This Sunday morning I bolted out of bed and went to visit a church where a very good friend is a prominent member. The experience confirmed my views about why much of American church life, some synagogue life, and nearly all of the Messianic Movement is not getting the job done. And what is that job? […]
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I recently had an on-line disagreement with an old friend, a great guy who is a Jew who believes in Yeshua. He was saying that immersion-baptism is a great thing and it doesn't make a Jew any less a Jew. I countered that this is only the case if and when those involved are not […]
Audience spirituality isn't working and it won't work. Don't get me wrong: there IS a place for celebration services, for large gatherings. But if this is the bread and butter of our spiritual communities, and if having bigger, and better, and glitzier events is our game plan for spiritual renewal, we should save ourselves time […]
Two of my respondents to my discussion of Audience Spirituality, which we also term Spectator Spirituality, have commented on how liturgical worship makes people into participants, rather than mere observing spectators. I join my friends Cristo and Cathy in their respect for liturgy and its great value. In liturgical prayer everyone has an opportunity for […]
Last post I mentioned "spectator religion" or "audience spirituality" which has become the default modality for many in the Jewish, Christian, and Messianic Jewish worlds. Especially in the Christian and Messianic Jewish worlds, but not theirs alone, congregations now have their "worship teams," which are really bands. The worship area is now a stage. the […]
Let's talk about audience spirituality. In my research and observation, America has fallen into a certain kind of spectator religion--people go to church, synagogue, Messianic congregations and watch some sort of performance, perhaps worshipping God, but not really interacting in terms of being free to share their input and exercise their gifts. We have […]
In my last post, I pointed out some symptoms of malaise in the Messianic Jewish congregational context. Here I will briefly outline a solution to which I am devoting the majority of my energies and those of the organization I run, Interfaithfulness. See if you don't find this to be a solution that commends itself […]
Various cultural forces have co-opted Jewish peoplehood and covenantal responsibility among Jewish believers in Yeshua, and intermarried family constellations. Jewish identity is being defined genetically instead of covenantally. We have forgotten that we are a people whom God formed for himself to show forth his praise (Isaiah 43:21). As a result, our next generation and […]
The stores will be all Christmasy after Thanksgiving, so this is a good time to shop for a Jesus. Lots of people do this, you know. Let me describe six Jesus’s you may want to buy, and recommend the one that I favor—because I think it is truest to the Bible. The first Jesus some […]
I recently visited with long-term friends and thought to visit the church where they attended. I sat in the front row with the wife half of this couple. The church was a famous one, perhaps the best known in their city, and very well run. The music was great. The announcements up on the Power […]
