Emerging Desert

New Blog Address

2011-03-06T20:44:00.001-07:00

Hey you! Check out our new blog over at -

www.emdes.org

This blogger account will remain open for a time (until google decides to shut 'er down I suppose).

cross-gender friendships

2011-03-01T07:57:00.002-07:00

hey all, if you haven't read Kathy Escobar's interview with her friend Dan regarding cross gender friendships, then get ye to her blog!

laundry soap

2011-02-16T17:36:00.003-07:00

Okay people, I know you made fun of me for mentioning the Dugger family in reference to making our own laundry soap for Laundry Love, but here's the link anyway. And here's a link for powdered homemade laundry detergent too from a none eighteen child household.

guest blogging

2011-02-01T19:27:00.002-07:00

Hey all you writer-y types!
Rachel Held Evans is looking for guest bloggers!
DO IT.
(Yes, I am being bossy.)

harmony not hierarchy

2011-01-31T07:36:00.003-07:00

One of the speakers for Big Tent is Rachel Held Evans; she's the woman who wrote Evolving in Monkeytown. Currently, she's experimenting with a year of "biblical womanhood."

She just wrote a post called "Seeking Harmony, Not Hierarchy" on her blog, and I encourage you to read it. She discussed the Wesleyan quadrilateral: the balance between scripture, experience, tradition, and reason. I think that this is a topic that is relevant to us since many of us have experienced an imbalance of the four in our lives.

"In fact, I’ve recently come to realize that when I’m struggling with doubts about my faith it’s because one (or more) of these elements is failing to harmonize with the others."

Immigration

2011-01-19T11:17:00.004-07:00

I want to share an fantastic site on immigration and getting to know more about the undocumented people's plight. It's called undocumented.tv

They are looking to share a message about love, understanding, and grace. They are also sharing a video and looking for groups to host discussions. Thought some of you might be interested.

article on atonement

2011-01-19T11:15:00.002-07:00

Wow. I just finished reading an article on an "alternative" view of atonement. It really was a twist on what I had been taught, but it really rung true to me.
Check it out. It is really worth your time.

interview with emily

2011-01-13T08:15:00.003-07:00

(photo by hannah)

Hey all!
I did another interview of an EmDes'er on my blog!
It's Emily!
Check it out here.

Super Board-Game Birthday Night

2011-01-12T23:49:00.006-07:00

I realized that I do not have all of your contact info and wanted to make sure you knew that you are all invited to my place on Friday Jan 28 from 6;30 until the wee hours for a board-game night in order to celebrate my day of birth.

Come one, come all.
No gifts but feel free to bring a beverage. and your game face.

music this week!

2010-12-31T14:38:00.005-07:00

hey, everybody! happy new year!
a super-talented musical friend of mine, kat jones, is gonna be in town this sunday and i asked her if she wouldn't mind playing some songs for us. i know we are a music loving bunch and it's not often that we get around to having music, so i jumped at the opportunity. figured since we haven't got anything specifically planned and we're currently between books, this might be a nice little break for everyone before we get back into our regularly scheduled program. sorry for the late notice, but i just found out late last night that kat would be able to do it. i hope you guys can make it!

interview with hannah

2010-12-29T10:41:00.004-07:00

Hey everyone! I am currently writing a series on my blog in which I interview my friends. My last post was an interview with Hannah! Here's the link!

Still carrying the book banner

2010-12-29T09:43:00.007-07:00

I know we "agreed" upon the Claiborne book, but I thought maybe a change of voice would be interesting as well if anyone's up for it. I've read some Kathleen Norris, and her thoughts offer insight into much of what many of us are dealing with. I especially loved her book, Amazing Grace (link to book on amazon) where she offers a redefining of Christianese terms that have been ruined for many of us.

The other week, our guest speaker was talking about her book on depression Acedia and Me, which I just ordered and can bring Sunday as well. (link to book on amazon)

I'm up for reading Claiborne still, of course, just wanted to throw it out there for responses.

Merry Christmas Eve

2010-12-24T08:08:00.003-07:00

Hey all!
It's Christmas Eve!
How about a link to the very first "recorded" Christmas service?
Click here!

This Week at EmDes

2010-12-15T16:25:00.010-07:00

I have started and scrapped this blog post like nine times...The second draft got so insanely out of control, I decided to copy it into another document to develop and play with some before hopefully posting to my personal blog. I'm sure you are all grateful for that!

What I really want to communicate to you all is simple but getting it out in a concise way, yah, not so much. Here's the amalgamated version...

We are starting group @ 5pm this Sunday to create some time and space to visit with a new acquaintance/friend of mine (and yours too), Becky Garrison. Jim and I just missed an opportunity to participate in a conversation with Becky when we were in Seattle, hosted at Christine and Tom Sine's intentional community, Mustard Seed House . Consequently, my friend and MSH resident, Eliacin Rosario-Cruz, connected us via Facebook and email.

Becky's flight is scheduled in about 4:10. I will pick her up and bring her back to hang out with the group...if all goes well, we'll be back by 5:00ish. I'd like to ask everyone who is coming to plan to bring a 'pot-luck' type dish to share so that we can enjoy a fabulous community meal, the gift of a new friend and as always great conversation.

Jim and I will facilitate our 4th Sunday of Advent centered on the topic of Peace...or lack there of. It might be a little raw...but, what would you expect from us, right?

2nd Annual EmDes Christmas Eve Brunch

2010-12-11T10:12:00.002-07:00

(Posted for Debbie)

The 2nd Annual EmDes Christmas Eve brunch is THE HAPPEN' Christmas party of the season! Please join the whole EmDes crowd at our house on Friday, December 24th at 10:30 A.M. for food, fun and basic holiday mayhem. We will conclude our observation of Advent, sing carols, celebrate, laugh and hopefully see a Christmas play. (Hint to the kids!)

Holiday traditions in this house involves new and different foods. Forget the same old brunch egg dish! This year is the "Make and Grill" your own mini-pizza bar. We will have pre-grilled mini-pizza rounds. Please bring your fav toppings..... pepperoni, mozz cheese, veggies, fruit toppings, anchovies (well not really)...whatever you like on pizza. Folks can build their own pizza and we will grill them to perfection. Kids of all ages love this meal!

All are welcome even if you are unable to bring anything. Really. We mean that! Just come.

Sheri and I will have plenty of mini-pizza rounds and sauce. We will also have coffee, tea, soda etc. Additional food suggestions include fresh veggies, adult beverages, fresh fruit, baked goods and cheeses. (Have I mentioned all are welcome and no one is obligated to bring anything!?)

If you do plan to bring food please post with that information. No fruit cake. Really. We mean that!
Come!

Blanket and Sock Drive

2010-12-06T10:14:00.002-07:00

Per Adam's suggestion, I'm putting up this friendly reminder about the blanket and sock drive that my Jr. High girls group is organizing. The plan is to collect donations through Dec. 12th or 15th and then take them out to Tempe to simply hand them out to anyone who wants or needs a way to keep warm this winter.

This is something they came up with on their own and it makes me proud. I love their hearts and really want this to be a success for them. It'll go a long way towards their confidence in starting their own non-profit "ThisSocks".

So, if you all have any old blankets, socks, etc., hanging around the house, please bring them the next couple of Sundays and I'll gladly take them off your hands.

Peace and Love

Christian

Photo Shoot with Fun Family this Saturday AM

2010-12-02T16:56:00.003-07:00

Hey all,

In case anybody is looking for something to do this Saturday morning (December 4th) around 10am, you can come hang out with us as we take family photos of our friends, Carletta & her 9 children.

Tara and I have been wanting to do this for them as kind of a parting gift from us (Ha - well, Tara will be providing the photography... I'm moral supporter + kid coordinator:-).
We'll be picking them up around 9:30AM and driving over to Folley Park which is less than a mile from their house. [MAP] We'll just be hanging out, getting a few family shots, individual shots, and candids of course. We'll also have brunch-type food & drinks (pastries, bagels, juice, etc).

The final goal will be to present the family with at least one big print/storyboard (maybe 20"x30") for Christmas. If anybody else would like to contribute some $$ to the printing, then we'll be able to do more...

Looking forward to seeing many of you at the Schroeder party that night as well!

reinterpretation of some parts

2010-11-30T09:23:00.001-07:00

Brain McClaren just posted some thoughts of Herzog that reinterpret some passages of scripture that I found pretty mind blowing. Check it out here.

short film: "this KINGDOM"

2010-11-27T23:57:00.001-07:00

this KINGDOM from phos pictures on Vimeo.

A moment in the life of Brian Wolke, his wife, his kids

and their challenge.

Directed / Edited: Eliot Rausch

Director of Photography: Lukas Korver, Matt B. Taylor

Message: Darren Rouanzoin

Music: Kreng / Song: Merope

Laundry Love at Christmas Time

2010-11-20T16:46:00.002-07:00

I was asked to write a blog about Laundry Love, so here it goes.

Many of you have heard about it already, but here is the jist of what we are doing.

Monthly, we've been visiting a Laundromat in downtown Mesa, providing snacks and drinks, paying for laundry, helping fold clothes and getting to know people. As you may expect, all of the families that show up each month are struggling financially, some are living in temporary housing and some are homeless. It has been great getting to know them and hopefully, as I recently read Jesus would do, loving them wastefully.

We have a few new developments to share:

The Laundry we were in is closing down. Luckily, owner has another Laundromat just down the road which he is able to keep open. This new one is at 58 S. Mesa Dr (Mesa Dr. just south of Main St on west side of road). Since we have to move, we are also taking this opportunity to change the date. We are now moving to first Friday of the Month. So, the next Laundry Love will be at new location on Friday, Dec 3rd. As always, we could any help you can provide.

With Christmas coming, we also thought it would be nice to try to help some of these families have a special Christmas. So, we are collecting as many gift cards (or money to buy gift cards) as possible in various denominations ($10 - $50) from food stores (Basha's, Fry's, Food City, Rancho Market) or Walmart cards. We plan to have EmDes kids make some Christmas Cards at our next meeting to put with the gift cards.

Connecting and Wholeness

2010-11-10T07:35:00.003-07:00

Saw this incredible TEDx talk this morning, and I thought it would fit in well with our recent conversation about community and connecting.

HOSTING GLITCH...FLU HAS HIT THE SCHROEDER HOUSE

2010-11-07T03:07:00.005-07:00

Dear EmDes family...

I am so sad to say that Chloe has the stomach flu. It came on @ midnight and she's been up vomiting since and it's now 3:30AM. I am doing my best to try to get the word out as fast as I can. Obviously this creates a conflict for me hosting group later today. I need to see what's going to further evolve with her...or who else in the house may come down with it.

I guess something like this is bound to happen at some point...putting us all in an awkward spot...but I really hoped it never would. Thank you so much for understanding.

~Joy

PHOTO SHOOT POSTPONED...

2010-10-28T17:09:00.002-07:00

Hey all,

Just a quick post to let everybody know that the photo shoot/picnic we were planning to do this Saturday with the Towns family has been pushed back. The mother's schedule got rearranged a bit, so we'll try again to do this probably in 2-3 weeks... I'll keep everybody in the loop.

Have a great Halloween!

