Miller, D (2003) Blue like Jazz - Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality ... 3/4

Miller on Institution...
the starting point perhaps is the discovery of God's agenda for his creation as expressed through Jesus' life, death and resurrection, rather than the church's agenda as formed within Christendom.

IT SHOULD BE SAID I AM AN INDEPENDENT PERSON. I don't like institutionalized anything. I don't like corporations. I am not saying institutions and corporations are wrong, or bad I am only saying I don't like them. Some people don't like classical music, some people don't like pizza, I don't like institutions. My dislike might stem from a number of things, from the nonpersonal feel I get when I walk into a corporate office or the voicemail system I encounter when I call my bank. It might be the nonengaged look on every fast-food worker's face or the phone calls I receive in the 'middle of dinner asking me what longdistance carrier I use. Those people never want to just talk; they always have an agenda. pp129

Miller, D (2003) Blue like Jazz - Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality

Not much else to add to an insight of contemporary society on the phenomenon of institution. However well meaning and noble the church's agenda - it still is very much that ... an agenda. To communicate the rule of God, His kingdom beyond that of an agenda is a challenge - the starting point perhaps is the discovery of God's agenda for his creation as expressed through Jesus' life, death and resurrection, rather than the church's agenda as formed within Christendom.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Decided to pick this book up and have found it to be a great read and from time to time been challenged to rethink a few things.
Wayne
5:23 AM
Gordon said…
Glad you are enjoying it Wayne
10:17 PM
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

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

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