Our Vitality Lies in Movement

Recent mentions in various media of the Camino de Santiago (Way of St James) in northern Spain has me longing to participate in that spiritual practice known as pilgrimage. It is in a book whose author is both an ordained Mennonite minister and a Benedictine oblate that I found the following quote.

"[God] is a God of the Way. His sanctuary is the Mobile Ark, His house is a tent, His Altar a cairn of rough stones... He leads [the Israelites] out of Egypt... There He gives them their Solemn Feast, the Passover: a feast of roasted lamb and bitter herbs , of bread baked not in an oven but on a hot stone. And he commands them to eat "in haste," with shodden feet and sticks in hand, to remind them, forever that their vitality lies in movement." 

- Bruce Chatwin The Songlines (New York, N.Y.: Penguin, 1987) pp 194-195 in Arthur Paul Boers The Way is Made by Walking: a pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago (Downers Grove, Il.: InterVarsity Press, 2007) 39.

No Accountability

The ABC reports that courts in Italy and the US have halted separate cases that involved allegations about illegal rendition and torture.

The US Supreme Court upholds the dismissal of a German citizen's case because of 'state secrets'. The executive branch has declared itself not accountable, and the judicial branch has refused to hold the executive accountable for this declaration.

This decision reminds me of the ridiculous situation under Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen in which the list of books banned in Queensland was itself banned. 

Dead Man Walking

Sister Helen Prejan, author of the book which was adapted into a play, then a movie and now an opera, spoke recently with Andrew Denton and Rachel Kohn. Much of what she had to say - always in a lively, entertaining, and world-wise way - to both interviewers made me think of recent discussions of incarnational ministry. 

Two particular things really stood out:

Firstly, the readiness with which the death row inmates accepted Sr Helen's coming alongside them. Initially she didn't seek out the prisoners or the families of their victims, but now actively does - and while embrace may be too strong a word to describe the average reaction, it sounds as though it's far from a rebuff.

Secondly, the seriousness with which Sr Helen believes - and actually accordingly lives - basic Christian doctrines. She does see the image of God in people, she does demonstrate grace to both the unloved and the unloving, she does speak the truth in a way that sets people free. Her story is an inherently - one could say exclusively - Christian story, yet it is so filled with faith, love, and hope that not only do many want to hear it, but also many want to tell it. And with each telling and hearing and retelling - whether in a play, book, film, opera, interview, or even (I hope) blog post - echoes of Jesus' story, the gospel, are heard.

Here is a model of ministry worthy of imitation! Now I must see this film (not really into opera), and of course hear the soundtrack with Tom Waits among other fine artists.

Liberalism and Communism

The Communist Party of China, not content to prohibit senior Tibetan Lamas from reincarnating without permission, has also taken to writing 'Christian' theology. Stephen Crittendon, presenter of the Religion Report on ABC Radio National mentioned in passing that as part of their increasing interest in religion, state-sponsored texts require patriotic Christians to not beleive in salvation by faith or the resurrection.

Our Man in Pyongyang

Having read Seymour Hirsch's latest in the New Yorker about the US's war plans for Iran, I was struck by the Greene-esque title of this article. And indeed, Egan is an antihero worthy of Greene. Had he not missed the draft, gone bankrupt roofing and started a hotdog joint-cum-steakhouse he may have just as easily ended up selling vacuum cleaners or running a hotel. The entertaining feature is fantastic read, though not always for the right reasons.

Don't Risk Howard (& Costello)?

Even though it's yet to be called, everyone knows that the federal election is not far away. It's clear that campaigning is now fully underway, as not only have policies (to a greater or lesser extent) been released, so the mud is being slung.

While the behaviour of a number of politicians right across the spectrum has been particularly abysmal lately, I had to have a chuckle at the Nationals' 'Don't Risk Rudd' campaign. Not because of what they're trying to say, but the way they're trying to say it. 

The assumption that change=risk (so that one can minimise or even eliminate risk by minimising or eliminating change) seems to be behind this fallacious slogan. Even leaving aside that great rewards are hardly ever won without great risk, there are times that small change (or even none) is more risky than great change. Of course, whether not that is now the case is the subject of many and varied opinions. 

Though change may seem risky, not changing (or at least attempting not to change) may actually be more so. Just ask the coalition front bench.

You Must Be Bourne Again

WARNING PLOT SPOILER FOLLOWS

I saw The Bourne Ultimatum, the third Bourne movie. Though I left wanting more, on reflection I hope that it is the last of the series, as it wraps up the earlier movies very neatly. As could be expected, such a great movie deals with great themes, and I personally would have be more likely to read "The Gospel According to Jason Bourne" than most other pop culture meets theology books that I have seen. 

Of foremost significance for me is the theme of memory and Bourne's amnesia is finally remedied in TBU in a way that explores the full significance of memory for identity. His complicity in his own predicament suggests a kind of original sin, yet at a significant juncture chooses the path of redemptive non-violence. The film is full of violence, yet seems to take it more seriously than most other films, certainly beyond cheering for the 'goodies'. That most of the deaths are of characters important to the plot personalises the brutality and senselessness that rightly left me feeling squeamish. Certainly, one of the must timely themes of the entire Bourne series, but especially in TBU is a mistrust of authority. As enemy of the state, Bourne goes well beyond Bond as the likeable rogue with tacit support of the authorities. TBU demonstrates the inherent tendency of cold and calculating officials (elected and appointed) to misuse government authority and prerogative. It brings into question not only the individuals that exploit the system, but the kind of system that refuses to limit deceit and violence through transparency and accountability.

Certainly this is a parable for our time.

Barry McMurtrie in Brisbane

Well, that all depends whether you count the Gold Coast as part of greater Brisbane.  Barry McMurtrie is the keynote speaker of Team Fest, being held at Marina Quays International Resort on Hope Island from the 6th to the 8th of November.  Barry McMurtie was senior pastor at Crossroads Church in California from 1993.  

From the brochure (not available online as far as I could tell):

Team Fest is an opportunity for team leaders and team members to acquire the necessary skills to develop effective teams for ministry in larger congregations.

For More information call Ted Keating (0407 461 679) or Juliette Keating (0411 428 038).

Staff Retreat

On Tuesday our church's staff went on a retreat at the Still Water Centre in Toowong that involved fasting, solitude and silence, followed by some serious feasting and celebration.  I really valued the opportunity to share such a significant experience with my colleagues outside of a work environment.  

The following lines from Leonard Cohen's 'Anthem' were quoted by the facillitator and have prompted much reflection:

Ring the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There's a crack in everything

That's how the light gets in.

David Cook in Brisbane

Though it's definitely very soon, some may be interested to know that David Cook, principal of Sydney Missionary and Bible College will be lecturing at Queensland Theological College (formerly the Consortium of Reformed Colleges) from Monday 16th to Thursday 19th July, at their beautiful campus on the Brisbane River at St Lucia.  He will teach an undergraduate intensive on preaching, and QTC also offers a very modestly-priced audit option.

Larry Hurtado in Brisbane

Aaron Ghiloni reports that Larry Hurtado will be in Brisbane from the 25th until the 28th of July, thanks to Everyday Mission, part of the Faith and Life Vicariate of the Brisbane Catholic Archdiocese.

Last year Tom Wright, Cormack Murphy O'Connor and William Cavanaugh were guests of the Brisbane Catholic Archdiocese in their focus on Jesus - Communion - Mission.  Which makes me wonder who else we may have in Brisbane later this year thanks to their hospitality.  And which makes me want to say how extremely grateful I am for their hard work, ecumenical mindset and joyful focus on their diocesan vision of Jesus - Communion - Mission.

Alan Roxburgh in Brisbane

With scholars such as Ben Myers and Mike Bird calling Brisbane home, the city could hardly be called a backwater.  However, while high calibre researchers, teachers, and practitioners often make this sleepy little town a port of call, not everyone gets to hear about it.   

So I'm happy to advertise that Alan Roxburgh, author of The Sky is Falling: Leaders Lost in Transition and co-author of The Missional Leader: Equipping Your Church to Reach a Changing World will be in Brisbane on the 26th of August for a gathering of interested church leaders from across denominations.  Numbers are severely limited, so contact either Churches of Christ in Queensland or Queensland Baptists of you're interested.

Mea Culpa

Following on from Ben at Faith and Theology, and many others, I confess:

• I have a fondness for terms that carry more meaning in their original language than in translated English.
• I cannot understand why "change for the sake of change" is worse than "constancy for the sake of constancy".
• I am far too impatient with people whom I consider are more black-and-white than me.
• I prefer the synoptics to John; Luke to Matthew and Mark; and Acts to Paul.
• that the Catholic I would most prefer to discuss theology with is not Balthasar, Kung, Rahner or even de Lubac, but Graham Greene.
• I pity social and political progressives who promote their various issues mournfully.
• I'm grudgingly grateful for my fundamentalist schooling.
• I prefer Tom Waits to Bob Dylan.
  
