Will we ever move beyond trend-setting Christianity?
Even in reacting against commercialized, monopolized (even established) religion and attempting to create an ‘independent,’ roots-focused form of Christianity, we always end up packaging our own version of it, just like those before us, who we accused of doing the same.
It reminds me of the senior paper I wrote years ago on Surrealist poetry. The surrealists were an outgrowth of the Dada movement, which was entirely, radically anti-establishment, at least in terms of literature. True to its intended form, Dada quickly devoured itself as soon as its adherents began seeing signs of organization. (How punk of them!) The Dadaists who remained after the implosion, or at least those who had emerged from their drug-induced hibernation during WWI, gradually coagulated into a milder form of Dada, the surrealists.
The surrealists (at least the poets who started the whole thing) were a rag-tag group of artist-wanderers who could never feel at home within the traditionalist, established art-snob bubble. They continually pushed boundaries. They were constantly experimenting. they were lively. They were nihilists, but not as self-destructive as the predecessors. And the outside world started paying attention to them because they were just reputable enough to hold the attention of the establishment. Then came other artists who had been growing tired of snob-dom and found a new home within the ranks of the surrealists. People like painter Salvador Dali. They were welcomed. And then, somehow over the years it became cool to be surreal. Next thing you know, more and more established artists began experimenting outside the traditional bounds. And many saw that it was good…and some did not.
Ironically, perhaps the one thing that started the packaging of surrealism was “The Surrealist Manifesto,” composed by a variety of kewl, hip boundary-pushers. it was supposed to be an anti-manifesto. and in a sense it was. But it was also the primary sign of selling out. And though one could never really say surrealism became the mainstream, in a way it did. Just look at Pollack and other modern abstract practitioners. You think they were taking cues from traditionalists? Not quite. And now we have Low-Brow…oh, that’s so kewl. Sure selling out has its advantages: It spreads the word. Millions and millions of others around the world accept the revolution…and a new world is born because the boundary-pushers were finally recognized by the world at large. But seriously, is a ‘new world’ really born? Or is it just the same-old, same-old in a new package that has potential to increase…not awareness…but market share?
I suppose the argument may just dwindle down into the half-empty, half-full argument. Maybe I’m just an eternal cynic, even of movements I deeply appreciate….
Ravi Zacharias once said that postmodernism is a mood. I entirely disagreed with him. Because it is now a simple fact of life…much more than a mood or a trend. (Watch my conversation with author/historian Diana Butler Bass about this here…click on the thumb that says, “Part 6: Postmodernism”.) However, in some cases, I’m starting to believe him, to a point. Instead of simply accepting our present worldview as just something we are/do, enterprising Christians are gradually packaging our ‘new’ way of life into the zip-locked category of ‘postmodern spirituality.’
I was speaking with Spencer Burke late last year when he was planning a webcast conversation called “Has Emergent Been Shrinkwrapped Too?” As you may know, ‘emergent’ has become synonymous with postmodern spirituality. But it starting to seem like Emergent Village, by default, may unintentionally (I hope it’s unintentional) be monopolizing a precious move of God’s spirit throughout the Church at large. A movement that roots down at least 30 years ago at the Greenbelt festivals in the UK is now being touted to have started here in America with the Leadership Network, and now is headquartered within the Emergent Village organization. And almost every major (Christian) book publisher has started a new line targeting this new niche. So now it’s been reduced to a market niche. Sad, but true.
Now don’t get me wrong, Doug Pagitt (one of Emergent Village’s founders), is a truly wonderful person with wonderful goals and he’s sincerely trying keep the soul in it all. I admire him. But, once gain, it just seems to be happening by default. Maybe it’s just that the commercial machine has already started overtaking the tracks of the trailblazers. (By the way, notice that I have not mentioned Brian McLaren here. This is intentional, and maybe I’ll explain it in another post.)
But the hard part of all this is that the all the positives are also the negatives, and vice versa. So, although I am so happy to hear that some in the established church are finally catching wind of this movement, I am also concerned that the heavy hitters are simply going to monopolize and commercialize yet another sincere, precious thing. Sure, I want millions of others to appreciate it and learn and grow from it all…but, like so much else, not at the expense of the soul behind, within and under it.
Of course, what’s new? The exact same thing happened with the very first version of the teachings of Christ. Once it gained the attention of the emperor (Constantine), it became an empire. Unfortunately, that’s just the way things seem to go.
But do you think there could ever be a way to prevent this? Some way of delicately balancing revolution and commercial success? Somehow finding the line between spreading sincere, positive change and superficial popularity? Is there a way to spread the word without diluting it?
If you know the answers to these questions, please let me know. In the meantime, I’ll just categorize myself as a post-postmodern. Maybe I’ll start a trend. Next thing you know they’ll have a music section with that name in Family Christian Bookstores racks….Then maybe I’ll be one of the cool people. 
