December 28-30 - DisneyWorld, The Land, Hydroponic Gardens

After a 25 year hiatus, I returned to DisneyWorld. As a wedding gift we were given 5 day passes to the park by my lively bride's parents. During December 28-30 we toured Epcot. We saw everything except Morocco. My undesputed favorite part was "The Land" and the special behind-the-scences tour that my wife arranged as a Christmas present. We toured the hydroponic gardens at The Land. I took dozens of pictures. I know that most of you are not gardeners, so I won't bore you with the obscure details of my favorite passtime. The above were HUGE pumpkins. And here are the nine pound lemons

Here is how they make the Mickey Mouse shaped Pumpkins and cucumbers ...

Here's Becca and I with the Mickey Pumpkins.

The food was wonderful. We ate at Japan and France. I wish that I could have taken more pictures of the food. I must have gained 10 pounds. Here's the Japan dessert ... green tea and green tea ice cream.

I wish that I could write to describe how great a gift this was. It was a total sensory experience, a tour of the world and on top of that I learned how to execute effective hydroponic gardening. The gardening nerd in me was in heaven. The culinary nerd in me was in heaven as well. At the end of the three days, my feet hurt and my legs were sore, but it was SO worth it. I look foward to returning to DisneyWorld soon. Hopefully it won't be another 25 years!

Grace and peace,

Trav Wilson

December 25 - Happy Christmas!

Enough with the book reviews! We had a great Christmas with the Greater Newland-Stallings-Wilson Clan. As you can see our nephew Eli was a barrel of laughs. He was riding his toy horse and giving new meaning to 'rockin' around the Christmas Tree.' It was a great Christmas for all in terms of the blessing of family and in material things. Believe it or not, Eli is not crying in this picture. He is merely expressing his enthusiasm.

You can see our other nephew Rhett in this second picture. He is sitting in the rocking chair. Becca's dad is visible in the background, watching the boys and making sure that they have a lot of fun. I have been specifically forbidden to post the picture of him trying on the gag gift he received at the Dirty Santa Party he and his wife attended. Let's just say that it was red and silky. Fair enough?

The best Christmas gift I received this year was being with so much of my family. Unfortunately, my parents could not make the trip as Mom is still recovering from neck and bac surgery. Please keep her in your prayers. She is making great progress and has an appointment on Janaury 25 at 2 p.m. for her check up. I know that she will do well, but she will do even better if you are praying for her, both before and after the check up.

The second greatest gift I received was as behind-the-scenes pass to the hydroponic gardens at DisneyWorld. More on that later!

We hope that your Christmas was full of blessing as well! On to more reading!

Grace and peace,
Trav Wilson

December 24 - Natural Church Development

Introduction. Christian Schwarz’ goal for the book is to critique his perception of the church growth movement and to put forward a more biotic-organic model of church leadership, as opposed to a business-corporate model that he perceives as inadequate. What makes this book valuable to leaders is that it is based on a study of 45,000 churches in 70 countries, focusing on developing church growth (quantity) naturally out of church health (quality).

Eight Characteristics. From Schwarz leaders learn that the worship wars that have plagued United Methodism are irrelevant: churches that grow have high quality, inspiring worship services regardless of style. In Schwarz’ estimation, it is the inspiring experience that draws people. Second, Schwarz saw a pattern between quality, growth and the intentional development of holistic small groups and loving relationships. Third, there was a pattern between quality, growth, and having spiritual gift-based lay ministry with a focus on the search for and the training of those gifted with evangelism. Schwarz disputes the idea that everyone is an evangelist. This one fact from his research gave me the best reeducation in spiritual gifts that I have ever had. Finally, and ironically, leaders learn from this book that as theological training for clergy increases, the quality and growth of the church decreases. One wonders what that says about the quality of theological education in the 70 countries surveyed.

Minimum Factor. Leaders have to communicate. While people are not stupid, the simpler the message, the more people understand the message a leader is working to communicate. The image of the barrel in the minimum factor is priceless. I wish all images could be that simple. Also, leaders need short term and long term vision. Schwarz’ research shows that by working on the minimum factor in a church, many of the other factors will also rise. That is, leaders can improve the general fruit of a church by focusing on one problem at a time instead of equally dividing scarce resources to attack all limiting factors at once.

Six Growth Forces. In this section, Schwarz emphasizes the organic nature of his church development model. He reminds leaders that the church is not a factory where robots are produced but rather is a life form that reproduces itself. Also, in this chapter, Schwarz takes the time to refine fruit: the fruit of an apple tree is not an apple, it is another apple tree. The church exists not to produce but to allow God to reproduce through us.

New Paradigm & Growth Spiral. Schwarz critiques leaders who view the art as more head than heart, calling them ‘technocrats’, and identifying them as people more concerned with ‘making’ a church grow through programs. Schwarz is also critical of leaders who view the art as more heart than head, calling them ‘spiritualists’, and identifying them as people who view “institutional elements” as “evil” (94). Then, sounding almost classically Methodist, he draws up a new paradigm for church leadership where head and heart go together. Schwarz gives a quality control framework for evaluating and improving the quality of things at a given church, which he calls the ‘growth’ spiral.

Final Thoughts. Ultimately, there are four great gifts that this book gives any leader who digests and implements its best ideas. First, unlike much theological training of which I have been a part, Schwarz gives his readers permission to set quality goals and to achieve them. Instead of a passive spiritual leadership, he recognizes the necessity of an active spiritual leadership. Second, this book provides a detailed, research supported quality control system for churches that emphasizes both quality and quantity. Third, Schwarz gives to leaders the rationale to lead change in ‘technocratic’ institutions which would merge all denominational activity into a great, mindless uniformity. Finally, Schwarz also gives leaders the rationale to challenge all ‘spiritualists’ who would rather be passive rather than be active. In short, Schwarz blesses those who would respond to God’s gift to lead, and respond to critics on each side.

December 23 - Church for the Unchurched

Introduction. So far, this is the book that I have enjoyed the most. In Church for the Unchurched, Dr. George G. Hunter examines the commonalities between nine ‘apostolic’ American churches which are experiencing high levels of effectiveness compared to common, declining church models. Hunter calls the greater Christian Church to release their traditional practices in order to re-embrace their traditional mission: to exegete a church’s given culture and develop an evangelical response to that culture based on cultural relevance, lay driven ministries, seeker services, and small groups.

Cultural Relevance. Too many times to Christian leaders, the case is made for cultural relevance and the baby seems thrown out with the bathwater. Ancient Christian traditions and modes of discourse, central to historic Christianity, are thrown to the side for a passing spasm of feeling; all the while the preacher lectures new converts that our faith must be independent of our feelings. The leadership advantage that one gains from reading Church for the Unchurched is a solid biblical and historical basis for cultural relevance. I would like the leaders of my future church to read this book, however, in a pinch, Hunter’s historical work on pages 60-69 will do. Also, Hunter’s exegesis of scripture and Church history transcends the idea that contemporary worship should be a Willow Creek or Saddleback rock concert. Leaders benefit from hearing Hunter’s point that relevance may manifest itself in any way that communicates of the gospel.

Seeker Services. While this topic fits under the umbrella of cultural relevance, the weekly worship service is the bedrock of many models of church that have emerged in Christian history; this is certainly so in the broad spectrum of American culture. Hunter does his best biblical and historical exegesis in the area of worship. What I need as a leader facing an entrenched, traditional church, unwilling to change, is to show how traditional a seeker service actually is. This is the difference that Hunter makes in my ministry of worship.

Small Groups. Hunter also delves deep into the eternal need for apostolic churches to develop effective small groups to the encouragement of the faithful, the up-building of new converts, and safe places for seekers. Again, Hunter is most helpful to leadership by exegeting to biblical and historical models for small groups. The shear volume of information that Hunter presents is astounding. I would have preferred a comparison contrast that gave the positives and negatives of each type of small-group set up. It was difficult to digest all the material that he gave. I would like to hear more about how leadership relates to small groups in class.

Lay Ministries. Hunter again makes the case, through scriptural and historical exegesis, that all effective revivals are characterized by lay ministry. He then goes on to give a catalogue of lay ministries that are possible when the people of God are empowered and released for the work of ministry. The most helpful part of this section was the discussions of how lay people could be enfolded and incorporated into the process of pastoral care. Contrary to myth, Hunter does not advocate a pastor abandoning the role of care giver. Rather, he calls the church to care for itself.

