A week of learning, a day of unwinding, and an attempt to honour God in all of it.

This week I went back to school (well sort of)! It was quite a challenge - but I'll say more about that below!

I am grateful for the incredible opportunity to be on an entirely new learning curve in my life and ministry. This week I did the first of three weeks of intensive training in business, economics, leadership, strategy and research for the Senior Management Program at Stellenbosch University's business school. This course is intended for persons who are moving towards senior leadership in their organisations, yet they may have need of some skills that they would not yet have had a chance to develop. In my case it is most of the classes that we're attending! I am trained as a minister and a theologian. I have some 'popular' insights into leadership, finance, strategy and economics. However, what I was taught this week has given me an entirely new respect for those of you who have degrees in economics and accounting!

We share our classes with the some of the students on the MBA course and our own learning is made up of lectures, presentations, assignments, group work and a company analysis and turnaround strategy. The MBA students will go on to write up their project as a mini thesis and do one day extra on each module (we do 2 day's per subject, they have to do 3 days per subject).

Well, it was good to be in the classroom. I feel stimulated and challenged by the new course content, and there is a great deal that I can apply to my new line of work, and to future leadership opportunities I have within and outside of the Church.

Here's a picture of my student card - ha ha! Someone said that I look like TinTin (get a haircut hippie!) I am the only 'Dr.' on the course... But NOT the only minister! I am in the same group as a friend of mine, Etienne Piek who is a Dutch Reformed minister.

So, before we go back for our second week of lectures I have quite a lot of work to do! Two assignments (one on strategic leadership, and one on Financial management to complete), and then we also have to start our company intervention and analysis as a group.

This week I worked all day, read late into most nights, and woke early to prepare the work for the day. I was quite wrecked by this morning!

So, what better than to get up early (again) and go for a nice LONG ride! Except, this time I did not ride on the road, I decided to join the guys and ladies from Maverick Cycles in Somerset West for a 35km ride up the Hottentots Holland Mountains on Lourensford farm.

It was a magnificent time! I could feel the stress and pressure of the past week, and the expectations and upcoming demands of this week, rising from my shoulders as we steadily climbed up the steep gravel track! On the ride with us were two guys on an off road tandem bike! I have never seen anything quite like this in my life! They climbed a bit slower than most since they are less agile, and of course a bit heavier, but heck, they bombed down the mountain! These guys have nerves of steel! I think bike is a Canondale and it was ridden by Grant and Malan from Maverick.

I am still not that good at riding in the dirt, and my 'gammy leg' doesn't help matters much! I tend to shield it a little. So when the gravel surface gets too slippery, or I have to slow down to ride over large rocks, I tend to loose confidence - this is not a good thing on a mountain bike! I see that the other guys and ladies just go 'hell for leather' across all terrain! As long as you keep moving everything seems to be fine. Needless to say, I fell four times on the way up the mountain and twice in the way down. ha ha! But, it was fun! I arrived home with bruises and scrapes all over my body! But I felt good!!!

Here's a snapshot of the ride we did today. We started just outside the gate of Erinvale and then rode right up onto the HH mountains, rode along the lower contour and then made our way back through the farm to Somerset West. If you want to follow the ride in Google Earth you can click on this link (just make sure that you have Google Earth installed on your PC or Mac! You'll be able to see (from the speed - or lack thereof) exactly where I came a-cropper!
Click here for the Google Earth link.

A part of my spiritual discipline over the last number of months has been to bring the reality of Christ, and Christ's loving will, into every aspect of my life! I am not satisfied with a paradigm that only worships Christ in certain settings and at certain times and places. I am, however, also conscious that many who have taken this same journey have neglected the worship and fellowship of their local Church communities. I believe wholeheartedly in the role of the local Church - this is a place of learning through relationship and blessing (the Luke 10 model that I have often spoken of). So, it was good to be able to worship God while being with others in nature. And let me say, it was a particularly beautiful day for it! However, in spite of this I am not the kind of person who will say that this form of 'worship' can compensate for going to our local Church. So, worship, fellowship, and teaching are all essential.

Here's a view of the HH mountains from about half way up our climb. By this stage my legs were a little numb, but my lungs were still quite fine, and I was feeling good! I am pleased that I am feel quite fit at the moment!

