Response to Joe's Blog

Joe wrote:

"The church cannot remain in a bubble and ignore how the world has and is working. Too often, I believe the church tries to create Christian alternatives to culture, rather than embracing popular culture. And more often than not, the Christian product is crap. Christian media tries to package the crap to make it look and sound the same, but in the end it's still crap. You can't polish a turd."

My response:

I'm all for getting outside of the bubble...bursting the bubble...however you want to lay it down...

However, what about those within the church that endorse what you refer to as a 'turd'? I just don't think you can tell people it's crap...because for them it might speak truth...So while my personal tastes don't fall in line with the "christian alternative" I think we still have to figure out how to keep the conversation in motion...it's not going to go away...there will be people that endorse and push the Christian alternative in music for years and years to come...the Fish or whatever that radio station is called is going to be pumpin' out the Christian hits and it's going to impact certain people and speak truth to them and their situation...even though you and I might have a hard time understanding how that works! So, I hear you but I don't think a hard line response is the answer as I think we risk offending some folks in an area where it's probably not worth offending them in...I think we're to be bold but in my mind this isn't an area where we want to go to battle. It's kind of like we're fighting over what style has more relevance or is more capable of revelation or is a better tool and the answer is both.

Loved the fistpumps site btw.

Week 9, Wednesday Final Class

As I sat in class today I really thought about how this cultural model engages with us as individuals and as a larger community. I think we have a real duty to explain to the youth culture and unmask the powers that control what we get to watch and buy. While I don't believe I would subscribe to avoidance and telling people, "don't watch this." I do think that we need to raise awareness. I don't believe that the average adult could name the Big 5 or know how they're inter-related. Yet, it's important to understand the synergy type mindset that big businesses create so that we can unmask the powers.

Week 9, Cobb Chapter 9, Life Everlasting

I responded to Cobb's closing comments in this chapter:

"Most of these eschatological experiments in popular culture suggest a happier realm to come, but they also prompt us, each in its own way, to clarify what matters to us in the present, and to consider what ways of life might be better than others. This is a welcome use of popular culture."

I think that Cobb makes some good points in this chapter about how a focus on eschatology is important...especially when we see how this is reflected in popular culture. He does a good job of setting up how eschatology is more of a recent popular culture phenomena and I appreciated his comments on the origins of purgatory and how that plays out in secular film. I think that many of these apocalyptic films, Independence Day, What Dreams May Come, Terminator, capture the consequences of our human sin...apocalypse now! But the eschatology in some of these films isn't always fully realized or dealt with...I think that if they do one thing well, they get us thinking about the potential consequences of human sin and they create a dialogue about what happens next.

Class Monday - Frontline Merchants of Cool

Production, Text, Consumption, Everyday Life. The systematic rebellious nature of teen culture and how it fits into the overall scheme of selling cool. It is interesting to see how the relationship is changing with consumers and producers. The ways in which social networking is taking over and changing the way we communicate. I like what Bolger says in terms of part of the role of the church is to unmask the powers.

Week 9, Bevans Chapter 9, Countercultural Model

The countercultural model takes experience, culture, social location, and social change into account when determining its presentation of the Gospel. According to Bevans' understanding of the countercultural model, if the Gospel is to be presented, it must be done, "in the language of those to whom it is addressed and has to be clothed in symbols which are meaningful to them." Honestly, at this point I've heard of so many models from Bevans that my brain is pretty fried and I'm not sure I can tell what all the differences are anymore. I think what is clear is that there is no one way to do practice contextual theology...I'm still most comfortable with the translational model.

Response to Todd's blog Week 9 Wednesday Reflection

Todd wrote:

"There is so much I would like to say about our discussion today. I’m convinced that studying youth culture is one of the most important things churches can do today. Not only because we need to speak effectively to youth but because their lifestyles become the lifestyles of our young adults, then our middle-agers, then our elderly. Marketing is a fact of life that we cannot ignore."

Chris writes:

I don't think you'll find much argument here Todd. But should we differentiate when we look at marketing? Is there a difference when it's a product that is being thrown at us vs. news media and even the church? I would argue that your average American youth realizes that they're being marketed to...case in point the Sprite campaign that deconstructed the athlete as spokesman telling kids not to buy the drink because a pro athlete drinks it...so I think we could agree that the general public and youth recognize that they're being marketed to...what I think is more deceitful and clandestine is how the news media and many might argue churches compromises their message to fit the ideals and needs of their particular demographic...I think the news media and the church are more subtle and perhaps less suspected of using manipulative marketing since they adhere to "the truth" vs. selling a product.

Week 8, Wednesday

I really enjoyed the discussion today. I think the production, texts, audiences, and everyday life circuit of culture model is very relevant. As we discussed how this relates to businesses and corporations targeting youth it raised some larger questions with me...I have less of a problem with businesses targeting youth and more of a problem with the beholden nature of big business. Specifically, how this might be reflected in the way we receive our news. How can we really have a free press when the stories are beholden to a larger corporation? If we're to apply this to a church model, when churches embrace the large corporate structure are they in danger of becoming overly beholden to the shareholders i.e. the deacons, elders, or congregation. Is there the freedom to proclaim the truth or do we risk watering everything down at the risk of offending the shareholders? I would argue that both the news media and church structures have to be held to a different standard. Perhaps there needs to be a regulatory force that can step in an enforce these untruths when they occur?

Final Paper Outline

Wess,

Here's the work in process for the final paper:

1) Describe a particular aspect of culture (such as economics, popular culture, race, feminism, etc.) Describe how it plays out in your local community as well as inside your church community.

