Dan Kimball on Emerging Church Stereotyping

Dan says his new post “Please Don’t Stereotype the Emerging Church” is redundant but i think its a very necessary read. Sounds like its the beginning of a response to John MacArthur’s upcoming book “The Truth War: Fighting For Certainty in An Age of Deception“. i will probably buy MacArthurs book when it comes out, but I think there will be a lot of things I disagree with. Lets wait and see.

God give us patience and insight and grace. Amen

UPDATE: Bill Kinnon, who thinks i am being too kind, kick starts the conversation with a funny post called Emerging Grace 2 You.

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Andrew

Andrew Jones launched his first internet space in 1997 and has been teaching on related issues for the past 20 years. He travels all the time but lives between Wellington, San Francisco and a hobbit home in Prague.

4 Comments

  • kent says:

    Having read the post on Dan Kinball’s site, the question keeps coming up why are we so obsessed with one another, making sure we have all the details right? Aren’t there bigger issues to deal with in the church? Can’t we allow the emergent movement to find its way, and if they make a few mistakes along the path, okay fine – everyone does. Have we been so successful in sharing the good news with those around us that we can focus inwardly? I pray that those who are seeking to be the church in a new way will keep going and find a path for us all.

  • Mike says:

    Clearly we all want to be correct in our understanding of the Bible. Trouble is we are very good at beating each other down. I’m not saying we shouldn’t be good Berean’s, it is the approach I am concerned with. We tend to want to prove how right we are and how wrong someone else is.
    I pray that the Lord would open all of our eyes to the truth of His word, love and care for each other.

  • Mike Morrell says:

    I love Dan’s post, but I can’t help but think he might be inadvertenly neuturing freedom in his rush to assure self-proclaimed gatekeepers that there’s “nothing to worry about here.” Are emerging communities really super-organized, sermon-centered places with statements of faith on their websites? That might be fine for some folks, but that’s a little disappointing to me.

  • Dan says:

    Hi Mike –
    I think I understand what you are feeling as being “disappointing”, but even going to Doug Pagitt’s church and others – they aren’t sermon-centered, but they have all have sermons (that I have been to). Most (but not all, but most) do have doctrinal statements posted on their web sites. I didn’t say “super- organized” i just said “organized” as the criticism was that they are totally disorganized – which is not true. Most have thought through budgets, multiple types of meetings throughout the week etc. which all need organization – like any family is organized to make a dinner, emerging churches I have been to have a very organized in a family way approach.
    Out of curiosity, why is that disappointing to you?
    thank you!

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