In this picture you can see how the fires on the Lourensford farm burnt the vegetation. But, there are signs of hope! Just look at how the green plants are breaking through. I'm sure that by the time the winter rains have started there will be quite a lot of healthy vegetation up here. I do hope that there won't be too much soil erosion though!

In this next photograph you can see the view in the 'downward' direction (looking towards Erinvale from where we came - which is under the clouds, and beyond to the ocean). Man, I am privelaged to live in a glorious place, and I am truly thankful to have health, strength and the opportunity to enjoy it, when there are so many others just on our doorstep who do not enjoy these same privelages. I was reminded that I have a responsibility to works towards bringing a change in that disparity!

The whole ride took about 2 hours (and a bit). When I got home I was feeling quite strong! So, Courtney, Liam and I decided to wash our bikes! Here's a picture of Liam and Courts in our front yard washing our bikes - I'm pleased to say that my bike (a 2008 Mongoose Canaan Comp) is all cleaned up and sparkling - with a few new scratches from my multiple falls! I look forward to trying to find an hour or two this week to get in the saddle. The rhythm between hard work, hard exercise, and time with my family, is a good one for me. I enjoy being productive, and I enjoy learning, and I enjoy staying fit, and I love recognizing and celebrating Christ's presence in all of live, and I love spending time with my family!

So, may this Holy Week be filled with significance, new realizations, and a significant encounter with the Christ who gave his life for you.

The truth behind Jacob Zuma's presidential campaign!

I thought this was quite a clever idea! Some enterprising (and very BRAVE) persons in Rosebank, Johannesburg, have been putting up satirical posters that express the truth behind Jacob Zuma's election campaign.

Please do join with me in praying that that he will have an opportunity to state his case clearly before an unbiased court of law - as Archbishop Desmond Tutu said, if Mr Zuma is innocent he should rejoice to have the opportunity to prove so in a South African court!

The original image comes from the Mail and Guardian website.

Honoring God, blessing others, and finding personal peace in ALL that you do!

I was ordained as a minister of a mainline Christian denomination many years ago! I have been a minister of various Churches and communities for almost 17 years now. These have been incredibly blessed and rewarding years! Of course there have also been some challenges and frustrations.

I have always believed (well at least for as long as I have been a 'believer') that every person is a minister! After all, ministry is about bringing God's loving will to bear upon all of creation, and bringing creation fully and effectively into God's loving presence and will.

This is something that every Christian disciple can, and should, do! Every person should be a 'full time minister'!

On this recording for my radio program on Radio Pulpit (http://www.radiopulpit.co.za) I discuss the notion that honoring God, blessing others and finding personal peace are all related to PRODUCING fruit, not just CONSUMING fruit (as is quite popular in contemporary Christianity).

So, if you're interested in listening to this short message, please download the file below - it is a 6.2MB MP3 file.

http://www.spirituality.org.za/files/RadioPulpit/Forster1Apr09.mp3

I don't believe that there is no place for the 'Ordained' ministries within the body of Christ - however, I am of the mind that ordination needs to be extended to a broader group of persons than those who perform largely secular functions within the Church (convening Church meetings, presiding over committees, managing budgets, doing marketting, managing staff and physical plant, etc., etc.,) I feel that the pastoral responsibility that we all share (to pray with one another, bear one another's burdens, disciple each other and be discipled, hold one another accountable to courageously living in accordance with God's loving, inclusive and gracious will... ) should be extended to many more persons!

The 'sacraments' (at least the two sacraments in Protestant and Reformed Churches, namely Baptism and the Eucharist) can be shared and upheld by most persons in most settings. Have you ever thought what Baptism is? In short it is a visible sign that outwardly illustrates an invisible grace that is operable in the life of the person being baptised and the community into which they're being baptised. How does a person come to be a part of the body of Christ? They come to be a part of this community through being encountered by the transforming and regenerating love of Christ! It is commonly called evangelism... Whether it is done in a propositional manner (i.e., introducing people to 'truths' about the nature and person of Jesus), or a non-propositional manner (i.e., trying to find ways to expose people to the content and reality of Christ's loving Gospel) - evangelism is something that all disciples should be involved in! Even systems can be evangelised (that is what we do as Christians when we exercise our social and political rights...) Baptism is a celebration of this reality...

