tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-386203362024-03-12T20:47:02.401-07:00postmodernpilgrimRead more. It will help.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.comBlogger176125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-12171432193978677452010-05-23T21:19:00.000-07:002018-12-05T08:40:41.191-08:00in the end, it's not about the islandSPOILER ALERT!!!!<br />
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just watched the final episode of LOST. i cried like a baby, which i guess is what one does when a six-year relationship ends. LOST itself is a living, breathing entity b/c of its creator's approach to storytelling. the story itself is alive, producing viewer/fan created and maintained sites (like <a href="http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page">Lostapedia</a>) and a slew of ongoing conversations regarding every aspect of the story, from the individual characters, to the metaphors/imagery, to the nature and purpose of the island itself. in this LOST continues its life long after 10:30 pm Central Standard Time on Sunday, May 23, 2010. though our relationship ends (no more weekly Tuesday night meetings or Sunday night season finales) the story lives in the ongoing conversations, debates, and dissections that will continue for the foreseeable future.<br />
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this living, breathing story was, in the end, not about a power struggle between Jacob and Esau, Widmore and Linus, Sawyer and Jack, or Jack and Locke, or even about the island itself. no, in the end the story was about the struggle between the good and evil seen through the eyes of a man named Dr. Jack Shepherd. and i kinda feel like i did when a friend shared the revelation with me years ago, that Star Wars is really about the struggle between good and evil seen through the eyes of two droids named R2D2 and C3PO. since i was 5, i believed that Star Wars was about blowing up the Death Star or defeating Darth Vader but it was really about the extraordinary adventures of two very ordinary droids. and just like at the end of Star Wars, we see everyone gathered together, celebrating the end of their adventure and the triumph of good over evil. <br />
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Jack's journey didn't begin on Oceanic 815. this flight, like the rebel cruiser we first find C3PO and R2D2 on, is just a part of that journey. it is where OUR journey with Jack, the other passengers, and the other inhabitants of the island begins. looking back the stories of each of these people were told in light of their relationship to Jack, each one important due to their connection to the reluctant, anxiety-ridden doctor. knowing this, we look back on the entire series and see this before us from the very beginning. the past of each of these characters has elements shared with the good doctor: father/parent issues, identity issues, feelings of abandonment and imprisonment, control issues, self-destructive tendencies, self-aggrandizing one moment and self-loathing the next, issues of grief over losing a loved one/loved ones, the feeling of personal responsibility in losing said loved one/loved ones, and issues of losing one's self. they all share these issues with the pivotal character and it is in his resolution of these issues, his letting go of his own brokenness and his embracing of wholeness that lead us to the end. and in the end, the Jack lying on the floor of the bamboo jungle next to Vincent is remarkably different and infinitely more liberated than the Jack lying on the floor of the bamboo jungle next to Vincent we were introduced to in the beginning. from the very beginning, we have seen the story through the eyes of Jack and the story ends with him as well, taking his final journey surrounded by those he loved and who connected him with through something greater than himself, but without the singing and dancing ewoks. <br />
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though we are ultimately left closer to knowing and understanding Dr. Jack Shepherd, we are left no closer to understanding or knowing the island, which really is alright because in the end the island was just a part of that journey. the island is an enigmatic character, if you will, among a cast of enigmatic characters tv has never seen before and will most likely never see again. i mean that. never see again. you could re-create a Cosmo Kramer (just look at practically every sitcom post-Seinfeld) but you cannot recreate a Hurley, Echo, Sawyer or Lapidus. the island was just as singular of a character as the aforementioned, an uncredited actor in the greater play of the life of Jack Shepherd. what was the island, you ask? was it what Jacob and Esau/MIB's mother says it was? was it what Locke says it was? was the island what Widmore believed it to be or what the Dharma initiative believed to have discovered? the answer is simply, "yes." the island is what it is to each person who experiences it. like all lasting and great institutions or locations, it is different things to different people. for example, millions of people have seen the beauty and wonder of Yellowstone National Park. but ask each of these millions of people what Yellowstone is and they will all tell you something different. for some, a beguiling, bewildering, beautiful expanse of land, for