Chapter two was consumed quickly as was the first chapter. I appear in this chapter ever so briefly in an Emergent and pre-Emergent historical sketch that is at one level helpful and at another irritatingly sparse. But only some of the insiders and those of us who thought we were for a period of time would want more of.
Tony does a good job breaking down the cultural context (postmodern transition) in which all these revolutionary thinkers gathered from around the globe and why it has become a life long pursuit and passion for many of them. Simply put, these folks felt great affinity in being around like minded and forward thinking men of the cloth and believe that things discovered in the late nineties continues to inform not only their own practice of faith but in their view challenge some of the assumptions that thousands of years of church history had produced.
Tony gives great and almost complete credit to Brad Cecil for the first clarifying moment in the group in the late nineties. Anyone who knows Brad realizes he is brilliant. I sat through his Postmodern transition Powerpoint presentation and it was extremely helpful to me as a newcomer. Tony suggests that it was as helpful a year earlier to Chris Seay, Doug Pagitt and Mark Driscoll. Apparently during a leadership planning session Brad resurrected from a fetal position on the floor after being beat into submission by generational talk. He was convinced that something larger and more significant was shifting than simply Gen Xers assuming the reigns from Boomers.
And thus was born the “Postmodern Transition” term that would be printed on a conference brochure for a 1998 conference in Glorietta, New Mexico that yours truly would receive in the mail. When I read the term “Postmodern transition” on the black gothic flyer, I knew I would attend the conference. At least at that point I had figured out that my church and my own views of salvation and faith had been significantly influenced by 5 years of pastoring and by things that I could not put words to.
Of course it did not hurt that the flyer also announced that the great Scott Stapp of Creed would also be at the conference. But in one of the greatest false advertising moves in the history of Christian conferences, he came by way of taped interview by Chris Seay and Doug Pagitt. As visionary as these folks were for things relating to church and faith, they could not stop themselves from hitching their wagon (albeit briefly) with a shallow rock star who would end up doing inadvertent sex videos with Kid Rock. At the time we were all smitten with a rock star who used metaphors of faith in his lyrics. But like any famous “Christian”, he was consumed and left in the ditch of his own prison.
To be continued . . .
el mol
5 responses so far ↓
crystal // February 26, 2008 at 12:44 am |
i would just like to say i remember you showing the scott stapp interview at church.
So let’s go there
Let’s make our escape
Come on, let’s go there
Let’s ask can we stay?
oh man.
Anonymous // February 26, 2008 at 1:43 am |
Serious and thoughtful.
elmol // February 26, 2008 at 2:51 am |
crystal – did not show that at church.
it was shown at new heights (ok a church but not my church) . . .. if I remember correctly
Mike Stavlund // February 26, 2008 at 4:48 am |
I saw that video, and it changed my life.
I’m loving this series, el mol. It is insider and outsider all at the same time. Genius.
MOL Junior // February 29, 2008 at 11:29 pm |
tagged: MOL Junior
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM.