Boundless has published my new article, “Missional Discipleship: Reinterpreting the Great Commissions.” This is a timely publication with my recent post on the Manga Bible, an example of what Andrew Walls‘ calls distinctive discipleship. From the conclusion of the article:
We’re called not to mere soul-winning, but to distinctive discipleship: heralding a worldly gospel of a fleshly Christ who humbly accommodates human culture and understands the human condition.
Ajinbayo Akinsiku has tapped into his own cultural forms to produce a new Bible, a manga Bible. The art of manga is from Japan and follows the scheme of graphic novels, relying heavily upon action. Akinsiku has lifted action-charged scenes from Scripture and created graphic sequences that include Abraham charging out of an explosion to rescue lot and a Darth Vader like Og, king of Bashan (Deut 3).
The graphic novel is not a translation or an entire reproduction. Instead, Akinsiku is choosing themes and scenes from Scripture to emphasize certain points. Akinsiku said the biblical message he wanted to underscore in this novel was justice, especially for the poor. A novel on the life of Christ is in the works.
This is a brilliant idea, a contextualized expression of God in Christ redeeming the world. No doubt it is a narrow adaptation, and will miss certain elements and ideas in Scripture; however, Akinsiku is making no claim to inspiration. This is theology meets art and I can’t wait to read it. It will bring to life certain aspects of the biblical story that many westerners miss. It will complement the gentle Jesus of the West with a giant Jesus of the East, rounding out our theological conceptions of God, Christ, and the stories of Scripture. I welcome the idea of this graphic novel.
See the helpful article here on mistakes to avoid when blogging as a pastor.
Ellen Ullman (Washington Post) reviews Siegel’s new book, Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob:
The author paints everyone he sees as a huckster, poseur, opportunist, hypocrite, liar or pornographer. He cannot admit it’s not all evil out there. Despite the junk shown on YouTube, the lies told on Facebook, the anonymous trash talk that passes for reader comments — despite all that, there is a generation that has been born to the Web and is finding its way through it. It does no good to brand them all as lazy makers of mash-ups and vapid self-displays. Siegel quotes Spinoza: “All things excellent are both difficult and rare.”
Read the whole article.
