Abstract Page

I have finished with my updated abstract and also created a page on my blog so it will be easier to view then having to scroll through my posts. We are coming down to the end of this project as our poster presentations are on monday the 27th. Now I need to work on finishing up my poster and sending it out to get printed! My last project will be to revise my draft and add in all of the missing parts (citations and I think one quote) then it should be a little better.

 

Draft complete!

Ok, so for the most part, my draft is done. It obviously needs to be re-read and I need to finish a few things up, like the citations, but I believe that I don’t intend on changing a whole lot more. Also, with the new focus on my research, my abstract needs to be changed and I intend on getting that done later today, after our lunch meeting. I’m thinking I will create a separate page for the abstract, much like the draft, so that its easier to access. After that, I need to finish up the poster, so everything is certainly coming to a close.

 

New Stuff

Well a lot has certainly happened with myself and my research in the last week or so. If you haven’t had a chance to recently check out my draft page, the old draft was pretty much scraped and a new one has taken form. My research has taken a new focus, a much more specific and defined focus on the emerging church movement. Now I am focusing on the idea of postmodernism and how significant it is to the emerging church movement’s and its views on Christianity. This new focus should allow for a much better understanding of the movement and how/why it is different from traditional Christianity.

Of course, with this new focus, the abstract will have to be changed to include this, and that will take shape hopefully by the end of the week. I am currently researching postmodernism and how well it can be related to religion, and the emerging church movement in specific.

 

Attempted Abstract

A very rough draft of an abstract.

As society advances each day, the Christian religion appears to stand still against the advancing ideas. Little has been done to reverse this in within the religion, largely in part to ideologies of the Christian religion. However, a new movement originating in the United Kingdom and making its way to the United States focuses on the very problem of a stagnant Christianity. This paper attempts to expose the specific ideas behind the emerging church movement by providing a distinct definition, but also to give a greater understanding behind the movement itself. Very little is known of this movement, and this paper sheds light on it through the use of various sources, providing the groundwork of the movement through the collaboration of the ideas expressed currently within these resources. It also provides specific examples of practical application of the ideas of the movement towards evolving Christianity to be applicable in the present society. Along with this, it will expand on the idea of the present state of the world as a postmodern society, one of the main points within the movement causing it to exist. Through all of this, the paper will provide the proper information in order to understand the nature of the emerging church movement through its application of Christianity and through the progression of the movement in the United States. The paper will show the importance of the movement in regards to the state of Christianity in the United States and its need for change. (247 words)

 

Working Definition

I apologize for the large absence of posts in since the first one, I was having a little difficulty with my internet as well as posting on wordpress, but fear not, it appears to be fixed. At this point I am attempting to gather a central database for all things emerging church movement. My ultimate goal for this research project is to create a website with the purpose of being a “how to” for the emerging church movement, meaning if anyone wanted to learn how to incorporate the ideas of the movement into their own church, they have the resources available to find out how they can on the website, or find a link that will help them out. With that said, I have been working  on trying to come up with some concrete definition for this movement, which is proving very difficult. Here is what I have so far:

The idea that Christianity is not a religion, that is, something concrete and final, but that it is a movement that is ever changing with every new day. Christianity, for this movement, is about the future, not the past. One of the most distinct ideas of the movement is that the world is currently living in a postmodern world. Postmodernism refers to a distrust of theories and ideologies. Through this idea, Christians within this movement feel that Christianity should be a much more fluid, impermanent religion.

The emerging church movement does not attempt to change any of the ideologies or traditions of Christianity; it simply tries to alter the focus of these ideologies and traditions. The movement feels that Christianity has been too focused on the past. They feel that Jesus’ life was extremely important, but not just to look back at, but to apply it to the present and the future. They take the idea of the church and try to insert it into society. Many emerging church movement groups don’t even have a central church facility, they instead try to incorporate their communities already existing gathering places and use them for services on any day of the week.

This is certainly subject to change and revision as I progress through my research. I would love to have input from any readers of this as far as help  with adding things or if something in the definition doesn’t make sense or needs clarification. That’s all I have for now.

 

Getting My Feet Wet

    This is kind of just and introductory post regarding this blog site. As you probably know, or should know from reading the “About” section of this blog is that this blog is tied together with a research project I am currently doing through the University of South Dakota involving the emerging church movement in the United States. I am familiar with this movement prior to this research through a research paper I wrote this past year on this topic. Through this blog I intend to log my progress in studying the emerging church movement through the summer, but I also hope for this to be a place of discussion on the emerging church movement, but also for Christianity in general.

       I do not claim to know all there is about the emerging church movement or Christianity. Feel free to make comments or suggestions, or ask questions regarding any of the information that I provide through this blog. I will also ask many questions on this blog and anyone is more than welcome to attempt to solve any of the questions as well as point me in any direction that may help me answer the question for myself.

      This research is very open-ended due to the topic and I will be more than happy to take suggestions as to specific parts of the movement I should focus on as well as how I might be able to study these specific parts.

    I am really looking forward to this summer as I attempt to further my knowledge of the emerging church movement in the United States through my individual studies and also through the use of this blog.

-Eric Wiedenman

“If you have never doubted, you can never truly believe.”