Final Thoughts. The great gift that Hunter gives to leaders is the re-baptism of the term ‘apostolic.’ While the term is mainly co-opted by fly-by-night store-front churches, Hunter reconnects the term to its biblical and historic roots. Churches that follow the apostolic paradigm contained in this book, “believe that they and the church are ‘called’ and ‘sent’ by God to reach an unchurched pre-Christian population” (28).

The blessing of this book is that it is so packed with data and information. It is a nice change from books of this type that are more fluff than substance. The curse of this book is that it is starting to get a little dated. His ideas about ‘baby-busters’ were nascent in 1995. Now eleven years later, the trends among my generation are developing. I would like to have heard more about that. I would be very interested to hear opinions or at least receive direction to resources on emerging worship and ministry to ‘Generation X’ in our class.

December 22 - The Fine Art of Getting Along with Others

Introduction. In The Fine Art of Getting Along with Others, Dr. Dale Galloway delves deep into the many times murky water of human interactions to give direct application to one of Jesus Christ’s most important teachings: do unto others as you would have them do unto you. More than a secular tome on how to win friends and influence people, Galloway gives practical advice on how to interact and maximize the effectiveness of one’s relationships with others. He teaches in three specific areas: reaching out to others in general, working with difficult people and connecting with those closest. In each area, Galloway gives a lesson that will effect my ministry and leadership in the future.

Reaching Out to Others. Too many times, my favorite form of a conversation is a debate. This has caused me difficultly in the past with people who do not share this love or misinterpret my enthusiasm for aggression. Galloway addresses two things in this section that cut to the root of that problem and help develop in me better skills at working with others. First, Galloway guides me to admit that I am the one who needs to change, “…[Y]ou need to open up to change and grow so that you can start succeeding in relationships” (28).

Second, Galloway guides me to understand the root of my eagerness to debate: my need to change people. On the surface this is not bad; what else is evangelism but the desire to see people fundamentally changed? The difference is the agent of the change; do I want it to be me or the Holy Spirit? Galloway writes, “I can change no other person by direct action. I can change only myself. When I change, others tend to change in response to me” (57). My calling is to love God with all my heart, mind and spirit. My second calling is like unto it: to love others as I love myself; not to change but to love.

Difficult People. Dealing with difficult people seems the bane of the ministry. This section was helpful in two ways. First, when interacting with people, especially those who are trying to steamroll a young pastor, I have found it especially helpful to remember who I am. What I have learned from Galloway is this: he writes, “Be confident in who you are.” He is not just presenting a platitude. He affirmed that each of us is a “child of God” with value, a calling, a vision, and a mission of how God will use us to pursue his vision (97).

Second, when interacting with people who are EGR (extra grace required), I have found it a great struggle to meet their needs. Ministering to even one of them could consume a lifetime. Galloway includes a quote by Dr. James Dobson that will change my leadership and ministry forever. This passage gives one of the highest gifts to any Christian: more compassion. Wounded people have their own “unique handicap” (103), and we should be as compassionate toward them as we would to anyone who is disability.

Those Closest. My wife is my best friend. I cannot imagine being in ministry or life without her wisdom, spirit and counsel. To paraphrase Teddy Roosevelt speaking when speaking about his wife, “Whenever I have gone against Mrs. Wilson’s advice, I have regretted it.” Galloway’s chapter on how to make one’s marriage a lasting affair was a great reeducation for me as a minister and a leader. Much of what is spoken of in that chapter we are already practicing; however, lately I have found that I have not been as empathetic to my wife as I could be.

I am an only child, raised by two only children. In many ways, I am the ultimate child-rearing nightmare. The idea that I am the center of the world has been reinforced in my mind so many times, convincing me otherwise is like saying Jesus did not exist. However, as I have grown and matured, especially with my wife’s patience during our marriage, I have come to begin to transcend this systemic selfishness. My wife teaches me compassion and empathy every day. As my wife is my best friend and most trusted confidant, developing my relationship with her is the best thing that I can do to develop myself as a minister and as a leader.

December 21 - Purpose Driven Church

Introduction. Rick Warren discourages his readers from trying to imitate him, but calls them to learn his principles of new church development. He divides the book by these principles: seeing the big picture, becoming a purpose-driven church, reaching out to the Community, bringing in a crowd, and building up the church. However, Warren’s over-arching concern is to provide the necessary information to build healthy churches, emphasizing that, “[h]ealthy churches don’t need gimmicks to grow – they grow naturally” (Purpose 17).

Big Picture. First, Warren takes us on a journey through the initial phases of Saddleback. In many ways, this part of the book is a mixture of apologia and autobiography. It helped me reflect practically on the early challenges that a new church plant encounters. While I agree with Warren that imitating Saddleback is impossible, it was helpful to hear him discuss how he collected his initial core group, the process for planning, advertising and moving forward with the first worship service. Knowing that the only program ministries they first had were worship and children’s ministry toned down some of my expectations for planting a new church.

Purpose Driven. For me, what helped my leadership most in this section was that Warren gave a helpful, Biblical base for church development. His first principle is to be purpose-driven. In his view this means to follow five purposes of a Christian church: love the Lord with all your heart, love your neighbor as yourself, go and make disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them to obey. Warren claims, “Strong churches are not built on programs, personalities, or gimmicks” but by focusing on these Biblical principles from the Great Commandment and the Great Commission (83). He also gives leaders a further Biblical basis for church development ministry using Acts 2:42-47 to develop the primary purposes of the church even further: outreach, worship, fellowship, discipleship, and service. (119)

Reaching the Community. Warren’s message for leaders in this section is simple: to reach a community, one must understand and know the community. Warren then took this understanding, based on door-to-door work from previous chapters and his growing understanding of his area of California and developed a target called “Saddleback Sam” (170). Without a target, many churches are effectively shooting at nothing, or shooting at a generic human stereotype that may not exist or will only attract a narrow segment of the population. One idea that this gave me was, as the church grows, to develop several kinds of general targets. Many populations are multi-modal and represent various kinds of ministry needs. A large church would eventually either work to encompass as many as possible or birth daughter churches.

Bringing In a Crowd. Leaders would do well to heed as Warren reaffirms that churches should exist to reach the “unchurched” (208) just as Jesus did, in an atmosphere of love and acceptance sans approval. Warren urges that Bible teaching should be applicable, understandable and interesting to non-Christians. His key word is relevance, “[s]imply thinking through the needs of the audience will help determine God's will for the message” (227). Like Hunter and others, Warren advocates “seeker sensitive” worship using their language, expecting church members to defer in order to accommodate unbelievers (251). While this is common now, it is good to refresh my thinking on this matter with a long-time ministry practitioner.

Building Up the Church. Warren finishes with how to take a gathered crowd towards discipleship. His image is a baseball diamond. The advice that Warren gives is practical on how to help Christians mature and attain growth. His section on the expectations for membership will help me communicate the vision that God gives me for the new church. His myths on spiritual growth should be taught to every Christian. In the end, this book helped me develop as a leader as it gave me a story to which I could relate and look up to, a Biblical foundation for new church development, helping me focus my leadership task to reach the community, make disciples and build them up. It will prove to help develop my leadership for the next 25 years of ministry.

December 20 - Good to Great

Introduction. The value of Collins’ Good to Great for the future of any leader is how the book shatters myths about leadership in not only businesses but also organizations in the social sector. Ministry is significantly poles apart from business in that it defines success differently, has a less authoritarian leadership structure, endures greater constraints in hiring and firing, has no profit motive, and develops organizational momentum differently. To surpass these differences, in the context of ministry, a leader can extract more value by reading Good to Great in conjunction with Collins’ new monograph Good to Great and the Social Sectors.

Level 5 Leadership. The understanding of great leadership in Good to Great is resolute humility. Many times in leadership books, leadership is described as all-powerfulness, bathed in bold visions that they cast like seed, with egos not far behind. In short, something far from Jesus. Yet Collins explicitly questions the value of such models, asserting that “Level 5 leaders embody a paradoxical mix of personal humility and professional will … ambitious first and foremost for the company, not themselves” (Good 38). I cannot imagine anything more Jesus-like. However, this leadership is based on an “executive” business model, instead of the more “legislative” model of leadership required in the social sectors (Social 11). So in the future, I am going to jettison false images of the successful executive leader and be more confident in whom God has made me, develop a more legislative model of leadership and rely less on executive models.

