That seems to be our question of late. Can a blog allow free discussion and allow people to say what they really want to say without coming back to bite them? The answer is a yes and no type.

It is impossible to know how the world will react to what one writes and how one says what they are thinking, however, common sense must kick in at some point so that we are not offending each other. That wasn’t really how the discussion was moving (it seemed more a concern for church members not handling the minister’s wrestling openly) but it does seem to be an aspect. It was suggested that you could hide behind anonymity but why should you hide from who you are? If someone does not allow you to be who you are, are you in the right place?

I don’t wish to trivialize this discussion because it is important and it does matter. There is not a simple solution except that this blog was created not to wrestle with deep, dark matter but as a way of providing insight and help for other Christian educators. We all struggle with similar issues like “leading from second chair” and “creating appropriate space” and so on which is the reason this blog exists.

This blog also exists to comment on what is happening in Christian education and the world we live in. What role does technology play in the church? Do we need to minister differently to the technology generation? What is the role of the church in this new social norm? We all have an opinion on each of these issues that we should feel free to comment upon.

Yes, we will eventually touch upon social issues that are not issue for some to address openly like homosexuality and the church. At these points, choose not to join the conversation or comment under a false name if the outside pressure will be too much.

I am posting this because I did not want the converstation to get lost while commenting on another post. I have stated my opinion (and this is just that) about the purpose of this blog and how one should engage in the content. As Christian educators, we are writing stuff on a daily basis and I wonder why not place that content on this blog. You have responded to a need in your church or tried to address some teaching through the church newsletter or educational ministry newsletter. Post that content. Enter the dialogue at that point.

The world will never be totally safe. What I write today/post today, I will need to live with for a long time so I choose my words carefully. I don’t venture off the beaten path too far although I go further than some. Hopefully, twenty years from now, a potential employer or church member give me the benefit of thinking differently than I do today. If not, that is not the place for me nor my family. I need the freedom to live the life God called me to live. I can’t be their ideal but I can be their minister.

Jon’s rant is over for now!

He may be an acquired taste, but Tom Waits is an original. No one else in my family wants to listen when I play his CDs. He’s gotten better and better over the years (no joke intended).

NOTE: If the Tom Waits video doesn’t show up, then type in “Tom Waits” in the search box.

A person recently asked me about my comments concerning the “corporate” nature of faith and the challenge to our individualistic approach to educating in faith and in some popular forms of worship. This seems to me evidence at some level that people “get it” but have trouble deriving at an understanding of it. The concept about faith being primarily corporate often is difficult for us to grasp because our ideas about faith tends to be so individualistic. And tragically, we tend to perpetuate this individualistic stance in our congregations, much to our detriment.

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I am trying to post an entry to GRACE Writes through flock. This is great web browser with an aggregator built-in, the ability to post to a blog, and ease of use. If you need this kind of support, I highly recommend Flock!

technorati tags:bloggingResources, flock, browers, RSS, aggregators

Blogged with Flock

For those who have been faithfully following GRACE Writes, we need to inform you about some updates. We have migrated the blog from Nucleus to WordPress for better interaction with the blogging world and ease of use by our authors. WordPress has features not yet available with Nucleus although it was a good beginning for our work.

We hope you will enjoy the new format and will consider posting a comment on our work. This is easier with WordPress since you do not have to become a member in order to post. Simply leave your name and email address when you post and it will be added to the blogging world!

If you are a Christian educator, please let us know how we can help you with your work or a topic you would really like for us to discuss by sending an email to admin@grace-ed.org. We also would like any stories, blogs or other material you feel would be helpful to Christian education. Again, simply send an email.

Thank you for visiting and reading our blog. We hope it provides a meaningful experience for you and your ministry.

Scottish poet Hugh McDairmid is considered the “most important” modern poet of Scotland. He likely was an Enneagram 5, taking to heart the idea (from Rilke), that ‘the poet must know everything’ and strove to write poetry that contained all knowledge (shades of Comenius!). He had one of the best comebacks to the accusation of being a plagiarist: ‘The greater the plagiarism the greater the work of art.’ MacDiarmid is one of those enigmatic poets who, not a Christian (he was Communist) nevertheless produced some great Christian poems. His poem, “I heard Christ Sing” inspired this graphic (computer with sketch pad):

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I’ve always liked this poem by missionary, songwriter, author, and poet Amy Carmichael. I’ve ocassional shared it with servants of God who’ve experienced a rough, faith-challenging episode. It’s one of the poems I revisit every Lent, and this year it inspired this sketch.

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A consistently powerful religious poet, Countee Cullen is an American poet that wrote often with the African American voice. You can read an article on his poetry and theology from the journal Theology Today. His poem, “The Litany of the Dark People” inspired this illustration (computer and drawing tablet).

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Probably known most popularly for his association with cigarettes and good manners, Sir Walter Raleigh produced some fine religiuos poetry. He led a full and adventurous life, established the first English colony in America, today known as “the lost colony” because of its mysterious fate, search for fabled El Dorado in South America, was improsoned in the Tower of London, and ultimately beheaded–giving him opportunity to declare one of the best “final words” ever: “Strike, man, strike!” to his axe-wielding executioner. His poem, “On the Cards and Dice” inspired this sketch (computer and art tablet).

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Poet, musician and scholar Sidney Lanier was a Virginian Civil War veteran who later served as organist at First Presbyterian Church, Montgomery, AL and went on to teach at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. His poem “A Ballad of Trees and the Master” inspired this experimental sketch using computer and drawing tablet.

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