We have often been asked what the Emerging Church movement or the emergent conversation is all about. We usually hesitate in our response since we are still grappling with what it means, even as efforts are underway to unpack and articulate this recent phenomenon. You may have come across buzz words such as “missional”, “postmodern”, “postcolonial”, “contextual”, “friendship”, “local”, “justice”, “safe place”, “culture” and “story” that are often used in the context of discussions about the Emerging Church movement. In this article, we have put together excerpts and references that explore the subject in an exercise likened to ‘eavesdropping’ on the conversation. We will also share some developments that have been taking place here in Malaysia.
April 13th, 2007
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Sivin |
Church |
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The Church on the Other Side
Brian D. McLaren Zondervan, 2000
BY Sivin Kit
The author of The Church on the Other Side is not pastor of a mega church; neither has he written books that flood our bookstores. Yet, I believe he has something worthwhile to say that is worth listening to. Unlike purpose driven Rick Warren or seeker targeted Bill Hybels, Brian McLaren sees himself as a “reflective practitioner … focused on the down and dirty of doing ministry, but trying to have a high altitude understanding of when, where, how, and why we are doing it.” This book gives us a glimpse into his thinking and provides us with an opportunity to resonate with his passion for “doing ministry in the post modern matrix.”
April 13th, 2007
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Reviews |
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The title for this piece could have been “13 Things I’ve Learnt the Past 5 Years” or maybe “What They Didn’t Teach You in Seminary” – something like that. But, after some thought these titles don’t REALLY represent where I am right now or how I view the growth of a human person. I have not learnt the follow 13 lessons in its fullness (as if I got it all figured out – in fact, I’m still learning and discovering the depth of these insights). Who am I to even think I know better then the seminary (as if I learnt nothing there – I fondly appreciate all the seeds planted in my life in those memorable 4 years – it’s more hopeful when I see us mutually learning from each other now!).
April 13th, 2007
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Discipleship |
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“… The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
- Matthew 13:34 (NRSV)
INVISIBLE SIGNIFICANCE
A computer virus can’t be seen by the naked eye but wrecks havoc on my computer system when its infected. We live in an age when “security” is also used not just to protect ourselves from the threat of terrorism but also the vulnerability of our computer programs especially in our vastly connected world of the internet. It’s amazing how something so small and seemingly insignificant can have such worldwide impact.
April 13th, 2007
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World |
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“The church’s ministry to children is broken…It’s broken when church leaders and senior pastors see children’s ministry primarily as a marketing tool…Something is broken when we trivialize God to our children…It’s broken when we depend on our programs and our curriculum to introduce our children to God—not our families and communities…And perhaps most importantly, it’s broken when the church tells parents that its programs can spiritually nurture their children better than they can.”
—Ivy Beckwith in Postmodern Children’s Ministry
My involvement in church as a child was sporadic, preferring basketball and kung fu on Sundays. I started attending regularly as a youth. After seminary, my main focus was as a youth and worship pastor; so it wasn’t until recently that I even really thought much about children’s ministry.
April 13th, 2007
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Sivin |
Church |
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