others a living, breathing entity, for still others a personal hell. or take for example the organized Christian church. for some it is place of healing and wholeness, a place to experience unending love and grace. for others it is a place of hypocrisy and brokenness. the island is what the island is and what happens there, happens just like it does anywhere else in the natural world. it is, as fantastical and unbelievable as it seems, a part of Jack's reality and a pivotal piece in his journey to find his true self. the real act of faith the series creators and writers ask us to take part in is to accept the island as it is and not attempt to unpack and dissect it through reason and science. as Jack says to Desmond, we can look for shortcuts and easy explanations but those never work. just look where shortcuts get folks like Farraday (shot), Juliet (dead at the bottom of a well), Walt (kidnapped by the others while attempting to escape by raft), and Locke (thrown off a cliff). no, Cuse and Lindeloff have constructed a loop-hole proof story to ensure that the pursuit of shortcuts will only lead to deeper problems for the LOSTies and those watching their exploits. speaking of Cuse and Lindeloff, i consider them two of the greatest postmodern storytellers of their generation, answering every question of "either/or?" with a resounding "both/and!"<br />
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so, in the end, it's not about the island. and for those seeking a television series filled with easy answers and explanations, this is not the series you're looking for.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-83291502226452166092010-04-17T17:04:00.001-07:002010-04-17T17:04:50.790-07:00derek sivers from TED.com on how to start a movement....<object width="446" height="326"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff"></param><param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DerekSivers_2010U-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DerekSivers-2010U.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=814&introDuration=16500&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=2000&adKeys=talk=derek_sivers_how_to_start_a_movement;year=2010;theme=the_rise_of_collaboration;theme=the_creative_spark;theme=new_on_ted_com;event=TED2010;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgColor="#ffffff" width="446" height="326" allowFullScreen="true" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DerekSivers_2010U-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DerekSivers-2010U.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=814&introDuration=16500&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=2000&adKeys=talk=derek_sivers_how_to_start_a_movement;year=2010;theme=the_rise_of_collaboration;theme=the_creative_spark;theme=new_on_ted_com;event=TED2010;"></embed></object>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-14771700937923154372010-04-08T14:05:00.001-07:002010-04-08T14:05:44.356-07:00Rob Bell: Resurrection<object width="400" height="225"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=10639312&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ffffff&fullscreen=1" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=10639312&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ffffff&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="225"></embed></object><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/10639312">Resurrection: Rob Bell</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/realrobbell">The Work of Rob Bell</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-39131124848867417052010-02-11T09:26:00.000-08:002010-02-11T09:39:02.694-08:00Are you connected?The downside to my desire to read deeply and intentionally comes into full play when I post as a viral blogger, in that so much has already been shared <a href="http://viralbloggers.com/">there</a> on <a href="http://dwightfriesen.com/2009/11/new-book-about-to-launch/">Dwight J. Friesen’s Thy Kingdom Connected </a>that I find little original content to add to the discussion. But here goes…<br />
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I too was apprehensive on the value of the content when I read the words “Facebook”, “Internet” and “Networks” in the subtitle. However, I understand that the inclusion of these buzzwords may spur some to give the text a chance. After reading, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the content was not a direct critique/defense of social networking nor a handbook for pastors on navigating social networking media to share Christ. What Friesen offers is a thought-provoking spark to how church leaders and members can work together to actualize a networked kingdom of God.<br />
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Unlike some of the reviews, I appreciated Friesen’s willingness to admit that this text was neither a comprehensive nor complete treatment of the subject and enjoyed exploring the links and suggested readings at the end of each chapter. It was like a treasure hunt, each turn leading one deeper into the individual points Friesen himself explored to make up the whole of the idea of the networked kingdom and connective leadership. I believe this lends credence to Friesen as a networker in that this is what great networkers do: point those who engage them to dig deeper and share the works of others to continue and deepen dialogue.<br />