First Who … Then What. God calls me to plant a new church. As I prepare, one temptation is to depart of a form of legislative level 5 leadership and embrace what Collins would call a “genius with a thousand helpers” and possibly setting up my successor for failure (Good 47). Another temptation will be to develop a vision for the new church, independent of the people involved. While a general framework vision is possible beforehand, a detailed vision must wait. This is the principle that Collins calls “first who … then what” (62). In the new church, detailed vision and personnel (whether members or staff) must be dynamically developed together.

Brutal Facts. Church planting is difficult and intuitive. Problems happen. Initiatives fail. Evaluation must happen in a “climate of truth” (88). Vision is built by confronting “the brutal facts” (89). Like the dynamic between detailed vision and personnel, there is a dynamic between truth and vision. The truth of a given ministry situation, regardless of how dire or negative, is balanced by “absolute faith that you can and will prevail in the end” (88). In my future leadership I will use this principle to create an environment of continuous improvement where self-motivated, passionate people can flourish and the unmotivated can be guided to other vocations.

Hedgehog Concept. The Hedgehog concept in Good to Great is the intersection between what your people are passionate about, what they can be the best in the world at, and understand what drives the economic engine of the organization (118-119). However, a church does not have a business economic engine. It has a “resource engine” consisting of “time” [how much time people are willing to volunteer to the church], “money” [how many resources flow into the church from charitable donations and business revenues], and “brand” [the “goodwill” that one earns in the community] (Social 18). Why this is helpful in my future leadership is that it tells me that the new church needs more than a vision, it needs an intimate connection with its capabilities, its passion, its people, and it’s calling. Only then will any vision be attainable.

Discipline. Building a great organization, according to Collins, lies in focusing on one’s Hedgehog Concept with discipline. Further, greatness is found in collecting self-motivated people who will be disciplined in following the Hedgehog Concept as well. The key word here is focus. This will be a great challenge to me as a leader, as I sometimes lack focus. The guidance found in Good to Great and the Social Sectors will help increase focus and build a great church.

Collins, Jim. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … and Others Don’t. New York: HarperCollins P, 2001.

Collins, Jim. Good to Great and the Social Sectors. New York: HarperCollins P, 2005.

December 19 - How to Reach Secular People

Introduction. Published 15 years ago, this book might be considered somewhat dated reading for cutting-edge Christian leaders. However, Hunter’s goal is to provide an understanding of Western culture so that a Christian leader may “draw together and systematize what is known about effective apostolic ministry to secular people in the West” (Hunter 18). This book guides me to greater effectiveness as a leader by giving a framework for the “apostolic” commission (35) of winning the West for Christ. To single out one or two things in this book that developed my leadership would be virtually impossible. There was a blessing in every chapter.

Profiling. After detailing the decline of Christendom, Hunter profiles the nature of the secular audience we would call evangelism. The part of this chapter that formed me the most was his work with the attitude of secular culture to guilt and to doubt. Mainly, guilt has been seen as a disease by modern culture, where one goes to a “therapist for freedom” from guilt rather than a “priest for absolution” (46). This is a phenomenon that I have experienced in my contact with secular people and many church members. However, I could not put my finger on it quite the way that Hunter has. The idea that people are sinful and guilty before God is a totally foreign concept to a secular person and even many church goers who are open or closet Universalists. The idea of repenting for one’s sins makes no sense to a person who does not recognize themselves as sinful, will argue ferociously the idea, and is more plagued by doubt than guilt.

Developing Strategies. In the next chapter, Hunter outlines strategies for reaching secular people. The most formational elements in this chapter were Hunter’s words on “alienation” (60). This is another situation that I have encountered that I just could not put my finger on: people are truly alienated in this culture – from creation, from God, and from each other. There are so many places to where we can withdraw now (our gated communities, our apartments), be entertained, kept fed and comfortable and not ever have to build a relationship or see God’s hand at work. It builds loneliness and isolation. It creates a hole in our heart where we will consume anything to fill it, even our own spiritual filth. Fellowship, God, the creation of which we are a part – these fill our souls. We do not live by the flesh alone.

Communicating. In chapter three, Hunter turns to communication strategies. I had heard something like these among the leadership of the contemporary service during my last appointment. However, I saw them radically misapplied. There was precious little “active listening” (98), because the prevailing view of contemporary worship was that it was a concert-type affair. We were too busy ‘rocking on’ to have room for listening. There was also little room for questions and relationship building. Not putting “the pressure on” (104) was translated into not giving direction or acting as “consultant”, hoping that in this environment faith would just be “caught” (99). A lack of focus meant a paucity of “redemptive analogies” (105). In the end, caught up in the temporary ‘success’ and trendy-ness of it all, I failed as a leader. That will not happen again in that way now that I have read this book.

Reaching & Relating. While this material may be dated, there have been few things that I have found more rich in evangelism literature than the last two chapters of this book. In these chapters Hunter develops a framework for what kinds of Christian individuals and communities reach secular people. While the material on individual Christians was helpful, the material on Christian communities forged my vision of ministry and Christian leadership. In my last appointment I inherited a lack of vision and believed that I had no responsibility or authority to provide one. For some foolish reason I forgot my commission from God and my ordination as a pastor. This book reminded me that the church is a mission to the lost who matter to God. Without Christ people are lost and cannot find the way to God on their own. Because of this book, I will never forget my ordination again.

December 18 - Lincoln on Leadership

The next five entries will cover book reviews for our leadership class with Dr. Dale Galloway. The reviews are brief, terse, and much less reflective than my work in our anthropology class. I have that these reviews will peek your interest in these books.

Grace and peace,

Trav Wilson

Introduction. Many leadership books are criticized for providing only a steady diet of platitudes wrapped in different packages ranging from Churchill, Attila the Hun and Captain Picard. However, these so called platitudes are actually the meat and potatoes of leadership. As the wise person said, vision leaks. A good leader needs to repeatedly hear the same basic leadership material and digest its nutrients lest the vision and call of the leader disappear. Lincoln on Leadership guides me to greater effectiveness as a leader for presenting basic leadership skills in the context of one of leadership’s finest American practitioners. Phillips gives direct, basic guidance on four delicate matters: people, character, endeavor and communication.

People. The best guidance Lincoln gave on how to work with people was on building strong alliances as well as discerning which alliances to build. I was superficially aware of the Lincoln-Stanton-McClellan dynamic. However, because of the presence of Lincoln’s leadership, in McClellan’s absence of true leadership, an effective person like Stanton rose to the occasion and jumped on board Lincoln’s program. Similarly, in church leadership, I have been in situations where I worked to satisfy a McClellan rather than inspire a Stanton. By working to ally with all, I became the ally of none. In the name of peacemaking, alliances that might have propelled a ministry left it sputtering and marginally effective. There is a difference between peacemaking and minimizing conflict. As the sage said, there is a time for everything: a time for building alliances and a time for allowing them to fall.

Character. The most helpful guidance that Phillips provided on character was being a master of paradox, specifically managing one’s dark side. Much of my educational and professional training is in engineering. There is little place for paradox in that field. However, the fundamental reality of leadership in ministry is flexibility and working with paradox. Even our theology carries paradox: be in the world but not of it; the poor are rich; life comes from death. I appreciate the brief study of how Lincoln kept matters and himself in balance. For instance, when I read of Lincoln’s anger management program I am blessed. His method of writing letters to people yet never sending them seems helpful. Many times in leadership I have allowed clergy and laity to see my frustration and anger. This has never proven helpful. The one time that I managed it well, I wrote a letter and never sent it. This is a lesson that I will remember.

Endeavor. In the section on endeavor, Lincoln developed my leadership by encouraging me to keep searching for my ‘Grant.’ In leadership, decisiveness is important, as is conversation, setting goals, maintaining a results oriented environment and encouraging innovation. However, a minister cannot do all things in a high stakes leadership situation like the church. Leadership must come from the top, but effective ministry comes from the grass roots. In these situations, one has to find a ‘Grant.’ In several ministry settings, as I wrote above, I preferred to pour energy into a McClellan rather than to search for a Grant. I need to change that about myself.

Communication. In his final section on communication, Phillips gave the greatest challenge to my leadership development in his chapter on influencing people through conversation and storytelling. Coming from engineering, my tendency is to persuade rationally. However, it is narrative that fires the imagination. It is story that communicates our values and our vision. It is imagery that electrifies our souls. Some of my worst sermons are complicated and tightly reasoned. Some of my best sermons are stories. Even intellectually I know that storytelling is superior for influencing and communicating. The great challenge for my leadership in the next 2-5 years will be how I can embrace the use of imagery and storytelling in my public speaking.

