19 June 2010

A Key Issue in the Church of the Future.



Check out this short but great little article on Multi Ethnic Churches.
The Theology of Multi-Ethnic Church | Out of Ur | Conversations for Ministry Leaders

The America we live is quickly becoming and is a mash up country of different cultures. How do we build a kingdom community where ethnic preferences collide. Does one ethnicity have a trump card? This has great implications on worship styles, leadership approaches and family structures. To me the most obvious effect of ethnic diversity is on what kind of hermeneutic we use when reading the scriptures.

It's important to understand that around the globe people read very differently; they interpret, apply and ask different questions than white westerners do. Truth is defined differently around the globe and the globe is at our doorstep. In the West we are Rationalist, asking "can we argue this, then it must be true", in the North of the globe they are often Pragmatics asking "will this work, then it must be true", in the East they are Renewalists asking will it bring change, then it must be true" and in the South they are Communalists asking "is it good for all us, then it must be true". The American church of the future will have very different challenges if it wants to be hospitable in its mission to the cultures around us.

3 comments:

  1. This "church of the future" has become especially visible to me since I have been working in the city. I am a minority in the neighborhood that I live in. I am quickly realizing that ministry (especially in the urban context) is becoming increasingly diverse. I believe embracing this and learning to adapt to it will be essential for "church."

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  2. I was unable to link to the article above.

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