Consuming Jesus

Dr. Metzger recently had an article posted on the Out of Ur blog examining and contrasting the types of community formed around the coffee bar and the Lord’s Table.  It is a helpful reflection on the type of communities we are seeking to raise up in our churches, and well worth the read.  You can read the article here.

What do you think about the difference in the sort of communities created around the coffee bar or the Lord’s Table?

Do you have any thoughts or ideas on how we use space to represent the values of our communities?  Share your ideas in the comments here.

There is an upcoming Drum Majors for Love, Truth and Justice event in the Portland area, on November 20-21.  Dr. Paul Louis Metzger and nationally acclaimed civil rights leader Dr. John M. Perkins will be leading this event, offering a biblically rooted message about the theology of engagement for running a marathon race of holistic gospel service.  This conference is open to anyone interested in developing a theology of engagement for a lifetime of service.Check out the Drum Majors Event Details for more information on this event!

Consuming Jesus was recently listed in the fall 2008 issue of Leadership Journal (leadershipjournal.net) as part of its Golden Canon–the top 10 books of 2008.  Also featured in the journal is a great review of Consuming Jesus by David Swanson (who has contributed his story as part of this blog).  Be sure to look for it in the most recent Leadership Journal.  In addition, Out of Ur, the official blog of Leadership Journal, just posted this audio interview of Dr. Metzger by David Swanson.

We would like to highlight this article about some folks involved in Compassion Connect, a ministry program in Portland that is helping to mobilize area churches to serve their community.  Also if you live in the Portland area, be sure to go to the Compassion Connect website to find out about the Home For the Holidays program.

We are adding a new section to the Consuming Jesus blog.  This section is titled Consuming Cyberspace, which will serve to draw attention to online articles and other blogs’ entries related to the themes discussed in Consuming Jesus.  Check out our link to a recently posted article on “mystery worshippers” and don’t miss Dr. Metzger’s quote at the end of the article.

We are going to be introducing a new category to the Consuming Jesus blog.  This category is titled “From the Trenches,” and will give us an opportunity to hear from pastors and practitioners that are active in engaging in the ideas presented in the book.   We hope that it will be another good way to spark discussion about how Jesus’ consuming love calls us to address these race and class issues in the church.

 There is now a free Consuming Jesus study guide available for download.  It is a great resource for those going through the book, or who would like to go through the book with a small group.  The study guide includes questions for sparking group discussion, and possible ways to apply the ideas of each chapter.  To access the study guide, click the link below or on the column to the right.

Consuming Jesus Study Guide