Then of course there is the Eucharist, a feast of thanksgiving that visibly demonstrates the true nature of God's Kingdom, where all persons are united with God and one another in transforming love. This Kingdom is a place of grace, mercy, provision, equality, and true life... Wherever a Christian in society brings God's Kingdom to bear (whether through a choice, a decision, or an action) they are 'stretching the communion table into the community'). I am involved in reuniting people to themselves, one another and God every day. That is an enactment of the grace of the sacrament that I celebrate in the Church (and in my case also in the place where I work) frequently.

As an aside, I frequently celebrate communion in my workplace with persons who seek it. I find that it is a fitting and blessed space in which to demonstrate the grace, blessing and love of Christ!

Well, I would love to hear what you think about this approach to sacramental theology. I would also love to hear your perspective on fruitfulness in EVERY aspect of life. And lastly have you got any ideas on the difference between the ministry of the apostolate of the laity and the ordained ministries (Presbyters and Deacons?)

By the way, you can read a more academic and articulate theological article on this subject that I wrote two years ago by following this link:

A document on Deacons, Presbyters and the sacraments in the MCSA

Winter is coming to the Cape

This was the dark sunset this evening after the rain had settled. The pins and screws in my leg tell me that winter is on its way... Either that, or I'm getting OLD!

A history of my blog!

So, here it is....

Proof that twitter rules the world! ha ha!

Follow me on twitter (you'll know what I'm doing MOST hours of the day - thanks to my iPhone and my nimble thumbs!)

Meaning and misunderstanding... Language, the brain, intelligence and freedom!

It has been almost a year since I made the transition from the hallowed halls of the academy to the cut and thrust of a ministry 'in the marketplace'. This has been quite a remarkable change in method and approach to ministry - not to mention the complexities of having to learn to cope within an entirely new set of rules and 'meaning making' frameworks and rules.

Today a colleague asked me about some of my research into the functioning of the brain and I was reminded of the three forms of intelligence that most commonly operable in any relational system (such as a work environment, or a community).

1. Intellectual Quotient (IQ): This one is quite well known. Some years ago one would have to undergo an IQ test in order to get a good job! The higher your intellectual quotient the more intelligent you were assumed to be. Now that is true up to a point. Persons with a high IQ are generally capable of doing linear (rule based) calculations and decisions rapidly and accurately. For example a person with a high IQ can look at a chess board, visualize all of her opponents possible moves (since these are dictated by the rules of chess), consider all her own possible moves, and then decide which move is best at this point in time taking all of the possible variables into account. But, if the other person cheats, or something happens that disrupts the rules of the game (e.g., the opponent is schooled in a different set of rules) the IQ based player does not perform too well.

2. Emotional Quotient (EQ): This is the second form of intelligence - it gained quite a lot of interest after the popular work of Daniel Goleman. A person with a high EQ is able to take a further 'intelligent' step in a relational system. This person understands the rules of chess well enough, but he also is clever enough to be able to read and study his opponent (the relational element of the game). For example, he knows that moves his opponent favors, how long it takes his opponent to make a move when he is confident, and how long it takes when he is unsure. In other words, he is not only playing the game of chess with the chess pieces on the board, he is playing the game of chess by reading the actions and reactions of his opponent (a game such as poker requires a much higher level of EQ than IQ to master). Companies came to realise that they needed people with a high EQ to get ahead. Whereas a person with a high IQ understands the rules, a person with a high EQ knows how to get the most out of working between, around, and with the rules of the game. Such a person makes a good analyst since they can read the shifts in the market, understand people's fears, aspirations and inclinations. A person with a high EQ does this without having to give it too much thought or time... It is almost like they have a natural feel for reading emotions and relationships and can react rapidly and reliably to what is sensed and observed. The best way to develop EQ is to create an awareness of the 'unseen' things that affect decisions in any relationship.

I often 'read the people' in a meeting to understand what is truly motivating a person's behavior, choices, and decisions. I have become quite astute at this, and can even do it from an email, blog post, or other form of non direct communication. I am not easily manipulated. A high EQ gives you the capacity to respond quickly and appropriately to sudden, and unseen, changes in a relational environment.

