I had the opportunity to listen to Karen Ward few weeks ago. Here are some of the things I heard, I am not sure she said it all though.
—
The emergent church is found all around the mainline scene. We have angimergent, luthermergent(.org), prespymergent, methomergent, all in search for something. It is a response to a situation where the mainline churches have been sidelined, are not producing and have little to teach.
In the emergent movement, the product is Jesus Christ, relationship with him and one another, nothing more, nothing less. The emergent church is about the community. Therefore the size is a byproduct, and has not much relevance when it is about being heard.
The focus is not on certainty of dogma, but a way of life, being intentional together, accompaniment, community around the Eucharist. It is about GOD – SELF – COMMUNITY – WORLD. The church is there to provide space for questions. The church is not the activities in the building, however the church invites activity in the building. The people that use the church space does not need to know why they are allowed to be there, we need to know why we open our doors.
For me it was interesting to hear how owning a building led Karen Ward to start money talk.
To start a new program we should not remove the old. It is also important to understand that worship is a consequence of community not a pre-requisite. New things need a group around it, if it is supposed to become anything.
Everything that takes place must have an empty chair for the one that might drop by. Again it is being intentional.
The idea of house groups that literally life together in the house, is interesting, in the church described. We are listening to a description of a church for young people, living in a temporary situation of college or graduate studies. A kind of campus ministry with a twist, and hope of becoming something more. However, people are constantly coming and going. It is almost like being there is a pilgrimage, a word used a lot in this emergent context.
Preaching is a shared enterprise and the pulpit is open for those that have been active for 6 months.
Short notes:
- Daily devotions using twitter
- Start board meetings with spiritual values/principles – Where have we seen God?
- The importance of parishes, being a part of a geographical place, seems to be important to the movement.