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Samuel Wood
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- Wichita, KS
- United States
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"Blue Collar" Emergent Church... is it even possible?
15 Replies
Started this discussion. Last reply by ray Oct 27.
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Great suggestions! I need to bone up on my country and hard rock.
You hit the demographic-belief nail on the head. Ditto everything you said about our age range, including Christian friends who are now atheist or are embracing the typical postmodern spirituality pick n' choose buffet. You are definitely right: t...
Excellent phrase, your words...long-term engagement...The time and finances needed to make this work are much greater than most people assume. Many people want a fad-diet answer but The Way involves old-school hard work, and improved diet and exer...
Troy,
Thanks for the response. I think that my experience with "post moderns" is fairly in line with what you are saying.... The problem, in part, seems to me that their overwhelmingly past experience with the church has been painful in a judgeme...
Samuel
We are working on the same thing. We are in the St.Paul, so part of our group falls into the hip/artsey/ex-yuppie subculture; but we are also in one of the only neighborhoods that is blue color. One of the things we did to engage the commun...
I am 36. Less than 10% of my child-hood playmates/teenage/High-school friends/college room-mates/current friends are active in a church. Two of my friends from seminary are now atheist! These people have left for many reasons but all of them don't...
This is off the wall, perhaps too much so... but then I am not a pastor. :)
1. I wonder if there is too much emphasis on convenience and meeting people where they are at in a physical sense. Certainly to the dechurched, a traditional church build...
friends,
I might suggest another bit/teaser. I highly recommend subscribing to Generate Magazine (www.generatemagazine.com). Here's why (besides the selfish self-promoting plug...I work there): (1) Magazines themselves are a more blue collar / gr...
Did this at my last congregation. It is a tough sell to the existing group and a tougher balancing act once you get it up and running. The danger is that the existing congregation will see the new group within the group as a 5th Column movement ai...
Larry,
You look my age (about) and I'm frustrated with the "find someone their age" to be at the point of the outreach. We have so few and they are either uncommitted to the whole idea or highly committed by so orthodox as to scare the b-jesus ou...
I am wondering some of the same stuff as I try to reach out to a 20 or 30 something group within the congregation but thinking it will not stay within the congregation or the building... I am not sure how they will respond or where it will go.. bu...
Hi Samuel,
What might it look like to go out on a limb and do a "church within a church" for this crowd? Perhaps find a way to do meaningful outreach to that crowd without expecting that they would come to a Sunday worship at a conventional churc...
My only thought is the ABSOLUTE alienation from the "church" (formal religion) that working class people under the age of 35 feel. Between believing that they won't "fit in" and that they will be "condemned" for their lifestyle and believing that ...
I was wondering the same thing about a year ago, but more specifically how "rural emerging church" might look... Let's talk some more, kick around some ideas.
hey Samuel,
I'd like to think emergent isn't an adjective, but a verb. What I mean by that is that it really depends on what you're emerging from and emerging to. Perhaps the majority of emerging churches do come from that mindset -- I think ther...
Profile Information
- About Me:
- Pastor, Chaplain, Counselor who is appalled at how poorly my denomination is a reaching 20/30-somethings. I love music (blues/gospel) and a the proud Grandpa of a new baby girl named Maddie.
- Who am I? (Many ways to answer this -- be as creative as you want, or not.)
- No quite hip, although a 60, I'm a preaching pastor with an earing. I love the creative side of life...I build cigar box guitars and do folk art. I'm gifted at intense short term relationships (it's shocking that my current marriage is in its 25th year. I just want to leave behind a legacy of passionate Christian who "get it"!
- How did I get into "emerging ministry"?
- Reading, attending a conference with Tony Jones, understanding that "doing church" isn't getting the job done in reaching post-moderns.
- Say a little bit about the community you share life with...
- A neighborhood blue collar church that is "aging out" Our average age is 65... our neighobrhood's average age is 35. We're a United Methodist congregation, so we're (relatively) tolerant, but clueless at reaching the unchurched.
- What are the most pressing questions (both theological and practical) you and your community have?
- Do we have to throw out tradition to reach the unchurched 20/30-something generation?
How does a "works oriented" mainline church, for who "fellowship" is more important that "evangelism" or "mission" turn it around? HELP!!!!
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