Origins

For the benefit of anyone who may happen upon this blog and be unfamiliar with thorubos, I thought I'd mention a post I wrote a while ago, which explains a little bit how thorubos came about. It is a quick summary of how I remember the events, but it gives some sense of the flavor of things. So there's that, in the interest of hospitality.

What might a Thorubos blog look like?

A few thoughts about this blogspot:

• Scope: conversations about books from Thorubos meetings, ideas to bounce off the group, things you want to bring to everyone's attention...
• Let's avoid: coordinating details. Email works better for that.
• Link to it from your site. Let people know about it.
• Feel free to post/comment frequently. Crossposting (ie: same post as on your blog) is ok, although original posts are even better.
• Any more ideas?
  

Extending the table

On the way back from Dean's house a few weeks ago, I shared some thoughts with those in the car on hospitality and blogging. Basically, I've been thinking about the strengths and weaknesses of the blog medium and how the classic Christian virtues could apply to this communication form.

The virtue of hospitality comes to mind when I think about the individualistic nature of blogs: one person spewing their thoughts across cyberspace. Bethany once said that blogging is the most solipsistic of writing forms; I might add "egocentric" to that list. To counteract this tendency in blogs, I think it is important to remember the communal nature of blogging. I like how most of my posts start as conversations with friends. We comment on each other's blogs. We read books together, talk about them, and then continue the conversation online. Thus, blogs are not a substitute for ongoing conversations, but rather an extension of preexisting relationships.

Hospitality takes this further: not only do our blogs mirror an existing community, but they open up this community to others. I like the metaphor of extending the table. We pull out the ends of a grand old oak table and grab the leaves out of the closet, dust them off, and add them to the table. We pull up more chairs, make room for friends, add some plates, put on another pot of rice, and keep talking. Laughter rings through the night.

I think as we strive to be hospitable bloggers, we need to be intentional about our efforts to include others. We need to avoid insider language, welcome others into our conversations, and keep each other accountable.

I'm curious what other people think about how hospitality relates to blogging. Any ideas? Critiques?

Rough summary of thorubos discussion

I've been charged with the task of summarizing our Thorubos discussion last night. I don't remember everything said, but hopefully the sketch below will trigger your memories so we can continue the conversation.

• Pacifism - will also be scarred by sin, like militarism. Who suffers the most when I choose to be a pacifist - myself or those poor people in _____?
  

• The cross and suffering are likely outcomes for those who choose a route of social change that challenges the Powers. The church joins in the suffering of those in Sudan, Iraq, and Rwanda. We must deliberately participate in their suffering.
  

• How does renewal (in the broadest sense) happen? Can people work toward redemption? God does the work/has done the work in Christ. Paradox: God does it/has done it/we do it.
  
  
• Can renewal happen through fallen means? Yes, our means will be always fallen - even pacifism. But before saying that, Christ's work on the cross comes first. That is, we strive to be Christlike first; then we acknowledge that our very best efforts are tinged with the very worst sins. Niehbur: "irony" --> whenever Christians try to create an ideal society, we screw it up.
  
  
• Some people raised questions about Yoder's biblical interpretation.