I am currently reading a book called The Shaping of Things to Come by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch. It has been a very challenging book to read. I am a fast reader and usually work through a book quickly, but not this one. This book requires the reader to slow down and digest a few pages before moving on.
Here are some of my favorite parts so far:
"We can no longer afford our historical sentimentality, even addiction, to the past. Christendom is not the bibilcal mode of the church. It was/is merely one way in which the church has conceived of itself. In enshrining it as the sole form of the church, we have made it into an idol that has captivated our imaginations and enslaved us to a historical-cultural expression of the church. We have not answered the challenges of our time precisely because we refuse to let go of the idol. This must change! ….It will require that we adopt something that looks far more like the early church in terms of its conception of the church (ecclesiology) and its core task in the world (missiology)." – page 15
"How much of the traditional church's energy goes into adjustin gthier programs and their public meetings to cater to an unseen constituency? If we get our seating, our parking, our children's program, our preaching, and our music right, they will come. ….The missional church recognizes that it does not hold a plac eof honor in its host community and that its missional imperative compels it to move our from itself into that host community as salt and light." – page 19
"All the tinkering with the existing model of church that's going on will not save the day. Simply making minor adjustments like replacing pews with more comfortable seating, or singing contemporary pop songs instead of hymns will not reverse the fundamental decline in the fortunes of the Western church… Or think of the church as a VCR. If you have newer DVDs, you can't play them on your old VCR – you need an entirely different device." – pg 35
…good stuff.
I love that!!!
rr
Comment by richardreynolds — May 29, 2006 @ 9:56 am |
Looks interesting. Am adding it to my “to read” list. Of course, first I’ve got to get through my “to read” pile, then I can get to the “to read” list. Too many great books, so little time.
Comment by bibliophilist — June 14, 2006 @ 10:10 pm |