~ In spite of the fact that it must really guzzle the gas this school bus to RV conversion looks fun.~ Landscaping in the desert. I know, we're not exactly living in the desert now -- but hopefully we will do so again at some point.
~ The Christian Century has a significant article about the rise of the prosperity gospel in Africa.
~ I've been looking at some of the emerging church websites and noticed that quite a few of these "faith communities" don't have any doctrine or beliefs. They just have values -- things that they're passionate about. Is it possible to have both beliefs and values?
~ Apparently financial troubles are leading to fewer HIV incidents -- at least in Zimbabwe. Strange -- but seems to make sense.
~ Kirk called us this afternoon from SF on his new iPhone. A first for us -- no, not a phone call from Kirk but an iPhone call. It sounded the same as when we usually talk with him.
~ Apparently iPhones have been crashing the wireless system at Duke University.
3 comments:
I think the reason for the "values" rather than beliefs is that most ec communities view faith as a journey. There are things they believe but to put that on your website might make faith appear to be more of a box than a journey.
Values, it seems to me, are easier to resonate with or go along with, whereas "beliefs" are more rigid or "lines in the sand." In other words someone exploring the website may perceive a doctrinal statement in this manner: "If you believe these things you're in, and if you don't you're out..." vs. value statements "Do you value these things? If so come journey with us." I think the assumption is that belief/correct doctrine will come through journeying with the Christian community."(That's my guess anyway and I'm borrowing Rob Bell's journey vs. box analogy.)
I guess that's a long way of saying, "yes, you can have both," but maybe there's a reason not to include the latter on your website.
Sorry for the extra long comment. :)
Your answer is good, Brian. And I understand. But it still seems to me that focusing so much on values without even mentioning doctrine is lacking in transparency and authenticity. It's the kind of thing that a cult might do. I do think that there are ways to state what you believe with a gracious tone, in a way which conveys journey, and which minimizes the insider-outsider thing.
Funny, that thought about "lacking in transparency and authenticity" occurred to me as I was writing my previous comment.
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