October 7, 2008
Urban Exile: Suburban vs. Urban Church Politics
Does our setting influence our politics more than our doctrine?
by David Swanson
As on any other Tuesday, my wife and I hosted our weekly small group on Election Day of 2004. A quick scan of the TV stations after the Bible study showed that we’d have to wait until the next day to learn the results. “Just pray that John Kerry doesn’t win,” said one of the members on his way out that November night. Over early morning coffee a few weeks later another church friend expressed his relief that George Bush would serve a second term as president.
More recently, after a pizza dinner with some volunteers from church, someone asked where Barak Obama’s home was. Soon a small caravan was driving through Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood to see the house of what many of these volunteers hoped would be the next president. A few weeks later I watched one of our worship leaders tactfully cover her Obama t-shirt with a jacket before our Sunday service began.
What happened between 2004 and the current election season to account for this shift in the political sensibilities of our community? Maybe the political priorities of some folks have changed. Maybe churchgoers feel taken for granted by the “Grand Old Party.” Or perhaps Americans, including those within the Evangelical tradition, are just ready for change.
Or maybe not. What changed was that between these two elections we moved from an established suburban church to a 6-year old-church plant in Chicago. And that, as they say, has made all the difference.
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Posted by UrL Scaramanga at October 7, 2008 | Comments (7)
October 6, 2008
Cartoon: Love, Theologically Speaking
A Leadership cartoon by Lee D. Johnson
Posted by UrL Scaramanga at October 6, 2008 | Comments (4)
October 3, 2008
If Your Hand Causes You to Sin...
One reader’s suggestion for a happy and safe future.
by Url Scaramanga
I would like to thank Mr. Victor T. Cheney for recently sending me a copy of the second edition of his self-published pamphlet titled “Celibacy Guaranteed: For a Safe and Happy Future.” Mr. Cheney has asked us to share parts of his pamphlet with you.
From page 3:
There is only one way to be sure of permanently eliminating the sex drive and guaranteeing the purity of our priesthood, and that is to remove the source of the hormone which causes it and the aggressive instinct which is its cohort…. Removal of the testes for the purification of the priesthood is not some new idea or experimental notion; it has been used for millennia. The history of this means of assuring purity is still traceable in spite of the suppression of information on the practice since the First Nicaean Council in 325 A.D.
A cornerstone of Mr. Cheney’s argument is Mark 9:42-46:
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Posted by UrL Scaramanga at October 3, 2008 | Comments (9)
October 2, 2008
The Hansen Report: Modern versus Postmodern Politics
Can differences between McCain and Obama be explained by worldview categories?
You can listen to every stump speech and read every position paper, but nothing compares to evaluating presidential candidates side-by-side during a debate. Their contrasting styles and views emerge in ways you hadn't noticed during the long primary season. The candidates practice their lines and prepare their strategies, but the format allows for precious moments of spontaneity and even humor. The best candidates deftly address issues in ways that lodge them in the public consciousness.
Perhaps the best example of this is President Reagan, who in 1984 famously said, "I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponent's youth and inexperience." His 56-year-old opponent, Walter Mondale, could only look on in laughter.
The first debate between Senators John McCain and Barack Obama provided no such memorable moments. But it did highlight important distinctions between the Republican and Democratic candidates. Namely, McCain and Obama represent key differences between modern and postmodern cultures. Analyzing their debate through this lens reveals similarities to the church's own debates about how to respond to shifting cultures.
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Posted by UrL Scaramanga at October 2, 2008 | Comments (12)
September 30, 2008
We're Going to Catalyst
Stay tuned for live blogging from the conference next week.
Next week I'm sending two Urthlings, Marshall Shelley and Skye Jethani, to the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta. They'll be blogging live from the event October 8 - 10, and mixing it up with 15,000 other church leaders. Whether you’re at the conference or not, be sure to check Out of Ur and add your comments about the speakers, workshops, and frivolity.
Catalyst speakers this year include: Joel Hunter, Mark Batterson, John Burke, Scot McKnight, Matt Chandler, Andy Crouch, Reggie McNeal, Cathleen Falsani, Dave Ferguson, Efram Smith, Seth Godin, Andy Stanley, Ed Stetzer, Craig Groeschel, and others.
Posted by UrL Scaramanga at September 30, 2008 | Comments (3)
