The only time I watch the NBA on television is during the playoffs. I’ve never been to a game nor do I ever care to go to one. I actually get a bit perturbed at Cleveland Cavaliers fans. Only about 2% of those "fans" that I’ve met here in north-central Ohio were "fans" prior to the LeBron James show. LeBron hit the scene and it was instant Cavs mania.
LeBron James is not the best the player in NBA. "Then who is?," you might be asking. And I might respond, "There is no such thing." There is no single player who is "the best." What does it mean to be "the best?" Is it whoever scores the most points? Is it the flashiest player? The one who appears most athletic? What about the silent leader on the bench who holds the team together? Is it the most arrogant player who commands attention from the camera? Is it someone who encites emotion by throwing powder up into the air?
Here is a blog post that I entered in June of 2007 that will further explain why there is not a best player:
"The team prevailed over the individual. The San Antonio Spurs won the NBA Finals over LeBron James. LeBron has been compared to Michael Jordan but at least Jordan demonstrated that his championships were not his. The Bulls did not win only if their best player scored 25 of the final 30 points. They were a solid team . The community always prevails over the individual. The church will always prevail over the god of self. Defense helps, too."
"King James" is no "king" at all except to those who elect to pay homage to a person who seems to know how to throw a sphere through a circular ring mounted 10 feet in the air. Misdirected worship toward another "King James" is also evident in church history. The version of the Bible authorized by King James in 1611 has been an idol for many conservative church congregants. Continued research and education within the church community has produced other translations which are more accurate for promoting a truer and more genuine understanding of the message contained within the original Hebrew and Greek texts (I recommentd the NRSV for the TNK^ and the NASB for Matthew-Revelation).
Community is the way in which humanity was created to live and breathe. Just ask the animals…
(TO BE CONTINUED).
^ "TNK" is Hebrew for what "protestant Christians" unfortunately call the "Old Testament." The letters "TNK" in Hebrew with vowels inserted is pronounced "tanakh" (teh-nock). The initials stand for the sections of the Hebrew Bible (referred to as the tanakh). T: Torah (Teachings); N: Neviim (Prophets); K: Ketuvim (Writings) TaNaKh.
One of my more recent posts entitled, "Teaching Little Kyla… Languages (and about Tattoos) " received over 150 hits in the first hour of its publication. 25 comments have been posted in addition to a barrage of comments in response to my posted Facebook link. Adam Walker-Cleaveland published a similar post on pomomusings.com (a blog worth a daily read).
Are tattoos really that big of a deal? Maybe I’m just surrounded by enough people who don’t think its an issue for discussion or who maintain a place of conforming with society and recognizing trends as legitimizing for any behavior. Maybe the historical and religious context of the levitical writing needs studied and taught.
Are people (including myself) so self-absorbed that we prefer to talk about inking ourselves rather than loving our enemies, living missionally, ministering with the marginalized, practicing discipline, and thwarting our individualism for the sake of community and friendship loyalty? Why is there so little interest in the violence of apathy and the elusiveness of sabbath? Why are we not as concerned with the movement of the Church? Are we distracted? Are we addicted consumers of brain-dead "conversation?" Why is a tattoo so much more of a fascinating topic?
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My friend Rainn Wilson (ok, he’s not really my friend but I like him bunches) posted a video on his blog and asked the question, "Do you think athletics can be artistic? Where else have you been surprised to find artistry?"
“Teaching Little Kyla…”
A series on Travis and Sarah’s journey of parental flubs, flaws, failures and accidental^ fortune.
I have been considering getting a tattoo for way too long now. I need to just do it. The one thing keeping me from it is that I don’t want to be in the “everybody’s doing it / it makes you a trendy ‘with it’ emergent” category. If I do proceed to have a colored liquid substance commonly called ink injected/burnt into my epidermis I would choose to have some combination of either Hebrew or Greek lettering imprinted. I know Greek better so I am more likely to go with that. My current choices are as follows:
1.) The 5th chapter of The Gospel of Matthew in Greek text line after line across my shoulders and back.
2.) Same as above but down my side along the rib cage area.
3.) Alpha on one forearm. Omega on the other.
4.) ek statis in Greek (somewhere).
5.) splaxnizomai in Greek (somewhere).
6.) ekklesia in Greek (somewhere).
7.) “I heart Mom” on my shoulder inside a heart (ok, not really… just to clear that up).