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That being said, I can see why some would read Thy Kingdom Connected and claim that Friesen fails to offer a complete, comprehensive work . I believe that it must be read in the context of community to be truly appreciated. I found myself continually reading, digging deeper into the suggested readings, and bouncing the ideas and questions off of colleagues and close connections. Therefore it would be a text I would recommend as a small group study or discussion piece for a cohort or house church group rather than to a colleague for individual, personal reading. It is a text that begs connection and in that way, I believe Friesen accomplishes something that others who have written about the benefits/dangers of connective nature of social media networking technology fail to accomplish. Friesen gets us to actually connect.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-90533936926543595342009-12-16T13:22:00.001-08:002009-12-16T13:22:24.476-08:00do you wordpress?i am also on wordpress.com as pomopilgrim. if you wordpress, please feel free to look me up there as well.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-37030502262226659952009-12-16T13:17:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:17:37.103-08:00not THAT Christmas story...so i have been discussing Christmas practices and traditions with other young parents and families, esp. regarding whether or not we include a certain fat man in a red suit in our celebrations, which we do not. many questions and generative conversations ensue so i thought i would share some of my observations on this particular topic with you. <br />
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this should come to no one's surprise, but for me it all comes back to story.<br />
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to clarify, we do acknowledge the story of Santa Claus with our son. we acknowledge that the story of Santa Claus develops historically, finding its roots in Saint Nicholas. we acknowledge that the story of Santa Claus reveals the central idea of sharing all that we have with others. we acknowledge that, for some reason, some of our friends and family feel more comfortable calling themselves "Santa Claus" so that they can have some fun when they give us presents. but we also acknowledge that Santa Claus as a person does not exist. we do not celebrate Santa Claus nor do we display images of or countdown the days to Santa Claus' arrival. instead, we focus upon the arrival of the Christ child. the central story of Christmas for our little family is that we share ourselves, we give gifts to others, and we celebrate Christmas in remembrance of the gift given to the world in Jesus Christ. as the years go by and our son gets older, we are working on helping him understand that Christmas is not some historical once-in-a-lifetime event that happens over 2000 years ago. God breaks into our world in new ways every year and that the celebration is not limited to one day but our entire lives. we are also still working on helping him connect the baby Jesus and the bearded man Jesus as one in the same person. <br />
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when we do this not be giant party poopers but b/c we believe that when we include alongside or allow the story of Santa Claus to overtake our celebration, i believe that we tell our children, others, and the world that the story of Christmas, the story of the birth of the Christ child, of God breaking into the world and "moving into the neighborhood" (thanks Eugene Peterson) is not magical, mysterious, majestic, or mystical enough; that we must include some mythical figure with a mysterious backstory and magical abilities to freshen it up. this is simply not true. check it out: angels delivering messages, virgin birth in a stable, stars in the sky, shepherds, angel choirs, wise men, epic journeys, a paranoid king, mass genocide, epic escapes, and on and on. the story of the birth of Christ, of God breaking into the world and sharing human form, is magical, mysterious, majestic, and mystical enough without flying reindeer. <br />
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or massive amounts of consumerism for that matter...<br />
i haven't even touched on the fact that the current image of Santa Claus we have is the creation of the Coca Cola company as a part of a marketing campaign to sell more products and is currently used to advertise black Friday sales and perpetuate massive consumerism (and subsequent debt). <br />
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what has been so surprising to my wife and i is the resistance we have received from others, from people who believe the story of Christ to be central to their own stories and the stories of the communities they associate with. we are not attempting to ruin Christmas or, more importantly, YOUR Christmas. or maybe we are. maybe we are trying to ruin the idea that Christmas is all about individualized consumerism, where we all get, materially speaking of course, what our little hearts desire so that our Christmas will be "good" and we get through one day to move on back to our regular everyday, individual lives. we are trying to ruin THAT Christmas story. we are attempting to discover a Christmas story about how we help others, how we share what we have with those around us because we are passionate about focusing our entire lives holistically on the love of God and neighbor. we are passionate about informing and focusing our family and community on, what we understand, is the true meaning and story of Christmas. we are passionate about proclaiming the story of Christ as big and beautiful enough without a pudgy, gift-giving mythical figure sneaking into our lives and stealing cookies. <br />
