Chapters 2 & 3 Thoughts...

Hey amigos y amigas,

Well, it's been sorta quiet around here lately, but I'm sure it's because we're all overwhelmed by our day-to-days lately. I've gotten caught up with the book here, so I thought I'd toss out some random thoughts on chapters 2 & 3. (I think we should technically be through chapter 4 by the end of this week, but who cares... this isn't a college course for goodness sake... let's just take on chapter 4 next week:-)

| Chapter 2 |

I resonate with his two preoccupying questions: #1) What are the biggest problems in the world? #2) What does Jesus have to say about these global problems?

I've found myself burdened by these questions over recent months... I've found it to be kind of an awkward place to be spiritually & mentally (which McLaren touches on... the whole notion of feeling the polarization of opinions and feeling mostly burdened without much direction). I think I've also found it awkward because it really creates a stark contrast to my lifestyle and the culture we live in.

As an example, the other day I checked in at the New York Times (should have taken a screenshot), and the banner article was identified by an image of a Somali mother who was starving to death because she was foregoing food so that her children could eat what little they did have. Slightly lower on the NYT homepage, on the side margin, was a glamor-shot of Charlize Theron as a link to an article all about her celebrity lifestyle. The contrast made my stomach sink. I've saw an in-depth interview with Theron a couple years ago, and based on what I saw, I think that she would have also been sincerely disturbed by the contrast inadvertently displayed by the NYT (particularly as an African herself).

Who gives a damn about the celebrity scene when confronted with the reality of starving mothers and children?? Unfortunately, these types of backward priorities are what we're spoon-fed from a young age by our culture. A culture that teaches us to think, "Yeah, so there are 'people' dying from starvation... OK... but what I'm really interested in is who designed that dress that she wore to the awards ceremony." I'm speculating, but I would guess that the Charlize Theron image got more clicks than the Somali food crisis story. That's just the way it is in our culture... and I don't want to be a part of it anymore. [whew... didn't intend to get into all of that...]
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I also resonated with the notion that western Christianity (in my personal experience) has been severely limited to an individual bias with regard to the application of the good news. I think it's Greg Boyd who calls this the "me & my personal Jesus" perspective. Me & my personal Jesus workin' on my sins, my dreams, my prayer requests, my salvation. It's not that it's unfounded, but rather that it is only a fraction of the Gospel... and arguably a minor fraction in comparison to the implications of Jesus's teachings and actions for all of creation.
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I got excited as I read about McLaren's encounters with Claude Nikondeha and his wife Kelley Johnson because they live here in Arizona, and Kelley has emailed us with interest to become involved in our Emerging Desert cohort upon their return from Africa later this summer. They are the heads of what is now the Amahoro Africa organization (which I assume we will hear more about later in the book).

| Chapter 3 |

McLaren's retelling of Claude's talk in Burundi was very powerful. (I'll leave it at that, for my 2 cents)

I like the discussion questions at the end of each chapter. I'll post a couple that particularly got me wanting to hear some of y'all's (is that a word? maybe in TX...) thoughts, responses, reactions:

- Could you relate to Justine's response to the conversation about the kingdom of God?

- What questions are raised for you at this point in your reading? What does your reading so far have you thinking about? Is there anything that bothers you, concerns you, or especially interests you?