was) and there is also a good article in this week's Newsweek magazine.
There is this article on the BBC, this one on CNN, and this feed from Trailrank to help with finding other articles.
Whether or not these are in fact the bones of Jesus or the tomb of Jesus' 'clan' as is being called is interesting to think about. It doesn't for me effect my choice to try to do life in the Way or community of Jesus. For others it might.
For years and years Christianity has sought to stand by its claims and evidence (that demands a verdict) of not finding the tomb of Jesus (or bones) that he had in fact resurrected (reductionistic, i know). The challenge for Christian community today is as real as ever when it comes to the things that science, archeological findings, and new information can give to us; namely, the challenge is: is the way of Jesus still the Way worth following, still a means to new life, and still worth giving yourself (and family) to no matter what comes to new light. Is that Jesus who communities of faith have followed and that gave shape to what Rodney Stark calls, "The Victory of Reason" still the rabbi worth following?
I pray for those whose fear makes them want to justify their beliefs with facts and exact science of all kinds. Whether these are merely religious or merely scientific beliefs. As Ken Wilber, points out in his book "A Brief History of Everything" (a paraphrase) the real challenge in the world today is to infuse the practice of science with a deep practice of religion, to infuse the practice of religion with a deep practice/appreciation of science.
At some point, we must get beyond the merely literalistic approach to 'word' and allow the Spirit of the Word to be more mysterious and even more worthy of following than we ever imagined. After all, even if..it turns out to be false, is it still worth following?
The comment feature will return this weekend..so plan out your reply, check back this Sunday!
Posted by joshuacase at 11:08 AM | Comments (0)
February 03, 2007
Just Jinjer and Shema
So i don't like to generally confess to watching CNN; however, i must if I am to show some generosity in getting this word out.
I was watching CNN this morning and they interviewed a band from South Africa called Just Jinjer. The group is currently touring around the US. While I have only heard a couple of their songs, the one above was previewed on the forementioned news channel and i found it very worth posting about. Also, just so we know (as i didn't), 'just jinjer' is also a common response to the question 'how are you doing?' in South Africa.
Tomorrow night we are doing a Shema entitled "How to start a good riot?: Upset the Religious". There was something of this song that resonated with it. Maybe we'll use it....maybe.
Posted by joshuacase at 09:29 AM | Comments (0)
January 25, 2007
Davos, Jim Wallis, Web 3.0
The World Economic Forum continues to take place in Davos this week and there are few conversations (at least from my perspective) which ought to be making the headlines. What i did not know was that Jim Wallis (of God's Politics) is participating in one of the sessions. That is, I did not know until he told us here.
One of the summaries that i have been looking at is the one on Web 3.0 (Beyond Web 2.0- From Content to Collective Knowledge). As you read through each of the summaries, you really get a sense for the nuggets of gold floating around at this summit.
A couple of the highlights from this session are very practical, very human, and very real. They read:
a. The technology will expand possibilities, but human beings must still figure out how to make good use of everything. Quoting Wired magazine founder Kevin Kelly, Gage said: "Google has the answers. So what are the good questions? That is an art. We had better get the questions right."
b. New developments will create threats to privacy and, at the same time, opportunities. As machines develop "the ability to talk behind our backs," said Gage, they will be able to do things like identify the location of a person at any time. "The police will love it and we will love it. It will be a business opportunity."
c. The virtual reality website Second Life is increasingly being used by businesses and politicians. "It changes how we view human interaction," said Gage.
It seems to me the more digitial we go, the more we have to use real life to recreate there. I am optimistic about what seems to be the progress of humanity, especially when we start really getting the technology to work for us. I guess the most interesting aspects of this was the brief insight into the development of things like Google One Box for Enterprise. Seems to be a tool for data creation from....well as they put it, unstructured data on the internet. Now that's real stuff...a program that reads, collects, and creates whole new ideas that make sense from previously unstructured data. Geez, as a person who is high on ideation and input, this is nightmare...what good will i be?
Well, it's not that good. Here is the Google One Box for Enterprise launch announcement. I guess I am still safe!
Still waiting to see if Bono is gonna show up. He generally does...guess I'll just have to keep watch!
Posted by joshuacase at 04:15 PM | Comments (0)
January 23, 2007
Lammerts, Alans, and Jonnys, OH MY!!
