emergent
kiwi
In Liquid Church, Pete Ward takes a deep swim in postmodern waters. While many are just trying to dog paddle, Ward explores ways for the church to incarnationally flourish in our contemporary culture. At times the theologian in me wonders if Ward’s theology is so liquid he ignores Divine person, and thus the importance of gathering. At times the practitioner in me wonders who will fund Pete’s dreams. But the insights around spiritual desire and the creative and missional possibilities around shopping for meaning are worth the price alone. It is a provocative book in which the missionary heartbeat is undeniable. The book is well written. It is concise. It handles well. If you’re serious about being church in the postmodern world, it is worth taking the plunge.
liquid church
Coming:
Olive Drane, creativity and the image of God
Christchurch, January 04
Going:
Taylor's to Chch, Jan04
Church and Society, Auckland, Feb04
Stuff I've written:
Celebrating a Postmodern Pentecost
Sketching a postmodern missiology
Romeo/Juliet/altworship
DJing salvation
Piglet reads the Bible in a postmodern world
Coupland/community
cultural
wildflowers
1 Peter:mysogynist
or feminist
New generation/new
millenium
Church
in a global world
My further reading
art and spirituality
church ministry
postmodernity
Generation X
popular culture
gospel and culture
faith in aotearoa new zealand
Conversations that enhance me:
andrew jones up close
small ritual
douglas rushkoff
jonny baker
God-n-
club culture
paul fromont
darren rowse
Christian greenie
God-n-club culture-2
human in london
intellectually gritty
rachel cunliffe
jordon cooper (mentioned my blog 3x)
mark barkaway
Interview with:
Archives:
June 2002
July 2002
August 2002
September 2002
October 2002
November 2002
December 2002
January 2003
February 2003
March 2003
April 2003
May 2003
June 2003
July 2003
August 2003
September 2003
October 2003
November 2003
December 2003
January 2004
The excitement seems to be over my quote - The danger is that the emerging church is a re-run of evangelicalism, but with powerpoint, which I made here, and the response is; “This movement has to be stopped!”. I don't think they like it but I am not yet sure.
posted by spirit2go team at 1:45 PM
I am now blogging out here, at www.emergentkiwi.org.nz. I am keeping this blog as a record and reminder.
I am moving because lots of people have problems with my comments software, the URL on this blog (www.graceway.org.nz/stevedownunder.php) is very hard to give out at conferences where I speak, I have moved from Graceway and it does not seem fair to remain under their web hosting agreements and because I want to create more of a portal into the nz emerging church scene.
If you're a regular reader who wants to follow my journey, please update your links and tell the world.
Peace and goodwill to you all. Thanks to blogger for all the help. I've learnt a lot from you.
posted by spirit2go team at 11:40 PM
A lot of Kiwis like to spend Sunday morning over the newspaper, with good coffee in their hands. (Is this just Kiwis, or are there similar patterns elsewhere?).
So, church=
->lots of newspapers, muffins, coffee, cafe tables
->open for about 2 hours on a Sunday am
->a number of stations set up that relate to sections of the newspaper. As people read a section, then they have the opportunity to go to the relevant station, where various responses - confession, intercession, praise - are offered.
->a regular liturgy of coffee, in which God is thanked for her gifts
->followed by a 20 minute interview with 2 people, in which the weeks events are reflected on from a Kingdom perspective. So various articulate, witty people get to help all us poor newspaper readers make sense of the news. They would have to be both well read, yet quick on their feet, because the newspaper is setting the agenda.
->a small, regular, set liturgy ends this.
What do you think? Church? Spiritual? Sustianing? Sustainable?
posted by spirit2go team at 11:14 AM
With a blush
Pakaso, bless his heart, voted my blog "Most significant blogsite in terms of stimulating my missional thinking and reflection". My blog will blush accordingly for the next 48 hours.
Yeah, bright red blush aye.
posted by spirit2go team at 1:31 AM
I walked my new garden in the cool of the morning. The weeds and plants are different here. In new soil, in new environments, different things grow.
