London Journal #3

This was a long day. I had 2 seminars in the morning and one in the afternoon and one tonight; plus traveling to different ends of the city with exceptionally heavy traffic. I had half hour to spend at the hotel before going to the evening meeting. By then I was quite a bit tired. But by the time I got up to speak I was energized for the night. Most people know that I’m an “E” on the Myers-Briggs; which means that I’m energized by being around people. I know that the “I” type are just worn out by simply reading this!

This morning I dealt with the second part of Adventist Theological Wars. I looked at what is called “historic Adventism” (a product of the Fundamentalist period of the church, 1920s to 1940s), and compared it with Adventism during the life time of Ellen White. Using mostly her words, I showed how she was opposed to dogmatism in theological discourse, and she encouraged the people of God whose were in close relationship with Christ to grow theologically, but not lose sight of the mission. I completed this discourse in the afternoon and we engaged in a lively discussion. For the second session in the morning, I began the presentation on worship. My basic thesis is that worship is cultural, and all the mechanics of worship (including drums) are cultural. If you want to see the full development of my thoughts you can obtain a copy of my book Diverse Worship: African-American, Caribbean, and Hispanic Perspectives (InterVarsity Press) -- http://www.amazon.com/Diverse-Worship-African-American-Caribbean-Perspectives/dp/0830815791. Tonight I was at Chiswick where a visiting preacher from India (Pastor Durairaj) is speaking each night. Again I talked from the top of my head on the subject of worship. And, as I told the saints last night, music is not a core essential for worship. Scripture does not have it as a “constant” a “universal.” Yet 90%+ of our liturgical wars are over music!