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malcolm chamberlain

musings about the emerging church, mission and contemporary culture...

God is at large, intimately involved in his world in ways that the church is maybe just waking up to!

up and running

Tuesday, April 04, 2006



well, if you've made it here
(and you have!)
well done!



the questions...
why have I set up a blog?
am I really that vain?
will anyone want to read it anyway?

the answers...
because... (read on)
maybe but hope not
hope so, and more than just read it!

So why a blog? I've been reading nearly 40 blogs concerned with altworship and emerging church for some time now, which have helped fuel my own journey and have contributed to my developing thinking about church, mission and contemporary culture that is so much a part of my daily work as well as my driving passion (see 'about me'). For a while I've considered joining the blogging world, and have done so now and again through the Dream blog as a member of the 'Dream in Liverpool City' community.

But the time is right now to host my own blog...

As well as being actively engaged in the emerging church, I'm also a year into a part-time MPhil researching the emerging church movement/discussion as an attempt to re-contextualise authentic Christian community in postmodern times. I'm soon to dive into 6 months of field-work (that's the technical term!) engaging as fully as time will allow in two emerging churches in the North-West of England (more to come...) As part of reflecting on this experience, and as a way of processing my ongoing reading, I thought a blog would be a good way to go - that's why I'm not just hoping for visitors who will read it, but people who will actively contribute by arguing with me (and who knowns maybe agreeing too), sharing their persectives and views on the issues I'm grappling with. As you do, you'll be adding to my data-source, giving me valuable material to sift through and utilise in the final thesis. And if all that sounds just a bit too heavy... I'm hoping there will also be a healthy dose of irony and larking about along the way!

This is not a blog that you will need to visit every day to keep up with - I'll be posting on Tuesdays mainly, and other bits and pieces as they drift through my brain may come inbetween. The first main post to get discussion going will be on Tuesday 11th April - make sure you come back then!

So, if you're up for being involved...
welcome on board...
hope you enjoy the ride...

Labels: ,

posted by Malcolm Chamberlain, 4:09 PM

9 Comments:

fantastic. Looking forward to it.

commented by Anonymous Anonymous, 9:14 AM  

cheers Richard

commented by Blogger Malcolm Chamberlain, 9:41 AM  

Malcolm, welcome to the blogoshere. Look forward to following your journey. Peace.

Paul
http://prodigal.typepad.com

commented by Blogger Paul Fromont, 11:41 PM  

Thanks Paul

commented by Blogger Malcolm Chamberlain, 7:22 PM  

Welcome to the Kingdom of blog!

commented by Anonymous Anonymous, 12:58 PM  

Hey, stranger! Thought you might like to know that a 'prayer secretary' from your York years still puts in an odd prayer for you all from time to time. Sorry!

This despite a somewhat idiosyncratic journey between then and now.

I've just finished reading 'the Emerging Church' - I find it chimes with so much of where I'm coming from.

I'm currently exploring the possibilities for postmodern evangelism - to coin a phrase, perhaps, total immersion. I'm looking at the role of the shaman/ priest as a bi-cultural figure who can communicate the a-cultural Gospel (Love, in essence?) between cultures - modern and postmodern, Church and Non-Church, scientific and faith-driven, and so on.

I believe passionately that this is my own vocation - and maybe something we are all called to. I'd love to follow your blog-journey, and bat an argument or two about, if you think my contribution might be useful.

By the way, saw you fielding a debate at Greenbelt last year, so the photo without Stone Roses cut wasn't a shock!

Pass my love to all you are still in touch with - I cut all ties when I walked out on Church in 1995...

commented by Blogger Steve Lancaster, 1:13 PM  

Steve - great to hear from you! Sorry I missed you at GB last year - we've hopefully got more stuff on this year's programme about Churchless Faith and the new 'Spirited Exchanges UK' so look out for me at those points if you're there and grab me afterwards so we can get a pint and catch up!

The sort of stuff you're exploring sounds really interesting. It'd be great if you do get involved in this blog and comment whenever you feel you want - batting arguments and ideas about is what it's for!

Looking forward to sharing the journey again.

commented by Blogger Malcolm Chamberlain, 2:24 PM  

look forward to reading more about what you are thinking. I am writing my dissertation on an emerging community and a non emerging community, to see what if any differences there are or is it just words!!!

commented by Blogger thoughts of a person on a journey, 11:03 PM  

Dot - good to hear from you. Keep me posted on your findings for your dissertation - sounds interesting. What's your hunch pre-research?!

commented by Blogger Malcolm Chamberlain, 7:37 PM  

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