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thoughts?pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-5524187727393533562009-12-16T12:19:00.001-08:002009-12-16T12:19:18.310-08:00What If Jesus Meant All That Stuff?<a href=http://www.esquire.com/features/best-and-brightest-2009/shane-claiborne-1209>What If Jesus Meant All That Stuff?</a><br /><br />Posted using <a href="http://sharethis.com">ShareThis</a>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-3213683205512027672009-12-03T08:05:00.001-08:002009-12-03T08:05:23.913-08:00Recently found myself in situations where I overhear or notice very <br>private conversations occuring in very public places (son and mother <br>discussing finacial hardship, a marriage ending, a relationship <br>disintergrating over competing understandings of spirituality, a <br>friend sharing their deepening depression). Trying not to be a creeper <br>or eavesdrop, assure you that these situations have literally fallen <br>in my lap and, in all cases, had to actively work against listening in <br>b/c of volume and proximity.<p>It leaves me wondering how much of our lives we spend not noticing the <br>lives of those around us b/c they fail to invade our own in some way?pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-20069177683933076322009-11-06T10:52:00.000-08:002009-11-06T10:52:00.778-08:00stay thirsty?over the past year or so i have really struggled with the most interesting man in the world ad campaign by a certain beer company. i haven't really been able to put my finger on exactly what i have been struggling with until this past week. to celebrate halloween, this ad campaign produced a radio spot touting the most interesting man's accomplishments re: halloween, including his alleged ban from cemeteries b/c he brought someone back from the dead. whoa. i've got to throw a flag on that one and share what really bothers me about this campaign. <br />
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one, this beer company has supposedly found "the most interesting man in the world" without accepting nominations or suggestions from others. i would elect a certain someone else to hold this office and i am not speaking of chuck norris. that person would be Jesus Christ, who btw HAS actually raised someone from the dead and been raised from the dead as well. <br />
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two, the tagline for this campaign is stay thirsty. the tagline for the other nominee i would like to offer up is come to me, those who thirst, and I will offer living water and those who drink it will thirst no more. the idea being that those who drive marketing to popular culture desire us to thirst, desire in fact that we STAY thirsty so that they can continue to sell more product, to prosper off our desire to remain in line with what they are selling. Christ offers us rest from this, offers us more than a product or brand name. Christ offers himself as living water to quench our thirst and transcend the desires of the world. <br />
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three, i found out that the guy that plays this supposed most interesting man in the world is an actor and fakes his spanish/latino accent to sound more exotic and remain in line with the product identity. also, the product in question is about as spanish/latino as the actor, being that it is brewed in white plains, new york. and lastly, the product in question does not even quench thirst but in fact keeps one thirsty. he and the product he promotes are not even genuine. <br />
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four, in thinking about story and storytelling, the existence of this ad campaign is doubly disheartening in that it tells the story of a fictional character in a quasi-factual manner. it tells the story that the most interesting man in our world is some larger than life character that we know doesn't even exist in reality. the story it tells is that our world is not interesting enough, not great enough to hold a person that could do some of the things he is reported having done. it is completely contrary to the story that Christianity has to tell: a true story of a man that is completely human and completely divine who really does these amazing things (we call them miracles) that he is reported having done. it pushes a counterfeit story when a real, authentic (and i tend to believe a better) story exists largely ignored. <br />
