sustain:if:able kiwi

a reasonable faith?

I wish my lectures were as interesting as those of the Pope! Deliver a lecture one quiet Tuesday on a University Campus and suddenly the world is talking. A full (Vatican sanctioned) translated transcript is here.

Some thoughts:
– by quoting the work and words of Emperor Manuel II Paleologus, we realise that religious dialogue is not new.
– the Pope seems careful to note the trajectory in the Prophet Mohammed’s thought; from a religion that does not utilise compulsion, to Holy War.
– the Pope seems quite naive in his highlighting of a quote regarding Muslim violence, yet makes no reference to historical Christian violence. Why not make some attempt to disentangle violence from Christian history, especially given it was the Catholic church who spent so much energy in the Middle Ages “compelling” people come in?

However, the focus of the lecture is not the place of violence in Islam. Rather the Pope poses the question: In what ways might the discussion of faith be conducted? The Pope suggests that it be done on the basis of reason, which he defines as logos, as creative and self-communicative thought.

In doing so he not only runs the risk of drawing protest from Muslim quarters. In the lecture he critiques (Do any of these groups feel like a protest?)
– indigenous theology and contextualisation (because it falls outside what the Pope applauds as the historical fusion of Christianity and Hellenisation)
– a Protestant trajectory of sola scriptura (because to read Scripture you need to interpret Scripture) and
– a modernity that relies on a fact/value split (because to reason without considering “values” is a limited form of reason).

The lecture is thus a careful attempt to claim a “reasonable” faith, that if successful, allows faith (not as blind, but as “reasonable”) a place at the table of university dialogue.

a year for youth

This is a graph of young people’s church involvement in Nelson, New Zealand, between 1985 and 2006 (from here). Lots of ups and downs, yet an overall downtrend. Note that this is in an Anglican Diocese that has experienced quite considerable church growth. But not among it’s young people.

Now, imagine an denomination that dedicated an entire year to youth ministry; with a dedicated website here.

and with the production of youth worship resources where they get young people to write prayers for the church each Sunday. (So here is the prayer for Sunday September 3, written by St Marys Diocesan School for Girls.
Dear Lord our friend,
Help us to hear and obey your message to us.
Help us to be people with clean hearts,
who have integrity and confidence to always do what is right
whether or not others are watching us.
Through the love of God, Amen.)

Well, the Denomination is the Anglican church in New Zealand in 2006. Well done New Zealand Anglicans.

New Zealand youth Anglican blogs (Let me know if I have missed any … ) include:
Michael; John; (Te Mara) Maori as indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand.

on earth as in heaven

Poem after a morning run

I lift my eyes up
Jet trails cross magic dawn
Jogging shot through with day glow

To worship God of hills and planes
No escape, no illusion
For to jog on this silent planet
Is rhythm
Is now
Is Grounded present

stan grenz and australasian theology

The latest Princeton Theological Review is dedicated to Stan Grenz. Of most interest to me was the article titled: Straddling the Tasman: The Relevance of Grenz’s Revisioned Evangelical Theology in the Australasian Context, by Brian Harris, Principal of the Baptist Theological College of Western Australia.

The article is an analysis of the impact of Grenz’s integrating motif of “community.” The article charts key moments in New Zealand, and then Australian, evangelical history. It discusses the influence of Stan Grenz to Australasia; under headings including;
– willingness to engage culture
– role of Spirit
– theological understandings of community as a missionary resource.
and a fascinating final reflection on the lack of ecology in Grenz’s work, in contrast to it’s importance, especially in New Zealand. It made me realise again what a loss Stan was and how much I miss him.

On a personal note, I was stunned

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smells like the kingdom

Jim’s story: Jim (name changed) knocked on the church door at 1 pm, asking to use the phone. New flat, phone not working, big bond, paid by cheque and it’s waiting for the bank to clear. Jim works the phone, rearranging appointments because cash is tight and the gas tank is in the red.

Then he’s asking if social service agencies in general do petrol? Not as a policy, I say. It’s too easy to swap petrol vouchers to feed addictions.

