Special Mid-week Edition
I have an article in the current issue of Next-Wave, an e-zine read widely by emerging and missional church folks, on doing theology in the local church and the role that we hope The Englewood Review will play in that process. I hope that it will provide you with a sense of what the ERB is about.
Books, Ecclesial Conversation and the
By Christopher Smith
At a conference earlier this week, I had the opportunity to sit in on a workshop where several noted theologians and Christian activists carried on a frank discussion about the embodiment of our faith in urban places. To summarize a long conversation, the theologians were worried that the activists were acting without serious theological reflection and the activists were worried that theologians were disconnected from the urban settings in which they were carrying on the mission of God. This dilemma, of course, rears its head in various forms throughout contemporary (and historical) Christianity, including the emerging church conversation. It seems to me that, with some intentionality, we can begin to mediate this dilemma in our local congregations. Specifically, there are two related practices that I believe can launch us in this direction: individual reading and reflection, and a corporate conversation that combines reflection and discernment.
Of all the varieties of Christians with whom I have interacted, there are few that read as much as those in emerging churches. Additionally, emerging churches usually have a fairly strong sense of their participation in the mission of God, and individuals invested in this emerging conversation typically connect the reading they are doing with the
