Hi Billy, On May 3, 2012, at 1:48 PM, [email protected] wrote:
> Ernie : > Don't know if it is advisable to ask the Web to do things that > are done better non-Web. > > Will say this, I am most thankful for the Internet and what computers can do. > AND if even more useful things can be done in the future I would be all for > that. > > OTOH, the perfect world of my dreams would have me physically located > some place where there is an in-the-flesh community of scholars who > I am part of, for regular conversations etc. The advantages of > in person give-and-take are non-replicable. I think you missed my point entirely. I am not arguing for placing people in an electronic cave to be spoon-fed information. I am arguing for *embedding* people in a community. But a *real* community, including -- but NOT limited to -- serious scholars. My dream is for a regional church network to have, say a nucleus of a dozen or so serious bible scholars. Those scholars would (like today): a) form a learning community of their own b) be connected electronically (and perhaps even institutionally) with the larger academic community c) periodically gather with like-minded peers to stay on the cutting edge BUT also c) be embedded within vital, local congregations d) be actively involved in developing curriculums, for everything from preschoolers to future pastors e) be continually challenged to develop theologically-driven solutions to real-world problems their churches face My point was that in the past, this simply wasn't possible because serious scholarship required a vast physical library. The Web doesn't solve every problem, but it eliminates *that* constraint. We don't need to gather all our scholars in one place so they can read the same scrolls. So why not spread them out? This allows us to decentralize the bulk of scholarship away from remote institutions and embed them within the local church. This would both enrich the theological content of modern churches, but also dramatically increase the relevance of most scholarship. By forcing scholars to articulate their results in terms that their friends and neighbors can understand, and apply. Sure, a few scholars and specialists do need access to physical documents and a secluded location isolated from the demands of the world. But that's why we still have monasteries. :-) What's not to love about that? -- Ernie P. > > This said, the advantages of computerized learning are also non-replicable. > So, yes, develop such e-systems ; terrific, I'm all for it. But I don't see > how > this renders moot the worth of brick and mortar institutions. Not because > they are made of bricks and mortar, but because of the community > of scholars ( think researchers, contacts, friends ) with whom > you can interact in ways that are impossible on the Web. > > RC via a computer monitor is Really Good ; my turn to say "wow," this has > been one heckova good "classroom" for me since 2004. Seriously, this has > been like going to school every day, for free, keeping current in a very > meaningful > way, broadening my horizons, taking RC to new levels. All of that. > > But it sure would be nice to fall in with a community of scholars who have > RC-like > ideas with whom to exchange views on a regular basis. In a way Pacifica Forum > had a few of those qualities ; it was, after all, an informal alternate > educational > system, a place for listening to or giving scholarly talks. But besides > myself there > were only 2 or 3 actual scholars in the group , however, and that left > a lot to wish for. But experiencing that much, next time I would have > a much better idea of what to try and organize. > > I like the motto at Ars Technica, "Large Ideas Collider" > > Yes, you can do a good deal of that via the Web, and for some things the > Web is absolutely essential. But in other ways without human interaction > the result can only be what the Arab Spring would have been like > if no-one had picked up arms in Libya and actually created a revolution > on the streets, or if the Egyptians had never assembled in Tahrir Square > and had only communicated via their computers. > > B > > > ============================== > > > > > > > 5/3/2012 11:43:37 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected] > writes: > Hi Billy, > > On May 2, 2012, at 10:44 PM, [email protected] wrote: > >> Ernie : >> You're very "pastoral." NOT a criticism, being a pastor is --in some ways-- >> a lot of grief, it is demanding, and --certainly for the most conscientious-- >> I don't know how they do it. > > Yes. On all counts. I am explicitly arguing for pastoral model of > theological training, versus an academic model. Even for non-pastors. > >> OTOH, there are seminarians who never become pastors and >> go on to become scholars of various kinds, or go into publications or media, >> and so forth. Should be a place for them, don't you think so ? > > The short answer is that there will be a place for purely academic > seminaries, much like there is still a place for monasteries in the modern > world: on the fringes, for eccentrics and specialists. Kinda like the Santa > Fe Institute. :-) > > Most normal humans would be better able to get world-class theological > training in the context of a local (or regional) church community, where it > is intimately tied to practice, community, and compassion. IMHO this would > lead to far better scholarship, not to much richer publications and media. > > Very few folks need (or even bother with) direct access to the original > printed books (and scrolls :-). For everyone else, electronic distribution > destroys the need for information centralization that created seminaries in > the first place. > > -- Ernie P. > > >> >> >> Billy >> >> ------------------------------- >> >> >> >> >> 5/2/2012 10:00:25 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected] >> writes: >> Hi David, >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> On May 2, 2012, at 21:32, "David R. Block" <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> > How does one take the denominationalism OUT of the seminaries?? Or is such >> > even desirable or possible?? >> >> You missed the part where I destroy seminaries. :-) >> >> Instead of a 2-3 year extraction to create academic professional clergy, I >> want pastors to be trained and mentored as part of a living church. Less >> sitting in class, more direct supervision of field work. >> >> And yes, this would disrupt national denominations in favor of >> semi-autonomous regional networks that may well span traditional >> denominational boundaries. >> >> E >> >> -- >> Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community >> <[email protected]> >> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism >> Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org >> >> > > > > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
