Monday, October 8, 2012

We’re So Serious About Being Church We’re Going to Cancel Church!

Notice the difference? 

Rev. Terry Tieman, head of the Transforming Churches Network (TCN), from his blog post titled “3 BIG IDEAS (AND 2 SMALL ONES) ON REVITALIZATION: WHAT I’VE LEARNED FROM 500 CHURCHES IN 5 YEARS!,” written in 2012:
Shorten or Cancel Worship [for Service Project Sunday]. Whoa! Are you kidding? No, because this demonstrates that you are serious about being the church “in” your community and that you care about your “neighbors” around you. If it’s too uncomfortable to completely cancel your formal service(s), then shorten or provide an alternative on Saturday or Sunday evening. 
Dr. Martin Luther, reformer, from his Heidelberg Disputation, written in 1518:
THESIS 21. A theologian of glory calls evil good and good evil. A theologian of the cross calls the thing what it actually is. (LW, v. 31, IV)  

Read more about the Transforming Churches Network by downloading Scott's article on TCN here.

photo credit: Lawrence OP 

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I knew that TCN was an abomination, but this is beyond belief. This man should be called on the carpet and a public apology forthcoming. Pres. Harrison, you can't allow this stuff.

Joe Strieter

Anonymous said...

What Joe said.

Note to Pr. Tieman: you are welcome at any time to stop copying the non-denominationals and walk with the Missouri Synod in its fealty to Article V of the Augsburg Confession.

Anonymous said...

I guess if you are a "traditional" Christian who disagrees with the ELCA or one of its partner churches (Church of Sweden), then you, like the Serbs, are labeled an "ultra-nationalist":

http://rt.com/art-and-culture/news/blasphemous-pushes-thousands-streets-680/

The Ecce Homo (exhibition) explained:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecce_Homo_%28exhibition%29

Sweden's first LGBT altarpiece installed at Skara Church. Artist: Elisabeth Ohlson Wallin

http://twicsy.com/i/LqjZtb

Scott Diekmann said...

Relating the art exhibit to the context of the post, I suppose you could call the artist a "theologian of glory," although I doubt she's a theologian.