3. Spiritual Quotient (SQ): This is the third kind of intelligence that one encounters most commonly in relational systems. Whereas IQ is linear (it knows, understands, and processes the rules quickly and accurately), and EQ is parallel (it works between, in spite of, and with the rules to get the most return by 'gaming' the system), SQ is a transcendent intelligence... What do I mean by this? Well, the IQ person plays chess well since she knows the rules. The EQ person is a little better since she can read the rules and read her opponent (being able to predict his moves even before they are made). The SQ person on the other hand is transcendent - this person asks questions that transcend the rules, such as 'Is playing chess the best way to spend my time?', or 'Does it matter whether I win or loose this game of chess, as long as I can spend this time connecting with my friend.' People with a high SQ cope much better with change, adversity and challenge.

Of course there is a myriad of literature on this in the subjective sciences (see for example James Fowlers' stages of faith development, and Ken Wilber's holarchies and integrative theories).

All of these forms of intelligence are present in all individuals and communities. Moreover, they are present at different levels and in different ways. Some of us have a lower IQ and a higher SQ (a classic case in point would be the character 'Forrest Gump' in the Hollywood movie by the same name). Other persons have an extremely high IQ but lack EQ (such as the Nerds in the popular Television Sitcom, 'Big Bang Theory' - Bill Gates is a class example of a high IQ person. Such persons seldom have a realistic self awareness, they regard themselves as different, special and often struggle to relate to persons who cannot see the world as they see it - in binary, black and white, yes and no. They may come across as arrogant, but they are not. They simply have a low EQ and so default upon their IQ to cope with challenges and changes, not relying on relationships and the input of others...)

SQ persons are generally the 'stage 5' persons in Fowler's schema - these are deep, highly integrated, gracious, loving, inclusive persons (such as Jesus as we encounter him in Matthew 5-7), a more contemporary example would be the Dalia Lama, and Mahatma Ghandi (at least that is my uninformed perception of these persons).

So, that's the theory of intelligence in relational systems....

BUT, there is a further complication when it comes to working relationships and loving relationships, that is the complexity of language as a means of engaging others and sharing self. The problem with language is that it is ultimately symbolic - it is a 'digital' encoding of analog realities (to use the metaphor of computer science).

For example there is no such thing as 'ontological orange' (i.e., a colour orange that is exactly the same, quantifiably, for every person in existence), but that does not mean that we cannot all relate in some way to an 'existential' and 'experiential' orange. If I can find enough 'symbolic' convergence with you I can communicate something of my understanding of what orange is for me, and understand what orange is for you in order for us to create a meaningful engagement around 'orangeness' Does that make sense? Of course a person with strong IQ will want to offer a quantifiable and measurable explanation of orange (i.e, pointing to an orange object), but that means very little, because how can one be sure that what I see as orange will be seen by you in the same exact manner? A person with a high EQ will want to establish first what you believe orange to be (so go to the further shore) and then work back towards their own understanding of orange (building a bridge back from the further shore to their own shore). A person with a high SQ isn't going to worry too much about whether we have the exact same understanding of orange, or even whether our experiences share much in common - rather this person will focus on the reason WHY they wanted to engage you around the concept of orangeness in the first place (the conceptual engagement is more important than the concept around which one is being engaged).

Now, let's add one further layer of complexity (I'm sure that by now no-one is reading any more... If you're still reading by this point PLEASE leave a comment in the comments box to show how intelligent you are!)...

Up to this point we have been talking about intelligence in relationships around SINGLE words... But, we seldom communicate and relate around single words, rather we use language (spoken and unspoken) to communicate complex concepts (for example affirmation, gratitude, love, anger, support etc.) These concepts are communicated by means of progressively growing 'communicative' units (e.g., words that form sentences, that express an idea in a paragraph, that communicate a message in a letter, that represent an aspect of a relationship with an individual, who exists within a family, that is part of a community, in a city, as part of a nation, on a continent in the world). One could also use the 'non spoken' forms of communication (the teenager who rolls her eyes at her dad, to communicate a difference of opinion about a cultural expression of what it means to be cool at a particular stage in history in a particular geographic location).

What SQ allows one to do is engage with the overall complex discourse (the whole book, the whole culture, the whole planet) in a manner that is meaningful and not overwhelming, without having to deconstruct the relationships into their constituent parts in order to meaningfully engage them.