- Adam

Book Primary

2010-10-27T20:00:00.003-07:00

So we're going to be voting on a book in the next week, but I'm not sure what options we're voting on. I know Joy said Monkey Town probably covered much of the same discussions we have already been through many times, but I think Claiborne's new book was mentioned. If anyone has more suggestions for the vote, please put them up here in the next couple days.

thoughts on a not so personal god

2010-10-20T15:58:00.003-07:00

I don't know how many of you read Magpie Girl's blog, but I have followed her for a few years now. She used to be a pastor in a typical evangelical church, but she has slowly moved into a more all-embracing multi-faith practice. She recently blogged about the idea of a personal god when your spirituality expands. From her blog:

This shift from a personalized, highly-involved God to something wider and less humanoid can be unsettling for a lot of people. I often get questions around the idea of: “Well, if God is not personally in charge or me or personally involved with my life, what does that mean!??!” It’s a big shift, and not everyone makes it, or even needs to make it.

What Are the Ingredients of Community?

2010-10-18T05:10:00.004-07:00

As another installment in our series on "community," I wanted to get these thoughts bouncing around on the blog...

Months ago, Jacob and I spent a decent amount of time working on some ideas regarding "intentional community." How is it created? How is it sustained? How is it contextualized in different living & cultural environments, e.g., rural vs. suburban vs. urban? To keep things simple, our thoughts were confined to the context of the U.S., but I'm thinking most of the conclusions can be applied across most borders and cultures...

A singular question has been running through my mind for a few years now, and I think we've talked about it here & there at EmDes:

What are the ingredients of Community?

And when I say "Community" I'm referring to the sort of experience that David recounted about his grandmother and what Joy termed as an "innate part of our humanity." The sort of connection with other people that fulfills something at our personal core.

After scribbling at the whiteboard in my garage for a while, this is the condensed version of what Jacob & I concluded:

There isn't really any order intended in this list except for the two items above the line: Proximity & Commitment. Those two seemed foundational to achieving the depth of connection that we're talking about. There's a lot that could be said about each aspect of this "recipe", but I don't want this post to get too long.

What do you think about these ingredients?

interesting

2010-10-15T22:13:00.001-07:00

vague-confessions

Biblical Womanhood

2010-10-13T09:42:00.002-07:00

Just in! Rachel Held Evans is going to do a year of "biblical womanhood"-living out the commands of the bible for women. I am planning on following this closely. Totally blows my mind. From her blog announcement:

This means, among other things, rising before dawn each day (Proverbs 31:15), submitting to my husband (Colossians 3:18), growing out my hair (1 Corinthians 11:15), making my own clothes, (Proverbs 31:22), learning how to cook (Titus 2:3-5), covering my head when in prayer (1 Corinthians 11:5), calling Dan “master” (1 Peter 3:5-6), caring for the poor (Proverbs 31:25), nurturing a gentle and quiet spirit (1 Peter 3:4), and camping out in the backyard for the duration of my monthly period (Leviticus 15:19-33).

In the spirit of Community....

2010-10-07T11:33:00.002-07:00

Over @ Communitas Collective we are having a dialogue around community as well.

Lots of good thoughts being shared. I particulary enjoyed this post by our friend, Kathy Escobar..."My love Hate thing with Community"

I'd encourage you to visit communitas and check out the articles on community and other stuff...My contribution will be posted there tomorrow.

agnostic christian

2010-10-06T08:53:00.003-07:00

I have in my rss feed a blog called Existential Punk. This blog is written by a woman named Adele. She recently posted about being a Christian agnostic. I found that it might be interesting to some of us at Emerging Desert. Here is the link to that particular post if you are interested.

Here is more about her in her own words:

My name is Adele and "i am thomas, doubter. i am judas, betrayer. i am nicodemus, reluctant in the night. i am st. john of the cross, soul darkened by love. i am a christian. i am not." (i borrowed this from David Henson at the blog unorthodoxology b/c i like what he said and i resonated with this.) i am also "lost, wicked, and depraved but redeemed by the grace and beauty of God." ( i also resonated with this and borrowed it from Eugene Cho at the blog beauty and depravity.)

i am a traveler who currently resides in Sacramento, CA with my partner and love of my life, Katryna, and our dawg Mushu, a Tibetan Spaniel. i am currently going through long-term treatment for Chronic Lyme Disease, other tick borne diseases, and heavy metal toxicity.

Sopa Supper

2010-10-01T22:04:00.004-07:00

Sheri and Debbie are bringing a sopa dish this Sunday. Recommended sides are cheese, cilantro, lime wedges, and breads. Please post what you are planning to bring in hopes of avoiding four people all bringing an avalanche of cheese (but wait... that sounds awesome).

COMMUNITY 2.0...beyond the church

2010-09-25T12:35:00.008-07:00

To me...community is a word that has been over used in many contexts and poorly executed in others. For too many years my brand name church dictated what community was and how to know I was 'doing' it right.

It's only now, completely outside the walls of the the church that I can admit the persuit of community or finding a place to feel safe and belong, is innate part of our humanity, not a construct of the church...the desire to be part of a community has existed forever. From the foundations of civilization, people have instinctively formed communities, tribes, clans etc. We are designed to need each other.

Truthfully, I never thought about community, what it is, or if I 'had it' until it became a big movement in 'the church' in the 80's and 90's. Even though I already had community in many contexts, I never really contemplated identifying it or labeling it until community inside the church became paramount. Then I was obsessed and I did what ever I needed to to make it happen. Sometimes it felt real and other times it didn't...Some of the people I met in and through those various communities back then, are still in my life and are integral parts of the web of community I continue to assemble and value today.

What I know now is that I need all kinds of people in my life...not just people from a particular brand name church, parenting or marriage ministry or women's group. I need people in general that care about me and will be there when the shit hits the fan. Emerging Desert is one of the most important communities in my life for sure but it's not totally 'it'.

Leaving the narrow-mindedness of my past life, has given me the freedom to pursue relationships and add people to my 'community' I would not have before. I've found very real community at the studio where I practice Yoga...I've found it in and through social networking media like Facebook, twitter and blogs...I've found it in developing relationships with conservative Catholics and Muslims as well as in serving parachurch ministries and community organizations like Save the Family.

Right now, community for me is about people...period. I want people in my life that I can know intimately and who will want to know me more intimately. They can be from any where. I love how David refered to his grandmother's community as "a mosiac of loves"...a perfect analogy. Community is a colorful, diverse network,(web) of people that make my life more rich and more livable...it is the people I love.

Meditation on Community

2010-09-25T00:09:00.004-07:00

So,
On the topic at hand, and in light of the funeral this week that you all laughed at me for looking forward to...

The meditation notes on community that I offered last week in a small Episcopal church in Yuma AZ.:

Community; our need for one another

Community is a very sacred word and a very powerful concept and it was everything to this Lady. My grandmother was apart of this community in Yuma, in Business, in society, in media, in radio, in schools, in groups, in organizations, in church and in Her home.

Community is the most basic of needs for all of us. There is an ever-present battle within us to fight our need for one another; we are tought by every mean, to tolerate, coexist and remain independent, self absorbed and self-sufficient.

Sociology may tell us groups just aimlessly happen. Psychology may tell us people find groups. Science may tell us that homogeneity is tantamount. Philosophy may tell us our identity is in pieces. The government may tell us to keep to ourselves

The sinful nature tells us to be addicted and shackled by our own desire God tells us: we need each other: for both proactive into the good and reactive out of the bad.

From Adam on, the first thing God said is not good? For man to be alone.

One community:
We are called to costly community while
Comfort and affinity call us numbing uniformity.

Christ called us to diversity: His disciples...
A zealot and a tax-man
A rebel and a fed.

Acts 2:42-47
Acts 4: 32-37

Ellen, Gamma Wheeler led a life of community that was as colorfully diverse as her many hats and her cloths and her interests and her friends.

Her Legacy:
Her legacy of community is profound. Her collection of friends in the garden of her life is vast. Her breadth of influence and mosaic of loves was a testimony to a heart that was actively and violently being emptied for others.

May we all strive as she did in so many ways to be more Christ-like in that way. For the joy of His bride, the church, His community. Her actions are an avalanche of community and love far louder than spoken, preached, or whispered words.

And so I ask
Will we be a catalyst? Will we be intentional in our circles? Will each of us chose against ourselves, in order to come closer together?

You will find community somewhere. Will it be one that matters and will you help it matter more? What we do becomes who we are. May we be vulnerable and raw, continually seeking to keep the body healthy

You cannot love God without loving those around you. If we can’t love others that we do see then how can we love god who we cannot? .

Does your community matter?
Does your community look like heaven? That's what my Gamma wanted, and that's what makes her smile today.

We need to learn to deny our lust for self-sufficiency and celebrate our need for the body.
We were given two very specific gifts:

The Holy Spirit to be in us
And the body of Christ, which is the church community

No one likes a stubbed tow or a broken finger, and we cannot put up with this body we have. It has cancer and pneumonia. It is letting disease spread faithless religion and it is not breathing in the good things it needs to grow.

Community was everything to her

And may it be for us as well.

One Another's:
Eph: 4 be kind, compassionate to...
Colossians: 3 forgive...
1peter: submit to...
James 4: do not slander...
1 Thessalonians: encourage...
Romans 12: live in harmony with
1 John: if we love then His love lives complete.

COMMUNITY: Our Collective Thoughts

2010-09-23T11:09:00.004-07:00

Hey everybody,

Upon reading Donald Miller's recent blogpost, What “we” are missing in our lives…, I was reminded of the various talks we've had over the months about doing a blog series here centered on the concept of "community." Let's do it!

The structure will be pretty loose [as with all things EmDes:-].

The idea will be to simply offer your reflections on "community."

Where does your mind go when you hear that word? What are great examples of community both in past times and in our modern context? How is community created/achieved? Why is it important? What are the aspects of it that you just don't understand or make you frustrated? etc.

I'm trying to get everybody who's involved with the cohort author-invitations if they aren't already contributors (please let me know if I've overlooked somebody or if you have questions on how to post your thoughts). This is open to everyone, and I'm excited to see where this goes...

- Adam

next book?

2010-08-25T10:20:00.002-07:00

hey alls,
I just came across a review for this book by Shane Claiborne, and I thought it might be an excellent discussion book. Let me know your thoughts.

Follow along on our Spain adventure!

2010-08-23T11:50:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned yesterday, I keep a blog that will probably have lots of stories/pictures of our time in Spain! You can follow along at Love & Paella.

We'll miss you guys like crazy!

Lectio Divina

2010-08-21T17:06:00.002-07:00

Hey all...I thought you might like to read this great article on practicing Lectio Divina. The second half of the article addresses how to adapt the exercise for a group setting. I'm looking forward to practicing with our group tomorrow. Thanks for being open to this.

~ Carrie

Some Good McClaren Critique

2010-08-15T21:21:00.000-07:00

The Bam's will be proud of me throwin' down some Wheaton-ness (unless this guy is an outcast of sorts).

Either way, I found his blurbs on our beloved B.M. (what poor initials!!) to be quite interesting. Makes me want to put his latest book on top of a bunch of other books that I long to read without ever actually making enough time to read.

Double Rainbow All the Way

2010-07-25T20:54:00.004-07:00

I can't believe how many of you haven't seen this. It was the theme for Craig and Jim's birthday party. Turn the sound on and don't be sippin' any liquids. Probably NSFW.

New Updater?

2010-07-09T19:47:00.004-07:00

Hey all,

Just a quick post to see if anybody would like to/feels compelled/feels LED BY GOD ALMIGHTY;-) to take over the weekly email updates/reminders...

It's a pretty straight-forward process through our Google Group now, so let me know if you're interested... I'm ready to pass the torch!

[One idea could be a 3-6 month commitment, and then we keep rotating it around to other peeps...]

