Methodist Corner

Behind my home, down deep in the bottom
wrapped in brambles, barbed-wire, and posted signs
lies a flat piece of land called the sixteen-acre block.
Sixteen acres of fertile soil, green grass reaching
for the sun high above.

A small wood cabin rests
on the sixteen-acre block
watching and waiting
for the passing of day.
Forgotten by progress, time forsaken.

Behind my home, down deep in the bottom
wrapped in brambles, barbed-wire, and posted signs
lives a tired old man named John Wesley Coleman.
Gruff, lean, and mean from toil and time, cold heart reaching
for the sun high above.

A man and his thoughts,
alone with the land
watching and waiting
for the passing of day.
Forgotten by progress, time forsaken.

I just heard for the first time Barack Obama’s speech on faith and politics. It was a speech he delivered in 2006 as the keynote address at a Call to Renewal event sponsored by Sojourners. While I still disagree with Senator Obama on a number of issues, I nonetheless appreciate his fair-minded approach to dealing with our pluralistic society. The link above will take you to the video, or you if you prefer, you can read the transcript.

E.J. Dionne, Op-Ed., Washington Post said that “(Obama’s speech on faith) may be the most important pronouncement by a Democrat on faith and politics since John F. Kennedy’s Houston speech in 1960 declaring his independence from the Vatican…Obama offers the first faith testimony I have heard from any politician that speaks honestly about the uncertainties of belief.”

Below are some quotes that I hope will peak your curiosity… 

This is why, if we truly hope to speak to people where they’re at - to communicate our hopes and values in a way that’s relevant to their own - we cannot abandon the field of religious discourse.

To say that men and women should not inject their “personal morality” into public policy debates is a practical absurdity; our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition.

I really appreciate the above observation. How many times have we heard people say that we should separate faith from politics? But quite frankly, that is impossible. Every individual lives their lives based upon their fundamental beliefs about the world around them. And I do mean every; Christian, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, etc… and even the atheist who claims there is no God operates from a paradigm that is shaped by their beliefs.

Democracy demands that the religiously motivated translate their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific, values. It requires that their proposals be subject to argument, and amenable to reason. I may be opposed to abortion for religious reasons, but if I seek to pass a law banning the practice, I cannot simply point to the teachings of my church or evoke God’s will. I have to explain why abortion violates some principle that is accessible to people of all faiths, including those with no faith at all.

Here I think, is where we have a lot of work to do. We must get past the place where we base our arguments on “the Bible says.” If what God says is true, then no matter what the context is, that truth will prevail. If a person won’t hear an argument from scripture, then try another approach; reason, science, nature, etc. Help them to hear God through whatever filter they are willing to listen.

I am hopeful that we can bridge the gaps that exist and overcome the prejudices each of us bring to this debate. And I have faith that millions of believing Americans want that to happen. No matter how religious they may or may not be, people are tired of seeing faith used as a tool to attack and belittle and divide - they’re tired of hearing folks deliver more screed than sermon. Because in the end, that’s not how they think about faith in their own lives.

I too am hopeful.

Well it’s been a month since my last post and a lot has happened. I’ve finished my 3rd semester in seminary. That puts me at about one-third finished. Seminary continues to be a challenging, but nonetheless rewarding experience. The faculty and staff at Memphis Theological have been outstanding. Now I know that some of you reading this are former or current MTS students and may take exception to that statement, and I will admit that some professors are better than others, but for the most part they have done their job exceedingly well.

There is however, something that is bothering me about MTS that I hope some of you could help me with. And no, it’s not the cost of tuition, the grading policy, or really anything like that. It’s their chapel services. More specifically it’s the lack of attendance. Very few students/staff/faculty take the time to attend chapel services during the week and I am wondering if this is only a symptom that points to a deeper spiritual issue.

MTS offers chapel services every weekday at 11:00 a.m. and on rare occasions when a “notable” speaker is scheduled, attendance will be good, but on the majority of occasions, attendance is slim at best. And what’s more disturbing, when Holy Communion is to be observed, usually Thursdays, attendance is worse. Granted, some of the speakers are less than stellar, but shouldn’t seminary students be able to look past that and recognize the benefit of assembling together for corporate worship. Most students will use the excuse that they are just too busy, too many papers to write, too many books to read, and they just can’t spare the hour it takes to attend chapel. Don’t get me wrong, I can completely sympathize with those who feel overly burdened with seminary studies, and I have, on occasion, used those excuses myself, but aren’t we missing something?

So here’s the real question: Does this infrequent attendance by faculty, staff, and students say something about the fundamental condition of our spiritual lives? And if so, what? And more importantly, what do we do about it?

I know this is probably meaningless information, but it’s still kinda cool, in a nerdy sorta way.

Hat Tip: Jesus Creed

I am trying to compile a list of students/alumni/faculty/affiliates of Memphis Theological Seminary who have a blog or other website. If you know of anyone or are one yourself, please let me know. The list will be posted on my MTS In CyberSpace page.

