Reasonable Discourse
Posted by: tony on 07/28/2006 12:52 PM
Updated by: tony on 07/28/2006 12:55 PM
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Expires: 08/28/2006 12:00 AM
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I invariably enjoy reading Todd at Catholic Sensibility. He's an intelligent and articulate guy who I've tried to engage on a number of occasions, sometimes resorting to outright taunting. He's also quite (GASP!) liberal in most of his viewpoints I've read.
He recently issued a challenge on his blog.
So I repeat my challenge to anybody out there who thinks they have something to say on a sustained and focused level. You pick the topic you think I'm blowing hot air about: architecture, liturgical music, liturgical language, whatever. We focus it down to a manageable level: Where to put a tabernacle? or How to employ a liturgical guitar? or Is the Sign of Peace Optional? Then we go point for point in brief exchanges. They can be posted here, on your own web site, or at some neutral location, or any combination of the above.
Maybe I'm just tired of parroting the good news/bad news out there. Let's try something more interesting.
Ok, I'll bite. How about we talk about what you wrote earlier this month regarding what Charlotte Allen wrote.
Allen thinks conservative churches do well because they make gospel demands on their members. I beg to differ. I think Fundamentalist Christians--who would be heretics in Allen's eyes, remember--do well with membership numbers because they implement a coherent and clever plan:
- They welcome seekers and make accommodations for them.
- They make few demands--not a lot--on casual Christians who come to check things out.
- They align their worship experiences along cultural lines in musical style and presentation as well as in oratory.
- They cultivate a sense of community as well as ownership. More serious believers have something with which to get involved.
So how do you make few demands on "casual Christians" who come to check things out? Do you not preach uncomfortable truth from the pulpit? Or are you talking about demands made by other members of the community?
We'll start here. (And I resisted the impulse to build a straw man. Grab a pillow and have at it! :))
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