tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43629596522946078812024-03-14T12:04:55.776-04:00Church CoffeeA collection of theological percolations David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.comBlogger180125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-7888194919019601262014-03-23T14:43:00.003-04:002014-03-23T14:43:58.403-04:00I'm Moving! (my blog), or Meditations Upon Blogging <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Church Coffee has been fun (sometimes), but I’m moving to a
<a href="http://www.davidfwatson.me/">different site </a>with a different look and feel. The type of content I post,
however, will not likely change very much. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the more common questions I get about this blog is
why I do it at all. Friends ask, “You don’t really have time for that, do you?”
Well, no, not really. Nevertheless, I think the blogosphere is where much of
our public conversation takes place. Just look at the constant stream of ideas
moving through the <a href="http://www.methoblog.com/">Methoblog</a> site or <a href="http://www.um-insight.net/">UM-Insight</a>, and these are just a little
slices of the blogging world. Discussions that used to take place in publicly
debates, in the editorial and “letters to the editor” sections of newspapers, and
on talk shows have now found a new and very dynamic home in the world of
blogging. Unlike these other venues, moreover, interactions in the blogosphere
take place very quickly, almost in real time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I want to be a part of these discussions because I care very
much about the Church, The United Methodist Church in particular, and the type
of discourse in which we engage as Christians. Blogging is a way to speak to
issues that you care about. It can also be a way of modeling intellectually
virtuous dialogue (though this does not always happen). Boiled down to its most
basic function, blogging is writing, and writing has for centuries been a way
of bringing about change through the exchange of ideas. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve found some real kindred spirits in the blogging world.
I’ve also run into some spirits that don’t seem to be all that kindred, and a
few who have been holding flamethrowers. That’s the world of blogging. It is a
vast, fast-moving, uncensored stream of ideas and information. If you’re
thinking about starting a blog, it can be a very rich experience, but you need
to have thick skin. It is not an undertaking for the faint of heart. If you
offer your ideas for public consumption, they will indeed be consumed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many thanks to <a href="http://josephdavidgraves.com/">Joe Graves</a> for helping me get the
new site started. He has put some serious work into the new site and helped me
think through its layout, design, structure, etc. </span></div>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you’ve enjoyed Church Coffee, and I hope you enjoy the new site, too, which you can access at <a href="http://www.davidfwatson.me/">www.davidfwatson.me</a>. The If you'd like to subscribe to it, you can do so <a href="http://davidfwatson.me/subscribe">here</a>. </span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-91103077803514085432014-03-20T22:02:00.000-04:002014-03-20T22:18:45.482-04:00Some Things You Should Know on World Down Syndrome Day <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ktI6epftw8s" width="640"></iframe>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">March 21 (3/21) is </span><a href="http://www.worlddownsyndromeday.org/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">World Down Syndrome Day</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. This date was
not chosen at random. Rather, it represents the fact that, while most people
have 46 pairs of chromosomes, some people have a third copy on the twenty-first
chromosome. This third copy causes Down Syndrome, also known as Trisomy
21.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some other facts: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s not “Down’s Syndrome,” i.e.,
a syndrome in the possession of someone named Down. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">People with Down Syndrome can read,
write, hold down jobs, get married, and even go to college. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pregnancies in which Down Syndrome
is identified in the fetus are terminated 80-90% of the time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Down Syndrome is the most common
chromosomal condition diagnosed in the U.S., occurring in about 1 in 700 live
births. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is a condition called Mosaic
Down Syndrome in which some, but not all, cells contain the third copy of the
twenty-first chromosome. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are still using the term
“retarded” as a term of derogation, you should stop doing this. People might
start to think you are a jerk. And they might be right. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My wife and I will be talking about our experiences of raising
a child with Down Syndrome at <a href="http://www.lightthefire.org/">United’s Light the Fire! Conference,</a> May 8-9 at
<a href="http://ginghamsburg.org/">Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church</a> in Tipp City, Ohio. World Down Syndrome is the last day to
register at the discounted rate, so please get your registration in ASAP! </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-2108704690338686292014-03-16T21:33:00.000-04:002014-03-16T21:33:28.373-04:00Yes, I Am a Bible-Believing Christian. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Gutenberg_Bible.jpg/800px-Gutenberg_Bible.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/Gutenberg_Bible.jpg/800px-Gutenberg_Bible.jpg" height="217" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's why I don't believe that dividing the church is a good idea. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some biblical passages that underscore the importance of unity in the church: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>John 17:20-23 <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of
those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be
one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so
that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have
given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them
and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know
that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>1 Cor 1:10 <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you should be in agreement and
that there should be no divisions among you, but that you should be united in
the same mind and the same purpose. <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>1 Cor 12:12 <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>For just as the body is one and has many members, and all
the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>2 Cor 13:11<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with
one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Ephesians 4:1-6<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a
life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all
humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making
every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is
one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your
calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all,
who is above all and through all and in all.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Ephesians 4:25-32 <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the
truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do
not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room
for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and
work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the
needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful
for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to
those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you
were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all
bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all
malice, and be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another,
as God in Christ has forgiven you.</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So... you who would divide the church, tell me: if biblical obedience is so important, why have you resolved to be disobedient to these passages of scripture? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The question we have to answer denominationally is not simply who is being obedient to the Bible and who is not. The Bible is a broad and varied body of work that can support a variety of positions, ideologies, and theologies. The question is this: why do we believe it is important to privilege this particular set of scriptural passages over another? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-75228212105597023462014-03-15T20:22:00.000-04:002014-03-16T19:49:03.271-04:00Adam Hamilton's Response to "Three Buckets, Calmly Considered" <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After publishing some thoughts this morning on Adam
Hamilton's recent post, "<a href="http://www.adamhamilton.org/blog/view/151/homosexuality-the-bible-and-the-united-methodist-church#.UyTrBuddX10">Homosexuality, the Bible, and the United Methodist Church</a>," I received a note from Rev. Hamilton. (Apparently he had tried to leave a comment, but they didn't come through. C'mon, Blogger! Don't make me switch to Wordpress!) He offered this
gracious response to my comments. I appreciate the spirit of Christian
charity and respectful dialogue that characterizes his remarks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dear David,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you for your
thoughtful response to my post on The Bible, Homosexuality and the United
Methodist Church. I actually agree with everything you’ve written here.
Unfortunately it is the nature of a blog - 500 to 800 words - that you
have room for a key idea without much background or supporting arguments.
The three buckets metaphor is a small part, two paragraphs in one chapter
of my new book, Making Sense of the Bible. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The book is meant to
foster a conversation among Christians and in the church about the nature of
scripture, how God influenced or inspired the biblical authors, its canonization
and authority, and how we might read it with greater understanding.
