for the past few days, a question has been floated around among sports talk people about whether sports blogging is good for sports, or if it is shady and bad journalism. that it is being talked about almost misses the point, because good or bad, it is here to stay. and i think that it is a good thing. the detractors, incidentally, have been old-guard journalists (at networks and major papers) and older sports figures (like wimp sanderson). in other words, those who are either resistant to change by their nature and those who have the most to lose. it has certainly decentralized the power of sports journalism, as deadspin and other blogs get more and more hits. no longer is espn, which i check online and watch daily, the only game in town.
and i think it says something about the changes happening all over the place. in journalism and politics and religion. for the past however many years, the power, which was in the information, has resided in the hands of a few. these hands were, incidentally, the hands of experts. with the advent of blogs, the power has become decentralized, and now resides in the hands of everyone with wifi and an opinion. and i like it. i think it is freeing and exciting and dangerous. consider that most of my sports reading is in the form of blogs. and much of my news comes from the Daily Show.
i think it started with a general distrust of authority. too many times, those who were the experts used their knowledge or influence to oppress or for selfish gain. and so the commoners have risen up and are taking knowledge from the seat of power.
i think this is important because right now i am struggling with what it means to faithfully follow jesus in my context. and more and more, i get the feeling that the future of theology, and therefore orthodoxy and orthopraxy, will be articulated best in blogs and discussions and conversations outside of churches in a traditional sense. the days of seminary trained experts being the religious professionals and the sole voice is going, if not already gone. and i am excited about the possiblilities, but also unsure how it will play out for me, when i am still firmly in the context of a traditional church.
or am i wrong? is the church just in a lull, and soon will rebound? i doubt it, but there is a lot of money and power in churches, and i have a feeling they will not go quietly into the night. so i guess the question becomes, is it possible to adapt?
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it's an interesting question. you've experienced this at hueytown, but i do think in the methodist church, by definition, congregations are reared to adapt. every so many years, their senior pastor changes and brings with them new views and new ways of doing things and the church, itself, continues to, at the very least, operate in spite of those changes.
i think the question you raised when posed to the alpha-personalities i wrote about earlier in the week is when it gets sticky. until recently, it's my opinion that senior pastors have not been asked to change "their way" significantly. the more voices that are heard, though, moving forward through blogs or small groups, the more those voices will realize how much influence they can actually have even though the culture of church we have been raised in has trained us otherwise. you don't have to have money. you don't have to be on "this" or "that" committee. sure, in the past, that meant something.
going forward, i think it will and should mean less. my hope is that the decentralization of the church will, at least, lead us into a deconstruction era that will bring us closer to the "church" that jesus intended. i am patienty waiting for you to leave your "traditional" church position before i recruit you to my cause.
later, bro.
i definitely see your point in the methodist church. the pastor can be seen almost as an outsider, and this gives the cingregation as a whole more power. in the baptist tradition, not at all. the pastor is the man.
and the day is coming, my friend, when i shall shed the shackles of institution and join your cause. it is coming quickly.
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