Embarking

I finally watched the video last night between Cizik and Jacques Berlinblau on Faith Complex in the Washington Post.  A couple of follow up comments:

• It appears that Cizik does view homosexuality as a sin, but is not against political anti-civil unions.  Many people would say that’s a clear contradiction, but there is a big question that bears discussion on this and many other issues about the fact that the US is a political democracy founded on political liberalism (different than “liberal”).  Since we are not a theocracy, what can be and should be expectedand/ or demanded from the government according to our values is naturally limited by the type of liberal democracy we have.  The big questions are probably these:  What are those limits for Christians?  At what point are we unable to live in such a democracy without strong resistance (and I don’t mean violent resistance, cf. 1 Peter 2&3)?  How do we respond faithfully and biblicall to government laws and programs that we cannot agree to, or that may contradict our beliefs?  At what point do we violate political democracy by forcing our own values and beliefs up others, and is it ok for us to do that through political leveraging or rule of the majority, but not for others we may disagree with?  I’ve not heard enough conversation among Christians on those issues, which would be a great help to clarify where we stand on such important clarifications  (maybe some time would be helpful with William Wilberforce, Deitrich Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther King, Jr., and of course Paul and Peter in their time in Rome and Jesus in Jerusalem).  It’s simply more complicated than saying, “We are a Christian nation” or “We were f0unded on Christian principles.”  Even if that were true (and it is and it is not, depending what you mean), these questions are still important.
• Cizik spoke well about environmentalism.  The church in many quarters does seem to be waking up to these realities at a higher level, for which I’m very glad.  There are some great minds in this area within the Christian Church, great voices that need more air time, people like Stephen Bouma-Predegar and Wendell Berry and one of my favorites, Joseph Sittler.
• Cizik spoke of the Republican Party as the part of denial.  I thought this was interesting.  He was basically saying that if you deny something (that global warming exists, that millions are without healthcare, that poverty is epidemic) then you don’t have to do anything about it.  I found this a fascinating idea.

I was actually impressed with Cizik.  Whether you agree with him or not, this is an interesting video.  As I’ve said a million times, and Berlinblau gets at it at the beginning of the video, the future of evangelicalism, and particularly the leadership of evangelicalism is up in the air.  I’m fascinated and interested in how this will play out in the next 20-50 years of my lifetime and wonder if and how I might be involved in that dialogue and development.

I read a blog post tonight in the Washington Post from the Georgetown/ On Faith by Jacques Berlinerblau on “Evangelical America’s Future.”  I’m actually really interested in the topic of the future of evangelicalism.  Personally, I believe we are going through some major transitions, not only in Evangelicalism, but in Christianity in general.  My friend Doug put me on to Phyllis Tickle’s book The Great Emergence this past year, and I really enjoyed her argument [tuncated here] that we’re going through a major shift in Christianity out of which will emerge both a changed Christianity and possibly a new breed of Christianity as well.  (As an example, the Prostestant Reformation lead to the birth of Protestantism as well as a forever changed Catholicism – two new things out of one.)

I’m interested in who will lead the new evangelicalism, what will happen with the so-called “emerging church” (lots of conversation lately on whether Emergent is dead or alive), how orthodoxy will be restated (it’s always restated into new cultural contexts when the culture shifts… and the culture is shifting… truth is still true but may be communicated, understood, or incarnated differently in new and emerging cultural contexts).

