Trans4m:

March 2008

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31

One of the essential characteristics for being a true revolutionary, it seems to me, is the ability to truly think outside of the box. Though we talk much about "transformational" leadership and institutional transformation, I am afraid that we often end-up merely rearranging the deck chairs on the proverbial Titanic! The reality seems that we often struggle to think outside of our present paradigms. We are so embedded or enmeshed in the current paradigm that we have become, according to Herbert Marcuse, one dimensional in our thinking. Rather than discussing and debating new paradigms, we spend our time debating changes to the existing paradigms. For example, rather than discussing the biblical underpinnings and theological assumptions inherent in the local church as we know it, we debate different "styles" within the current paradigm. I think this reflects our one-dimensional nature. To be truly transformational revolutionaries we must think more multidimensionally -- outside of the box! Marcuse says that existing paradigms, by their very existence, perpetuate their own existence and, as a result, there "emerges a pattern of one-dimensional thought and behavior in which (new) ideas, aspirations, and objectives that, by their content, transcend the established universe of discourse and action (read that established paradigm) are either repelled or reduced to terms of this universe (paradigm). There is a certain centrifugal force that keeps pulling would-be revolutionaries back from the outer limits of new ideas, to the center of existing realities, so that in the end we simply find ourselves tweaking the status quo rather than transforming it. It's not easy to be a revolutionary ...

Reading for Revolutionaries

Shane Claiborne: The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical
This book will rock your world! I believe this is a must read for anyone serious about being a genuine Christ-follower. Read it and weep ... Read it and rejoice. (*****)
John Wood: Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur's Odyssey to Educate the World's Children
This is at turns and incredibly inspirational and convicting book. John Wood left a cushy job and promising future at Microsoft in order to devote his life to building libraries and schools in the villages of Nepal and other third world countries with low literacy rates. I wonder if this is what Jesus meant when he spoke to the rich young ruler? (****)
F. LeRon Shults and Steven J. Sandage: Transforming Spirituality: Integrating Theology And Psychology
Shults and Sandage bring a fresh approach to this work on spiritual/personal/theological formation and its integration. As in their previous collaboration, "The Faces of Forgiveness," this book is a paradigm-breaking, creative, and invigorating contribution to the field of spiritual formation - though it deals as directly with subjects such as theology, psychology, anthropology, philosophy, and sociology, weaving them all into a rich, integrated whole. Just a taste of what awaits in Transforming Spirituality ... "However, the reformative Pneumatology we have been outlining can help us understand that our way of being-present to others in space and time is our spirituality." (*****)
Kathryn Tanner: Economy Of Grace
Theologian Kathryn Tanner explores alternative economies that are based on grace rather than greed and money. She provides a challenging and cogent argument for rethinking the foundations of current forms of advanced capitalism. Though I do not agree with all of her final conclusions, I agree with her primary premise that current systems are in need of change and rethinking our theology of economics is where we need to begin.
Larry L. King: In Search of Willie Morris: The Mercurial Life of a Legendary Writer and Editor
A powerful and sad tale about the troubled life of a near literary genius and how his dark side caused him to squander his talent and strengths. A sobering reminder of the need for Self-leadership!
Stanley J. Grenz: The Social God and the Relational Self: A Trinitarian Theology of the Imago Dei
This book addresses how an understanding of the triune nature of God should shape our concepts of "self" or "soul" as well as result in a more relational and communal church which takes responsibility for the "other." Because we are created with the imago dei, we can only find our true self-hood in relation to others. God is a social God. Grenz does an amazing job of debunking the post-modern concept of "possessive individualism" which is killing the missional focus of the church today. (*****)
Gerald Clarke: Capote: A Biography
This is an excellent biography of a brilliant writer whose life was sabatoged by the Dark Side. A study in how not to be a parent! This is an interesting read. (****)