Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Reflection on 10-28
Interesting to see the subtle differences between the Eastern Orthodox church and Roman Catholicism, especially in the designation of their singular leaders. For the Eastern Orthodox, the leader is centered at Constantinople and is supposedly the heir of Andrew via apostolic succession. Although a religious head, he is not a political head, like the pope was for a time during the Dark and Middle Ages.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Reflection on 10-26
As the church descended into the 2nd and 3rd centuries the charismatic nature of leadership characteristic of the early church changed to a more formal, hierarchical, structured leadership model. Proponents of the structured model view it as a way to ensure the correct passing of truth from generation to generation - but has this hypothesis played out in history? Time and again hierarchical models of leadership are shone to produce corruption in the doctrines they teach - this was evident in the early structured model of church as well.
Reflection on 10-21
It is interesting that a modern student of church history would see that in the 2nd and 3rd centuries misinformed/heretical beliefs had already crept into the church - the church of the 1st century had morphed into something that did not embody the grace of God in many aspects. For instance, churches in the 2nd and 3rd centuries denied baptism to certain individuals - crazy!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Reflection on 10-19
Bolger: "typically churches in culture take on the leadership model of present-day culture."
- How can we, as the church, glean what is good about our contemporary culture and leave what is bad about it while still appealing to the culture of our day?
- How can we, as the church, glean what is good about our contemporary culture and leave what is bad about it while still appealing to the culture of our day?
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Reflection on 10-14
I thought that Dr. Bolger's description of apostolic authority in the New Testament and today was deftly put. Apostles have the power to rebuke and bring correction (Paul argues for this), but not the power to be beyond accountability. Unfortunately, as Dr. Bolger noted, there are people claiming the role of apostle in the church today who do also insist that they not be questioned - this is a shame and an abuse of apostolic authority.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Reflection on 10-12
Bolger: "Jesus' leadership would be countercultural in any culture."
- due to the fact that Jesus' model of leadership is servant-leadership
Perhaps so few Christian leaders get Jesus' model of leadership correct because they are still entrenched in their cultural mindset. Leadership provides an example where the gospel method cannot be adapted to culture (at least in the area of servant-leadership); rather, cultural expectations must be broken in the people in order for Christlike leadership to arise.
- due to the fact that Jesus' model of leadership is servant-leadership
Perhaps so few Christian leaders get Jesus' model of leadership correct because they are still entrenched in their cultural mindset. Leadership provides an example where the gospel method cannot be adapted to culture (at least in the area of servant-leadership); rather, cultural expectations must be broken in the people in order for Christlike leadership to arise.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Global Pentecostalism by Miller and Yamamori – My Reflections
Chp. 1
This chapter presents a phenomenological survey of Pentecostalism, tracing its history, articulating its forms and "orientations" (primary theological/ministerial concerns), and dispelling myths about Pentecostalism with current research. Pentecostalism, unlike other Christian traditions, includes practices of healing and other miracles, which has a large pull on those in the third world coming from religious traditions that include shamanism. However, I might include that the miraculous is not only a pull for those with supernatural beliefs, but also for those with atheistic beliefs. When a person witnesses a miracle that contradicts a mental paradigm, one is forced to rework his / her thinking. In order for Christianity to prove itself in the upcoming decades, Christians must be performing miracles.
Chp. 2
Pentecostalism, although in the past focusing more on individual salvation and the lives of its adherents, is now addressing the pre-Christian world as "Christ's hands" with "no strings attached." Thus, Pentecostals (particularly "Progressive") are increasingly feeling the need to go beyond overt evangelism in order to be servants to those that are suffering. Christians do well to display the love of God in both word and deed.
Chp. 3
One of the groups targeted for service by Pentecostals are children and young adults. Programs are created by Pentecostal groups that provide care and safe places for children and young adults to go. These places function as either an extension of, or in some places they serve as the only family these children and young adults have. From a soteriological standpoint, these groups of people are important to target and display Christ's love because they have minds that are more malleable and likely to accept Christ.
Chp. 4
This chapter continues to look at case studies of ministries that are bringing about societal transformation. As secular researchers, they cannot conclude that the Holy Spirit is an actual force bringing about the transformation being witnessed in these communities, but they do not disclude the possibility either, given the fact that a lot of the claims being made do not seem possible without some sort of divine intervention.