December 17 - On to Tallahassee

We began our southeastern Christmas tour 2007 with a flight to Becca's parents home in Tallahassee. Randy and Francey, Becca's parents, were kind enough to put us up for three weeks and give me a set of Christmas memories that will be with me forever. Brant and Ann Marie Newland, Becca's brother and sister-in-law, would take me on a trip to Orlando and DisneyWorld that were 25 years in the making. I had not been to DisneyWorld since 1981. They were just building Epcot then. Steve and Katie Stallings, Becca's brother-in-law and sister, were also along for this wonderful visit. Becca and I always enjoy hanging out with our greater family.

Before Christmas, I spent a good deal of time reading and writing for class (what else is new). I accomplished quite a bit of work with the aid of my wife and the patience of my in-laws. I played with my nephews Rhett and Eli as much as I could. And, I also managed to take my 45 minute morning walk nearly every morning, rake the backyard, build an earthen firepit, and burn most of the leaves and other remnants of Fall 2007 in Randy and Francey's backyard. Long live my carbon footprint.

Grace and peace,
Trav Wilson

December 16 - Before Tallahassee ...

Before we headed off to Tallahassee for Christmas, we had a great time at an Advent Service. A blessed time was had by all.







Also, lest we forget, we had Dirty Santa at Bella Notte in Lexington, KY. Becca is seated just beyond the young lady who has her mouth wide open with joyous laughter.
















Here's my best imitation of a mole during Dirty Santa. Don't make faces at cameras. Embarrassing things happen.

Happy Christmas!

Trav Wilson

December 16 - Diary of a Country Priest

Here is a paper that I wrote for Dr. Kalas in preaching class. He wanted to make sure that we were not just better preachers, but broader preachers; that is, preachers who had more exposure to literature. We had a list of books from which we could choose. I chose Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos. I was blessed by this choice, particularly as a green, white-knuckle, young minister. It is the story of a young priest appointed to a rural parish. He struggles with how to be in ministry and wether he is effective or not. I recommend it highly for people who struggle with whether their life makes a difference or not.

Grace and peace,

Trav Wilson

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Introduction. Being a first year clergyperson, especially in a rural two-point charge, is like dusting blindfolded in a china shop. One’s blindness only fades through actions that sometimes break the priceless treasures with which we are charged. Yet somehow God’s grace abounds. This truth plays out in Georges Bernanos’ Diary of a Country Priest. Set between the First and Second World Wars, this is the story of a young Catholic priest appointed to a two-point charge in Ambricourt, a rural village in the Pas-de-Calais département in northern France. Troubled by health problems that eventually lead to his death, this is a bittersweet novel about a young priest finding hope in the midst of hopelessness, vital piety in the midst of village hum-drum, and divine grace in the midst of rational argument.

Formation. This novel reminded me of how grace can flow in the absence of hope. In June 2002, Bishop Robert Fannin appointed me to serve the Munford-Bethlehem charge in northern Talladega County, Alabama. The first death in my congregation happened within 6 hours of my first sermon. The 60 year old, Down’s syndrome stricken son of a beloved elderly couple in the Bethlehem Church died. He had lived twice as long as the most generous estimates of his lifespan. His long life remains a testimony to his parents’ love and care.

My heart is repeatedly challenged by the realities to which the world throws it. My heart is also salved by the generosity and grace that I find frequently in these trying situations. I found myself the griever-in-chief of a group of 60 people, ushered into the humble home of a darling couple in their 80s, both of them practically crippled, as if I were the President of the United States, and as if the grief could not begin, or would not begin without my arrival. To be frank, I really did not know what I was doing. I introduced myself to the grieving mother and father. I sat mainly with the mother, extended my condolences, and asked if I could pray with the family. And pray we did. It was a simple prayer. I really do not remember it. Then I asked them to tell me their son’s story. We talked for about an hour. That day I learned that above all, people not only want to hear a story, they want to a tell a story, especially the story about those that they love the most.

I imagine our young priest would have understood my feelings of inadequacy. He had his own. Yet somehow, grace happens; it’s everywhere. Our young priest seemed to be burning at both ends: on fire from doubt on the outside, burning with faith on the inside. Perhaps it was inevitable that he should die. Like me he uncovered despair, doubt, disobedience, and ordinariness. I even fell sick during my time in this rural community for nearly two weeks, missing a Sunday due to the worst bout of flu that I have ever had.

My ministry was preaching, teaching Disciple, visiting in the hospitals and the homes. I felt like I was spinning my wheels and not getting anywhere. To top it off, my then fiancée and I broke off our engagement permanently in February. Within a week, every local grandmother, regardless of denominational affiliation, was ready to set me up with their many single, female relations. In a panic, brought on by my isolation and a lack of spiritual discipline, I did the ultimate act of pastoral cowardice: I asked to be moved after one year. I know that I tried the patience of my excellent and long-suffering district superintendent. Many times, to that kind district superintendent our young priest’s words and mine were to same:

“I ought to have said: ‘I am no longer fit to guide a parish. I have neither prudence, nor judgment, nor common sense, nor real humanity. God has punished me. Send me back to my seminary; I am a danger to souls’” (141).

Bishop Fannin appointed me as an associate to Trinity-Huntsville. Before I moved, in the Munford Church, one man came to Christ through our Disciple Bible Study that year. I had the chance to baptize him. A middle-aged couple found renewed passion for their summer missions in Honduras. An entire generation in that area saw a minister who was their age; who laughed, chatted and thought much as they did. He was bumbling when it came to his vocation, but, by God’s grace, they saw that there might be something to this mystery known as faith in Christ. I did not die like our young priest. I just left, but when I did, Munford-Bethlehem had something to think about. For the next few years, several of us would still talk together. Perhaps, for all my failures, selfishness and other short-comings, grace continued to work. Nevertheless, let this brief testimony never be given the attributes of a effectiveness. It embarrasses me to this day. To paraphrase Winston Churchill ("Wars are not won by evacuations"): ministry is not made effective by evacuation.

Nevertheless, this novel confirmed much of my experience. Even a young, bungling minister can be a vessel for some good. Even a defrocked priest may give last rites. It helped me release my need of effectiveness based on myself and not on the spirit of God. It also gave me several ideas for sermons and stimulated my mind with meaningful scenes, illustrations and quotations.

Two Sermon Ideas. The first sermon I might take from this book would be on Mark 14:7, which records Jesus’ comment on the woman who anoints his feet with perfume: “For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me.” (NRSV) The title of the sermon might be “The Hour of Mercy” which is inspired by the following quote from Diary, attributed to Monsieur de Curé de Torcy:

“Have we kept God’s word intact: the poor you will always have you? … All the worse for the rich who pretend to believe it justifies their selfishness. … But Our Father taken our poor world as it is, not like the charlatans who manufacture one on paper and keep on reforming it, still on paper. … It’s so magnificent! God despises nothing. … The poor you will always have with you, answered Our Lord. Which amounts to this: don’t let the hour of mercy strike in vain” (86).

Using the urgency of found in the words of Monsieur de Curé de Torcy, the sermon would urge the congregation to acts of mercy. I would tell the story of the woman at Jesus’ feet, discerning her motivations, her hope for his mercy and then his response. To flesh this out I would draw about the parallel verses in two other gospels (Matthew 26:11, John 12:8) as well as the close fit found in Deuteronomy 15:11 which urges, “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.” Using my exegetical work, I might use those other gospels to teach about the subtle differences between them, if the need and opportunity arose.

The second sermon idea is one that I take from the entire sweep of the story. Perhaps it is summed up in the final quote of the book:

“‘Does it matter? Grace is everywhere …’” (298).

The rarely heard stories of this world fascinate me. Though he is a fictional character, I can imagine that many like of our young priest have lived and died under the same Lord. The same can be said for those people who are in scripture that are mentioned only a few times and then fade into tradition and history. I have always longed to preach on the character of Onesimus. I have heard many different ideas about who he was and what he did after Christ changed his life. Could he have been the bishop of Ephesus? Could he have presided over the first collection of New Testament writings in Ephesus? Could he have been Philemon’s half brother? The sermon would be called “Useful” and its main thrust would be, that whoever we are, however far from or close to God, grace is indeed everywhere and we can all be useful in great and small ways; God can, will and does use anyone. Come to him and find purpose!

Three Illustrations. The first is an illustration of sin, how it hides from us, conceals itself, yet is always ready to surge to the surface under the correct conditions. Our young priest is full of insight on this one.

