Will the Emerging Church Fully Emerge?
"Will the Emerging Church Fully Emerge?" by Frank Viola is a thought provoking critique of the emerging church. He spotlights several areas that should be considered and engaged in dialogue. His repeated insistence on what I consider a "pure democracy" form of church polity is where I primarily disagree with him. Throughout scripture God called, equipped, and used individuals to lead His people. Several of the spiritual gifts demonstrated in the New Testament are gifts used for leadership in the body. I am in definite agreement that professional clergy have had a detrimental impact upon church health and growth and do not reflect the New Testament church model. However, there is a legitimate and needed spiritual office of leadership. Sometimes you can't help but wonder if Frank didn't have a really bad experience with a former pastor that completely soured him on pastoral ministry. Regardless, I appreciate his perspective because he challenges me to examine what I really believe about the kind of church that honors God.
2 comments:
Hi, brother. I think I just met a friend of yours, recently!
Have you seen Frank's other books on his site? If you're truly interested to know more about his feelings on leadership issues, I think several of them might add to your apprecation of points he was only briefly able to touch on in that Ooze article.
Also, I'm not sure what you mean by "pure democracy", but I don't think it describes the model Frank believes in, according to his books.
Hoping you appreciate an extra perspective! G'journey, brother!
"Pure democracy" is my understanding based on this article alone and not based on reading any of his books, although I have a couple of them that I'm starting. I appreciate the challenge and will amend my thoughts on his view after reading a bit. Stop by anytime.
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