Forging a Good Critique

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17) When iron is sharpened by coming into contact with more iron, sparks fly. But just because sparks are in evidence, we cannot assume that iron is being sharpened. The iron could just as easily suffer damage from an inexperienced hand. It takes a skilled hand to sharpen iron without destroying it.

As more critiques are being created by people outside of what has been called "the emerging church" (which would include EmergentVillage but is not limited to it -- as the folks at EV would agree), the question of what seperates a good critique from a poor one is heightened.

Recognizing that I'm only scratching the surface on this topic, I'd like to offer a few suggestions on how to tell a good critique from a poor one:

1. A good critique starts with understanding thoroughly the subject matter being critiqued. If we're going to critique something, it should be assumed that we'd do our homework and be knowledgable about what we're critiquing. There is very little to be gained from a critique that is based on sloppy, slanted, or inadequate research.
   
   A good critique will be conversant with primary sources, not relying on other critiques as their basis.
   
   
2. There are two kinds of questions people ask when confronted with something that they aren't sure about:
   
   
   • Questions that are looking for information -- seeking to understand.
     
   • Questions that are looking for ammunition -- seeking rant-fodder.
   
   A good critique will be evidenced by questions that are seeking understanding.
   
   
3. The use of the "false dichotomy" is a sign of a bad critique. A false dichotomy is an exaggerated either/or scenario, where people are given only two diametrically opposed options to choose from. The example I used in Clique Maintenance Part 2 was the false dichotomy created by proponents of the "courtship" approach to dating: you either accepted courtship principles (which aren't bad, by the way) or your only other option was mindless sexual promiscuity.
   
   So in terms of the emerging church discussion, when we're given the two options of being (a) emerging or (b) Biblical -- it's a false dichotomy. The two need not be mutually exclusive. The use of the false dichotomy is actually quite manipulative, and should be avoided.
   
   
4. A good critique follows the spirit of Matthew 18:15-17. The broader theme of Jesus' teaching here is that we're dealing with family members, not enemies (cf. Galatians 6:1). A good critique reads like a letter from an old friend who is concerned about us. It's the attitude of a trusted friend sitting across the table from us in a coffeeshop or pub, and loving us enough to ask the tough questions, and listen to what's on our hearts.
   
   
5. A good critique is capable of seeing the good as well as sounding the alarm about potential problems. By acknowledging the positive aspects of the emerging church -- or at a minimum, acknowledging the validity of the questions being raised by the emerging church -- critics would find a more receptive audience of needed insights into our shortcomings.

"Wounds from a friend can be trusted..." (Proverbs 27:6).

A good critique may sting at times -- we're all aware that we see through a glass darkly -- but if the underlying attitude is one of redemptive friendship, a good critique will sharpen the emerging church.

Since one of the really positive things about the emerging church is the concept of "conversation", I'd appreciate hearing from you any further thoughts on what would constitute a good critique!

Wisdom Ages Well

Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection wrote the following words somewhere around 1666. I read it again today, and found God speaking loud and clear through this potato-peeling monk from the seventeenth century:

"Again, we ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who really doesn't think about the greatness of what we do, but the love with which it is performed.

"If at first we often fail to do everything for the love of God, never mind; the new habit will be formed before long. And once that habit is fixed, certain acts are bound to follow naturally, and to our great delight.

"The greater the perfection one desires, the greater the dependence on divine grace."

"Practicing the Presence of God" was the title of Brother Lawrence's little treatise, and much like the spiritual disciplines, its takes "practice" to learn how to do everything based in love of God and enjoy His presence continually -- "pray all the time" (I Thessalonians 5:17, The Message). I think I've found a real New Year's Resolution after all!

Ah, there's nothin' like it...

There's nothing that smells better, tastes better, and warms your soul better on a cold, blustery winter's night, than a bowl of steaming hot curry. Mmmm. It's all good.

New URL

Now that I have your attention with this garish graphic, listen up! This blog can now be found at www.robbymac.org. Please c'mon over, and don't forget to update your links!

Everything I Needed to Know about Leadership...

...I learned from my Safeway manager.

I worked for Canada Safeway, a large grocery store chain, during high school. I packed groceries, collected shopping carts outside, stocked the shelves, unloaded the semi's when they arrived, and swept up at closing time.

Our store manager was a serious, no-nonsense guy who (unknowingly) taught me a ton about spiritual leadership:

There was no job that he asked us to do, that he wouldn't do himself.

