About
Welcome to neo-baptist. This was originally a place of collective wisdom for Baptist types. It turns out that Baptist types don’t really blog so now this blog is for all types of Christians engaged in leadership of a local church, hip cool emergent pub gathering, or any other format of Christian community.
This blog is based in Australia but welcomes participation from around the world. Although there are differences between Baptists and other types there is much in common.
What’s With The ‘Neo’?
The word ‘neo’ can be understood in a few ways. The meaning intended for this blog is ‘new’. The Baptist church in Australia [and in other countries] occupies the middle ground of Protestantism between the liturgical traditions to the left and the Pentecostal traditions to the right, or on another linear scale the liberal to the left and the redneck to the right [although there are plenty of hardline conservative baptist churches within the State unions]
The most hardline conservative baptists have made life easier for the rest of us by congregating in their own independently aligned churches, replete with their KJV’s and 3-piece suits. There is plenty of variety within union affiliated Baptist churches. Having said that I observe that there is such a thing as a ‘typical suburban’ Baptist church, or any other denomination for that matter other than the church of Rome which has rock solid branding.
Aside from the large flagship mega-churches, and the eclectic charismatic Baptist churches, there is a fairly large middle ground. The churches that are found within this grouping have much in common.
What Does Church 2.0 Look Like?
Right now many pastors and leaders in churches are wrestling with some of the key challenges which face the churches. Our congregations straddle a number of key generations [and the cultural assumptions that come with each era], and we straddle the great modernist/postmodern divide. Many churches are dwindling due to an ageing congregation that is not being replenished by new blood. We are wrestling with proposed changes to the way we do church government, ordination etc. Many of us are wrestling with the challenges and critique thrown up by the ‘emerging church’ movement.
In my view, the churches that are thriving are the ones who are prepared to be ‘neo’ where required. Progressive Baptists are ’small-b’ baptists. I count myself as one of them. We prefer to see our identity primarily as Christians. We are evangelical by persuasion, and we can be described as baptist in that we identify with those distinctives [which we share in common with others] and obviously because we find ourselves either belonging to or ministering in a Baptist church. Leaders in other denominations share this desire to be identified in Christ alone.
Just what we are to be ‘neo’ about is up for grabs. This blog is a place where we can discuss these challenges and hopefully grow and learn together.
What About Rude People?
I intend this blog to have free posting, unless of course it is abused either by spammers or people who want to be abusive. So far I have not had to resort to censorship. Hopefully it can keep on working that way. In the end analysis, it’s my blog and I’ll cry if I need to.
Apart from blogging about issues, there is also a fair bit of satire and other stuff to do with Web 2.0 and other useful technologies for churches. I try to keep the accent on the positive.
Let’s see where our collective wisdom can take us. Feel free to leave your thoughts.
Hi, dropping in from http://mattstone.blogs.com, another Aussie baptist blog.
well the neo-baptist are wrong in the in the sense that they are a half way church if they are going to embrace the power of the Jesus Christ they need to take a hold of the whole Pentecoastal scene
Stay on course bro, navigating between the wacky extremes and holding firmly to Word and Spirit. That is the radical middle!
Yeah I’ve done the wacky Pentecostal thing so my pendulum aint swinging back that way!
Hi gordon
I came accross your blog by accident checking out something to do with the union. (I’m one of those computer illit. almost 50Yr olds) I’m quite intriqued by it (being a Baptist PK – my Dad being a bit of a union black sheep). The Union must find you a bit of a thorn in the flesh – maybe there should be a blog for Bapt. PKs who’ve lost their faith or moved to another denom. because of the hurts their family experienced at the hands of their church or their neglect by the union etc. I’m sure there are plenty of us.
Curiously yours
Hi Erica
I doubt if I am a thorn in the Union’s flesh. So far this blog has had 299 posts over 26 categories, and only a handful of them concern the Union. Usually its to do with something fairly tame like bad design:)
Most of the blokes who run the show wouldn’t know what a blog is either!:)
Gordon,
I don’t have your email address, because if I did, I would have sent this link to you direct.
Game on for Christian protest
http://www.theage.com.au/national/game-on-for-christian-protest-20090712-dhef.html
Could someone explain to me exactly what this is all about?
I am really missing something here.
Kind rgds
Bravo! The Bonhoeffer Four are continuing the practice of Jesus’ teaching on the mountainside. Such nonviolent interventions cause warmongers to stop their war-training, at least for a while – and have a powerful symbolic influence (not unlike Jesus overturning the money exchange tables in the Jerusalem Temple – did they return after a day or so?).
With the blessing of Christ Jesus himself, these peacemaker activists remind each of us to practise the things that Christ taught are the most important things for us. We must oppose the enterprise of war through every means we have available, and awake from the post-Vietnam War slumber of many evangelical Christians regarding Christ’s own teaching.
Bravo! Shalom to each of you who read this.
Servus, it is standard operating procedure for peace activists. The difference is that its not usually a Baptist minister.
I could well run into him in my chaplaincy duties. I promise not to water board him.
Dietrich was a pacifist, until his more pragmatic side got the better of him and he participated in a plot to blow Hitler up.
I rather think Simon Moyle celebrates the earlier version of Brother Bonhoeffer.
thanks Gordon.
Not being a Bonhoeffer specialist, I wasn’t aware that DB actually might have a pragmatic side, not only just an idealistic side.
Jarrod McKenna appears well on the way to jagging a Green Senate spot or something. He is doing all the right things to pull it off. ie soft & fuzzy photo ops in “The West Australian” newspaper & such like. Jo Valentine must be busy mentoring him.
Like most [predictable] Green activists, I fear they will have their mobiles on full bore alerting the TV stations to their protest against the Yankee imperialists. Unfortunately it will also be triggering the defence GPS at the same time. So they might not last long!
As someone commented today, this gang of four would qualify as “Marcionite heretics”, whose “utopians their projects contribute to disaster”.