Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Four Adjectives.

If you had to pick four adjectives to describe this hypothetical church, which would you choose? (Four is just a number that fits well on the back of a bulletin). When I first arrived at the church I am a part of, the back of our bulletin said...

FUNDAMENTAL
EVANGELICAL
FULL-GOSPEL
FAMILY ORIENTED

I though it was terribly divise launguage. Like we were unintionally saying, "you better agree with a certain set of beliefs or we don't want you. And you better be witnessing all the time. And if you don't speak in tongues, you're not really save, and if you're single this probably isn't the place for you." No one meant to say these things and these terms were probably helpful twenty years ago (maybe), but I was very happy when it changed. It now Reads...

WORD
GOOD NEWS
SPIRIT
CHURCH

These words are then followed by some helpful, classic, creedal language that I think is much more inclusive, helpful, and mainstream. However, these words really aren't adjectives. I guess I would like them to have a little bit more emergentesque descriptions. Maybe...

BIBLICAL
MISSIONAL
SPIRITUAL
RELATIONAL

Does that describe a church you would like to attend? Just Curious? Any thoughts out there?

1 comment:

JDF said...

Yes that's much better because we Presbyterians don't believe in continuing work of the Spirit!!! LOL Just Kidding...well maybe not. But Spirit is better than Full Gospel I guess. Yuck!