In my new position as a presbytery executive, I drive – a lot! Ninety-two churches, spread out over seven counties – from New York City almost up to Albany and from Connecticut to New Jersey on both sides of the Hudson River. Luckily, most of the scenery is gorgeous, and the roads are good. But, I still spend too many hours in the car. So, I have discovered Books on Disc – and am rapidly going through the entire stash of choices at the local library. My most recent auditory adventure was The World is Flat – by Thomas Freidman. I now know more about technology and globalization than I will ever remember. But there are some high points that directly connect with the contemporary world of the church.

Freidman’s whole emphasis is on the flattening of the world –  brought about by the internet and wireless technology and the equal access that everyone has – regardless of country, religion, age, or education.  Hierarchical or sectarian control of any kind is simply impossible in a world where the poorest little girl in the farthest village can log on pretty easily to all the information and ideas and opportunities that anyone needs to move ahead. Granted, developing countries are at a disadvantage economically in gaining access to this technology – but even that is changing at an electric speed. With the flattening of the world and the opening up of information possibilities, the way things get done are through imagination, personal initiative, collaboration, and interdependent creativity – a pretty good description of the church according to the Apostle Paul – and to Jesus. “You are the Body of Christ and individually members of him – and when one part weeps, we all weep, and when one part rejoices, we all rejoice.” And it is only when the body is coordinated and integrated that the Good News of abundant life for all can be realized.

The one idea that has stayed with me the most is Friedman’s new formula for “intelligence.” His thinking is somewhat akin to Goldman’s idea about “emotional intelligence” – that effective leadership and mature living does not come from brainpower alone – but through the integration of heart and mind – building strong and healthy emotional systems and relationships with others. Freidman says that among the young entrepreneurs and technological innovators who are shaping the future of the world, the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) has now been surpassed by the Curiosity Quotient (CQ) and the Passion Quotient PQ). CQ plus PQ is what is encouraging creativity and new life to emerge in such a rapidly changing world.   Which I think is a clue that the emerging church needs to embrace.

The Curiosity Quotient is a way to keep the Gospel alive – constantly re-examining the parables and teachings of scripture – by asking questions and probing new insights as to how the written word becomes the Living Word in the immediacy of NOW. Rather than dogmatic answers or doctrinal warfare, lively conversation and dialogue seems to be the way to keep the church alive - where disagreement is embraced and New Truth emerges from the blending of old truths.  And the Passion Quotient is a wonderful way of describing the Holy Spirit – constantly stirring things up and energizing us to care body and soul - embodying the Grace and  Truth of the Living Christ in contemporary people and places.

In his comprehensive study of the missing young adults in our pews, Rodger Nishioka  (Christian Education professor at Columbia Seminary) has discovered that Passion is the key to the engagement and enthusiasm of young adults in our churches. If a congregation is not EXCITED about SOMETHING, why should anybody stick around? If we are not emotionally engaged in the life and promise of Jesus, why should any of us bother to be disciples. If energy and laughter and compassion and commitment are not bubbling up out of our communities of faith, what difference are they making? After all the Passion Story of Jesus is what sets Christianity apart – the love, the blood, the suffering, the energy, the intimacy, the vitality, the new life, the heart/head/mind/body commitment  – all poured into transforming the world. Living Resurrection in the midst of brokenness and crucifixion and need and yearning - it is this Passion Quotient that continues the work of creation – adding texture to the flattened terrain of a connected, collaborative, still emerging world.

May it be so.

Desire.
Longing.
Come as you are.
Connection.
Do it yourself.
Strip it down.
Bare Bones.
Take away all the fluff and the hype.
This ethos heavily shaped my understandings of what a church should be like: strip everything away and get down to the most basic elements. A group of people desperate to experience God.
                                                 - from Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell

It is the new “buzz” word. It embraces both “transformation” and “missional” – those other buzz words so prevalent in the past decades. But it is deeper, wider, fuller than either of those ideas – and defies any easy definition. The Emerging Church. The Emergent Church. What is it? And why are so many of you/us talking about it?

Rob Bell is the 30 something pastor of Mars Hill – a non-denominational, 10,000 member congregation that meets in a renovated shopping mall in Grand Rapids, Michigan. But this group of spiritual pilgrims – many of them young, most of them in blue jeans – does not fit the mold of the mega-churches that burst onto the scene in the late 80’s and 90’s. Neither the ancient/future liturgical style nor the eclectic music nor the resurrection theology of mars Hill can be easily pegged – in fact the most amazing characteristic of this spiritual community is that it closes the great divide between “evangelicals” and “progressives.” Passionate for Jesus – passionate for justice – Rob and friends are simply hungry – “desperate to experience God” as he clearly explains in his provocative book, Velvet Elvis.

I am still learning about the “emerging church.”  And it is difficult, because the definitive definition of this contemporary phenomenon cannot be definitively defined. That which is “emerging” is different than it was yesterday – and will be different tomorrow from what it is today. Organic, flexible, creative, imaginative, questioning, growing, blossoming – a church and a faith that is “emerging” anticipates and desires change – and believe that God’s resurrection reality continues to make all things new.

There are many people writing good things about the Emerging Church ( Brian McLaren, and Diana Butler Bass among them) – but Rob Bell captures much of the mystery and dynamism of younger “emergent” Christians. His theology is a combination of Rick Warren and Marcus Borg – completely rooted and grounded in the evangelical foundation of Jesus, but passionate about the radical grace and compassion that Jesus demands from those of us who call him Lord (Jesus is God’s way of refusing to give up his dream for the world….We want our friends to know up front that the costs are high, which is what is so appealing about Jesus – his vision for life takes everything we have. Velvet Elvis).The spiritual journey is deeply personal and inward – but also radically communal and missional – transforming the world into God’s vision of shalom. And worship is a multi-sensory, heart/head, highly participatory, dramatic and relational experience – with visual images, eclectic and creative music, and preaching that is conversational and gutsy and real.

I am hopeful about the new ideas and visions and creative experiences unfolding in “emerging” congregations across this nation – congregations filled with spiritually hungry, imaginative, people who instinctively know that loving God and loving neighbor are inextricably bound – and that being joyful, Jesus, justice people in the world is the privilege and responsibility for those baptized into the Body of Christ.

May it be so. 

PS. Check out www.presbymergent.org – a particular web site for Presbyterians imagining and practicing emergent church ideas.