“What do we know of sin? Geologists teach us that the very ground which seems so solid is in reality only a thin film which seems so solid is in reality only a thin film over an ocean of liquid fire, forever trembling like the skin on milk about to boil… How far down would one need to dig to rediscover the blue depths?” (75).

We would dig so very far indeed, into eternity, to rediscover the deep blue depths. For only in the eternity that is bound up in The One who made it can we ever transcend that ocean of fire, and turn the thin film into a firm foundation. I would use this illustration to bring light to sin’s inherent nature as instability and unpredictability. A relationship with God, in an unstable and fallen world, is what will bring stability.

The second illustrates the Kingdom of God, a place where the rich give way, and there are reserved seats up front for the poor. The irony in this passage is that it is a description of the Kingdom of God given by Dr. Maxence Delbende, an atheist. This quote is long, but I just cannot resist it. In keeping with the tension between Matthew 5:3 and Luke 6:20, I would stretch the use of the word ‘poor’ in the quote to include those who are poor in spirit.

“… after twenty centuries of Christianity, to be poor ought not still to be a disgrace. Or else you have gone and betrayed that Christ of yours! There’s no getting away from that, Good God Almighty! You have every means of humbling the rich at your disposal, for setting their pace. The rich man wants to be well thought of, and the richer he is the more he wants it. If you would only have the pluck to make them take the back seats in church round the Holy Water stoup, or even out on the steps – why not? It would have made them think. They’d all have had one eye on the poor men’s seats, I know ‘em! The first everywhere else, but here in the House of God, the last!” (81)

The final illustrates the much needed word for all of the Church of Jesus Christ: go where God’s spirit already is; go where the Spirit is already blessing things; rebuild not the wheel. The quote comes from a relatively uninteresting part of the novel, when the young priest tries to start a boy’s athletic club. The young priest works so diligently to start the club, even announcing it during Sunday services. However, it does not go as he expected:

“I had only four applicants. Not too good. I hadn’t realized there was already a sports club at Héclin, munificently endowed by M. Vergnes, the shoe-manufacturer who keeps seven parishes employed. To be sure Héclin is twelve kilometers away, but the village boys can do that easily on their bicycles” (84).

I resist the idea of being too critical of our young priest. I was and in many ways I still am in his shoes! However, perhaps, after his inclination to form a sports club, he should have prayed it through and asked God to reveal to him any similar ministries that were already abounding. Even if such prayer were not an inclination of our young priest, he might have done some investigating to see what God was blessing in the line of sports clubs, or other fellowship opportunities for young men. Our young priest had an admirable goal, we all do, but perhaps we all could do a little more praying, reflecting and seeking of where God is moving in the world before we commit ourselves to action that may not bear as much fruit as other options.

Four Quotations. One thing that I honor always is a quick wit. Some of the best times of my life have been spent with my father or with friends, trading witty remarks, ideas or stories. However, there are times when, as the proverb says, silence is golden. In the first quotation I would note, our young priest finds this truth in a conversation with Monsieur de Curé de Torcy.

“There are silences which draw you out – fascinate you, till you long to throw in any words, anything to break them …” (89).

It reminds me of my discomfort with silences and how I need to fill them. As the story of Elijah reminds us: “ …and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1 Kings 19:12-13) Filling a silence may deny one a blessing. God is often in the silence, particularly in the silence between friends.

Second, the more a quote encounters a person’s experience, the better the quote is. Every one needs to breathe. Every child has tried to hold her or his breath under water. Into this common experience walks the following quote from our priest on prayer:

“At that that moment I needed prayer as much as I needed air to draw my breath or oxygen to fill my blood” (103).

Third, the Enlightenment blessed us in many ways, but in others it is problematic. It dared to separate God from human events. In a peculiar way, this separated human beings from the source of love. Our young priest, in his confrontation with the Comtesse, among other things, works to reveal God’s work in her life, and God’s peculiar mercy and love. This quote sums up his argument:

“As long as we remain in this life we can still deceive ourselves, think that we love by our own will, that we love independently of God. But we’re like madmen stretching our hands to clasp the moon reflected in water” (171).

Fourth, even preachers need a difficult word upon which to masticate (chew). In another conversation with Monsieur de Curé de Torcy, the older priest gives a challenge to all those who have been in a pulpit. At each ellipsis one could divide these quotes. Yet I am compelled to include them all, because they speak to our task of preaching. To say the least, one of my great joys from this assignment was meeting Monsieur de Curé de Torcy.

“The Word of God is a red-hot iron! And you who preach it ‘ud go picking it up with a pair of thongs, for fear of burning yourself, you daren’t get hold of it with both hands … Why the priest who descends from the pulpit of Truth, with a mouth like a hen’s vent, a little hot but pleased with himself, he’s not been preaching: at best he’s been purring like a tabby cat … I simply mean that when the Lord has drawn from me some word for the good of souls, I know, because of the pain of it” (54).

Conclusion. I wonder what seeds this book has sown in the soil of my soul. I imagine years from now great trees or mysterious vines appearing and half-familiar fruit being born. I hope that I might then have the courage to bite into them. Then I will remember this book. Who knows what wisdom it will bear in the future. Until then, such as it is, this paper represents the wisdom that has been born in this reading. May its wisdom increase in all of us. Amen.

December 15 - The Shaping of Things to Come

Central Argument. Frost and Hirsch battle against “Christendom” (8). These authors see Christendom as a hierarchical force which dominated Christian thought for 1700 years. Christendom, in their view, is merely church-as-institution, rather than church-as-organism as practiced in the previous “Apostolic” era of Christian history, and based primarily not on scripture, but on classical imperial governments. To get the church back on track, the church requires not slow change or even “evolution” but rather their goal is “revolution” (6).

Sub-points. Frost and Hirsh cast their vision for the “missional” church as “incarnational … messianic … [and] apostolic.” By incarnational, the authors mean that the church “disassembles itself and seeps back into the cracks and crevices of society to [incarnate] Christ” for non-Christians. They emphasize that the missional church does not “create sanctified spaces into which unbelievers must come to encounter the gospel.” By messianic, the authors mean that the church “like Christ, sees the world and God’s place in [the world] as more holistic and integrated” instead of “divided between the sacred (religious) and the profane (non-religious)” (12). By apostolic, the authors mean that the church should return to what, according to their perspective, is a more biblical pattern of leadership which the authors have abbreviated APEPT: apostolic, prophetic, evangelistic, pastoral, and teaching (168). The Apostle Paul outlines this in Ephesians 4 and the authors develop it into a leadership paradigm defined against the “hierarchical” framework which the authors assert is left over the “Greco-Roman empire” (12).

Using this framework, the authors detail a new paradigm for their incarnational ecclesiology, which is defined over and against “attractional” (41). In such a model, the non-Christian must come to the church facility to hear the gospel. In the authors’ view, churches run themselves ragged developing methods to attract people to come to church and hear the gospel. However a more effective model might be to bring the non-Christian into connection and relationship with a Christian. Allow the church to go to them. Thus, the authors propose a model of church mission where Christians go to the turf of non-Christians, evangelize certain “persons of peace” in that area, establish small-groups, and build the church on “local resources” with a “bi-vocational church planter” (72). Such a “contextualized church” (76) would be based on Acts 2 and first be characterized by “communion” with Christ, focusing on worship and reading scripture; second, by “community” (78), learning about Christ and experiencing deep fellowship and friendship; third, by “commission” (79), hearing the story of the gospel and going forth in service and self-sacrifice. One leads other people along this journey “by exciting curiosity through storytelling, by provoking a sense of wonder and awe, by showing extraordinary live, by exploring how God has touched our lives, and by focusing on Jesus.” (112)

Next Frost and Hirsh detail a new paradigm of spirituality, which they term “messianic spirituality” (112). For the authors this means refocusing on engaging non-Christian culture with practical actions, putting as much emphasis on “orthopraxy” as well as we do “orthodoxy” (121). In the final analysis from the perspective of the non-Christian, the only thing that we have is our message and how we live it. Christian life and faith should not be reduced to “science and scholarship” but be applied within real life (155).

