Comments

Emerging church leader Brian McLaren on Lambeth, mission and reconciliation

One of the foremost figures of the emerging church, US evangelist Brian McLaren, was at the Anglican Communion's once-in-a-decade Lambeth Conference to encourage the 650 bishops attending and offer his insights into where worldwide Christianity stands right now. We caught up with him to hear more about what impression Lambeth left on him and his vision of Christianity in today's ever changing world.

Posted:
Tuesday, 5 August 2008, 22:05 (MYT)
Font Scale:A A A
BM: This question raises a host of assumptions and deeper questions that too few people are willing to grapple with. Because the fact is, what we're talking about isn't simply the Bible but our interpretations of the Bible. It's not just what the Bible says, but how we understand, interpret, and apply what the Bible says. In the Bible, for example, God commanded polygamy in certain situations in the Old Testament. And God also commanded stoning in certain situations. Nobody I know of wants to apply those passages literally today.

The question of which passages to apply to a certain situation, and how literally to apply them, is a question of interpretation, and interpretation is not simply a science or technique, like solving a math equation. There are many layers of skill in Biblical interpretation. In surgery, one needs to know biology, pathology, neurology, cardiology, and so on, and beyond that, one needs skills like cutting, suturing, cauterising, monitoring vital signs, and much, much more.

Similarly, in Biblical interpretation, one needs - among many other things, literary knowledge and skills, language and translation knowledge and skills, cultural analysis knowledge and skills, and very quickly, pastoral and peace-making knowledge and skills too - because even the best experts will frequently disagree!


CT: On a global level, how can the whole body of Christ effectively keep up with what you termed the "hurricane of change" in the world today in the face of so many conflicts and divisions?

BM: First, I'd say we need to realise that conflicts and divisions are only one dimension of our challenge in the aftermath of profound cultural change. Another great danger is marginalisation - where we only understand and speak to a smaller and smaller segment of the population. Another great danger - opposite in some ways to marginalisation - is over-accommodation, where we become too embedded with a majority culture or civilisation.

To me, the great inspiration in change is to focus on Jesus, who incarnated the Word in a way that was at once culturally relevant and counter-culturally potent. Jesus showed up right on time, and addressed the critical issues of his day in ways that were also historically transcendent and universally applicable.


CT: What do you think the global body of Christ should be making a missional priority?

BM: To me, the idea of disciple-making is most central - and most holistic and hopeful. If we have been transformed by Jesus' radical good news of the kingdom of God - a message more and more Christians are grappling with, I'm glad to say - then we can seek to be and make disciples of Jesus who live and communicate that message.

When we live and share the gospel of the kingdom of God, we help people be reconciled with God, within themselves, with their neighbours and strangers and enemies, and with God's creation as a whole. That message of the kingdom integrates personal spiritual formation with social transformation. So it produces not just converts or Christians or church-goers, but rather disciples of Jesus, citizens of God's global kingdom - people who both pray and seek to help the poor, people who both worship and work for peace, people who both study the Bible and study ways to care for the planet, people who pursue both personal holiness and social holiness.


CT: You spoke of paradigm shifts. What can the Global North and the Global South learn from each other about effective evangelism in today's world?

continue to read > 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
Copyright © 2006 Christian Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.