Kyla has been learning the English alphabet. She is really starting to get it down and is not yet 2 years old. “J-K-L-M-N-O” is giving her some trouble but she nails the “P.” I’ve started to teach her Hebrew and Greek. She does well with “Aleph-Bet-Gimel-Dalet” and “Alpha-Beta-Gamma-Delta.” I was thinking about making up some flashcards for her but then realized I could simply use my tattoos.
Should I get a tattoo?
What should it read?
If you had a child age 13-19 who wanted a tattoo would you allow it?
Should I be teaching my daughter the biblical languages?
^ There is someone(s) greater than me/us (a divine being and a community of people) that intercede with grace and giving.
Brian McLaren said, "I’m deep into revisions for A New Kind of Christianity , due out next March, and I’m feeling ‘in the zone.’ The first draft is done, but I revise first drafts like Chuck Norris unleashes roundhouse kicks, so the really intense work is underway."
Brian , you are my hero (one of them). You are a man of humility (unlike some other unnamed authors and speakers I’ve met) and a man who can write a first draft. I am so retentive, perfectionistic, and obsessive that I cannot get through a rough, first draft. I get stuck editing as I go and thereby get nowhere in my writings. I need to follow the advice spoken by Sean Connery’s character, William Forrester, in the film Finding Forrester , "Write! Bang the keys!" (or something like that).
A recent chapel service at MVNU was constructed by the Art Department. There was a very loud banging typewriter during the entire service. I heard a lot of negative feedback from some students but I’ve always appreciated the Art Department chapel and the unique forms of creating thoughtful reflection. MVNU students, here is your chance to unleash your thoughts: What is your reaction and reflection concerning the incessant banging of keys during a chapel gathering?
Thanks to "makeesha" and Julie Clawson for their thoughtful comments and contributions to some ongoing dialogue on my previous post concerning Emergent Village , their^ recent gathering, and the ideas of home and church. makeesha pointed out one thing that i was attempting to suggest or about which i was honestly inquiring. The blogosphere and twittersphere are quite confusing when dealing with anything other than the regularities of life. Many things are hard to communicate when the conversational dynamics of tone, vocal inflection, facial expression and body language are absent. Yet, inconsistently, I continue to blog. Ha! In the same way I wonder about the clarity of communication during a gathering of those with limited to no historical and proximal connectivity (maybe that is an incorrect assumption). How does Emergent Village benefit one’s local context? How does EV benefit a community’s love toward neighbor? What is the value to Emergent Village’s global presence? Are these some of the questions discussed at the gathering in D.C.? What are some perspectives about the value of the family and the family being the agent of change with the church in order for the church to be the agent of change within society?
Julie, I am glad that you were not permitted and/or discouraged from Tweeting during the gathering. A friend recently tweeted that even though there were a good number of people attending a Bible study gathering that none of them really seemed present – to which I replied, "It’s good to see that you are fully present since you are tweeting." I also recently wrote a short book review on Reggie McNeal’s Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders where I focused on the the idea of centering our time and energy so as not to have the distractions of internet, mobile phones, and television consume us.
^ I realized after writing this post that I used the possessive language of "their" when referring to Emergent Village. I hope this is not offensive as I know that any of us who have every associated ourselves with or been labeled as "emeregent" (whether for good or bad) do not wish to be an exclusive group that claims ownership of some institutionalized system.
Due to my campus life involvements at MVNU and requirements for my current M.A.M.L. course, Community, Context, and Transition , I was unable to attend the Emergent Village gathering in D.C. (EVDC09) this last weekend. I was hoping to stay somewhat informed about the conversations and happenings through updates on Twitter tagged #evdc09 . Emergent Village tweeted, "Search #evdc09 on Twitter for updates from the ‘future of Emergent’ gathering this weekend in D.C. … There will be some but not a lot …" and "@makeesha " said, "tell us what you want emergent village to be – we convene this weekend in DC. email, dm or reply tweet #evdc09"
There were not enough tweets during the gathering to post any responses but I did reply tweet about what Emergent Village should be:
"@traviskeller : oh yeah. hey #evdc09 … EV needs to be defined by… LOVE. i’m sure we don’t know what all that means except that the self must be executed"
I received a couple of direct replies from @makeesha and @soupiset that noted that the self was, indeed, executed. I’ll be looking forward to blog posts about that. Some notable words I’ve heard/read that really stick out on Twitter in response to EVDC09 now that it has ended are artifact, gratitude, clarity, hope, resolve, consensus, energized, drained, stories, beautiful, processing, honesty, inclusivity, and outcome.