• I feel envious of people whose car, desk or handwriting is much neater than mine.
  
• that caffeine is a drug, but I am not addicted.

The Legitimate Witness of Military Chaplaincy

About a month ago Ben at Faith and Theology pointed me to Swords to Plowshares where Scott reviews Richard John Neuhaus's homily "Bearing Witness in a Time of War" given at the memorial mass for the Military Vicariate.

As I commented on Scott's post, I'm surprised and confused that the legitimacy of the witness of military chaplains could be questioned so stridently. Even by the most avowed pacifist. Because "mission is the mother of theology" the issue is primarily missiological, and only subsequently theological. I'd very much like to understand the approach of Scott and Aric, as it seems so foreign to my understanding of the legitmacy -- even missiological necessity -- of the witness of military chaplaincy.

At this point I need to disclose that my father was a soldier until my mid-teens, and that not many years after that I enlisted in the Australian Army as a part-time soldier. I initially trained as a combatant but recently transferred to a logistical role from which I'm better able to pursue the possibility of becoming an Army chaplain.

Part of my journey to this point was my discovery of a missional approach to both theology and ministry, similar to that of the Gospel and Our Culture Network, sparked by the work of Leslie Newbigin.  I came to see the military as a particular sub-culture within the broader social context of the (post-)modern West. (Incidentally, this is why Neuhaus' homily was given at a mass of the military vicariate; the Catholic church recognises the need for a distinctive ministry to the military alongside the parish structure. So too do a number of Protestant churches and para-church agencies to varying degrees and with varying effectiveness.)  As a soldier I could appreciate the military sub-culture's own distinctive traits such as values, beliefs, and behaviours, which were sometimes even at odds with those of the broader context: some might decry the lack of democracy, I celebrate the co-operation not possible where free-market competition is unfettered.  I share the symbols, stories and practices that formed this sub-culture: I still retain the badges of my previous units.

Whether or not one believes that the exercise of violence is ever legitimate, let alone redemptive, the presence of violence in any culture does not preclude the possibility of legitimate Christian witness.  In fact, I would think that the witness of the shalom of God's kingdom becomes even more necessary in cultures with more anti-Christian elements.  That chaplains may not always explicitly condemn the exercise of violence does not therefore constitute an implicit endorsement of it.  If this were the case, then legitimate Christian witness in a consumerist culture that does violence to our collective humanity by commodifying its various aspects would not be possible.

Rather, chaplains, like all witnesses to God's shalom must first engage in a ministry of presence before engaging in a ministry of either demonstration or proclamation.  Ultimately the community that is a sign, foretaste and conduit of God's shalom must subvert every anti-Christian aspect of the surrounding culture.  Chaplains  -- indeed all Christians sent to this mission field -- must learn the language, hear the stories, value the symbols and observe the practices of the military sub-culture to be fully present in it.  This is basic missional work.  Then from within this sub-culture, as part of it, we use the sub-culture's language to tell shared and rival stories, to fill symbols with greater meaning, and to re-orient practices towards God's telos.  I intentionally wrote this sentence in the plural, because this vocation is the work of witnessing communities.  

The vocation of chaplains is integral to the formation of witnessing communities, present in the the military who legitimately use its particular language and culture to demonstrate and proclaim the shalom of God's kingdom.  

Why Church Matters

Recently I read Why Church Matters by Jonathon Wilson, which is no being reviewed by Scot McKnight at Jesus Creed. I've been looking forward to this series, as the book resonated deeply with me because of the way if differs from usual ecclesiological approaches. Though prescriptive or descriptive approaches (ie: "What can be synthesised from the raw biblical data?" or "How can we account for the variety of ecclesiologies?") aren't invalid , Wilson's 'determintive' approach asks a far more timely question, namely, "Why does church matter?" As McKnight suggests, the question has immediate relevance for low- and high-church Christians and not just potentially disaffected emergents.

Sadly, at least one reviewer fails to see the value of Wilson's question, and so fails to appreciate any of his answers. This highlights the importance of the first chapter in which Wilson defines the scope and explains the methodology of his approach; remember he is proposing "why" rather than asking "what?" or "how?" -- these are valid approaches (as has been shown by other more-than-competent theologians), but they are not Wilson's.