Anyway, this article was looking at how Richard Cizik, former head of the National Association of Evangelicals, has been changing his political position (Cizik resigned from the NAE in December after 28 years) from classic conservative and Republican political positions to more liberal positions on a number of issues.  This isn’t uncommon these days, what I call the de-Republicanization of evangelicalism.  I have always maintained that being evangelical is neither congruent fully with Republicanism or Democratic platforms.  There are biblical issues on both sides of the spectrum, probably making the more faithful political position of a committed evangelical being somewhere in the independent middle.  In any case, I haven’t watched the video of the interview, yet, but I was disappointed in his apparent stance on same-gender civil unions.  Now, to be fair, there are some people I know who are not in favor spiritually or biblically of same-gender sexual union but are ok politically with civil unions, and maybe this is Cizik’s position (though I doubt it).  I’m not there, either, and I remain biblically conservative on homosexuality, but I can see their point in a non-Christian liberal democracy.  (I appreciate Stanley Grenz’s phrase “Welcoming but not affirming” for the church).   However, I will agree with Cizik that many younger evangelicals (certainly not all, particularly not the young calvinists) tend to be more politically liberal.  This younger evangelical political liberalism tends to be focused around issues of war, poverty, ecology, racial issues, gender equality, nuclear disarmament, etc.  I think it’s important to note that there are many younger evangelicals who have a conservative view of marriage as between one man and one woman, are concerned about the protection of the unborn and at the same time are anti-war, concerned about global and local poverty, have a high value for racial reconciliation and gender equality, are eco-concerned, etc.  To continue to act as if there are only two sides for evangelicals to be on politically is to make simplistic political positions that are highly complex.  The two-party system is not only broken from a secular political theory point of view, but is broken from a biblical, evangelical point of view.

Just sayin’.

Had a little time to read tonight the draft of the final call of the IV Summit of Religious Leaders in Rome on June 16 – 17 , 2009 on the occasion of the G8 Summit in L’Aquila, Italy.  Here are some of the highlights of the call to the world’s most powerful and richest nations, including of course, the US.

• We, leaders of the worlds religions and spiritual traditions gathered in Rome on the eve of the G8 Summit of 2009, are united in our common commitment to justice and the protection of human life, the building of the common good and the belief on the divinely established and inviolable dignity of all people from conception to death.
• In a time of economic crisis when many securities are crumbling, we feel even more acutely the need for spiritual orientation.
• We are using the term “security” in a new way… the wellbeing of each is related to the wellbeing of others and to our environment.
• The current financial and economic crisis weighs most heavily upon the poor.
• In continuity with previous world religious summits we continue to call for the fulfilment of the Millennium Development Goals.
• …we call for nations to resist making war a means of international politics and to make every effort to establish a just peace for all.
• We request the G8 Summit to pursue rigorous implementation of nuclear reduction and nonproliferation policies leading to the goal of total nuclear disarmament.

It is good to see some cooperation between religious leaders, including Christian leaders, continuing to make the call for nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, commitment to justice, care for the world’s poor, resistance of materialism, a call to seek spiritual answers and orientation, the call for peace and nonviolence, commitment to the Millenium Development Goals, and the value of human life and dignity.  I found it interesting in light of my last post the focus once again upon an understanding of security in terms of “global” security and interdependence rather than merely the security of particular groups and/ or countries.

Instead of making progress on hunger globally, indicators show that the hunger crisis around the world is increasing – one out of every 6 people.  Take a look at these statistics (for more information, read this article or this one:

• World hunger is projected to reach a historic high in 2009 with 1,020 million people going hungry every day.
• “A dangerous mix of the global economic slowdown combined with stubbornly high food prices in many countries has pushed some 100 million more people than last year into chronic hunger and poverty,” said FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf.
• The number of hungry people increased between 1995-97 and 2004-06 in all regions except Latin America and the Caribbean. But even in this region, gains in hunger reduction have been reversed as a result of high food prices and the current global economic downturn.
• The urban poor will probably face the most severe problems in coping with the global recession, because lower export demand and reduced foreign direct investment are more likely to hit urban jobs harder. But rural areas will not be spared. Millions of urban migrants will have to return to the countryside, forcing the rural poor to share the burden in many cases.
• While food prices in world markets declined over the past months, domestic prices in developing countries came down more slowly. They remained on average 24 percent higher in real terms by the end of 2008 compared to 2006. For poor consumers, who spend up to 60 percent of their incomes on staple foods, this means a strong reduction in their effective purchasing power. It should also be noted that while they declined, international food commodity prices are still 24 percent higher than in 2006 and 33 percent higher than in 2005.
• The number of hungry has increased from 825 million people in 1995-97, to 857 million in 2000-02 and 873 million in 2004-06.