Following 18 chapters devoted to these questions, the last 14 chapters
focus on concrete questions I’m regularly asked by lay people confused about
what they read in the Bible.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My experience suggests
that many Christians have a view of scripture that is not carefully examined in
the light of the actual phenomenon of Scripture. If our view of scripture
is overly simplistic, we find ourselves stuck when we face some of the Bible’s
complex and challenging questions. Some of these folks leave the church
because we as pastors have not adequately helped them see the Bible’s
complexity. I think we can do better. My proposals in the book are
a conversation starter. They may not be the right answers, but I’m hoping
they help us find the right answers.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You rightly note that
what was missing was the theological foundation that leads me to speak of the
three buckets, and, I would add, the criteria by which we determine which
bucket a scripture goes in. I devote a fair amount of space to fleshing
that out in the book.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I appreciate you and
your work, David. Thanks for your thoughtful critique of my post!</span></i></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-81002268553107541972014-03-15T11:56:00.000-04:002014-03-16T19:48:33.068-04:00Three Buckets, Calmly Considered <div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Balde.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Balde.PNG" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Look, I really admire Adam
Hamilton. He has led thousands of people to Christ and provided invaluable
leadership in the UMC. His church has launched incredible ministries. He’s an
amazing person, and I have no doubt that he is utterly committed to serving
Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Rev. Hamilton recently
published a blog post called <a href="http://www.adamhamilton.org/blog/view/151/homosexuality-the-bible-and-the-united-methodist-church#.UyRV3eddX10">“Homosexuality, the Bible, and the United Methodist Church.” </a>I don’t want to focus on the matter of homosexuality in this
post, but only on Rev. Hamilton’s method of categorizing different passages of
scripture. He says that he places scriptures into three buckets: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">1. Scriptures that express
God’s heart, character and timeless will for human beings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">2. Scriptures that expressed
God’s will in a particular time, but are no longer binding.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">3. Scriptures that never
fully expressed the heart, character or will of God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Actually, I think this is
how most UM’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do</i> interpret scripture,
whether they are progressive, evangelical or something in between, and whether
they admit it or not. Take, for example, the prohibition in 1 Tim 2:9 against
women having braided hair and wearing gold or expensive clothes. As far as I
can tell, this passage has no normative force in the UMC. Bucket #3. Paul’s
discussion of food sacrificed to idols (1 Cor 8)? Well, in the modern West, we
don’t often see people sacrificing food to little statues in alcoves on the
street. Bucket #2. There are other passages, such as the story of Jepthah’s
daughter in Judges 11. This story simply isn’t going to show up in the
lectionary, nor is it likely to be incorporated into a sermon series on how to
live a Godly life. It has no normative force in our churches. Bucket #3. But
John 3:16? Bucket #1—off-the-backboard 360 slam dunk. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Further, most of the time we
make these kinds of moves without thinking much about them. We do this because
whether we are aware of it or not, we read scripture theologically. Put
differently, we employee a set of theological concepts that largely determines
which scriptural passages we consider normative and which we do not. For
example, we believe that God is a loving, creative, and powerful deity, and
therefore we have no problem assigning normative force to John 3:16. Jephthah,
on the other hand? Not so much. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">“No!” you may say. “You have
it all backward! Scripture determines our theology, and not the other way
around!” Many people do believe this to be the case. The relationship between
scripture and doctrine, though, is not a one-way street. It is dialectical. In
other words, scripture and doctrine inform and shape one another. Ask yourself,
“Why do we have a New Testament canon to begin with?” The main reason is that
certain Christian writings were thought to teach and inform the faith of the
Church, embodied in the Rule of Faith, a kind of proto-creed. They became
canonical, and over time helped to shape the further development of our
doctrines. These doctrines, then, have informed the ways in which we read
scripture. So it goes, back and forth: scripture informs our understanding of
doctrine, and doctrine informs our reading of scripture. Thus it always has
been, and thus it always will be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">So the really important
question here is this: What theological concepts do we employ when we read
scripture, and how intentional are we in appropriating these concepts? Even if
we all agreed on the three-bucket approach, we would not agree on which
scriptural passages go in which bucket. Rev. Hamilton acknowledges this in his
post. This way of dealing with scripture, then, doesn’t help us a great deal in
sorting out controversial issues.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">One final point: I believe
God can teach us through <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">any </i>passage
of scripture. We don’t have to regard a scriptural passage as prescriptive or
normative in order for God to teach us. God might in fact teach us through the
passages of scripture that we find most difficult. God might teach us through
passages that make us mad, sad, or confused. The Holy Spirit is a teacher who
will consistently surprise and stretch us in our walk of faith. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Now, you may say, “Watson,
that is all fine and good for you seminary types, but what about the people in
the pews of the churches each Sunday? All this high-flying theological talk
isn’t going to help them very much.” True enough, so here’s how I would boil
this down. Rather than setting out the three buckets and sorting scriptural
passages into one of the three, perhaps we should simply ask this question: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Given what I know to be true about God, how can this
passage of scripture inform my understanding of God and the Christian life?</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Yes, this question
presupposes that we know something about God before we begin to read the Bible,
but Christians should be catechized before they launch into Bible study.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">To sum up, I think that Adam
Hamilton has articulated the way in which most people in the UMC (and many
other traditions) approach scripture. I don’t think this approach is
sufficient, nor do I think it helps us to move forward in terms of our current
disagreement over homosexuality. While I have great respect for Rev. Hamilton, I
don’t think these remarks on scripture are his most helpful contribution.</span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-42586221234154138892014-03-14T09:00:00.001-04:002014-03-14T09:00:54.180-04:00Bishop McLee, Human Sexuality, and Basic Christian Doctrine <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me be clear: I think honest conversation is righteous
and healthy—even indispensable—within the Body of Christ. One of our goals at
United is to help students have real conversations with people with whom they
disagree. Part of our problem in the UMC is that political posturing has
replaced intellectual virtue, and when that happens, the road ahead can look
pretty grim. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bishop McLee is calling for further conversation on
homosexuality. Setting the issue of the church trial aside for a moment, I want
to reaffirm that conversation and dialogue are essential within the body of
Christ. I believe Bishop McLee is sincere in his desire to heal the wounds
within our denomination. We were seminary classmates at Perkins, and while I
didn’t know him well, I did know him well enough to come to regard him as a
person of deep faith and integrity. Whether or not we believe what he is doing
is right, I believe that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">he</i> believes
that conversation, rather than a church trial, is the best way forward for the
UMC. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That having been said, I think we have to ask how productive
this conversation can possibly be. Our beliefs on human sexuality are
influenced by a host of other beliefs and assumptions. Our practices of and
beliefs about reading scripture, our theological anthropologies, understandings
of salvation, ecclesiologies, theologies of ordination, and theological
understandings of the concept of marriage will all come to bear on how we
understand the issues around homosexuality. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here’s where the rubber meets the road: the current crisis
we are experiencing over homosexuality is the result of decades of neglect of
basic doctrine among mainline Protestants. Doctrine is not properly a litmus
test to see who thinks the right things and who doesn’t. Rather, doctrine forms
our worldview, and our worldview invariably affects our ethical perspectives. Put
differently, the way in which we think about God and God’s relationship to
humankind will shape our perspectives on how we are supposed to live in the
here and now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many UM’s have gone for decades suggesting that we are
committed to a theological method, not a specific body of beliefs. We have
acted as if the doctrines of the Trinity, Incarnation, and Resurrection are
interesting speculative ideas, objects of study rather than divine revelations
about the living God. We have drunk deeply from the cup of modernity. We have
placed our faith in political agendas and neglected the sanctifying power and
work of the Holy Spirit. And here is the result: misunderstanding, anger,
factionalism, and possibly schism. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before we can have a meaningful conversation within our
denomination about homosexuality, we need to begin to repent and allow God to
heal us doctrinally. There is no quick or easy way forward. Will we do this, and can we stay together long enough and
be patient enough to do so? As I said at the beginning of this post, the
situation looks pretty grim, but with God, all things are possible. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-43775999056873186262014-03-13T11:56:00.001-04:002014-03-13T11:56:39.737-04:00In What Lies Our Unity? <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m not so much making a point with this post as asking a
question. I have been in dialogue with a friend who asked: Is the unity of
which we speak in the UMC a baseless unity? In other words, what is the common
thread that runs through the UMC and holds us together? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our unity does not lie in doctrine, though I believe that it
should. But there are many clergy, including some bishops, who seem to have
little regard for the Doctrinal Standards in the <i>Discipline</i>. They would point, rather, to the section called “Our
Theological Task,” which articulates the method we have come to call the “Wesleyan
Quadrilateral.” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That leads to the question: Is our unity in this theological
method? Clearly, it is not. The method is so broad that it is virtually
useless. To say, for example, that we consider scripture as primary is not a
very helpful claim when we have so little agreement on the nature and function of
scripture. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m not even going to suggest that our unity is in ethical
issues or commitments to social justice. We’re all over the map here. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is our unity, then, confined to matters of polity? Are we
only held together by the trust clause and our pensions? I really, really don’t
want the UMC to split. I would consider that a great tragedy. Yet what are our
main reasons for staying together?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’d appreciate receiving your comments below. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, and be nice. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-44143154132355442382014-03-09T14:27:00.003-04:002014-03-09T14:27:49.913-04:00Do you believe in the demonic? <div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/OHM_-_St.Juliana_-_Teufel.jpg/800px-OHM_-_St.Juliana_-_Teufel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c3/OHM_-_St.Juliana_-_Teufel.jpg/800px-OHM_-_St.Juliana_-_Teufel.jpg" height="214" title="" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">The Synoptic Gospels are
full of stories in which Jesus casts out demons. In Mark’s gospel, healing and
exorcism are Jesus’ main activities. In the early church, exorcism was part of
the pre-baptismal ritual. Throughout much of the world today, exorcism is a
common part of Christian practice. Even in the United Methodist Church, our
baptismal liturgy includes the question, “Do you renounce the spiritual forces
of wickedness?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Yet in much of western
Christianity, we tend to avoid any serious discourse on the subject of the
demonic. If it does come up, we often talk about it as pre-modern myth made
obsolete by modern science and medicine. Does this approach represent an
intellectual and spiritual advance, or have we lost something important in the
way in which we think and talk about evil? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Despite the fact that we
avoid these topics in our churches, popular culture is rife with television
shows, websites, and books devoted to the “paranormal.” It seems people are
genuinely interested in these types of phenomena, and even open to affirming them as veridical. Why is it that the popular culture seems more open to the
reality of spiritual phenomena than many of our churches are?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I’m particularly curious to
know what, you, gentle readers, think about this matter. I’d appreciate your
commenting below. Please, if you would, leave any comments here rather than on
my Facebook page, so that all comments are available to all readers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">And let's keep it civil, friends. </span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com40tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-53937171474862328652014-03-05T16:52:00.000-05:002014-03-05T16:52:01.704-05:00Does God Actually Do Anything? <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I recently went to a theological lecture. At least, it was
ostensibly theological. The lecturer was discussing a variety of social
problems, and, in the end, I suppose the point was that we have to do something
about these problems. I optimistically filled in the narrative gaps that I was
experiencing, hoping what was meant was that we should do something about these
problems because they are inconsistent with God’s will for the world. After all, I thought we were engaging these
matters theologically. God should be in there somewhere, right? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nevertheless, even if that was what the lecturer meant to
convey, that would not be enough. Among Christians, ostensibly religious talk
about social problems that takes no account of the agency of God is not enough.