The Book of John

2010-07-09T16:13:00.002-07:00

I was talking with a friend about our discussion through the book of John. He suggested that we might want to listen to Shane Hipp's sermons on it. So hey, here's the link-might be a nice addition to what's already rattling around in our heads.

reconciliation

2010-07-03T20:42:00.002-07:00

Here's a link to a thoughtful post about reconciliation by Rachel Held Evans. In it, she shares several stories of others who share what they consider living a story of reconciliation looks like. Please take a few moments to read it-it's refreshing.

Escape the Oven EmDes Retreat

2010-05-13T06:42:00.007-07:00

I think we've decided on the weekend of August 7-8 (Friday and Saturday night) for our retreatish getaway celebrating the end of summer. I have two families committed and would like to get at least a couple more before I reserve the house. Please let me know asap as it looks like the house we would like to rent goes pretty quickly.

The Motherload

2010-05-02T21:10:00.005-07:00

I believe we were waiting to see what people's Mother's Day plans were before deciding on whether to do brunch at the Bamford's next Sunday. My family is celebrating at 1 p.m., so I could do brunch if others are able. Just comment to this post, and we'll make the "go" or "no go" call later on this week (and by "we," I have no idea who I mean).

TransFORM East coast

2010-04-26T09:15:00.010-07:00

This Thursday April 29th I'll be headed to Washington DC to attend TransFORM, a FREE conference; a gathering of missional practitioners on the East Coast to learn from each other and to mobilize others for forming new missional communities.

The collective voices assembled to share is staggering for any conference...especially a FREE one. Our friend Kathy Escobar, is the first keynote speaker of the conference Friday morning! This is really exciting to me because Kathy is "just a woman who co-pastors a small...messy community in Denver"...she's one of 'us'. She doesn't have a book deal...or a speaking tour...she is simply in the trenches and telling about her experiences as someone who is living it forreals.

Some of the recognizable heavy hitters will be there too...like Brian McLaren and Peter Rollins, but...honestly...I am most interested in hearing from the more obscure people, like Eliacin Rosario-Cruz and Anthony Smith...who again are incredible visionary emergence Christians...living in the trenches...Their voices are significant and timely because both are people of color...Something that has been notably missing in the greater, more visible Emergent conversation for some time now.

Because this conference is going to be relatively small ~150 or so attending...I will have more proximity to many people I wouldn't otherwise...and that I may never cross paths with outside of the virtual world...again. Since I'm all about asking questions...and getting to know the 'other'...I want to ask you guys to check out the conference schedule and workshops...and let me know who and what in particular is of interest to you...if you have questions or ideas you want expressed or communicated...I would love to take that with me. I would be happy to attend the workshops that you all as my community, are the most eager or interested in hearing about. Please let me know ASAP ...because I am leaving early Thursday morning and I won't likely be back on the computer the whole time I am away. I am really excited for this opportunity and I want to take you with me!

By the way...did I mention that this conference is mostly cost-FREE for me? Airline ticket United Flight award miles...$5, ride from Dulles to the 'city' FREE...thanks to Kimberly Dinsdale and Brian Merrit...accommodations FREE...BIG thank you Amy Moffitt...my only expense will be my meals! I can't wait!

ALTO ARIZONA

2010-04-23T19:02:00.005-07:00

As I reflect on the conversation Jim and I had in NM with our new friend Eliacin Rosario-Cruz, a Puerto Rican National currently residing in the Portland area... regarding our disdain of the lack of diversity in the context of emergence Christianity...I am struck today by his words: "To be diverse is not simply to invite the other in...and in so doing feel relieved that NOW we are a diverse group...and in that single act attempt to make the 'other' one of 'us'...Instead go out into the world of diversity around you...and learn from them...stand with them suffer with them...By doing that you will bring diversity back into your cohorts...your homes...your neighborhoods and churches.
In that wisdom and spirit...I would like to invite any of you who may be interested to join 'some' of the Schroeder Family Sunday @ 12:00pm at the State Capital in protest of the SB1070 signed into law today by Governor Jan Brewer. We plan to be home in time to host EmDes...We look forward to seeing you here or there on Sunday April 25th 12:00pm

Blog Update

2010-04-21T20:45:00.003-07:00

Check out Joy's latest blog post regarding Emerging Desert and her thoughts on her own journey.

what is taco day?

2010-04-19T17:38:00.000-07:00

hey.
maybe you've heard of taco day?
it's coming...

certainty and doubt

2010-04-19T08:03:00.003-07:00

Yesterday, we talked a bit about those who hold certain beliefs true and those who are holding doubts. Is there room for both people in our group? Are there people who could come to our gathering and feel unwelcome because of issues in their life?

It was an interesting discussion, and I think it really challenged many of us. I certainly was engaged, and I learned so much from people who have actually faced certain situations in their lives. It's one thing to pose a hypothetical situation, but to hear answers from real situations is humbling.

I thank everyone who shared stories.

It's true that context and relationship can change us. It's one thing to have an opinion or belief, but it up-ends us when someone we love comes to us in their pain.

Thoughts?

April 11

2010-04-07T19:14:00.005-07:00

Update to the update - our meeting has been moved to the Mac's House. See our "Next Gathering" section over yonder >>> for a googelly map...

Hi everybody we are looking forward taking our turn hosting Sunday while everyone is away. Directions to our house are here.

UPDATE: Hey everyone, Rachel is sick with a fever and throwing up today. Not sure what she will be like tomorrow (hopefully better). But is anyone else able to host tomorrow in case she's not better? Sorry for the last minute change!

Easter

2010-03-28T20:28:00.003-07:00

Next Sunday we will celebrate Easter together at our house. True to the spirit of EmDes, there is nothing super-structured planned, and we would love for anyone and everyone (yes, you!) to contribute to our meeting, whether that be through a reading, song, prayer, thought, discussion point...

Adam and I are planning to lead a couple songs, and any other musicians are welcome to join us or to bring a song of your own to share.

Another point of interest: BRUNCH! Last year we had some awesome food so let's keep the tradition going! I will make a cheesy potato dish and we'll also provide the coffee. If you know what you'd like to bring, go ahead and leave a comment so we can get a feel for what else is needed. Ideas: fruit, juice, muffins, an egg dish, whatever...

(My stomach is already rumbling just typing that.)

As always, we will gladly welcome you if all you bring is yourself!

We'll also do an egg hunt for the littles, so if you (parents) are able to bring a dozen or so filled eggs per kid, that would be great.

Looking forward to next week!

*Emerging Desert Easter Brunch*

When: Sunday, April 4th

Time: 9am

Where: The Bamford House/Backyard

Convergence DVDs

2010-03-08T18:44:00.005-07:00

Awhile ago, Donald Miller had posted a free "Convergence" dvd sampler set that I sent in my information for, and I received it today. I thought maybe we could keep the dvd in mind post-Rohr as we're trying to decide on what to do next. There are only three sessions on the sampler dvd:
1. Frustration and False Gods: Living in a Fallen World - Donald Miller, Dan Allender, and Tremper Longman
2. Spiritual Practices: How to Meet God in the Everyday - Donald Miller and Lauren Winner
3. Breaking the Ice: Learning to Share our Stories - Donald Miller and Phyllis Tickle

Here's the link to the website (obviously the sampler is a promotional tool to have groups actually buy the full dvd sets, but nonetheless): www.allthingsconverge.com

The dvds are made for "small groups," though considering that Donald Miller is at the forefront and considering the people he is conversing with, the term "small group" is probably just the literal/denotative meaning (minus the emotional/connotative meaning some of us may relate to the phrase). Anyway, I can preview them and let you know my personal opinion if you'd like, or I can just bring the dvd to EmDes next Sunday, or everyone can ignore that I even said anything - it's all good yo.

Bridging Gaps

2010-03-06T07:49:00.006-07:00

Laundry Love - March 4, 2010

It was very busy. Matt (the gracious laundry owner) said he didn't think there were as many people, but I'm pretty sure we were as busy if not more busy than any night before. We went through about $170 in quarters helping with laundry for 10-12 families and bachelors who are having a hard time making ends meet.

Matt usually helps out with repairs and making sure we can get the machines working correctly, but this time he also jumped in helping to pour laundry soap and plugging quarters. My daughter Carolyn came along and mostly took pictures and played with kids, but was also getting into helping plug quarters in machines as well. You can find some of her pictures here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=153703&id=199692411247&saved

We think about living paycheck to paycheck while these families bring in a months worth of laundry so their kids can have some clean clothes to go to school. I noticed while folding clothes with Marciella (mother of family that is there every month) that much of their clothes are permanantly stained, tattered, and just kind of things most of our kids wouldn't wear. And yet the kids and family are happy, and the oldest boy loves to talk and gets excited when telling about his favorite TV programs. Love those kids.

At one point in the evening, Oralia (who doesn't speak much Spanish either) was attempting to connect with Marciella (who doesn't speak English). I'm not sure I understand why, but Marciella pointed at me and told Oralia, he speaks Spanish. I was amazed...in my dozen words of Spanish vocabulary, just attempting to be kind, sharing the work of doing laundry, and smiling thru it all we somehow communicated enough that she thought I was speaking her language.

There were many of the usual families there, which we love reconnecting with every month, but some new faces as well like this young mother with cutest little guy named Ricardo. While Joy (who stopped in after work late in the evening) and I helped her fold her laundry, our daughter Carolyn pushed Ricardo around the laundromat in one of the carts. During the folding, she asks us "why are you doing this?" Searching for answers, the best that came to mind was "we want to help".

Thursday Night Movie

2010-03-01T15:47:00.004-07:00

(Posting on behalf of Tessa:)

Are any of the ladies interested in a girls night?

This Thursday, in celebration of International Women's Day, a few theaters in the Phoenix area will be showing a film based on the bestseller Half the Sky.

This inspiring book (I am assuming the movie as well) chronicles women from around the world that are able to turn their tragedy and oppression into opportunity and empowerment. The film begins at 7:30 at the AMC Mesa Grand 24 on Stapley.

If anyone's interested, leave a comment and we'll get in touch! Hope to see you there!

Community

2010-02-17T20:38:00.003-07:00

Monday night a group of about 12 of us gathered at the Bamford’s for a discussion about our EmDes community – what this term means to us now and what it may mean to us in the future. All of us were in agreement that EmDes has been crucial to our “spiritual development,” even though many of us are not quite sure what that means. We view the group as an embracing and honest community in which we can feel safe with our struggles and questions but admitted (I would say as a whole) that we could use more depth in personal relationships between individuals.

While most of us connect at EmDes on Sunday, we would like to be able to develop, or at least encourage, more intimate relationships. The dilemma, though, comes when we have to try to figure what our “purpose” is. (I apologize for the words in quotes, but I can’t think of alternative words without traces of possible IC connotations, so I put them in quotes to make me feel less cheesy). Are we going deep or wide? We want to be welcoming to newcomers, but how do we do this and try to grow deeper at the same time? With the limited amount of time in the week, how do we work on developing more substantial relationships with one another? We didn’t come up with a solve-all-our-problems-in-five-easy-steps program, but there were some viable options: breaking into small groups of about 3-4 people once a month (at EmDes), having a few people share their stories during group, having a mid-week get together sometimes for whomever could attend, starting a group chain email to keep up with people throughout the week. I’m sure we’ll talk more about it on Sunday, but most of us are excited (I dare not speak for all of us.) about the small group option where we perhaps have some “focus questions” and take it from there, basically serving as an opportunity to connect to one another without falling into the surfacey chit-chat syndrome.

During our conversation, we also shared what we felt we needed from the community, and while I won’t share everyone’s online, there seemed to be some common themes of desire for deeper connectivity, encouragement, and a general moving forward – past the bitterness and anger of experiences with the church and into a focus on developing a connectivity with God and what that may look like. We discussed the possibility reading through a book of the Bible for a future group “book,” which many people expressed interest in and is something we can discuss as a whole group. More pragmatic, but equally important, issues came up, such as sharing hosting opportunities once or twice a month, having someone else manage emails and blogs, and basic organizational restructuring, so those are also things we can discuss as whole group or people can volunteer to share/take over. I do dare to speak for those of us who were there in saying that we felt it was a validating and productive discussion that helped us understand better what we need and want from our community while also being cognizant of the limitations we face. And thus I end, abruptly because I can’t think of a better way to end eloquently, an extremely condensed summary of the EmDes “where is this relationship going” conversation.

Intriguing

2010-02-16T14:09:00.003-07:00

This and other intriguing confessions about church, faith, fear, grace and God at permissiontospeakfreely.com

Lent 2010

2010-02-10T21:02:00.003-07:00

Just a friendly reminder that Lent is beginning next week on Wednesday and will continue for forty days until the third of April. The Tuesday before is called Shrove Tuesday and it is traditional to eat pancakes on that day. I will be celebrating in that style at Liberty Market in downtown Gilbert with many other various folks for breakfast (it's actually an official tweetup #evfat/#evtm if you are into that).

I encourage you to consider participating in observing Lent this year either by fasting from something you enjoy/or by adding in a discipline. This time is supposed to prepare your heart/mind/life in a period of waiting and mourning before the Easter season when we celebrate resurrection.

Maybe this is a topic to explore with your family and friends as well in the next week. Feel free to share how you would considering observing on this post, and I also look forward to discussing it next week when we all meet.

Super Bowl Sunday

2010-02-02T20:51:00.004-07:00

We discussed Super Bowl Sunday and whether to get together or not. Appears that some are interested, so anyone who is interested is invited to come this Sunday eat some food, watch the game (or not) and enjoy each others company.

Sherri and Debbie are making Orange Pulled Pork and some BBQ chicken which will both be great for sandwhiches. I will have a fresh keg of Honey Brown Ale ready for consumption.

So, if you would like to bring something to share, suggested items are:
- Rolls, Breads, tortillas

- Side Dishes

- Other Superbowl type foods

If you want to respond back with items you're thinking of bringing, that'll help even things out.

This is my Home - LIA Documentary

2010-01-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

After quite a few techno-difficulties (not with techno music - c'mon who doesn't love techno?), I finally was able to get this going.

Thanks should go to Craig G, my homee, my brotha. Also to Mark Z. of Facebook, who just sent you the password to see the video. If you're not a member of the EmDes FB page, just let me know you need it.

This is my Home

Great job Life in Abundance, this is good stuff.

Enjoy.

Blog Project

2010-01-25T13:41:00.002-07:00

We came up with an idea for a Arizona-wide blog project yesterday, and to get that going, we need a few things:

We need a name.
We need possible contributors.

Any thoughts?

Who Sinned?

2010-01-24T13:00:00.000-07:00

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

With the news from Haiti bringing images of horrible suffering, people of faith have, as they have many times before, attempted to explain the reason God would allow (or commit) such an act of tragedy. The most infamous of these, recently, has been Pat Robertson's remarks that the Haitian people practice voodoo. Thus, God's judgment.

We're no strangers to this kind of talk. John Piper recently inferred that a tornado in downtown Minneapolis was God's judgment against the ordination of homosexuals. Many human maladies, from natural disasters, to disease, famine, and poverty, have been linked to some sort of cause-effect of sin and judgment. Our views have been shaped by the gods of Rome, who reigned from above with vengeance and a lightning bolt.

We have a God of salvation, whose wrath has been poured out on the cross. We exist in a paradox of God's love, surrounded by the effects of a tarnished creation.

We ask the same question of the disciples when tragedy happens. Who sinned to cause this disaster? Who can we blame for this?

Our eyes are closed to another purpose. Tragedy in our world can be used to show God's glory. We can go out to the blind, the impoverished, and the people in bondage, and show God's glory through helping them.

Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" Some claimed that he was.

Others said, "No, he only looks like him."

But he himself insisted, "I am the man."

"How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.

He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."

"Where is this man?" they asked him.

"I don't know," he said.

We can be God's glory. We can go out to this tragedy, and instead of looking to know who caused it, we can bring healing. Healing that alters their lives, until they are unrecognizable from the person they were before. His glory can be seen through our healing work in the world.

Instead of asking, "Who sinned," we can instead ask how we can bless others.

A Prayer

2010-01-18T16:37:00.000-07:00

This is the prayer that I was referring to in our gathering yesterday evening. This prayer has inspired and challenged me, and has really shaped the way in which I relate to God. Hope it brings peace to someone else too!

_________________________________

My Lord God,

I have no idea where I am going.

I do not see the road ahead of me.

I cannot know for certain where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself,

and the fact that I think I am following

your will does not mean

that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that my desire to please you

does in fact please you.

And I hope that I have that desire

in all that I am doing.

I hope that I will never do anything

apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this,

you will lead me by the right road

though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always,

though I may seem to be lost

and in the shadow of death.

I will not fear,

for you are ever with me,

and you will never leave me

to face my perils alone.

- Thomas Merton, "Thoughts in Solitude"

Richard Rohr - Sat. Feb. 13

2010-01-18T15:21:00.005-07:00

My services as organizer were graciously offered up by Jamie for the upcoming Richard Rohr seminar. It's on Saturday, Feb. 13 from 1:30 - 4:30 at Church of the Beatitudes. (Though there is one in Anaheim on March 19, so we could excuse ourselves for a road trip and beach meditation in the name of non-duality and presence. Disneyland would be a perfect place for such things, no?)

The cost is $25, though if 10 or more people go, there is a $5 discount. Not sure where we came up with the $5 cost that we talked about on Sunday; perhaps the $5 discount made us think we were being offered tickets at that amount.

Please respond if you plan on attending, so I can be making a list and checking it twice.

Human Trafficking Awareness Day

2010-01-11T10:20:00.010-07:00

Today is Human Trafficking Awareness Day

Like many of you, I have known that human trafficking & slavery still exists in various forms around the world, but I have recently been on a journey to dig deeper in understanding this tragic reality and I want to share some of my findings with everybody.

These injustices do not simply "still exist"... they are thriving. To put things into perspective...

"More slaves are in bondage today than were bartered in four centuries of the transatlantic slave trade."

-Not For Sale by Batstone(6)

I'll start with a basic definition for Human Trafficking -

the dislocation of someone by deception or coercion for exploitation, through forced prostitution, forced labor, or other forms of slavery. (source: Steve Chalke - Stop the Traffik)

It is estimated that the total number of individuals enduring this nightmare is in the realm of 27 million. 27 million human beings like you and me. 27 million collections of abilities and aspirations. 27 million hearts.

We talked a bit at our gathering yesterday about "compassion fatigue" as Jamie termed it, and this is yet another example of an issue that can easily overwhelm us to the point of numbness and inaction. But I have a growing hope and cause to believe that this doesn't have to be the case. More on that in a moment...

Here are a few more of the key statistics to build a fuller picture of what's happening around us:

- Over 150 countries in the world today serve as a source, transportation route, and/or destination for human trafficking, with the least developed nations being the most gravely impacted. (US State Dept)

- Of the 27 million individuals held captive today, 80% are female and 50% are children (US State Dept)

- Approximately 1.2 million children are trafficked yearly. That amounts to one child every 30 seconds... (UNICEF)

- Worldwide, traffickers generate a revenue stream for themselves upwards of $10 billion, while the trafficking trade in all its forms generates more than $32 billion when also accounting for the activities and goods produced by the victims. [These figures are only rivaled by drug trafficking and the illegal arms trade for the largest global crime] (International Labour Office)

- Here in the United States, approximately 17,500 individuals are trafficked into our country every year for forced labor and sexual slavery. (US State Dept)

So what can we do?

Like I mentioned yesterday with regard to these issues of injustice that need to be addressed, I think a "both/and" approach will ultimately be the most transformative, i.e, foster the ongoing creation of the kingdom of God. By this, I mean that those of us who are able to give financially towards local & global efforts that directly affect the problem should do so [check out a few recommendations of organizations below], AND there's also a component of individual action beyond financial donations that we are each called to explore.

This first natural step in individual action is to heighten our awareness of the issues [some reading and viewing recommendations are below]. But this awareness must necessarily lead to a tangible output. Or in the word's of Stop the Traffik and Oasis founder, Steve Chalke, "Expressions of outrage and sympathy without action are useless. Becoming aware, informing ourselves, is only the first step" (Stop the Traffik, 103).

The next step is to identify if/where we are unknowingly entangled in the massive web of human/trafficking. Again, Steve Chalke:

"We need to find out whether what we buy has a history, and whether that history is exploiting vulnerable people" (107).

Some of the more blatant industries where trafficked labor is widely used are the chocolate, coffee, cotton (clothing), and tea trades, among many others. As we've heard numerous times, we truly have the ability to "vote" with our dollars. Each of our purchases, whether intentionally or not, reinforce certain systems at play in the world's supply chains. Again, it can be overwhelming as a born-and-raised American consumer to sift through our hundreds of purchases & possessions, but I agree with this view:

"A traffick-free lifestyle is worth working at. Make one choice at a time. And it won't be just your life that is changed" (Chalke, 109).

I'm currently checking out the Free2Work website and exploring ways to become a more conscious and deliberate consumer. Another cool resource is www.projectlabel.org

As we think about what else we can do as individuals and as a cohort, this challenge strikes a chord in me:

"Take Advantage of Your Access to Power for the Sake of the Powerless" (Batstone, 281).

Facing up to this challenge can take so many forms: political advocacy, commercial boycotting, volunteering with organizations that reach out to victims, raising awareness among the masses, and on and on. I'd love to brainstorm more ideas collectively sometime.

Anyhow, I wanted to at least get this information out here for our community to wrestle with and to highlight this day of awareness. Let's see where we can go with our action...

Reading

- Not For Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade - and How We Can Fight It by David Batstone

- Stop the Traffik: People Shouldn't Be Bought & Sold by Steve Chalke & Cherie Blair

- The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking & Slavery by Kevin Bales & Ron Soodalter

- 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report - US State Dept

Viewing

- Frontline: Sex Slaves [additional resources HERE]

- Slavery: A Global Investigation

- Born Into Brothels

- Trade [also currently available for instant viewing for Netflix subscribers]

- Slumdog Millionaire

- Invisible Children

Organizations

- International Justice Mission

- Stop the Traffik & Oasis USA

- Not For Sale Fund

... among many others...

-------------------

*Photo Credit: 2009 Trafficking In Persons Report (US State Dept)

This Weekend's Gathering...

2010-01-09T14:05:00.004-07:00

Hey all,

This weekend's gathering will be our last free-flow dialogue before we dig into Richard Rohr's The Naked Now. We'll be using Life In Abundance International's recent documentary, This Is My Home, to kick off our discussion tomorrow.

This is my HOME (movie trailer) from Life in Abundance on Vimeo.

This Is My Home is a hopeful film that joins children and youth rising out of their poverty and life on the harsh streets of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

--------------------------------

ALSO, Debbie & Sheri will be gracing us with another amazing culinary creation (Lentil Soup w/ Sausage, perhaps). So, if you're able, please plan to bring either a side dish or a dessert to add to the spread, AND leave a comment on this post with what you're bringing so we can all plan accordingly.

Looking forward to it!

