emerging church style sheets [2]

Second off:
" This heavily lay-led movement tends to gravitate toward nondenominational, house church models disconnected from a larger body, both in terms of support and accountability. Such a view of the church suggests that modernity still has a foothold in this self-proclaimed “postmodern” conversation. In Emergent rhetoric one hears echoes of the Enlightenment-era suspicion of authority and the tendency toward privatizing and individualizing faith.

I'm troubled here by the analysis of modern and post-modern. I agree that the privatising and individualising aspect is probably more modernist than it is post-modern. Late modern perhaps, I think that is because at the moment our culture in that aspect is still in the modern phase and that is being reflected. However, what is significant, I think, is the networking style of connexionalism which is arguably post-modern and the valuing of other ways of knowing than simply the rational. The recognistion of multiple learning styles, the willingness to 'play', the incorporation of bodily practice all smack of post-medernism. At any moment any group culture will exhibit traits of what is past and fading, what is hot and happening and what is just developing, as well as things that are developing but will not be part of the future. So it is here. I think.
A lingering distrust of the “institutional church” has made partnership with mainline denominations difficult. For their part, mainline churches have generally failed to create space for new expressions of church to thrive." I suspect that hsi may be a USA thing and therefore, perhaps, something to do with the relative sense of 'sucess' that US church life has. In the UK it has been predominately the Church of England, I think, that has given space and freedomand sometime even resources to such churches. Admittedly there has been a robust dialogue at times and some adoloescent tantrums ... and yes a distrust of the institutions is ther, but then, most 'ordinary' CofE peple, in my experience, also distrust it! So nothing new there: we all make our accommodations, throw our toys out of the cot every so often and somehow get on with making things work. 'Making do' -that great cultural enterprise of the marginalised and the underdog; alive and well and living in a church near you.