Starting a new series titled “1st World Re-Evangelization” where I’d like to muse on some thoughts about ministering in a 1st world context as a 3rd world immigrant (what some might call “third culture”). Especially what it’s like as a minority (Korean-American) ministering in a predominantly Caucasian context. I find it intriguing – and different in many ways. Hence, the title, 1st World Re-Evangelization. Also because it is the title of a class I’m taking now, “Empowering the Church for First World Re-Evangelization: Theological And Missional Themes” – so don’t deconstruct the title too much, I didn’t come up with it. It is however a chance to hash out both in-class and out, in theory as well as in praxis, what this idea of “re-evangelizing the first world” really means – as a Christian in a postmodern world and as a minority in a dominant culture context. Either way, a minority. So I turn my first thoughts towards the theme of chaplaincy. Specifically police chaplaincy, and our own local support officer program here in Bellingham / Whatcom County. Read more…
Soong-Chan Rah: Another Angry Asian Man?
Reading “Prof Rah’s” The Next Evangelicalism is like gargling with salt. It stings in the throat but at the same time clears the sinuses of the stuffiness and congestion of poorly thought-out racial dialogue. Sure, we like to talk about color-blindness, and melting pots, and model minorities, but do we know what we’re really saying when we talk about these things? Surely the Church – that glorious multicultural reality – is exempt from these faux-pas assumptions… Or is she? Perhaps a little deconstruction is in order – and maybe that aint such a bad thing.
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While I thought some of the acting was kinda kitschy and predictable, (yo holmes, I’m from the South Side, I represent) I found this movie pregnant with so many important themes. Faith, Place, & Race are three of them (and also happen to be the title of this blog) but it wrestles deeply with issues of urbanization, neighborhood, culture, and so many things. David Swanson gives a more complete review, titling it “urban exile” and I think that captures the essence of Gran Torino; being stuck in a place with people you don’t like and making the most of it. Staying put. And this is faith. What’d u think of the movie?
I found this article terribly compelling (thanks to Daniel Eng for the heads up) – especially the following snippet – this has everything to do with defining * success * in church, or entrepreneurship, or just plain life: Read more…
Tech writer Clive Thompson calls Twitter "ambient awareness"
I’m re-publishing this as a convo about Twitter is jump-started by Time mag’s recent cover story on the 140 character cultural phenom. A friend dialogues about it (Twitter) here too. But specifically I am interested in Twitter’s implications for how we do church. I don’t mean so much using Twitter IN church, but the implications for end-user innovation in how we do church. Or be church. What if the church became “open-sourced” and congregant or laity-driven innovation? Original post here: Read more…
We had a discussion among our staff about the art of Makoto Fujimura this morning. He’s a New Yorker. He’s a Greenwich Village artist (my old haunting grounds back in the day @ Parsons School of Design). He’s asian (yay!) And he’s a Christian. So it intrigued me to watch an emerging figure who represents two worlds I inhabit, as an Asian-American as well as a Christian within the arts. So I did some homework only to find this little endorsement here to the left that he receives from CT mag, and to find out that he’s received some accolade from some great sources. See his blog here and professional page here. So I’m thrilled for this guy who is making a statement in numerous ways – as an urbanite, a religious person, an ethnic person – just thrilled. But the one question that seemed to echo in our group was: Read more…
I’ve been making my way through Korean-American author Soong-Chan Rah’s recent new work The Next Evangelicalism. Now careful here, reading it is like gargling with salt – it stings on the way down but clears the sinuses of quaint tokenisms and so-called “color-blindnesses” that perpetuate faulty systems. Basic premise: while the de facto representation of American evangelicalism is predominantly a Caucasian playing field, the fact of the matter is, “American evangelicalism” is fast becoming non-white. I think this is no mystery, and just today heard this sentiment expressed, by a Caucasian brother for that matter. What’s the big stink then? Why the ranting against the establishment, when folks recognize the nation over this phenomenon of “the browning of America”? Read more…
Do any of you relate to the experience? The names, taunts, bullying based on race (and recently, sexual orientation)… regardless of where you stand on the (political) issue I can say as an Asian-American, it sucks when you get the egregious slur, slanty-eyes, kowtow bow or whatever. It hurts. It belittles. So the gratification I received when I read this story of the Korean-American student who got suspended for defending himself when called a “f***ing Chinese” by a white classmate, was suspended, and then was pardoned with a community moving towards reconciliation. It’s that last word that gave me so much gratification: reconciliation. This is one way – the best way to respond to schoolyard racism. Get involved parents. Don’t let your kids get stupid, don’t exemplify it. And when there is the inevitable slip-up – as there was in this case – move quickly to correct it. It can do more than right a wrong – it can bring a community together.
Call me old-fashioned but I am just not sold on the idea of internet church.
Now, it’s not my intention to rant and get polemical on folks, but I am just wondering if this is any way to do church. I’m mildly irked by invitations to attend Easter services online or on TV and it causes me to reflect on the nature of communion – can it indeed happen in such a venue? Yes, Word is communicated, but sacrament? Is not worship about coming out of place into another Place? Conversely, I’m not anti-social media / tech as the recent article in Regent World suggests: Babel and Pentecost, but I do agree with one thing – over reliance on social media and technology as a means to market yourself is a way to sell your soul. Don’t get me wrong; there is a place for it, and to shy away from technology is like saying the Gutenberg press should’ve never happened. (Dare we ignore the fact that it was technology that launched Luther’s Theses all over Europe?) I think the internet is having a similar impact. But still. Somebody tell me why I get itchy and scratchy all over when I get twitter invitations to attend online church?
I’ve been thinking about the chase to acquire “followers” via twitter and I’ve come to the conclusion that to pursue this end, for those in religious ministry, is a sort of spiritual death of a kind. It’s one thing to get a follow and to follow back; it’s another thing to spend endless hours on a computer trying to build up a mass following by following hundreds of people you don’t know. My “following / followers” ratio is quite modest and I am aware of this; but to try to jack this up somehow I think is almost an ungodly attempt to get noticed. Marketing has its place. But there’s something dying when a pastor tries to “self-market” him / herself like this. Agree / disagree?
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