Thanks

So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
(John 13:30)

—————————————- 

night marches boldly
across the landscape of creation
its long sinuous fingers desperately reaching
for the last vestige of hope
consumed by dark and dismal reason
care and compassion long since abandoned
hope for sale
30 pieces only
creation betrayed
the kiss of night upon her
consumed by eternal indestructible night
light pressed from her
by the unbearable weight of
sadness and despair
never again to emerge
never again to feel the warmth of day
desperation
resignation

arise! arise!
dawn is breaking
Eternal Day awaits us

by Allen McGraw

ONE members are stepping up our game by launching a petition urging all the presidential candidates to go “On The Record” by submitting, in writing and on video to ONE, their plans on the following five issues:

* Eradicating malaria;
* Improving child and maternal health;
* Reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis;
* Achieving universal primary education; and
* Providing access to food and clean water for all.

ONE will then build an online tool so that everyone can compare the candidates’ answers before heading out to vote in the primaries.

Please sign ONE’s “On The Record” petition and encourage your friends and family to sign on as well.

http://www.one.org/ontherecord

When you hear the word “missions”, what mental image comes to mind? For many, I think the prominent image is one of large trucks delivering food and other supplies to hard-to-reach areas of the world. Well and good, but then what? Granted, there are immediate needs that must be met, but what about long-term visions for mission?

Following is a quote by Elvia Alvarado, a peasant leader in Honduras.

“I’m very grateful to all these organizations in the United States, especially the private and religious organizations. I appreciate the food and clothing they send. I thank them sincerely for their willingness to help, and I know they do it with great love. But I’d also like to say that this realationship–where we’re dependent on the goodwill of outsiders–isn’t the kind of relationship we’d like to have…. We’re not going to solve our problem through handouts. Because our problem is a social one. And until we change this system, all the charity in the world won’t take us out of poverty.”

 – Elvia Alvarado, Don’t Be Afraid, Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks From The Heart: The Story of Elvia Alvarado

Recently, my family and I visited Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas. Heifer Ranch is a learning center established by Heifer International, an organization whose philsophy of missions embodies the old cliche, “helping others help themselves.” Heifer’s mission is to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth and they do that by working with communities. Heifer provides  families with training and a livestock gift. The family then has hope for a sustainable future and they in turn become donors by passing on the gift of the animal’s offspring to another family in need. A wonderful organization; check them out when you get the time.

Below are a few selected quotes from “Worship As Evangelism“, an article by Sally Morgenthaler, in which she tries to answer the question, “Are worship-driven churches really attracting the unchurched?” If you have anything to do with church planting, planning, or mission/outreach, I would urge you to prayerfully read this article and join me in asking some tough questions. Specifically, the question I need to ask myself is, “Are the strategies I am attempting to use in my own church reflecting the true nature of the mission to which we have been called?”

Location, Location, Location is a common cliche used when describing the important principles of marketing, but I am beginning to recognize more and more, that if we do not attend to the first principles of evangelism - Relationships, Relationships, Relationships - then the rest really doesn’t matter very much.

Below are the quotes to get you started:

Were these worship-driven churches really attracting the unchurched? Most of their pastors truly believed they were. And in a few cases, they were right. The worship in their congregations was inclusive, and their people were working hard to meet the needs of the neighborhood. Yet those churches whose emphasis was dual—celebrated worship inside, lived worship outside—were the minority. In 2001 a worship-driven congregation in my area finally did a survey as to who they were really reaching, and they were shocked. They’d thought their congregation was at least 50 percent unchurched. The real number was 3 percent.

By 2002 a few pastors of praise and worship churches began admitting to me that they weren’t making much of a dent in the surrounding non-Christian population, even though their services were packed and they were known for the best worship
production in town.

For all the money, time, and effort we’ve spent on cultural relevance—and that includes culturally relevant worship—it seems we came through the last 15 years with a significant net loss in churchgoers, proliferation of megachurches and all.

Some newfangled worship service wasn’t going to save their church, and it wasn’t going to build God’s kingdom. It wasn’t going to attract the strange neighbors who had moved into their communities or the generations they had managed to ignore for the last 39 years.

Read the entire article at here.

Talk about great timing.

Here is a good illustration of what I was talking about in my previous post. It is being reported that Senator Clinton, whom I have the utmost respect for, thinks that it would be a good idea to give every child born in the U.S. $5000 to invest for the future prospect of paying for college or buying a home. Sounds great right? But if the estimate is right that 14 million babies are born in America each year, then it would cost 20-billion-dollars annually to fund this program. It’s a very noble and worthy idea; and I’m sure that Senator Clinton would love to make this a reality. I would love to fund everyone’s education or help them buy a new house too, but how can we afford to do that? I know, I know… cut this, cut that; but that’s easier said than done. History and experience should teach us that.