The King James Version of the Bible is a classic example of an IQ approach to solving a complex problem - you have a Greek text of the New Testament, so you try to translate each word of the Bible as accurately as you can with its English equivalent. The end result is that you have an 'English' text that reads like Greek and the deep meaning for which the text was recorded is lost in the deconstructed details...

SQ allows for the recognition of genre in life... It allows me to understand that not every relationship needs to be equally deep - I do need to have a deeper, more meaningful and real relationship with my wife and kids, but I don't need to press every relationship in that same intense mold (e.g., the person who fills my car with petrol can be related to in a different, significant, manner that is appropriate to that genre of relationship).

So, what's the bottom line? Well, for me the bottom line is this - The Trinity. Relationships in all of their complexity and beauty are the true means by which we find fulfillment, integration and fullness of life. The SQ state in the brain is an integrative state of 40 hertz oscillations across the whole surface of the brain. In the Trinity the integrative relationships of the persons of the Trinity are the very source and substance of true identity and meaning (the son is son, precisely because he is son of the father... Withouth the son, conversely, there would be no 'God the Father', just God the bloke... relationships are key to meaning, identity and difference).

A year after entering ministry in the corporate environment I realise that I am still as mystified, blessed, and enriched by relationships. I am thankful that God has given me both insight, capacity, and a deep love for understanding people and relational systems. It does help me to transcend about some of the everyday struggles, small squabbles, and momentary rewards that drive so many people to act and react in certain ways. I would love to say that I am free from 'shallow' responses to complex problems - I am not... But, at least I am aware of them!

If you want to find out more about these concepts please do download my book 'An uncommon spiritual path: The question to find Jesus beyond conventional Christianity'

It discusses a number of these issues in a more disciplined and clear manner, showing how we need to move beyond the shallow symbolism of language, self, to the mystery of the experience of God in Christ to find fullness of life and freedom.

By the way, I have found that this approach to communication (i.e., communication as an interaction of relationship) makes the reading of the Bible so much deeper! For example John's Gospel is certainly a 'performative' Gospel (i.e., John argues in John 20:30-31 that the purpose of this Gospel (the reason for recording the signs and sayings of Jesus) is to bring people to faith and deepen the faith of those who are already in a relationship with Christ... The purpose of the Gospel is to communicate a depth of relationship, not to share facts, figures, and history). So, I read the Gospel of John to see how my relationship to the person of Christ, and my relationship to those whom Christ is in relationship with (or longs to be in relationship with) can be deepened and developed. It is a slightly more complex hermeneutic since it requires some form of interaction between the reader and the text (and imaginative engagement with the narrative as a performative text).

My friend, Jan van der Watt puts it this way in his paper on the ethics of the Gospel of John (as a performative ethics):

Texts consist of progressively growing language units starting with words, and ending in a full document. This "interrelated grouping together" of language units (structuring) is based on the language conventions of that particular language. Inherently part of the communication process is the chosen genre, which serves as the overall discourse compositional template. Some theorists even argue that genre is the most determinative aspect in the process of communication, since genre sets the stage for interpreting words, phrases, etc. and influences decisions on all levels of the creation of the text. Rhetoric is also a communication strategy that influences the text from the very moment of its formation. The way in which words and phrases are formed, choices as to which stylistic features should be included, etc. all relate to rhetoric. Genre and rhetoric are also interrelated, since the genre will depend on the rhetorical strategy and vice versa.

The total textual process is socially determined, from the meaning of words, the way syntax and structures work, the function and characteristics of language as well as rhetoric. Language is a social phenomenon and social knowledge play a determinative role in constituting communication.

Relationships seem to be key to unlocking the complexity of meaning, dealing with missunderstanding, the functioning of the human brain and finding freedom!

Never pray in a room without windows...

I once challenged some of my students to get a bit creative for their trial services (this is a service where a student preaches and receives feedback and critique).  When I arrived in the Church one Sunday I found that this enterprising student had turned all of the chairs around in the sanctuary (to face the main doors of the Church).  He preached a fairly short sermon, had some prayers, songs, and then led the community out into the streets.  He encougared them to give their offering to people they met on the streets!  Can you imagine!

