Doghouse

The Land of Os

Os Guinness.










I met Os Guinness yesterday for the first time. Well it was not exactly a private meeting, but in a Q&A after hios lecture we had a nice chat back and forth on Postmodernism, Pluralism, the Emergent Church and discussions for the Public Square.

The thing that struck me most about him was an unpandering balance and fairness. Whether the questions were about Hilary Clinton, the Iraq War or Megachurches, Dr. Guinness kept steady eyes on the truth in an unwavering yet gracious way.

He has an encyclopedic mind. No notes or books to tow along...no he has given this all much thought and to misquote Sean Connery from The Rock "My blueprints are in my head!"

To a lesser degree I understand this as I rarely take notes anymore and am able to write with a certain freedom because I have already done the work. I suppose it is like a batter who has spent intolerable hours in the batting cage. He can go warm up a bit, but he's got the mechanics down and the muscle memory.

I did write down one small journal page of notes on shifts...paradigm shifts.

1) Corporate or communal (body) life has shifted to individualism;

2) Authority has shifted to preference; and

3) Exclusivity has shifted to syncretism.

Now none of these are new to me, but it was nice to hear them spoken by someone else..someone in a suit and tie with a degree, whereas I look like an aging hippie in a t-shirt and shorts (I was...Tabs, wearing my McMenamins' shirt proudly amidst all the suits and ties. Hooray!).

I went with my new friend Rod Miles, who is pastor of a church plant in Marin. Actually I was his invited guest and it was a yearly prayer breakfast attended by some good 300 people. Catholics, Jews, Episcopalians, Baptists, Presbyterians...on and on.

Well I did not know anyone except Rod, who is a delight. But then I saw Father Tom Brindley of St. Columba's and we visited just a bit. I have a long history with St. Columba's going back fifteen years. But that is another story.

And, of course, once I saw the ballroom I feared it would be a Religious Right Dumbfest.

It wasn't at all. I suppose that is because it is Marin.

In fact, the only time my eyes glazed over and I wanted to put a bullet in my brainpan was when the president of the local Presbyterian seminary and a liberal, got up and did the longest most pompass prayer I have heard since....well, since I left the PCUSA. So there you go.

He left after his prayer out the back way and you could hear a loud crash in the kitchen.

I admit, I chuckled.

More in a bit. I have to go to work. 

posted by Obi-Mac BakDon @ 9:35 AM