As Jim makes to leave, he says he’s free in the afternoons and if we want any volunteer help, to let him know. My gut says he’s genuine.

So I asked Jim if he wanted to work for his petrol. Work for 2 hours and we’d give him petrol vouchers for half a tank of gas. There’s dignity for him and benefit for us. I pair him up with our caretaker and so there’s relational mission. It sort of smells like the Kingdom.

Rob’s story: 9 hours later, Rob (name unknown), knocks on the church door. It’s 10 pm. Espresso church is just winding up in the foyer and the Sunday music group are practising in the auditorium.

Rob announces he loves Baptists and loves the faces of happy people. He asks what is happening. Rob’s breath indicates high levels of alcohol consumption. My gut says Rob wants an audience and I’m not sure we are in the entertainment business. I’m about to leave to relieve the babysitter and I don’t want Rob walking into the church, drunk, potentially pretending I let him in. In my friendlist voice I tell Rob we are finishing. Rob heads into the night.

One stranger gets work. Another stranger gets the friendlist farewell I can manage. What does the hospitality of Jesus mean? I’m not sure which, or both, smell more like the Kingdom.

I found 9000 dollars today

This week has been budget preparation week at the church. Among other things we’ve taken on an extra staff person to work (among other things) among youth in the community and all week I’ve worked with others trying to balance budgets.

All week this voice has gone; “You’re a pastor. You have more important things to do. You’re busy. You should be writing a sermon.” All week I’ve kept saying, no.

“No. I refuse to accept the sacred/secular divide. I refuse to believe that there are “spiritual” things that are more important than “earthly” things.” Besides, this is about growing and developing people and resourcing for mission. Besides, I’m good at this. I can be sharp.”

Today the wrestle bore fruit. I spotted the fact that the spreadsheet was using a hidden formula that based this year’s offerings on last year’s projected budget, rather last year’s real budget. Last year we projected a 10% rise in offerings. We actually got a 14% rise. The difference is $9000, a budget that could balance, a mission that could happen. A nice end to a week of deeply embodied spirituality.

spirituality and aotearoa new zealand

Just been phone interviewed by the NZ Herald on the general topic of spirituality in New Zealand;
are we more or less spiritual as a society? is going to a Crusaders rugby game a “spiritual moment”? is modern spirituality just pampering? what does this mean for churches
The article is due out New Years Eve, so it might be worth keeping an eye out for.

Why the missional church leaves me cold

In 1 sentence, it urges “too many oughts.” Click on the indicators of what a missional church will look like and there are so many things one ought to be doing. There are ideals and lofty hopes and plenty of “not yet rhetoric.” All of them I love and none of them I disagree with. It’s simply that there are so many “oughts.”

In contrast, let me quote from Euguene Peterson;
God’s great love and purposes for us are all worked out in messes in our kitchens and backyards, in storms and sins, blue skies, the daily work and dreams of our common loves. God works with us as we are and not as we should be or think we should be. God deals with us where we are and not where we would like to be. (Christ plays in ten thousand places, 75);

That’s not “oughts” but reality. This surely is the meaning of Christmas, that God is found in shit and straw, under oppressive tax regime and mis-spent dreams.

Abstractions and ideals leave my cold. Lofty dreams paralyze me. I’m not sure the gospel is a set of ideals. Rather it is the reality of people, honest in their inadequacies, not trying to be something or someone, but searching, seeking for the unique whisper of what God is doing within their unique set of circumstances. It is concrete practices expressed among real people.

Oh, what are the missional “oughts”? For the complete set, go here, but in summary …

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the church year down under

Sometimes the Church Year feels like a Northern Hemisphere colonisation of downunder Christianity. Just like so much other baggage, the missionaries arrived in New Zealand carrying a Spring Easter celebration of new life. But it’s autumn here in Aotearoa New Zealand. Eggs are absent and bulbs are dormant.