The God of Christian faith is an agent. If we are supposed to do good in the
world, it is because of the sanctifying action of God who motivates us, pricks
our consciences, and changes our will. I would not, moreover, limit the
action of God to sanctifying work within individuals. God is working in ways
unseen, setting the stage for great triumphs that we cannot yet anticipate. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I spend a lot of time talking with Christians. I have taught
and participated in many courses in churches through the years, been in
conversation with a great many seminary students, and spent hours upon hours in
conversation with pastors and Christian academics. I’ve come to realize through
this that, for many Christians, God is essentially a construct. God doesn’t do
anything except give credence and authority to the ethical claims that we want
to endorse. The Holy Spirit does no heavy lifting in this scenario. This type
of religion is disconnected from the God of the Bible and Christian tradition<b>.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sermons often leave us with a call to action. As a result of
the message we’ve just heard, we’re supposed to do X. This can be a very
powerful way of getting people to be about God’s purposes in the world. The
question I have more and more, though, is, “What does <i>God </i>do in this scenario?” The next time you hear a sermon or a
lecture in theological ethics, ask yourself this question: according to what I’ve
just heard, what does God do? Whether or not I can or should do anything, what
have I learned about the agency of God? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve heard many times, “God has no hands but our hands,” but
this isn’t right. This isn’t the God of which we read in the Bible, nor is it
the God who is handed on to us in tradition. God may use our hands to do
something of value in this world, despite all of the ways in which we’re likely
to mess things up. In our walk of discipleship, however, the question we should
be asking is not simply, “What would Jesus do?” but “What is God <i>doing</i>?”</span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-2611580399321003572014-02-23T22:15:00.001-05:002014-02-23T22:17:19.125-05:00We All Need To Worship <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Some
recent opinions in the blogosphere notwithstanding, corporate worship is one of
the most important ways in which we come to know and love God more fully. From
its earliest days, the Christian faith involved both individual and corporate
experience. In baptism we become part of something much larger than ourselves,
the communion of saints, both living and dead, who love and serve the Holy
Trinity. In Christian worship, we learn more about the faith, build up the
faith of others, testify to our corporate identity, and join in the heavenly
chorus of worshippers, such as we read of in the fourth chapter of Revelation.
When folks say that corporate worship simply isn’t that important, with all due
respect, I couldn’t disagree more. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">It’s
particularly concerning, then, that some people among the community of faith
find worship prohibitively difficult. For example, people with autism may find being in a crowd or certain kinds of
music or singing to be quite stressful. Some children and adults, such as those
with Down Syndrome, autism, or other disabilities that come to bear on
intellectual development, may not be able to remain quiet during the parts of
the service when it is appropriate to do so. My own son, Sean, who is seven
years old and has Down Syndrome, will soon become the center of attention
during any church service he attends. The people of our church are very loving
and understanding with him, but Sean shouldn’t be the center of attention
during worship. That isn’t the point of going to church. It makes it very
difficult, then, to take him into a worship service. I know that faced with
such difficulties, many parents of children with disabilities simply stop
trying to go to church. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipLWdH6s21aLtcHVG9Otaj3sQWuYW6EOMhXHxmL7PJti6ccIhLqbKVnvrjwfr6xJNSdk1oscyIgYpKmoOZSisP9hx4V_B9M3fZT_fDBz9ce8aiROOPVNxcTzTiRs6bzUglSH9kz5Zantx6/s1600/Zach+and+Greg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipLWdH6s21aLtcHVG9Otaj3sQWuYW6EOMhXHxmL7PJti6ccIhLqbKVnvrjwfr6xJNSdk1oscyIgYpKmoOZSisP9hx4V_B9M3fZT_fDBz9ce8aiROOPVNxcTzTiRs6bzUglSH9kz5Zantx6/s1600/Zach+and+Greg.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Greg interpreting music for Zach</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I recently made the acquaintance of a remarkable young man named Zach Holler.
