Space.
Is it more difficult in the current popular American culture to make space for community or solitude?
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Video Introduction.
EV08: Randy Balmer
© Clint Fisher. Aenon Fire.
Notes from my Moleskine at the .08 Envision Conference:
9.09A
06.09.08
Princeton University. NJ.
Alexander Hall
Plenary I:
History of Evangelicals with Randy Balmer
Professor of American Religious History at Barnard College, Columbia University
Green v. Connely
June 30 1971: More influential than Roe v. Wade
Anyone discriminating against minorities is not a 501(c)3 active organization
1971 Southern Baptist Convention
Passed Resolution calling for legal abortion and members favored Roe v. Wade
Enter: Polarization of/by Religious Right
Evangelicals of the "right" were trying to defend and protect their own subculture
IRS went after Bob Jones University due to racial discrimination/other discrim.
Religious right appointed Ronald Reagan as their czar in 1980
.80 - Divorce was an operating issue so for Reagan the issues were shifted by the right from divorce to abortion and homosexuality
JESUS
is very clear about divorce but not abortion or homosexuality
Use of Scripture citation to support segregation and discrimination :: 20 years prior
"Intelligent Design" is one of the surest proofs for evolution
President Bush appointed a judge that turned down creation theory for text books
The canons of rational enlightenment do not determine life
To denegrate Genesis to the sciences is to flee God
Cornwall Declaration
Most cynical document signed by Dobson/Colston/etc. that empowers corporate to make decisions best for corporations
1st Amendment
Equal to those who deny the Holocaust are those who adhere that the founding fathers wanted to separate church and state
Roger Williams: Puritan in Massechusetts "Garden of Church Protected"
The church shouldn’t look to the government for sanctions
Truitt: Issues affirmation as a baptist that lines must not be blurred b/t church and state
Prayer in schools always exists
Faith doesn’t need approval from science or government
JESUS
is not interested in being an arbitor of religion
Recover the SCANDAL OF THE GOSPEL
:: Get quote from "Thy Kingdom Come"
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THE PRECEDING TEXT COPIED AND/OR ADAPTED FROM MY TYPED OR MOLESKINE RECORDED NOTES ON THE ENVISION CONFERENCE MAY OR MAY NOT BE MY OWN THOUGHTS AND MAY OR MAY NOT INCLUDE DIRECT CITATIONS OF ORATORS/FACILITATORS. THE ORATORS/FACILITATORS SHOULD NOT NECESSARILY BE CREDITED OR HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR SPECIFIC WORDS OR PHRASES THOUGH SOME WORDS ARE THEIR OWN.
The Dark Knight: My Confession.
WARNING : Spoilers ahead. If you have not yet experienced The Dark Knight [now playing in a theater near you] then forgiveness may still be imparted and you may not want to read any further so as to avoid disclosure of the unveiling story that is the saga of Bruce Wayne and a nameless, unhuman.
Yes. Unhuman.
My favorite scene (currently) in The Dark Knight is when the man called "The Joker" is sitting in the Gotham City jail cell. When Police Commisioner James Gordon enters the holding area one of the GCPD officers informs Gordon of "The Joker’s" identity. He is… well… mmmm… no one. He has no name. He has no fingerprints. No DNA matches. Nothing. Even his clothing and shoes have no tags or identification. Though found in the form of man he doesn’t really seem to be… a man, a… hu-man. In addition to having no physical identity, the character doesn’t act or think like a human. His behavior and thought patterns caused me throughout the film to think of him as a genious, psychotic lunatic who can’t be… a man. So what is it that has stripped this man, now called "The Joker," of his humanity?
The evil in our world has quite tragically succeeded in the process of dehumanization. I must confess that, even in an attempt at good, I have been engaged in the dehumanization of others. In my poor attempts at "ministry" I have objectified people by seeing them as "projects" rather than as human beings loved deeply by God. I have been consumed by consuming "works of righteousness." I the more "good" I could feed myself, the more satisfied I thought I was from "helping others." When will I cease to pridefully desire the satifaction that seems to come from suppossed "good works?" When will serving others be something more than my very own Wayne Enterprises? How may I be a part of a community that goes about restoring humanity?
I am a dark knight.
Quite simply…
… beautiful.
Community? or Neighbor?
On my previous post, "Proximal.," Michael Rodden added a comment which included the following questions:
1./ What distinguishes a “functional” part from that of the “disfunctional”?
2./ What is presence in a community?
3./ What determines engagement in a community?