I walked on excited, expectant. What will God grow in me, through me, with me, in this new environment.
Deeper question: So how important is environment to one’s spirituality?
PS. I loved the comment made in the comments, by Stephen Garner; Your presence there also changes the environment into something new - a place of new possibilities sourced in you being there at that time.
posted by spirit2go team at 12:11 AM
I grew up thinking that God was mainly about church. Yet ...
May God's glory fill the whole earth - Psalm 72:20.
Today, I will walk,
and enjoy creation, art, people, architecture, oddity, intelligence, hills and earth.
As I do this, this verse becomes reality.
posted by spirit2go team at 11:58 AM
Tired but safe
John and Olive Drane arrived today (sorry, I only have a photo of John).
John is professor of practical theology at Aberdeen, my PhD supervisor and author of umpteen books. He has been absolutely key in my thinking, especially in areas of creativity.
Olive is creative. She has been such an encouragement to me, swapping worship rituals until late at night, eyes sparkling as we bounce off each others creativity.
It is a joy to have them with us. We celebrated with Summer Ale and Jonny Walker.
posted by spirit2go team at 1:15 AM
We've had to stop taking registrations for the Olive Drane, storytelling workshop. We've got 33 registered and Olive doesn't want more than 30, in order to facilitate decent storytelling and community and interactivity.
I mean how wierd is that. This is January. All of New Zealand is meant to be on holiday, sunning, beaching, reading, unwinding.
posted by spirit2go team at 12:46 PM
!st day of !st (of 2) new jobs
Dear God
please help daddy find the right answers
to answer the good questions.
Amen.
Prayer from my 6 year old as I headed out to my !st new job (I am not sure about "the right answers", but I'm certainly keen on "the good questions".)
I am lecturer in practical theology (2 days/ week) at a local seminary, Bible College of New Zealand. It has a track record of educational innovation and they, and I, hope for innovation again in the name of training for the emergent.
Not sure of the exact form yet; block course/distance/weekend workshops/mentoring/regular papers/mix of everything. This year is a settling in year. So you, O wise blog reader, have a year to help shape my thinking.
What will be the shape of postmodern pastoral leadership development?
posted by spirit2go team at 11:06 AM
alight, descend as sediment
to settle.
1. find good coffee on way to work
2. find local cafe to make home
3. get new library card
4. locate post office box
5. orientate to service stations
6. redirect mail, mine and former owner
7. install phone
8. find lost wife among endless white boxes
9. soothe mother, who is having dreams/nightmares about unpacking those endless white boxes.
10. find where sport is in new local newspaper
11. identify strange, new, plants in local garden
12. try and find nearest Subway
13. locate and sample from nearest icecream shop
Note to self :: don't ever move again. Note to tallskinnykiwi :: don't even think about moving from Prague.
posted by spirit2go team at 11:01 AM
4. The new album will be pirated and leaked to the Internet one month before its official release, but the band will have the last laugh when U2 hits the shops and it's something totally different! This will explain why it took them years to record it -- not only did they have to write a dozen new U2 songs, they also had to come up with twelve additional fake U2 songs.
5. The fandom will divide into two camps: those who prefer the fake U2, and those who prefer the official U2.
taken from this U2 fan site.
BYW - didn't the post-evangelical movement start with Bono singing "I still have not found what I'm looking for"? If so, does this mean that alt.worshippers are by and large U2 fans growing old together?
posted by spirit2go team at 1:46 AM
Re~new~ed
I'm back. Yee-ha.
I've been to Melbourne, and Gisborne, and Rotorua. I've packed an office and a house. I've holidayed. I've driven a 3 year old and a 6 year old 900 kilometres from Auckland to Christchurch. I'm about to start 2 new jobs. I have boxes strewn all over our new house.
Thanks to Colin who did some guesting while I was gone. All part of the re~new~ing process.
I'm re~new~ed. I promise a new blog, new thoughts, new ideas, all in the name of Love.
posted by spirit2go team at 1:15 AM