Just Do It

2010-01-04T15:35:00.005-07:00

"Prayer is not so much about convincing God to do what we want God to do as it is about convincing ourselves to do what God wants us to do."

--from the Introduction of Becoming the Answer to our Prayers, by Shane Claiborne and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove.

Yesterday's discussion (or at least the part that I caught) made me think of this book that I read last year. To be honest, I didn't think it was as great as Claiborne's other books, but I did take some new ideas away from it. The main thing being something along the lines of: "Don't pray for things unless you're willing to be a part of the answer." For instance, don't just pray for poverty to end. Pray about it AND be a part of the solution. If you know a child that needs a coat but her parents cannot afford it (and you can), you don't need to wait for "A Sign" to tell you to just buy the coat and meet the need.

Anyway, very much on the same track with our conversation yesterday. We also own the book, and anyone is welcome to borrow it.

Advent - better late than never?

2009-12-30T23:42:00.003-07:00

I had actually meant to post this before we had our Christmas Eve get-together, but my intentions fell short of my actual productivity. I, as I think many in our group did, found celebrating Advent to be an experience that was both traditional and new. I have personally never celebrated it before, but I think I will in the years to come. As we have been unlearning so many aspects of religion, there is comfort in relearning traditions, practices, beliefs that still represent the deep meaning and tradition of Christianity.

In trying to "prepare" something for discussion on Christmas Eve, I searched for more solid definitions of the abstract terms - hope, peace, love, joy - around which Advent centers. In doing so, I learned (much to the chagrin on my American, rationalist perspective) that the terms don't seem to be the point. No two churches or sites or people could give a liturgy of readings for each week, and the ones I did find were mainly shallow or bland. What I did find were several perspectives on what Advent means to individuals or church families. There were a couple of Advent "books" in which families of the church had written personal stories about each of the themes or defined what symbols of the holidays meant to them, which seemed to be the most appropriate fit for Advent. I did find some commentary on Advent by Dennis Bratcher, which I used for the Advent "booklets." I have included it below for those of you who were not able to come Christmas Eve.

An Explanation of Advent: A Season of Advent Anticipation and Hope

Advent. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day, which is the Sunday nearest November 30, and ends on Christmas Eve (Dec 24). If Christmas Eve is a Sunday, it is counted as the fourth Sunday of Advent, with Christmas Eve proper beginning at sundown.

The Colors of Advent
Historically, the primary sanctuary color of Advent is Purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King. Purple is still used in Catholic churches. The purple of Advent is also the color of suffering used during Lent and Holy Week. This points to an important connection between Jesus’ birth and death. The nativity, the Incarnation, cannot be separated from the crucifixion. The purpose of Jesus’ coming into the world, of the "Word made flesh" and dwelling among us, is to reveal God and His grace to the world through Jesus’ life and teaching, but also through his suffering, death, and resurrection. To reflect this emphasis, originally Advent was a time of penitence and fasting, much as the Season of Lent and so shared the color of Lent.

In the four weeks of Advent the third Sunday came to be a time of rejoicing that the fasting was almost over (in some traditions it is called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word for "rejoice"). The shift from the purple of the Season to pink or rose for the third Sunday Advent candles reflected this lessening emphasis on penitence as attention turned more to celebration of the season.

In this double focus on past and future, Advent also symbolizes the spiritual journey of individuals and a congregation, as they affirm that Christ has come, that He is present in the world today, and that He will come again in power. That acknowledgment provides a basis for Kingdom ethics, for holy living arising from a profound sense that we live "between the times" and are called to be faithful stewards of what is entrusted to us as God’s people. So, as the church celebrates God’s breaking into history in the Incarnation, and anticipates a future consummation to that history for which "all creation is groaning awaiting its redemption," it also confesses its own responsibility as a people commissioned to "love the Lord your God with all your heart" and to "love your neighbor as yourself."

So, we celebrate with gladness the great promise in the Advent, yet knowing that there is also a somber tone as the theme of threat is added to the theme of promise. This is reflected in some of the Scripture readings for Advent, in which there is a strong prophetic tone of accountability and judgment on sin. But this is also faithful to the role of the Coming King who comes to rule, save, and judge the world.

Evergreens and The Advent Wreath
The beginning of Advent is a time for the hanging of the green, decorating the church with evergreen wreaths, boughs, or trees that help to symbolize the new and everlasting life brought through Jesus the Christ. Some churches have a special weekday service, or the first Sunday evening of Advent, or even the first Sunday morning of Advent, in which the church is decorated and the Advent wreath put in place. This service is most often primarily of music, especially choir and hand bells, and Scripture reading, along with an explanation of the various symbols as they are placed in the sanctuary.

The Advent wreath is an increasingly popular symbol of the beginning of the Church year in many churches as well as homes. It is a circular evergreen wreath (real or artificial) with five candles, four around the wreath and one in the center. Since the wreath is symbolic and a vehicle to tell the Christmas story, there are various ways to understand the symbolism. The exact meaning given to the various aspects of the wreath is not as important as the story to which it invites us to listen, and participate.

The circle of the wreath reminds us of God Himself, His eternity and endless mercy, which has no beginning or end. The green of the wreath speaks of the hope that we have in God, the hope of newness, of renewal, of eternal life. Candles symbolize the light of God coming into the world through the birth of His son. The four outer candles represent the period of waiting during the four Sundays of Advent, which themselves symbolize the four centuries of waiting between the prophet Malachi and the birth of Christ.

The colors of the candles vary with different traditions, but there are usually three purple or blue candles, corresponding to the sanctuary colors of Advent, one pink or rose candle, and a larger white candle at the center of the wreath symbolizing Jesus – the light of the world! One of the purple candles is lighted the first Sunday of Advent, a Scripture is read, a short devotional or reading is given, and a prayer offered. On subsequent Sundays, previous candles are relighted with an additional one lighted. The pink candle is usually lighted on the third Sunday of Advent. However, different churches or traditions light the pink candle on different Sundays depending on the symbolism used (see above on Colors of Advent). In Churches that use a Service of the Nativity, it is often lighted on the fourth Sunday of Advent, the final Sunday before Christmas.
The light of the candles itself becomes an important symbol of the season. The light reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world that comes into the darkness of our lives to bring newness, life, and hope. It also reminds us that we are called to be a light to the world as we reflect the light of God's grace to others (Isa 42:6). The progression in the lighting of the candles symbolizes the various aspects of our waiting experience. As the candles are lighted over the four week period, it also symbolizes the darkness of fear and hopelessness receding and the shadows of sin falling away as more and more light is shed into the world. The flame of each new candle reminds the worshipers that something is happening, and that more is yet to come. Finally, the light that has come into the world is plainly visible as the Christ candle is lighted on Christmas Sunday, Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Worshipers rejoice over the fact that the promise of long ago has been realized.

The first candle is traditionally the candle of Expectation or Hope (or in some traditions, Prophecy). This draws attention to the anticipation of the coming of a Messiah that weaves its way like a golden thread through Old Testament history. As God’s people were abused by power hungry kings, led astray by self-centered prophets, and lulled into apathy by half-hearted religious leaders, there arose a longing among some for God to raise up a new king who could show them how to be God’s people. They yearned for a return of God’s dynamic presence in their midst.

And so, God revealed to some of the prophets that indeed He would not leave His people without a true Shepherd. While they expected a new earthly king, their expectations fell far short of God’s revelation of Himself in Christ. And yet, the world is not yet fully redeemed. So, we again with expectation, with hope, await God’s new work in history, the second Advent, in which He will again reveal Himself to the world. And we profoundly understand that the best, the highest of our expectations will fall far short of what our Lord’s Second Advent will reveal.

The remaining three candles of Advent may be associated with different aspects of the Advent story in different churches, or even in different years. Usually they are organized around characters or themes as a way to unfold the story and direct attention to the celebrations and worship in the season. So, the sequence for the remaining three Sundays might be Bethlehem, Shepherds, Angels. Or Peace, Love, Joy. Or John the Baptist, Mary, the Magi. Or the Annunciation, Proclamation, Fulfillment. Whatever sequence is used, the Scripture readings, prayers, lighting of the candles, the participation of worshipers in the service, all are geared to telling the story of redemption through God’s grace in the Incarnation.

The third candle, usually for the Third Sunday of Advent, is traditionally Pink or Rose, and symbolizes Joy at the soon Advent of the Christ. Sometimes the colors of the sanctuary and vestments are also changed to Rose for this Sunday. However, as noted above, increasingly in many churches, the pink Advent candle is used on the fourth Sunday to mark the joy at the impending Nativity of Jesus.

Whatever sequence is adopted for these Sundays, the theme of Joy can still be the focus for the pink candle. For example, when using the third Sunday to commemorate the visit of the Magi the focus can be on the Joy of worshiping the new found King. Or the Shepherds as the symbol for the third Sunday brings to mind the joy of the proclamation made to them in the fields, and the adoration expressed as they knelt before the Child at the manager. If used on the fourth Sunday of Advent, it can symbolize the Joy in fulfilled hope.

The center candle is white and is called the Christ Candle. It is traditionally lighted on Christmas Eve or Day. However, since many Protestant churches do not have services on those days, many light it on the Sunday preceding Christmas, with all five candles continuing to be lighted in services through Epiphany (January 6). The central location of the Christ Candle reminds us that the incarnation is the heart of the season, giving light to the world.

-Dennis Bratcher, Copyright ©, Dennis Bratcher - All Rights Reserved

NO GATHERING DECEMBER 27th

2009-12-26T12:17:00.002-07:00

Just a heads up that there will NOT be an Emerging Desert gathering this Sunday, December 27th. Several people are still out of town or busy with other plans...and we are in need of a 'day of rest'! We look forward to seeing everyone again on Sunday January 3rd.

Christmas Eve Songs!

2009-12-17T18:14:00.003-07:00

Are there any requests of songs to sing on Christmas Eve? Even if I can't play it, I'm sure we can fake our way through it. I was preparing songs and felt somewhat... domineering. Am I really just going to hold everyone in bondage to my silly, Sufjan Stevens inspired Christmas songs?

No. That's not us. We're a democracy, darn it.

Let me know if you have any requests! Here's what I have so far:

Amazing Grace
I Saw Three Ships
O come, O come Emmanuel
Come Thou Fount
We Three Kings

Oh, they don't necessarily have to be Christmas songs, I suppose. Or even Christmas related. A rousing rendition of Calexico's "Corona" or Death Cab for Cutie is fine too.

Peace Recap

2009-12-16T10:16:00.006-07:00

We missed the week before last, but thanks to our rockin' blog and Adam’s impressive electronic post-it skills, we got to see that you all spoke about being “beautifully angry”. The times in our life, like when we are beautifully angry, that we lack inner peace can be instructive and generative. We can use the feeling of “this isn’t right” to create, to find something new (like new expressions of faith), to help others, and to make our world a teensy bit better.

But what to do when “beautifully angry” just becomes…angry? This week we talked about how all of us have arrived to this point in our spiritual journeys because we have experienced internal turmoil at some point, telling us that something was not right, that we needed to push against the barriers holding us in. Pretty much all of us have gotten here because of a temporary, and necessary, lack of inner peace. Listening to that gut instinct has been helpful. The anger and the turmoil that led us here has been and will continue to be beneficial for all of us in different phases of life – but what happens when what is supposed to be a temporary state starts to settle in and become permanent? How do we locate the switch to turn OFF that inner anger and lack of peace, once it has helped us grow and evolve?

Our value as an agent of peace in the wider world starts with ourselves. We are the most genuine reflection of peacefulness when we are living it out within ourselves.