Zach attends <a href="http://www.clcdayton.org/">Christian Life Center (CLC)</a>, an Assemblies of God congregation in
Dayton, Ohio. He lives with multiple physical disabilities and uses
interpreters to communicate with most people. He also feels a call to ministry,
and his congregation and its leadership are supporting him in this call.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSzsIx1oagvxKIWPBYBOqRG4KNZBRvYCoNJegonaKonNFUCNlzuPeZ90-egyHa1Oba06LuCJPo6LsXZO2i4PLV3iHIeVO4KB-ZTzO-LW57Q6rQTuWmEkIMs2NHDJWP5qPZGJFQGmPz4yqT/s1600/Zach+preaching+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSzsIx1oagvxKIWPBYBOqRG4KNZBRvYCoNJegonaKonNFUCNlzuPeZ90-egyHa1Oba06LuCJPo6LsXZO2i4PLV3iHIeVO4KB-ZTzO-LW57Q6rQTuWmEkIMs2NHDJWP5qPZGJFQGmPz4yqT/s1600/Zach+preaching+.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Zach delivering the sermon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Zach
invited my family and me to attend Gentle Worship at CLC this week. Gentle
Worship is a service especially tailored for people with disabilities. I see it
as especially helpful for people with cognitive disabilities, but it could be
helpful for people across a wide spectrum of abilities. There is music, prayer,
and a sermon, all in a very informal and relaxed environment where nothing is
really considered disruptive. Sean was able to pay attention for a while, and
then he began to get antsy. Towards the end, he was really starting to make his
presence known, but it was not a problem. That is the point of the service. People of
all abilities are welcome. After the service was over, Sean ran up to the microphone and started delivering his own message!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVL3R4bmalbq1zGRk0zA7Xdn6OWKga8UJJobXw5XOV3BKLLYxfC7i4yZPY_gYWv8YSXbMexGb1T0P2cnJ1FDAEBQSntyWE81knLQny6E1dZVhibw-BbG9XeoeD4N-62lpl2Tf-RnugNyxG/s1600/Sean+on+the+Microphone+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVL3R4bmalbq1zGRk0zA7Xdn6OWKga8UJJobXw5XOV3BKLLYxfC7i4yZPY_gYWv8YSXbMexGb1T0P2cnJ1FDAEBQSntyWE81knLQny6E1dZVhibw-BbG9XeoeD4N-62lpl2Tf-RnugNyxG/s1600/Sean+on+the+Microphone+.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sean bringing the word! </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">One of the highlights of the service was when Zach delivered the sermon. His father, Greg, served as an interpreter, and Zach blessed us with a rich and thoughtful lesson on the law, sin, and salvation. It was very clear to me that Zach is gifted for and called to ministry. Unfortunately, when people with disabilities do feel a call to ministry, they are often met with disbelief and resistance. It is a credit to the congregation of CLC and their lead pastor, Stan Tharp, that they have recognized Zach’s call and gifts, and are facilitating his leadership in the congregation.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">If
you want to learn more about the role of the church in being in ministry with
people with disabilities, I encourage you to come to <a href="http://www.lightthefire.org/">United’s Light the Fire! Conference</a>,
which will be held at <a href="http://ginghamsburg.org/">Ginghamsburg Church </a>on May 8-9. It’s going to be a great
event, and we have a first-class lineup of speakers and preachers. I hope you
can make it!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-90427451975837542032014-02-20T10:23:00.001-05:002014-02-20T10:40:50.648-05:00UMC.org: How About Some Evangelism? <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">The mission of The United
Methodist Church is to make disciplines of Jesus Christ for the transformation
of the world. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Ok. So far, so good. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">One would expect, then, the
public website of the UMC to serve this end of making disciples. As I look at
the UMC.org website, though, I see the following: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">A headline called, “What can
a horse teach a pastor?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">There is a picture of Bishop
Carcano being arrested. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">There is a story on firewood
ministry. (Hey, I have to give kudos to this guy.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">There is a story on Black
History Month. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">There is, in the upper right
hand corner, our logo, along with the “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors”
advertising slogan, surely the greatest evangelistic tool since the invention
of the altar call. First tab to the left: “Who We Are,” under which one finds
“Church Structure,” “Administration,” “History,” and “Agencies.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Now, in light of our mission, I find myself befuddled. I think to myself,
perhaps the purpose of our public website is to serve as a kind of reference
tool that helps insiders to the tradition learn more about our inner workings
and denominational news. If that is the case, I would like to offer a friendly
suggestion. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Perhaps the public website
should take a more evangelistic approach. How about, right up front, a link to
the testimonies of people who have accepted Christ and known his transforming
power? How about a link to a video called something like, “Why Should I Choose
Jesus?” Or perhaps a video, or at least a page, called something like, “Why
Does Christ Make A Difference?” Perhaps one could have the option to chat or
have a video call with a pastor. Maybe it would be helpful to have something on
the basics of Christian belief. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I’m certainly no marketing
expert, but it does seem to me that if we wish our public internet presence to
be consistent with our mission, these types of changes would be in order. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-43287705685023082362014-02-17T22:49:00.001-05:002014-02-17T22:49:58.094-05:00What's So Great About the UMC? <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh13YmWLQmV0gktp5jab-jknc6bBG0iBOuby-L3FnU2is2WwcbZA_4yHBqkxgf9vVupyFFqYQs-Lac7k7iHUR_rlIzjTu-cbLFuvKh9uzJfAmmYVf1EBv-Cr48zVdCC9e44jEyHgGsEDpV3/s1600/cross&flame.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh13YmWLQmV0gktp5jab-jknc6bBG0iBOuby-L3FnU2is2WwcbZA_4yHBqkxgf9vVupyFFqYQs-Lac7k7iHUR_rlIzjTu-cbLFuvKh9uzJfAmmYVf1EBv-Cr48zVdCC9e44jEyHgGsEDpV3/s1600/cross&flame.gif" height="320" width="181" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I spend a lot of time writing about the UMC. Much of what I
say is critical, I admit it. I want to be clear, though: this is critique </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">from within</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. It is critique derived from
a deep love of the UMC and a desire to see us become the most effective we can
possibly be in fulfilling our mission: to make disciples of Jesus Christ for
the transformation of the world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was raised in the UMC, and for the first part of my life
simply took for granted that I was a United Methodist. In seminary, though, I
asked myself a tough question: do I want to stay in this tradition or do I want
to look for another tradition where I fit a bit better? I chose the first path.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There have been a few posts in the blogosphere lately about why people stay in the UMC despite all of the infighting that goes on, so I thought I'd put in my two cents. This is not an exhaustive list, but several reasons come to mind: </span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Like other Wesleyan traditions, we are heirs of
a powerful revival that is still going on through much of the world. Revival is
in our bones. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. We are the heirs of a profound theological heritage.
Wesley may not have been a constructive theologian, but he brought together a
very rich set of ideas related to the Christian life. These ideas were rooted
in the faith of what he called the “primitive church,” meaning the church of
the first five centuries, and which he believed to be derived faithfully from
scripture. The emphasis upon holiness and sanctification, new birth, and the
power and work of the Holy Spirit are some of the Methodist movement's most
valuable theological emphases. I would love to see these take center stage again in our corporate discourse. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. We provide an alternative to Calvinists. I mean
no offense to these brothers and sisters in Christ, but there are a few roads I
can’t go down with them. And these roads are important. They relate to the
nature of salvation, the nature and function of scripture, and the character of
God. Calvinism is quite dominant in North American Protestantism right now.
Pastors such as John Piper and Mark Driscoll have huge audiences. I would like to
see Wesleyanism make some inroads into these conversations.</span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. We have a strong intellectual tradition. United
Methodists and their forebears have established numerous fine institutions of
learning, particularly in North America, but also in other parts of the globe.
We value education, including theological education. Intellectual inquiry into
the nature of the faith comes naturally in our tradition. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">5. </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Our understanding of holiness is both personal
and social. Now we have to be careful here. When Wesley talked about “social
holiness,” he wasn’t talking about what we would call “social justice” today.
What he meant was that we don’t come to lives of holiness by ourselves, but in
community with other people who were also devoted to personal holiness. In
other words, we need each other. Our Christian fellowship helps us to know God
more fully.</span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6. That having been said, the people called
Methodists have long been known as advocates for a more righteous society and
social change. Have we always done this? Of course not. But social engagement
is in the DNA of United Methodists, going back all the way to John Wesley
himself. </span></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">7. </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">We ordain women. Some of the most inspired and
Spirit-filled ministers I have ever met have been women, and God is raising up
women as powerful leaders all around the world right now. To deny ordination to
these people who are called by God is both unfair and unwise.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8. The most important reason that I remain with the UMC, however, is that I believe that God is at work among and through us. If I didn't believe this, I'd be gone. Why do I believe it? I see it over and over. Yes, there are the statistics about church decline.... Yes, there are churches that are as lifeless as a rock.... But there are also vibrant congregations--in the U.S. and abroad--filled with the Holy Spirit, where lives are changed. As a seminary dean, I go to a lot of churches, and let me tell you: God is not finished with the United Methodists. </span></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Look,
I know there are problems. I write about them all the time. Nevertheless, as
someone wiser than me once said, “All denominations sin. We just sin
differently.” And even as we are cognizant of our sin, it will be well for us
to be aware of our virtues. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-30433292358673616652014-02-17T19:44:00.000-05:002014-02-17T19:45:38.523-05:00Why Do We Have the Bible We Have? <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I came across this video of D. A. Carson explaining how the Christian canon came to take the shape that it did. While I might quibble with a few points, I think his explanation is quite helpful and historically accurate. I hope you find it beneficial. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hF0BHErlsEQ" width="640"></iframe>David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-11844992571134068722014-02-13T08:47:00.000-05:002014-02-13T13:14:52.056-05:00The “Local Option” for United Methodists (Another Post That Is Not About Sex)<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You may have read <a href="http://www.umc.org/news-and-media/2-clergy-face-24-hour-suspension-for-gay-weddings">the recent story in UMC news about the 24-hour suspension (without pay) of two pastors who performed gay weddings</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Critics of this decision will
argue that the penalty in this case is so light as to embolden others to follow
suit in disobedience to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline. </i>It
seems likely that this trend of ecclesial disobedience is going to accelerate,
particularly in conferences in which the bishops side with the progressive
moral agenda. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What is emerging in all of this is a de facto “local option”
for annual conferences. Regardless of what the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline </i>may say, annual conferences generally determine whether
a particular disciplinary statute has any binding force on their members. The
only way that this could be avoided would be for the matter to be appealed to
the Judicial Council, and for the Judicial Council in turn to rule that the
annual conference's decision is not in keeping with church law. The thing is, a
minor suspension is in keeping with church law. The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline</i> does not stipulate a penalty. Therefore, the local
option will likely hold for the foreseeable future. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One wonders if this is a large step toward
congregationalism. In other words, if annual conferences are free to abide by
or largely disregard particular decisions of the General Conference, why should
charge conferences feel bound to the decisions of the annual conferences? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Perhaps this is the only way to salvage what’s left of the
“connection.” Perhaps the only way to maintain The United Methodist Church
is to decentralize its authority. Let’s be clear, though: there are real dangers in
moving in this direction. There are larger consequences of rejecting the
authority of the General Conference. Nevertheless, that is our current course.
