Newspapers / Gardner-Webb University Student Newspaper / Jan. 23, 2008, edition 1 / Page 2
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Page A2 Wednesday, January 23, 2008 The Pilot News Leader of controversial ‘emerging church’ coming to Charlotte By Christopher Shaver Pilot staff writer The “emerging church movement” is one of the most controversial move ments in religion today. It has been under fire from other re ligions because it embraces social values as strongly as Biblical ones as part of cre ating a church for the post modern era. The emerging church has attracted many college stu dents and others who have been frustrated with the state of established churches. McLaren has been shrouded in controversy due to his “inclusive” approach to religion. Through that he invites everyone to a “con versation,” so that all can find the hope he found through Jesus’ message. With the release of McLaren’s latest book, “Ev erything Must Change,” he shows his readers what the church should look like within the next few’ years. His book gives insight to so cial crises, and shows how the message of Jesus can be come a 21st century “Revo lution of Hope.” McLaren will come to Charlotte Feb. 1-2 for his book tour. For more infor mation you can go to www. deepshift.com. A few words with Brian McLaren By Christopher Shaver Pilot staff writer How do you define the emerg ing church? In one sense, the church has al ways been emerging. For example, in the book of Acts, the church emerges from mono-cultural Juda ism to become a multicultural faith community. When people talk about the emerging church today, they’re usually talking about the church emerging from a modem. Western, colonial mindset into something postmodern, global and post-colo- nial. That’s a complex answer, and it’s a complex phenomenon. The emerging church isn’t just one thing; it’s not simply a new model or style of “doing church,” for example. It’s a complex and multifaceted conversation among Christian leaders about what it means to be followers 6f Jesus in these complex and changing - and exciting - times. When did we make the transi tion from being modern into post modern? This is a great question, but there’s not an easy answer to it. It happens at different paces in differ ent places. In some families in Africa or Latin America, for example, grand pa and grandma are pre-modem. mom and dad are modem, and the grandkids are postmodern. Here in the U.S., I’d say that the younger the age and the higher the educa tion, the more likely a person is postmodern in their leanings. I’d say that Europe is, by and large, farther into postmoder nity than the United States, as are Canada, Australia and New Zea land. In many ways, our churches are bastions of modemity as the postmodem world emerges, just as churches were often bastions of the medieval world as the modem world emerged. What changes do you an ticipate within the global church within the next few years? In my most recent book, “Every thing Must Change,” I express three , of my hopes: that the church will become more concerned with care of the planet; that the church will become more involved in working for peace; and that the church will give itself more fully to help the poor. Another way of saying this is to say that I believe many sectors of the church will develop a more integral or holistic understanding of mission - seeing that the Christian faith is both/and - both personal and social, interested in both matters of faith and matters of public life and public policy. There are encourag ing signs of this. I also expect that the global church will need to find new ways to engage with members of other re ligions who do not want to become Christians, especially our Muslim neighbors. We don’t have enough practice in learning how to be good neighbors - in line with the teach ings of Jesus - to people of other religions. In light of Jesus’ call to be peacemakers, this issue is very important. Internally, I think we are primed for an exciting time of renewal in worship, as what people call an- cient-fature worship is taken more and more seriously across denomi nations - rediscovering ancient spiritual practices and integrating them with contemporary forms of worship. Is there a top social issue that needs to be addressed in Ameri ca? In my book “Everj^hing Must Change,” I identify four global cri ses, all of which America is gener ally on the wrong side of, and sadly, many Christian leaders are often leading the way on the wTong side. Those issues are: 1) we’re de stroying the planet rather than car ing for it, 2) rather than seeking peaceful reconciliation to conflicts, we’re too willing to resort to violence and deceit and isolation 3) we’re allowing the poor ma jority to fall farther and farther be hind the rich minority 4) our religious communities are often making the first three prob lems worse by failing to give us good news of hope. In that light, the rediscovery of Jesus’ good news of the kingdom of God is perhaps our most urgent social need, because if we “gef ’ it, it will motivate us to constmctive and sustained action on the other needs. That’s what I hope we can help people see as never before on the upcoming tour. How does it feel to be one of Time magazine’s Top 25 Most In fluential Evangelicals? Well, I think there were so many people who belonged on the list far more than I did. But if I can use whatever small influence I have in ways that will increase the commit ment of Evangelicals - and others - to the message and way of Jesus, I’ll be thrilled. Because if we’re really captivat ed by the good news of the kingdom of God, we’ll be committed to heal ing and stewarding the planet, and we’ll be agents for peace, and we’ll invest our energies on behalf of the poor. And as a result, more and more of God’s will can be done on earth as it is in heaven. That’s a dream that inspires me in the deepest way possible. Free health screenings a part of wellness fair set for Feb. 5 By Rebecca Clark Pilot editor Gardner-Webb University Wellness program is having a Health and Wellness Fair Feb. 5 at Host Gym between noon and 3 p.m. Sandy Hammett, assistant director of student activities, said that last year about 300 people participated. “It’s open to the commu nity as well as the Gardner- Webb family,” she said. Healthcare providers fi-om Cleveland County and surrounding areas offer vari ous screenings that range from vision to spinal and chi ropractic. The Counseling Center will also be at the event to offer mental health screen ing. Prize drawings will be a part of the fair, with prizes supplied by the healthcare providers. “It’s a great opportunity for people to take advantage of some great information given by the health providers