Over a year ago Ryan Bolger (Fuller Seminary) asked me if I wanted to contribute an article to a series of articles being published in Fuller Seminary's theological journal call, Theology News & Notes. Each contributor was asked to reflect on how the emerging church conversation was taking shape in their respective denomination. My article, one of nine, is entitled "From the Margins: Engaging Missional Life in the Seventh-day Adventist Church," and begins like this:
“It sounds to me like this church wants to have a conversation without an agenda with its community. Am I hearing you right or . . .”
He never finished that sentence, but several of us knew exactly what he was thinking. This comment was spoken on a recent January afternoon at a gathering of our congregation to discuss progress and next steps for creating a public art mural on the wall of our church property that faces the Hollywood Freeway—one of the busiest freeways in Los Angeles. The comment came from a first-time visitor, a gifted musician, and a Seventh-day Adventist deeply disillusioned with church as he has experienced it for his 30 or so years of life.
What several of us felt, and later confirmed, was that this man (who I’ll call Jason) was sensing something hopeful, but he could barely believe his ears.
You can read the rest here, along with the other eight articles.
There has already been a considerable conversation started over on my Facebook page, but I'd love to hear your comments and reflections after you read it. Please leave a comment below.
The contributors are...
Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger wrote The Morphing of the Church;
Walt Kallestad, Lutheran pastor, Community Church of Joy, wrote Redefining Success, Moving from Entertainment to Worship;
Ryan Bell, pastor, Hollywood Seventh Day Adventist, wrote From the Margins: Engaging Missional LIfe in the Seventh-Day-Adventist Church;
Nadia Bolz-Weber, mission developer of a Lutheran church plant in Denver, “House for all Sinners and Saints”, wrote Confessions of a Sarcastic Lutheran;
Troy Bronsink, PCUSA pastor and community organizer in inner-city Atlanta, wrote Of Dying Breeds and Swelling Hopes: A Mainline Emergent in the Reformed Tradition;
Eugene Cho, pastor of Quest, Seattle, wrote Quest and Its Relationship with the Evangelical Covenant Church;
Phil Jackson, pastor of The House in Chicago, wrote A Reciprocal Connection: The Surprising Convergence of Hip-Hop and the ECC;
David Fitch, pastor of “Life on the Vine”, in outlying Chicago, wrote On Being an Emerging Christian in the Christian and Missionary Alliance;
Liz Rios, founder for Center for Emerging Female Leaership, and Luis Alvarez, pastor in the AG, wrote Will a New Church Emerge? Las Raices in the Assemblies of God.
You can read all the articles online. Or you could email Fuller and they would happy to send you a snail mail version free. We believe these articles demonstrate that great creativity and vitality are possible (but not inevitable) within enduring traditions.
Comments