|
|
|
|
An interview with Tony Jones
In the aftermath of a recent leadership summit, Emergent has appointed
Tony Jones national coordinator. His appointment has drawn a mixed
reaction from the blogosphere. Rev. Jones graciously speaks with
Next-Wave.
Next-Wave: It was recently announced that you would be the first "national director" of Emergent. Later the title was changed to "national coordinator." What is the difference between a director and a coordinator, and for that matter what is your job really going to be?  TJ: Well, not to be overly obvious, but the implication in the titles is that a "director" directs and a "coordinator" coordinates. Now, I suffer under no illusions that I will be directing the Emergent conversation, but we originally (and ambivalently) chose the title "director" because we were trying to balance the interests of those within Emergent and those not yet involved. In fact, that's a balancing act that is often lost on bloggers and others who are heavily invested in Emergent: that is, there are many people out there who are following Christ and looking for fresh ways of doing so who have never looked at a blog or been to an Emergent cohort. Some of the titles and structuring devices, while they seem too conventional to many in Emergent, actually make us seem more approachable to those who are involved in more conventional churches, denominations, and seminaries. However, a few days after the recent summit in Minnesota, it seemed to me that National Coordinator was a more appropriate title, and I think everyone else agreed. The question of what my job will be is a good one, and I hope that the answer is just as fluid as the title has been. The fact is, I'll be doing this very part-time, and on a volunteer basis, for at least the next year. Basically, I hope to help people connect to Emergent and to one another. We've had lots of requests to co-sponsor events, for instance, over the past two years; but no one has had the authority to say, "Yes, Emergent will act as a partner on this event." I have been vested with the authority to make some of those decisions for now, with the hopes that this will free up some others to do some new things. Next-Wave: Those writing the wikipedia article on the 'emerging church' have been discussing whether the emerging church is a movement or a "conversation." Is Emergent now a "movement"? TJ: Brian McLaren first made that semantic distinction about a year ago, and I can really understand why he did so. He was, I think, forestalling the inevitable, but it gave us a year to catch our breath. And let's be honest, it sounds pretty arrogant to claim to be a movement. On the other hand, I think we have to remember that perception is reality. The fact that all of the recent media attention has basically bequeathed the title "movement" upon all of us. Many from within existing church bodies and structures as well as those who have been disenfranchised with the American church talk about the influence that Emergent has had upon their faith, and you can imagine the number of emails I get that begin, "I work at what I would consider an 'emergent' church in Anytown, USA." Personally, I think that's great, and I have been won over to Brian's opinion that if a person or a church claims to be Emergent, we say, Welcome aboard!" Next-Wave: Many have used the terms emerging church, missional church and incarnational church interchangeably. Is Emergent missional, and if so, what is its mission? TJ: At a basic level, Emergent's mission is no different from any other group of Christ-followers: we want to follow Christ and we want to help others follow Christ. Of course, where it gets tricky is when we start talking about what it looks like to follow Christ. All along, Emergent has been about the melding of theory/theology and praxis, and we want to promote fresh, creative, and imaginative thinking about each. It seems that many organizations get to emphasize one side over the other in the theory-praxis equation, but we really are going to struggle to keep both of those in an equal, reflective symbiosis. What does it mean to be the church? What does it mean to follow Christ? We want to serve as a catalyst for conversations that attempt to answer those two questions, and to bring together the most creative people we can find for those conversations. But, conversation alone leads to paralysis by analysis, which is why we have always made sure that conversations are led primarily by practitioners rather than theoreticians and consultants. Next-Wave: How will Emergent carry out its mission? TJ: Well, we'll continue to do the things we've done: events and local cohorts, publishing and blogging. Plus, we're ramping up several new initiatives that will bring even more energy into the Emergent conversation. But all of these avenues are means to an end -- the telos is getting people together for discussion, dialogue, debate, and action. When motivated, missional, creative followers of Christ get together, great things happen for the Kingdom of God. Next-Wave: There have been a number of reactions, some favorable and some critical to the concept of a "national coordinator" for Emergent. How do you respond to those who are critical? TJ: Well, as much as I wish I had Teflon skin, I don't. The personal blog attacks have been somewhat disconcerting. But the negative reaction to the structure itself was both expected and helpful. In fact, we were worried that no one would care, and that would really be a bad sign! I think the more people, especially those who are critical, stay involved, the better Emergent will be. I hope that one of the reasons I was chosen for the job is that I can hear, learn from, and respond to criticism without getting too defensive. Bill Clinton said, "Our critics are our friends, for they do show us our weaknesses." (Now, I'm sure I'll take some heat for quoting a philanderer!) Next-Wave: How will your work in your new role change your life personally? TJ: Ha! Well, I've got to keep explaining to my wife, Julie, why I'm volunteering more and more time to this! Like many church planters, the decisions that Julie and I have made in the past couple years -- to work on a PhD and to take this job -- have led to lots of stress, particularly financial stress. I say this not for pity, but to be honest. I will have to work hard to balance family, my studies, and my writing and speaking with this new role. I guess that time will tell how successfully I can do that. Next-Wave: There are those who have said that Emergent leadership lacks diversity, both in gender and in race. How do you respond? TJ: Whenever we talked about this at the summit, Doug Pagitt would say, "Yeah, and what about those of us with hazel eyes? There aren't nearly enough of us in leadership!" Diversity can be conceived of in many ways: racial, socio-economic, regional, gender, eye color. We are doing every thing we can think of to diversify the leadership of Emergent, and to make sure that everyone who is competent and qualified and energetic about Emergent can find a place to plug in and lead. And we are actually going to have a sort of "Diversity Quality Control Team" who will work to ensure that every Emergent initiative reflects as much diversity as possible. We're also working on a major "diversity event" for May/June, 2006. Next-Wave: Is there anything you would like to say to Next-Wave readers? TJ: In Jesus' resurrection we have the prototype of the final consummation of God's love for the entire created order. Let's all reclaim the hope and joy that are the hallmarks of the Christian gospel and work toward that great day in which all of God's hopes for us will be realized! (Sorry, I've been reading lots of Moltmann recently.) Tony Jones was recently appointed National Coordinator of Emergent. He is a doctoral fellow and senior research fellow in practical theology at Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Postmodern Youth Ministry: Exploring Cultural Shift, Cultivating Authentic Community, Creating Holistic Connections and The Sacred Way: Spiritual Practices for Everyday Life. Tony lives with his wife, Julie, and three children in Edina, Minnesota.
|