I first heard about Starfish and Spider from Lammert. We've been looking at this text as well as discussing the nature of decentralized leadership in structures that are missional quite a bit recently as we have been forming the core team of Shema. Then, just recently, Jonny came out and started talking about it as well as John Smulo. And now (or maybe even and now i found out), Alan Hirsh seems to be discussing it.
Could this be another example of "birds of a feather flocking together"? Yet it hasn't just been them but several others over the last several months who have in different ways explored it; people like Jase, Paul and Molly. Not to mention Josh Brown and Nicholas Fiedler.
In fact, I have to admit that I've done more follwoing than leading on the blogging front when it comes to these things; however, the struggle has been the same: do we need hierarchies of leadership, or not? That is the question!
Posted by joshuacase at 09:06 PM | Comments (0)
November 26, 2006
The Children of Men- A brief review
Well, unlike many movies in our world today, Children of Men has made its preview in Europe first before its off to America for a December 25th openning.
I will not spoil the plot, but i will make a couple of brief comments about the movie:
1. It captures the raw in-breaking of violence in the world- The violence in the movie comes in and out at a moments notice. It is quick. Its raw. It feels real time.
2. It doesn't waste your time- The movie moves. As movies go, it gets to the point. Tells its story. It ends.
3. In one sequence of scenes it captures why war makes absolutely no sense if in fact life is as precious as we think it is! Quite honestly, one sequence of scenes. If life is our cause, and we can all agree on it, war makes no sense. Really. It doesn't.
4. It leaves you feeling like there could have been more.The movie will rouse some issues some people have with immigration. Laura's first comment about it was, "it was really more about immigration than i thought it would be". Tis true. In a world where there births have ended, who gets to be a part of your economy/nation/welfare system matters...so it seems. Sound familiar?
in the words of Morpheus, "welcome to the desert of the real"....
Posted by joshuacase at 03:34 PM | Comments (2)
November 03, 2006
Back home and more!
Well I've made it back home to Switzerland where I have rejoined my wife in the habit of day to day living. It's interesting what two weeks away can do. Developing different rhythms, eating habits, and so much more. Yet, it is great to be home where I am able to be in the company of my bride, in the proximity of good friends, and am able to reflect on the journey to the US for a short period.
I'd like to just point you to a couple of interesting places for a moment:
1. Adventures in Mercy- I've been following Molleth for a while now and comment here from time to time. Generally great conversations are happening and I really enjoy Molleth's posture. Do check her and the conversations out. Particularly, she is hosting a conversation entitled: "Women: Beginnings and Endings". Check it out.
2. Scot McKnight- I've posted on Scot before, and think he's ever-posting very interesting things on his blog. In a recent post he asks the question to his friends: Is it a moral hypocrisy to believe in war and against abortion, or to be against war and for abortion? Yep, this is the kind of stuff Scot likes his friends to engage in. Good question!
However, the real reason I wanted to connect you to Scot is that he has just released a paper which i thnk holds some pretty good things in tension and, is pretty well written. If you are at all interested, find it here. Lammert pointed it my way.
By way of introduction, here is a snippet from the orignal pdf available via Wes at Sacred Journey:
There are at least four rivers flowing into Lake Emerging – postmodernity, praxis, postevangelicalism, and politics – and because some gravitate toward one or the other, emerging Christians are as diverse as the universal Church. Some are simply evangelicals with a missional slant, while others are postmodernists with a Christian hangover. To narrow them to an epistemological issue is as inaccurate as narrowing Calvinism to Calvin’s church reforms in Geneva.
Blessings to all....and welcome home...
jc
Posted by joshuacase at 02:36 PM
October 04, 2006
Monastics like me...
Monastics like me read.
Papers and books,
"Joyce" and "Faulkner" and "Shakespeare",
Men and Women and Others,
Landscapes and faces and communities.
Monastics like me read.
Monastics like me learn.
From each other and for each other,
Via books and friendships and blogs,
Via nature and experience and failure,
From our parents and our friends and our enemies.
Monastics like me learn.
Monastics like me feel.
A better way is coming,
That can be found through Christ,
That will be found in community,
That unity brings to taste.
Monastics like me feel.
Monastics like me create.
Songs and blogs and images,
Because its what we are,
Because its how we live,
Because it reminds us we are alive.
Monastics like me create.
Monastics like me live.
With normal people,
In normal jobs,
With an abnormal pace,
In an transnormal environment.
Monastics like me live.
Monastics like me care.
Care for others.
Care for enemies.
Care for creation.
Care for ourselves.
