for all the seminary students

Ill-pleased, I join a line of hard-to-please people
Who want to exchange their lumpy bourgeois souls
For a keen Greek mind and a strong Roman nose,
Then find ourselves, surprised, at the edge of a stable.

- excerpt from "The Carol" by Eugene Peterson, 1989. Pg.167 The Contemplative Pastor (1993).

This poem, quoted in full below, captures part of my life journey through seminary and church experiences (attempting to trade bourgeois souls for Greek minds and Roman noses), and expresses what I hope continues into the future: expanding joy at the increasing discovery of the realness of the Person of Christ.
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The Carol
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased.
Luke 2:14

Untuned, I'm flat on my feet, sharp with my tongue,
A walking talking dischord, out of sorts,
My heart murmurs are entered in lab reports.
The noise between my ears cannot be sung.

Ill-pleased, I join a line of hard-to-please people
Who want to exchange their lumpy bourgeois souls
For a keen Greek mind and a strong Roman nose,
Then find ourselves, surprised, at the edge of a stable.

Caroling angels and a well-pleased God
Join a choir of cow and sheep and dog

At this barnyard border between wish and gift.
I glimpse the just-formed flesh, now mine. They lift

Praie voices and sing twelve tones
Of pleasure into my muscles, into my bones.

Determining church structure

This is from a recent class discussion...

"I hear you when you say the process is a means to an end, and that you have no problem tweaking the formal structure according to how well it facilitates the church's purpose. We've taken the same approach, I think, though when talking about process we distinguish between the highly-negotiable specifics of the process and the virtually non-negotiable nature of the process. Meaning that whatever specific organizational model we employ, it must (a) facilitate the purpose (growing life together with God on His terms), and (b) reflect the nature of the God we live with and the nature of life to which He invites us. That means when determining the specifics of how a church community is going to be organized we start with questions about God and Kingdom rather than "what works" or "what do people want." It's a theological foundation rather than a pragmatic one. And the theology we begin with can potentially limit our options for the specifics."