Brian McLaren was a church planter and pastor for 24 years. Now he is an author, speaker, and networker. You can sign up for his enewsletter and check his schedule at brianmclaren.net.
It's encouraging to hear that the Emergent Manifesto of Hope is being well-received. I thought I’d respond to a few critiques of the book that I’ve heard, in this and future postings.
A few people have critiqued the book for being too American.
Obviously, my chapter and several others speak of the need to think more globally (and post-colonially), but critics are right to say that the book is still largely by and for Americans.
I think they’re less right if they infer too much from this. The fact is (as a recent gathering in Uganda made clear—see amahoro-africa.org) that the emergent conversation in the US is becoming more and more interested in global issues—especially issues of poverty, justice, reconciliation, and peace. Some people might complain that this broader perspective has been a long time in coming, but I would respond with two reminders.
First, the emergent village in the US is still less than a decade old. Conversations take time, and can’t deal with everything at once.
Second, the American church has a lot of its own problems to deal with. Yes, we may seem strong to the rest of the world because we export books, television programs, people, and arguments. But we who live here daily experience our pervasive religious dysfunction, and so the Emergent Manifesto tries to bring some hope into our situation. I hope we can be excused for trying to deal with the planks in our own eyes before seeking to extract the splinters in the eyes of others.
Still, this criticism is a good reminder that we are all connected and the emergent conversation truly is a global affair; we in the US are one small part of it—no doubt full of problems—but learning to proceed in hope.
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