Monastics like me care.
Monastics like me fear.
That the "life well-lived" is a lie.
That people in need are rarely heard.
That people with plenty are shallow.
That we can not be loved.
Monastics like me fear.
Monastics like me give.
Give our hearts,
Give our money,
Give back,
Give God.
Monastics like me give.
Monastics like me love.
Love God,
Love Art,
Love Creation,
Love Dreaming.
Monastics like me love.
Monastics like me read, learn, feel, create, live, care, fear, and love; not as ones who have the mere-luxury to do them, but as ones who hope in our doing of them, the world is different for all.
That through Christ, and community, and friendship, and laughter, and art, and dreaming, and loving, and living, and being, and giving, normal things become exceptional things...and exceptional things give way to tangible grace that is with all, for all, and true.
Posted by joshuacase at 11:03 AM
October 01, 2006
Rain, Shema, and Geneva
It's another raining day in Geneva. It just keeps coming. Yesterday showed a little glimmer of hope with a break in the clouds. Alas, such is the entry into the autumn for us.
We will be having our first Shema gathering of the Autumn tonight. We're starting a three part series (i heard that) on the shema. This one is entitled, "shema to the sound". We'll be exploring shema in oral culture; specifically, the evolution of Christianity through oral culture. We'll also be reflecting on the loss of our own oral culture(s) and the effects of this on the way we choose to be formed by the community around us. Is the loss of a true "oral culture" hurting us in the electronic age? Did we lose something of authentic humanity with the print age? Can we regain what was lost in the electronic age? Just a few thoughts.
Yes, should be an interesting evening; especially in light of meeting as if in oral culture (no electronic media or sound, no electronic lighting (we think), nothing which has been mass prodiced through print). Of course, meeting in the Auditiore de Calvin should make it interesting, as it is the ancient space where Jean Calvin and John Knox taught. Quite a bit of oral-towards-print history about this place!
In our next two meetings in October (15, 29), we'll exploring shema in print (letter) and electronic (image) cultures.
I will let you know how it goes....
jc
Posted by joshuacase at 10:04 AM
September 21, 2006
The Adventures of a story teller...and more
Over at Open Source Theology a story teller named Stacy has entered into the conversation. It's kind of interesting to watch as people try to engage with the conversation going on there. The conversation, like many of the ones on this site, is directed towards a conversation about eternity. I've found the conversation interesting, and wanted to highlight it.
You can also check out the conversation entitled: Living in sin/living in love posted by Paul Myers. Another interesting conversation hosted by Jason's site.
Also thought I would use this as another opportunity to plug Andrew Perriman's book, "The Coming of the Son of Man". Andrew hosts the site and much of the conversation at Open Source Theology. The book, even if you end up not agreeing with its content, is well informed, well worth the money, and is in my opinion, an important work for an emerging generation of missional leaders.
still waiting for the dawn...
joshua c
Posted by joshuacase at 01:34 PM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2006
Coincidence or More-than-Coincidence?
This morning Laura and I attended a service at Holy Trinity Church Geneva. The person who brought the homily was John Quigley of Franciscans International. As many people will know, St. Francis is know as the patron saint of animals and the environment. For more info on St. Francis, click here.
Laura and I have attend the Anglican church in Geneva off and on, but this morning was interesting. It was the first time that we have been there, when a pigeon had made its way into the chapel. The bird, while a potential threat to those of us sitting under it, was quite content to just sit in the beams of the ceiling and not bother a life. The irony of it all, for me, was that the bird chose to be here on the day when a representative from Franciscans was there; and, that just as the last hymn was being sung by the community gathered, the bird flapped its way to the window and flew off into the sky.
Coincidence, or more-than-coincidence?
And what of us? Do the messages we represent follow us to the places we go? Do images of peace or grace or justice follow us along as we go through our daily lives? Do people look at our participation in various places and recognize the irony of the signs that accompany us?
Oh that they would,
Oh that they might,
Oh that those who are known by the name of Peace,
Would be followed by the signs and presence of the peace that they bring!
blessings...
jc
Posted by joshuacase at 01:06 PM | Comments (0)
August 24, 2006
Dialogue through and through- An Intro
I was responding the other day on Jason Clark's blog and began to realize that there is something about the culture of Geneva that has deeply influenced the way that I am approaching conversation and dialogue with people who are different, deeper, and more diverse than I. As I reflected on this more, I've decided to do a ? Part series on the subject of "dialogue".
