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Thursday, June 26, 2003 |
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I think that "The Jerk" reminds me of a time in my life when I was starting out in ministry, in Seminary, and going to see movies like The Jerk with a good friend who lived across the hall in the Seminary Dorm where I resided from 1978-1981. We would often quote various things from the movie in the years ahead. It was a fun-loving, relaxed, and yet "emergent" time in my life when I was about to embark on some adventures that would tie me close to technology, ministry, Janet (whom I would meet in 1982), Cincinnati, and United Theeological Seminary, where I got fascinated with the possibilities for Online Community, and knew that I was going to find myself "immersed" in it.
The post below begins to describe how I am feeling as I begin to see things re-arranging, perculating, and what I can only describe as something "Pentecost-like"; and thus far, it's been all "electronically mediated" via email and phone calls, but the phone calls didn't really talk the content of this all that much; only logistics about when and how to meet FTF on all the "email" and "blog" stuff. I am very charged about doing the ftf part, however. This will only increase the online energy afterwards. This is how it is meant to be , I think, in regards to Church and Online Communication. It's all about "new appendages". (BTW, I've started reading a new book called Natural Born Cyborgs by Andy Calrk, the director of Cognitive Sciences at U. of Indiana.) There will certainly be comments fortcoming as he talks about the ways which we are already "dovetailing" processes of the mind to "external" resources, from the "post it note" to the computerized collection of resources and correspondence).
9:54:37 AM 
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The line from the movie "The Jerk" (I can just see the look that Steve Martin had and hear the way he said it) came to mind in a much more serious and life-impact way yesterday as I read over a 4 page email from my friend Larry concerning our talks over the past couple weeks concerning a role for me at the ecumenical center/place/community where he is Executive Director. I recall the line and said it out loud to myself, being almost giddy in my joy over the emerging stuff that Larry carefully lays out and draws deep purposeful stuff from almost every "item" in the list of possibilities that keep rolling through as he thinks on these things.
Some of the highlights of the email focused on the "calling stuff" that now seems to be moving ever closer to being an honest-to-goodness generator of income and processes-being-set-in-motion that will birth other collaborations amongst various ecumenical participants and fellow envisioners of the future for online resource building for the theological community.
Check out some of these:
I believe that human freedom and creativity is powerful and that when we have a special opportunity to live into a deep centered passion of our calling we can really flourish. I think that timing is very ideal for you now and for us... So the match up as to timing and talent and marketplace - ministry opportunity is excellent.
I can't think of anyone else that I could send such a brain dump to that I know could make sense out of 80% of what I have said than you Dale. I look forward to figuring out a way for you to have an office of connexity at OSG and have access to all the web hosting services and other tools that we have and will acquire as needed.
[others] can greatly benefit from having the kind of turbocharged cyber engine thriving under your leadership [here]. The factor here is an exchange is taking place, value for value, not a donation to you.
Thoughts like these are sprinkled throughout an email just brimming with ideas and connections and possibilities for further exploration; and most importantly, vision, energy, a very tangible sense of being called to something that is EMERGING. It gives a whole new meaning for me (a theological one) to the "Emergent Technologies" term; but the "simple" ingredients that evolve in to something quite complex here are the "simple things" that it often takes quite a bit of vision and freedom and creativity to see from inside of theologically-driven communities. There is so much "business-as-usual" pressure in most Churches and engines of communication within like structures. When there is a place for the new to thrive and NOT BE SQUASHED, and people "hanging around" who affirm the new and see it as well, there is great potential for the things which the Church should be able to see most clearly and obviously in the online possibilities for community. These "obvious" things are allowed to EMERGE and pick up energy as the "call" attracts people who can fill roles in the structuring of the implementation of the mission.
Needless to say, I am quite excited. Don't know yet what exactly is ahead in terms of the WHERE and the WHEN and how much of the time in the next couple weeks will be "me getting to work" on some of this, and how much of it I will spend "up there" in out-of-town mode, and what the "logistics" will be. It's GREAT though. I don't know how else to put it (but I suppose I'll keep attempting new ways to "put it" in the days ahead.
9:30:28 AM
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