I was thinking, (dangerous I know) and I found out that I believe the primary work of ministry is the translatability of God. Or perhaps a better way to say it is that our work is to plant a seed of Faith in every segment of culture and society. Of course we immediately think of politics and schools, but I actually think those are two areas we need invest ourselves in as people of character, but leave the religious rhetoric behind. (Don’t even get me started on the Republicanization of Evangelicalism!)
I was especially thinking about the translatability of God to the homosexual community (or tribe), the postmodern tribe, the post - postmodern tribe (yes it is already here and no you will not hear about it in your church or local Christian bookstore - I was going to write a book about it, but by the time I published it, there would already be a post-post-postmodern tribe).
I realized today that people talk in movies. What I mean by that is every third sentence goes, “oh, do you remember in the film . . . where they . . . and then the . . . came in and then . . .” etc, etc. Postmoderns and others on the edge talk in movies. While I have studied the culture and can speak to it intelligently in some ways, I haven’t watched a movie since the first week in July . . . and now it is the last week in October. In fact I do not believe that I have actually turned the TV on since the last game of the World Cup (not to be confused with the World Series), except to show some American visitors what Serbian Turbo Folk looks like.
Clearly I don’t talk in movies. The last movie I watched was a pirated version of Pirates of the Caribbean (no pun intended) at the local theater. I tend to talk in ideas and structures. Can I be a tool of the translatabiling of God to these other groups? And there are thousands of niches that have not had God translated to them yet: bikers (ricers and HD boys), NASCAR, quilting, cooking, antique car buffs, hunters, fishermen, hikers, mountain climbers, secretaries, Ambassadors, government, engineers (and thousands more) who all have their own language, codes, patterns, outlooks and points of view.
I guess the next question is which of these tribes is God calling me toward, and which are within my purview? . . . right after I figure out if the translatability of God reaches that far or not.
I was especially thinking about the translatability of God to the homosexual community (or tribe), the postmodern tribe, the post - postmodern tribe (yes it is already here and no you will not hear about it in your church or local Christian bookstore - I was going to write a book about it, but by the time I published it, there would already be a post-post-postmodern tribe).
I realized today that people talk in movies. What I mean by that is every third sentence goes, “oh, do you remember in the film . . . where they . . . and then the . . . came in and then . . .” etc, etc. Postmoderns and others on the edge talk in movies. While I have studied the culture and can speak to it intelligently in some ways, I haven’t watched a movie since the first week in July . . . and now it is the last week in October. In fact I do not believe that I have actually turned the TV on since the last game of the World Cup (not to be confused with the World Series), except to show some American visitors what Serbian Turbo Folk looks like.
Clearly I don’t talk in movies. The last movie I watched was a pirated version of Pirates of the Caribbean (no pun intended) at the local theater. I tend to talk in ideas and structures. Can I be a tool of the translatabiling of God to these other groups? And there are thousands of niches that have not had God translated to them yet: bikers (ricers and HD boys), NASCAR, quilting, cooking, antique car buffs, hunters, fishermen, hikers, mountain climbers, secretaries, Ambassadors, government, engineers (and thousands more) who all have their own language, codes, patterns, outlooks and points of view.
I guess the next question is which of these tribes is God calling me toward, and which are within my purview? . . . right after I figure out if the translatability of God reaches that far or not.
4 comments:
I'm thinking you can translate "movie talk" into "story talk" of any kind. It's pretty much like Jesus' parables. The power of story.
Much as I sometimes feel guilty for the amount of time my family spends watching movies (I never had a TV growing up and wasn't allowed to enter a theater) - I have to admit there are kudzillion teaching moments. For example, the life of one of my son's favorites, Anakin, bears uncanny resemblance to the seduction of Sampson, also with a twist of redemption at the end of his life. My son's wall has a poster I made for him with Spiderman's uncle's quote "With great power comes great responsibility" juxtapositioned with the last phrases of Luke 12:47 Message version).
In my family growing up, we devoured books outloud together over many mealtimes - also the power of story. But if anything, I actually think Mitch & I do a better job of translating current stories (mostly from the medium of video) into our kids' lives and reacting to those life lessons with a Biblical framework of response.
You're absolutely right, we need to search for translatability to everyone with whom we interact.
Of course your blog is a great example of the power of story - people read your blog to hear about Uncle Lybe or dogs sliced in half or whatever, and read on to hear what you are thinking about those topices - those experiences may be unique to you, but the principles are common to us all and transcend box office attendance.
Beth, your insights as an MK and an exegeter of culture are always pretty solid. I am encouraged. It IS in the power of story. Perhaps the translatability of God goes far further than traditional WASPy churches have ever thought?
Absotively
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