Michael Kiinamen spoke of the tension between Faith and Order and the search for Justice and Human Rights. He called upon us to recognize and maintain the balance of these two callings.
- NWCU website
Essentially he was attempting to remind all of us of the place of faith (including doctrine and liturgy) and works (including justice and activism) in Christian life and how it plays out within the ecumenical context. There is an increasing sense that the two poles are pulling away from one another. Kinnamon wants us to remember that the Church is the manifestation of both poles, all are expressions of God's Love and Reconciling work in the world.
He also reminded us as we work for unity, that Unity is a gift of God that we have already received through Christ and is born by the Holy Spirit. Thus, a spirit of ecumenism would necessarily be one of humility and obedience to God. Such a spirit is found in prayer and contemplation. This is the only road to Unity.
Yeah, not bad for a fellow Prot. I was impressed...not surprising given the centrality of prayer. And I would like his job in about 20 years. But that's another post.
The folk from Reconciler, St. Elias, and Immanuel Lutheran presented a workshop. Only a handful of people were there, but the conversation was lively. It was good to see how the relationships between the three congregations sharing Immanuel's space are getting along. The relationships and the connections seem to have deepened. As many said, the Holy Spirit seems to be up to something good there...and currently people are listening.
Oh, here is the link to the sermon (pdf) from the opening worship service. I'm off to another day of workshops and such. It should be lovely.
Finally...I saw my thesis adviser at the workshop. She was there to speak on Baptismal theology. I asked her if there were any news about my thesis. She said "Yes, it broke the copy machine."
Well...there you have it. I'll see you all on the morrow.
Posted by tripp at April 16, 2008 06:59 AMI find this interesting:
"the place of faith (including doctrine and liturgy) and works (including justice and activism) in Christian life"
THE place. That there is ONE place, one balancing point that is "right" and any other option is wrong.
Which seems to suggest that the speaker embraces orthodoxy much more than I do. (This, by the way, is an easy thing to do!)
I think that each Christian has to figure out the balance for himself or herself. If what he or she figures out fits into an existing church's approach, great. If not, also great.
This takes me back to our earlier exchange about preaching, too. My later thoughts touched on the rise of preaching in an illiterate culture. Preaching was VERY important when nobody could read the scriptures for themselves.
But that's not the culture we live in now.
Posted by: Megan at April 16, 2008 11:28 AM"And I would like his job in about 20 years."
Funny, after Larry summarized this guy's talk, I told Larry that you should have this guy's job in about 20 years.
I'm a prophet! Or something.
Posted by: kate setzer kamphausen at April 21, 2008 08:31 PM