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are we ready to be a
movement?
by
john o'keefe
the idea of a
" movement" disturbs
me, not that i am 100% against it, but i would be less than honest if i did not
say it disturbs me. now, before i go on let me say this is not a rant
against "E"mergent of tony and what he is being called to do.
tony has asked that we "take a break" for a while and see where things
rest in a few years. i admire tony enough to honor that request.
after all, he has the rather large task of trying to gather all our voices and
see if we can be on a common track - a wide track.
i think, for
me, the idea of becoming a movement is disturbing at a core level, because i
have felt the sting, slap and insults of the "modern church
movement." my concern comes from the idea that some heavy
"formality" will form from what i believe should remain
informal. as we discuss the possibility of morphing from conversation to
movement i am concerned about some very important realities.
who will determine what the
movement looks like?
who determined that one group
speaks for all?
who will determine what the
movement believes?
who will determine who will
speak for who?
who will determine how the
movement moves?
who will determine why the
movement is?
i
keep hearing that "many" want us to be more
"organized." yet, i do not hear those voices. i hear the
voices of those who fear this idea, and they fear it for many reasons. while some may see
our voices as
"trivial," i hope those who desire a "movement" do not.
because if they do, then they are no better then the modern church we strive to
move past. if they are unwilling to hear us, then they are no better then
those they have questionsed in years past. they have replaced themselves
with the likes of mohler and carson. if they are unwilling to bring all voices
together, or unable to bring them together, than they can not
speak for all in the emerging. for me, the morph from conversation to
movement mandates some very important issues that must be addressed. my
prayer is that these concerns are addressed, and not pushed aside as
"trivial."
organic
vs. mechanical
the emerging needs to remain
organic. one of the things that caused me to get so involved with the
emerging was that there was not "organizational chart" no
"bosses," no "founder," not "this is what you MUST do
and believe." once we become a movement we become
mechanical. if we become a movement, we must remain organic. that
will be hard, but it must be part of the core. i
fear us becoming a movement will mean we become more
like a bureaucracy and less like an organic life.
we can do this with all good intentions, and with pure
motives. remember, it all starts with one person
saying, "we should have people fill this form in
before they do this."
conversation
vs. direction
in a movement, everyone needs
to be on the same page, have the same focus, hold the same beliefs, follow the
founder. all
must follow the same direction and dictions of "the powers" that
be. if, one questions the direction of the movement, they are
"outside" the main stream and are seen as "anti-the
movement." but in an emerging conversation there
can be no "decent" because all views are seen as equal. views
are encouraged and discussed and no "answer" is found, because the
question has more value then the answer. we are currently the spoken exchange of thoughts,
opinions, and feelings; we are "talk." besides, if we "come to a
conclusion" in the emerging, it could change the next time we talk.
if we become a movement, we must maintain the reality
that some will not follow, and some will speak against -
and do so loudly.
less
vs. more
the idea that there is never
organization is not a reality i work with, because all things have some
structure. but it is the amount of structure that needs to be
formed. in an organic body the structure forms based on the need of the
organism, and will even change as needed. in a mechanical system the
structure is rigid and formal. we need to keep in mind that "less is
more" and that we strive for connection, not
mandating.
people
vs. profit
one
of the things that truly has made my heart heavy is the
"sales circus" that seems to form around emergent
events. it never seems to fail, but they are
filled with the christian market groups desiring to make
a buck, and sell their wares. it was not that long
ago i attended a youth gathering and the "sales
area" was about five times larger then the worship
area - i left. the current emerging events cost
too much, market too much and are too "rock
star" centered. to me, this smacks of the
modern churches marketing and cash desires. with
publishers gathering at these events to sell books,
colleges push their schools, para-church ministries try
to show how "cool" they are and none of it is
truly doing much.
some closing
thoughts and questions:
now, i am a realist, i am but
one small voice - loud sometimes but still just a small voice. i have been loud at time, but mostly i
write a bit and minister. my prayer, is that those who are desiring to
take the emerging from a conversation to a movement hear all voices - not in the
way the modern church hears (ignores) us, but honestly, openly and expressively
hears our voice. if not, then we simply continue the conversation without
them. while i do not desire to make this a "one end vs. the other
end" thing, i think that there is a danger of us
becoming more like those we desire not to be. we
need to be careful and mostly we need to be a
"movement" that truly seeks change, and one
that is willing, ready and able to change as the need
comes.
do you hear the voices of
those who think this is wrong, and do you care?
we hear "many
people" wanted this, but who or how many?
can
we get away from the profit motive and enter the
ministry motive?
we have been asked to
"not make waves" yet when will we get answers?
what
is the goal and benefit of "becoming a
movement?"
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