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The State of Emergence

Posted Dec 30, 07:00 AM | 2 comments | by Editor | Link

By Jonathan Brink:

This has been a fascinating year to be in Emergent. Lots of Emergent Stuff in the blog world. For many the question being asked is this the sunset of Emergent Village or the sunrise of something infinitely better. And it is fair to say there are so many birds on the wire just waiting to see which one it is.

Two defining books came out early in the year that helped set the tone for what was to come. Tony Jones began the year with The New Christians, which helped so many understand not only the history of Emergent but also the ethos that defined the conversation. It was in many ways the textbook for what it means to participate. The second book was Doug Pagitt’s A Christianity Worth Believing. The book chronicled Doug’s (and so many others) journey out of traditional evangelicalism and into a more honest, and robust expression of what it means to participate in the kingdom. Both books are must reads for understanding Emergent. Their book tour, the Church Basement Roadshow, was a hoot.

The Tall Skinny Kiwi set off a firestorm of debate about the use of the word Emergent and whether or not to use it anymore. I suggested we continue using it until we have a better word. Bob Hyatt suggested all along getting rid of the word. As so many people I’ve talked to expressed, it’s kind of a Catch-22. The word has so much unnecessary baggage for so many people that it becomes hard to actually communicate Emergent, without a two-hour discussion about what it’s not.

Dan Kimball and Scot McKnight started a new network, the (tentatively titled) Origins Project. Many in the cohort leadership wrestled through this and realized that perhaps it was inevitable. For many it felt like a splintering of sorts. Was the conversation not big enough for Dan to play in? Was it too big? Was Dan simply returning to his more evangelical roots? We’ll see.

Dan continued the controversy with his questioning of missional churches effectiveness. Brother Maynard cut to the chase. David Fitch and Alan Hirsch fought back. UrL chimed in with data? And in the end, it all seemed like an Italian family dust up with big brother “attractional” picking on little brother “missional.” It’s easy to question missional legitimacy when the expressions of it are so new. Just you wait.

Tony Jones stepped down as National Coordinator, only to be replaced by so many others. I have to say that I for one think that Tony’s willingness to step down, as risky and stupid as it may look from those on the outside, will in hindsight be the remembered as the one of the defining moments that helped Emergent to eventually emerge.

Christianity Today gave us their take on Emergent Village and the state of Emergent, especially in light of Tony’s move. It’s an interesting portrait.

Tony’s (and EV’s) decision will in hindsight be seen as a courageous move of trust. Because it’s easy to talk about distributed leadership. It’s actually hard to do it. And EV put their money where their mouth is. Now it is our responsibility to step up and participate.

What I appreciated was Tony’s spin on stepping down. He said,

“Any time you can dethrone an overeducated, loud, brash, white man, people just feel more openness for their own voice to be heard.”

For many, this is why Tony was the right person at the right time. He got it. He stepped in and became the voice for Emergent taking on so many subjects that needed to be said. He took tremendous heat and weathered the storm. Yet he also had the courage to step away at the right time. Well done, Tony.

As the year wound down, we saw some great humor, namely this Hitler video. This is truly one of the reason’s I love Emergents. We know how to laugh at ourselves.

The defining event of this year was The Great Emergence. Phyllis Tickle’s book of the same name paved the way for so many Emergents to talk about the shifts we have been experiencing for some time now. The charts that Tickle used provided a visual imagery for many of us to understand the conversation in such a deeper way. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the conference was that women led the way. It was so refreshing to see women “emerge” as a vital part of the whole.

Raffi came up with a subjective list of very good posts on the Emergent experience. What I like about the list, apart from the fact that I am on it, is the depth of human experience in participating in this journey together.

Julie commented on the state of women in Emergent. She wonders out loud about what it will take for women to step forward with self-identified freedom. I for one think women will play a vital and central role in what is to come. My hope is women will heed her call.

As the year winds down, one thing clearly stood out. At the heart of any movement is the ordinary people living into the kingdom. We’re not perfect. But we’re exploring the boundaries of what it means to be undefined by traditional labels and constructs. We’re charting new courses and learning from each other’s expression. What this will ultimately look like is yet to be seen, but my bet is that it will be good. As The Great Emergence revealed, at the heart of Emergent is the permission to step outside traditional bounds we’ve inherited and discover a much richer experience of the kingdom. It doesn’t mean we’re abandoning what we know. It means we’re learning the kingdom is much bigger than we ever thought possible.

And now it’s our responsibility to step up together and truly take leadership to the next level. Won’t you join in?

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Jonathan Brink is Managing Director of Thrive Ministries, a missional discipleship agency. He lives in California with his wife and three kids.

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