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and i think that's what my whole problem is with this campaign: it offers a life-draining fantasy alternative when a perfectly good life-giving reality exists.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-10508928293133964152009-11-05T06:05:00.001-08:002009-11-05T06:05:26.746-08:00<div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">"There will soon be no more priests. Their work is done. They may wait awhile...perhaps a generation or two...dropping off by degrees. A superior breed shall take their place.... A new order shall arise, and they shall be the priests of man, and every man shall be his own priest. The churches built under their umbrage shall be the churches of men and women. Through the divinity of themselves shall the kosmos and the new breed of poets be interpreters of men and women and of all events and things. They shall find their inspiration in real objects today, symptoms of the past and future.... They shall not deign to defend immortality or God, or the perfection of things, or liberty, or the exquisite beauty and reality of the soul."-Walt Whitman, preface to Leaves of Grass</span><br></div>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-21373978924336304582009-10-27T12:28:00.000-07:002009-10-27T12:28:02.289-07:00a blast from the past...recently i posted responses on twitter and facebook to an article that shared observations about the business practices and working philosophies of microsoft and google and how the church could learn from these observations. <br />
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last night (10/26/09) as i was watching a documentary on the decline of the newspaper on PBS it hit me that we have a more low-tech example. a newspaper exec was being interviewed about the failure of the newspaper to make the leap to becoming an online presence, which subsequently has led to its decline as a information medium and news source. the exec remarked that often the project to make that leap was given to newspaper execs who simply took the printed newspaper they were producing, scanned it, and posted it online; vainly failing to seek outside input from others on how to innovate and make it more accessible to an online community. he said that the responsibility for the failure lies in the hands of newspaper execs and identified their fatal flaw: they continued to operate under the assumption that there was no way to innovate on the form and function of the newspaper, that people liked the newspaper the way it was. they operated under the assumption that the newspaper in and of itself was impenetrable; much like the mindset of the USAmerican automobile industry towards the product they were producing. they had every opportunity to keep themselves from becoming obsolete but pridefully and vainly dug in their heels, believing that the newspaper, like the USAmerican automobile, would never die.<br />
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this is much more in line with what we are dealing with in mainline Protesant Christianity. there are those who are pushing against leaving it in its current form and function are desperately trying to update it and keep it relevant, keep it from becoming obsolete. there are others who seem to vainly sit back and operate like those in the newspaper and automobile industry, with an "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" philosophy (while their definition of "broke" accomodates for more and more slippage down the slope to obscurity and antiquity each day). the main problem being; as it is in the story of the newspaper and auto industries, that those who take the latter view tend to be those holding the most power. <br />
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will the church become completely obsolete? no, we are told that the even the gates of hell will not prevail against it. i do, however, believe that the most sinister force moving through any organization, including the church, is apathy. when we allow ourselves to vainly believe that the world cannot function without us, we offer the world very little outside of a challenge to show us that it can.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-80985484844774086602009-10-27T08:23:00.000-07:002009-10-27T08:25:15.436-07:00re: Who Keeps Our Story When We Are Gone?<a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13577_3-10383015-36.html?tag=TOCmoreStories.0">interesting article posted on CNet re: Facebook and memorialized profiles</a> that touches on the earlier post re: who keeps our digital story (10/20/09), which seemed to garner some feedback. Thanks to <a href="http://jasonvalendy.blogspot.com">Jason Valendy</a> for bringing this to my attention first.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-57342576131011129662009-10-26T13:28:00.001-07:002009-10-26T13:28:08.264-07:00redeemable metaphors...i have been giving a whole lot of people a whole lot of grief for their continued use of applying business model metaphors and terms to the function and identity of the church and its agents. though i believe that no institution or power is beyond redemption (thank you walter wink) i also believe that at this moment the business model may be temporarily bankrupt of integrity when it comes to models we should follow (e.g. enron, worldcom, aig, citicorp, bank of america, the list goes on...which is a major part of the problem). one of those folks challenged me to supply them with a model or models that might be less problematic. so i threw out three and i would like to see what you think...<br />