- Here I'm thinking I'll look at popular culture in terms of film and how it relates to youth culture. I think I would start from a place where perhaps I just ask young adults in my church and the young adult group of what they think are the most truthful, honest films, that depict the human condition. Perhaps a brief survey, which films and why?

2) Do one of these two: a) use a strategy from Bevans to express the gospel within the particular aspect of culture you discussed above; or b) use an approach inspired by Cobb to express what the Christian community might do/say in regard to this aspect of culture.

-In this step I would apply a step from Bevans and I'm thinking that I would use the translational model to say something to the effect of...here's how I read the film, here's how I put it in context with scripture...here's how I put scripture in context with the lives of young adults today....I think that it would probably work best if I based my film selections on the surveys of the young adults...so if they told me that their favorite film was Life Aquatic then perhaps I pull out some of the father/son themes in that film and explore it in terms of how those themes or the nature of that relationship relates to to scripture...God and Jesus...the idea of the prodigal son...etc...and then turn it in the translation model back to the context of the young adult.

3) What are some ways the church community might address the issue: a) in the church community itself, b) locally; c) globally. Specifically what activities need to occur?

-Honestly, I'm not as sure in this section...I think the initial issue is how do we engage the youth culture? In the church community, locally, and globally this means that we begin not only presenting and reading film but understanding what it means, perhaps through reading and making film, to step out while being part of community? How does film do this? It brings us together and engages us in dialogue.

Week 8, Bevans Chapter 8

The transcendental model is interesting as it seems to put the emphasis on individual experience. I think on a personal note this is one of the models that I struggle with the most...in my mind...it's much easier, smooth, obvious to direct people towards scripture and tradition. But the transcendental model seems to say that these elements are less important as compared to personal experience. I think that one of the ways this seems to play out is in the idea of sharing one's testimony. Testimonies exemplify God's revelation in our own life and the world. I'm not arguing that this model is ineffective. Rather, I've seen it work the opposite and be completely effective, especially with those young adults unfamiliar with tradition and scripture. My personal hang up is sharing my story and my individual experience and not bringing in the idea of scripture and tradition. Yes, it's an all three kind of answer...they all matter...but what about utilizing the model that best suits your audience? I'm discovering in the bigger picture, knowing one's audience is really the key in practicing theology.

I appreciated the quote from Sallie McFague in this chapter, "The purpose of theology is to make it possible for the Gospel to be heard in our time."

Week 8, Cobb Chapter 8

Redemptive violence. There is some crossover here between this subject in Cobb's book and another book I'm currently reading by Walter Wink called Engaging the Powers. Understanding how this plays out in popular culture is important. I think that the latest Rambo installment was perhaps one of the best examples of this as it see the salvific through the lens of redemptive violence.

I also enjoyed the section spent on music in this chapter and the commentary on how Luther and Wesley's appreciation for music helped drive people to sing and worship God. It gave me more insight into the Great Awakening periods here in the US.

Soteriology, the study of deliverance, is important as we articulate how Christianity differs from worldly ideas of deliverance and bring the Good News to the next generation.

Week 8, Monday

Today in class I thought about Foucault and his ideas on how power is not tied to the ruling class and financial status such as a Marxist view and how he tied it into knowledge. I think that the larger question is that if power is not dependent on the financial, capitalism, money aspects, then what is it dependent on? Perhaps, education is tied into the knowledge aspect of Foucault's ideas on power? Maybe those who have knowledge also are the ones that have the means to pursue higher education. Perhaps the educated would be the more likely party who in fact controls the power?

Week 7, Wednesday

"Hospitality gets its name from welcoming the stranger, yet when we practice hospitality who do we normally invite? We need to break the circle of the same by welcoming the uninvited. Undecidability is built into hospitality." - John Caputo

I really enjoyed this quote from Caputo. It resonates with the way we treat those outsiders and flows with the love your neighbor as yourself.

I also appreciated the conversation today about Caputo's undeconstructables. Although I don't know if I understand the distinction that make hospitality undeconstructable. It would seem that the church needs to first deconstruct hospitality and understand this is what the biblical image of hospitality is and the contextualize it in our present day context. Perhaps I need to think that the word undeconstructable in Caputo's usage is synonymous with the word non-negotiable. Therefore to say hospitality is undeconstructable is the same as saying it's non-negotiable. As Christians there are no exemptions towards offering hospitality.

Week 7, Barker Chapter 14

Cultural politics and cultural policy. This chapter brought up some interesting ideas as it relates to the role of the intellectual in cultural studies. I found the Gramscian view helpful as it identified "traditional" intellectuals and "organic" intellectuals. I think this becomes helpful as we attempt to understand who influences the formation of our cultural ideology. Gramscian thinking posits traditional intellectuals as the dominate force behind cultural hegemony. Whereas the organic intellectual organizes the counter-hegemonic class.

In reading this view from Gramsci it would seem that there is a push pull going on when it comes to creating a cultural hegemony. If we're to assume this model then it would also seem that both sides of the intellectual side must engage each other...for instance...if by Gramsci's definition churches are on the traditional intellectual side of things...then they need to identify their distance from the working class organic intellectual discover ways to bridge that gap and vice versa.

Week 7, Barker Chapter 13

Youth, Style, and Resistance. I think what was helpful in this chapter was understanding that Youth Culture resistance is taking place "inside the whale" or within capitalism and not outside of that arena. What seems to be happening is that instead of youth cultures out and out rejecting of capitalistic enterprises...MTV, coca-cola, Levis, playstation, have infiltrated youth culture.