And how to celebrate Christmas light into darkness when summer days are long and all you want is a cold drink rather than a warm candle. Yet imperialistically the coloniser swept on. I mean, what would happen on a UK Anglican synod floor if it was suggested that given Downunder has lived according to Northern Hemisphere church year rules for 200 years, that Easter will now be in August until 2205.

Last week here at Opawa we celebrated the end of the church year. In a matter of weeks the Southern Hemisphere is heading into holidays and it actually makes a lot of sense, come late November to look back over a year. We turned the entire church into a walk through journey featuring all the church ministries and activities. We pulled out the bouncy castle and turned some sausages.

What’s more, at Opawa we have our Annual General Meeting in February. And it actually makes a lot of sense to think and dream, for the Southern Hemispere is heading into a new year, refreshed and ready to go.

In between we have Advent, Christmas and Epiphany. Which has felt this week like a great, big theological pause between church year ending and annual church year beginning. And in this ceasing from activity, there is a reminder that the energy of our church is found and formed in Christ. It is Incarnation and theology and God that will generate momentum and movement, life and resource.

So maybe this Northern Hemisphere liturgical colonisation enforced on the South, might, in the subversive grace of God, be enriching a down-under theology.

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Youth facility manager wanted

The Youth Facility has got
• Three Offices
• Four meeting rooms
• Large Foyer
• Chill out area
• Music Room and recording studio
• Craft Room
• Climbing Wall
• Hall Area
• Video Editing Room

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further on spiritual formation

A number of people, including myself, have noted here that sermons-as-imparting-knowledge- do not play a major role in “forming us spiritually.” Randall has just made the following (great) blog comment:
are you an aural learner Steve?Or a visual one? Do these things influence us? Is there a correlation between what flicks your switch in the learning arena and your spiritual formation…

Which opens up the whole area of individuality and learning preference in spiritual formation.

Link here and for the initial post on spiritual formation here.

today we vote

The man pulled the crumpled note out of his pocket. Sir Edmund stared back.

“Sorry,” smiled the ballot officer, and pointed to the ballot box.

The man searched his pockets and grabbed a US dollar coin.

“In God we trust” he tried. “For God we fight,” the bearded bystander, destroyer of twin towers, growled back.

“Give what belongs to God to God, and to Ceaser to Ceaser” he replied tossing his coin, glancing again at the ballot officer.

She smiled again. “That’s dictatorship. This is democracy. Two ticks please.” And pointed at the ballot box.

(A contemporary re:write of Matthew 17:27. It first appeared on my old blog, 3 years ago, at the last election. I still like it.)

the collision of faith and secularity in politics

Yesterday saw a collision of faith and secularity in New Zealand politics. Yesterday it was revealed that a group of business people who belong to the Exclusive Brethren sect had funded mailbox pamphlets attacking Labour and the Greens.

Yesterday Helen Clark dismissed this as the workings of a right-wing group. Helen obviously didn’t listen to the public press conference held by those funding the pamphlet campaign. If she did listen, she failed to notice the Bible on the table. Helen, this has nothing to do with right-wing and left-wing. This is a matter of faith. It’s a group of people who care enough about their interpretation of the Bible to spend large sums of money.

Labour can be glad on one thing at the moment. Fundamentalists tend to splinter. They are better at collision than cohesion. But stop for a moment and contemplate the impact of the financial resources of half a million dollars combined with the people resources of a Destiny Political Party. Both the Exclusive Brethren business leaders and Destiny are saying Enough is enough. Both are putting their faith on the line. Both are evidence of a new religious muscle in our public domain.

I might not agree with them. Nor might Helen. But to dismiss it as political is an insult to practices of religious freedom.

geoff bullock mark 2

Over at signposts there is some fascinating insight into how people change over time. Faced with crisis and tragedy in his life, Geoff Bullock has re-explored his theology and re-written the lyrics to some of his songs. The new lyrics (alongside the old) are being published at the signposts blog; Just let me say; the heavens shall declare; the power of your love; have faith in God.

It is a poignant reminder to any Christian songwriter and any Christian worship leader; that words are deeply, deeply powerful. Songs need to be chosen with care. Lyrics matter.