Comments on: Authenticity in the emerging church blogosphere http://teusner.org/2009/04/02/authenticity-in-the-emerging-church-blogosphere/ ... exploring religion and culture in an online world Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:06:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: paul http://teusner.org/2009/04/02/authenticity-in-the-emerging-church-blogosphere/comment-page-1/#comment-16120 paul Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:36:40 +0000 http://teusner.org/2009/04/02/authenticity-in-the-emerging-church-blogosphere/#comment-16120 G'day Tim, Nice to hear from you again. Totally agree with you that mainstream Christianity has always been concerned with authenticity. That the emerging movement is hailed as a new reformation comes from the recollection of Luther's and Calvin's call for a return to basics and a stripping away of structures that detract us from true faith. It's a cyclical problem, where the mark of authenticity is no longer tied to the value it symbolises. And I think the medium of communication has much to do with that. The rise of print paved the way for a new kind of thinking about "real faith", and (as Tickle has mentioned) moved authority from the episcopacy to the printed word. The Internet, layered on print and audiovisual media, calls for another kind of thinking about "real faith" and is changing the DOC stamp and the methods by which it's applied. Gee, I hope that makes sense. G’day Tim,

Nice to hear from you again.

Totally agree with you that mainstream Christianity has always been concerned with authenticity. That the emerging movement is hailed as a new reformation comes from the recollection of Luther’s and Calvin’s call for a return to basics and a stripping away of structures that detract us from true faith.

It’s a cyclical problem, where the mark of authenticity is no longer tied to the value it symbolises. And I think the medium of communication has much to do with that. The rise of print paved the way for a new kind of thinking about “real faith”, and (as Tickle has mentioned) moved authority from the episcopacy to the printed word. The Internet, layered on print and audiovisual media, calls for another kind of thinking about “real faith” and is changing the DOC stamp and the methods by which it’s applied.

Gee, I hope that makes sense.

]]> By: Tim Schumacher http://teusner.org/2009/04/02/authenticity-in-the-emerging-church-blogosphere/comment-page-1/#comment-16119 Tim Schumacher Thu, 02 Apr 2009 07:38:39 +0000 http://teusner.org/2009/04/02/authenticity-in-the-emerging-church-blogosphere/#comment-16119 I agree with your thoughts here. Yes, the emerging church holds authenticity as a prime value, as you wrote. The mainstream church can learn much from this, both in regards to what people are looking for and in regards to the original commission given to the church that it so often has forgotten. It's not that the mainstream churches weren't interested in authenticity all along. The difference is who is "conducting the inspections" today to deteremine who's deserving of the DOC stamp (eg, the blogosphere). That's what's challenging for me as a confessional Lutheran. By definition and by confession, our mark of authenticity is measured by scripture alone. That puts us at odds with the modern world. I agree with your thoughts here. Yes, the emerging church holds authenticity as a prime value, as you wrote. The mainstream church can learn much from this, both in regards to what people are looking for and in regards to the original commission given to the church that it so often has forgotten.

It’s not that the mainstream churches weren’t interested in authenticity all along. The difference is who is “conducting the inspections” today to deteremine who’s deserving of the DOC stamp (eg, the blogosphere).

That’s what’s challenging for me as a confessional Lutheran. By definition and by confession, our mark of authenticity is measured by scripture alone. That puts us at odds with the modern world.

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