I’m saddened that in a world with such forward thinking, progress, innovation, resources, and abilities that hunger worldwide continues to be on the increase.  What’s interesting to me (among a lot of things) is the interaction between poverty, globalism, trade, and their relationship to security.  Often we seem so concerned about security, and yet we miss the potential problem with such glaring numbers of people in poverty.  I don’t want, though, to regress to merely caring for the poor and hungry because we’re afraid they might revolt against global consumerism (and hence global consumerists), and I would hope that we could find it in our hearts to actually care for the poor and hungry who are our fellow human beings – our brothers and sisters.

A good and challenging Christian book that looks at issues of poverty, greed, globalism, and security  and asks some great questions (not so sure about the answers) is Brian McLaren’s Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis, and a Revolution of Hope.

If you don’t know about One, it’s a global advocacy and campaigning organization backed by more than 2 million people from around the world dedicated to fighting extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.  I recently read the One Data Report, which is an accountability report following the progress (or lack thereof) of countries seeking to go after the United Nations’ Millienium Development Goals for Africa.  I want to encourage you to read both the Millenium Development goals if you never have, to encourage and follow their progress, and to follow One as well.  Here are some of the MDG’s and some measureable targets:

Goal 1: To eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

• Target:  Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than $1 a day)
• Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all, including women and young people
• Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger

Goal 2: To achieve universal primary education

• Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling

Gaol 3: Promote gender equality and empower women

• Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than 2015

Goal 4: Reduce child mortality

• Reduce by two thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate

Goal 5: Improve maternal health

• Reduce by three quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio
• Achieve, by 2015, universal access to reproductive health

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria & other diseases

• Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
• Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases

Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability

• Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources
• Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss
• Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation
• By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers

Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development

• Address the special needs of the least developed countries, landlocked countries and small island developing states
• Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system
• Deal comprehensively with developing countries’ debt
• In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries
• In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications

The One Data Report focuses primarily on the progress that the G8 (and other) countries are making on their promises to financial commitments for aid, particularly to Africa, in pursuit of the MDG’s.  This report is particularly focused on the Gleneagle’s Summit of the G8 in Scotland in 2005 where leaders focused on Africa and climate change. They agreed to double aid to Africa and to eliminate outstanding debts of the poorest countries. As outlined in the Gleneagles communiqué the G8 nations agreed together to increase aid to developing countries by around $50 billion a year by 2010. Of this, at least $25 billion would go to Africa.  The One Data Report looks particularly at these commitments.  Here are some highlights from One’s Data Report 2009:

• “It is unfortunately true that when the rich become less rich, the poor become even poorer.”  One of the important things noted in the report is that the global economic crisis, while hurting the rich and middle class of the world, hurts the impoverished and hungry in an even more alarming way.
• “As capital inflows dwindle and access to credit becomes more difficult, we not only have a shared responsibility to ensure that the poorest are protected from the devastating impact of the crisis, but also that this opportunity to move towards a more sustainable economic development model is seized.”  There are some powerful thoughts here that I agree with.  The first is that we are all dealing with the financial pinch and with being out of control.  Our tendency might be to immdediately become self-protecting, without thinking of those who are more vulnerable than we are.  Secondly, there is an opportunity in this crisis to face our penchant for greed and the riches of this world, to confess it, and to creatively imagine a more sustainable, biblical world of justice, peace, and sharing of resources.  The bible certainly makes the case for both the care of the vulnerable and poor as well as the radical redistribution of wealth.  Maybe this global crisis is the wake-up call we need.  There is certainly a danger in recovery that we will forget and miss the opportunity to see what God may be saying to us about our interdependence and our responsibility to our brothers and sisters around the world.
• “The evidence is that aid, used accountably by governments acting in the interests of their people and in an open manner, can make a measureable, positive difference, contributing to better educated, healthy and employed men and women.”  Though I’m generally skeptical of what government can accomplish, and I’ve had reservations about the effectiveness of global aid (maybe later we can talk about that…) I was surprised to see the measurable positive effect that aid to Africa has been making.  Government cannot solve our problems.  God is our King, our Providor, and our salvation.  It is true, though, that God uses governments and blesses the nations whose hearts follow his.  Read the goals above again.  Do any of them reflect the heart of God?  Might he bless the UN if it’s heart beat is his?
• “African citizens have used the ODA (Official Devlepment Assistance) flows that have been delivered to provide AIDS treatment to nearly 3 million people, to dramatically reduce deaths from malaria and to help put 34 million more children in school.  Sub-Saharan Africa’s economies on average expanded by 5.4% in 2008; for the first time in more than 45 years, the continent’s growth has exceeded 5% for five consecutive years.”
• I was pleased and suprised to see that the US has not only met its commitments at Gleneagle’s, but has surpassed them and will likely meet the goals sometime in 2009 ahead of schedule.  It was interesting to learn that France and Italy were the countries that are far behind their goals and commitments.  Now, having said that, the US commitments were much more modest in terms of actual percentage of Gross National Income.  One of the things I realized in reading this was the way that the G8 countries can a) challenge another accountable to high commitments, and b) hold one another accountable.  I loved the tenor of the report in its sense that even if some countries meet their goals, if the whole fail, then they all fail together.  There is a real sense of mutual responsibility that I like.  It’s also important to look at such things as global trade percentages as well.  (Some will advocate for “Trade not Aid,” but I would advocate for both until a more balanced global economy emerges, if that’s possible.  The reason some advocate for Trade not Aid is because a 1% increase in trade for Sub-Saharan Africa in 2007 was worth $119 billion, which was more than 3 times the total amount of ODA.  Trade can be more powerful, but again, that may be only for the rich and middle class in Africa as well.)

That’s probably enough to chew on for now.  If (like me) you’re really interested in this stuff, you can read a more indepth analysis of the full UN Millenium Development Goals in The Millenium Development Goals Report 2008.

The Englewood Review of Books is a blog of Englewood Church in Indianapolis.  This church has a rich history and continues to be involved in missional activity in the city.  My wife’s family has deep roots in this church, and one of her cousins is involved with the Englewood Review and the publishing house Doulos Christou Books, publisher of Shane Claiborne’s Iraq Journal 2003.

The recent post, “Interdependence Day” reminds us of our interdependence as human beings with each other and with world in which God has placed us in his good creation.  Here are some of my favorites:

• Shop only at locally-owned merchants or restaurants.
• Write a note of appreciation to a mother; thank her for raising a child.
• Spend the 4th of July baking cookies or bread.  Give your baked goods to the person who delivers your mail or picks up your trash the next time you see them.
• Spend the day hiking in the woods.  Think about how God cares for the sparrows and lilies of the field.
• Host a neighborhood yard sale, except require that participants barter things/services for things they want.  Donate any unwanted items at the end of the day to a locally-owned thrift store.
• Climb a tree and sit there for a long period of time, observing and documenting – in photographs, drawings, paintings, writings, etc. – the forms of life that you see from that vantage point.
• Sit down and handwrite a letter to an old friend or family member.  Tell them one of your favorite memories of them.
• Call a meeting in your neighborhood to plan a large-scale fall tree planting throughout your neighborhood.
• Plan a neighborhood cleanup day – picking up and recycling litter, sweeping sidewalks, etc.
• Plan a workday in your community garden, or if you don’t have a community garden gather neighbors to brainstorm how you might start one.
• Host a neighborhood potluck, and encourage neighbors to use local foods in the dishes they contribute.
• Look for everything you have two of and give one away.
• Host a neighborhood conversation about the practicalities and details of using alternative forms of energy (solar, wind, etc.).
• If there are abandoned/foreclosed homes in your neighborhood, gather neighbors to clean up and/or beautify these properties.
• Track down old teachers and mentors.  Let them know the influence they have played in your life.
• Visit an elderly neighbor or family member.  Have them tell you the story of their life.
• Pray the Lord’s Prayer and commit to one concrete action to live out each part.
• Babysit someone else’s children.
• Go to a place where people are gathered and offer free hugs to all.

