So, to get this blog started, I think I should lay out the basics of who I am and what I want to be doing with this blog.
I'm the son of Grace Brethren missionaries to Tokyo, Japan, and have spent the majority of my life in Japan. Since graduating with my Bachelors in May, I'm about to begin studying for a Single Subject teaching credential, which will allow me to work as a high school or middle school teacher, teaching Social Studies. I hope to use teaching as a way to tent-make (support myself financially while doing church work for free).
In the last year, I've gotten really interested in Organic or Simple Church, to the point where I don't see myself being involved in doing church in any other way for the rest of my life. I've become convinced that this is not just the way of doing church that best fits me, but that Organic Church, meaning the principles and foundations of Organic Church, is the way church should be done. This blog is meant to be a way to explore this idea and to engage in conversation about the way church should be done. It is meant to be a catalyst for discussion both within the Simple Church movement (there is a lot to discuss- Organic Church being the right way really means the right starting points, not the right exact executions) and without, as an apologetic organ for the movement. I hope to convince those outside the Simple Church movement that, firstly, this isn't apostasy or heresy and that, secondly, they should join us.
An important part of me choosing to join the Organic Church movement is my Anabaptism. As someone who is interested in history, I've studied the roots of the Grace Brethren fellowship and have learned and adopted the general attitude of the Radical Reformation. The way I understand it, being an Anabaptist primarily means that I hold the Bible to be the supreme revelation from God and guide for the Church. Anabaptism, primarily and above all, is about the preeminence of the Word of God above the traditions, teachings and philosophies of men. As an intellectual, I obviously believe that human traditions, teachings and philosophies have some value and certainly don't advocate throwing them out completely, but, whatever value they may have, their value cannot compete with the the Word of God. This means that I believe that what I understand the Bible to be saying should guide my conduct and worldview above all else. Historically, this is what got early Anabaptists in trouble, as humans, both Roman Catholic and Protestant, demanded a place properly reserved only for God's revelation and the Radical Reformers refused to give it to them.
I see the Simple Church as the logical continuation of the Anabaptist legacy. Anabaptism is about a refusal to take what one has been handed down for granted, questioning everything, testing it in the light of God's Word, holding onto what is good and rejecting what is not. Anabaptism is about going back to the Word of God and finding out what is true and what we, the Church, ought to be and do. This, striving to be a healthy Body for Christ, purging the cancers that infect us, in my understanding, is what the Simple Church movement is striving to do and it is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
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