Ken Myers, host of Mars Hill Audio Journal, was recently interviewed on the podcast Ordinary Means about the topic of culture and the church. During the interview, Myers talked about different ways that the church must be counter-cultural in our current cultural environment. He outlined five main areas:
- Language
- Music
- Food
- Time
- Inter-Generational Relationships
We have been trying to do some of this at my church. We are cultivating an appreciation for the history of church music by learning a new Psalm and an older hymn each month. We have certain times of the year when we have days of feasting (Christmas, Easter, etc.). We are also committed to not segregating our younger people from our older people, and strategically planning times for them to work together. Anyone have other ideas?
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November 11th, 2009 | 11:20 pm | #1
My husband and I have been subscribers to MHAJ for over ten years. Ken Meyers is the first person I’d heard who talked about the world and culture in a Biblically-informed and Biblically-driven way.He’s awesome.
I haven’t had a chance to listen to the podcast, but building on the food topic, I’m wondering if he talked at all about evangelical Christianity’s almost gnostic abandonment of healthful eating and living. Why are the Mormons and the JWs at least marginally known for their commitment to stewardship of the body, while Christians are mostly known for being just as huge and unhealthy as the world? With one out of two Americans being clinically overweight, wouldn’t it be radically countercultural to even ask what God thinks about all the over-processed food-derived substances we’re ingesting while driving and walking so that everything from sidewalks to airplanes have to be made wider to accomodate our ever-increasing girth? To paraphrase the Rev. Jimmy Buffet, some people treat their bodies like temples, but we all treat ours like a tent.
November 12th, 2009 | 9:44 am | #2
It is interesting to me to read this post from the perspective of an Orthodox Christian, which I am. As Orthodox Christians, we use the Psalter during our Liturgy, we observe regular fasting and feasting periods throughout the year, and the young worship along with the old. (There is not separate sanctuary for the children as is found in many churches.)
My two best friends are Evangelicals,and I have the greatest respect for them and their faith in God. It is always enlightening for me to observe the differences in the ways we worship.
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