Some will, some won't. Evangelicals are not confined to a single theological niche.The group is much broader than the question seems to suppose. And Christianity Today should know better.
David On May 8, 2014, at 3:42 PM, BILROJ via Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > Christianity Today > Do Evangelicals Have Room for Prophets? > > Canon Andrew White lives dangerously for God. Why we need more leaders like > him. > Gary Burge/ May 6, 2014 > > Andrew White is a favorite speaker at Wheaton College, and he was with us > again last week. He is an Anglican priest whose parish is in downtown > Baghdad. Yes, Iraq. He's affectionately called the "Vicar of Baghdad," and > it's a rough job: In the past ten years, some 1,200 of his church members > have been killed. When he travels on pastoral visits, he is accompanied by a > couple truckloads of armed guards. Just in case. > > I've heard Canon White address our students now three times. And in every > case he ends the talk with his pastoral mantra. The students know it so well, > they finish it before he can. > > White tells how many times people caution him while he's in Iraq. They say > "Take care." It annoys him; taking care is the last thing he wants to do. So > he thunders to all 2,600 of our students, "Don't take care . . ." and they > chime in: "Take risks." He currently has a Wheaton graduate as his personal > assistant. One of my students, Sally, may join him this summer as an intern. > Imagine telling your parents that your 2014-15 summer internship will be in > Baghdad. "But don't worry--the church will supply armed men." > > As I walked back to my office after another Canon White chapel, I began to > think about risk-takers and how important they are to the vitality of the > church, or any organization: a ministry, a college, perhaps any gathering > that desires to have vision. We need risk-takers. Sometimes they're called > prophets. Andrew White is both a risk-taker and a prophet. And like most > biblical prophets, he lives large--and dangerously. He is quite happy to > speak boldly and forthrightly about what he believes. He is not a cautious > man. > > It seems most organizations have a variety of leaders who serve somewhere > along a continuum between what I call "custodians" and "prophets." > > Custodians and Prophets > > Let's be clear: Prophets can be annoying. They look at the status quo and > wonder why it can't be different. They are impatient for change and are > driven by a vision for something better, something clearer, than the rest of > us normally see. Perhaps like the biblical prophets, they are driven by a > vision for justice or compassion or righteousness that compels them to take > risks in order to sound the alarm or heighten the community's consciousness. > They like change. And they work even subversively in order to enact it. Some > of our greatest social reformers--Wilberforce, say, or King--were prophets. > The same is true within the church. In their day Luther and Wesley were > nothing less than prophetic. > > Custodians, meanwhile, maintain the order of things. They keep the lights on > and the trains running on time (the very trains the prophets use daily). They > value tradition and prefer a social environment where everyone shapes himself > or herself around a mission that has been working smoothly for years. They > are risk-averse. In fact, they hire professional "risk managers" to keep an > eye on things. For custodians, change is less an opportunity than it is a > threat. They look at the status quo and see first what they like and easily > describe its critics as cynical or unhelpful. And yes, they do not like > prophets. Custodians may want to build an expensive new building; prophets > may ask why that money isn't given to the poor or sent to Nigeria instead. > > Prophets at the extreme end of the continuum can be unhelpful, even > destructive. Custodians at the other extreme will easily fossilize an > organization. Healthy organizations need both. They need the stability, > restraint, and caution of the custodians, as well as the vision, risk-taking, > and energy of the prophets. Someone once told me: Steve Jobs at Apple? A > technology prophet. Bill Gates at Microsoft? A technology custodian. I value > both companies. But it was Apple that changed the world. I wonder if > Microsoft keeps the world going round. > > > However, when prophets and custodians work within the same organization, they > have to figure out how to forge a constructive, helpful relationship. Leaders > who eventually become presidents, CEOs, editors, and lead pastors assume a > role of preserving the legacy of the institution they serve. They are now in > management. They understand the cost of upsetting the constituency (or the > congregation). They know how much easier it is to lead without prophets > distracting them. And they are often constitutionally cautious and careful. > It's not that they dislike change; they just change things slowly. > > > Prophets, on the other hand, push. They make proclamations. And quite often > they are right. But quite often the vessel they sail in cannot handle how > they'd like the boat to change course. Custodians need to avoid silencing > their prophets. Prophets need to keep from subverting their custodians. > > Take Risks for Jesus > > I suspect that all of us, with our unique temperaments, could place > themselves somewhere along the spectrum. And to some degree it has to do with > our tolerance for risk and the experiences that have shaped us over time. I > also suspect that churches and Christian organizations cultivate cultures of > risk or caution as well. They are either environments that celebrate the > prophetic spirit, or places that celebrate that things haven't changed for a > hundred years. > > > When I imagine the prophetic church I think of Saddleback or Willow Creek, or > ministries like World Relief or Venture International. Each of these is > willing to take on front-edge issues courageously. In fact, their members > expect occasional surprises from their leaders. They like to be pushed into > new, uncomfortable territory. Christian colleges likewise produce distinct > cultures that are either custodial or prophetic. And the students they > graduate often reflect those values. > This is our dilemma. We need Canon White to remind us to throw caution to the > wind. To "take risks" in the name of Jesus so that the world will be > confronted with the gospel, even in the dangerous places. But we also need > leaders who will mind the home front. Who build the institutions that will > last, the kind of institutions that send money to White when his struggling > Baghdad parish needs support. > > But the problem is this: So often Canon White (and his friends) are welcomed > among us as visitors. We celebrate them as speakers. We enjoy their > embarrassing eccentricities. We cheer when they describe their risk-taking > lives. We laugh when they poke fun at the powers-that-be. But we are also > happy to see them go. It is the rare and remarkable custodial institution > that welcomes them in, gives them a home, and encourages them to truly be who > they have been called to be. Or that doesn't just relegate them to the margin. > > Which made me think about Jesus. And Canon White. Jesus likewise lived large > and dangerously. He also spoke to matters that made the custodians of his > world uncomfortable. And in the end, inevitable conflict ensued. > > Evangelicals are excellent institution builders. We can look back at our > history and point to risk-takers and claim them in our heritage. And there > have been moments when we have truly moved our society into better places, > particularly in the past 20 years. But this is probably less common than we > like to admit. We have tended to shy away from the prophetic voice for > reasons I have never understood. It's rare that we take risks that raise > social concerns or justice issues or put our supporters in an uncomfortable > place. > > I walked from our "Canon White" chapel last week with a cluster of students. > "Best chapel ever." "I love it when he comes." "I wonder if I could be his > intern." "How far is Baghdad?!" This generation is eager to meet prophets. > And follow them. It is our job to keep that voice alive within our ranks, to > open our ministries to them, and to recognize the important role they play. > > > Gary M. Burge is professor of New Testament at Wheaton College. He is the > author of numerous books on the New Testament and the Middle East, and is a > regular speaker at churches and conferences. Only his dean knows how he > should be located on the custodial/prophetic continuum. > > > -- > -- > 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 > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- -- 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 --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. 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