Threshold of the Future...Highlights

The Old Testament view of mission was entirely consistent with its understanding of holiness

When God moves toward humanity and takes up residence on our turf, then the emphasis shifts from separation to involvement.

In order to preserve this holiness certain objects and seasons were kept separate for the Lord. Come apart is the resounding call to holiness not only in OT but also in many Christian devotional books on the subject. However Separation and mission are not easily compatible. The traditional attitude to holiness betrays a deep dualism – sacred and profane; clean and unclean; body and spirit.

The unfortunate legacy is a Christian view of holiness as some sort of ethereal and disembodied existence in isolation from potential contaminants. It produces disciples that withdraw from the world and punish themselves under impossibly ascetic regimes. Demonstrates an oppressive form of Christianity.

This traditional understanding of holiness is further shaped by a concern for purification which borders dangerously on the notion that it is possible for believers to attain sinlessness – a notion that is arrogant and potentially blasphemous.

When the World is regarded as enemy it is not surprising that mission falters.

Jesus is holy as he is consumed with passion for God and the world. Only when the Christian view of holiness is informed by the teaching of Jesus will the church be equipped to encounter the world in missionary orientation.

True holiness will not keep us from the world, but drive us into it in faith.

M.Riddell (1998) Threshold of the Future: Reforming the Church in the Post-Christian West. SPCK

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A bit of sally bashing....

Came across a good bit of Sally bashing over at salvationsoldiers I have to say we try and make sure that everything we raise goes into projects that build local community in Poplar but hopefully if you read this blog you get that sense anyway.
Read more

Lost Voices of Mission...Fred Brown

Image
Along the world famous Oxford street in London's Westend; nestled in among the classy frontage of designer shops there is almost an unnoticeable, unimpressive wooden door. It is more or less alongside The Regent Hall's main entrance onto the busyness of Oxford Street. People pass the wooden door oblivious to the equally unimpressive wooden steps that go up three storey's to what was Regent Hall's youth club. When I was 10 I played on these bare wooden steps totally unaware of the significance behind and upon which I played. Many years later I discovered a university youth work course - as an induction to Youth Work - stopped outside this insignificant wooden door to point out that Youth Work as we know it in the UK started behind this door. ...whether that be the surbanite flower people that flooded the Westend to express their free love; or the hard core drug community this unimpressive wooden door became the 'portal' that blurred encounter between church an...
Read more

Types of Christian Spirituality...

Image
It is easy to think and to limit ourselves to a single approach to Christian spirituality. A 'if it works for me it should work for you approach' tends to narrow our appreciation of other ways which actually impoverishes our experience of spirituality. Urban T. Holmes has developed a means of exploring spirituality and helps develop an appreciation through discovering links between spirituality, temperament and predisposition. The diagram illustrates his ideas together with potential inherent dangers. The vertical continuum speaks and helps us understand our relational orientation to God. This ranges from engaging with God through understanding and theological process to a more emotive response. Horizontally speaks of a persons preferred means of pursuing the spiritual life. Kataphtic speaks of affirmation and the need of something tangible in an individuals spirituality- this may take the form of worship, art, even imagination with the use of metaphors, symbols and images play...
Read more