Three Days Among the Mainlines

ginnyellisportraitfulllength.jpgUnless you’ve been brought up in the insular confines of fundamentalism, it’s going to be hard to understand what it’s been like for me spending three days with “the other kind” of Christians this week. “The other kind” in this instance are mainline protestants, almost entirely Presbyterian Church USA, ELCA Lutherans, ECUSA Episcopalians and a few United Church of Christ. Out of about 70 ministers, mine was the only Baptist name tag I saw. There was a United Methodist, a Vineyard pastor, a Plymouth Brethren, an AME and a few others I don’t recall, but most of the ministers that surrounded me were what the conservative evangelicals I know call “liberals.”

I’ve been to a lot of meetings of Southern Baptists and various other kinds of conservative evangelicals. The last couple of decades I’ve spent considerable time with Calvinists of various persuasions. I’ve logged many hours in those circles and very few among “the other kind” of Christians. Even though I’ve done a lot of supply preaching among Presbyterians here in Appalachia, that’s been a tiny slice of my experience of Christian fellowship compared to my days surrounded by Southern Baptists and various other kinds of well-to-the-right-of-center Christians.Continue reading “Three Days Among the Mainlines”

Sabbatical Journal 1/Peterson Seminar (Conclusion)

ep2.jpegI’m back home from sabbatical orientation and my three days with Eugene Peterson. Thank you Louisville Institute for your investment in my life and your incredible graciousness for these three days.

Last night, Peterson talked about his own sabbatical experiences, which took place 23 years into his pastorate. He took off an entire year, wrote 3.5 books and learned many important lessons for the rest of his ministry. This was a helpful talk for pastors, but I’m not going to comment on it very much here. (One interesting thing. For his sabbatical reading, he read the Septuagint, and said he was shocked at what a loose translation it was as compared to the original Hebrew. Much more like “The Message.” Says he can’t understand how the literalists in translation studies miss this.)

This morning, however, David Woods read us more from the “emerging” fifth book in Peterson’s current series, a book that is devoted to the church and to understanding the church by way of the book of Ephesians. After framing the direction for the talk, he introduced Eugene Peterson for his last talk. I took many pages of notes and I’ll share just a few of them here, including one-liners without context, so don’t blame Peterson if I leave the wrong impression.Continue reading “Sabbatical Journal 1/Peterson Seminar (Conclusion)”

Sabbatical Journal 1/Peterson seminar (continued)

epeterson_200x142.jpgIt’s am amazing privilege to spent this time with the man who has been a spiritual director in absentia to so many of us. Based on what I’m hearing in this sessions, Peterson’s next two books should be real expressions of his heart. No one anywhere has a more encouraging message on the possibilities within any church for being God’s people.

Eugene Peterson was back leading our seminar this morning, and a night’s rest put him back on his game.

He spoke from some of the material in his upcoming book Tell It Slant, which is about the language of Jesus in Luke’s parables. He divided all pastoral-ministry language into the kerygmatic, the didactic and the pericletic. It was this third kind of language he was most interested in today.

Pericletic language is hard to define. It is not the announcement and pronouncement of the preacher and it is not the systematic teaching of the teacher. It is the language of the “between.” It is the place that words are formed and we meet God in the empty place between the angels at the ark. It is the language of coming alongside. It is the language of conversation, not the delivery of content. It is primal language, the domain of children and the old. Peterson is fascinated by the connection between breath, Spirit and words in scripture.Continue reading “Sabbatical Journal 1/Peterson seminar (continued)”

Sabbatical Journal 1

chapel.jpegUPDATED: I’m sortof liveblogging the Eugene Peterson/David Wood sessions.

My first step in my sabbatical is a three day orientation here on the campus of the Louisville Presbyterian Seminary. Denise and I are staying in Laws Lodge and we will be hearing Eugene Peterson later tonight.

This is all a very different world for me than my home in Eastern Kentucky, but this is a gift God is giving me as well. We intend to enjoy it.

I’ll add some reflections to this post as we go along through each session.Continue reading “Sabbatical Journal 1”

iMonk 101: Grace Is As Dangerous As Ever

grace.jpegHere’s a good piece (I think) from the Spring of last year: Grace is as Dangerous as Ever. You can’t talk about grace too much around the blogosphere as far as I am concerned. When grace is understood, you either get in the flow or you resist the Spirit. One is scary and the other is uncomfortable. Take your pick.