In response, youth culture has used capitalism to support or resist these various enterprises and thereby used commerce to create their own set of signs, codes, identity.

Week 7, Bevans Chapter 7

The synthetic model begins with listening. It's the idea of finding basic patterns and structures and discovering the local theology. From there it's a matter of putting the basic themes that exist in the local theology into conversation with the basic themes of the gospels. I think Bevans makes a great point as he says that there is a real danger of "selling out" to the other culture.

As I critique and analyze and struggle with these various models of contextual theology I guess what I try to hold on to is that no matter which way you try to slice it...Jesus must remain at the center of our theology. I read an interesting devotional this morning by Frederick Beuchner.

Beuchner writes, "Jesus said, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me' (John 14:6). He didn't say that any particular ethic, doctrine, or religion was the way, the truth, and the life. He said that he was. He didn't say that it was by believing or doing anything in particular that you could 'come to the Father.' He said that it was only by him-by living, participating in , being caught up by, the way of life that he embodied, that was his way."

As we move forward with understanding and practicing these models, I just feel that this is something that we need to really keep in mind. I think it's when we lose sight of Jesus, much like Peter did as he stepped out onto the water and began to sink, and we begin to mistakenly think that it's more about us, we run into danger of sinking.

Week 7 Cobb Chapter 7

This chapter raised some interesting ideas as to how we're to understand the consequences of sin. I think Barker's analysis of how the Puritan foundations of this country relate to the "Jeremiad" cycles is really fascinating.

As Barker points out on page 215, "Jeremiah consistently advised that the people had to repent of their collective sins and change their ways if they hoped to be delivered from their enemies...They were in violation of this covenant, and consequently the anger of God had been kindled and calamity was about to overtake them if they did not repent and amend their ways. This idea that disaster falls upon those who refuse to repent and rectify their wrongs is the defining formula of the Hebrew prophets."

It's interesting to see how in the Jeremiad the covenant was used to explain early calamities as God's response to sin. It would seem that Puritan stubborn moral faith was a way of insuring the community would attend to their sin. In contrast, the Gothic script flows more with how the sins of ancestors transgress on the people today.

According to Cobb, in the Gothic script is centered less around an ever powerful God and more around the individual choices that we make and the effects those have on our future brothers and sisters. It would seem that God is rather absent in the Gothic script as it relates to sin.

Response to Joe's response

Joe, I feel a steel cage match coming on. Bundy and Hogan in the steel cage Wrestlemania 2 style was my favorite...although I think you could make an argument for the Superfly Snuka leap off the top of the 15 foot high steel cage on Don Moroco or Hell in a Cell with Mankind and Undertaker.

But anyway, good response to my response. I think we're hitting on the same level here and you're response covers what I was getting at, my main issue with the Praxis model is that "for some" its assumes a foundation or that they'll discover it in reflection.

I appreciate your inclusion of Matthew 22 when the Pharisee lawyer asks him which commandment in the law is the greatest and Jesus says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

In my mind, the priority that Jesus lays out to the Pharisee lawyer is that we're to first love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. And then second to reach out and love our neighbor as ourselves. I'm no praxis expert, but to me, that runs somewhat contrary to the application of the praxis model.

Response to Joe's post Reflection: Week 7

I've been reflecting on the praxis model quite a bit this past week especially as I join a team in starting a new young adults ministry at our church. I have a heart for outreach and I really want this group to be outreach heavy. I think this praxis model has some tremendous benefits in helping the group move towards a place where this can be achieved. However, I do see a distinction in the way the praxis model plays out in our scenario and I don't believe the method and approach falls entirely inline with The Great Commission.

For me, the fundamental difference is in the method and approach of the Praxis model vs. the method and approach of Jesus' overall ministry. According to the praxis model we're called to action and our job is to go out and do outreach/service for the marginalized and then come back and reflect on the experience.

Now, going out and serving the marginalized certainly was the cornerstone of Jesus' ministry as exemplified in both his words and action. However, in Jesus' ministry, according to Matthew, the disciples first had to encounter and discover who Jesus was before they could be sent out to lift up the marginalized and spread the good news. Think about how this plays out in the chronology of Matthew's narrative...it's only after the cross and meeting the risen Christ that the disciples receive the call to action...The Great Commission.

I think there is a potential danger in creating a discipleship program that emphasis the praxis first through action without first spending time understanding why it is that we go out and serve. Without that foundation, I think that we can run into the problem where we're just doing "good works." Is God big enough to work in the situation regardless? Certainly. But I think it might be helpful to build that foundation before we go out to serve.

Week 6, Barker Chapter 12

I thought that there were some interesting ideas in this chapter about LA as the fortress city. I think that Barker's highlights of Mike Davis' apocalyptic vision of Los Angeles in his 1990 book City of Quartz is an eerie forecast of the 1992 LA riots. It's particularly interesting to see how our current downtown LA fits into this idea of cleaning out of the homeless, and cardboard tents, etc...I wonder what kind of obligation the new high rises, condos, hotels, and building projects have towards these urban natives? My guess would be very little. I'll be very interested to see what the outcome is in terms of LA Live and the regentrification of downtown LA. I appreciate Shields view that the city is not one and rather "a complex surface of activities and interactions." I think about how we should celebrate the diversity of voices within the postmodern city and understand that we're not defined or limited by our differences. If we can join together to do service, rally, and better our city perhaps we'll capture a true faith in action.

Week 6, Barker Chapter 11

In this chapter Barker discusses television and the role of the news. In his section on War News, Barker suggests, "President George Bush Snr.'s decision to stop the 1990-91 Gulf war short of a full scale invasion of Iraq was arguably a consequence of this fear that images of slaughter and fleeting Iraqi forces would turn public opinion against him" (Barker, p.320).

