Territorial Bloggings

Some thoughts in the form of statements/theses…

1. Facts are objective
2. Human intellect observes & interprets facts
3. Facts were not corrupted at/by the Fall
4. Human intellect was corrupted at/by the Fall
5. Christianity is a fact-based religion
6. Biblical Faith is not an absence of facts
7. Biblical Faith is an active trust in facts
8. Sinful/Corrupt intellect can/does misinterpret objective facts
9. When in conflict, Biblical Faith trumps Intellectual observation & interpretation
10. This does not make Christianity a-factual, or faith something opposed to reality

-ghp

Now that I’ve finally finished watching & taking notes on all 15 talks in the ALPHA DVD set, the next step is processing those notes into a more cogent & thoughtful format for your consumption. As I continue to do that, I thought I’d put a little teaser out, particularly after I listened to the first hour of Issues, Etc. on 9/11 (Listener Email & Issues, Etc. Comment Line)

Starting at 38:04, emailer Joshua from Tuscon, AZ brought up a great point, related to an earlier discussion about Gospel Reductionism, that dovetailed amazingly well with something that I observed in ALPHA. He posited that, in Evangelical circles, Gospel Reductionism takes the form of “Relational” or “Relationship” Theology.

“Jesus wants to have a relationship with you, and that relationship is the first and most important need in people.” “This is a potent form of Gospel Reductionism.”

(Paraphrasing…) Further, under a “Gospel of Relationships,” the need to differentiate from others (key to the Puritan heritage of Evangelicalism) manifests itself in lifestyle – i.e., the desire to look and act like a Christian, complete with all the markers brought down from Puritanism (no drinking, no questioning authority, no condemnation of non-sanctioned things, etc…) so as to be able to tell who’s in & who’s out.

Recently, however, among 2nd Generation, “Relational” Evangelicals (Rick Warren, the Emergent/Emerging crowd, etc…) there is a tendency to rail against legalism, such that judgments & strong statements/stances (against, say, homosexual marriage/clergy, etc…) are no longer held in as much favor as differentiating markers. (End Paraphrasing)

The linkage to ALPHA is this: This type of “Relational Theology” and “Gospel of Relationships” is very much in line with ALPHA and what it teaches. IOW, ALPHA is quite consistent, both in how it confesses the “Relationship Gospel”, and how it applies & espouses it throughout the whole course.

More details will, of course, be forthcoming, but I can (perhaps too) succinctly summarize ALPHA in the following PRO & CON statements…

PRO: It is internally consistent in hewing to it’s core principles throughout the course.

CON: It is of a different spirit/gospel than Sacramental, Christocentric, Christianity.

-ghp

From the Oct 25, 2008 Belief Watch column in Newsweek:

“With a scrap of bagel and a sip of Crystal Light, Beth McDonald gave communion to her husband. Then, after a blessing, he gave communion to her. Music played as the celebrant intoned the ancient words, “Do this in remembrance of me.” The experience was among the most spiritually powerful of her life. “I had my eyes closed,” McDonald told me. “We were praying … I got really choked up.”

McDonald was not in church; she was in her living room in Minnesota. The celebrant was not at church; he was at home, in Santa Fe, N.M. Other participants logged on from Sri Lanka, Australia and the Netherlands. Through streaming video and the Internet, all were joined in holy communion.

As technology reshapes our world, as our “friends” become the people we know on Facebook as well as the ones we invite home for dinner, the definition of community is taking on radically new meanings. Nowhere is the concept of community more crucial than in religion. In the West, people traditionally worship together, in a group, in one room; that togetherness has theological import. In Christianity, the sacrament of communion underscores the unity of the faithful; consuming the consecrated bread and wine binds Christians with each other, with the saints in heaven and with the Lord. Now, at the farthest corners of the Christian world, a few people are applying new-tech concepts of community to this ancient rite. The example above is among the most avant-garde. The celebrant, Zeph Daniel, is a musician who preaches online to a group of Christians disconnected from the traditional church. One of his slogans is “Leave religion and find God.”"

This is neither Holy, nor Communion. Discuss…

-ghp

Even though it’s a “Hallmark Holiday”, today being Grandparents Day hit me a little bit harder than the norm today. Why?

Because it’s my first one without any grandparents.

Over the past 13.5 years, bigsis and I have lost all of our grandparents. First Papa, then Grandpa, then Grandma, and finally this past July, Nana. Bigsis and I were luckier than most – we lived a good chunk of our lives with all four grandparents as active forces in our lives. They were quite young when bigsis was born and just young-ish when I was born. I was 28 when Papa died (he was 83), and I’m 40 now. Discretion prevents me from saying what bigsis was/is.