Central to Wilson's apporach is a particular understanding of practices as those things which link the life of a community to its telos. In tracing his understanding of telos through the work of Alasdair MacIntyre back to Aristotle, he makes a distinction between the technical term (the telos is determinitative of the community and its practices) and the popular use of its equivalents (a group will often set its own goals or objectives).

In short, church matters because 'church' is how communities practice the gospel, and thereby participate in the kingdom of God -- it's how they demonstrate that they are authentically Christian.

Imagine

After just under three years at Westside Church of Christ, I'm now at Arana Hills Church of Christ. The two churches are very different so any comparisons would be unfair to at least one of the churches, and are therefore something I won't bother with. God has been good to me in the past and continues to be good to me into the future, so the move has made me both sad and hopeful; it has been difficult, but worthwhile.

For all of February the usual ministries of the church have been suspended so that as many people as possible can particpate as much as possible in the church-wide Imagine 07 conference. I was mentionaing to a Catholic colleague today that this has had much the same pilgrimage function as Lent: to (1) simplify life in order to (2) seek God's guidance and begin to (3) undertake a journey of transformation.

This reminded me of a recent e-mail article I read from Christianity Today, suggesting that the growing importance of Lent to non-Liturgical traditions is in recovering the aspect of imagination. The article (I'll try to find a link) suggested that for many, imagination has bee crowded out by the over-emphasis on pragmatic technique. This supports a short quote (attributed to Marva Dawn) from Mike Erre's The Jesus of Suburbia: Have We Tamed the Son of God to Fit Our Lifestyle?:

The most critical issue facing Christians is not abortion, pornography, the disintegration of the family, moral absolutes, MTV, drugs, racism, sexuality, or school prayer. The critical issue today is dullness. We have lost our astonishment. The Good News is no longer life changing. It is life enhancing. Jesus doesn't change people into wild-eyed radicals anymore. He changes them into nice people.

Real Christains are Radicals

I was astounded to Christopher Pearson's claim in today's Weekend Australian that "Real Christians are Social Conservatives". He backs up this claim with three arguments: that the Bible mandates a theology of conservatism, that Christian tradition demonstrates a history of convservatism, and that contemporary church-attendance trends vindicate a strategy of conservatism.

Pearson mocks Kevin Rudd's claim that "the starting point of Christianity is a theology of social justice," countering that instead , Christian theology begins with the incarnation, culminates in the crucifixion and resurrection, and anticipates the return of Jesus. While what Pearson affirms isn't incorrect, he is wrong in what he fails to even address: the goal of these central doctrines. The incarnation is announced in terms of justice (God visiting his people to depose rulers and elevate the humble, and fillig the poor with good things while sending the rich away desolate). Jesus' message proclaims his work in terms of good news for the poor and the otherwise soically marginalised (directly, rather than in a trickle-down approach). The apostles use justice and social reform images to illustrate the significance of Christ's death and resurrection. Finally -- and as if these alone were not progressive enough -- Jesus' return is seen as consummating such changes in an even more revolutionary way. Neither is justice a "second-order concern" of either the Bible or theology as Pearson claims, but one that is foundational, inherent and ultimate.So, far from mandating conservatism, the biblical witness and central Christian doctrines provide solid theological foundations for radical social reforms.

In recent history one particular example of Christians appropriating the rich biblical and theological resources for radical social reform stands out: the abolition of slavery. Because the quantity of proof-texts seems important to Pearson's "second-order" argument, it should be noted that the New Testament has less to say about homosexuality than it does about both slavery and gender relations which are given roughly equal coverage (and less to say on all three topics combined than about the proper and improper use of money). But the abolitionsits might well be considered by Pearson as "ecclesiatical modernisers" for their alliance with "the Zeitgeist". Yet, in a contradictory way, he cites contemporary acceptance of Christian conservatism as its vindication. While theologically and socially conservative churches in the West aren't declining at the rate of more progressive churches, theologically conservative but (arguably) socially progressive churches in the global South are growing at an unprecedented rate. Strategically then, even if Christians in the West are loathe to attempt to imrove on their heritage, they may still be able to learn something from their more effective brothers and sisters in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

If Christians and their leaders really are as conservative as Pearson suggests, perhaps they desparately need to become reacquainted with their heritage, their doctrine, the Bible and -- above all -- with Christ, and discover in the process that real Christians are radicals.