I hope the powers that be are taking these consequences into consideration as we move
forward. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-13599296205058262432014-02-12T08:48:00.002-05:002014-02-12T08:51:52.967-05:00Should a Man with Down Syndrome Become an MMA Fighter? <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apparently, yes. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Check out this video: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/b6fnP1j7uFE?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can learn more about this remarkable young man here: <a href="http://www.garrettsfight.org/">http://www.garrettsfight.org/</a></span>David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-52144330570633929642014-02-09T14:58:00.000-05:002014-02-09T14:58:17.385-05:00First Person Narratives: People with Autism and Down Syndrome<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the most important concepts of the disabilities movement is that people with disabilities should be at the "speaking center" of the conversation. In other words, it is crucial that people with disabilities speak for themselves and take the primary role in defining the conversations and various agendas that will affect them. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately, this can be quite difficult for people with disabilities related to cognition and neurodevelopment. Access to first-person narratives from such people can be harder to come by. Below are two videos. One features Sondra Williams, whom I heard speak at a Joni and Friends event last year. Sondra is autistic. The second features a woman with Down Syndrome named Karen. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you want to know more about these and other conditions that can create serious challenges for the people who live with them, the best way to do so is to listen to those people. </span><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xJJl1RHlEzo" width="640"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BK-4B-TFOBw" width="640"></iframe>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-82112043138996815512014-02-05T19:39:00.001-05:002014-02-05T19:39:16.252-05:00My Super-Strong Opinion About the Creation Debate<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg/599px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg/599px-The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I couldn’t watch it. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I just couldn’t do it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Those of you who did watch it... I know you had your reasons. I respect that. I'm not criticizing anyone here. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's just that, after so many years of watching fruitless debates in the church, I may be constitutionally incapable of watching Bill Nye the Science Guy and Ken Ham engage in a debate, the outcome of which is all but predetermined. (Side effects may include headaches, blurred vision, hiccups, vomiting, and hair loss.) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s not that I don’t think creationism and evolution are significant
matters (though I honestly don’t spend very much time thinking about them).
It’s that a debate about creationism vs. evolution between an agnostic and a
man who funded a museum dedicated to creationism doesn’t hold much promise for
fruitful dialogue. One party is not willing to acknowledge that God exits. How,
then, could he possibly come to the position that God created anything? The
other party has an epistemological commitment to scripture whereby anything
that he understands to conflict with scripture must be wrong. How, then, could
he possibly come to the position that anything the Bible says is incorrect? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is the purpose of a debate like this to find common ground?
That can’t happen given the presuppositions of the two parties. Is its purpose,
then, for one party to prove another wrong? That can’t happen either, for the
same reason. So the only real result can be that partisans of each side of the
debate receive a set of arguments based upon the presuppositions that gave rise
to the debate to start with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Am I wrong? I admit, I didn’t watch it. But I don’t see how
it could have gone any other way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm probably wrong. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me know what you think. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-56283009645206151972014-01-31T18:21:00.000-05:002014-01-31T18:26:00.421-05:00The Bible--Well... It's Complicated<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Crop_Book_of_Isaiah_2006-06-06.jpg/800px-Crop_Book_of_Isaiah_2006-06-06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Crop_Book_of_Isaiah_2006-06-06.jpg/800px-Crop_Book_of_Isaiah_2006-06-06.jpg" height="222" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are many people who don’t identify as progressive <i>and</i>
who don’t read the Bible like “fundamentalists.” (Actually, fundamentalism as a
movement has to do with a lot more than a way of reading the Bible, but that’s
neither here nor there. If you want to learn more about this matter, though,
</span><a href="http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Fundamentalist_Christianity.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">check out this article</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ok. I’m glad that’s out of the way now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So… there are, within the blogosphere, a couple of recent of
posts on how to read the Bible, <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogerwolsey/2014/01/16-ways-progressive-christians-interpret-the-bible/">one from a progressive perspective,</a> and <a href="http://umcholiness.wordpress.com/author/umcholiness/">one from a more evangelical or conservative perspective</a>. Gentle reader, I implore
you: do not be drawn into the polarity expressed in these two articles. (But
thanks, <a href="http://johnmeunier.wordpress.com/">John Meunier</a>, for pointing these out). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let’s take the first post, <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rogerwolsey/2014/01/16-ways-progressive-christians-interpret-the-bible/">“16 Ways Progressive Christians Interpret the Bible,” by Roger Wolsey</a>. Many of these sixteen characteristics
would also describe the way many more conservative Christians read the Bible.
In my own tradition of United Methodism, there are many people who would
self-identify as evangelical who do not affirm total biblical infallibility,
read the Bible using the tools of critical scholarship, give ample
consideration to historical and literary contexts, read prayerfully, make use
of their knowledge of biblical languages, and read in community. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The points in Rev. Wolsey’s essay that are the most
significant are numbers 11, 12, and 13. These refer to ways in which the
theological and ethical convictions of readers inform their judgment about how
best to interpret a particular passage of Scripture. Whether we admit it or
not, we bring certain value systems to the text, value systems that in many
cases are formed by our faith communities. These values, rather than a
particular scriptural hermeneutic, tend to determine which of the “camps” we
most identify with. The relationship between the Bible and our communities of
interpretation is dialectical. Our values are formed by the Bible, while they
also come to bear on the ways in which we understand the Bible. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://umcholiness.wordpress.com/author/umcholiness/">As for the second post, "Stop Taking the Bible 'Seriously</a>,<u>'</u>" Rev. Chad Holtz argues that the
issue is that Christians must approach the Bible with a posture of submission, and the position represented in Rev. Wolsey’s post is not properly submissive. Were
I Rev. Wolsey, my response would be, “I submit to the Bible, but I have a different
idea than you do about the Bible’s ethical imperatives.” Rev. Holtz says that
we should not pick and choose which passages of the Bible to honor.