My point is, we have been tremendously blessed. My grandparents were all good people. I didn’t always appreciate them properly, but I always loved them. I didn’t always agree with what they did or how they treated my parents, but I always respected them (something for which I give full credit to my parents, for they always made sure that we children knew to love, honor, and respect our grandparents, no matter what!).

My grandparents were, taken as couples, very different personalities. One trait and behavior they had in common, however, was this — they always made me feel safe and loved. Grandma & Grandpa were the more stereotypically “traditional” grandparents – doting, baking, cooking, playing games. For a small child, time spent with them was Nirvana, and they had the ability to make each and every one of their six grandchildren feel like he or she was the favorite. (even though I know I really was! ) Nana & Papa were more “modern” and had more of an “edge” to them. But, even though they might not have been as cuddly (well, Nana anyway – Papa was as cuddly as you could get!) in the traditional sense, they were every bit as loving and caring. I didn’t begin to appreciate them until I got older. That’s ok, I think, because sometimes time brings with it perspective, and perspective, wisdom.

I’m also thankful for the blessing of my grandparents because I see them in my parents. Without my grandparents I wouldn’t have my parents. As my parents formed & raised me & bigsis, so were they formed & raised by my grandparents. I am (proudly) a mama’s boy, just as she is (proudly) a daddy’s girl. And I know my Papa loved and was proud of me. I feel a very strong connection to both my grandfathers. I spent a lot of time with them, particularly Grandpa when I was in grades K-2.

I’m not blind to their failings, as I’m blind to neither my own, nor my parents’. All three generations share many of the same, and I can safely say that I think they’ve been passed down to the next generation in my kids (with a few quirks thrown in from my wife’s side of the family…). But that’s ok, that’s how it works…

Because faith is another thing that gets passed along in our family. My parents got taken to church. Bigsis and I got taken to church, and we’ve both made sure that our kids are getting properly brought up in the One True Faith.

Just one more thing to be thankful for on this Grandparents Day…

-ghp

One of my pet peeves is when folks trot out the old chestnut of, “Well, I’m not a theologian, I’m just a simple layman…” Sometimes, they even mean it in a truly self-effacing way. Usually, however, I’ve found that it’s meant in a way that’s calculated to cut off any negative reaction, or correction, to whatever follows that declarative statement.

I would contend that it is actually more accurate for folks to say that they are not dogmatist/theoretician.

Let me explain…

Theology: The field of study and analysis that treats of God and of God’s attributes and relations to the universe; study of divine things or religious truth; divinity.

Theologian: a person versed in theology, esp. Christian theology

In short, theology is the relationship of God to the universe, and thus a theologian is someone who is interested in that relationship. Pretty simple.

I’ve said it in the past, and I’ll say it again here: We are all theologians.

What we might not all care to be, however, are dogmatists.

Dogma:

1. A doctrine or a corpus of doctrines relating to matters such as morality and faith, set forth in an authoritative manner by a church.
2. An authoritative principle, belief, or statement of ideas or opinion, especially one considered to be absolutely true.

Dogmatist: One who dogmatizes; one who speaks dogmatically; a bold and arrogant advancer of principles. Another good word for describing what I’m after here is theoretician.

In other words, what I’m contending is that when folks say “I’m not a theologian…” what they really mean is that they’re not a policy wonk – i.e., someone who gets off on the minutiae of delving into the theological DNA of doctrinal issues. Most folks want to feel comfortable that they have a good grasp of the ‘big picture’ stuff.

The thing is, understanding the big picture framework is easy enough if you let yourself be open to what I’ve outlined above. That’s the easy part. Once you’ve accepted it, that’s when the hard part begins. Because no matter which direction you go in, theoretician or non-, you have to constantly work to keep up to speed, lest Satan overtake you & lure you off the narrow path.

As Luther himself observed, there’s a ditch on either side of the road, and you’re in equally bad shape (i.e., IN THE DITCH!) if you stray from the path. Meaning, if you get lost in the minutiae of the DNA, like so many dogmatists who end up down rabbit holes, your faith is in just as much danger as the “plain old pewsitting layman” who is led astray by that “nice man” Joel Osteen who preaches his false gospel of feel-good prosperity, or by Oprah with her new-agey paganism.

We are all theologians, my friends, and it is my fervent prayer that the Holy Ghost will strengthen and preserve us such that we will all be Theologians of the Cross!

-ghp

All too rare is the blog posting that generates a comment thread that outshines the original post. Father Hollywood has done just that with his post Emerging Luther? !

