Volu m e II - Purdue University Calumet

doctrine of the dominant Catholic Church was called into question. It is the opinion of scholars like Tickle
and Dyer that the Church is in another such period of rethinking.
Though some Christians and denominations are happy to stay as they are, many scholars cannot
deny that a shift is happening in the Church, and much of this is a response to the postmodern time period
we find ourselves in. Enter the Emergent Church Movement, not necessarily a new denomination but
rather a broad banner under which a dialogue about reconciling modernity and postmodernity in the
Church is happening. In his recent book, The Emerging Church, Dan Kimball states: “There is no „one-sizefits-all
way of doing things, because you can‟t box-in the emerging church” (Kimball 14). One will not find
an “Emergent doctrine” or fixed belief system. Much like (to borrow Tickle‟s argument,) spring cleaners
facing a rummage sale, Emergents are evaluating what views can be preserved and what needs to be reevaluated
in the face of postmodernism. And no re-evaluation of the Christian faith could be complete
without examining the scriptures on which the religion is based. This postmodern re-evaluation is affecting
how Emergents interpret scripture and ultimately how they view the purpose of Jesus‟ message contained
in scripture. To explore this shift thoroughly, I have chosen two authors to analyze, a pastor and a
layperson. This examination will use the narrative theology perspective of pastor and author, Rob Bell and
the personal (laity) practice narratives of Donald Miller. This paper will evaluate the Emergent Church
Movement‟s view of Jesus and scripture in a postmodern context and how Christianity is being “done
differently” in this shift and how this interpretation is “bridging the gap” between modern and postmodern
readings of scripture.
Emerging Story: What is Postmodernism? How is it affecting the Church?
Many books on the Emergent Church Movement (ECM) will start with an attempt to define
postmodernism and I found it fitting that I try to do the same. I want to establish the context for some
words and concepts that I will be using. Because various books on the ECM lay out postmodernism in
varying ways, I will attempt to “clean up” the understanding.
121