Category: Reading Together

Ok, so I think about a dozen people or so are committed to reading this book together.  We are shooting for having our first “discussion” next Monday (11/16).  Just in case, you haven’t gotten your hands on the book yet, and can’t wait to dive in, here’s a LINK to the intro and first chapter.

Once again, I hope that there isn’t uniform agreement among all of us reading.  I’m not one who likes to argue just for the sake of arguing (despite what my beloved might say), but it will be sort of boring if we are all just nodding our heads ‘yes’ from week to week.  But on the flip side, I think it goes without saying, that we should strive to respect each others’ opinions (including the author’s).  Sometimes electronic discourse creates an environment in which people say things that they might not normally if they were face to face with a person.   Ok, you get it.

Ok, so I thought I’d try something different around here.  Instead of me telling you what I am reading or have read lately, I thought it might be interesting to read something together.  An online book club if you will.  Here’s how it would work.

Step 1: Give everyone a chance to acquire the book.

Step 2: Establish some reasonable reading schedule.  Maybe a chapter each week.

Step 3: Begin reading it.

Step 4: Weekly post some thoughts, questions, or reflections from the chapter.

Step 5: And here’s the all important part…  Everyone reading the book joins in the online conversation.

Simple enough.  So the book I had in mind is Deep Church by Jim Belcher.  I’ll be honest, I know next to nothing about the book.

I like the front cover.  I read the back cover.  It is endorsed by people who I am drawn to…  and some that I’m not.  But I know that the author (or publisher) is speaking my language when he says,

“Deep church looks like – a missional church committed to both tradition and culture, valuing innovation in worship, arts and community but also creeds and confessions.”

My hope isn’t so much that we’ll all be convinced that his perspective is the “right” one.  Rather, I’m hoping that through reading this book together we’ll begin to ask some of the right sorts of questions concerning what it means to faithfully live out our calling as the people of God today.

So if it looks interesting to you, and you would like a place to think out loud about what you are reading and thinking, then pick up a copy and we’ll get started in a couple weeks.  If you are local and want me to order a copy for you, let me know by November 2nd.

I’ll shoot for having the first post up on November 16th.

If you aren’t feeling the whole “emerging-church-dialogue” thing, then I’m also reading THIS and THAT.  I’d be happy to talk about them too.