Chp. 5
In this chapter the authors look at elements of Pentecostal worship and prayer, as well as attempt to interpret the fantastical manifestations they witnessed in these worship settings and the claims made by those worshipping. Suffice to say, it is in these intimate settings that the most supernatural phenomena occurs and the greatest individual transformation takes place. So, as ministers attempting to bring societal transformation, we must remember that societal transformation begins with individual transformation, and that process begins in the place of worship and prayer.
Chp. 6
Is upward social mobility a consequence of the Holy Spirit? The authors seem to think that certain Pentecostal behaviors might contribute to upward social mobility, and I, for my part, agree with them. Taking religion seriously involves taking religious disciplines seriously, and a disciplined life can have its rewards.
Chp. 7
One phenomenon of Pentecostalism seems to be that it encourages empowerment of laity more than denominational variations of Christianity. When Paul discusses this in Ephesians 4:11-13, he says that empowerment of laity is to be a focus for all those in positions of ministry, making it sinful for those ministers who forcibly keep their members in submission or sinful for those who nearly completely bar their members from taking on greater ministerial roles themselves.
This chapter presents a phenomenological survey of Pentecostalism, tracing its history, articulating its forms and "orientations" (primary theological/ministerial concerns), and dispelling myths about Pentecostalism with current research. Pentecostalism, unlike other Christian traditions, includes practices of healing and other miracles, which has a large pull on those in the third world coming from religious traditions that include shamanism. However, I might include that the miraculous is not only a pull for those with supernatural beliefs, but also for those with atheistic beliefs. When a person witnesses a miracle that contradicts a mental paradigm, one is forced to rework his / her thinking. In order for Christianity to prove itself in the upcoming decades, Christians must be performing miracles.
Chp. 2
Pentecostalism, although in the past focusing more on individual salvation and the lives of its adherents, is now addressing the pre-Christian world as "Christ's hands" with "no strings attached." Thus, Pentecostals (particularly "Progressive") are increasingly feeling the need to go beyond overt evangelism in order to be servants to those that are suffering. Christians do well to display the love of God in both word and deed.
Chp. 3
One of the groups targeted for service by Pentecostals are children and young adults. Programs are created by Pentecostal groups that provide care and safe places for children and young adults to go. These places function as either an extension of, or in some places they serve as the only family these children and young adults have. From a soteriological standpoint, these groups of people are important to target and display Christ's love because they have minds that are more malleable and likely to accept Christ.
Chp. 4
This chapter continues to look at case studies of ministries that are bringing about societal transformation. As secular researchers, they cannot conclude that the Holy Spirit is an actual force bringing about the transformation being witnessed in these communities, but they do not disclude the possibility either, given the fact that a lot of the claims being made do not seem possible without some sort of divine intervention.
Chp. 5
In this chapter the authors look at elements of Pentecostal worship and prayer, as well as attempt to interpret the fantastical manifestations they witnessed in these worship settings and the claims made by those worshipping. Suffice to say, it is in these intimate settings that the most supernatural phenomena occurs and the greatest individual transformation takes place. So, as ministers attempting to bring societal transformation, we must remember that societal transformation begins with individual transformation, and that process begins in the place of worship and prayer.
Chp. 6
Is upward social mobility a consequence of the Holy Spirit? The authors seem to think that certain Pentecostal behaviors might contribute to upward social mobility, and I, for my part, agree with them. Taking religion seriously involves taking religious disciplines seriously, and a disciplined life can have its rewards.
Chp. 7
One phenomenon of Pentecostalism seems to be that it encourages empowerment of laity more than denominational variations of Christianity. When Paul discusses this in Ephesians 4:11-13, he says that empowerment of laity is to be a focus for all those in positions of ministry, making it sinful for those ministers who forcibly keep their members in submission or sinful for those who nearly completely bar their members from taking on greater ministerial roles themselves.
Reflection on 10-7
Bolger: "Jesus is creating a new social order within the social order."
- this is in reference to Jesus continuing the Jewish tradition of table fellowship while altering its practice by inviting those who are of different social classes to all be part of the same table
It would seem that a thesis is developing in this class that could be stated like this:
Values are transformed when cultural practices are subtly altered and not utterly disregarded.
