joining or giving in?

over the past few years i have been a voice that has spoken out about the idea of becoming anything other then a conversation - and while i still feel that that is the case, i believe i need to let my voice be one of unity, calm and direction - and the best way, i believe, i can do that is to "join" the "E"merging.

now, i will admit that i feel like i am "giving in" at some level, but over the past i have been hearing the voices of those who have been emailing me asking that be a voice of unity. so, to be a voice of unity means i join, i join :) while i will continue to ask questions, and i may even be "on the outside" more then others - and my voice will always lean more to the "conversation" then to the "movement" - but in that, i strive to find unity. over this past year i have seen and heard those of us in the emerging church desire to "take sides" - and while i will admit to being part of that debate - it is now time for a deeper understanding of unity.

being united does not mean we all have to think the same, or that we have one "set of things" everyone "must" agree too - but it does mean that we catch the crap others are passing our way, and that we have each others back. over the past years i have been a voice for change in the church - some listen to me and it always suprises me that i am known by others outside my mind. i recently came to a realization that in that comes responsibility. if we are claiming to be a "different kind" of church, then we need to be more then just a voice claiming it - we must live it. so, it is with that heart that i decided to "join" the "E"merging.

here is what i did - i eamiled the "E"merging and asked them how i join and "become a friend." i also asked about the idea of a "cohort." so, now i wait - i wait to hear from them concering the next step. if unity is, then unity will be :)

can one be a butt kisser while giving an enema?

i was reading "the chronicles of numbnuts" blog today and came upon this little gem. while watching it, many questions keep floating through my mind and the one that keep coming back time and time again was, "can one be a butt kisser while giving an enema?"

Holy Ghost Enema (1999)
In times of trouble, many people turn to their Faith for sustenance. Others follow the advice of Preacherwoman Suzanne Hinn, who recommends taking it a step further. Well, a couple steps, really.
(2 min 6 sec)

i am not sure i have the answer - looks like i will need to pray over this for a while :)

what are we not doing?

while i think this is a personal rambling, and even a personal kick in the ass it seems to me that, with the exception of a few, we have not done much in the emerging church to truly take a deep look into the theology of the evangelcial church - many simply take it, accept it and pass it on to others without thinking. sure, we can point to ideas on what i think is "the safe stuff" - you know, the definations of hell, or how we can look grace and forgiveness - what i am talking about is deep, real and solid look into the core of the evangelcial church - and if in so doing we come up with the same stuff, cool - and if not, cool -

i think we need to look into such things as:

what is salvation?
are there requirements of salvation?
the humanity of christ.
the divinity of christ.

i am not talking about just "thinking" that we need to get into it - and truly go to the root of it all. i have heard some speak of change, while many simply desire to dance around the issues - i am not suggesting we deconstruct for the sake of deconstruction, but i am suggesting we take a long and honest look at what we are saying and back it with more then words.

if your interested in rolling the ball with me, let me know and i would be happy to see what we can do