So, what are our strategies? Do we have any? Some of us (not Ron and I, ha!) are major planners. Do we have a plan to follow Jesus? What are the cluttered attics in our mind that we need to clean out in order to make room for peace? Do we have anything in our lives that we consistently work on to grow spiritually and achieve inner peace, or do we spend our time envying the spiritual lives of others or dreaming of a day when we, too, will get there – without actually “showing up for practice”?

We ended the discussion on Sunday by talking about some of the ways in which we've individually tried to create peaceful mindsets in our lives. We talked about fasting from things in your life that make you angry - the kind of things that are totally avoidable. Hide those intensely partisan folks from your Facebook news feed, don’t read the news (if anything stupendous happens like another 9/11 or Michael Jackson dying, trust me, you’ll find out), stop reading spiritual blogs that make you think too much of how others (or even yourself) are doing it wrong.

Whatever works for you – just fast from it for awhile.

Practice being someone who becomes beautifully angry, and not just angry. Peace isn’t something that’s natural in human beings, I think. It’s something that we work toward, not a goal we ever really achieve.

Advent Photos

2009-12-12T15:51:00.002-07:00

Here are some EmDes Advent Photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimbobaggins/sets/72157622988095570

Christmas Eve Day EmDes Celebration Brunch!

2009-12-08T18:28:00.004-07:00

Posted for Debbie Armer

A new tradition is about to unfold! Thursday, December 24th the EmDes Christmas Eve Day brunch begins at 10:30 A.M. at our home. We will conclude our observance of Advent by lighting the final Advent candle with the children. EmDes folk will also spend time eating, laughing, celebrating, and worshipping. Josh has offered to bring his guitar.

For those families with children, please bring along their favorite toys or games. (We have coloring books and markers on hand.) If you have family and friends in town for the holidays, please extend to them an invitation to join us in this new tradition of a Christmas Eve Day EmDes celebration brunch! Be prepared for indoor and outdoor seating and dress accordingly.

This is a brunch potluck so bring your favorite brunch food and drink. (Please come even if you are unable to bring anything, all are welcome!) We (Sheri and I) will supply an egg & hash brown casserole, a baked French toast dish, and Wassail. Additional food suggestions are fresh fruit, juices, muffins, Christmas cookies, sliced meats and cheeses, fresh veggies etc. Fruit cake not allowed!

If you have something you know you will bring, please post so we don’t have twelve varieties of Christmas cookies and nothing else. The kids don’t need to be sugared up quite that early in the morning!

Come!

Advent: Joy

2009-12-07T22:45:00.006-07:00

Hey all,

I wanted to go ahead and get a digital version of our time together up on the blog for everybody to peruse. I have really enjoyed taking in each others' responses, and I hope you will too.

For those who weren't able to make it, we spent some time discussing various perspectives on what 'joy' might be. For many of us, the word itself feels sort of antiquated; it's not one that we toss around in everyday conversation very often. What does it mean that Jesus' coming to our world brought joy? It seems that in contrast to the fleeting nature of 'happiness', 'joy' inherently has an element of fulfillment... that when we experience joy we're communing with the core of who/what God created us to be and take in. It comes in myriad moments and forms. It seems to be independent of happiness, quite often. It can also be a mindset and/or discipline (see the previous post by Carrie).

We then shifted our discussion to Rob Bell's Jesus is Difficult: Beatifully Angry sermon. We spent some time recounting Rob's point about how identifying the things in the world that make us beautifully angry can often give us insight into how God wired us individually and what he wants us to address in this world. Ultimately it seems that when we identify and address the things that make us angry, we end up finding another way to create and experience joy/fulfillment for ourselves and the people around us.

We wrapped up the evening with an "ideation session." The session progressed through three questions, the results of which are reproduced in the images below. [click to enlarge]

1. How have you/do you experience joy?

2. What makes you [beautifully] angry?

3. What are you going to do with your beautiful anger to find/create joy?

Joy

2009-12-06T13:51:00.002-07:00

I'm thinking about joy today and what it might mean. I'm looking forward to all of your thoughts this afternoon and what Adam has to share with us. I did want to share a couple links that I thought were interesting and give some new ways to think about joy and practice it in our lives:

This one is from Richard Rohr's book, The Naked Now. He talks about what a joyful mind might look like:

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/books/excerpts.php?id=19452

And this one was interesting to me because I've always thought of joy as a virtue or a trait, but never really as a spiritual practice:

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/practices/practices.php?id=15

Looking forward to seeing you all soon!

Hope

2009-11-30T14:16:00.001-07:00

I’ve been thinking about hope since yesterday. I’m a very positive person, or at least I think I am, and sure I have hope for those around me, but hope for the world is lacking. Last week I was reading about human trafficking and child pornography and it has haunted me since. Last night I didn’t even want to take communion. How can there be so much injustice in the world. How could a God of love allow this to happen? I realize I’m not the first person to ask this question and I won’t be the last. Human suffering is an age old question which all religions have attempted to deal with, but last night I was reminded of why I am drawn to the Christian explanation. The world is broken and it’s filled with broken people. He chose these broken people to change the world, one person at a time. It all starts with me and you. Being in the Schroeder’s home with the em des gang last night has renewed my hope.

Advent

2009-11-25T09:53:00.004-07:00

This Sunday (Nov 29th) is the first week of Advent. We'd talked about following the Advent season and having different people facilitate (I think we are still listening to and discussing pod casts each week as well).

So far, this is how each week of Advent is working out:

First Week (Nov 29th) - Theme is Hope - Sherri and Debbie already have plans in the works to facilitate this week. I'm excited to see what they've put together!

Second Week (Dec 6th) - Theme is Joy - We still need someone to facilitate this week. Anyone interested? We are also anticipating a visit from our dear friends from Colorado this week (Stacy Schaffer and Kathy Escobar).

Third Week (Dec 13th) - Theme is Peace - Gonski's have volunteered for this week. Gonski's talking about Peace...should be interesting!

Fourth Week (Dec 20th) - Theme is Love - My neighbor, Don Doyle (retired ASU Professor of Theatre now a professional story teller - check out his website here: http://www.don-doyle.com/ - note, he also looks a lot like Santa Claus) is going to visit and tell us a story.

There are plans in the works for a Christmas Eve brunch (Dec 24th - like you don't know when Christmas Eve is) which will be hosted by Debbie. I'm sure there will be more details in the next few weeks.

A Six-Pack of House Churches

2009-11-21T12:02:00.001-07:00

The Tall, Skinny Kiwi has posted six (well, seven) different types of house churches that we see emerging into the faith landscape. I believe EmDes would likely fit into the first category.

1 Off-the-grid house churches that intentionally do not want to be known, listed or be on anybody's radar. We find out about them by accident or through opinion polling or sampling, the kind of research George Barna does.

These OoCC (out of Church Christians) gatherings contain a lot of the God-yes-church-no crowd out there.

As a group, we tend to think that if you know about us, then we're doing something wrong! It seems that many of us are from backgrounds where we felt we had to "sell" our church to others, and we shy away from letting others know about the community we're involved with. But, interestingly, that has made it all the more intriguing to people! More listed, after the jump...

Chili Dinner This Sunday!

2009-11-20T09:54:00.003-07:00

Hey folks,

If you're able to make it this Sunday, you get to look forward to Debbie & Sheri's world famous White Chicken Chili!

Let's all bring something to round out the rest of the meal, if we can. Here are some ideas of what will be needed:

- chili toppings
- cornbread
- biscuits, etc
- desserts

Leave a comment here with what you plan to bring so we don't end up with 52 biscuits and no cheese (we NEED cheese:)

*Photo credit - "PotteryBarn Part Deux (Terri)"

This Week's Listening...

2009-11-20T00:03:00.003-07:00

Sorry for the delay in making this available!

Part II - "Jesus Wept"
[to download file: right-click + save]

Progression of Community

2009-11-17T23:23:00.005-07:00

Hey everybody,

I was reflecting on Sunday's conversation regarding the first installment of Rob Bell's Jesus Is Difficult series on Gossip, and I had some thoughts/questions I'd like to throw out to the group...

We've touched on these ideas before, but I want open up the discussion again on our [Emerging Desert's] progression of community. One thing that struck me about the conversation on Sunday (or the portion I was able to observe) was that a number of people identified the assumption of closeness in Rob's main points. That is to say, his teaching about how to deal with conflict and thus gossip hinged on an assumption of relational maturity or closeness. I think we have/are/will continue to witness a beautiful evolution of community within EmDes, but I still sense that there is plenty of ground to cover in deepening our relationships. Or to frame it another way, Rob's talk about conflict resolution, etc. made me wonder if we, as a community, are deep enough into each other's lives to even merit that depth of conflict resolution if one should arise (which really hasn't yet to my knowledge). Does that even make sense?

To offer an answer to my own silly question: I think we're getting there. Like I said, a number of us have committed to doing this journey together, and much progress has been made. But we still have a way to go, I think. So I guess the wrap-up questions are these:

- Is our ongoing progression of community something that simply takes time (so we should just keep doing what we're doing), OR is there some increased level of intentionality that would be good for us to collectively put into action?

- If we lean towards "doing more," what would that look like for us as a group? Of course there's a individual aspect to all of this, but should we add an element to our weekly gatherings in which we some how make ourselves more known to each other (whatever that might mean), or would that feel too forced?

Any and all thoughts are greatly welcome!

Pumpkin Cookies.

2009-11-17T08:57:00.003-07:00

You asked, I deliver.

(It feels a bit strange to post a cookie recipe on this blog, but I guess if everything is spiritual, then it's ok?)

Anywho, by popular request:

Pumpkin Cookies

1 cup butter (softened)
1 cup sugar
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
(mix together)

add dry ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg

* bake for 8-9 minutes in 375 degree oven *

Frosting:

2 Tbsp. brewed coffee
6 Tbsp. butter softened
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups powdered sugar

Photos

2009-11-09T15:28:00.003-07:00

Loved your thoughts on the trip/"church," Joy!

Here's a link to some of the photos that I took over the weekend. Just click on them to enlarge.

Hopefully this wasn't the last of our EmDes getaways!

"Church Is Here!"

2009-11-08T21:33:00.010-07:00

Joining a few of our EmDes friends and families in Flagstaff for the weekend was an an event I had been anticipating for several weeks. Hanging out with people I love and enjoy so much...all under one roof, for 2 nights, in a climate reflecting 'true fall' temperatures...with our days and evenings revolving around great food and drink as well as the uninterrupted company of each other...could undeniably become one of the most memorable experiences of my year!
Friday afternoon, several unavoidable scheduling conflicts prevented our family from leaving the valley and arriving at our AMAZING weekend destination on time...(or at least in an acceptable time frame in my mind). Once it became evident that we'd be late...I began to feel stressed, irritated and a little stupid for not doing a better job getting my family organized and out the door promptly by 3:00pm. I had volunteered to provide dinner for everyone that evening and like all true blue type A personalities...I was freaking out. My imagination conjured thoughts of half starved children bawling for dinner...frustrated grown-ups making comments to never let 'Joy' volunteer to bring dinner 'opening night' of a retreat 3 hours away...ever again!
We finally arrived at the 'cabin' about 45 minutes later than I had planned...(totally UNACCEPTABLE...for me) I sheepishly apologized...imagining the worst to be unfolding behind the door of the enormous vacation home...BUT, what I heard as I hesitantly walked inside, followed by my husband Jim and our 2 youngest daughters...immediately changed my demeanor and the direction of the evening for me...

"MOM! Church is Here!" ~Emma age 5.

