Deep Ecclessiology: What is the Emerging Church Part III
16 Jun 2006
This image (click on it for larger version), comes from a slide Brian Mclaren has been using recently to try to show the idea of Deep Ecclessiology in the context of the larger question what is the emerging church?
It follows on from the diagram and previous post I made which uses a tree to show the shared context for emerging church, of all churches.
1. Value: Deep Ecclessiology (a phrase Brian attributes to Andrew Jones), is a value of many of those in emerging church, and certainly those of us in Emergent. That we value the church in it’s broadest sense. Not in a lowest common denominator, ecumenicalism, but a value of the body of Christ across it’s many forms.
2. Progression: Over time the church has progressed into new forms, many of which have become lower in terms of their ecclessiology. Some of the most recent churches, at the bottom would aspire to as little structure as possible. Whilst some of these groups (as did all the above groups as they emerged), see themselves as post-church, or the authentic emerging church, we would see them as part of the emerging church in it’s broadest developments.
3. Affirmation: The churches at the top are increasingly affirming of new forms of church at the bottom, e.g the Church of England’s ‘Fresh Expressions’ and other support from the Archbishop of Canterbury. Many of the lower forms of church are retrieving beliefs and practices from the higher and early traditions.
4. Harder: The last form of more dominant modern churches that emerged previously in modernity, are probably finding it harder to value churches above them and below, them. Similarly the churches above and below find it harder to value those in the middle.
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Comment by Paul
7.24 pm on 16 Jun 2006
I think this slide contains an enormous about of the bredth and depth of christianity and makes me celebrate our diversity… having been in quite a few of those churches over the years it has been amazing to see/experience/join with so many different people worshipping one Lord…
Just a Q though could you please tell me Jason what is the bottom axis meant to represent..? Thanks!
Comment by Jason
9.28 pm on 16 Jun 2006
There is no bottom axis :-) The left axis is the progressison of church eccelssilogy descending over time, but there is not progression on the bottom. Does that make sense?
Thanks Paul, Jason.
Comment by Paul
12.01 am on 17 Jun 2006
ah got ya, thanks… i must be part of the unconscious etc… which i was referring to as the bottom axis – are you saying that they therefore represent on the graph the newest forms (still forming) of church?
Comment by Matt
5.14 am on 17 Jun 2006
Any speculations on what might come next?
I recall a quote from someone (either H.L. Mencken or Ogden Nash) that grandparents and grandchildren get along so well because they share a common enemy.
While the analogy of enmity doesn’t stand up here (at least I hope not), it is helpful in understanding what seems to be a growing Christian fraternity between institutions like Roman Catholicism and the Emergent Church.
Comment by Jason
7.30 am on 17 Jun 2006
Paul: Botton groups are the latest forms of church, that are emerging, outside the established churches.
Comment by Jason
7.32 am on 17 Jun 2006
Matt: I think your right in many ways Matt. It is a generational thing, the last one resents the newsest, and vice versa but the older ones fnd it easier to affirm the younger ones etc.
And then the post emerging churches will find the emerging churches hard to stomach…it’s an inevitable progression.
Comment by Matt
1.35 pm on 17 Jun 2006
Like I say, I’m curious as to what phenomenon will come, chronologically, after the postmodern church. I at one point considered myself a postmodern, but then, after pushing ahead into what I saw as post-postmodernism, I discovered that in doing so I had accidentally become a Catholic. Imagine my frustration. For me the diagram was more like a circle. But then, as I’m sure most of us can attest, faith is a difficult thing to capture on a chart. This, of course, has never stopped me from trying.
Comment by Stephen Reynolds
10.31 pm on 18 Jun 2006
Matt,
Becasue post-modernism is in many ways a reactionary movement, I would not be surprised to eventually see a reactionary move out of Emergent as well. Nothing new under the sun. Some will, like yourself and myself move toward Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Epicopalianism, Anglicanism or develope a rather traditional form of evangelicalism whilst others yet will fall away into Islam. All these offer something far more objective than the relativistic potpourri that Emergent is. Tired of relativism ad naseum and deconstructionism, many will flee to more objective, solid and historically rooted forms of worhsip offering more complete meta-narratives to participate in. Sadly however many who have had their ability to think critically having been inudated with the moral equivallency of the West and the East, of Islam and Christianity, having been fed too much liberal hatred for America and the West, will fall prey to the polemics and apologetics of a growing western Islamic movement. May sound a bit far-fetched but in truth, I’ve already seen this happen quite a bit.
Comment by Stephen Reynolds
2.45 am on 19 Jun 2006
As usual, sorry for all the typos… ad naseum
Comment by Matt
1.18 am on 20 Jun 2006
Steve,
While you and I have mostly similar predictions, I think you may not be heading far enough East in your foreseeing. Granted, it may be personal experience that taints my analysis, but as a spiritual journeyer, I found myself much more drawn to the esoteric and meditative aspects of Buddhism than the violently dogmatic religious imperialism of Islam. Of course, in a round planet, when one travels all the way around the world, one finds not a new place at all, but one’s point of origin.
Comment by Stephen Reynolds
2.56 am on 20 Jun 2006
You may be right. I’m sure many will convert to Buddhism and other forms of anything exotic and better. Familiarity breeds contempt.
What I have personally observed however is that through the West’s fascination with all things exotic and Eastern, Buddhism, Hinduism and even Chai Tea Latte’s are already almost, to a degree, passe’ fads. In many ways however the Eastern relativistic mentality can strip one of their ability to think critically and to see things outside of the blury lens of moral eqivalency. It’s all good. As such, once one has tried a strong mixed drink of far-Eastern religion and Western Narcissism, all that remains is a dark void. The resulting vaccum that filled western society, COMBINED with the hatred du jour (all things Christian, American and Western) leaves Islam as the best suitor to lure one away into something exotic, carnal and yet self-righteous. Usually they start with a Christianized form of Islam. Read: Hamza Yusuf, American Convert, sufi, moderate extroidinarre.
http://www.zaytuna.org/video.asp
The violence comes later, after a more thorough examination of the actuals Islamic source texts.
Pingback by Jason Clark » Deep Clericalism: avoiding judgmental axiomatics
5.55 pm on 28 Jun 2006
[...] I want to suggest that continued anti-clericalism, will not produce better leadership for our churches, old and emerging. Within the framework and values of Deep Ecclessiology and Generous Orthodoxy, a view that the Emerging Church is a context all churches are facing together, something more constructive than the axiomatic of geting rid of paid staff, is needed. [...]
Pingback by Jason Clark » Lambeth Palace and Westminster
6.12 pm on 6 Jul 2006
[...] 1. The inclusion of more established churches, usually seen as outside of ‘Emerging Church’, modelling the value of deep ecclessiolgy 2. The story of Mike Shaw from Re:Source in Bristol, of how the Baptist Union are funding Mike to help the larger baptist churches in Bristol, support the small baptist churches that are open to change and want help, to use their buildings and members for missional and community engagement. Very unglamorous but utterly missional, and captivating. [...]
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