Not only is the main post a great analysis of the increasingly interesting “Emergent Church” phenomena, particularly as it is impacting the LCMS, but the comments that follow the main post are worthy of separate consideration in their own right. This is particularly true for the comments by Fr. Hollywood, wherein he does a great job of simply & concisely explaining Lutheranism’s relationship to both Rome & Constantinople, as well as to all of the myriad splinters that emerged (no pun intended) from Geneva.

While I had known that Wittenberg has greater kinship with Rome & Constantinople, and much less than with Geneva (and its offspring), I had never connected the dots with quite the clarity that Fr. H does. Rather than rehash his statements, doing them dishonor in the process, I’ll just recommend that you head over to read them at his place.

-ghp

Would that God bless us all with faithful undershepherds, like Chaplain to the World, who get this.

We need Pastors, not glib, glad-handing, “friends”, and I think Rev. Kavouras deserves (let those who know him understand) a big hug for saying so! ;^)

-ghp

I admit it.

I willingly became a middle manager.

Heck, I even earned a Masters Degree (in Information Technology & Management, UNC-Greensboro, 2001) so that I could make it happen.

I made the Dilbertian bargain of foregoing specific technical expertise in order to become a generalist.

I had no idea, however, that it would largely be an exercise in psychology and personality management.

It’s really been quite the surprising thing to note, as I look back over the past 6 years, just how much time & effort I put into juggling the personalities of my staff, as well as that of my boss. The line staff tend to be (rightfully) very task focused/oriented. They’re focused on the micro picture, and often view problem solving through the prism of individual task/project requirements. My boss is (also rightfully) by comparison much more focused on things macro. The proverbial big, strategic, picture. And I’m the middle-management meat in between these two slices of bread.

Now, it’s not a bad thing, not really. But it is a bit frustrating at times, particularly when the two sides present goals, ideas, opinions, & preferences that are, at best, not aware of the other side’s and, at worst, in direct opposition to the other. IOW, a lot of the juggling comes in when those above me are focused on the macro movement of big, project-sized, pieces of what we do & where we want to go. They don’t want to be bothered with how it gets done. Until they do, that is… The staff below me almost inevitably views things in the micro sense, limited to the immediate tasks & how to complete them. Being told to do something in a certain way, especially when that clashes with their sense of “right” or “efficient”, well that takes a certain type of coaxing. What really makes it challenging is when those above are “Boomers” and those below are “Millennials” — commenting on refereeing between those two generations could fill a whole series of postings!

I’m not complaining, mind you. Not really. It is interesting to note that this type of “touchy-feely” stuff goes very much against my personality type. It’s always draining, often frustrating, but oddly satisfying. I ask God every day for the strength to be properly empathetic, sympathetic, and wise as I go about my daily tasks.

In any event, those of you who are middle managers, I think you’ll nod your heads in agreement. Those who aren’t, but are interested in it, be forewarned. Those who don’t care either way, well, I’m surprised you’re still reading this. ;^)

Interestingly enough, the biggest challenge coming up isn’t, I think, dealing with the aging Boomers – heck, I’ve been having to deal with them my entire life. I even sort of “get” them & where they’re coming from. No, it’s dealing with the kids who were born in the 80′s – the Millennials. I just don’t get them & what is going on inside their heads. I have theories as to why they are like they are (surprise! it traces back to the Boomers…), but expounding on them is fodder for future postings.

That’s enough for now.

-ghp

I felt good walking out of work this evening.

Sad thing is, I caught myself doing it.

That’s probably not a good thing, is it? Not trusting that the good thing/feeling will continue if you acknowledge that it actually happened, that is…

Inside my head can be a, shall we say, odd and often unpleasant place to be. I’m sure that’s probably true for most everyone, but I know it’s the case for me. I know that I ought not doubt the good things, but that pesky sense of impending doom is awfully hard to shake, knamean?

God has blessed me, most certainly beyond anything I even remotely deserve. I ought to thankfully rest in those grace-full blessing. Sin, however, rears its ugly head, only to drag me away from that rest. Well, it’s probably more accurate to say that sin causes me to willingly run away from that rest, isn’t it? Machts nichts…

I’m feeling the need to just ramble, even as there’s a part of me (sitting inside my head, actually – the part that contributes my inner running monologue…) that’s saying it’s a bad idea — e.g., it’s self-indulgent, lame, boring, & readership-destroying. I just need to get some of these thoughts out, though, and since I’ve paid for hosting & taken the trouble to learn how to install, configure, & run things, I might as well do whatever the heck I please. Besides, I know there aren’t all that many folks to alienate out there (although I certainly do thank you hardy 30 or so subscribers of my RSS feed, and the average of 10 or so folks who browse directly by each day!). If you’ve been reading long enough, then you probably know enough of my quirks to possibly even be (morbidly) fascinated or (strangely) interested in what I might be thinking on a given day. Goodness knows I have opinions. And I certainly consume enough information each day, so that I should be able to crank stuff out. So that’s what I’ll try to do…

As I was saying, today was a pleasant walk out to the car. I like winter. I like the cold, crisp weather. After 12 years in North Carolina, cold, crisp winter air was something that almost made me giddy during my first winter back in the Midwest 6 years ago. That holds true through to today. The bite in the air. The sound carrying across the snow. The way the cold temps make my jacket crinkle. So often it’s those little things about God’s creation that make the biggest, most satisfying impressions.