Nevertheless, all Christians do this. We do it all the time. Simply saying we
don’t doesn’t make it true. Conservatives do it. Progressives do it. Evangelicals
do it. Orthodox do it. Roman Catholics do it. Fundamentalists do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is unavoidable. The only real question is
on what basis we “pick and choose.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As should be clear by now, I found the analysis in neither
post persuasive. Our doctrine of scripture involves a particular religious
epistemology. In other words, it involves a certain account of how we can
acquire religious knowledge. Our faith claims as Christians are not necessarily
dependent upon our religious epistemology. In other words, we could have two
Christians with very similar beliefs about God, Christology, resurrection, and
the Christian life, who have different understandings of the nature and
function of scripture. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://churchcoffee.blogspot.com/2013/11/dear-umc-please-study-nature-and.html">As United Methodists, we really need to get more clarity on the nature and function of scripture.</a> I think even Wesley himself had some considerable
confusion about this matter. The way he talked about the Bible and the way in
which he used the Bible were not always consistent. (I wrote an article in
which I discuss this. If you’re interested, see “Scripture as Canon” in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Wesley, Wesleyans, and Reading Bible as
Scripture</i>, eds. Joel B. Green and David F. Watson, Baylor, 2012). Getting
clearer on scripture, of course, won’t solve all of our problems, but it will
help us to avoid some arguments that we really don’t need to have. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-57494442312000606232014-01-27T07:56:00.000-05:002014-01-27T07:56:32.427-05:00Seedbed: Planning Church Events with Special Needs in Mind<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many Christians wish to be more inclusive of people with disabilities, but the "how to" can at times seem complicated, even daunting. <a href="http://seedbed.com/feed/plan-church-events-special-needs-mind/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=plan-church-events-special-needs-mind">Check out this short article on Seedbed</a> on planning church events with special needs in mind. It's written by Chris Roberts, Director of Special Needs at Woodlands UMC. </span>David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-58454322615142567362014-01-26T17:29:00.002-05:002014-01-26T17:29:58.781-05:00People with Disabilities--This Time It's Personal <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgNJ4xbiHBdZA0oCCUx5rxl03YEbuCpMbswyk7hdO47ya7rq2_psrSpBW9ZmRx1AEBKeI9FDu6oiOA3BTDsztZRzRX6WJHrnaXNS10WwtJtedLy2h7kvPCpq1BPTo0g1DFsdvlTfs4YnlC/s1600/2013-07-24+11.13.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgNJ4xbiHBdZA0oCCUx5rxl03YEbuCpMbswyk7hdO47ya7rq2_psrSpBW9ZmRx1AEBKeI9FDu6oiOA3BTDsztZRzRX6WJHrnaXNS10WwtJtedLy2h7kvPCpq1BPTo0g1DFsdvlTfs4YnlC/s1600/2013-07-24+11.13.56.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you read this blog very much, you may have noticed that I
blog on issues related to disability a great deal. This topic is close to my
heart because I have a seven-year-old son named Sean who has Down Syndrome. We
also have another son, Luke, who is eleven. My wife and I have learned a great
deal about a great many things as parents, and parenting Sean has had its own
set of lessons, challenges, and bumps in the road.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t talk about my personal experiences very much
because…well…they’re personal. I do write about the Bible, theology, the
Church, and disability, but rarely from a first-person perspective. I’m a
pretty private person, as is my wife. Recently, however, Jason Vickers asked if
Harriet and I would be willing to share our experiences as parents of a child
with Down Syndrome at the upcoming Light the Fire conference. This conference
will focus on church renewal and people with disabilities. We agreed, and we’ll
be speaking at three breakout sessions. The description of our talk is as
follows: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sean Watson was born
on Thanksgiving Day, 2006. Four hours after his birth, his parents were told
that he had Down Syndrome. At four months of age he had open heart surgery. Now
seven years old, he is a lively, precocious, mischievous boy who loves to jump
on his trampoline and play Angry Birds. For his parents and brother, learning
to raise Sean has been a journey of faith, joy, heartache, patience, and
celebration. In this session, David Watson, Academic Dean at United, and
Harriet Watson, a stay-at-home mom and United Methodist layperson, reflect on
what they have learned about God, the Church, and loving a child with Down
Syndrome. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So… If you have any interest in our talk or many of the
other fine offerings at this conference, I hope you’ll attend. You can find out
more information about the conference <a href="http://united.edu/component/option,com_eventlist/Itemid,618/id,84/view,details/">by clicking here. </a></span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-38576058545976200292014-01-26T15:36:00.000-05:002014-01-26T16:43:13.221-05:00Is an "abnormal" fetus less important? <div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The case of Marlise Munoz presents a number of serious
ethical quandaries related to life, death, pregnancy, and life support. If you
haven’t read about it yet, <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/26/health/texas-pregnant-brain-dead-woman/index.html?hpt=hp_t1">you can do so here.</a>
It is a very sad story, not only because of the unforeseen tragedy of
the brain death of this young mother, but also because she was fourteen weeks
pregnant at the time of her collapse. She was kept on life support by staff at
John Peter Smith hospital in Fort Worth, Texas, because of a Texas state law
requiring life-sustaining treatment for pregnant mothers. This is a sticky
wicket indeed: should the mother be kept on life support in order to preserve
the life of the fetus?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yet in the CNN report also mentions another item, though
with no comment on its significance: apparently, the fetus was “distinctly
abnormal.” <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/22/us/pregnant-life-support-texas/index.html">In a related report,</a> CNN quotes a statement from the family’s
attorneys: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Even at this early stage, the lower extremities are deformed
to the extent that the gender cannot be determined. The fetus suffers from
hydrocephalus. It also appears that there are further abnormalities, including
a possible heart problem, that cannot be specifically determined due to the
immobile nature of Mrs. Munoz’s deceased body. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How are we to understand the significance of this statement?
At one level it is simply descriptive, but at another level, the statement
seems to imply that removing Ms. Munoz from life support is more acceptable
because the fetus is “abnormal.” I’ve not read or heard of anyone saying this
directly, but why report on it if it doesn’t come to bear on the ethical
decisions involved? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Few people will admit this, but the prevailing ethos in our
culture is that fetuses that demonstrate atypical traits are diminished in
value compared to those that appear typical throughout the pregnancy. This says
a great deal about how we understand human beings and their value. </span><o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Update: <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2014/01/24/22433012-texas-judge-orders-brain-dead-pregnant-woman-off-life-support">NBC reports </a>that the fetus is "not viable" at the present time. </span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-61791000247690806572014-01-23T09:15:00.000-05:002014-01-28T22:41:18.458-05:00Is the UM Ordination Process Too Arbitrary? <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/The_Ordination_of_Bishop_Asbury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/The_Ordination_of_Bishop_Asbury.jpg" height="275" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m an ordained elder in the West Ohio Conference of the
United Methodist Church. My path to become ordained, however, was more
difficult than it should have been. When I say this, I know that I echo the
sentiments of many people who have gone through the ordination process in the
UMC, whether they are seeking ordination as a deacon or an elder. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To be clear, I am not saying that ordination should be easy.
Our standards for ordination should be high. I believe that the Church is the
most important institution in the world, and the standards for ordained
leadership in the Church should be commensurate with the importance of the
Church. I am saying, however, that ordination should not be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">unnecessarily </i>difficult. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was coming up through “the process” (please note:
this was not in the West Ohio Conference) I was often told that I was “too
intellectual” or some such thing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Too intellectual? I was planning on a career as an academic.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why, then, they would
ask, do you want or need to be ordained? <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This question always struck me as bizarre for two reasons.
First, I was called to ordination. This sense of call was and is very clear to
me. The fact that I didn’t articulate it in the same terms as the members of my
District Committee, however, seemed to be problematic. Was I not emotive
enough? Did I need to start crying? Did I not use the right code words? In
retrospect, I realize that certain members of the committee had a set of
informal and unstated criteria that they were using to assess my readiness for
ordination. The problem was that the criteria were stated nowhere in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline</i> or in the candidacy materials
that I had been given. The criteria were arbitrary. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Second, I could never figure out why so many of the people
interviewing me saw congregational pastoral ministry as the only appropriate
route for an elder. (My comments here will relate to the office of elder, since
that’s where my experience lies, though this is in no way to diminish the
significance of the order of deacon.) The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline</i>
allows for extension ministries. Ostensibly, the UMC values these ministries. I
was also puzzled, however, by the idea that we would want to take actions that
would reduce the number of ordained elders in our colleges, universities, and
seminaries. If the sacraments are means of grace, wouldn’t it be important to
make these readily available to students in our UM institutions of higher
learning? Don’t we want professors who care deeply about the church, the
salvation of human beings, and the cultivation of holiness? What I was
proposing to do was clearly within the boundaries of UM polity, but again the
people interviewing me were utilizing informal and unstated criteria to make
decisions about my readiness for ordination. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I went before the
Board of Ordained Ministry (also not in West Ohio—hey, I have to protect the
innocent), I went to the committee that was to examine my theology and
doctrine. One member of the interview team asked me, “You said in your
paperwork that the Nicene Creed is the most important creed.” He looked at me
with the suspicious glare of a detective questioning a suspect. “Who gets to
decide what the most important creed is?” Another member of the committee began
to nod in approval. “Yeah,” she said. “Who gets to decide that?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Honestly, the question left me beyond puzzled. In terms of
its historical importance, its formative effect upon later doctrine, its
liturgical usage, its catechetical significance, the Nicene Creed is in a class
by itself. So I asked—and I promise that it was an honest question—“What are
the other options?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“We’re the ones asking the questions here,” my interlocutor
replied. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh. Ok. I get it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, I did make it through the process, and I have
dedicated my vocation to serving the Church through a ministry of theological
education. There were several times, though, when the process was so
discouraging that I almost quit. Had it not been for a deep sense of calling,
I’m sure that I would have. Make no mistake: there were very supportive people
along the way. I owe a great debt to them. The process itself, though, was
deeply problematic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since my ordination I have served on the District Committee
for the Miami Valley District of the West Ohio Conference, as well as the West
Ohio Conference Board of Ordained Ministry. I’ve reflected a great deal on the
ordination process and the proper work of committees and boards who have
oversight of the process. I have much more to say about this matter, but there
is one item that I want to highlight in this post: the biggest problem with our
ordination process is that it is not undergirded by a clear theology of
ordination. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Begin with ¶ 301 in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Discipline</i>.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>There is considerable discussion of what the ordained should <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do</i>. There is little or no discussion of
what ordination <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i>. How can we have a
fair process of ordination when we have no agreed upon theological
understanding of what our bishops are doing when they ordain? It’s no wonder
that our process is given to arbitrary criteria that can vary from conference
to conference, team to team. As a church, we need to get clearer about what
ordination is. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This would help us with another problem as well: clergy burnout.