That act of creative has stuck with me for years.  The Church is supposed to be incarnated into society (not the other way around).  We go into the world, and in so doing we are light in dark places and salt in places of decay.  Don't you find it strange that when you go into most Churches you go through the doors and turn your back on the world?

This quote challenged me!

The Talmud reads, "Never pray in a room without windows." Never pray without the world in mind, in other words. The purpose of the spiritual life is not to save us from reality. It is to enable us to go on co-creating it. - Joan Chittister

I will confess that I am loving being a minister 'in the marketplace'!  I feel a part of the action!

Something old, something new...

A marriage made in heaven! This is my OLD Macintosh Powerbook G3 (Wallstreet) it runs Mac OS 9.2, on the right is my iPhone 3G with Mac OS 10. Both work perfectly!

I found my old Powerbook while looking through a box, charged the battery and booted her up. She works first time, every time!
--
This message has been scanned for viruses and
dangerous content by Pinpoint, and is
believed to be clean.

Emerging Church / conversation... Is the Church dying or just changing?

I had the incredible honour of being invited to deliver the Hugh Price Hughes lecture in England earlier this month. You can read more about the remarkable Hugh Price Hughes here.

It was an incredible event! I was blessed and treated with such care and grace by my British friends!

The subject of my lecture was the effect that emergent conversations (and communities or Churches) are having on the mission and ecclesiology of mainline Churches across the world.

Click here to download the HPH lecture - it is an MS Word document (it does contain some images of the graphs and statistics I refer to).

In this lecture you will find a whole lot of statistics about Church decline in South Africa and the United Kingdom. I offer some insights into why this is taking place and some critique of contemporary approaches to being Church and doing mission. Together with this you'll find some theological input on the emergent conversation, and perhaps one or two ideas on how the conversation can approach mission going forward.

In the lecture I used powerpoint slides (I have noted where these apply in the text), you can download the powerpoint slides here if you wish to use them (10.5MB).

As with everything I do this is opensource! So, please do change it, adapt it, fix it, improve it! All that I ask is that you acknowledge my effort in your sources and perhaps offer a linkback.

So, please do share your thoughts and ideas. I always appreciate comments and interaction. What do you think - is the Church dying or simply changing? And, do we have the necessary courage and critical insight to adapt our presentation of the Gospel to meet the needs of our current context?

Rich blessing!

Dion

Update 26 March 2009

I've had quite a remarkable response to this paper. Thank you to all those who have commented below, and to all those who have emailed me directly! A couple of persons have asked about the previous post I made, with the short QIK video of my approach to the emergent conversation.

You can find the original post here - I posted this after being invited to deliver a lecture at Seth Mokitimi Methodist Seminary at the University of Kwazulu Natal in Pietermaritzburg. In some ways that lecture was a trial for some of the ideas that I intended to research further and present in the UK.

Here's the video, but please do check out the original post for a little more 'context'. Thanks!

Update 7 May 2009

My journey into the 'emerging conversation' continues! Yesterday I had the great joy of recording an episode for my show, The Ministry and Me (on Radio Pulpit) with Rev Steven Lottering.

Steven is a good friend, and the pastor of the Methodist Church congregation where my family and I worship - Coronation Ave Methodist Church in Somerset West.

Steven has a very balanced and informed perspective on the emerging conversation - it is balanced by the fact that he is a pastor of a healthy Church, and informed by his searching to find ways to effectively engage more than just the members of his congregation! He always seems to have an eye on the world around him to see how the Church can serve society.

It was great to be with Steven. The lead broadcast of this episode will be aired on Radio Pulpit on Wednesday 13 May 2009 at 9.00 (CAT).

You can catch a sneak preview of the show here: 'Is the Church dying or simply changing? A conversation on the Emerging Church with Rev Steven Lottering' (6MB MP3).

If you've found the program useful, please do drop me a line, and please cast a vote for it here.

Rich blessing!

Dion

Technorati tags: emergent conversation, emergent Church, mainline Church decline, statistics on Church membership, Seth Mokitimi, Orthodox

A good example of a bad idea... trying to legislate societal transformation

Now, let me start with a clear disclaimer. I am not sure if the information supplied in the post I have copied below is accurate. I have not had a chance to verify whether it is in fact legal for the British Police to engage persons under the age of 16 after 9pm in central London.

