Friday, August 06, 2004
O.k., so I'm a few years behind the curve in getting to this, but
The Continuing Conversion of the Church by Darrell Guder is a new favorite book for me. It's right up there with
Missional Church by Guder and company, but this one is more oriented toward laying a theological base for the pragmatic suggestions.
Guder talks in detail about reductionism and the gospel. Some "reduction" is necessary when we take the gospel into a new culture or relationship - in other words, we have to translate our experience and understanding of the gospel into language, thus reducing it. The problem comes when we apply our own agenda to the reduction, and turn it into a thing of its own - what Guder calls "reduction
ism." We will always run the risk of, and be guilty of this, and will thus forever be in need of a continuing conversion to the gospel. Mmmmm, that's good. Can't wait to finish it.
I checked this book out from the library, but now I'm gonna have to buy it - I need to be able to read this multiple times, scribble in it and thrash it without feeling guilty.
