apostolic emergent

the nerve :: mutemath

You may be experiencing cognitive dissonance after reading the title. The anxiety is rooted in the belief that I am simultaneously holding contradictory or otherwise incompatible beliefs by placing "Apostolic" and "Emergent" together. But, if it helps, I did it with good reason.


In some small way, I would like for you to experience what I experience each time I read an article like "Hipster Faith" by Brett McCracken in Christianity Today or a book like Why We’re Not Emergent by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck. Each time I am presented with two options: to be Emergent or not to be Emergent. Yet the tension lies in the reality that I am culturally Emergent and theologically Apostolic. As a result, I have come to the conclusion that I can be both Apostolic and Emergent. I hope you will give me a moment to explain.


After reading works attempting to define Emergents, here’s what I tend to find: in some ways I am much the same as Emergents and in other ways, I am much different. Take the list below for instance. After reading the article by McCraken I made a list of the similarities and differences that I shared with Hipsters (a.k.a. - Emergents) and shared it with some friends:


Similarities to Hipsters/Emergents

• Desire church to be authentic, kingdom minded, and uphold justice. 
• Desire church to be more about serving the poor then serving Starbucks. 
• Desire a simple basic faith lived out in community. 
• Believe in justice for society and creation care. 
• Okay with using recycled cardstock. 
• Agree that Helvetica fonts look much better. 
• Want to leverage all available technology to communicate the gospel. 
• Enjoy these authors generally adored by hipsters: 
• CS Lewis 
• Donald Miller 
• Augustine 
• NT Wright 
• Dietrich Bonhoeffer 
• Henri Nouwen 
• Dallas Willard 
• Eugene Peterson 
• Enjoy these bands generally adored by hipsters: 
• John Mark McMillan (Probably one of my all-time top 5 favorite artists, actually.) 
• Jars of Clay (I've been a fan from the beginning, before they used electric guitars.) 
• Mutemath (I've been a fan before anyone knew who they were, and they were called Earthsuit.) 
• U2 (I haven’t heard many of their recent records, but I like most of their songs from the 80s and 90s.)

Differences from Hipsters/Emergents

• I am not reacting to bad church experience or a disdain for the way church has been done. My experience of church has mostly been New Life, which is a healthy diverse community in which I first came to know Jesus Christ in the beauty of relationship and where I am blessed to serve.
• I don’t watch R-rated movies and don’t show them in church as illustrations for my sermons. 
• I don’t listen to music that doesn’t have some sort of a Christian worldview. 
• I don’t drink beer and don’t hang out in bars. (Although, I don’t mind having conversation with someone who is drinking alchohol in an appropriate setting.) 
• I don’t care what kind of apparel the pastor wears, as long as it is what he would wear normally and is not “stage-set clothes.” (I am, however, working diligently to find Scripture to forbid the wearing of ties.) 
• I don’t cuss, but I am not offended if a sinner cusses. I am concerned when a Christian freely curses. James 1.26 comes to mind – our religion is in vain if we can’t control our tongue.
• I don’t want to break out of the Christian subculture. I just believe that people can wear jeans and jean skirts and worship with a guitar and still be worshipping Jesus in the beauty of holiness.
• I don’t want to “hide” my beliefs or blend in. I want to be authentic from the beginning. I don’t want someone to eventually find out that their getting something that didn’t really want and feel bamboozled by our friendship. I’m not selling anything, I am calling people to join me in a covenant relationship with our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ. And I will be their friend even if they choose not to join me.
• I don't like “shock value” ministry. It makes me cringe. I want to be honest and holy at the same time.

Sadly, the cultural similarities that I share with Emergents have led to being stereotyped. Prejudice often tries to simplify complexity by branding a group of people as one, but like any group of people, Emergents vary widely in their beliefs.  Unfortunately, at one extreme, some deny fundamental Truth. Yet because I prefer wearing a pair of jeans over a tie and enjoy guitar driven music does not mean that I want to abandon the atoning work of Christ.


Truth be known, I am Apostolic. I believe that covenant initiation is the beautiful surrender of seeking forgiveness, turning away from sin, having the name of Jesus Christ called over me in water baptism, receiving the Spirit of Christ in my life with the initial sign of speaking in a language that I have never learned, and giving myself wholly to a life of holiness consecrated to my God and Savior Jesus Christ.


At the same time, it is because of the cultural similarities that I share with Emergents that my heart is filled with hope. Maybe, just maybe, Jesus has allowed me to be born in this postmodern era, so that I could authentically relate to a lost and hurting generation that needs to hear the gospel story.


So, how do we resolve the tension of being Apostolic and Emergent? Honestly, I'm not entirely sure yet. But perhaps Ronald Richardson’s remarks in Creating a Healthier Church offer guidance for the discussion:

"To what extent should I, will I, fit in and conform to the ways of this congregation [or organization], and to what extent can I, should I be myself and follow my own path…Togetherness drives us to want to be connected to and affiliated with others…Individuality allows us to explore new territory that no one else thinks is worthwhile or even possible…We feel most alive and vital when we are able to pursue our dreams and goals…During times of higher anxiety, the less mature people in the church seek to promote sameness and conformity as the way to achieve unity and togetherness in the community [but]… Unity in action, if it is to be achieved at all, will happen as a result of people’s ability (and freedom) to think things through of themselves, based on all the available facts, and then respectfully to share their understandings with one another.”