However, if it is true this is a perfect example of a bad idea to try and transform society by punitive legislation!

I would however venture that I have noticed, with increasing alarm, the lack of respect and restraint that young people in the UK have for any form of authority. It kind of reminds me a bit of the 'punks' of the late 1970's (well at least those who adopted anarchism to deconstruct power and oppressive systems in society). On my trip to London last week I had a few opportunities to see example of how groups of teenagers got completely out of hand in London. Twice I witnessed groups of teenagers create an absolute 'war zone' in restaurants (in fact both cases took place in McDonalds restaurants where I was using the free wifi). These young people were extremely loud, use very vulgar language, threw ice and items of food at one another, and were abusive to staff. In one other incident I witnessed rude and abusive behaviour on the underground. And a final example was seeing more than one young person being verbally abusive to their parent.

It is clear the there is an element of discipline that is missing among the youth of the United Kingdom. Moreover, many of the persons I spoke to were very aware of this reality and were at a loss as to how this worrying fact can be resolved. The culture of individual human rights seems to have been so strongly applied that it is diminishing collective rights.

This bit of legislation is a clear example of that - the state has taken a reactive measure to try and deal with abusive youths in London by curtailing their freedom of association and movement. Such reactive and punitive measures will not solve the problem, they merely deal with the symptom in a particular location (so the youths will choose to congregate elsewhere). The problem is not the time (i.e., after 9pm), neither is is geography (i.e., a certain location in central London), the issue is an erosion of values. No amount of oppressive legislation can deal with that!

So, I am worried about civil liberties in the UK. As it is you can hardly move a meter without being filmed by a myriad of closed circuit surveillance cameras! What's next? Removing people of certain faith groups, people who do not look like the majority of the population... I seem to remember another attempt to control their population in this manner. Their leader was a man named Adolf Hitler.

We need longer lasting and more significant solutions to real problems. Reactive solutions that deal only with the symptom and not the cause will simply not transform society!

Well, here's the story that informed this post (from here):

London cops have been given the power to "disperse" anyone under 16, gathered in groups of two or more, from almost all of central London, after 9PM. The police don't have to see the kids doing anything wrong, they only have to believe "the presence or behaviour of a group of two or more persons in any public place in the relevant locality has resulted, or is likely to result, in any members of the public being intimidated, harassed, alarmed or distressed."

If you’re observant, in central London, you may have seen this notice casually cable-tied to a lamppost. From afar, it looks like a council planning application, or parking bay suspension. It’s actually notifying you that you’re now subject to an anti-social behaviour order, and the Police (and the not-really-Police Community Support Officers) have special powers to remove you from this area if they feel like it. These dispersal areas cover large swathes of London, and other cities in England. There are now over 1000 such areas.

It’s ambiguously worded, but it institutes law that in other words may not seem so palatable. There’s a curfew for unsupervised under-16s, from 9pm to 6am. Any group of 2 or more people can be broken up and/or that the member of the group have to leave the designated area (if they do not live there). Crucially, police do not have to see actual anti-social behaviour, but a constable in uniform has reasonable grounds for believing that the presence or behaviour of a group of two or more persons in any public place in the relevant locality has resulted, or is likely to result, in any members of the public being intimidated, harassed, alarmed or distressed...

the kids are alright (via Wonderland)

Any thoughts? What do you think about the state of young people in the UK, and what do you think the solution is (if you feel there's a problem)? Also, what do you think about this curfew, and the state of civil liberties in the UK?

Four helpful (and sound) categories for engaging the Emerging Church conversation

I found this input from Richard Rohr extremely helpful to put a finger on the emerging conversation in relation to the Church.

What do you think?

It comes from emergent village

On the verge of the first-ever Catholic-Emergent conference, being held this weekend at the Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, New Mexico, here’s a video of Fr. Richard Rohr from January’s webcast. Here Rohr describes the four categories (or, rather, aspects or characteristics) of “emerging church” as he sees it:

Here are Rohr’s four categories/aspects/characteristics:

• "an honest, broad, ecumenical Jesus scholarship"
• "a contemplative mind"
• "a conclusion that many of the major concerns of Jesus are at major variance with what most of our churches have emphasized"
• "new structures … new community mechanisms that can make this [new reformation] possible, because we don’t want to form a new denomination"

Please discuss in the comments your thoughts/reactions to Rohr's four categories/characteristics of "emerging church."