Emma's words weren't just child-like and cute...they were powerful to me in that moment and in that space. In my mild hysteria and growing anxiety, I could not have imagined hearing more endearing and encouraging words... ever! (And, these uttered by a hungry child no less?) Her statement became the buzz for the next few minutes...as the adults beamed and ribbed each other a little bit. That single exclamation captured my heart...Emma recognized us as 'church'...her church...I was dumbfounded as I realized that the thing we in EmDes collectively hope to have organically unfold in our little faith community...is that in some real and outward way we ourselves embody THE CHURCH. Sure the the grown-ups can make the connection, most of us have gone to great lengths to reconstruct what church is...but to hear such a strong affirmation from one of our kids...totally confirmed for me...that we are really and truly doing this thing...we are heading in the right direction...
I'm certain that I was offered a glass of wine at that point...a sincere effort by someone to help me 'get a grip'...but, all the previous freaking out and anxiety had already dissipated...Emma's statement " Church is here" reverberating in my head...at that moment...all was well with my soul!

What's Coming Up + VOTE For Our Next Read

2009-10-31T21:55:00.007-07:00

_

Alrighty, we are about to finish off Siljander's A Deadly Misunderstanding, which brings us to a transition of sorts. Last week, Sarah G-ski offered the excellent idea of mixing things up and using a podcast medium to guide our discussion for a few weeks while we sort out our next collective book. Based on the positive response from everybody, we're going to go ahead with that approach.

The podcast that's been selected is Rob Bell's four-part teaching series titled "Jesus is Difficult," which he delivered to Mars Hill a few years ago.

In the meantime, based on last week's discussion I have placed a poll here on the blog in the upper right-hand corner. Please cast your vote for one of the following books:

The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See
by Richard Rohr

Deep Church: A Third Way Beyond Emerging & Traditional
by Jim Belcher

An invite...

2009-10-23T19:18:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, our friend Penny over at AzFCT wanted me to share this with you:

Hi All, I am one of the "lurkers" on your blog, although I have talked with Jacob in person. Wanted to remind you that Diana Butler Bass, who speaks at many of the Emergent conferences, is going to be preaching at Asbury United Methodist Church this Sunday the 25th at 9:30. Asbury is at 1601 W. Indian School Road, Phoenix. It should be a relatively small gathering, and I bet Diana would like to talk with you about your cohort.

Penny

Thanks for the invite Penny!

Ending Christian Euphemisms

2009-10-19T16:48:00.000-07:00

Tony Jones has been blogging on ending Christian euphemisms. We've all heard them. "Pray for Johnny... he's (insert juicy gossip here)." "That person has an unteachable spirit."

There's all sorts of insider language inside of our faith, and much of it can actually be damaging. Some of our euphemisms are the spiritual equal of saying "Darn" instead of "Damn". It's the same heart, just vague words.

What are some of the euphemisms we use? Or, even better, what are some of the euphemisms that we Christians who are involved with emergent topics use?

From Tony Jones on BeliefNet...

I received loads of great comments about what Christian euphemisms we should drag, kicking and screaming, into the light of day in an attempt to euthanize them. I won't be able to tackle them all, but I'll highlight some of my favorites this week.

Chris Enstad nominated this beauty:

"The Lord laid it on my heart..."

Which is a euphemism for: This is something I want to do.

I grew up in a home in which, while faithful and Christian, we didn't talk a ton about faith. In fact, most Christian euphemisms were new to me when I went to college and got involved in an evangelical ministry. It seems to me that liberal Protestants have far fewer insider euphemisms -- that's probably because we're more "worldly" and "secular" (read, not residing in a Christian ghetto).

So I don't remember my parents ever blaming "the Lord" for one of their decisions, good or bad. It would have probably seemed highly anti-intellectual to them to do so.

Thus, it surprised me a bit when I started hearing people talk about their decisions, big and small, were directly influenced by the God of the Universe. And by that I don't mean that they brought biblical reasoning to bear on their decisions, but that God deigned to whisper in their ear about what they should do.

Of course, I don't mean to say that I believe in a non-interventionist God. I actually turn to God for aid in many decisions, big and small. But I can't say that I ever felt God actually stir my brain juices, which is what it always seemed like when someone used this phrase, "The Lord laid it on my heart," or something like it.

What's really most odious about this phrase is when it's used to justify something that's otherwise unjustifiable.

What If a Church Had an Expiration Date?

2009-10-16T16:27:00.002-07:00

I find this to be an interesting idea. I think we've all been in congregations that we know have "jumped the shark". For whatever reason, they lost steam, they over-invested, or they lost some key element, and now they've been stagnant for years. But what if we went into planting a congregation with the intention of it eventually expiring? What would we do different? Would we invest in buildings and programs, or in people and communities? Would more people be lifted up to go out and carry on?

It's a wonderful idea, one which we should examine.

From Pomomusings:

Guest Blog: What If a Church Had an Expiration Date?: "

Today’s guest post is written by author and pastor Russell Rathbun. I got to meet Russell at Princeton Seminary a few years ago, and really enjoyed hearing him preach. Russell is a founding minister with Debbie Blue of House of Mercy, a pioneering emergent church in St. Paul, Minnesota. He’s the author of a brand new book called nuChristian: Finding Faith in a New Generation. nuChristian responds to recent reports of Christianity’s image problem. In nuChristian, Russell offers practical suggestions for leaders who want to reach out to the new generation with a Christlike community that is transparent, holistic, loving, engaged, just and humble. I asked Russell to write a guest post today for his stop at Pomomusings on his Virtual Book Tour. I hope you enjoy his post, “What if a Church Had an Expiration Date?”

What If a Church Had an Expiration Date?

I have talked to a lot of people who are starting churches and a lot more people who are trying to keep churches from dying. Both missions are very hard to accomplish. So, I had an idea. What if you started a church with an expiration date? Say, five years. That would be just enough time for an energized core group to get together and build a unique community—an incarnation of the Body of Christ that addresses a particular time and place, the context in which they are living. They could welcome friends and newcomers who are interested, intrigued, and drawn in by the body’s particular vision, worship, service, study, and creativity, inviting the visitor to become part of the life of the community. Finally this expanded group of believers would begin to articulate new visions for changing contexts and to develop new core groups around those visions, groups who would then go out and start several new churches with new expiration dates.

This could solve some of the major quandaries that arise in starting and sustaining churches. The greatest help would be giving a particular incarnation of the Body of Christ permission to be done—to say that our mission in this time and place, in this specific context is finished. To say, “We may not have done everything we wanted, but we have been faithful to our vision.” Or to say, “We did everything we hoped to do. Now let’s go do something else.” If this permission to say “It is finished” caught on, then maybe churches that have been around for a long time could close up shop without feeling like they have failed. It would give any small group of folks with no resources but an emerging vision of what God could do in their context, the permission to do something for just awhile—perhaps for only a year or two. And they wouldn’t have to feel bad for not building the next Solomon’s Porch or Jacob’s Well.

The church of Jesus Christ is not closing its doors. Only particular contextual expressions of that church will do so. Is the church in Ephesus still going strong with the same vitality and vision it began with? Contexts, people, visions, and relationships change, but the charge to go into all the world making disciples does not.

The Church with an Expiration Date would guard against our human tendency toward idolatry—to idolize dynamic leaders or our ability to build institutions. It would staunch our pretenses to power and require a continual refocus on how we proclaim the gospel for the transformation of this particular group of people, in this particular cultural context. The Expiring Church could produce two, three, or ten new vital, living, unique incarnations of the Body of Christ—and you would never have to start that building fund.

***UPDATE***

I received this book in the mail the other day from the author this blog links to. I'm going to read through it and write up my own review for us. It's very interesting so far!

EmDes Retreat

2009-10-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

I think the weekend of Nov. 7 would be the date considering it's already the middle of October (ahh!). What several of us discussed is hopefully a larger cabin, not more than $50 per adult/night, so we could either do one night (just drive up Sat. morning and stay the night) or two nights (drive up Fri. evening) depending on the time and money factor.

Tara had a good idea that a family (or a combo of families depending on the meal?) commit to bringing up stuff for one meal, or else of course we can just hit a grocery store when we're there.

Thus far we have the Gonskis, the Schroeders, the Bamfords, and me... I would imagine we'd need a final count by this Sunday so I can make definite arrangements (hopefully ha). I'm hoping we can secure a big cabin and people can bring blowup mattresses and/or sleeping bags or use a couch if there are not enough beds to go around.

joy's blog

2009-10-06T08:10:00.008-07:00

Hey friends and lurkers,

Joy has been blogging through a bit of her spiritual journey, and I think she is doing an amazing job. Check out her latest post regarding deconstruction and reconstruction of "praxis"

(Two thumbs WAY up)

Laundry Love on Thursday

2009-09-30T18:45:00.001-07:00

Laundry Love is tomorrow (Thursday, Oct 1st) at 742 E. Main St. in Mesa (Strip mall on NW corner of Main and Horne). We're needing help if anyone is interested. Starts at 7PM and ends around 9PM.

Life In Abundance Benefit Dinner...

2009-09-29T23:31:00.009-07:00

Attention everybody:

As some of you may know, Life In Abundance International will be having a Fall Benefit Dinner here in AZ on Sunday, October 11th. Some folks from Emerging Desert pooled some funds to help sponsor the event, and accordingly there are seats available for anybody that is interested!

It will be a great night, so please contact Adam ( adam [dot] bamford {at} gmail [dot] com ) ASAP if you'd like to attend. Here are the details:

Sunday, October 11th

5:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Phoenix Zoo

Stone House Pavilion

455 N. Galvin Parkway

Formal invitation below...

Deep Church...

2009-09-26T16:08:00.004-07:00

Hey all,

Just wanted to highlight a new book that's coming out:

Deep Church: A Third Way Beyond Emerging & Traditional
by Jim Belcher

I just learned about this book from John Chandler's blog (read his review here), and it definitely struck me as a book that will interest many of us... perhaps even a discussion book?

See you all tomorrow...

Mosque

2009-09-16T22:18:00.001-07:00

For those who wanted to visit the Mosque in Tempe for this Friday's celebration of Ramadan, here is the down-low...

Islamic Community Center of Tempe,

131 E. 6th St. Tempe, AZ 85281
Tel: (480) 894-6070
www.tempemosque.com

Here are some thoughts from Wendi:

"I think prayer starts at 6:30. so maybe we can meet at my house at 5:30. We will leave by 5:45. We will be back before 8ish...
Or peeps can go straight to the mosque by 6:30.
My cell is 480.six.two.eight.two.one.three.five. Peeps can contact me once they get there to meet up.
My addy is 714 W Marlboro dr
Chandler AZ 85225
Dress on the conservative side jeans are fine for male and female. Females need a shirt with sleeves and long enough to start to cover her butt...
email me at wcleckner{at}gmail[dot]com with questions."

If you'd like to read up on Ramadan before hand, their site provides some good info here.

I hope all who go have a great time. Sorry to miss it, can't wait to hear about it.

Emerging Church Movement Theology

2009-09-15T18:41:00.001-07:00

This came up in my Google Reader today, and I found it to be pretty interesting, and a good overview of things. What do you think?