I think that Barker is completely overstating the power of the media in this particular situation. First of all, there is absolutely no basis for this claim. Show me where any person involved with the first Gulf War says that this fear of CNN cameras was a driving force in the pull out. I agree that the power of image has the ability to affect decisions in war time. But it's typically reactive and not proactive in nature.

I certainly think that the horrific images presented in war images such as U.S. soldiers dead bodies being desecrated after the Black Hawk helicopter crash in Somalia, the machete hacking deaths in Rowanda, the U.S. bodies being drug out of Viet Nam have all led to war time maneuvering. But in the first desert storm all we got was some shots of smart bombs hitting targets and rooftop shots of US carpet bombing.

Now with the advent of embedded journalism and instant technology perhaps we'll pull back the curtain on much more of the human tragedy that occurs with war. But part of the sad reality is that the major news providers are media conglomerates that are obligated to their other companies, advertisers, share holders, the FCC, and government. Perhaps it's time that journalists embed themselves outside of Walter Reed medical center and Iraqi hospitals.

Week 6, Bevans Chapter 6

"The praxis model of contextual theology focuses on the identity of Christians within a context particularly as that context is understood in terms of social change" (Bevans, p. 70). My understanding of the Praxis model and the way it relates to contextual theology is that it goes beyond seeing culture as simply religious values. Instead, it moves ahead and attempts to spark social change and action. The focus is on community and not individualism.

I think what I really struggled with, in a positive sense, after reading this chapter was how the praxis works out in practice. In the example near the end of the chapter, Bevans brings in the example of Asia and the Philippines and how in order for Christianity to catch a fire he writes, "If Jesus' identity is to make sense in Asia today, it will not be in terms of claims of metaphysical uniqueness but by way faith in Jesus empowers people - especially Asia's women - to work and struggle for justice and equality" (Bevans, p. 85).

I just think about how this is a really difficult proposition for the western evangelical Christian to own and put into action. I feel as if our Western society is so completely opposite this idea at this point. We've become complacent and completely individualistic. So how do we get there? I'm challenged by statements such as these that suggest Asia will only understand Jesus if it empowers people towards social change. Maybe this is why many non-believers here in the West don't believe as well...they don't see faith in action in those around them.

Week 6, Cobb Chapter 6

"Where your treasure is there your heart will be also." These are the words Jesus spoke in Matthew 6:21. Commodity fetishism is alive and well here in the US. This is part of our human nature that Walt Disney was able to capitalize on beginning in 1930 with the popular cartoon myths that he created.

In reading Cobb, it is clear that one of the fundamental theological questions in human nature is "Who are these humans that God has made?" I appreciated the parallels that Cobb draws between questions such as these and the replicants in Ridley Scott's Blade Runner. The perfect, unstoppable Cyborgs who are incapable of real human feeling and authentic emotion and desire to be made human. I think that Cobb makes a good point as he talks about how as humans we desire the seeming perfection and beauty of these robots. Yet, the irony is that these so called perfect cyborgs really want to be us and want to be human. This science fiction theme harks back to Frankenstein and the creation of the powerful man that becomes a monster. In the end, it all seems to be a dangerous trap over vanity. We can't control the process of aging and we must recognize it's a process of life. Perhaps if we recover a greater appreciation for the stages of life we can avoid these futile attempts to play God that can consume our time and resources.

Monday Class February 18th

I think that it's important after listening to the lecture today to understand that post-modern means different things to different critics. How do we define post-modern? Is it post-industrialization? Post-capitalism? Post-war? It would seem that post-modern is often misused to mean "new." I think that it's also interesting that in regards to the church and post-modernity, the shift from religion to spirituality is a move away from an institutionalized faith. How does this impact the way we understand church? Do we need to redefine church by attaching and favoring words such as traditional, mainline, emerging, and missional instead of using denominations?

Response to Todd's Images of God post

"I’m concerned with the attitude of how we experience music and story over propositional and rhetorical discourse. I’m imagining a musical/narrative discourse."

Todd, I think I understand what you're writing about...unless I'm trying to project my own ideas/questions on your post. But what would a musical and narrative discourse look like to you? Is it a situation where we free ourselves from labeling, defining, and finding a singular truth in music and story? Is that what we're trying to get away from? Does it become a situation where we just focus in on the experience? I think this is a really well written post and it has sparked lots of questions in my mind of what you're locking in on. I'd be interested to have you come at me another time and break it down in terms of what we're really getting at here and attempting to understand.

Week 6, Wednesday

I think what I found helpful today in our discussion of modernity was the idea that with modernity the world was broken up into spheres. Specifically, how this created a fracture between the church's relationship with art. It would seem that modernity was a product of post enlightenment thought and a response to the individual's rationality. I think this is helpful as we try to understand where and why the fractures occur between the church and art.

Week 6, Monday

The anthropological model was an interesting model to break-down today. What I enjoy about the class is having the opportunity to apply some of the theories to actual mission situations. In reflecting about these exercises I think that it might be an interesting exercise or perhaps helpful to have a singular case study for us to tackle in groups. This way we can focus our study and get different perspective from different groups on one situation. It's just a thought but it might be helpful in narrowing the scope and exploring some of the commonalities and differences in our approach. In particular, I was trying to think about how those of us can use these models and theories as a practical way of understanding, supporting, and partnering with those participating in world missions and churches in foreign lands.