Additionally and more centrally I’ve heard/read statements about being "home." Home. Home. Home. Prior to the gathering tweets mentioned the acts of packing, traveling, and attending. Following the gathering everyone updating seemed relieved and/or excited to be "home." If Emergent Village is really a generative friendship should the gathering have felt more like home? If I am at my physical residence with friends, family or myself, I feel at home. If I am at the house of a friend, I feel at home. When I arrive home from a Sunday morning gathering of Christians I have feelings of tiredness and exhaustion. I didn’t feel like I was at home. Why is that? Am I not connected with the 100-1,500 other people? Is it even possible to connect with that many people? Should Emergent Village cease to seek national and global "friendship" and rather function in the same manner as Twitter and Facebook, as an online tool for resourcing, networking, and collaborating? Or… am I wrong? Do church gatherings feel like home? Did EVDC09 feel like home? Is an online relationship really a relationship at all? What is the value of our networking for our local and proximal communities? Do I have any place to speak a thought into an Emergent gathering?
"Teaching Little Kyla…"
A series on Travis and Sarah’s journey of parental flubs, flaws, failures and accidental^ fortune.
I’ve recently been amazed at what my daughter apparently knows. Since Kyla’s birth, Sarah and I have been intentionally making decisions that form Kyla’s understanding. We primarily do not want to inadvertantly be promoting or reinforcing behaviors that we will want/need to undo in the near future. Prayer is one of those things that is so misunderstood that I actively attempt to teach Kyla what prayer is and what prayer isn’t. First, I must have my own healthy understanding of prayer.
Two things that prayer is not:
1.) Something that happens only before meals and bedtime or at a church gathering.
2.) A list of requests focused mostly on prosperity, health, and safety.
Everyday an e-mail is sent out to all MVNU faculty, staff, and students. The e-mail contains any prayer requests submitted by those in our community. 99.78% of those requests are medical in nature. I also see numerous students in the cafeteria bowing their heads to pray prior to their meals. I understand that thankfulness for food is good and that when one’s daily diet consists of pizza, hot dogs, and burritos that oneself does, indeed, need prayer for such filth to be miraculously transformed into nutritional goodness. I’ll post more on prayer later but want to stay on track… teaching little Kyla. I will at random times throughout the day ask Kyla if she wants to pray – sometimes before a meal, sometimes when we are playing with blocks, sometimes in the middle of a story… sometimes… whenever. Our prayers always begin with statements of gratitude.
A small tear came to my eye when we were laying on the couch one morning shortly after Kyla woke up (she likes to lay and cuddle in the morning). Out of nowhere she turned her head up to me and said, "Pray?"
I held her hands and she closed her eyes and said, "God… thank you."
^ There is someone(s) greater than me/us (a divine being and a community of people) that intercede with grace and giving.
in a pink shirt the reporter speaks
his voice ripe with excitement while
behind him the Wave crashes over
and over the same bodies flung
like broken sticks which in an instant
they have become bundled into
body bags bulging on the shredded sand
though when we return we’ll hear
from one survivor in a wheelchair
whom we glimpse smiling as the scene
shifts to a woman waltzing across
her kitchen dazzles as she holds high
a ziplock bag not large enough for bodies
no but fruit she says stays fresh for days.
Sarah Rossiter
Published in Christian Century, May 29, 2007
LeBron James is not the best the player in NBA. "Then who is?," you might be asking. And I might respond, "There is no such thing." There is no single player who is "the best." What does it mean to be "the best?" Is it whoever scores the most points? Is it the flashiest player? The one who appears most athletic? What about the silent leader on the bench who holds the team together? Is it the most arrogant player who commands attention from the camera? Is it someone who encites emotion by throwing powder up into the air?
One of my more recent posts entitled, "
Brian McLaren said, "I’m deep into revisions for A New Kind of Christianity , due out next March, and I’m feeling ‘in the zone.’ The first draft is done, but I revise first drafts like Chuck Norris unleashes roundhouse kicks, so the really intense work is underway."
Due to my campus life involvements at 
There were not enough tweets during the gathering to post any responses but I did reply tweet about what Emergent Village should be:
