But herein lies the rub: Christianity has been on a long-term trend of decline in every Western cultural context that we can identify.
In order to develop a pioneering missional spirit, a capacity for genuine ecclesial innovation, let along engender daring discipleship, we are going to need the capacity to take a courageous stand when and where necessary.
Most churches don't have the resources for these tricks and inducements but are still bound to the imagination that church happens on a Sunday in a building.
Put simply, the church finds itself in a post-Christendom era, and it had better do some serious reflection or face increasing decline and eventual irrelevance.
Heroes are important not only because they symbolize what we believe to be important, but because they also convey universal truths about personal self-discovery and self-transcendence, one's role in society, and the relation between the two.
The appetite for adventure and risk is not exclusive to young Christians. In face, it seems to be a fundamental yearning, knitted into the fabric of the human soul.
When there is no possibility of retreat, we will find the innovation that only the liminal situation can bring. In short, we find the faith of leap.
The quest for heroic adventure then is a quest for the gospel, although it might not be seen that way by everyone.
Go among the people. Don't assume you know what church looks like.
We have to assume now that all mission is cross-cultural.
More data is not always the answer.
Judgments about who belongs in the Hall of Fame are extremely subjective.
"More data is not always the answer."
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