Week 5, Barker, Chapter 10

In Chapter 10, Barker links cultural studies with feminism along lines of power, representation, popular culture, subjectivity, identities, and consumption. Barker also attempts to underline the parallels with how we see women represented in popular culture and how women are represented in our society. I think that Barker makes some excellent points as he draws on Meehan's study and outlines the most common stereotypes of women in popular culture. I also found it intriguing that there is considerable scientific evidence showing women are more verbal, co-operative and organized then men and that our brains are organized in different ways. It would seem that developing an appreciation for these differences might help us to gain new insight into members of the opposite sex and thereby become more productive and understanding as a group of people.

Week 5, Barker, Chapter 9

I appreciated what Barker wrote about racism as he makes the claim that we have to understand why societies have an incapacity to live with difference. I see this is as fundamental in developing an approach to understanding racism. In regards to rap music and the new ghetto aesthetic, I think that what we've seen is artists responding to the major areas of struggle and conflict within their culture. I don't think gangsta films and gangsta rap serve as some sort of broad stroke representation of the entire community. Rather, these art forms provide a commentary on some of the major issues that plague the black community. Representation is key and Barker goes to great effort to highlight positive black representation with the Cosby Show and Oprah. I think what's interesting is that with this upcoming presidential election we have the opportunity for the first time to see what America's response is to the idea of a black candidate and perhaps gauge just how alive racism is in this country.

Week 5, Bevans, Chapter 5

The idea of the anthropological model would flow from creating a contextual theology that does not rely on creating a predetermined message. Rather, one that works with the human presence of the culture to compliment the Gospel. As Bevans writes of the anthropological model, "Culture shapes the way Christianity is articulated" (Bevans, p. 57). I think it is also important to point out the major danger of this model which is that it falls prey to cultural romanticism. But overall, it would seem that the anthropological model is an important model of contextual theology in that it embraces the human nature of the culture.

Week 5, Cobb, Chapter 5

I thought the idea of what we learn from "God fiction" both in film and literature was quite interesting. The parallel that I found particularly relevant was using the social and historical context of the time in which the Book of Job was written.

Cobb writes, "Job was probably written late in the biblical period of ancient Israel, when Judaism had suffered the humiliation of exile at the hands of pagan nations, and at a time when its theological beliefs were in flux. The experience of exile had required a revamping of much of the Jewish understanding of God. We too live in a time of change in which we have lost many of our inherited theological certainties" (Cobb, p. 157 ).

I never really thought about the connections between the context of Job and the way we can come to understand various presentations of God in "God fiction". I think that as we move into a period that becomes more religiously diverse and pluralistic it's important to look to film and literature and culture to try and get a read of where we're at as a culture and what the ideas and questions are that the church needs to address.

Response to Aaron's blog Wednesday, Week 5

The commentary on Marx's knowledge or lack of knowledge of Christianity from class discussion also stuck out to me. I think that the Castro quote wasn't meant to mean that Marx never knew of the Sermon on the Mount. Castro uses the past tense saying Marx "would have" subscribed to the Sermon on the Mount because Marx was dead...not because Marx never knew of it. I appreciate your comments on how Marx was against religion as he saw it as an excuse to not work for justice in the here and now. I think that his hope was probably tied up in the government being the hope of the world. But I also wonder as a Catholic converting to Lutheran, where the Lutheran church dropped the ball? I haven't studied this very much but your comments seem to imply that the Lutheran church wasn't active in working for justice and I'm wondering how that was ties into the stance of the Lutheran church. Is this because church members thought the Kingdom wasn't here and now?

Week 4, Barker, Chapter 8

In reading this chapter I thought about the role of the enlightenment in relationship to the creation of identity. The shifting away from the enlightenment idea of the rationality of the individual to a post-modern identity whereby we're defined by many different and fragmented identities. After understanding this shift and seeing where our culture sits today in it's post-modern context, I think that we must discover how agency plays into this in terms of acting as an agent of change to make a difference. If we're to relate this to the role of the church being and agency in the community how does that play out in our post-modern context? How do we relate to others? How do we effect change?

Week 4, Barker, Chapter 7

This chapter helped me find a better understanding of the term post-modern. It would seem that the ideas of intertextuality and multi-genre form are two prime indicators of the post-modern form. I appreciated the examples that the author used in terms of The Simpsons, Miami Vice, and The Sopranos (3 of my favorites). I think if I had to add to the definition I would add that the characters in these programs or the voice of the show writer(s) also express a heightened sense of cultural awareness. Take a film such as Pulp Fiction where the characters and writer/director Quentin Tarantino, have an obvious affinity and reverential following of pop culture. This awareness seems to be a fundamental conceit of post-modern film and television.

Week 5, Wednesday

The class discussion on Marxism today was engaging as it related to Castro's quote about Karl Marx falling in line with the Sermon on Mount. However, I still have some fundamental problems with understanding how a pro-Marxist view might relate to Christianity in a larger sense once you start looking at how Marxism restricts individual freedoms. I understand that capitalism can be flawed and lead to abuses of the working class...the rich can get richer and the poor get poorer. Yet, I don't believe it's the economic system that is flawed. It's the individuals in the system who succumb to power and greed that create these inequities.

Week 4, Bevans Chapter 4

As I reflected on the Translational model and what that means to translate the meaning of doctrines into into another cultural context I thought about the role of "revelation" and how it's important to remember that revelations can both be "wholly culturally free" or "clothed in a culture that is divinely sanctioned" (Bevans, p.41). The point that I'm getting at is that even though the translational model is important and we need to strip the Gospel of its husk as we enter into mission with other cultures, I think it's important to temper it with the idea that God still has the ability to reveal himself free of that culture.