From http://compassioninpolitics.wordpress.com/2009/09/15/emerging-church-movement-theology/

A quick overview analysis of emerging church movement theology

I worry that some in mainline Protestant churches aren’t taking the emergent church seriously–that they are dismissing them as relativistic or post-modern Christianity (without taking a deeper and more nuanced look at the issues). The emergent church is here and how we deal with that fact will shape the future of the church in profound ways:

Potential Benefits of Emergent Church Movement
1) Focus on creating a safe space for outcasts and others (theoretically a safe space for minority or heretical views)
2) Focus on conversation vs. rationalist argument
3) Focus on the role narrative over legalism
4) Focus on relationship
5) Focus on the role of community in nurturing believers (small groups)
6) Focus on other (suppressed or ignored) ways of knowing (experience, narratives, etc..)
7) Focus on context/interpretive frame for author
8] Focus on context/interpretive frame for reader
9) Focus on humility in interpretation (and life) Realize our partial perspective.
10) Care for service and post-materialism (greed and environment/creation cares). Also inspiring new forms of service and community connection.
11) Journey over finality
12) Perhaps a better truth and resolution of problems of hermeneutics (eventually)
13) Exploring new forms of church and worship. Innovation. (Creative and new wine skins)
14) Reaching the unreached. Anthropological knowledge. (although sometimes a bit pre-emptive) Missional focus.
15) The understanding of systems theory and -isms in the church.
16) Challenging/destruction of dogma. Coming to the text with new and unique eyes. A phoenix or reformation style re-birth and regeneration. (loving agonism can create progress–Hegelian dialectic) Closer to Christ–further from dogma and a false contentment with orthydoxy.
17) A re-newal of the cultural debate (opposition, cooption, etc.–which of the 5 perspectives do we take) and the role of the church.
18) Authenticity, transparency, and openness via small groups (although both mega churches and seeker sensitive churches are making this move–but they are certainly a part of this. the same goes for service and some other trends here)
19) Learning how to better deal with diversity, difference, and otherness (and how we create boundaries, identity and ultimately relationship) Perhaps loose some of the baggage that goes with exclusionary image discussed in Unchristian.
20) Hopefully less underutilized talent
21) Personal vs. corporate faith. You are responsible for your faith and relationship with God
22) A reminder that church and spirituality is holistic–it touches everything and is everything.
23) Reminded that the preacher is not the final word and current orthydoxy, although it has a history (and some degree of lived experience), is orthydoxy. (I think sorting out correct doctrine vs. orthydoxy is critical important)
24) Meaning is socially constructed or rather socially mediated [even as its in the text as well]
25) Church is to make you open minded rather than closed minded

Criticism and Risks of Emerging Church
1) Hyper-diversity and loss of identity (risk of conflict, division, and lack of commonality)
2) Risk of losing doctrine, universality, and final authority
3) A black hole of theological narcissism (how do you resolve me vs. we?)
4) Culture worship/whatever identity
5) Hyper-ecumenicalism and accusations of new ageism
6) Risk of losing everything that is modern (what do we keep? what do we give up?)
7) In terms of worship style focusing on Him and not us. (ie less ego)
8] Change is difficult. Not all change is good. Destruction and erosion of tradition
9) How to allocate resources, talents, time, and focus. (which is always an ongoing issue)
10) Too much emphasis on text and theory is debilitating intellectually and practically. Is there such a thing as being too rebellious? Or perhaps too critical? Whither meta-narratives?
11) Theory is messy, complex, and of necessity always incomplete. Interpretation is likewise messy. (this is generally a risk with modernism, however although I think slightly less so)
12) Do some of the questions better fit in another venue than the pulpit? (perhaps class or small group)

Actually many of the twelve or so challenges and risks I outlined may be re-framed as a chance to challenge, learn, and re-think our perspectives on these issues so that we are better as Christians and as a church. I think this is not the time for name calling and argument, but conversation and listening that is genuine, open, and two-way.

I find it important to point out that the individualist nature of the personal quest seems to be balanced by an equally robust value of community (both internally and externally). How this dynamic plays out to me is critical to the “success” of the Christian church in years to come.

I know labels can be bad, but they can also help us sort through clutter and confusion. It seems like a more nuanced approach to practice might provide a better understanding of what it means to be emergent.

As pointed out above, I don’t think we’re post modern yet. I think the population is 50 to 80% still modernist and even those who think they are post modern are still wedded to modern values and thought. I think however understanding that there are groups who identify with a more flexible or relativist orientation is an important insight and those people need a place to call their church home.

I personally find myself in the position of being a personal emergent in the sense of my relationship to the text–applying a critical eye (and hopefully practice) to what I hear and read. I don’t read much in Eastern religions and metaphysics, although I pay attention to critical theorists and postmodernists. I’ve been reading this material for 10 years and the more nihilistic or relativistic versions don’t fit my understandings–and as many emergents point out the question should never end up being “what would foucault do?” (WWFD) or “what would zizek do?” (WWZD) the text should have focus and primacy.

What have I left out about emergent church? What challenges does it represent? Where do you see the church and emergent in 10 years? Can we learn to get along?

*** note this analysis is limited because its only the analysis of a person who has read the theory and philosophy of some emergent churches. however, as someone who has been exposed to post modern literature outside the context of theology and as someone who find themselves in someways between the two camps (which seem to have the same ultimate mission), I think I offer unique insight. it is not an endorsement of everything they do–just a head up that they have something important to offer.

Recap 8.30.09

2009-09-08T22:11:00.006-07:00

So, if I turn this in late can I still get partial credit? Oh how I remember asking that question. Again and again.

I thought our conversation was great (a week and a half ago), so despite being behind I thought I'd throw down some quick nuggets. As always, I'm paraphrasing like crazy - so be sure to correct me when I unintentionally misquote you. If I do it intentionally, and it offends you, hit Ctrl+Alt+Delete twice (for Republicans) and Control-Command-Eject (for Democrats).

We started out discussing our favorite foods, from which the G-ski's emerged (HA!) as the food snobs. Maybe they should kick it up a notch from now on? Something with sea scallops in a white wine sauce will do just fine.
We summarized our previous weeks discussion; specifically how our view of the deity of Christ affects our approach to "evangelism". What exactly "conversion" means to us in light of the topics in our current book.
Stacey asks: if we don't know the gospel fully because of the language, or our understanding of it can be flawed, then how or what do we share with others? (you get an "A" for having such a good question)
Joshua - it may not be as simple for some of us (anymore), to simply give people the message "Jesus died for your sins". There is so much wrapped up in a statement like this, that quick answers can confuse more than help.
Ron - the words "Father Father why have you forsaken me" in Aramaic can be translated as "Father Father this is my destiny".
Me - some of us may be feeling the shift that Phyllis Tickle describes in her book The Great Emergence (still on my "to read" list) in that our "authority" is moving from the Word (Sola Scriptura) to something new. For more reading on this, Greg Arthur at Emergent Nazarenes summarized this well at the beginning of the year. I'd also like to add that once on their site I realized I liked them, because of this post. Phyllis herself sums it up as well via the tube:
Sarah - the gospel has been and is introduced in our culture as "informational" and not so much "relational". So we approach it as such, seeking from it a knowledge that can be fully known. This may be where we've gone wrong.
Joy - when did conversion, or the beginning of salvation, become simply taking "the prayer"? (I really like this one Joy, we need to talk about this more)
Ron / Jim / Joy - every person has a Bible, and that has been both a blessing and a curse.
Jamie - sometimes we aren't going to fully understand, but we can live how we know we should (perfectly said Jamie, maybe this is what God is trying to tell us, that he can't be fully known!)

Take away: we could work on developing a different approach to the Bible; one that has more openness and humility. Seeking answers and closure from it may leave us frustrated.

Alright, so that's all for now. As you can see there was some good stuff that had to be launched into the blogosphere (eventually). Comment away!

18 Months...

2009-09-06T23:14:00.001-07:00

Cool article on Emergent Village and a video from the Ooze...

I'm not sure I agree or disagree, probably because I'm too ignorant to do either. Regardless, this woman consistently blows me away with her energy and her spirit. She writes much more cohesively than she interviews, I think because the audio somehow can't catch everything she means to say.

Has anybody read The Great Emergence, and can I borrow it?

Em Des BBQ

2009-09-04T11:35:00.002-07:00

Don't forget we are doing BBQ and swimming with our friends this weekend.
We (Schroeders and Oralia) will supply the meats (hot dogs, hamburgers and brats), buns and condiments. Please bring sides. Here are some suggestions:
Salads of all sort
- Potatoe
- Pasta
- Vegitable
- Fruit
- Bean
- Lettuce
Baked Beans
Chips & Dips
Watermelon
Deserts
- Cookies
- Brownies
Drinks
You know, the usual BBQ type stuff. If you have something you are planning on bringing, if you can comment back, then we can be sure we don't end up with 10 fruit salads.

because gmail is down for craig, I post in his stead

2009-09-01T15:33:00.001-07:00

it's tuesday, which of course means new music day! {=o) okay, maybe i'm the only one who thinks of tuesdays as a weekly music holiday. anyway, there is an album out today that i thought some of you might find interesting. david bazan - curse your branches. if you haven't heard of david bazan or his better-known previous project, pedro the lion, it's really a pretty interesting catalog of work. he has always been very open and transparent about his spiritual life and struggles (with some sidebars into his problems with politics/the religious right). starting from his early work of basically hymns and praise songs mixed with critiques of the church to this latest record where he tends to call out god on more than one occasion even to the point of questioning his existence. here's an interesting interview with the guy, if you'd like to find out a little more about where he's coming from.
i've got the record if anyone is interested in borrowing it. i've been listening to it for about a month,* some days i have to play it a few times in a row and sometimes i don't want to hear it.

here are a couple of great songs from the record.

When We Fell

with the threat of hell hanging over my head like a halo
i was made to believe in a couple of beautiful truths
that eventually had the effect of completely unraveling
the powerful curse put on me by you
when you set the table
and when you chose the scale
did you write a riddle
that you knew they would fail
did you make them tremble
so they would tell the tale
did you push us when when we fell
if my mother cries when i tell her what i have discovered
then i hope she remembers she taught me to follow my heart
and if you bully her like you’ve done me with fear of damnation
then i hope she can see you for what you are
what am i afraid of
whom did i betray
in what medieval kingdom does justice work this way
if you knew what would happen and made us just the same
then you , my lord, can take the blame

In Stitches

my body bangs and twitches
some brown liquor whets my tongue
my fingers find the stitches
firmly back and forth they run
i need no other memory
of the bits of me i left
when all this lethal drinking
is to hopefully forget
about you
i might as well admit it
like i even have a choice
the crew have killed the captain
but they still can hear his voice
a shadow on the water
a whisper in the wind
on long walks with my daughter
who is lately full of questions
about you
when job asked you the question
you responded “who are you
to challenge your creator?”
well if that one part is true
it makes you sound defensive
like you had not thought it through
enough to have an answer
like you might have bit off
more than you could chew

* - yes, i am a sinner. i steal music from the internet when it is not yet available in stores. but i fully intend to buy the lp once i can figure out how to get it to my house without melting.

Refugees from Iraq

2009-09-01T07:19:00.002-07:00

Joy and I have a friend ...Heidi. Heidi works (lives and breathes) for Food for the Hungry. She is the one who has connected us with the refugees from Iraq, who fled the country and came here because it wasn't safe there. These refugees love it here but it's not exactly what they expected.

Please read some of their stories. http://bit.ly/6FQn3

It is now Ramadan, which is a time for cleansing.. physically and spiritually. Heidi is providing some families in her writings ...for us to pray about.

http://bit.ly/6FQn3

EmDes Getaway!

2009-08-30T19:07:00.003-07:00

Any thoughts as to what we should do for a group trip? Ideas:

-Camping
-Trying to get a group rate on a hotel
-Cabins
-Mooching off of someone's family who has a place somewhere interesting / fun / cold(er).
-Mexico (Jamie ;) )