As a seminary professor and dean, one of the most common problems I see among
my students is that they don’t know what the parameters of their jobs are. Too
often, young pastors think that their job is everything. It isn’t. The primary
role of a pastor is to bring people into relationship with God, to bring the
Holy into the ordinary lives of women and men. Without without a clear sense of
the ministry into which they are ordained, pastors will be much more prone to
leave the ministry.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m currently heading up a team for my annual conference to review
our candidacy and interview process. I know many of you reading this blog will
have strong opinions about the ordination process. If you do, let me know what
you think is working and what isn’t. Please help me to think constructively
about this matter. I consider the work of this team to be very important, and I
would very much appreciate any insights you may have to offer.</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-50643848723997784102014-01-21T17:43:00.000-05:002014-01-21T17:45:28.056-05:00Inclusiveness? Get serious. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiLpTWwynEbuuODaq8ZFKhbnkf4Z9HARvT6uWDj6Qp8l2GbPevWtVVe-YpoIx-lockqN5H7UxtwyyouNCBXR7uOnah_ZTdUAfmAJ21pbF8JAniSpWbfTiXRbDApH4EiB1OOQEZFhd-6_P56TwQwyA8mKN_N1Z99QlEZaBnq5w=s0-d-e1-ft" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiLpTWwynEbuuODaq8ZFKhbnkf4Z9HARvT6uWDj6Qp8l2GbPevWtVVe-YpoIx-lockqN5H7UxtwyyouNCBXR7uOnah_ZTdUAfmAJ21pbF8JAniSpWbfTiXRbDApH4EiB1OOQEZFhd-6_P56TwQwyA8mKN_N1Z99QlEZaBnq5w=s0-d-e1-ft" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many Christians I spend time with are deeply concerned about matters of inclusiveness. Sometimes by this they mean that they wish that their churches were more racially diverse. Others wish the church was more accepting of gay and lesbian people. Sometimes they mean to talk about socio-economic diversity. Only occasionally, however, are they talking about creating a church that is more welcoming of people with disabilities. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most often, we understand inclusiveness as a change of attitude. The idea is that if we, or others in our congregations, can simply get past our prejudices, we can be a more inclusive church, one that reflects more fully the kingdom of God. Surely there's some truth to this, but it's not nearly enough. Changing the demographics of any congregation will take more than a change of attitude. It takes sweat equity, shared leadership, and a willingness to live and worship in new ways. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One in five people has some form of disability. Think of the wide range of conditions that we refer to when we talk about people with disabilities: autism (which now accounts for one in eighty-eight live births), Down Syndrome, impairments of mobility, blindness and low vision, deafness, PTSD, dementia and Alzheimer's, and many other conditions are considered disabling. People with disabilities are all around us, all the time, and yet many feel shut out from the life of the church. Quite often, parents of children with disabilities simply don't go to church because (a) they don't feel their child is welcome, (b) they don't feel the church is equipped or the staff trained to deal with their child, or (c) it's just too difficult. How many people are not hearing the gospel, not experiencing Christian community, because they or a family member has a disability? How many children with disabilities are missing out on an upbringing in the church? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"But I don't have any people with disabilities in my church." </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, this is probably not true. Many people have hidden disabilities that they conceal in order to prevent others from forming prejudicial opinions about their level of ability. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Second, people with more obvious disabilities might be more willing to show up to a church that is intentionally welcoming of them. This means more than having a wheelchair ramp. It means having staff who have some orientation/training related to welcoming people across a broad range of disabilities. It may mean having a sign interpreter in worship, having accessible bathrooms, and creating space in the sanctuary for wheelchairs. It means having Sunday school teachers who are prepared to welcome children with special needs. It means many other things as well. If you are not sure what needs to be done in your church to welcome people with disabilities, you can have a disability audit. We just had one at United, and part of what we learned was how much we still have to learn about hospitality. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Being welcoming is not easy business, but it is crucial for the fulfillment of the church's mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For all of the talk about inclusiveness among mainline Protestants, many of us are still failing to welcome into our churches thousands and thousands of people who need to hear the gospel. And this leads me to the conclusion that we really need to rethink what we mean by "inclusiveness." Where is the furor over the unwitting exclusion of these people? How much time will we spend at our next General Conference talking about this matter? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Each year, United Theological Seminary and Ginghamsburg UMC jointly host a church renewal conference called "Light the Fire!" This year's conference will be on church renewal and people with disabilities. It will be held on May 8-9 2014. If you have any interest in learning more about these matters, please see the information below: </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #b45f06; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Registration for this year's Light the Fire! 2014 conference is open to the public. United is offering a special rate of $99 each (that's a $50 savings!) if registered by March 21st (World Down Syndrome Day).</span><br />
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<span style="color: #b45f06; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Light the Fire! 2014: The Fullness of Christ -- A Church for All People will be held at Ginghamsburg Church, 6759 S. County Road 25A, Tipp City, OH. Featured speakers include Marva J. Dawn, William "Bill" Gaventa, Barbara J. Newman, Jeremy Schipper and Mike Slaughter. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #b45f06; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This year's Light the Fire! conference will equip clergy and laity to be faithful in ministry with people with disabilities. The conference will include theological discussion with plenty of "how to" sessions for creating a church of people of all abilities. For more information or to <a href="https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=9f9d54" target="_blank">register</a>, visit <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=0018Ab-Re4iYheUWlGSXHPC1gqsAk59q4xL6fucju654n8s_jiKGyiEU2NdlLWsp3SpGY76zUBJpBk9c3xygfkdPhQ5RwDRB0RYwYx22RnVYQtry57W-O6PHfjHroqFkVCSOIq0ewbPKWQS5464_GWCCBdZ1wt3DgroatJDhHKS-dJyn8rolK4UgDoGqVAPwcb2Ou6SrMBE56fCL8PNan2VWg-lkKtHnZD5y60BUIdeQYZz4opTpVumYO98FPQiSIebmFHXB3eUAUQEWITMHg359g==&c=Wc0nm82mxq_JACsqM2HLUUhQrpcs9SyCNkbgvw0Lkr7nbyiiXeewpw==&ch=Sut3-4B6B4J9XBdGIYpPoaqxFSWC9o79jntjylVR8HWTMyaH8EOBRg==" target="_blank">United's website</a>.</span></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-43837732679491475542014-01-18T09:48:00.000-05:002014-01-30T07:57:41.637-05:00What is a Liberal Christian? <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We often talk about various Christians in broad
categories like<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“conservative,”
“liberal,” “evangelical,” “progressive,” and “moderate.” In this post, I want
to explore the term “liberal,” because I think of these terms it is the most
difficult to define. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Part of the reason for the difficulty is that "liberal" has at least two meanings that are really quite different from one
another. On the one hand, “liberal” could mean a commitment to intellectual
virtue. In this sense, a liberal is someone who wishes to get all the ideas out
on the table and argue them out using the tools of reason and logic. Opposing ideas are given fair consideration and are accurately
represented. Conceivably, one’s mind could be changed on even very deeply held
convictions. This is the idea behind a “liberal” education. Students are taught
to think, not simply what to think. Yes, there are certain facts and ideas that
one should simply have in hand, but all ideas, at least in theory, are subject
to critical examination. Theology, then, is as Anselm put it, faith seeking
understanding. While it is entirely permissible, even expected, that one will
hold certain faith claims, all ideas are subject to intellectual, reasonable,
and critical examination. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the other hand, Christian liberalism represents a set of
theological positions. Because this is a blog post, I’m going to have to paint
in broad strokes, so please bear with me. Most often, Friedrich Schleiermacher is
identified as the father of liberal theology. For Schleiermacher and others
like him, individual experience authorized theological claims. This idea would
come to bear in powerful ways on subsequent liberal Christian theology. Scholars
such as David Friedrich Strauss and Albert Schweitzer would advance theological