Particularly, I know i want to look at: Dialogue through Monolgue, Dialogue Within Christianity, Dialogue and the WWW, and Dialgoue without Motive. In each of these I will look specifically at how I feel dialogue is necessary and how our dialogues can be best practiced (from my perspective) in each of these settings.
All in all, I believe that dialogue which leads to reconstructive connectivity is key. Whether in relationships with friends, foes, critics, or family. At the end of the day, what comes of our world, comes from our collaboration (or not).
Posted by joshuacase at 01:51 PM | Comments (1)
August 16, 2006
A great read!
I have to confirm the suspicions of my friend Lammert Vrieling about Shane Hipps book. It is a must read!! Shane Hipps' book, "The Hidden Power of Electronic Media" is an amazing read. It does an amazing job at addressing not just how media impacts people with the content it channels, but also how the channels themselves become a subtle, even more dangerous message. The book challenges us to reflect on the words of Marshall McLuhan, one of the ancient voices ever referenced in this work, that "the medium is the message".
I can highly, and will continue to highly recommend this book. Though for many of you, I'm at least a year behind!
Posted by joshuacase at 10:15 PM | Comments (0)
April 26, 2006
I believe..
I belive in encouraging the contextual practice of mission in various places around the world. I believe that there is something to be said for local people understanding the questions of the local context. I believe also however, that in many places around the world those who have been sent out from their local contexts have a very different view on them (the contexts) as they do life from the outside looking in. Problems in one place have a very different twist than in another. People in different places have different solutions to the same conflicts. Working together or alone may be favored in one place and thought weak in another. And yet, the new perspective can not be changed. This isn't some higher view or even some better view, but is definitely a different view.
So what must one do? An aversion to colonial methodology would keep one from wanting to impose "new knowledge" or "new understanding" on any culture, and yet, when those discovered things are proven to be freeing and liberating, one wants to share the good news of them! But what of the clash? What of the mixed messages?
Recently I've come to see that in the West, its not so much about the baby and bath water being thrown out as it is a process of allowing the experiences of the global church abroad to give shape to the practice of mission locally. Maybe for me this is different than for others; however, I am learning that I must encourage the healthy practice of mission in various contexts using various languages and various tools provided in sucha way that very simply, the good kingdom of God is established! It is in the establishing that the real diversity comes out. In the practice of a glocally-minded missionary communities willing to be shaped by the free market of Christ-birthed ideas and experiences. These are not the ideas and expereinces that are laid out in some sort of a "super highway towards building a better church", but rather in the real "back road" lives of real people trying to love others in the Spirit of Christ.
This is the great challenge of Christianity today: not to build bigger churches filled with more people, but to connect real people with a real creator who love them and is calling them towards participation in planting the good seeds of the good creation they have alsways longed to be a part of. In these spaces, Christ is made known and lives are healed, loved, transformed, and given a purpose greater than what they can do or hope to be!!
Posted by joshuacase at 10:07 AM | Comments (1)
March 20, 2006
Important Books
I was just thinking the other day how have yet to really take an inventory of the books that have been critical to the last season of my life. I truly feel like this has been a unique season for me in my understanding not merely of myself, but of the world around me, and of God.
The following is a list of some books that have been pretty critical to my shaping. Some of them i have agreed with in part, others have articulate who I know I am to be in ways i never dreamt could be articulated! If you read them, keep in mind that we are all in different places, learning different things, attempting to be sources of Good for the world!
In no particular order:
The Story We Find Ourselves In- Brian Mc Laren
The Next Reformation- Karl Rasche
If Grace is True- Gulley & Mulholland
Generous Orthodoxy- Brian McLaren
Reading the Bible Again- Marcus Borg
The Coming of the Son of Man- Andrew Perriman
The Heart of Christianity- Marcus Borg
What Saint Paul Really Said- NT Wright
Make no mistake, there are others; however, I can honestly say that this group, is quite an important group for anyone to read! Agree or disagree, they are good value! I hope you'll pick them up if you haven't already! I hope you'll enjoy a reshaping of sorts as I have.
Posted by joshuacase at 08:41 AM | Comments (2)
March 15, 2006
Meese
Meese is an up and coming group out of Denver. I really appreciate their sounds, thier lyrical processing, and the fact that they seem to about more than just making simple music! The guys know thier music without a doubt!! Enjoy listening and wait for this group to break out!
Posted by joshuacase at 12:58 PM | Comments (0)