Central Jersey Emergent Cohort: Meeting 2

To all of you in and around Philly/Trenton/Princeton:

Hi everyone: Time to think about the second gathering of our Central Jersey Emergent Cohort. We'll be meeting on Thursday, December 16, from 9-11pm at Charlie Brown's on Route One.

For reading and discussion, I hope that you can read the following articles on Emergent:
Christianity Today:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/011/12.36.html
Christian Century:
http://www.christiancentury.org/feat_08.html

For extra credit, you might look at an interview with and review of Brian McLaren in the same mags:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/011/14.42.html
http://www.christiancentury.org/feat_11.html

Here's what we can talk about: What does it mean for the 'emerging church movement' that the flagship magazines of the Protestant right and Protestant left have each done cover stories on it in the past month? Is it good or bad? How do the understandings of the movement differ in the two journals? Do you think Emergent can really move beyond the left-right dichotomy into something new? Is Emergent becoming commodified?

On an organizational level, too, I think there are some decisions to be made:
-Do you want this cohort to continue? Do you find value in it?
-Should we find a new venue? Is Charlie Brown's too noisy, or do you like the casual atmosphere of a bar?
-Is the cohort too heavily dominated by PTS folks? Is it just too big? We could have a cohort for PTS people and another for those who are doing ministry in the area and only bring the two together a couple of times a year.

Well, We don't have to answer those questions right now. I thought we'd get another gathering under our belts in the present format and then you can email me and tell me what you think. This time we'll do luch like last time and allow smaller conversations to bubble up around the group. But I think the articles will be a good starting point for those discussions.

Feel free to invite anyone you want, and I hope to see you on the 16th.