What are you celebrating today?

Ok, If you're not wearing green today would I pinch you? Probably so. Can't help it. I'm pretty sure that was ingrained in like kindergarten. If you are wearing green today, what are you celebrating? Is it the Luck of the Irish? An excuse to throw back a pint? Maybe the one day of the year wearing your pointy green shoes isn't weird? Perhaps it's a family heritage or just plain old tradition?

Though there is some family heritage for me (my dad is probably marching in the St. Patrick's Day Parade today in Dublin) , I don't have green shoes, and it's not so much about the Luck of the Irish... It is, however, very much about the Love of the Irish!

There's this teenager who was taken captive and enslaved in Ireland... after 6 years of captivity, he escaped. In his freedom, this guy's heart was broken for his captors and the land of his captivity. Out of LOVE he returned... Patrick so loved Jesus, he lived a transformed life and did the unthinkable. He LOVED his captors!

Patrick LOVED the Irish, though they were seemingly unlovable. They didn't know of Grace, Mercy or Hope, but Patrick did. He experienced it and couldn't help but share it. Being empowered by God and knowing the culture Patrick was able to start real and relevant expressions of The Church in Ireland. Don't think so much about steeples and hymnals... Think about communities of people doing life together, working community gardens and welcoming in strangers.

Through one community lives were changed and other communities began to spring up around Ireland. Inviting people in and giving them freedom to belong before they ever believed proved to be the mark of God's movement in Ireland. There's something to experiencing the Love of God... It transforms lives! Patrick experienced it and carried it to Ireland - are you experiencing it and where are you carrying it today?

The Love of the Irish... God's Love for messed up people... That's what I'm celebrating today!

Getting in the Water -

Love Chapel Hill celebrated its first baptism as a church in the cold waters of Morgan Creek in Chapel Hill, NC. Witness this amazing day with us in the video below. This baptism is special for Jeanine and I as it is our brother, brother-in-law, and friend Stephen "Tony" Walker who gave his heart to Jesus just a few weeks back. We are proud of you Tony! The old has gone and the new has come!

Should homosexuals be allowed to marry in the church?

Alright, this may seem to deviate from the flow of Scotland blogging...let me just add real quick that I have a running tab at the bar right now in order to be on the internet...this is a trip! We're back to struggling for wifi. Anyway, the title of this blog is pretty key to the experience of the trip along side the Chuck Hunter book I'm reading. For every leader in the Celtic Christianity Movement like St. Patrick and St. Columba, leaders in the reformation like Luther, not to even mention the apostles, there was a stand to be made. It may have been an unpopular or out of the ordinary stand, but each was firm in his or her convictions...and for many that started a revolution. One man from history that I've become acquainted with here in Scotland is John Knox. He is largely responsible for bringing a solid protestant hold in Scotland during the reformation, and began the Presbyterian Church which later became the Church of Scotland. His stand was against Catholic way of running things and the mix of the church and state politics. He was firm in his convictions and knew what he was fight for, even in his uphill battle.


So, this is where we come back around to the initial question posed, and it's a valid question. Watching the morning BBC news and then the "Today Show" like program called "the Wright Stuff", this question was raised as the Anglican Church in England is currently struggling with it. There are homosexual couples who appreciate the traditional church ceremonies and want to be able to have a traditional wedding. Now, mind you, England already has accepted civil unions for same gender couples, the question being raised now is just, should they be allowed a traditional church wedding. Some of you maybe wanting to weigh in here with your responses and I welcome you to do that (please note that I will moderate comments and pull any that are in appropriate), but the answer may not be so easy as we want it to be. Admittedly and embarrassedly I have not worked out my own response to this question. I think that we as a church have a bigger question to deal with first, and that is - What is marriage? Second, What does it mean to be a member of the church? Solidly working out these two questions (which we so often fail to do) would leave the question already answered for the Anglican church and all of the BBC viewers.

As I look at this question being raised here on the soil which I currently stand, I know that the U.S. is just a few years behind and in Chapel Hill and other progressive towns the question may be coming sooner than we think. In many ways the church is already behind on the issue homosexuality. The question requires a response and if we don't prepare ourselves, people will be turned away and led astray. What I know above all is that we as Christians need to work out our position on homosexuality and same sex unions...and we need to do it in the same love and grace we've been given. But even more, we need to be willing to take a stand when we find it. That stand will likely be scrutinized from both angles, but we need to be bold. This is an issue where we as evangelicals so commonly want to throw stones and condemn...let it not be any longer! Let's work this out in fear and trembling before the Lord. I pray too that you, my brothers and sisters in Christ will hold me to this standard.


I don't have any pictures really to go with the content except for this one bold proclamation I saw just yesterday.
I'm not real good with Latin, but I'm pretty sure this grave marker boldly says "I await the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come." Let us be so bold as the church to share and proclaim what it is that we believe.