• If the shelves looked somewhat in disarray, he'd straighten them.
  
• If things were crazy-busy during peak hours, you'd see him bagging groceries for a cashier, just like the rest of us.
  
• If you were trying to do a price-check, he'd direct you to the appropriate aisle if you looked lost and panicky -- without making you feel stupid.
  
• If the carts needed collecting from the parking lot, and we were all crazy-busy with bagging groceries, he'd go out and gather the carts for us.
  
• Even if it was pouring rain like the days of Noah, and the carts needed gathering, he'd...
  
  ...well, okay, he'd send us out to do it, and he'd bag groceries in our place (every analogy breaks down at some point).

Whenever I read Jesus' words on leadership, "whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant" (Matthew 20:26), I think of my Safeway manager. By setting an example which clearly told us that no job was beneath him, regardless of his "position", he modelled true biblical leadership.

A Generous Ecclesiology

Why I am house-church/emerging-church

Within a broad generalization, it can be argued that emerging churches fall into two types (with many permutation between the two poles):

1. House churches which further subdivide into (A) intentional missional communities of faith, and (B) healing communities for those needing to detox from church for a season, and

2. Emerging churches, which may include (and often do) a house/cell component, but who are generally planting churches that meet in warehouses, cafes, or other non-traditional settings, while including elements that are best described as "ancient/future" as they tap into the rich history of multiple Christian traditions to ground their 21st century expression of the Body.

Consider the following possible permutations of what an emerging church expression could look like:

• There are house churches, such as the one that Len Hjalmarsson and his family are a part of, which have a missional focus on ministry among the poor, inviting them into their homes and caring for a neglected part of their city in the Okanagan Valley in BC. While existing outside normal denominational affiliations, they are connected by relationship to many individuals in the Body around their city. Their missional focus keeps them dependent on God, praying deeply, and gives them an outward, servant focus that keeps Jesus and His works front and centre.
  
  
• James Mills, over at KnowTown and Missio Dei in Denver CO, is a self-described "ecclesial dreamer", and he and the core of Missio Dei have been on a several-years journey of dreaming about what their own expression of the Body will look like. Some people have criticized James et al. because "it's taking too long" -- and those kind of comments can really take a bite out of you -- but I think they've been wise in taking their time to really think through what kind of DNA they want to sow into the fabric of this new venture.
  
  Folk wisdom from the Doobie Brothers: "In your search, you might find that getting there will have no meaning, if you can't enjoy the ride".
  
  
• Solomon's Porch is but one example of a church plant (as is Dan Kimball's Vintage Faith) that has all the "traditional" components (worship, teaching, prayer, and the accompanying structural elements of offerings and a building), but is on a journey of deconstructing and reconstructing a ministry that reaches people where they are at and helps them in their own journey towards maturity in Christ. There is a definite difference in both the ETHOS of the church plant, and also in their methodology and leadership styles. After reading their story in Reimaging Spiritual Formation, I wondered if they had being spying on our ministries in Victoria, Winnipeg and Los Angeles -- our stories, values, and ethos are so remarkably similar!
  
  
• And there are pastors who have chosen to work within their church and denominational structures, who have been able to re-invent their churches all the same, over time.

All of these possible models can be thought of as emerging gatherings. Wendy's & my involvement with several of these models has taught us that there is no "right" way to be a pomergent gathering, and that God's fingerprints can be found wherever people gather to learn from each other what it means to be a follower of Jesus.

While Emergent struggles to NOT become an organized "movement" (which I think they're wise to resist at this point in time), a Generous Ecclesiology will need to be a DNA marker of whatever direction and ethos is created, nutured, and modelled for others, as time goes on.

Happy New Year

Lest it appear that I am shirking my blog, let it be known that I'm taking a one week blogging fast. It feels like God is calling me to fast from the digital world (including television) for a week. I'm trying to be obedient to what I believe are God's promptings in my life -- why should we expect God to speak to us if we don't obey Him when He does?

I'll be back next Sunday.

I know that "New Year's Resolutions" are difficult if not impossible to follow through on, so I don't normally make Resolutions. But this morning at Church on the Rock, the following song lyric struck me as a fitting resolution for 2005:

We bow our hearts
We bend our knees
Oh Spirit come make us humble
We turn our eyes from evil things
Oh Lord we cast down our idols

So give us clean hands
Give us pure hearts
Let us not lift our souls to another
Oh God let this be a generation
That seeks Your face, Oh God of Jacob