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pioneers: (ala Walt Whitman & western US expansion) moving out into an unfamiliar area with little professional expertise but a boat load of common sense, the church could reclaim its pioneering spirit of not only reaching out into new areas to establish community but also rediscover the value of relying upon natural or readily available resources in a respectful and renewable manner to thrive. could also breed creativity and innovation as we are asked to rely on the gifts and expertise we bring rather than going out and hiring one/some. <br />
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tribes: (ala Indigenous/Native Americans and, more recently, Seth Godin) playing off of the innate human need to group itself into communities or tribes, the church could rediscover what it means to live in a self-sustaining community where each member has a unique role and brings unique gifts to the table. tribes need leaders; sometimes that's one person, sometimes it's many people. <br />
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movement: (ala history) working out of a metaphor that in and of itself is a verb, the church envisions itself as a community on the move/in action. a movement often involves a greater number of people and employs decentralized leadership as a survival mechanism: having one leader centralizes power and possibly redefines its ideals as one person's philosophy and also risks that the movement will live or die with that leader. decentralized leadership doesn't mean the community is "leaderless", it means that leadership is spread throughout the community making its survival and growth reliant upon the many rather than the few. also, movements have traditionally been perceived as counter-cultural and if we cannot claim Christianity as counter or at least transformational to popular culture we may be in more trouble than we realize.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-12217685498319175512009-10-21T10:11:00.000-07:002009-10-21T10:11:08.369-07:00this year, give presenceits not too early to be thinking about Advent and its not too late, Christmas can [still] change the world...<br />
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eVqqj1v-ZBU&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eVqqj1v-ZBU&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-83981936147521188542009-10-20T15:25:00.000-07:002009-10-20T15:25:07.588-07:00who keeps our story when we are gone?great comments on "re:Post..." on 10/8/09. thanks to all who contribute and offer thought-provoking comments and questions. wanted to add to that discussion and our current stream of storytelling with a thought-provoking post by my friend Gavin Richardson re: a session at barcampnashville that got him thinking. find it <a href="http://www.gavoweb.com/">here</a>, the post is called "we're all gonna die : so who is your digital executor?" thanks to Gavin for sharing his barcampnashville experience. <br />
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it got me to thinking that in this digital age, when all that we share/post/contribute online outlives us, who do we trust with our story after we are gone? <br />
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i have a friend that died years ago but still has a facebook page, which myself and other friends still post on from time to time. even though it was unintentional (no one thought to take it down) it has been really therapeutic for us as we remember her light and energy. <br />
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i also think about the fact that i desired greatly to record the stories of both sets of my grandparents before they passed away but never took the time to sit down and collect their stories in one place in a way that i could get their perspective on before they passed. missed opportunity. <br />
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who do trust with your story (online or otherwise) after you are gone? how are you contributing to that story with your online presence? do you have a plan on how that persists beyond your life here in this plane of existence?pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-22678564502025604222009-10-16T13:02:00.000-07:002009-10-16T13:02:25.766-07:00prayers for a friend...Don't normally post prayer requests on this site but wanted to include one that has come to my attention over the last 24 hours. <a href="http://www.project-44.org/">Project 44</a> is a local non-profit organization seeking to do the work of the kingdom by gifting cars to those in need and developing and maintaining community gardens. They have hit a snag in their car ministry as the laws surrounding the gifting of automobiles has changed and they would now be forced to pay an additional cost (tacked on to the cost of repairs, maintenance, and a years worth of insurance) upwards of $500 per car before they give it away. They are not in any financial position to do this and are obviously quite flustered about these recent developments putting a stranglehold on such a vital part of their ministry. Please be in prayer for Project 44...that they may find some assistance in continuing this facet of their ministry. Please be in prayer for those who need transportation...as this is an ongoing need. Please be in prayer for the church...that it find ways to assist non-profits working towards building the kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven. Prayer is powerful and when it is focused can accomplish amazing things. Remember, nothing is impossible for God.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-49396878026976165942009-10-13T23:47:00.000-07:002009-10-13T23:47:29.883-07:00openspace student ministrydecided to get together with like-minded friends in student ministry and launch <a href="http://www.openspacestudentministry.com">openspace student ministry</a>, which will over time become a collaborative site offering connection, innovation, and the unrestricted sharing of ideas re: ministry with students and families. launch date is November 30, 2009.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-53563134128593088882009-10-12T10:11:00.000-07:002009-10-12T10:15:09.445-07:00My Favorite Whitman...as interpreted by LevisSo I am watching SNL this week while surfing the net and updating social networking sites and my ears perk up when I hear a voice reciting one of my favorite Walt Whitman poems, "O Pioneers!" I am somewhat flabbergasted when I realize that this poem is being used to hock Levi jeans in their "Go Forth" commercial campaign. Though the commercials are visually brilliant, shot by director Michael Gondry, I am supremely conflicted, believing in my heart of hearts that Whitman most assuredly would not be down with such shennanigans of selling jeans with his poetry. As I milled it over, however, I began to think that Whitman might actually enjoy being associated with something so ingrained in Americana as the blue jean. I will let you be the judge...check out the link and let me know if you think it is simply exploitation of fine poetry to sell jeans or an homage to a great American poet who captured the spiritual, emotional, psychological, and physical landscape of this country in its pre and post civil war era. <br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; white-space: pre;"><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mAXpJSvW5mA&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mAXpJSvW5mA&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; white-space: pre;"></span>Here's the other one from this series that uses Whitman's "America" as it's soundtrack...which is good but not one of my most favorite of his poems.<br />
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<object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FdW1CjbCNxw&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FdW1CjbCNxw&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-25276757782001910502009-10-08T14:06:00.000-07:002009-10-08T14:06:18.983-07:00what story is the bottle telling?check this blog archive from Mental Floss about stories told by one of the oldest mediums of storytelling: the message in a bottle.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/36541">http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/36541</a>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-26994799917731892832009-10-08T10:29:00.000-07:002009-10-08T10:40:44.212-07:00rePost: I will not let this go...No, this rePost does not have anything to do with the theological validity of potlucks but one I posted last Friday that I believe is worth looking at again, as no one posted comments on it....<br />
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As I have been delving into creating an open source CMS and continually engaging in social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, and others I have begun to ask myself (and be asked by others) about the connective tissue between these and my previous stream of posts on story/storytelling (which I greatly appreciate Jason and Steve's comments upon). My intial observations are these<br />
<ul><li>we often tell our stories without even being aware of it, in ways we are no longer even conscious of through what we listen to, what we read, what we consume and how we publicize and encourage others to consume. recently, I found that my re-tweeting excerpts from morning and evening prayers from TheUrbanAbbey was inadvertently encouraging others to follow these prayers as well, adding a whole new dimension to their prayer, giving them some indication of my own attitude toward prayer, and creating a new "community" of folks in this geographic area that follow TheUrbanAbbey.</li>
<li> what some see as passing fads in the areas of social communication, news sharing, and the exchange of ideas are actually deeply held and future/ancient mediums that natives now use for sharing story/storytelling</li>
<li>that there is an ever-deepening quality in culture to what Marshall McLuhan and Shane Hipps state/maintain: "The medium IS the message."</li>
</ul><br />
Thoughts? You have been on some of this journey with me and I'll really like to hear what you have to say....<br />
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Sent from my iPhone...one of the many mediums through which I share my story and connect to the stories of those around me. pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-41082817007612746262009-10-05T19:42:00.001-07:002009-10-05T19:42:27.843-07:00A Valuable Gift..."One of the most valuable things we can do to heal one another is <br>listen to each other's stories." ~ Rebecca Fallspomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-59230416689239244662009-09-29T08:00:00.001-07:002009-09-29T08:00:45.772-07:00for all you moderns out there...Reading an article from BBC news my friend Charles Harrison posted on <br>his fb profile about the Billy, the most popular mass-produced <br>bookcase in the world sold by Ikea, I was intrigued and inspired. The <br>author not only chronicled the design and development of the Billy but <br>also raised some great questions about the importance of displaying <br>books and what a collection of books says about the collector. So, <br>similar to my recent post on the iPod, I ask the question, "What story <br>do your books (and how you display them) tell?"<br>As I reflect on this question, two particular items are brought to <br>mind: church libraries and the bookcase of a mechanic friend of mine.<p>What do church libraries, how they are set up, where they are set, and <br>how they are accessed tell you about a church? I believe these <br>collections, their location in reference to the main flow of the <br>church, and their contents tell a particular story about that <br>congregation. It has, however, always been a mystery to me to walk <br>into relatively new church buildings that have church libraries. Is <br>their existence a commiment to a previous obligation...like a <br>memorial? Or coukd their presence serve as an indicator about the <br>information acquisition of the membership and possibly it's age and <br>mindset? Could it be a "tell" to visitors about the age/era the church <br>finds itself most comfortable in? What does the existence of a <br>resource center/library consisting largely of printed material in a <br>conference office tell you about the organization and how they see the <br>world?<p>On another note, I will never forget the bookshelf of a friend of mine <br>who happens to be a mechanic. Amongst all the auto repair manuals and <br>countless volumes regarding the inner workings of particular cars <br>there is tucked away a book on collecting antique glass paperweights. <br>Upon further prodding, I found a softer, gentler side to my mechanic <br>and friend (who often comes across as gruff) and was introduced to a <br>whole new world of collecting I was previously unaware of. It taught <br>me that books and how they are displayed can speak volumes to the <br>story of a person.<p>What about you?pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-17039742735921208512009-09-28T19:40:00.001-07:002009-09-28T19:40:39.022-07:00"story" = dirty word?Does identifying the Bible as "story" diminish it's importance?<p>Sent from my iPhonepomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-34279821682579221602009-09-24T11:12:00.001-07:002009-09-24T11:12:12.586-07:00what story is your iPod telling?From Andre Corescu:<br><a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/text/s.php?sId=113034536&m=1">http://www.npr.org/templates/text/s.php?sId=113034536&m=1</a><p>As I read this article, wondered what story my iPod tells? What <br>memories would the music on my iPod ellicit? Do you use your iPod as a <br>legitimate storytelling device?<p>Sent from my iPhone...not my iPod or my MacBook.pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38620336.post-3158361664336994442009-09-23T08:23:00.001-07:002009-09-23T08:23:06.334-07:00Avast Me Hardies!<div><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.289062); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.222656); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.222656);">Admittedly, when I hear the word "pirate" my mind conjours up images of eye patches, hooks, knives btwn teeth, and Jerry's puffy shirt. However, as I came across these two seemingly different (but in retrospect quite closely connected) articles on "pirates" (see links below), I began to think about archetypes (in the Freudian sense) and how our perceptions of archetypes influence the language of our stories. Pirates have played a role in many pillars of literature as villans, revolutionaries, and heroes. It left me with a couple of questions: -What are some of the archetypes/character types that make recurring appearances in your story?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.28125); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.214844); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.214844); "></span></span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.289062); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.222656); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.222656);">-Are there archetypes/character types beyond redemption? If so, why or why not? <span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.28125); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.214844); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.214844); "> </span></span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 18px; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); ">Peter Rollins on pirates: <a href="http://bit.ly/zmIJy" style="color: rgb(172, 170, 108); text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold; "><a href="http://bit.ly/zmIJy">http://bit.ly/zmIJy</a></a></span></p><p>Political Pirates in Sweden: <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112767746&sc=17&f=1001"><a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112767746&sc=17&f=1001">http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112767746&sc=17&f=1001</a></a></p><br></div>pomopilgrim@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527024990199025944noreply@blogger.com0