Is the conversation over?
I can't help noticing that the previous 2 heartfelt postings, "What does it mean to truly love God?" by Annalisa and "Original Sin and The Sinful Nature : Sex, Sexuality and Homosexuality" by Stray have not attracted any comments. Also comments made in the past months have not engendered much response.
I wanted to say something, because I felt that both Annalisa and Stray really put their hearts out there, and I just wanted to thank them for doing so.
I've been a bit disparaging about this (anti)phenomenon before - "Lame, lame, lame" what I said, but I'm not feeling that same frustration here. Just a bit perplexed at the sound of the wind coming through the tumbleweed. Sure, the site has had some rather bawdy spam, and people are involved and busy, and the ever present heresy lurks. But I've become aware of people talking about the emergent mosaic in the past tense recently.
But my two cents worth is we haven't even begun. I'd be interested to hear if and why people might be disenchanted with the "emergent conversation"?
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my voice silenced
Err, I tried to post a comment on Annalisa's post but it hasn't appeared. Allegedly it needed "approval". The angels and archangels have evidently been playing havoc.
I'm currently (well, starting to re-read the whole series) Stray's recent post. I've hauled out the theological spectacles but need to find both my inner Pharisee, my closet Evangelical, and my MIA Zealot to give his post full justice.
Envoy
no response is ok
Nic-
I also read and enjoyed the posts you are referring to. I suppose I just don't really have an opinion or response I feel worth posting. I understand this is not the usual tact in blogging, where everyone has to say SOMETHING about everything everyone else writes. I just don't feel the urge.
Wondering if their ought to be some protocol to at least say, "I've read your post. I enjoyed it. It made me think"? What do others think is an appropriate way to affirm posts without needing to manufacture replies for the sake of replying?
in search of a ratio
Hi Arthur
I hear the contemplative in you speak!
In my mind there is a healthy ratio of viewer-lurkers (see the number at the end of each post) to vociferous commenters. For me, if it's between 5 and 20 views per comment, that's healthy. But once it's above that I start wondering whether we have anything to share.
Online is a different, narrower paradigm to F2F community where we get to communicate nonverbally and in all sorts of ways, so the only response we have are views and comments.
(If the moderator is not totally out to lunch, that is.)
And yet, we have a new moderator!
I'd like to welcome our new moderator, Nic, who is now empowered to look after comments and such. Since one of the reasons his joined this site is "curatorship" now he can put some of his many talents to use in helping curate this online mecca. Welcome, Mr Paton, I hope your new hat fits :)
CYCLIC_CHECK_OVERFLOW
Sorry, brain is full. Oh dear, all I can see is blue. Is that normal?
Normal?
I'm sorry, is this NIC who is asking, "Is that normal?" ?!?!?! Enjoy the blue, embrace the blue. Then change it to red. And see what changes.
is THIS normal?
But when I "embrace the blue" it turns to black, after sparking and melting a bit. There is a bit of bleeding too, but my blood isn't red. So I just don't think I am ready to be promoted to demigod...
I did!
I left a comment at Annalisa's post a few days ago but it isn't showing. Let's see if this one does....
Moderator??
I received a message that my comment is awaiting moderation by the site administrator... Perhaps all our comments are clogged up in the system?? Perhaps the site administrator has a new girlfriend??
Blush! Disappearing comments!
*sigh* Yes, indeed, the site admin does have a girlfriend (much to some people's surprise, especially his! and thanks for all of the (desperate) prayer for this exact occurance by so many people for so many years), and a few weeks ago he upgraded the comment system to use Akismet, thereby reducing published spam. Unfortunately, it also reduced genuine comments which should appear on the site...to zero! (dammit) Anyway, he's going away to the Drakensberg this weekend and is immediately trying a new way of handling spam. So let's try that and see if it works!
Unfortunately, everyone else has missed comments in the last 2 weeks, while said site admin was off in the clouds somewhere hearing sweet nothings...or something like that. Pathetic, really. However, those comments are now published, so please take some time to catch up with what *should* have been an ongoing conversation over the last 2 weeks - this is a good place to do that.
He's also really behind in blogging and has a few cool entries he wants to post to this site - will hopefully get around to that soon.
And he also really appreciates this community! Some people drift in and out of the conversation, and that's ok, and others are at the core of it, making a big effort to create hopeful models of church in South Africa with the resources we have at this time. And although he doesn't say it much, he thinks that everyone who contributes here is great :) Group hug!
Smells like sackcloth and ashes
Not just a group hug, but also pinches on the cheek of that moderator, being as he is under the dominion of the little cherub with an arrow.
Millions of emails
Indeed - nice to under the dominion of something like that!
So it turns out that enabling the Akismet anti-spam module has the unforseen side effect of:
- unpublishing all comments
- re-emailing all comments once they're republished...to everyone. So basically every comment ever made on this site seems to have been sent to everyone who has had anything to do with that particular post. Dammit.
