Leaves from the Notebook

Fellow Wanderers and Sojourners,

This space is designed to be an ongoing journal containing reflections on Scripture, current events, what I'm currently reading, matters of social justice and conscience, and a starting point for intellectual conversation and meditation.  Older postings will be included under the most recent, which you will find directly below this note. 

We have purposely not made a 'blog' section, because we want to be responsible about what is posted on our website.  However, I invite you to email me with your thoughts, comments and responses to the postings and I might post your thoughts here with your permission.  Thank you for taking the time to listen, to think and then to speak.

A Stranger in a Strange Land,

Rev. Mark R. Renn

 

 

 On the title of this section:

This section of the website is entitled, "Leaves From the Notebook", which is drawn from the title of Reinhold Niebuhr's 1929 collection of journal entries with the title Leaves From the Notebook of a Tamed Cynic.  In it, he writes a series of entries on the struggles and challenges he faced as a young pastor just out of seminary.   Niebuhr's social context was that of a young pastor trying to make sense of the Gospel in light of the social and moral evils associated with the Industrial Revolution and the decline of the family and community.  In this honest and straightforward collection of entries, he addresses issues of church leadership, the demands of the Gospel and our call to social justice.  I intend to use this space to offer reflections on theology, literature, justice issues and the state of the church, both local and global.  Somewhat similar to a blog, there should be no expectations associated with the content or frequency of the entries, but I invite you to check in periodically and share in my musings.  Let us consider ourselves to be fellow travelers on the road to the Kingdom of God:

"What is satisfying about the ministry is to note how far you can go in unfolding the full meaning of the Christian Gospel provided you don't present it with the implication that you have attained and are now laying it as an obligation upon others...[T]he Christian adventure is made a mutual search for truth in which the preacher is merely a leader among many searchers and is conscious of the same difficulties in his own experience which he notes in others..."  -Reinhold Niebuhr, 1924.

 

 June 22, 2009

In preparation for an upcoming conference entitled "Poets, Prophets and Preachers" with Rob Bell, I have been reading a number of books on how we are shaped by the technologies that surround us.  In his book, Flickering Pixels, Shane Hipps makes a compelling argument that the media as well as the message shape our understanding of the Gospel. 

One of his central arguments is that the 'print age', ushered in with Gutenburg's printing press, launched a 400 year dominance of left-brained approaches to the Gospel (characterized by reason, logic, argument and apologetics).  This can be seen in the predominance of the carefully reasoned apologetic sermons of the Great Awakening.  In a 'print' culture, the left brain is favored and faith is seen largely in terms of believing the right thing (orthodoxy) as opposed to living the right way (termed: orthopraxy)  He sets up the culture of the 'print age' in order to lay the foundation for a powerful shift in our postmodern culture, the movement to an 'image-based' age (clearly seen in the prevalence of images in television, magazines, advertisements and the Internet).  An image-based culture is less convinced by carefully argued theology (Paul's letters, John's theologically-laden Gospel) than they are with the parables and life stories of Jesus (as seen more starkly in the Synoptic Gospels)

As our culture shifts from a 'print culture' to an 'image culture', we experience significant changes in how we think and how we view the world.  The written word requires lengthy engagment, patience and the use of reason to discern what is being expressed.  On the other hand, images immediately connect with our emotions and speak 'louder than words'.  In an 'image culture', we are constantly bombarded with absorbable content that triggers our right-brain to react.  While previously the left-brain allowed us to carefully and cautiously discern the information that we encountered, an image culture offers immediate access to information.  Images offer a very specific reality that words leave to our imagination and discernment. 

For example: if you read "The boy is sad.", you know that there are a lot of different scenarios where this statement can apply.  If, on the other hand, you are shown an image of a shirtless, starving boy with tears running down his face, you may be more moved to compassion, though that compassion is focused very specifically.  Images have the power to elicit much stronger reactions emotionally, but Hipps argues that they also have the tendency of being more short-lived, since our left-brain hasn't fully processed the implications of the image that has touched our heart. 

 So what does this have to do with ministry?  We have to understand as a church that we live in the midst of an image-driven and image saturated culture, whether we like it or not.  The virtues of logic, reason and sustained thought are being replaced with quickly accessible images, videos and graphically enhanced bits of information on television and the Internet.  How we recieve our information actually effects the information being received.  As Marshall McLuhan writes: "The medium is the message."  As we look to integrate new types of media into worship and Christian education, it is necessary that we do it with a mind to how we are shaped by the media as well as the message.  In this way , "the well" looks to incorporate the best in right and left brained approaches to ministry.  We are shaped by the written word, but also by the ways that we express ourselves creatively using art, music and unconventional methods for prayer.  Likewise, videos are used to provide a new and different way of expressing timeless truths to a generation programmed to receive and interpret faith differently.  By pairing a traditional form of prayer with an image or video representation, we 'balance' our presentation to a wider array of worshippers.  This is one of the main reasons that our Sunday morning worship services include a variety of different ways of presenting the Gospel and the sermon.  In addition to keeping expectations fresh, various modes of presentation connect with different people and accomplish different goals.  Hipps argues that a 'balanced brain' is the ultimate goal, one that has the ability to carefully and cautiously ascertain what it encounters, while still being open and accessible to new and creative ways of interacting with the world.

If the preceding stream of consciousness has left you more confused than informed, I blame the left side of my brain.  If it has made you more curious about the power of media in our lives, I invite you to read the book and learn more about how the various media shape us and change the way we interact with the world.  Incidently, this is a great introductory text for parents wishing to gain a better understanding of the various technologies with which our culture is currently enamored.