Emerging Church update (1)

I'm catching up with developments and blogs on the emerging church. Here's a first selection of what I liked (click on the headings for the full report):

A to Z of emerging church: Emergent Kiwi Steve lists characteristics of the emerging church. It's artistic, blogging, culturally sensitive and much more. He still needs some suggestions for the X, Y and Z.

Church of Fools: With pews made from pixels, the congregation logging in from their home computers and the collection sent in by mobile phone, the world's first 3D online church is going to be church like never before. The House of God is set to become the Mouse of God. On May 11th, Ship of Fools opened Church of Fools as a three-month online experiment in interactive worship.

Riding the wave... or not: A tasty contribution from Mike Bishop on the Brian McLaren versus Rick Warren controverse over The Passion. But it goes deeper, he excavates the underlying dynamics of Evangelical hypes. "The peer pressure it is causing on particularly non-denominational churches who do not fill a niche is almost insurmountable, and you end up following someone else's vision who is smarter and more innovative than you. Hey, let's accept that not everyone loves to (and is gifted to) surf. How about golf or soccer?"

From hearts of stone to hearts of flesh: Pete Brierley digs into alternative worship, which is post-charismatic. A re-appreciation of the beauty of silence and old hymns, but most of all justice.

The nine lies of today's church: Kiwi Andrew Strom published his most hard-hitting article so far, and received over 500 responses. Heart-warming for prophets, but a sure heart-attack for pastors.

Comments

[Teresia]

The blog by Mike Bishop, "Riding the Wave" was just so right on.

After walking this Way for forty years, I am sick to death of all the "churchy" stuff! The neverending programs which rob family time so that we make sure that our "bretheren" don't think we are backslidden -- the result, of course, is the loss of millions of our children to drugs, pron, rebellion, and sex.

I am tired of building a "Church" building when the simple truth that Jesus taught is that WE are the Church....it is not something we can build or organize or program into being....we are either born -- with the new DNA of our Father, thus a New Creation, or not...PERIOD, end of story.

I am tired of the back-bitting, fault-finding, finger- pointing, veiled rejections of the lost and dying by supposed light-of-the-world "Christians," charged with demonstrating the Love of God to the lost .

I am worn out by "Christians" who are openly living in sex-sin and are accepted, and even highly sought after by the false shepherds, and put into place of leadership, because of their financial backing and worldly power.

I am sick of attending services where the True Church is lead into the awesome, glorious, precious Presence of Majesty and once everyone is before the Throne in one-accord, turning our backs on Him by stopping to take glad-handing commerical breaks.

I am weary to the bones of all this churchy-ness!!! (True Shepherd, give Your Kids relief for our weary, weary hearts/minds/souls.) Let me just worship Him, without competition, without trying to outshine, out-maneauver and out-organize.

Let us so live our simple lives so that people will see Your Majesty and glorify You and want to KNOW YOU. Let me just present You - not programs, organizations, "churches," razamataz, hollywood-type hype, with all its song and dance. The Simple, True, Accepting, All-knowing, Ever-Present Lover of our Souls, Jesus, and Him Crucified and Risen.

Help us, Lord, lead the lost by our actions -- not by our empty, uncrucified babble! Help us, Lord, to be mindful that You paid the price, that You accept us with all our warts and failings if we have a contrite heart and hunger for a clean heart; that we are incapable of doing anything for Your Kingdom unless You first give us the Unction.

Help us to remember that we were drawn to You by Your Love, and that only as others are drawn by the Precious Holy Spirit can their blind eyes and deaf ears be opened.

Remind us if Father did not send You to condemn us, He most assuredly will NOT send us to condemn the lost.

Lord, help us remember that we do NOT belong to ourselves but that we joyously belong -- heart, mind, soul and body -- to You; and that the exact SAME Spirit which raised Your mortal/human body dwells in our own mortal bodies.

Help us to be instruments to heal the broken hearted and to bind of the wounds of all the True Believers who have been wounded by all this "churchy-ness"! Amen!!