The bar is closing and I've gotta go pay the tab. Thanks for stopping by today!
Cheers!

Establishment vs. Movement - a whole bunch of churches

Am I allowed to say that cathedrals "litter" the countryside of Scotland (and Ireland)? Whether I'm allowed to say it or not, it's pretty much true. As we've walked the streets of Edinburgh these last few days I've lost count of the number of magnificent structure built to the Glory of God. I remember traveling several years ago in Ireland and there were always two things you could count on seeing in even the smallest town...a church (cathedral) and a pub. We're just now getting ready to move on from Edinburgh, but I imagine it is much the same.

As I've been reading about St. Patrick and his evangelism work with the "barbarians" I've learned that it spread even more so after his death. It is said that through these works of St. Patrick that there were over 6000 churches planted in Ireland alone. From there Christianity in the same way spread to Scotland. One of the reasons for the great number of churches beginning was their distinctive approach to doing church. It was quite different from the Roman church of the time that built great structures and employed ordained clergy. Instead this work of St. Patrick was done in simple, small, structures made of wood and mud and they relied on laity more than clergy to be active leaders in ministry. Which is the establishment and which is the movement? Patrick had started a new kind of church that was both "barbarian and catholic"...some, including Chuck Hunter, called these new church monastic communities.

Not only did he turn the way of doing church upside down, he turned the monastary concept inside out. Instead of being an established force against the world placed out in some remote location with people living in protest to the material things of the world, the monestary was in an open place in the middle of towns or tribes where people could come in and out and experience a new way of life...specifically, one with out violence or aggression and one devoted to God purpose. These communities became models for the world and the penetrated the people of the towns and tribes. The monastic communities provided support and life for one another. They were able to work out their salvation together. People became the focus rather then buildings and church heirarchy. The gifts of each person were embraced for both employment and ministry and they were always preparing to send people out to start and join other new ministries.

So how did all these big church buildings come to be? The movemental dynamics were squelched by leaders in Rome who disagreed with Patrick style and approach. They decided to shift back into establishment mode with a "parish" church in each town. Now don't get me wrong, I think the "established church" has great attributes and resources and a lot of potential for discipling people. The typical monastary was a place for monks to withdrawl and focus on their own souls, but these new monastic communities were places concerned with saving the souls of others. I'm going to go a little JW (John Wesley) here and say I see the need for both, and they should be in a healthy balance. One without the other seems to be a little off track.

I'm no expert on the current state of Christianity in Ireland or Scotland, but my initial observations lead me to believe things are in a pretty steep decline. The buildings are great, but where are the people and are lives being changed? Could these awesome structures be used to reachout into the community and become a refuge, penetrating the world in which they exist? I think they absolutely could and I've seen two old churches here in Edinburgh doing just that. These two are taking the resources they have as an established church and seem to putting things in motion again. The two are St. George's West and St. John's. Both have transformed their space in some way to reach out to the common person. The inside of St. George's is actually now a cafe and St. John's houses are center for justice and peace. I would love to hang around and get to know these a little more. Seek and you shall find...I think that is the case for us as individuals, but also for us as bodies, as churches working together. The establishment doesn't have to be stagnant or stale.

Ok, that's enough for now, I'm amazed if you are still reading at this point. I want to give a quick shout out and hello to our friends Ken and Judy Pyles. They lived here in Edinburgh for a year while Ken was at the Edinburgh University School of Divinity called New College. Ken was preparing to one day be my pastor at the First United Methodist Church of South Charleston (it's been a few years ago). Anyway, we got to stop by and see the School of Divinity and take in the beautiful sites.

Much love to all, and thanks if you made it this far!

Fuzzy View?

Here's my next attempt at a video blog. I have to say I think I must have been half a sleep in doing this one. I was struggling for words a bit more which you can't see when I'm just typing. Anyway, check it out. After the video there are some links and stuff at the bottom.



Ok, I'm not saying that I or these guys at Rhythm have it all figured out or that they are a "perfect" church. What I am saying is that they are doing some "new" things and trying to focus on being the church instead of doing church. They don't have a website right now, but they are using Google Groups to communicate and seem to be using it effectively. Go check out the Google Group, and especially if you live anywhere close to Indianapolis, think about getting connected here and trying something different. http://groups.google.com/group/777-indy?hl=en

There is another organization that Jeanine and I have come to really know and love. I'm not really sure where it is based out of, but it is very much a movement type of ministry. It's called "To Write Love on Her Arms". It is basically about reaching out with the Gospel to people who are addicted to the chemical reaction that takes place in the practice of cutting. The statistics are staggering of how many people are cutting themselves. Check out this their website and prepare to be moved. http://www.twloha.com/