I made a cynical comment about marketing in the previous post, indicating the possibility that the Jesus Manifesto was could be a marketing stunt to sell more books.  I want to apologize to Len Sweet and Frank Viola – two men that I don’t really know – for suggesting such a thing.  Sometimes my cynicism gets the best of me.  Len direct messaged me on Twitter saying two things that I found helpful.  First, in response to my post, he thought that “the kingdom of God” should have been left off of the list (on page 2 of Manifesto).  Second, he said that Cook [publishing] had know idea that they did this.  So, gentlemen, my apologies for my cynicism and thanks for the message!

I just finished reading A Magna Carta for Restoring the Supremacy of Jesus Christ aka A Jesus Manifesto for the 21st Century Church by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola.  I enjoyed reading it, and many things resonated with me.  Apart from potentially being a marketing tool to sell more books possibly suggested by the publishers (my cynic is always present), the manifesto essentially highlights the importance of Jesus the Christ over and above anything in his name – be it justice, being missional, good works, laws or any other thing.  It is a reminder that Jesus it the one important thing, not anything else.  True.  I think what stood out for me were a couple of phrases:

Christianity is the “good news” that Beauty, Truth, and Goodness are found in a person.

This connects to what I’ve always said that truth is relational rather than (or superceding) being objective.  Jesus – as a member of the Trinity – is truth, and truth is personal.

We believe that the major disease of the church today is JDD: Jesus Deficit Disorder.  The person of Jesus is increasingly politically incorrect, and is being replaced by the language of “justice,” “the kingdom of God,” “values,” and “leadership principles.”

I agree with this in principle, but also want to make the point that much of the [evangelical] church has for far too long ignored issues of justice and particularly the gospel focus on kingdom.  Some of the strong language in these directions is to recapture the biblical messages of Jesus in a more holistic fashion.  Agreed that Jesus himself is the point, but because he is the point, his kingdom and justice are important.  I’m not as big a defender of “values” and “leadership principles,” although I certainly do have both, and the bible speaks to both as well.

The center and circumference of the Christian life is none other than the person of Christ.

Those of you who know my story of conversion to Christ know that Paul’s statement in Colossians that “in Christ all things hold together” means a great deal to me both existentially and philosophically.

Christians don’t follow a book.  Christians follow a person, and this library of divinely inspired books we call “The Holy Bible” best help us follow that person.

Well said.  Many people never get through the book to Jesus the Christ.

Christians don’t follow Christianity; Christians follow Christ.

I don’t know how I missed this film before.  I appreciate the Ordinary Radicals and the New Monasticism and much of what they’re about.  For a good intro to these and similar movements, read The New Conspirators by Tom Sine.

There is a new National Congregations Study’s report out looking at trends in congregations in America.  There’s some interesting information here, particularly when read along with the report on megachurches from my last post.  Here are some highlights:  

1. Most congregations are small but most people are in large congregations.
2. Worship services are becoming more informal.
3. Congregational leaders are still overwhelmingly male.
4. Predominantly white congregations are more ethnically diverse.
5. Congregations embrace technology.
6. Congregations and clergy are getting older.
7. Congregations’ position in the social class structure remains unchanged.
8. Congregations’ involvement in social service activities remains unchanged.
9. Only a small minority of congregations describe themselves as theologically “liberal,” even within the Protestant mainline.
10. Congregations are more tolerant and inclusive than we might expect them to be, even when it comes to hot-button issues.
11. There has been no signifi cant increase in congregational confl ict since 1998.
12. Congregations’ involvement in political activities is largely unchanged since 1998.