1) In April I'm going (with the whole family) to the WALP (Worship-Arts-Liturgy-Preaching) Conference hosted by Emergent. As they say, it will be a "generative converasation about worship, art, ligurgy, and preaching among Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Mainline Protestant, Anabaptist, and Evangelical/Charismatic leaders, thinkers, and resourcers that will lead to more vital worship..."
2) Also, with Emergent, in May I'm going to the Emergent Convention in Nashville.
3) In July is the very exciting Ekklesia Conference called
"No Other Gods:Keeping the Commandments in the Face of Empire" with
William Cavanaugh (Theopolitical Imagaination) and Sylvia Keesmaat (Colossians Remixed). It should be great. I'm looking forward to this the most.
Thursday, March 24, 2005
Monday, March 07, 2005
poverty: inner city and evangelical
I had a very disturbing realization last night. Not only disturbing, but rather produced deep sorrow for evangelicalism.
It is farely well known how poverty effect the family, particularly young women (if you don't know read "when work disappears"). For those women who see no life beyond the ghetto, whose horizon of existence extends no farther than high school, and who recieve little or no affection or sense of importants, it is very common that young woman look to pregnancy and the care of an infant as the only realm where they can excercise control and give care. For many, becoming a mother is the only means of finding significance.
Now, I went to an evangelical seminary attached to an even more conservative college. Now the rumor (but probable fact) is that 85% of all those who attend this college end up inter-marrying, and that the stereotypical women is there only to get married, not to get an education. In fact, it seems that many of the women who attend this college (and I think this is true for most conservative women) assume, or even, desire to have children by the age of 21. In fact it is all they talk about.
Now the realization that deeply saddened me is that is seems that white conservative evangelical women look to pregnancy in a way very similar to poor (minority) inner city women: motherhood is the only road to significance; it is the only means of escape.
Is evangelicalism so oppressive toward women, so poor in opportunities, so impoverished in it care, that the product of evangelicalism looks just like that of the inner city: desparte young women searching for a reason to life?
I think it is. And for all those women, lost within and/or searching to get out, for them I've greiving...
It is farely well known how poverty effect the family, particularly young women (if you don't know read "when work disappears"). For those women who see no life beyond the ghetto, whose horizon of existence extends no farther than high school, and who recieve little or no affection or sense of importants, it is very common that young woman look to pregnancy and the care of an infant as the only realm where they can excercise control and give care. For many, becoming a mother is the only means of finding significance.
Now, I went to an evangelical seminary attached to an even more conservative college. Now the rumor (but probable fact) is that 85% of all those who attend this college end up inter-marrying, and that the stereotypical women is there only to get married, not to get an education. In fact, it seems that many of the women who attend this college (and I think this is true for most conservative women) assume, or even, desire to have children by the age of 21. In fact it is all they talk about.
Now the realization that deeply saddened me is that is seems that white conservative evangelical women look to pregnancy in a way very similar to poor (minority) inner city women: motherhood is the only road to significance; it is the only means of escape.
Is evangelicalism so oppressive toward women, so poor in opportunities, so impoverished in it care, that the product of evangelicalism looks just like that of the inner city: desparte young women searching for a reason to life?
I think it is. And for all those women, lost within and/or searching to get out, for them I've greiving...
Where Have I been?
Well, it has been about 6 months since my last entry. Since then all my faithful readers have disappear, floating on to the next promising cloud of wisdom, wit, and perhap profundity (sorry about that to all 5 of you).
But let me explain. While i truly loved writing here (and will still continue from time to time) I decided that I really should focus my writing on a larger project. And since I only have so much time for writing (and researching to write) I had to give up this blog. The project that I'm working on currently is a writing sample for a future ph.d program that I'm hoping to start in the next couple of year (a couple years because currently I have two little boys under that age of 2). Since I recieve and M.Div, which doesn't require a thesis, I'm short a writing sample which all graduate programs require for the application.
So that's why I've dropped on the face of the blogosphere.
What else have I been doing since I last posted?
-I've continued working with up/rooted
-I've been working to organize emergent cohorts
-I've become the father of not 1, but now 2 children
-I've jumped from 10 to 20 hours a week working for my church
- and other stuff
what i've been reading...well, i'll try to update the links soon...
But let me explain. While i truly loved writing here (and will still continue from time to time) I decided that I really should focus my writing on a larger project. And since I only have so much time for writing (and researching to write) I had to give up this blog. The project that I'm working on currently is a writing sample for a future ph.d program that I'm hoping to start in the next couple of year (a couple years because currently I have two little boys under that age of 2). Since I recieve and M.Div, which doesn't require a thesis, I'm short a writing sample which all graduate programs require for the application.
So that's why I've dropped on the face of the blogosphere.
What else have I been doing since I last posted?
-I've continued working with up/rooted
-I've been working to organize emergent cohorts
-I've become the father of not 1, but now 2 children
-I've jumped from 10 to 20 hours a week working for my church
- and other stuff
what i've been reading...well, i'll try to update the links soon...
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