Related: Catholics join Emerging Church conversation — great quotes from an original Brian McLaren interview, as well as more quotes from the Rohr webcast

Follow this weekend’s Emerging Church Conference on Twitter (#cac09):

I would love to hear other approaches, ideas and some feedback. This made a lot of sense to me as I think about my frustrations with the Church and my 'emerging' perspective on Church.

By the way my lecture at Hinde street propossed three similar theological categories. I hope to have the final version of the text completed early this week and uploaded to the Hinde Street site where you can download it.

The Christian faith and politics - let's get real!

I have not been able to blog for the last few days... In part that is because of the energy and attention required for the launch of our new campaign called Unashamedly Ethical which took place last night.

It even made the SABC news this morning because of the comments made by two of the panelists on the evening, Dr Mangosuthu Buthelezi and Rev Mvume Dandala (here's picture of the panelists with these two gentlement seated on the couch in the centre).

A lot of work went into preparing for the event, and I am pleased to say that it went off mostly as we had anticipated! We have had some good feedback (and of course also some bad feedback), but that is par for the course.

I have come to realise that there are two powerful forces operable in South African society. The first is what one could call 'stuckness', this is the apathy and inertia that has set in because of decades of abuse and struggle. We are so accustomed to unethical behaviour that we no longer rise to fight it! We are not incensed by theft, immorality, and blatant discrimination. The second force is cynicism. Many South Africans have become so cynical that they feel there is no point in making a stand against corruption and abuse in society (whether that be in business, among politicians, or even in religious organisations). We are so jaded that we have given up standing for what is right.

Well, I want to venture that South Africa deserves better than what we have! And, the great news is that we can make that difference if enough of us have the courage and the conviction to stand together!

I am not talking about voting for any particular political party, or even about adhering to one particular faith perspective. However, what I am talking about is sharing the conviction that all South Africans deserve to have access to the blessing that this land has to offer. We have the right to celebrate our diversity, and the right to seek to find blessing and fulfillment together. Our nation is wealthy enough to feed the hungry, to care for the sick, and to educate the young. Surely we are determined enough to take a sacrificial stand for a better tomorrow!?

For me, as a Christian, this is the core of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Jesus himself said that he came for this very reason, i.e., to establish the Kingdom of God (Luke 4:43), a Kingdom that is characterised by justice, mercy, grace, sufficiency, hospitality and love (see Jesus' ministry manifesto in Luke 4:18-19). So, I do believe that my faith is fundamentally political in nature. If I live it out with conviction and courage it will not only bless individuals, but it will also seek to bless and transform social structures!

Well, tomorrow I leave to speak, alongside Graham, at the Daniel Men's conference in Pretoria (Daniel Manne Konferensie, Moreleta Park) - I shall share this same Gospel with the 6500 men who will be there. Real people (and of course real men) have the courage to make the necessary sacrifices to see society transformed to reflect the loving will of God for all people! I always do my best to communicate this message with integrity, humour, passion, and a deep conviction that springs from my understanding of the Christian scriptures and my prayer life.

Then on Saturday morning I fly back early to speak at the Crown conference here in Cape Town where Christian business leaders from all over the world are gathered to seek to rediscover their purpose and role in establishing God's Kingdom. I shall share the platform with Graham at this event as well. This morning I had the privilege of addressing about 50 of this group, from 11 nations, as they visited the Power Group of Companies for a 'pre tour' study session. Today I spoke of the fact that the Gospel of Christ compels us to seek for God's loving grace to transform individuals, families, communities, nations and the world. This Gospel transforms unjust economies and oppressive political systems, but this same gospel mends broken hearts, heals broken bodies and brings hope and life. This Gospel is TRULY Good news to the poor (the poor of all sorts)!

Well, for a little video reflection of this notion please click play below.

Thanks for stopping in! I would love to hear your comments and feedback!

Please could I encourage you to go the Unashamedly Ethical web site and sign up for the campaign? Let's stand together to transform the world! Please do pray for our team, and particularly for Steve Johnstone our international coordinator, as we roll out the program across South Africa and the world!