I was talking tonight with some of the Boar’s Head fellows, and it seems that some of the “big dogs” who have taken an interest in criticizing this blog so much in the past are losing interest in the blogosphere. There seems to be more of a conversation now and less of a constant team sport attitude. Still plenty of debate, if that’s what you are looking for, but the communities don’t seem to be carping at each other quite in the same way. I could name names, but I don’t want to ruin anyone’s reformed street cred.Continue reading “iMonk 101: Grace Is As Dangerous As Ever”

Coffee Cup Apologetics 35

cca_small.gifPodcast 35 Thinking about “I Can’t Continue To Call Myself A Christian.” I’ve got more to say about this in another podcast.

Monday Morning Insight post of “I Can’t Consider Myself a Christian.”

The podcast website is Coffee Cup Apologetics.

All the episodes of Coffee Cup Apologetics are now on iTunes. Go to iTunes and search for “Apologetics.”

Recommendation but No Review: Divine Canine by the Monks of New Skete

divine_canine.jpgI don’t have a dog, but I’ve had several in the past and I want another one. I’m trying to make up my mind on that one. We loved our Scottie, and Denise loves German Shepherds. We could always love a mutt or two. I could stand the time thinking about something other than the usual stuff I think about.

But this isn’t a dog blog. I did, however, get this nice offer to receive a copy of Divine Canine by the Monks of New Skete in return for a brief review. (Seems the “monk” in the title attracted a publicist.) Ordinarily, I’d say, “Thanks, but I’m not really a monk, and this isn’t a dog blog and I don’t review that kind of book.” Of course, I do like monks….and dogs…and books…..so here you go: the Internet Monk recommends (but doesn’t review) a dog book.Continue reading “Recommendation but No Review: Divine Canine by the Monks of New Skete”

Riffs: 02:13:08: The White Horse Inn, Law/Gospel and Why I Want My Sermon On The Mount Back

logo.gifUPDATE: Dr. Michael Horton offers some helpful input in the comments. I appreciate his interest in this discussion.

I love the White Horse Inn. Never miss it. I love Michael Horton and Rod Rosenbladt especially.

I love the Law and Gospel distinction. I use it. I teach it to my students. I stress it to my chapel preachers.

But sometimes…..sometimes you have a program like this week’s “Good Advice vs Good News?” and I’m left with a lot of questions.

Listening to this week’s discussion (February 10, 2008), you’d have to conclude that the Sermon on the Mount was given with the express purpose of driving all of us to despair that we can ever be justified by works. And that’s pretty much all the Sermon on the Mount does, to hear this week’s program explain it.Continue reading “Riffs: 02:13:08: The White Horse Inn, Law/Gospel and Why I Want My Sermon On The Mount Back”

Review: Simplify by Paul Borthwick

tn_paulborthwick.jpgYou know a book is different when it starts with the question of whether you need to buy the book at all.

In The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis talks about the spiritual values of simple pleasures. There are a world of things, Screwtape says, that the “enemy” doesn’t mind humans doing at all: sleeping, eating, making love, working, going for walks, reading and so on. Allowing humans to experience these simple, but real, parts of God’s creation order will have genuine consequences that will make Wormwood’s work of temptation much more difficult.Continue reading “Review: Simplify by Paul Borthwick”

The Vilesidious Letters: On Christian Schools

screwt.jpegAs C.S. Lewis (apologies, sir) said, it is not difficult to come into this kind of correspondence, once one knows the trick. This “letter” appears to be about Christian schools. Hmmmmm….You can leave Vilesidious a comment, but I don’t think he’ll answer.

Dear Slimebeetle,

It is with mixed amusement and amazement that I read your report of 1.31, a report full of weeping and gnashing of teeth that the patient’s children have been enrolled in what the enemy refers to as a “Christian School.” Obviously, you have found a way to be absent from the most recent seminar on our overall strategy for evangelicalism, a seminar that gloriously reflects the substantial progress we have made at the important level of popular expectations.

I cannot believe you were unaware that our influence within institutions such as this Christian school has created results that are far beyond anyone’s projections. In the particular school your patient has chosen, more than 80% of the graduates have rejected the Christian faith within three years of graduation. Even with a small rate of remission- often quite temporary- we can expect magnificent harvests from within this particular segment of the enemy’s camp. Impressive, by any standard.Continue reading “The Vilesidious Letters: On Christian Schools”