In the Coracle
“It’s almost like you’re writing a book one post at a time” - Kedge
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Tags for Where We’re Going
Today I had a really helpful and powerful chat with one of my heroes, and though I want to digest that a bit before talking about it here, it also spurred me to find a page in my journal and open it up.
Here are some tags that I wrote in my moleskine notebook a while back when thinking about the topics I’m pursuing these days, and potentially in relationship with my dissertation thesis, and more so in relationship to how I’d like to see a community of faith grow - in particular, as we keep feeling a sense that at some point we’ll lead a community again.
I’ve been thinking about this topic kind of in terms of a tag cloud, though I’m not sure what sizes each ta would be. I’m jotting them here not to give you information so much as to snapshot this step in the journey.
The main ones that I find myself repeating over and over again are these, in no particular order:
- Celtic
- Missional
- Incarnational
- Organic
- Intentional
- Rhythm
- Community
- Simplicity
And extending on those, several more:
- Transformational leadership
- Bounded set within a centered set
- Transforming the city
- New monastic (neo-monastic..)
- Brokenness made whole
- Relational
- Multi-enthic/cultural/racial/class
- Multiplying networks
- Suburban // urban // rural
- Embedded in context, but portable to other contexts
- Finances directed outward (all, if possible)
- Un-busy
- Intentional community, if not a common roof
- Service
- Justice oriented
- Hope
- Aiming up (worship), in (spiritual formation), out (mission)
- Exile, theology of exile
- Theology of place
- Edges of the empire
- Living Matthew 5-7, living the Sermon on the Mount
- A network of networks
- Network multiplication
- Leadership from within the community, not outside it
- Stewarding power, money, relationships, …
Models and networks that I find helpful and that I relate to
- Mustard Seed Associates
- Community of Aidan and Hilda
- CRM
- Church of the Savior
- Vineyard Central
- Vineyard Community Church, Shoreline
- Sustainable Faith
- Third orders
- Ohana Project
I don’t think I’ll take the time to detail each of these out in bulk, but I suspect they’ll all come into play over the coming months.
Who I’d read if I had 2 years to devote to it
I was thinking today, as I sat down to do some book summary papers for my next class in the doctoral program, about all the books that are piling up that I want to read but are not on the list for my upcoming classes. There are a lot of onesy books that are building up - but also, there are authors that I really want to dive deep into.
I’d love to read the entire catalog of works by these authors:
- Thomas Merton
- N. T. Wright
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer
- Elizabeth O’Connor (I’ve read all but, I think, 2 of her books, but need to re-read them all)
- Kathleen Norris
Seems to me that I’m missing somebody. But it’s not coming to me right now. I used to want to read all of Eugene Peterson’s stuff, but I find it hard to finish his books these days.
Who would you like to read everything by?
Effective Christian communities
Rose Swetman is working on the thesis for her doctoral dissertation and writing about missional churches and leadership. In this entry, she writes about a trip she made to Church of the Savior in Washington, DC, and one of the sessions there which discussed effective Christian community.
Bill (Haley) then talked about small communities of Christians committed to prayer, study and service as the most powerful tool in God’s hand for personal, societal and global transformation. [...]
Here was Bill’s definition of Christian community:
An interdependent group of Christians whose lives are centered around Jesus and ordered by love, who share common goals and common commitments and who together intentionally seek to love God and love their neighbor.
Sounds great to me - and the communities that Bill discussed (and Rose notes elsewhere in this entry) are all intriguing.
What is it to you that makes an effective Christian community?
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