claims based upon their own modernist formation and experience of the world. In the 20<sup>th</sup>
century, existentialist theologians such as Bultmann and Tillich, owing much to
the philosophical writings of Kierkegaard and Heidegger, would become leading
voices in Christian theological discourse. These scholars, and Bultmann in
particular, would have a tremendous influence upon biblical scholars. Bultmann’s
project of “demythologizing” the Bible came to bear in extraordinary ways up on
the methodological presuppositions of many who came after him. Ostensibly intellectually
responsible scholarship would have to proceed from a modernist perspective in
which God’s direct intervention into the cause and effect of history was
methodologically eliminated from consideration. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Later, particularly in mainline Protestant traditions,
process theology would come to dominate the theological landscape. While not
incompatible with existentialist theology, process theology does involve a set
of metaphysical claims that differentiate it from other forms of liberal
theology. Scholars such as Charles Hartshorne, Schubert Ogden, John Cobb, and
Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki are among the leading figures in this area. Like
existentialist theologians, process theologians do not see God’s direct
intervention in the cause and effect of history as reasonable. The resurrection
of Jesus, for example, must be understood as a story or symbol, but not as an
accurate representation of a historical event. In this sense, both
existentialist and process theologies involved significant revisions, and even
abandonments, of many of the claims of historic Christian orthodoxy, even while
employing much of the same language. The popular Christian writer Marcus Borg
is heavily indebted to process thought, as is made apparent in his book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The God We Never Knew</i>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is difficult to overstate, moreover, the
effect that these traditions had upon theological education in the so-called
“mainline” traditions. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At some point, things changed again. In particular, during
the 1970’s, 80’s, and 90’s, theological positions emerged that were grounded
explicitly first and foremost in the life-situations of particular communities.
One’s lived experience authorized particular religious claims. In a way, we’re
back to Schleiermacher now, except that lived experience is now defined
communally, rather than individually. Essentially, the argument goes that
belonging to a particular community of interpretation gives one a unique
perspective that authorizes faith claims that people outside of this community
are ill-positioned to see. Liberation theology often proceeds in this way. Clearly
there is a great deal to say for this position. Our communities and life
settings do in fact come to bear in remarkable ways upon how we see the world.
People who write from the perspective of disability studies, for example, have
things to say that able-bodied and able-minded people may not see at all. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One liability of this type of argument, however, is that
some people see the claims made from inside a community as immune from critique
from outside a community. If you criticize the position of a community not your
own, you are only demonstrating your own prejudice against that community and
therefore validating its claims to marginalization. This is an intellectually
unhealthy perspective. A second liability is the danger of emphasizing communal
experience to the neglect of divine revelation. Yes, our lived experiences
shape the ways in which we think about God, but that is not to say that they
should be wholly determinative of our faith claims. Christians have long held
that God has taught us things about God’s own nature, being, and relationship
to humankind. We sometimes talk about this as “special divine revelation,”
meaning that these ideas are not ones that we could discover on our own. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This type of identity-based theology is not necessarily
revisionist in the senses that existentialist and process theologies are. In
other words, you need not significantly revise traditional understandings of
the Trinity, Incarnation, Resurrection, salvation, and other historic doctrines
in order to speak out of the experience of a particular community of interpretation.
If, however, one gives epistemological precedence to communal experience over
divine revelation, then it is likely that the historic doctrines of the faith
will do little heavy lifting. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At some point, liberal Christians stopped using the term
“liberal” and started using the term “progressive.” I’ve really never
understood this move, except that the term “progressive” expresses a positive
value judgment that “liberal” does not (at least, in our current context).
Progressive Christianity now includes a very broad range of positions
influenced by existentialist, process, and identity-based theology. It is
still the dominant form of thinking in mainline Protestant traditions and
theological education. It is difficult to identify what characterizes
progressive Christianity today, but I’ll go out on a limb (and I’m putting on
my Kevlar jacket right now). Its emphasis is on social justice, variously
conceived, rather than on the Trinitarian economy of salvation. This is not to
say that progressives necessarily reject the Trinitarian economy of salvation
(though some do), but it is not the main emphasis of their proclamation. Some
progressive Christians, however, would identify salvation as almost entirely
defined by social justice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, I don’t know any Christians who would say that they are
against social justice. We may conceive of it differently from one another,
but, generally speaking, we all believe that God offers to us a righteous,
life-giving way of ordering our relationships. What sometimes gets lost in talk
about social justice, however, is that, as Christians, we cannot know what
social justice is apart from God’s self disclosure through Jesus Christ and the
Holy Spirit. In other words, special divine revelation is necessary for us to know
what social justice is. Additionally, the Christian life is not simply about
emulating Jesus or abiding by his teachings (though these are important), but
the transformative power of Jesus’ cross and resurrection mediated to us by the
work of the Holy Spirit. In other words, a well-articulated understanding of
the Trinitarian faith of the Church, and an experience of the Trinitarian
economy of salvation, are necessary in order for us to reach a point at which
we can talk about social justice as Christians. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is why I stopped identifying with progressive
Christianity years ago. It’s not that progressives don’t have important things
to say. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clearly they do. It’s that, for
me, Christian proclamation must lead with a clear articulation of the nature and
identity of the God we serve. This God is revealed to us as Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. This God shows up in history. This God really did become human,
really did die, and really did rise from the dead. And this God does not leave
us alone, but is at work powerfully, all over the world, leading people into
more righteous lives that will continue into eternity. An emphasis on social justice that does not first reckon
with these beliefs is not enough, at least not for me. I’m a liberal in the
first sense discussed in this post: I believe in getting the ideas out on the
table and having open, honest, intellectually virtuous discussion. The emphases
of the liberal/progressive Christian movement today, however, are not such that
I feel comfortable identifying with it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve tried to represent liberal/progressive Christianity as
fairly as I can here. I’m sure I’ve left things out, and perhaps gotten a few
things wrong. I think this is the longest post I’ve ever written (and congratulations
if you made it to the end) because it deals with a very complex topic. I
welcome your comments, but I’d appreciate your adopting a liberal perspective
(in the first sense). </span><o:p></o:p></div>
David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4362959652294607881.post-27869127197259404572014-01-11T13:55:00.000-05:002014-01-11T13:56:02.619-05:00Our Israel Trip<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So... I haven't been able to blog nearly as much as I would like on this trip. Part of the reason is that I have been helping my son, Luke, with his blog, which is an assignment for school while he's here. So if you want an update on the trip, check out <a href="http://lukessuperblog.blogspot.com/">Luke's Blog of Awesomeness. </a>The internet is really slow in our hotel, which makes it hard to do a great deal of blogging. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A large part of the group will leave for the States this evening. A few of us are staying for a four-day extension in Jordan. It's been a great trip, though the weather delays in the U.S. have presented us with our fair share of challenges. We've had to rearrange much of the program. Still, I think the students and leaders have all learned a great deal and have grown both spiritually and intellectually. </span>David F. Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02591588936482210240noreply@blogger.com1