Casey Tigrett ’s comment seems to address all these questions with his poignant description of community. He notes that the word most resembling what we call "community" is the Greek word "koinonia." Westerners frequently translate "koinonia" as "fellowship," which has unfortunately been most popularly understood as a quick way to refer to First Free Will Baptist Church’s Annual Pot-Luck Picnic. Casey properly described "koinonia" as "coming alongside another." So what distinguishes "functional" from disfunctional? Koinonia. What does it mean to be a presence in the community. Koinonia. What determines engagement in a community? Koinonia. One’s coming alongside of others in times of suffering is one’s functional and present engagement in his/her community.
My mind rushes back to the idea of proximity. Is it possible that we are really talking about two different things? If "place" has something to do with what we have called "community" should we rather be asking, "what does it mean to love our neighbors?" Is there a diffence betweeen one’s "neighbor" and one’s "community?"
Proximal.
Some comments, e-mails, and conversations centering on the concept of community have caused me to be quite preoccupied with the idea of "place."
Is it my "place" to speak if my engagement in a community is dislocated, temporary, or vitual?
Is one’s "place" in a community determined by his/her physical and/or geographical proximity?
Does proximity mean that a person is really in one’s community?
I could live on campus (as I do) at MVNU and technically consider myself part of that community but never really engage in the life or mission of the people here. Does that still make me part of the community? Am I just a disfunctional part of that community? How should others here confront my disfunctionality? Should I be physically displaced? Or is my disfunction an integral part of the community? Could my withdrawn presence be a healthy element for others to learn how to live with my seperatedness?
I’ll leave it there for now and see what everyone has to say (assuming of course that we are in community with one another even though we may be quite proximally separated).
You can call me…
…Travis.
That is what you can call me.
I was talking with some friends and family this week about the coming academic year and future doctoral plans. If I do proceed with a doctoral education I am currently most interested in post-reformation European history and pre-colonial, western church history. I have also considered work in psychology, sociology, and higher education. This year I will be finishing my graduate courses at NNU and also teaching an introductory course for freshmen students at MVNU. A few comments were tossed up by some friends calling me "doctor" and "professor." It was all in good humor. They knew it would get under my skin 1) because I am neither a doctor nor a professor and 2) because if I were I would rather just be called Travis. That is who I am. I do not quite understand all the elitist titles that are meant to distinguish one person from another. While I have witnessed some Ph.D.s handle their achievements with humility I have seen others affected quite negatively by the possession of a "title."
Why do we classify people?
Can letters behind one’s name be used for good?
Do titles produce arrogance or humility?
Is it beneficial for a community to have a classification system?
SGA on the Web.
The Student Government Association of MVNU launched their new website. I commend John-Paul Kemmenoe for his outstanding initiative in creative design. Check out the site: www.mvnu.edu/sga . So why didn’t anyone other then Nate put www.subversiveREFORMATION.com as one of their favorite websites? Where’s the love?
Thought Beyond Mine [A Mentor Comments on Community].
An extremely valuable response to the concept of community came to me via e-mail (many responses actually are via e-mail or phone calls from friends). A friend and mentor who shall remain nameless for the time being granted me the permission to use his response to my question, "What is community?" in any way that is "helpful to the conversation." He included the following concepts which I have adapted for consistent language and clarity. In my attempt at revision I was able to process to a greater degree what I hope to be interpreting correctly as the genuine thought of my teacher.
// Story ::
Stories preserve wisdom, share meaningful traditions, warn of impending problems, and create the back-narrative for moments which are "rights of passage.” Without stories community is unattainable.
// Place ::
Even nomadic communities have a place. A place is a physical area with which to be concerned and for which a community is responsible. Followers of Jesus might understand the birthright and inheritance of responsibility (not to be confused with “ownership”) for place as “stewardship.” If a community loses its responsibility for place then it sacrifices that which keeps it “grounded” both literally and metaphorically.
// Connectedness ::
Community is relational thereby requiring purposed connection.
// Values ::
It is not necessary for those living in community to agree completely on an assorted number of issues; however, basic values are needed to retain trust in one another. A good question to ask is, “What are the values of the community concerning economic development?”
DISCLAIMER: The language of “values” may be burdensome for some as it carries negative perceptions and connotations due in large part to the tainting by political rhetoric.
// Conversation ::
Honest and open dialogue of a spiritual, political, academic, agricultural, and/or economic nature is critical to community.
// Commitment ::
Longevity in a place and with a people provides the fertile ground in which community can grow.