So count yourself lucky that you've not been spammed with pharmaceutical offers, but rather with kind, thoughtful comments around theology, G-d and coffee. Hey, it could be worse? :)
However, if you feel like you need to buy in to some sort of punitive restoration, please feel free to organise something along those lines for the site admin next time you see him. And take pictures.
so cute, and such clever little fingers!
awww. [nelson muntz voice here] "we will, rog, we will."
the world needs more punative restoration. hold up; is that heresy or orthodoxy, I'm confused? (What are they teaching at that cult you have joined?)
*spank*
Aside from the fact I don't know who Nelson Muntz is, and that that probably betrays some kind of cultural ignorance on my part, I think that a more popular way of saying "punitive restoration" is "SPANK!"
At least, that's what we do weekly at my cult. It's kinda fun. Hopefully next year it will involve members of the opposite sex.
i see...
Corporal punishment, unisex cloisters - no, it sounds REALLY orthodox, rog. The nuns arrive when?
Just for your cultural edification, Nelson Muntz is the bully in the Simpsons who is known for his finger jabbing "AAH haa" at the misfortunes of others.
Emerging or submerging?
The submarine church is surfacing -- dive! dive! dive!
which way is up?
I think you might be right, Steve, but only in the southern hemisphere.
LOL
Thanks Nic- I'm encouraged about your comment of 'putting your heart out there.' Thanks man.
Doing these blog postings is always awkward for me... even now I'm a little embarressed about my blog post! :)
So, is it true? Are you the new moderator? Sweet.
Since I've also recently gotten a girlfriend (ok, it's been 8 months now) I must admit that it's also caused some silence on my part around here ... Not to mention that I've also recently joined a church plant in Sandown... but busyness is honestly just a seriously lame excuse!
www.ryanpeterwrites.com
"The Glory of God is man fully alive" - St Iraneaus
apparently it is true
(Golem A) Well I can confirm that Saner is sneaky, because without even wanting to, caring, or knowing how, I have just sucessfully moderated The Venerable Steve Hayes' comment. (Oh sh*t, that means this website is DOOMED. Dive, people, dive, or rather emerge, people, emerge - the heretics are running the asylum now. OOH the power is driving me mad, my preciousss. Help, Lord, help me!!)
(pause, in which the Golem B starts to speak)
There. Thats better.
Stray
Lovely to have your craziness back. I apologise for not commenting futher on your post, I just found it hard to do justice. I agreed with some of your thoughts and disagreed with others.
But I ceratainly encourage you to keep wrestling for yourself and on our belhalf. I think the entire topic of sexuality is probably the most difficult one for christians to get a decent perspective on. I would like to know why you are embarrased by aspects of the post. It's a brave thing to admit, I think we will all agree.
So you have a girlfriend. THATS sweet. I welcome you to the "burners club" (and I don't mean Afrika Burns either), for up to now its sole "member" has been Roger Saner (all the unouted lurkers excluded of course).
Here's a thought, lets dump the theory, and have a posting on "How to be a Christian while almost continuously sexually aroused." - Just a thought, no obligations. But if ANYONE is krazy enough to write it, you are!
My preshussssss....
::gollum:: Welcome, Gollum/Nic - or should I call you Slinker and Stinker?! :)
Not sure exactly what the burners club is about (and thank you oh-so-much for writing my full name in there, Nic, so that Google will pick it up. Dammit!).
Your post suggestion is brilliant - perhaps that could be the title of my future book: "How to be a Christian while almost continuously sexually aroused." Hahahahaha! Maybe I can collaborate with Stray on this one...?
voila - the Burners Club
As you SHOULD be aware, Paul gives us this advice: "But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion."
The Burners club comprises those who share a similar stuggle.
I think up front, the amaBurners need to decide on just how good that advice actually is. Should it be piously taken for "gospel", should it be savagely deconstructed by carnal postmodern relativistic desperados, or is there some sort of happy, (though somewhat tricky) medium between these extremes?
3rd option?
The 1st 2 options I understand - the 3rd one (the somewhat tricky happy medium) eludes me...
tricky, happy, impossible?
Hmm I see your point. A balanced life is indeed elusive.
Should we therefore abandon hope of it and give in to 1 or 2?
Deferred hope
Actually, I was kinda hoping *you* would be able to shed some light on that, since you referred to that option I assumed you'd be able to :p
pssst ...
... come to my tent, on the outskirts of the encampment, after midnight, at full moon. Bring lots of silver.
Single...and in love?!
Hahahaha! Stray, I just *love* the irony - the guy who writes the book "Single" gets a girlfriend! I guess there's such a thing as tempting fate after all ;)
Yes, yes, yes
LOL! I'm thinking of writing a book on money next... maybe it will make me rich (he he he...)
www.ryanpeterwrites.com
"The Glory of God is man fully alive" - St Iraneaus
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