Finally, the authors detail for us a new paradigm of leadership, which they term “apostolic leadership” (165). This paradigm centers on five functions found in Ephesians 4. First is the apostolic function, which “pioneers new missional works and oversees their development.” The second is prophetic which “discerns the spiritual realities” in a missional area and “communicates them … to further the mission of God’s people.” Third, the evangelistic function “communicates the gospel in such a way that people respond in faith and discipleship.” Fourth, the pastoral function, “shepherds the people of God by leading, nurturing, protecting, and caring for them.” Fifth, the teaching function assures the Christians “learn how to obey all that Christ has commanded them to do” (169). Since God is urging us to act, according to the authors, the only thing that limits the church is “imagination” (187). Above all the church should see itself as an organism, focusing on ecological paradigms for its growth and development: organic … reproducible … and sustainable. (210, 213, 216).

Compliment and Clash. Again, these books are building upon each other; so they compliment each other ultimately. American Cultural Patterns focuses on American culture from a secular perspective. How Does America Hear the Gospel does the same from a Christian perspective. Contextualization of the New Testament develops the biblical foundations and rationale for contextualizing the gospel within any given worldview. Clash of Worlds develops the terms and background for how the historical and emerging worldviews come into both constructive and destructive interaction. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society critiques secular culture, the part of the church co-opted by it, and how we can recast our notions of Christian faith, leadership and community to address modern pluralism. The Shaping of Things to Come takes on not American culture, but church culture and tradition since Constantine and proposes a framework for an alternative vision of the future, more in touch with ancient Christian practice.

The clash may come at the point of what I think is Frost and Hirsh’s most radical idea: the dissolution of the clergy. The other authors either do not mention this or it is beyond the scope of the work. The other Christian authors assume that there will be clergy; in fact, one could argue that all of these books were mainly written for clergy and other kinds of church leaders. However, it is only Newbigin that brings them to task in his work. I believe that this would be a step too radical for the other authors. Even the most congregationalist of them do not see the church operating without trained and formally installed leadership of some kind. Later in this paper, I address the issue of a clergy-less church. I trust that the other authors would agree with the assessments of Frost and Hirsh that I make there.

Scripture, Tradition, Reason, Experience. First, The Shaping of Things to Come is steeped in scripture and it makes good use of reason to provide a rich presentation of not only the authors’ experience, but also the experience of other ministry practitioners involved in what can only be called a missional church movement. However, this book assumes that tradition is something to generally avoid. I cannot imagine a work that is more critical of Christian tradition than this. If there is a weak point in the reason and use of scripture in this book, it is the attack upon 1700 years of Christian history and tradition. Perhaps this may not be the case.

The authors believe that at some level Christendom is “something of a failed experiment” (15). Ironically, this quote is from people who were raised within Christendom. If their good ideas come out of a failed system, how good can their ideas really be? Instead of a failed experiment, to me Christendom seems more of an extended passing phase and a response to culture. There was a time, literally when Caesar needed honest people to run the government. Caesar does not need us any more. And, in the words of my generation and culture: that’s okay.

Traditionalists, those who would cling to Christendom, believing that her demise would mean the demise of history, will slosh around kicking up muck and mire. People like the Frost and Hirsch, those who would abandon Christendom, will be rootless vagabonds, avoiding their history and repeating its mistakes. Those who know Christendom, who caress her face and kiss her forehead, just before the coffin is sealed, will be clean of muck, instructed in the past, and free to pursue a bold incarnation of Christian mission.

Second, with regard to church organization, I do believe that there should be organization within the church on all its levels; we should not be a totally decentralized organization like Al Qaeda. Also, it is arguable that we cannot be totally decentralized. Put simply: organization happens. People invent organization to further mission. This cannot be stopped, only directed.
For example, Willow Creek Church is governed congregationally; they have five satellite sites, each with a different pastor. Bill Hybels, the founding pastor, is now the senior pastor of the greater Willow Creek organization. There is even a wider Willow Creek Association comprising thousands of churches. As a result, Hybels’ job description seems similar to what United Methodists would call a district superintendent, or perhaps even a bishop. Let me say it again: organization happens. How strange it is that congregationalists are reinventing the episcopacy. The question is how will the organization affect the mission of the organization? And worse, as we see readily in the United Methodist Church, will the faithful permit the organization, or its ideology, to dominate the mission? Similar arguments can be made about Frost & Hirsch's proposal to abandon the idea of clergy. It is a fine idea, but, again, organization happens. Clergy would just rise again. Like kudzu, one benefits more by feeding it to cows than poisoning it to death.

Vision of Class Discussion & Ministry Application. This book provides a unique perspective. I am certain that it is not the only perspective on how the church might function for the next few hundred years. Therefore, one area that I would like to see discussed is the practical application of this book as well as the practical elements of The Gospel in a Pluralist Society . There are some ideas that can be directly applied to ministry in The Shaping of Things to Come, however, it is so radical, so untested and so beyond the pale and paradigm to which I am used to, that I struggle for a practical application.

The application that I find, again like in so many of the books that we have read, is in the formation of my own theology and practice of ministry. For example, when I return to the North Alabama Conference I might start a new church. All my thinking on that matter focused ultimately on building what Frost and Hirsch would call an “attractional” church and less so of a “incarnational” church (12). Mission, as they define it, would have been the fruit of an effective church, not necessarily a primary element. This book for me has been a warning on how to and how not to disciple people. I will now exert more wisdom in the new church venture.

The new church will now be much more intentionally missional and incarnational and less attractional than before. I know a church that has a McDonald’s-style jungle gym in the front window of their church facility. Talk about attractional! How much can God do with a bigger jungle-gym, when he could have a more committed, truly Christ-incarnational life or community that goes to the people, instead of expecting the people to come to it? Frost and Hirsch have challenged me to think creatively about the incarnational nature of ministry. How this creativity will manifest itself is currently unknown. Learning from Frost and Hirsch I must wait until I am more aware of the sub-culture into which I will be sent.

We read this book to ask how the church ought to be positioning itself for the 21st century of mission and ministry. Ultimately, I agree that many of our ideas about doing church have come from the old Christendom model, where the church was basically monolithic and owned the culture into which God sends us. We need to shed much of this model, because it is no longer a true representation of our missional situation. Despite their valuable critique of tradition, the authors are truly reconnecting with the Bible, the oldest tradition of Christian life and faith. In The Shaping of Things to Come , Frost and Hirsch definitely challenged me to think outside the box of Christendom, to be relational, incarnational and missional.

December 14 - The Gospel in a Pluralist Society

Central Argument. Newbigin’s central argument is that the missiology of the Christian Church has been hamstrung by and co-opted into the surrounding “pluralist society” (1) and he seeks to “examine the roots of this culture which we share and to suggest how as Christians we can more confidently affirm our faith in this kind of intellectual climate” (7). Ultimately, despite its protests otherwise, this pluralistic society is itself based on matters of faith and other unsubstantiated assumptions upon which each society or culture is based. Newbigin asserts that the church should reassert her role as the unique community sent to reveal the unique “story” (182) of God’s interaction with the world and unique “Master” (241) that is the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the unique revelation of God in this world.

Sub-points. Newbigin fights a two front war in this book. His primary nemesis is the pluralist society around us which is rooted in the humanist thought of the Enlightenment. His secondary nemesis, and one that is arguably more problematic for a missional minded Christian or Christian community, is that part of the church that has been co-opted into the Enlightenment by accepting its “dogma” (8). Something which Newbigin describes as “reasonable … a Christianity that could be defended on the terms of my whole intellectual formation as a twentieth-century Englishman, rather something which placed my whole intellectual formation under a new and critical light … I … had been guilty of domesticating the gospel” (3). Newbigin asserts that religious faith is now a “private matter” that has been relegated to being one silo into which all each of our lives are compartmentalized and isolated. As such this creates a disconnect between private and public morality, a dissonance between “facts” and “beliefs” (19). In such an environment of pluralism, epistemology is reduced to “this is true for me” (19) which is a “logical absurdity” (22). Yet all “knowing has to begin with an act of faith” (19), no one is immune from the influences of their culture.

Even the pluralist society has its own dogma, beliefs, authority and traditions; so we must “learn to indwell in our tradition” (49). While pluralists may assert that no claims to absolute truth cannot be made as each truth comes out of a unique cultural context, Newbigin retorts, that that is in itself a culturally biased claim, “What is the social context within which this claim can be formulated” (57). Such a claim came to be formulated in a culture where the church was associated with the power structures of that culture, rather than being associated with the oppressed. This should teach us a great lesson in how to be missional in cultures to which Christian faith is new. For Christian mission to be vital, we should “listen sensitively to both the desires and the needs of the people” (153). We cannot set our “word and deed … against each other”, “action for peace and justice in the world” must be “central” to “evangelism” (137), and:

“…the major role of the church in relation to the great issues of justice and peace will not be in its formal pronouncement but in its continually nourishing and sustaining men and women who will act responsibly as believers in the course of their secular duties as citizens” (139).

