…of the Twin Cities Emergent Cohort has begun. Join us on Thursday at noon.

…put an album out a couple years ago. If you like some traditional hymns in spare arrangement with only a trumpet and a piano, then I encourage you to check it out.

I received several emails after my last post about preaching for free. Since I’ve never really posted about it here, I thought I would now. I do write and I do work for Emergent, but I currently pay the bills by speaking — neither of the other two endeavors pays enough to live on. I have to speak 2-3 times a month usually to make ends meet. I do not use a speaking agent, although some people think I should. I book it myself, and I’ve been fortunate enough to have plenty of invitations, especially in the fall and winter/spring.

Except, that is, in December and the summer. As you might guess, there aren’t a lot of pastors’ conferences in the summer, not many churches want to have me come in to speak/consult then, and most seminaries and colleges are locked down tight.

So, if the summer is a good time for you, let me know. I’d love to speak at your summer camp, retreat, etc., guest preach, or help with leadership training. If you want to pursue that, email me at jonestony@gmail.com.

I’ve posted my thoughts here.

After watching the final gubenatorial debate on DVR last night, I will cast my vote today for Peter Hutchinson of the Independence Party. A wasted vote? Maybe, but I hope not.

I will not vote for Democrat Mike Hatch for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the record indicates that he’s a horrible person to work with/for. A friend of mine who works in the state government calls him a sociopath, and his uncivil lash-out at reporters last week further confirms that judgment. So he’s not a leader. And secondly, he’s flat-out wrong on some issues, and far too ambivalent on others.

I had planned to vote for Republican incumbent Tim Pawlenty, but I really found him utterly unimpressive during the debate. He’s too political. By that I mean, he rarely answered the questions that were asked him, instead using any opportunity possible to attack Hatch or talk about an award he’s been given. He’s wrong about casinos (he favors the expansion of gambling in Minnesota) and he’s pandering to farmers with his support of ethanol (which economists and scientists agree is not a viable long-term alternative fuel solution). He further panders to out-state voters by offering massive tax breaks to businesses rather than confronting the deeper issue that corporate farming is responsible for the weakening of small towns.

Hutchinson, I must say, made sense, and as an Emersonian pragmatist, I appreciate that. He thinks the state should get out of the business of gambling — he said it’s a bad way to fund any government. He doesn’t think the government should be in the business of helping out some businesses (like professional sports franchises or out-state businesses). He supports a sales tax on clothing, combined with a lowering of the overall sales tax rate, all in order to stabilize the state revenue. These are commonsense approaches to the challenges of governing in the 21st century. He also called on both of the other candidates to pull all of their negative ads. Of course, they avoided responding to his challenge.

Could he, as an Independence Party governor, broker legislation between the two parties? I don’t know, but he is obviously very bright and articulate and well-informed, so I believe he could.

Will he win? Surely not.

(This will mark the third gubernatorial election in a row in church I’ll cast my vote for the Independent candidate: Ventura, Penny, Hutchinson.)

This seems to be a week in need of some good news, as we grieve another fallen Christian leader and watch the incursion of negative campaign ads even into the usually civil political climate of Minnesota.

On Saturday night in Anaheim, after a couple splendid days with my son at Disneyland, I hosted a late night theology discussion at the National Youth Workers Convention. Shockingly, there were well over 100 in attendance. The conversation was civil (which it hasn’t always been) but robust. People talked theologically, they challenged each other, and I imagine that most everyone left thinking about something they hadn’t thought about before.

Talking to Marv Penner (another speaker) in the Santa Ana Airport, he said something with which I resonated. He, too, had a wonderful convention with many stimulating conversations. He said, “I think we can quit saying, ‘Youth ministry isn’t just about fun and games,’ because everyone now knows that it’s not.”

I don’t speak explictly about youth ministry at the conventions anymore, since I’m not currently a youth pastor — I think it would be disingenuous. Instead, I talk about more general things, like theology and the emergent church (which, of course, I hope have resonance with youth workers). In the six or seven years I’ve been at this, I can say that I’ve seen the conversation about youth ministry change qualitatively. Youth workers are more serious, more theological, more educated. It makes for great connections and friendships, that’s for sure.

I’m currently working on a book about the emergent/ing church, and I’m trying to be true to what’s really going on. I also want to attempt to answer some of the questions that linger for people, both supporters and opponents.

So, what are your questions about the emergent church?

This week, my son, Tanner, will experience Halloween and Disneyland. I’m just glad that I get to experience vicariously with him!

…for Olivet Nazarene University:

Monday afternoon: Does Philosophy Really Matter to Youth Ministry?
Text: John D. Caputo, Philosophy and Theology

Tuesday morning: Postmodern Youth Ministry, Part I
Text: Tony Jones, Postmodern Youth Ministry

Tuesday afternoon: Postmodern Youth Ministry, Part II
Text: Tony Jones, Postmodern Youth Ministry

Wednesday morning: What Is “Culture”?
Text: Clifford Geertz, “Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight”

Wednesday afternoon: What Is “Postmodern Culture”?
Text: Blog Archaeology Assignment

Thursday morning: The Emerging Church Response to Postmodern Culture, Part I
Text: Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger, Emerging Churches

Thursday afternoon: The Emerging Church Response to Postmodern Culture, Part II
Text: Doug Pagitt, Church Reimagined

Friday morning: The Future of Youth Ministry, A Discussion

I’ll be teaching an intensive course, January 22-26, at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, IL. It’s in the Masters of Ministry degree program, and the credits are transferable to several other schools. The class is on Youth Ministry in the Postmodern World, and we’ll be attacking both the theoretical and practical implications of postmodernity.

For more info, email Mark Holcomb: MHolcomb@olivet.edu