for firee,” Hammett said. SGA Update Jonny Pack and Jeremy Courtright show off their moves on the dance floor Jan. 12 at the 1980s dance on campus. People came dressed in the fun-but-questionable fashions of the decade. ’80s dance turns out to be 100% enjoyable By Patrice Blackmon Pilot staff writer Students from Gardner- Webb University celebrated their retum to campus in a new way - with a 1980s- theme dance party Jan. 12. According to event coordina tor December Jones, a junior elementary education major, said “This would be a new way to have fijn and go back in time with your friends ’80s style.” Students at the dance, which was held in Bost gym, agreed. “ I really liked the dance,” said Starlet Wilkins, a sopho more majoring in athletic training. “The dance was very dif ferent. I haven’t really expe rienced anything like that. “Dressing up made it even more fun because you got to do research on ’80s clothing. I really enjoyed the different types of music. “It was a great experience on learning about the differ ent times and what type of clothing they wore and mu sic people in the ’80s listened to. “Yes, I would do it all over again!” Style was on the mind of Randi Gill-Sandier, a sopho more communications ma jor. “I thought that all the interpretations of ’80s style were awesome,” she said. “I personally chose ’80s Glam for my outfit, with leggings and large bangles. But my friend went as Spinderella from Salt-N-Pepa. I also saw people dressed B-boys, the Fresh Prince, and Flavor Flav! “I think it was a nice change from the usual dances we have at GWU and would love to see other eras like the ’60s or ’70s in a dance.” Jonathan Boyd, a junior sports management student, said, “Since so many people are leaving or plan to next year, the party was some thing to just get your mine off boredom.” Student Activities has other events planned, Jones said. “The formal dance will be the main event.” That is scheduled for April 26. By Lanny Newton Pilot staff writer The Student Government Association is working on many projects this semester and has several upcoming events planned. Sign-ups for the Execu tive Council start in early Febraary and elections will be held in Dimensions on Feb. 26. Three of the four mem bers of the council are graduating - President Matt Walters, Vice President Bill Mayo and Treasurer James Kemicky. - which means that the election will be more wide open than ever. All stu dents are urged to vote, and to consider holding a posi tion with SGA. Also, more than half the money allotted to SGA’s club fund has yet to be allocated. This money is to be given to clubs that need fiands beyond their budget. If these funds are not allocated by the end of the year they will not roll over to next, so it is in clubs’ best interest to utilize this money. To receive these fiinds a club must follow the guide lines laid out in the Clubs and Organizations Handbook. This includes preparing a detailed proposal outlining projected costs to the SGA. Extra weight will be given if the club has performed fund raising projects. All SGA meetings are open to all students, faculty, and staff. The next meeting, is Jan. 30. Attendance is en couraged. Suggestions made prior to and during the meetings will help decide policy. The SGA attempts to represent the opinions of all students while trying to work with the administration for the better ment of Gardner-Webb Uni versity. College students turning to online dating as natural extension of computer usage Rv Tocci/>a T \ sitp2 ciirVi nc nnH Far.p- Hatpl ” By Jessica Li The Daily Free Press (Boston U.) (U-WIRE) BOSTON - Tradi tionally thought of as a last resort for lonely hearts, Intemet dating sites are reporting co-eds and frat brothers are also joining the ranks of online daters. According to a March 2006 report from the Pew Intemet & American Life Project, 18 percent of 18- to 29-year-old Intemet users have visited an online dating site and 31 percent of American adults know someone who has used a dat ing Web site. Gail Laguna, a spokeswoman for Collegeluv.com, a dating site with 500,000 membei:s, said young people use the Intemet to search for love because they feel comfortable "It still has that aura of desperateness. It still seems it’s for older people who are searching for their soul mate -I’m so young that I’m just not interested in that right now. ” Nathalie Medina in this kind of interaction. “It’s a demographic that has grown up going online to commu nicate with friends ... and so are more likely to adopt to using an on line dating service,” Laguna said. She said most of Collegeluv. com’s members are not looking for long-term love when they join the site. Instead, she said, they are just trying to meet new people. “It’s another way to expand your social circle for those people who may not feel like going out. but still want to socialize and find a relationship,” Laguna said. Los Angeles-based author and dating coach Evan Marc Katz said he attributes the rise in college-aged online daters to the pervasive role technology and the Intemet have in young people’s lives. “Younger people grew up with computers,” Katz said. “It makes perfect sense to use this medium to find and establish relationships.” He said people who have pic tures of themselves on networking sites such as MySpace and Face- book are probably not concerned with maintaining anonymity and would be more open to establishing Intemet relationships. “It’s a matter of fact that com puters are not an addition to their life — they are their life,” Katz said. Older generations typically view online dating negatively because they are not used to establishing In temet relationships, he said. “There will be less of a per ceived stigma for a generation of people who have never known any thing but computers.” Katz said he did not think most college students have trouble net working and socializing, since they are constantly surrounded by peers. “It’s a little bit surprising that they would need [help finding a date].” Boston University sophomore Nathalie Medina said curiosity made her check out Match.com af ter the company aired commercials depicting younger people using the dating service. Expecting to find singles in their 30s and 40s looking for serious re lationships, she said she was sur prised to find people her own age listed on the Web site. Although students have estab lished a stronger presence on dat ing Web sites, Medina said she still does not find the idea of finding love online appealing. “It still has that aura of desper ateness,” she said. “It still seems it’s for older people who are searching for their soul mate - I’m so young that I’m just not interested in that right how.” V w
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