Week 4, Cobb, Chapter 4 Theological Tools

As I reflect on the Theological Tools that Cobb writes about I'm drawn to this idea of myth and what myths mean in our current context. Cobb writes that, "novelists, poets, filmmakers, and painters are reliable indices to the currently vital myths in a culture..." (Cobb, p. 123). He sites Mircea Eliade as a person who claims we have a mythic space in our subconscious that needs to be filled. He also claims that with religious myths on the wane we fill this space with other myths. This is an interesting proposition and I wonder what kind of repercussions this has on our religious identity as a whole. Have religious myths lost their luster? Is there a way to bring religious myths back into the consciousness? Or, is the result of moving into a more pluralistic society creating a loss of religious myth as a whole.

Week 5, Monday

Today we discussed the translation model. I thought about what this looks like in terms of stripping down to the "naked gospel." I'm still struggling to get my mind around this concept and figure out how this really plays out. If I understand correctly, it entails keeping the doctrine but totally removing the husk around the gospel. The husk is the particular social context and environment that each of us brings to our reading of the gospel. In order to use the translation model effectively, we need to adapt the context to the culture that we're speaking into.

Response to Harmony's Blog Week 4 Monday

Kester Brewin said, “If worship was about gifts, then what we brought to worship had to be integral to us, something meaningful from who we were.”

I appreciated your transition from the Brewin quote to your reflection on how this played out in your own experience growing up in the church. I think my personal experience has also been that the church, or people within the church, often do a poor job at setting up those in the congregation. I think that you're dead on when you say...

"I want to make sure, in my life, that I encourage people everywhere, not just in the church, to use their gifts."

Providing others with affirmation is a great spiritual gift and one of the most overlooked spiritual gifts in my opinion.

Week 3, Cobb Chapter 3

I was really intrigued by this chapter. The historical basis of culture as it relates to the gladiators killing Christians in the Roman coliseum and the early theater. The causal relationship and the historical influence that these events had on Western Christianity and it's views on entertainment and culture is fascinating. It was interesting in that Cobb draws distinction between Tertullian and Augustine and their two different views on theology and culture. Tertullian saw them as "discrete realities". Augustine saw them as "intertwined cities". This idea of intertwined cities resurfaced centuries later by Martin Luther when he saw the roll of God in culture as dependent on both God's will and the reception of the viewer. I think that there are certainly quite a few different viewpoints out there in the role of theology in culture. However, it is easy for me to see how a church father such as Tertullian would have been strongly opposed to culture and entertainment given that Christians were being killed as sport as popular entertainment.

Week 3, Bevans Chapter 3

In this reading we learned about six various models of contextual theology. Anthropological is the most radical and countercultural is the most conservative. I understand that each of these models is distinct and can be used in conjunction with each other. I found it interesting that Darrell Whiteman pointed out in the chapter that, "when the Gospel is presented...along appropriate cultural patterns, then people will more likely be confronted with the offense of the Gospel, exposing their own sinfulness and the tendency toward evil, oppressive structures and behavior patterns within their culture" (Bevans, p. 33). I think this is an important idea worth holding onto as we attempt to understand how the Gospel might be received in context with their culture.

Week 3, Barker Chapter 6

In this chapter I keyed into the idea that "Globalization is not constituted by a monolithic one-way flow from the west-to-the-rest" (Barker, p.173). Instead, we need to realize that our increased consumer culture and our newfound means of globalization has created an environment in which we consume all sorts of new products. I found it particularly interesting how this plays out with religion. Not only do our churches swim against the tide of catering services/programs to the church members. But we're quickly becoming less and less of a Christian nation. Islam and Hinduism, and other world religions are quickly becoming more and more popular. I think this important to realize and evaluate as we move forward in stepping out into the world. I think the task in a large part becomes understanding the other religions and realizing how Christianity differentiates itself in a positive way from these other religions.

Week 3, Barker Chapter 5

"In 1994, about 51 million Americans aged eighteen years and older were diagnosed with some form of mental illness" (Barker, p. 145). This stems from "family trauma" and "a loss of social and cultural connection". This idea jumped out to me as I read this chapter as the larger implications from our perspective seems to be how do we as a body respond to these staggering numbers? Barker suggests that "drugs and talk" are one of the ways we need to change brain biochemistry. But I responded to perhaps the less quantifiable idea that is presented in this chapter. The idea of how changes in our patterns of personal experience and changes in our thinking can alter our brain chemistry. I think that a large part of our mission is to discover where and how our Christian culture and secular culture intersect to create a cohesive and connecting culture.

Week 3 Monday

I thought that the discussion today about the emerging church was interesting in that we outlined the difference between the "attractional" model of the 80s/90s with the "missional" model that Bolger and Gibbs tapped into in 2004. I think where I'm at right now is trying to figure out how the best of these two models can be blended together in a way that will engage the church community. I don't believe that there's only one right way in how to do church. However, I'm inspired by the missional and emerging church and I do believe that "traditional" congregations need to come alongside the missional and emerging churches and tap into the idea that they're not just there to cater or market to the church body.

Reponse to Randy's Blog Harmony - Bevans Chp 1 - Week 1

The main line from your post that I would have to take issue with is when you state, "culture just distorts what we hear He's saying to us." The use of the word distorts implies that culture is negative and blocks us from hearing God.

I would like to suggest that while this certainly can be true some of the time, it is not true all of the time. I believe that God has the potential to work in and through anyone and anything, including culture, as a way of leading us to discover the greater truth found in scripture. I think when we start saying that culture only blocks us from hearing God then we're underestimating the ability of God.

