One of the most exciting things about working with young adults is to see them begin to catch a vision of what it looks like to follow Jesus in this North American, Post-Christian, and Post-modern culture. This year I'm blessed to work with four students from UCSC God provided, to begin to lay down a long term foundation for student leadership here at HSCC. As we've ventured forward in this process, he is bringing us to a place to see what we're doing and who we're becoming as possibly what some call a "missional order." We are seeking to hear his voice and discern his leading.
As part of the process we've began to discuss the first chapter of Ashley Barker's Collective Witness: A theology and praxis for a missionary order. It is beautiful and powerful little book describing UNOH's way of living and a bit of their story. We're in the place of seeking God and asking how he desires us to respond in the particular culture he has placed us in. Some of my entries over the next few weeks will be about the questions ruminating in me as we've discussed some of the material from chapter one.
As the culture has changed, especially here on the West Coast, from a culture shaped by "modernity" to one shaped by "postmodernism," there is the need for the church to give birth to new models of praxis and ecclesiology to maintain its witness. Missional orders in this sense "are about being new wineskin for a new era" (5.) Ashely states the church in Australia has a number of major challenges it must respond to during this time of discontinuous change facing the church. Those he listed I think also resonate with the situation of the church in many areas of North America and especially the West Coast.
The church finds itself in a place where church attendance is dropping and has been for some time. Barna states and has been making this point clear as well as its implications. Most recently he documented this fact and its ramifications in his book Revolution. Secondly, Collective Witness states the "Christian presence is smallest among the lower economic population, the multi-cultural communities" (7.) This along with the fact that small churches which are neighborhood based are shrinking and dying when the only ones growing are the mega churches in suburban middle/upper class white neighborhoods. These larger churches often then provide "programs" for mission.
It is within this situation the church finds itself in along with other challenges it faces. It is within this "place" that missional orders can play a key role in responding to the root causes of the current condition of the church. These orders can play a key role within the contemporary church structure to maintain a prophetic witness and "alternative dream." Ashely quotes Kevin Barr's words when he describes a missional order as,
"a small prophetic group in the Church and in the world which keeps alive Jesus' dream of the kingdom and thus challenges the dominant culture around them with an alternate dream" (8.)
It is these type of communities emerging in this present situation, grounded Biblically and theologically, highly committed, and radical ("going to the roots"), giving birth to a renewed witness. In the rest of chapter one the book addresses the underlying causes of the crises the church finds itself in and how the church is called to respond. We are just beginning to converse and ask God what he is desiring of us, but it is an exciting and challenging time to be following Christ and asking these questions. Over the last three to four years God has been stirring in my heart a desire to participate in the process of giving birth to one of these movements.
just reading Ashley's book right now - its really good.
Posted by: andrew jones | September 06, 2007 at 02:49 AM
Thanks for stopping in Andrew. Yup, I've found it very encouraging and a ton to ponder.
Posted by: Derek | September 06, 2007 at 01:29 PM