Drawing on his fundamental belief in the doctrine of election, Newbigin, while decrying the pluralist society in which we live, believes that “pluralism [is] a reality which God evidently wills” (157). Newbigin portrays himself as a Universalist for several reasons including that asking about the eternal damnation of non-Christians automatically “starts with the individual and his or her need to be assured of ultimate happiness, and not with God and his glory” (179). Newbigin believes that our goal as Christians is not to proclaim God’s judgment, but rather we should point “to Jesus as the master-clue in the common search of humanity for salvation and [invite] others to follow” (158). Also, while God’s embracement of pluralism “endorses an immensely wide diversity among human cultures … it does not endorse total relativism” (197).
Newbigin calls the church to be ever permuting the immutable message of the gospel in culturally relevant ways so that we may most effectively reach the unchurched wherever that may be found. For Newbigin Jesus Christ is the embodiment of universal truth. The truth of Jesus Christ shatters the relativism and subjectivity of a pluralistic culture. Ultimately we point to Christ who gives hope, reason, truth and eternity.

Compliment and Clash. Again, these books are building upon each other. American Cultural Patterns focuses on American culture form a secular perspective. How Does America Hear the Gospel discusses American culture from a Christian perspective. Contextualization in the New Testament develops the biblical foundations and rationale for contextualizing the gospel within any given worldview. Clash of Worlds develops the terms and background for how the historical and emerging worldviews come into both constructive and destructive interaction. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society looks back critically at secular culture, how much of the church has been co-opted by it in the name of tolerance, and how we can recast our notions of Christian faith, leadership and community to address modern pluralism.

However, Newbigin presents the first solid clash between our required authors. Firstly, Newbigin is an unabashed believer in Calvinism. In fact, he devotes an entire chapter to “The Logic of Election” (80-88). The doctrine of election permeates nearly all his reasoning: from “God’s election of a people to be the bearers of his purpose for mankind” (15), “the doctrine of election is central to any true exposition of the Bible” (80) to his recounting of the “story of election” (166-167). Doubtless Burnett, the apparent classical Wesleyan, would have something to say about this matter. The ironic thing is that, like many Calvinists, whether they admit it or not, yield to the scriptural sense and evidence that God is preveniently active in the world: “It is indeed true, gloriously true, that God goes ahead of his Church” (168).

Secondly, however, Newbigin, if he does not directly dive in, he teeters on the edge of universalism, like many pure Calvinists who yield to secular culture. His most passionate attack on orthodox Christian soteriology (173-174) is made by assuming that the assertion of exclusivism requires a kind of plan for spiritual quality control, where even “brainwashing” would be acceptable (173). This is a false argument. None of his described spiritual quality control engineering is truly any more necessary than placing video cameras in the bedroom of every teenager who takes a ‘true-love-waits’ vow. Our Lord only requires of his church that soteriology only needs proclamation, not certification. Using this as a defense for universalism, the ultimate acquiescence to a pluralist society, shows Newbigin’s hidden colors of cultural compromise. I feel certain that Burnett and Flemming would agree with me. It was such a joy to read Newbigin as he detailed how the Christian church fell into its current malaise, how pluralism rose, how it is as dogmatic or worse than the Christendom which it replaced; it hurt a great deal to watch Newbigin intellectually and victoriously wrestle with modern pluralism and then submit to the very worldview he himself sees as a great danger to his faith.

Scripture, Tradition, Reason, Experience. With his reliance on a shade of Calvinist universalism for his soteriology I cannot say that Newbigin stands up well next to scripture. While he is obviously dedicated to the story and man that is Jesus Christ, he still feels the need to pick and choose what he will believe and reinterpret that with which he does not agree. Even realizing that the first three centuries of Christianity were lived in a pluralist society much the same as ours, Newbigin stops short of embracing the orthodox Christian soteriology. Also, given that he embraces the doctrine of election, forgetting the fact that free will is axiomatic in Judaism and orthodoxy Christianity, sounding much more like the fatalism that Burnett sees in Islam, I cannot give Newbigin very high marks on Christian tradition either. However, where he does excel is in the areas of reason, experience, church polity and church leadership.

Writing mainly from the perspective of English culture, Newbigin demonstrates a masterful knowledge of European and Christian history, and most importantly the interrelationships between them. With impunity, he assails the assumptions and dogma of modern pluralism; the most incisive part being his attack on the “myth of the secular society” (211). While such societies pride themselves on not advocating any particular viewpoint, they are in fact, based on the viewpoint that creation is not under the “sovereign rule of God” (217) and is based on pluralism itself, where the preferences of the community or individual are held in higher esteem than absolute concepts like justice and peace. Public morality and private morality are kept very separate. Ideas that are emotional or irrational are unwelcome and shuns “models held up for emulation” as there are no absolutes (219). The church then, according to Newbigin, should shun all these ideas and realize that it is “bound to challenge in the name of the one Lord all the power, ideologies, myths, assumptions, and worldviews which do not acknowledge him as Lord” (221). Now, despite his soteriology, that is a truth that will preach.

Vision of Class Discussion & Ministry Application. We read this book to explore the opportunities for missions that exist in our pluralist society. Despite the theological issues that I have with Newbigin, the bulk of his argument rings true. Were he shed of his Calvinism and universalism, I might find him more of a father in the faith. Nevertheless, like an epic film, this is one of those books that one must experience several times to glean all that can be gleaned.
One area that I would like to see discussed is the practical application of this book as well as the practical elements of The Shaping of Things to Come. Usually in these books I find their application to ministry is found more in forming me so that I may form others. His view of the church is very profound for me as it helps me wrestle with, as Newbigin himself puts it, how we are to be “compassionate yet totally uncompromising” in our ministry to the world. His answer is ironic for a writer of books writing to a writer of papers: “Jesus … did not write a book but formed a community” (227). This community was centered on “praise” (227), “thanksgiving … truth” (228), “deeply involved in the concerns of its neighborhood … men and women are prepared for and sustained in the exercise of the priesthood in the world” (229) and “mutual responsibility” (231). As Newbigin said, it is so very easy to slip into the old paradigm of the “‘ordinary, parson-led congregation’” (227).

While this is the eternal challenge of the pastor, and it must be accomplished in a more or less intuitive fashion in each context, Newbigin’s challenges to a pastor are greater. While he is not so radical that he advocates the dissolution of the clergy, he is radical in that he gets to the roots of the gospel message: “the task of ministry is to lead the congregation … in a mission to the community as a whole, to claim its whole public life, as well as the personal lives of all its people, for God’s rule” (238). This sentence, among many in this book, flies in the face of the modern secular culture that all of our others have worked to describe: a culture that compartmentalizes, personalizes, and in the end trivializes the Christ who calls us, who cares for us, and who demands of us that we submit all of our lives, everything, all the gifts upon us which he has bestowed, for his glory and his glory alone. While we can disagree about soteriology and the goals of evangelism, I can agree with Newbigin on many things, including the fact that evangelism “which is politically and ideologically naïve, and social action which does not recognize the need for conversion from false gods to the living God, both fall short of what is required” (210).

December 13 - Clash of Worlds

Central Argument. David Burnett writes to share his vision of how the Christian movement should manifest itself theologically and missiologically. He argues that while the Christian church should definitely be evangelical, it should also exercise a great deal of prudence as it introduces the gospel to new cultures. To do this Burnett, the third practitioner of Christian mission on our reading list, draws a distinction between changing the worldview of a people rather than their culture. For him culture changing is wrong. Worldview changing, however, happens to every individual and every culture that meets Christ.

Sub-points. Burnett defines worldview as “the main topic of this book” (12); the first characteristic is its distinctiveness from our idea of culture. Using a game analogy, a culture is “the total game” and a worldview “is the unseen set of rules that determine how the game is played” (13). The second characteristic is “the ideas and values that it embraces always seem logical and obvious to the people in the particular culture” (15). A third characteristic of worldview is that is a way of describing reality, an attempt to “show order and then predictability with everyday experiences” (16). Finally, worldviews are “learned unconsciously early in life as the person acquires their culture” (18). They also explain the origin of the world and “how it continues”, allows a culture to evaluate good and evil, gives stability “in times of crisis” (31), integrates new experiences and makes a culture “adaptable” to them (32).

Burnett’s first objective is to “understand some contemporary worldviews that have influences millions of ordinary people over many centuries” (33). He begins with the secular worldview which he characterizes as “materialistic” (41), in an orderly, closed system with no outside divine influences. In this worldview the individual is at a premium, community is at a minimum, one can only believe in what one can measure, time is money, everything is relative, and all is headed to a Hegelian-Marxist idea of progress. However, in traditional societies, community is at a premium, there is great belief in things that cannot be measured, and knowledge is passed on through mythology. Yet these worldviews are “fragile” (66) as they struggle to manage rapid change.

Different religions also have unique worldviews rooted in the traditional worldviews. For Hinduism, there is one ultimate divine reality Brahman, all the rest of the world is maya, or an illusion of our own making. Community is at a premium in Hinduism, and, according to Burnett, in practice, the value of an individual life in this worldview is not high, given the belief in reincarnation. Hinduism is known for its “synthesis” of other religious perspectives (72). Buddhism came out of Hinduism, and follows the teachings of The Enlightened One, who sought the reason for suffering in the world. The Buddha taught that desire was the reason for suffering. As the first “major religion with a missionary emphasis” (96), Buddhism also affected the Chinese worldview. According to Burnett, the Chinese worldview is characterized by the presence of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. In Chinese thought, there is no idea of a supreme creator, however, many Chinese believe in a spirit world. The world is held together in a balance of “yin” and “yang” (103), even sickness is regarded as an imbalance in this natural order. Also in Chinese culture, “face” (107) is a valuable commodity similar to honor, but more so. Losing face is a shame on the family and community, both of which have the highest value.

The final major religious worldview that Burnett discusses is Islam which follows the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed, concerning the one “all powerful” God Allah (115). Due to the total sovereignty of Allah, the person must submit to his will. Community is at a premium, and knowledge as well as value comes from the revelation of Allah. Christianity and Islam, both evangelical religions that claim the authoritative word of God, have come into conflict since the birth of Islam. At first this conflict was over territory and resources. However, because of the energy industry as well as the wealth, trade and close contact into which it brings the Islamic and Western world, friction inevitably results. Many Muslims feel forced to decide between their traditional worldview and the secular. Many Muslim nations and organizations, such as Iran and Al Qaeda, have reconnected with the traditional worldview, often violently.

However, despite all the cultural inertia behind each of these movements, change comes. Indeed, for each of these worldviews, especially for the highly synthetically Hinduism, change has already come and we are seeing it active again. Burnett’s second objective is to detail how these worldviews are in flux, giving rise to several new religious movements. Change in a culture causes stress to which culture respond in several ways: “cultural conversion” [where the incoming culture is accepted], “syncretism” [where a hybrid culture forms], “revitalization” [where the traditional culture reasserts itself], or “extinction” (134). New Religious Movements come out of these stresses to culture, as do the various New Age movements.

Burnett’s next objective is to outline the non-essentials and essentials of Christian faith. He calls for a return to a renewed focus on the “special revelation” of scripture (210). According to Burnett, the scripture testifies to one almighty God, creator of all things seen and unseen. The scripture understands God through the framework of the Trinity, the “origin of love and communication” (214) and “personality” (215). God is intimately involved in his creation, sometimes taking the forms of mighty acts and miracles. Human beings, the “guardians of planet Earth … consisting of a material body, and also an immaterial part …” have a “degree of freedom” to follow “the will of God or not” (215). God can communicate with us and we are given the ability to use our reason and experience to learn new things. And as God is in community with himself, we are called into community with each other as people of “one parentage” (217). In this biblical view, “biblical ethics are not arbitrary but based upon the absolute nature of the creator” (219. Each person has an “indwelt sense of right and wrong” and these ethics are communicated “through the Bible” (219). However, we have failed to live up to these standards and God “entered time and space in a human form” (218) to save those who “fulfill God’s will” (218) from the “final judgment” so that the “new community” of those people who “trust in Christ” can “live in the kingdom of God … a perfect blend of control with freedom, and freedom with control” (219).

Burnett’s final objective is to “learn some principles for communication of the Christian gospels to people of other worldviews” (33) by redefining “conversion” (222). Building on the biblical model he outlined, Burnett proposes seeing Christian mission as a goal in “changing the worldview themes” of a given culture, rather than the culture itself (228). There will be “many good and useful things” (230) in every culture that we may use in changing their worldview, but “some things must be rejected” (231). Referring to scripture, Burnett reminds us that God encounters “people where they are” and that conversion implies a “conscious change of allegiance to God” (223-224). Conversion also should bring about a “relationship with God” where people “grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord” and anticipate a “warmed heart” or emotional responses to God’s work in our lives that are all “worked out in community” (224). Finally, we cannot “manufacture” moments of conversion; we must be as patient and loving as God is being with us and our respective cultures.

Compliment and Clash. Again, these books are building upon each other. American Cultural Patterns focuses on American culture form a secular perspective. How Does America Hear the Gospel discusses American culture from a Christian perspective. Contextualization in the New Testament develops the biblical foundations and rationale for contextualizing the gospel within any given worldview. Clash of Worlds develops the terms and background for how the historical and emerging worldviews come into both constructive and destructive interaction. In short, Stewart, Bennett and Dyrness help us understand ourselves, Flemming helps us develop a biblical theology of mission, and Burnett gives us the historical background for how to connect with the diverse major (and many minor) worldviews. Generally, they seem selected to complement and build upon each other and to develop our missiological insight.

However, these authors do clash. The secular humanism of Stewart and Bennett would likely be appalled at what they might deem to be cultural or religious imperialism of Burnett. I cannot say that all the Christian family would agree with Burnett’s views on what is and is not a biblical perspective on mildew, let alone mission. However, Dyrness and Flemming would find a home in much of what Burnett writes, because of their common faith background.

Vision of Class Discussion. One area that I would like to see discussed is how Burnett’s “Stages in a Revitalization Movement” (146-147) could manifest themselves in a declining denominational culture or system. Based on my reading, I would say that the United Methodist Church is somewhere in stage three. What would stages four and five look like, and how would they manifest themselves? Many United Methodists dream of renewal and revitalization, but do we have to go through stages four and five to arrive at that renewal?

Scripture, Tradition, Reason, Experience & Ministry Application. When I finished this book I felt that I had a crash course in global religions, cults and historical theology. It was quite an intellectual journey, but parts of it left me wanting. I have no personal problem with “the” biblical worldview (209) that Burnett defines. It seems a refreshingly and classically Wesleyan theological perspective to me. However, as much as I disagree with them on the fine points of theology, somehow I do not want to slight my Calvinist brethren. As much as we disagree on the nature, purpose, and goal of evangelism, I do not want to slight my Universalist brethren. As much as I find much of their theology extraneous, unnecessary and even bordering on idolatrous, I do not want to slight my Catholic and Orthodox brethren. As we battle the powers and principalities of this world, I would prefer to go into battle with all of our family. I know that realistically this is impossible apart from the grace of God. Yet I know many of them would insist that Burnett’s biblical worldview is not the biblical worldview.

Also, Burnett seems to think of faith primarily in intellectual terms. For instance, in his exegesis of the term metanoia, he refers to it as a “change of mind” (223). There are two things about this that would have bolstered his argument. First, and I am sure that Burnett knows this, the Hebrew term for repentance means to turn around, a radical course change. Second, repentance is more than a mere change of mind. I imagine that he did not mean the phrase as I am receiving it. He is from the United Kingdom, and I am from the United States. We have different modes of discourse, but I find his characterization of repentance a little cold, especially of a student of John Wesley. The closest he gets to emotion is “God’s spirit in an individual life is not limited to the intellect” (224); he even phrases it negatively. Where is the passion?

We read this book to examine the varieties of worldviews and cultures in the world around us, and there are many. God calls us to love our neighbor; implied in that is the loving and respecting of culture. Ultimately, the primary ministry application is informing my own missiolog. As Burnett calls on Christians to connect with other cultures with “empathy” (240) and “understanding” (238), recognizing that “Christian transformation of a culture must primarily be concerned with changing the worldview themes of that culture” (228). We must connect to each culture, their “storehouse of meaning and illustration” (243) as well as adhering to our “biblical” worldview (247) so that its “themes can be manifest” (248) and incarnate so that we and “all the world” who will listen (Matthew 28:19 NRSV) can find our place in eternity.