Marc's Messages

Catching up with Branko

Today I caught up with my Serbian friend and former Joel News colleague Branko, who currently works with Trans World Radio in Bratislava, Slovakia. It was good to hear his perpective on developments in the Balkan area. We made a walk along the stormy North Sea beach where a group of people was kitesurfing. "Would these people be interested in following Jesus?" Branko wondered. "Probably only if that would involve risk and adventure," I replied. I guess even just walking on water would be boring for these guys. :-)

Turkish keý-board

In Istanbul I wrote Phil Anderson (who just renewed his website and added a nice movie of his airplane) a quick e-mail from a local internet cafe: "Hý Phýl, greetýngs from ýstanbul. as you can see the typýng ýs not optýmal turkýsh keybord usee." It's always funny to use indigenous keyboards when abroad.

Istanbul photo albums

I made way too many pictures in Istanbul, so for convenience ordered them in seven categories: the historic city, the Aya Sofia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi, art details, the Bosporus and sunsets.

Connect goes Oriental

It's official: the next Connect Europe gathering for emerging reformation-wired leaders will take place in Istanbul, October 6-9. We reserved two youth hostels in the old town, on walking distance of the Aya Sofia and the Topkapi. The official invitation will be sent out in a few weeks time. As a team we had an inspiring time preparing for this event, and look forward to what God will do. Below a few pictures of us to get into the mood. :-) Also check out Niina's impressions here and here, and Gabi's posting here.

The Constantinian legacy

Istanbul is the city of Constantine (Constantinopel), the Roman emperor that - after three centuries of persecution of the church - officially recognized Christianity, launching an era in which church and empire (political power) became so interrelated, that it altered the fundamental mode (or DNA) of church. Up to this day we face the disastrous consequences of Constantinian thinking, and the call to conformism that comes with it.

A captivating city

Istanbul is a truly captivating city. It's the only city in the world that is built on two continents, with a population of 12 million people (much bigger than I thought), and a history that dates back nearly 3,000 years, comprising four world empires (Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman).



We had a wonderful time here, wandering the lively streets and quiet alleys of Sultanahmed, visiting the sultan's harem and tulip gardens in Topkapi, avoiding collisions with beeping cars and yellow cabs, negotiating with persistant rug and pottery sellers, drinking Turkish tea on Kindergarten-size chairs, crossing the Bosporus over and over again by steamship, smoking waterpipe under the bridges of the Golden Horn, doing 'carpet time' in a mosque, being impressed with the hugeness of the Aya Sofia, prayer walking on the old walls of the city, and enjoying amazing oriental sunsets.

On my way to Istanbul

Ascension Day. So a good time to fly, this time to Istanbul for a preparation meeting of Connect Europe. Back on Tuesday.

The art of Googlism

Googlism.com will find out what Google thinks of you. This is a small selection of what came up when I typed in my name:

marc is boring
marc is a new york city based professional magician
marc is baptised
marc is not a mainstream format
marc is set to make millions all over again and he’s still just 28
marc is entirely cognizant of how the laws of the universe and those of human nature are unrelentingly intertwined
marc is a coach and leader of those committed to making a significant difference
marc is a fussy retentive who researches history and religion for relaxation
marc is the publisher of cannabis culture magazine
marc is the largest provider of community and center

Full list here.

Son of Man

Jesus is black and lives in the townships of Capetown. British director Mark Dornford-May won a Golden Bear for his out-of-the-churchy-box interpretation of the Christian message titled 'Son of Man', released over Easter this year. Another black Jesus we find in 'Color of the Cross', launched several weeks ago, very symbolically, at the centennial celebrations of the Azusa Street Revival. By the end of this year we will see another alternative Gospel movie titled 'Nativity' with 15-year old Maori actress Keisha Castle-Hughes as the virgin Mary. Talking about incarnation.

Jesus at the esoteric fair

In Joel News I published several stories of Christians who minister at esoteric fairs in the Netherlands. They have a booth and give lectures on 'the healing power of Jesus Christ', and people get healed, receive revelations of Jesus, and decide to center their lives on Him. See also my earlier posting titled 'Jesus among the wiccans' and Swiss pastor Daniel Hari's website. Hari published two books for new agers that received good reviews in esoteric magazines: 'Heilen wie Jesus' (Healing like Jesus) and 'Lieben wie Jesus' (Loving like Jesus).