- this is in reference to Jesus continuing the Jewish tradition of table fellowship while altering its practice by inviting those who are of different social classes to all be part of the same table
It would seem that a thesis is developing in this class that could be stated like this:
Values are transformed when cultural practices are subtly altered and not utterly disregarded.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Reflection on 10-5
Bolger: "The form in which Jesus came would not have been countercultural to people of that day." Interesting to think of this given our modern Christian conception of Jesus as the world-changer, yet it is completely in line with the depiction of Jesus in Isaiah 53.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Disciples of All Nations by Lamin Sanneh - My Reflections
Chp. 1
Lamin Sanneh correctly argues that Christianity has no native tongue and therefore no native culture. From the outset of Christianity, the gospel was carried to people of different tribes, nations, and tongues, and the worship that arose amongst those peoples reflected the peoples themselves. Early church leaders wrote to those who had been converted in other nations instructing them in the way they should behave, not altogether different from the way their cultures had taught them to behave. And yet, Sanneh correctly argues, culture is not paramount - God is. God, as the Creator, must be in tune with all of His creation, but is not Himself in sync with all that His creation does. God's way is the highest way and all peoples benefit from following His way. As missionaries, we do well to remember that we do not come to impose our culture on another, because God is in the culture that we are trying to reach. And yet we do well to remember that we do come to change the people by instructing them in the way of righteousness - His righteousness. We must use discernment to discover which things we forbid and which things we allow.
Chp. 2
Sanneh argues that Christianity's failure to convert the Arabic world in the earlier centuries rested in its failure to address the Arabic culture. Christianity became an ethereal philosophical pursuit after Constantine, and the Arabs were not interested so much in philosophy as they were in the practical. The Arabs, as a nomadic culture, were interested in religion that conformed to their way of life more than they were interested in adopting a mental disposition. The presentation of Islam was more effective than the presentation of Christianity in addressing the Arabs' need for a way to approach life practically. Thus, Islam won out. As missionaries, we can learn from this history. We must not make the mistakes of the past by presenting a practically irrelevent gospel that fails to speak to the culture. The culture of those who are Muslims perhaps presents a greater challenge for the missionary to overcome than does the Islamic religion itself.
Chp. 3
In order to outfox Islam in terms of resources and reach, Europe took to the seas to colonize distant lands and reap their bounty. In doing so, Europe brought with it a powerful tool for controlling the lands it colonized - Christianity. Whatever good might have been envisioned for the conversion of natives, the actual history is a testament to the checkered (oftentimes disastrous) success of missions in the New World. Human lust, even on the part of missionaries, led to massive suffering that discredited Christianity as a religion in many of the regions that Christians sought to convert. An important lesson can be learned from history: Christianity as the tool of the state more often corrupts, but when Christianity is the impetus apart from the state, Christianity has the power to do good.
Chp. 4
Christianity, although occasionally employed by the state as a means of control, essentially serves to undo the control of the one employing it for that purpose. Sanneh lists numerous examples in this chapter, particularly of missionaries who translate the Bible into the vernacular and teach the heathen according to Western standards, who ultimately undo the coercive influence of the Western nations they hail from. When people begin to read and understand the word of God for themselves, they see it for what it actually is, and not as a construct of those teaching them. Empowered by this understanding, ethnic Christians rise against the nations who have sought to subdue them and use religion as a tool.
Chp. 5
The gospel produces a decidedly different manifestation in people of different cultural manifestations. The church in Africa looks decidedly different than the church in Europe and America. Both cultures use the same Book, but each culture has responded to it differently. Sanneh points out that the very nature of Christianity which makes it different from all other world religions is that it does not argue for the creation of one particular culture. Thus, the African and Western manifestations of Christianity are both legitimate manifestations (though neither is perfect).
Chp. 6
The African charismatic / Pentecostal experience was (now decreasingly is) at odds with the Christianity being brought to Africa by missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Yet, the African brand appealed to Africans whereas the Western brand failed to appeal to the same degree. The African brand, since it related to the African culture, was more naturally taken up by the Africans themselves than the Western brand, which was related to Western culture. Thus, understanding culture and laboring to present the gospel in a way which is culturally relevant is paramount in importance for the missionary working in a foreign culture.
