Emerging: A Letter

Last updated on: October 27, 2008 at 12:30 am by Scot McKnight

Emerging: A Letter 2008-10-27T00:30:54-05:00 Scot McKnight

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I got a letter from a young high school pastor in the southeast and he’s happy to share it with our blog community. This young pastor leans in some emerging directions but his pastor is now criticizing emergent. I’d like us to give him our wisdom today.

Hi Scot,
I have followed your blog for a long time now and I have commented in other places on your book Embracing Grace: A Gospel for All of Us and I really like it. I am writing to you because I am concerned about something that is going on in my church and I was wondering, if you have the time, if you could respond or give your opinion on the matter. Recently my church has been having fun taking pot shots at the emergent movement. In particular, they are most worried about too much social justice, not enough penal substitution in explaining the gospel, too much postmodernity and one of the elders the other day said he had read your description of some emergents as having “ironic” faith and it bothered him deeply.
I have recently come into trouble at my church because I am teaching the book of Luke to our new junior-senior high mission group. (By the way, I have a degree from a Christian college.) One of my problems is this: I keep a blog that I didn’t think anyone from the church read (shows how much I know) and one of the parents came to me very upset. I had written on the blog that the Bible has tensions within itself and that there have been differing interpretations of the Bible over time (I was using Oden’s IVP series on early Christian interpretations) and that the students seem to have trouble thinking about the Bible historically (to avoid present-mindedness). Also, in light of RJS’s posts — I really like her stuff by the way — about science and faith, I have said a few things about how we read Genesis 1–3. I sat down with one elder and he understood what I was doing, and said it wasn’t a big deal, but that I have to be careful what I put on my blog. I met with our pastor, though, and he was concerned that I had too many links to emergent folks on the sidebar.
This would all be well and good, but after talking with him for about an hour about the emergment movement I am realizing that he really knows very little about it. He has never read Dallas Willard or N.T. Wright or Dan Kimball or any of your books, let alone anything by McLaren.
Here’s where I see the big issue: Sometimes I feel like the people in my church are living in a time vaccuum. They are fighting to “protect marriage” in the State and to ban abortions and I just think there are better ways than legislating morality. But more importantly, we differ on the nature of truth. I believe all truth to be contextual whereas my pastor believes all context, no matter what, will lead back to one truth. Teaching Luke’s understanding of God’s work in this world has a different focus than how Paul understands God’s work in this world. These are the ways I view things and my pastor might be beginning to think that I am “too liberal.” The problem is I am not liberal enough for him to ask me to stop teaching. I’m somewhere in the middle, but I am starting to feel seriously constricted by my home church after four years of college.
Is this something that you would suggest I stop teaching over? Is this something worth leaving a denomination over? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Sincerely yours….
Please respond thoughtfully to this young pastor, and I will post my thoughts Wednesday.

Emerging Movement

Previous Post

October 27, 2008

Aksel-ography

Next Post

October 28, 2008 Gospel 22

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Acts of the Apostles Adam Advent Anabaptism Angels Anglican Apologetics Atonement Baptism BCP Prayers Bible Biblical Studies Birds Blogging Bloglossary Bonhoeffer Books Calvinism Christianity Church Church History Coffee Colossians Commentary Recs Conversion Creation Creeds Culture Death Ecclesiastes Economics Education Embracing Grace Emergent Emerging Movement Eschatology Essays Ethics Eucharist Evangelicalism Family Fasting Fathers Fellowship of Differents Footsteps Tour Fun and Whimsical Gospel Grace Happiness Heaven Hell Holy Spirit Irenaeus James Jesus Jesus Creed Job Justification Kingdom of God Law Lectures Lent Liberalism Love and Marriage Mabanteneni Manhood Mary Miracles Missio Alliance MissioLife Missional Missional Jesus Movies and Film New Perspective Northern Seminary OneLife Origins Project Orthodox Parables Pastor's Spouse Pastoring and Leading Pastoring and Preaching Patristics Paul Paul-John Tour Pharisees Pietism Political Theology Prayer and Formation Preaching Problems for Faith Psalm 119 Psalms Public Issues Purgatory Religions Resurrection Revelation Romans Rule of JCreed Science and Faith Sermon on the Mount Sports Ten Commandments Theology Third Way Top Ten Lists Translations Uncategorized Universalism University Ministry Way Out Weekly Meanderings Wisdom Women and Ministry Work Worship Writing & Blogging Youth Ministry

Select a Month July 2021 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 0000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

How did Saul die?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Killed by Philistines Fell on his own sword Stoned by Israelites Died of old age