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Mark Hall, Canon to the Ordinary in the Diocese of San Joaquin has provided a
helpful introduction to the Emergent Church. ”Emergent Church” is a term that is being used to describe the kind of Christianity that is being born in our postmodern world. It is basically a Christianity for people who want to experience and practice their faith in a way that isn’t determined by the official denominational structures or the way it’s always been done.
I would add to Canon Hall’s descriptors an interest in “experiencing” the Holy. It a word that is in many ways devoid of awe, these new Christians are hungry for experiences and practices that connect them with numinous. Consequently, they are turning to ancient rituals and liturgy — think candles, incense, chanting, etc.
Here’s Canon Hall’s description:
Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger, in their book, Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures (Baker Academic, 2005) define the emerging movement in this way:
Emerging churches are communities that practice the way of Jesus within postmodern cultures. This definition encompasses nine practices. Emerging churches (1) identify with the life of Jesus, (2) transform the secular realm, and (3) live highly communal lives. Because of these three activities, they (4) welcome the stranger, (5) serve with generosity, (6) participate as producers, (7) create as created beings, (8) lead as a body, and (9) take part in spiritual activities.
The leaders of this movement are mostly younger people who are not connecting well with the “traditional” ways of doing church. The ways church has been done for the last generation does not “speak” to them, and they are struggling to find a meaningful means of following Jesus within the context of their experience, and to meet their spiritual needs.
Scot McKnight is professor of religious studies at North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois and he suggests that there are five themes that characterize the Emergent movement. (Christianity Today, February 2007) These five are:
Prophetic (or at least provocative) The emerging movement is consciously and deliberately provocative. Emerging Christians believe the church needs to change, and they are beginning to live as if that change had already occurred. Often, this comes out as criticism of the way things have been done, but also suggest that there may be a more authentic and effective way of being Christians in this new era.
Postmodern There are profound changes taking place in our understanding of how the world works. This is described as postmodern. It is understood as the collapse of the acceptance of the meta-narrative, the overall explanations of life, that have sustained our cultures understanding of how things work. Some of these narratives include explaining everything scientifically, or, the theories of Marxism, or the assumed goodness of capitalism. Needless to say, there is not consensus about what the new narrative is, and, in any cultural transition, there will be disagreement. The one agreement among most Emergent Christians is that the old system is not working. Although some argue against a tendency to relativism, there is a more Episcopal Church movement to understand that the finite tool of language falls short of capturing the infinite reality of God. Therefore, dogma or theological constructs cannot capture the fullness of God. Which lead to the third theme.
Praxis-oriented What most characterizes the emergent church is a commitment to how their faith is lived out. At its core, the emerging movement is an attempt to create a new way of living out the gospel. This can be seen in worship, its concern with personal living into the faith, and its emphasis on mission. Many of the new communities strive for innovative, experiential worship experiences, with a strong sensory and symbolic content. Episcopalians are generally good at this, but in emergent Episcopal communities, the emphasis is understanding and entering into these new experiences. Equally important, is the desire to use worship to drive a person to right living. They would contend that how a person lives his or her life is more important than having right beliefs (doctrine.) They might say, by their fruits (not their theology) will you know them. Finally, the practice of faith for the emergent Christian goes beyond personal right living, to how the community of faith reaches out to those around them. Their mission is to enter the fray of life doing Christ’s redemptive work. Jesus cared about whole person, and so must they.
Post-evangelical Although most emergent Christians wish to share their faith (tell the good news) they are post-evangelical in that they are suspicious of systematic theology. God didn’t reveal a theology, but a storied narrative. It is sharing the story that brings people into community, not converting them to a belief system. Therefore, evangelism within this context is that theology is a conversation about the Truth of God in Christ, through the Spirit, that helps us in our relationship with God. No theology is final, it is always in process, always reforming. Because of this approach, the emergent Christian is more interested in including persons within the community, rather that deciding who is “in” or who is “out.”
Political The emergent Christians tend to be interested in politics, not because they are inherently political, but because if they make a commitment to right living, and living out the Gospel through mission, action must follow. Social action is seen through the eyes of the Old Testament prophets who called for justice, and correction of societal inequalities that lead to human suffering. They see that without a society that reflects Kingdom values, Christian virtue is compromised.
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Here’s my Holy Week/Easter letter to Trinity Cathedral:
When faced with tragedy – from massive earthquakes to the death of a beloved individual, I can’t help but ask the question “Why.” It is a question that is never adequately answered. We never know why such tragedies happen. I do not believe they are caused by God. God is not in the business of killing people.
One of the reasons I love Christianity is it does not shy away from the harsh realities of life. It is not a religion where we pretend life is beautiful all the time. Life is sometimes tragic, and often heartbreaking. For me the question that Christianity addresses is not “why” but rather “where.” “Where are you God?” That is a cry that has welled up in my own heart. It is a question that is answered as we move toward Easter. In the suffering of Jesus, we see God present with us in the midst of our own pain and suffering. In Jesus hanging on the cross, we see God in radical solidarity with us. The cross of Christ tells us we are never alone – we are never separated from the presence of God. Even our own feeling of god forsakenness will not separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Jesus himself cried from the cross, “my God, why have you forsaken me.” In the mystery of the cross, God experiences god forsakenness.
While it helps me to know that God is present with us in the midst of tragedy, I’m glad there is more to my faith. Holy Week leads to Easter, where Jesus rose from cold tomb of death to new, glorious, resurrected life. I believe the story of Easter shows us the real work of God – resurrection. Not only is God present with us, weeping with us, in the midst of our tragedies, God brings us to new life on the other side of tragedy. I believe this is God’s primary job. God is in the resurrection business.
Resurrection happens. After every tragedy, every death, every heartbreak, resurrection happens. That is God’s business. And I believe we are called to be God’s business partners. Our task is to participate in resurrection, to help bring people to new life. Easter invites us to stand firm in the faith that God brings life out of death. Easter invites us also to be an agent of resurrection for others. We can’t be Easter people in isolation. When my world is falling apart, I need you to help bring me back to life. I hope to be able to do the same for others.
I invite you to join us this weekend at Trinity Cathedral as we enter into thy mystery of Christ’s passion, our own suffering, and God’s abiding love that draws us all to new and abundant life.
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In the run-up to the Prop 8 election, Prop 8 proponents were running ads that said if marriage equality was allowed, conservative religious leaders would be sued, and churches could lose their tax-exempt status, if they refused to officiate at same-sex weddings.
To guarantee religious freedom — to protect churches & religious leaders who do not want to officiate at same-sex marriages, or any other marriages for that matter — Senator Leno has proposed SB 906 that states adds the following language to the existing statute:
No person authorized by this subdivision shall be required to solemnize a marriage that is contrary to the tenets of his or her faith. Any refusal to solemnize a marriage under this subdivision shall not affect the tax exempt status of any entity.
This seems pretty straight forward, and like a good thing to make clear.
The other thing this bill does is change some of the references to “marriage” in the statute to “civil marriage.”
SECTION 1. Section 300 of the Family Code is amended to read:
300. (a) Marriage Civil marriage is a personal relation arising out of a civil contract between a man and a woman, established pursuant to a State of California marriage license issued by the county clerk, to which the consent of the parties capable of making that contract is necessary. Consent alone does not constitute civil marriage. Consent must be followed by the issuance of a license and solemnization as authorized by this division, except as provided by Section 425 and Part 4 (commencing with Section 500).
This language clarifies that “marriage” as it relates to the state is a civil matter that confers certain rights and responsibilities. This is distinct from the sacramental aspect marriage may have from the perspective of a religion.
The vote was tied. The Democrats on the committee voted in favor of the bill. The Republicans voted against. There was one Democrat absent, so it is expected that the bill will be passed out of committee.
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I wrote the following for our weekly e-newsletter.
Our world has changed dramatically in the past decades. I don’t have the space in this newsletter to give a detailed description of how I see this change; I’d like to focus on one aspect. Many younger adults are not connected to the church as an institution. It’s not that they aren’t spiritually inquisitive or hungry. It just that they no longer trust the institutional church to be the source of spiritual connection. Many feel the church is too narrow or judgmental. A recent conference at Claremont University, called “Theology after Google” (http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beliefs15-2010mar15,0,4976077.story), looked at this spirituality in our internet era. Jon Irvine, one of the participants in the conference, characterized the change by saying, “Church 1.0 is all about creeds and doctrines, whereas Church 2.0 is kind of like a wiki-theology.” (a wiki being a web device that collects the wisdom of a group of people, rather than having THE answer come from a central authority.)
There is a way in which the Episcopal church is suited for this moment in history. Emergent Church guru Brian McLaren calls our time in history The Episcopal Moment. We are a non-dogmatic religion that welcomes a wide variety of viewpoints. We also have ancient ritual that appeals to many awe-hungry postmoderns who have grown tired of a world in which all the mystery has been removed.
It is important for us, while remaining true to our core tradition, to look for ways of making our rich spiritual banquet accessible to younger adults. That is part of what we have been trying to do with our Saturday night service, where we try different modes of worship. One of the recent attendees at our Saturday services is a young woman named Jovi Radke. I first met her at marriage equality rallies where I heard her perform poetic spoken-word 
presentations (think rap without the music, or perhaps the art of beat poets from an earlier generation.) When I heard she was a Christian and did not belong to a church, I invited her to Trinity. She has been attending for several months now. This Saturday night, at our 5:10 service, Jovi will perform a spoken-word piece about the passion of Jesus. Jovi’s voice will be added to the voices found in scripture, my sermon, the music and the liturgy. It may not be wiki-theology, but it is a move toward widening our perspective and our welcome.
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When I think about the ramifications of Bishop-elect Glasspool receiving a majority of consents from diocesan bishops and standing committees throughout the church I get all weepy. I could hardly get any work done yesterday. And still today it hasn’t left me. This is a huge, game changing, tipping point. Gene Robinson’s consecration could have been seen as an anomaly. It caused such a stir we were’t sure if we wanted to do it again. Now we have decided to do it again. We are stating clearly, for all the world to hear, that we fully welcome people who are gay or lesbian into all facets of the church’s life. Being clear about our identity is a necessary thing if we are going to proclaim the gospel as we see it to a hungry world.
We are a church that fully welcomes people who are gay or lesbian. Now of course that isn’t true for every congregation or diocese, because we are also a church that fully welcomes people who don’t want to fully welcome people who are gay or lesbian. But being clear that we, as a denomination, or province, fully welcome people who are gay or lesbian, is very important. We are done saying, “we are still trying to figure it out.” ”Still trying to figure it out” is not helpful for evangelism.
I think the Episcopal Church has a particular ministry in serving folks who want to belong to a church that welcomes people who are gay or lesbian. Now that job becomes easier.
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The
Chicago Consultation is joining other organizations such as
Integrity in celebrating Glasspool’s upcoming consecration.
CHICAGO CONSULTATION APPLAUDS BISHOPS; ANTICIPATES GLASSPOOL CONSECRATION WITH JOY
CHICAGO, IL, March 17, 2010—The Chicago Consultation applauds the bishops of the Episcopal Church who today confirmed the election of the Rev. Canon Mary D. Glasspool as suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Los Angeles, and looks forward with joy to her consecration in May.
“Mary’s qualifications were never at issue,” said the Very Rev. Brian Baker, dean of Trinity Cathedral in Sacramento and co-convener of the Chicago Consultation. “This has always been a question of whether our Church had the courage of its convictions. We are delighted to find out that it has.”
Glasspool and the Rev. Diane Jardine Bruce will be consecrated as suffragan bishops on May 15. Both were elected in early December and had previously received the necessary consents from diocesan Standing Committees. Glasspool, who lives with her partner, will become the first openly lesbian bishop in the Episcopal Church and the wider Anglican Communion.
“We salute the people of the Diocese of Los Angeles who were wise enough to elect Mary, the leadership of Bishop J. Jon Bruno, who worked hard to get her confirmed, and the General Convention of the Episcopal Church, which passed the legislation that made this great day possible,” Baker said. “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said that the arc of history is long, but that it bends toward justice. Today, more than most days, we can see that he was right.”
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I’ve just learned that Mary Glasspool has received the necessary consents from Episcopal bishops. She can now be consecrated as a suffragan bishop for the Diocese of L.A. Her qualifications were never at issue. What was at issue was whether bishops and standing committees would have the courage to consent to a woman who was a partnered lesbian becoming a bishop in the Episcopal Church.
The General Convention this past summer opened the door. With Mary’s ordination, The Episcopal Church will walk through the door, boldly out of the closet. We are affirming our commitment to the full participation of people who are gay or lesbian.
Today is a good day.
http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/