Response to Jim's response of Harmony on Week 2 Wednesday

To me, this all seems like a question of avoidance and that's a very tricky proposition...especially with youth. I think you're dead on in stating that kids do have a blind spot...not that we don't as adults...but there is a different level of innocence there that can be manipulated. I hear you on the millstone reference but at the same time I was thinking about how Bolger talked about how Christ didn't invent parables. Bolger made the point that Christ took the parables of the day and twisted the endings to give them his own meanings.

So my question is what if we shift from strictly telling kids, young adults, that this media is good and this media is bad (not saying that this isn't important and part of it) and we figure out how we can engage them through the mass media that they're consuming by developing a theological twist on that media. Not putting added importance of media over scripture...but figuring out how we can use media to ask questions and lead youth to engage scripture. Obviously, I'm not suggesting that we use the profane to accomplish this task but what I'm saying is that we have to relate to their culture if we're going to break into their culture.

Response to Aaron's blog Wednesday, Week 3

I think Aaron makes a good point when he says that congregations often leave their Biblical understanding up to the paid ministers...Then the question becomes why? And I think part of the answer gets back to the nature of living in a Capitalistic society...unfortunately, many folks treat church life as a part of consumerism...I attend or tithe to this church because I get this, this, and this out of going there...I think we've all probably been guilty of that at some point in our life and it's a real struggle. I think part of the responsibility has to be put on the ministerial team. Not just devising programs that will serve the members but devising programs that will allow the members to serve.

Week 2 Wednesday

After class lecture I walked away with the message that, "Jesus is inviting us to be agents of transformation in the world." The method we employ to become an agent of change is up for debate. I think in a large part it comes down to where you see the Holy Spirit using the community in which you belong most effectively. I think one of the ways that this course is interesting is it begs us to look at the way we're involved in our own churches and the way our churches are involved in the community. I think about how my church can become more missional and what it will take to mobilize and move the congregation towards that next step. As a guy who grew up in the Midwest, I could identify with Bolger's statements about the interviews he conducted with Midwesterners and how they could fall into two categories...those that went to church every Sunday or those who used to attend church. In a weird way, I feel as if living in SoCal the past seven years, in a society that is much more religiously diverse and pluralistic, has created in me a stronger urge and desire to explore my Christian faith. As I think about the impact of living in different environments it seems to me that there is a real danger in living in place where so many claim to believe in the same religion. I see the movement towards a more and more pluralistic Western nation as a positive in that it will really confront Christians to examine what and why they believe in Jesus.

Week 2, Cobb, Chapter 2

I seem to get the most out of Cobb's essays. I think his writing style flows much better than Barker or Bevans and he integrates the terminology in a way that feels organic in the readings. As I read chapter 2, I found his citation of sociologist Jane Addams to be particularly interesting. Here is a sociologist who over 100 years ago realized that young people were retreating to the theater to, "satisfy that craving for a conception of life higher than that which the actual world offers them" (Cobb, p.65). Cobb goes on to discuss hyper-reality and how we don't want life as nature but we want bigger, better, badder, more glitz and fireworks. We want Disneyland and Vegas. He draws an interesting parallel as he talks about the Amish in the city reality show. But how does this play into our relationship to culture on a theological level? It's an interesting question because if I understand Cobb correctly, doing theology is one of the last areas where we openly search for deeper truth and meaning. In his opinion, it would seem that cultural studies needs to get back to a place where we dig deeper and attempt to understand the aesthetic, theological, and moral aspirations behind culture.

Week 2, Barker Chapter 4

Making meaning out of language seems to be the key to understanding this chapter from Barker. Common sense tells us that words have a singular meaning but in the world of cultural studies we learn that words contain different meanings for different reasons. I found the ideas of Foucault to be interesting in this chapter. Particularly, how Foucault runs opposite to the Marxist perspective which views cultural studies as dependent on economic reductionism. To Foucault it seems that power becomes a key variable in studying cultural studies. The understanding of not just what is being said, the text, but understanding who can speak, when, and where.

Week 2 Monday MLK

"Dangerous unselfishness." These were the words that MLK used the night before his assassination to describe our attitude in moving forward and evoking change in the world. As I reflect on MLK and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement it becomes clear that we certainly have moved forward in the past 50 years. However, as a nation I believe one of the most dangerous things that we can do is become so wrapped up in our culture that we forget about the act and the importance of standing up for others and those who can't stand alone. Teresa L. Fry Brown was right in chapel when she said that we as Christians are still a people in exhile. It is vanity to think that we have overcome the social ills of our country. But at the same time it seems as if our country is fatter than ever. We seemingly have all the goods, services, technology, and things that make us feel safe...but what is our true calling? It's people such as MLK that remind us to get up and make an impact. To think and act beyond ourselves. God is calling us to move out of the wilderness and join him in the Promised Land.

Week 2 Barker Chapter 3

The ideas of cultural studies and questioning of which groups are behind the maps of meaning is an interesting question with no easy answer. In reading the chapter, I don't know if I necesarily agree with some of the critics and delineate between the high-low culture by determining what's commercial and part of the culture industry. It seems as if it is an elitist view that essentially says that in a capitalistic society we create culture as a product and the masses find meaning by consuming this product blindly. Now while they're certainly is some truth to that view, especially in Southern California and the US where culture seems to be our number one export, I don't believe that you can define high low culture by figuring out what is commercial and what is non-commercial.