Lamin Sanneh correctly argues that Christianity has no native tongue and therefore no native culture. From the outset of Christianity, the gospel was carried to people of different tribes, nations, and tongues, and the worship that arose amongst those peoples reflected the peoples themselves. Early church leaders wrote to those who had been converted in other nations instructing them in the way they should behave, not altogether different from the way their cultures had taught them to behave. And yet, Sanneh correctly argues, culture is not paramount - God is. God, as the Creator, must be in tune with all of His creation, but is not Himself in sync with all that His creation does. God's way is the highest way and all peoples benefit from following His way. As missionaries, we do well to remember that we do not come to impose our culture on another, because God is in the culture that we are trying to reach. And yet we do well to remember that we do come to change the people by instructing them in the way of righteousness - His righteousness. We must use discernment to discover which things we forbid and which things we allow.
Chp. 2
Sanneh argues that Christianity's failure to convert the Arabic world in the earlier centuries rested in its failure to address the Arabic culture. Christianity became an ethereal philosophical pursuit after Constantine, and the Arabs were not interested so much in philosophy as they were in the practical. The Arabs, as a nomadic culture, were interested in religion that conformed to their way of life more than they were interested in adopting a mental disposition. The presentation of Islam was more effective than the presentation of Christianity in addressing the Arabs' need for a way to approach life practically. Thus, Islam won out. As missionaries, we can learn from this history. We must not make the mistakes of the past by presenting a practically irrelevent gospel that fails to speak to the culture. The culture of those who are Muslims perhaps presents a greater challenge for the missionary to overcome than does the Islamic religion itself.
Chp. 3
In order to outfox Islam in terms of resources and reach, Europe took to the seas to colonize distant lands and reap their bounty. In doing so, Europe brought with it a powerful tool for controlling the lands it colonized - Christianity. Whatever good might have been envisioned for the conversion of natives, the actual history is a testament to the checkered (oftentimes disastrous) success of missions in the New World. Human lust, even on the part of missionaries, led to massive suffering that discredited Christianity as a religion in many of the regions that Christians sought to convert. An important lesson can be learned from history: Christianity as the tool of the state more often corrupts, but when Christianity is the impetus apart from the state, Christianity has the power to do good.
Chp. 4
Christianity, although occasionally employed by the state as a means of control, essentially serves to undo the control of the one employing it for that purpose. Sanneh lists numerous examples in this chapter, particularly of missionaries who translate the Bible into the vernacular and teach the heathen according to Western standards, who ultimately undo the coercive influence of the Western nations they hail from. When people begin to read and understand the word of God for themselves, they see it for what it actually is, and not as a construct of those teaching them. Empowered by this understanding, ethnic Christians rise against the nations who have sought to subdue them and use religion as a tool.
Chp. 5
The gospel produces a decidedly different manifestation in people of different cultural manifestations. The church in Africa looks decidedly different than the church in Europe and America. Both cultures use the same Book, but each culture has responded to it differently. Sanneh points out that the very nature of Christianity which makes it different from all other world religions is that it does not argue for the creation of one particular culture. Thus, the African and Western manifestations of Christianity are both legitimate manifestations (though neither is perfect).
Chp. 6
The African charismatic / Pentecostal experience was (now decreasingly is) at odds with the Christianity being brought to Africa by missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Yet, the African brand appealed to Africans whereas the Western brand failed to appeal to the same degree. The African brand, since it related to the African culture, was more naturally taken up by the Africans themselves than the Western brand, which was related to Western culture. Thus, understanding culture and laboring to present the gospel in a way which is culturally relevant is paramount in importance for the missionary working in a foreign culture.
"My Presbyterian church didn't skip a beat when the head pastor fell."
- Ryan Bolger in response to other charismatic churches he has been a part of that fell apart when the head pastor was discovered to be in sin.
It is lamentable that so many churches are built on the "charisma" of one man or woman while accountability structures are absent. As a charismatic Christian myself, I have witnessed the one man phenomenon first hand, and I've also witnessed a church fall apart when that man was discovered to be in sin. We charismatics must learn from our Presbyterian brothers (and others like them) to have the right structures in place to prevent losing the baby with the bath water (church with the pastor).
- Ryan Bolger in response to other charismatic churches he has been a part of that fell apart when the head pastor was discovered to be in sin.
It is lamentable that so many churches are built on the "charisma" of one man or woman while accountability structures are absent. As a charismatic Christian myself, I have witnessed the one man phenomenon first hand, and I've also witnessed a church fall apart when that man was discovered to be in sin. We charismatics must learn from our Presbyterian brothers (and others like them) to have the right structures in place to prevent losing the baby with the bath water (church with the pastor).
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