Week 10: Monday

In today’s class Wes gave us a good definition of the questions surrounding the relevancy struggle within Christian communities, and how this desire has sometimes led us to forego several key tenets of ancient Christian tradition mainly because they are ancient. The struggle with relevancy today is how the Church has become marginalized currently in this postmodern paradigm, and that it continues to combat this marginalization with “relevant” worship, bible study, etc. but the Church must begin to realize that it can no longer re-claim its position of power and authority in society, but must instead return to the incarnational or missional engagements of Jesus. These engagments are not based on the church’s ability to again become cultural center, but are instead to point to something greater than the establishment, the kingdom itself. This discussion is something extremely difficult for the Church to engage with because it must first admit its inability to be the “kingdom police” and must instead be involved in the critiquing and affirming of aspects and areas of society that point to the existence and movements of God already in society. The Church, to become truly “relevant” it must first admit that the kingdom lies not only within its walls, but outside them as well.