And for that, I’m thankful.

-ghp

The focal point of this past weekend was not, like most of country, Thanksgiving – that was just the appetizer, as it were. Rather, the main focus for the Territorial Brood was the third wedding we’ve attended in the past 6 months.

All three have been “family”-related: the first, my wife’s blood relations, the second, my blood relations, and the third was my wife’s life-long best friend – the type of friend that might just as well be family, for the friendship bond is as tight (or tighter) than one shared by siblings.

The three weddings offered a contrasting look at three different points along the contemporary wedding “event” continuum. Not only that, but they also presented some interesting data points with regard to theology. Note: Much has been written elsewhere about the whole “white wedding” industry, so I won’t get in to all that much detail here; suffice it to say that the trend over the past 50-75 years has been to change the focus from celebrating the start of a life together (i.e., the marriage) to that of the spectacle & shindig (i.e., the wedding).

In the middle, both “event” wise as well as theologically, was the first wedding. My wife comes from a Roman Catholic background, thus it was no surprise that there was a full-on Roman Mass. As I wrote more in-depth on it earlier, I’ll not go into detail here; suffice it to say that while I certainly didn’t like or approve of much of the theology underpinning the Roman Mass, I found it refreshing that they took it seriously as a worship service and not just as a ceremony/event. As for the reception, the focus was on the party as a celebration in & of itself, rather than as a celebration of the marriage. Things weren’t way out of whack, mind you, but enough for it to be reasonably obvious to me. Way too loud and a little too big to keep the emphasis on the marriage over & above the wedding. For reference, the bride & groom were 25-26 years old.

At one extreme, then, was the second wedding, this time on my side. The wedding ceremony was held in a Lutheran church, but the service was more of a “performance” in that it didn’t follow a set liturgy, nor did it have a traditional feel to it. There was much contemporary music involved, and the order of service seemed like it had been left to be molded by the aesthetic requirements of the bridal party more than by any theological requirements. The reception was very much one of a party “event” rather than a celebration of the marriage. It was, I must admit, very much in line with the vibe of two recently graduated, early-twentysomethings getting married. Way, WAY loud music. Lots of drinking. A definite frat/sorority party vibe.

Let me say at this point that I’m not (really!) meaning to blithely pass judgment on the choices made by the folks involved; rather, I’m trying to make some observations about some of the larger theological & societal issues at play in & around the context of weddings…

Finally, at the other extreme was the wedding we just went to. Theologically, it was a very traditional Lutheran service. The Rev. Tim Halboth (of Grace Lutheran, Redford, MI, where they have carved busts of Martin Luther and C.F.W. Walther in the sanctuary!) conducted a very nice service. While it wasn’t liturgical in the sense of being an order of service right out of a hymnal, it very much was a Divine Service that was centered on Christ and Him crucified. It was conducted reverently yet joyously. The reception was the most sedate of the three, possibly because it was the smallest, but also reflecting the fact that the bride & groom were in their mid-thirties. It wasn’t horrifically loud, but the music encouraged much dancing, and the celebration was nicely lubricated thanks to the open bar, but there didn’t seem to be the vibe of drinking as an end in & of itself. The tone seemed to be forward looking, celebrating the marriage & future life together of the happy couple.

Heck, I even did something that I haven’t done since my own wedding reception nearly 18 years ago – dance with my wife. I might be biased, but I got to dance with the most beautiful woman in the room! Not only that, but she stole the show with her matron-of-honor toast, totally blowing away the efforts of the best man!! ;^)

About the only bad thing about it was the fact that the groom’s family has this unfortunate attachment to tOSU, which resulted in the playing of the Ohio State fight song. Luckily, it was immediately followed up by The Victors. Normally I’m a Michigan fan, though not of the die-hard type (not since I was a kid, anyway). Being around all those misguided Buckeye fans though, turned my blood maize & blue, and I was compelled to lead the charge in our lusty rendition of the greatest college fight song known to mankind.

It was a nice weekend, one for which I give much thanks, as many good times were had, and much God-given happiness was witnessed and experienced.

-ghp