Week 2 Bevans Chapter 2

Reflecting on issues in contextual theology it seems apparent that the issue of a person being a participant or non-participant factors into their theological understanding of culture. I think one of the ideas that I found to be useful to further my understanding of contextual theology is the author's statement, "that the gospel can only really be faithful to the past if it is in touch with the present" (Bevan, p. 25). That to me sounds similar to C.S. Lewis great command that the modern theologian must have the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.

Week 2 Wednesday

I thought the thrust of the lecture today was very relevant as we went beyond culture and examined the larger question of how Jesus engaged culture and what that means for us today. Our small group discussion focused on how the church both then and now runs the risk of falling into the traps of commercialization. As we think about how Jesus cleared the temple of the "den of thieves" I reflect on what that might look like in our present day context. Does the installation of restaurants, coffee houses, book stores, and other businesses create a conflict of interests? What about the pastor who engages his audience by telling them to see The Passion or the The Chronicles of Narnia and avoid seeing movies such as The Golden Compass or The Da Vinci Code? Are the latter graven images? Are we looking out for what's best for Christians? Or, are we endorsing products of culture that are strictly for us by us?

Week 2 Monday

Today I thought about what is culture. The idea of breaking up culture into groups of producers, texts, and consumers was helpful. I also found the study of Industrialization in the UK and the Manchester situation to be fascinating. It's a tragic example of how the church dropped the ball and was unable to relate to the working class. It made more sense later in the lecture in understanding that we were using England as a backdrop because industrialization and pop culture happened there first.

Week 1 Bevans, Chapter 1 Contextual Theology as a Theological Imperative

As I read chapter 1 I reflected on how contextual theology blends the past and the present. The writings of scripture are a product of the context the writers were living in. Yet, Bevans also writes that contextual theology is the receiving and appropriating scripture in our own contexts. I was challenged to think about the relationship between my own personal life experiences and the life experiences of others around me, and how that might have 1) enabled or prevented us from experiencing God in our lives and 2) informed our theology. This whole idea of contextual theology carries particular significance as I reflect on the relationships with those around me.

Week 1 Cobb, Chapter 1 Introduction

"Hitchcock used the genre of suspense to film a Nietzschean world in which God is dead or missing and the moral universe has lost its bearings" (Cobb, p. 17). Cobb writes this in his section on Scripts of Defiance. While I found Cobb's analysis of popular film and it's relationship to theology to be insightful, I strongly disagree with labeling the works of Alfred Hitchcock as Nietzschean. For starters, Cobb doesn't site any specific Hitchcock films. I think the reason why he fails to site any Hitchcock films is because Hitchcock's films do subscribe to a moral universe. As twisted and as dark as many of his pictures become, the morally good triumphs over the morally evil. Take Psycho for instance. In one of his most daring films, Hitchcock kills off his star, Janet Leigh, halfway into the film. I can see where some may find this Nietzschean in that this bleak world appears to have no moral order. Yet, lets not forget the Janet Leigh character is not completely sympathetic. In the set-up we find out that she has embezzled a case full of cash from her boss so it would seem that there is some kind of moral order when she takes her famous shower. In addition, Norman Bates may get away with murder, but in the end, he does meet his demise and justice is served. This is just one example but if we watch the canon of Hitchcock's films, as I have, it does appear that his characters live in and subscribe to a world with moral order.

Week 1 Barker, Chapter 2 Central Problems in Cultural Studies

What began to resonate most with me in this chapter was the idea of rationality and the way that plays out within culture. Barker writes on page 46 that Western culture has seen a rise in addictions...self centered behaviors....These 'diseases of meaning' stem from our reliance on rationality as we live in a post-Enlightenment culture. Barker writes that we have become emotionally unbalanced and need to develop love, empathy, care, and artistic creativity. I would agree with him that there needs to be a push back to placing less emphasis on reason and more emphasis on encountering feeling-love, empathy, care. However, I'm not so sure that I understand or agree with Barker about how artistic creativity fits into a more emotionally balanced culture. I would contend that our culture has more artistic creativity than ever before given the effects of globalization and the advancements made in technology and newfound outlets for artistic expression and distribution. Therefore, while I believe in the benefits of artistic expression whole heartedly I can't say as I agree with Barker that this should be a focus in realigning culture.

Week 1 Barker, Chapter 1 An Introduction to Cultural Studies

I found this chapter to be somewhat overwhelming as I'm rather unfamiliar with many of the important terms surrounding cultural studies. In my mind, the question becomes three fold. First, what actually is cultural studies? Second, how does cultural studies shift from a study of theories to a place of real world relevance? Third, how does cultural studies play out in regards to the spread of Christianity in culture? There seem to be many different factors according to Barker that determine culture. I think in the West our understanding and support of capitalism carries a particular weight when it comes to identifying our culture.

Week 1 Wednesday

As I listened to the stories of McGavrin and his life as a third generation missionary in India I thought about in what ways his approach to mission mirror our approach to mission here in the US. I thought about how my understanding of evangelism often gets caught up in the numbers game and "converting" people. I thought it was interesting that Bolger discussed how within 2 years of coming to faith the majority of new Christians stop witnessing to their non-Christian friends and abandon the missional attitude. My hope and prayer is that I can maintain the right balance in my own life when it comes to mission and witnessing to others.

Week 1 Monday

What stuck out in my mind today was the delineation made in class between the emerging church and the missional church. As I look around at some of the successes and struggles going on within the traditional churches around me, I wonder how the Emerging Church and the Missional Church will continue to play out in Western culture. What kind of praxis will best serve the body of Christ and how do we move forward if we are indeed living in post-Christian culture?