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andrew careaga

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1. we ask this of everyone, how would you define the postmodern movement?

Whenever I've tried to explain postmodernism, I've gotten into trouble.   Because I always leave something out, or I get bogged down by my modernist mindset with the classification and categorization of ideas – and isn't all that pigeonholing yet another symptom of modernist thinking. But I'm putting the cart before the horse here. Let me backpedal and start again.  Let's try this on for size:

As I see things (at this moment, which is not to say that my view won't change at some point in the future), postmodernism is at its core a philosophy or worldview that rejects the notion of absolute truth.  When I say "absolute truth," I mean "truth" as modernists have come to know it -- that is, truth discovered in the great tradition of the rationalist

2. in a pomo worldview, the world has no borders (cyberspace knows no limits). do you see this "blending of culture and tech" as a good thing, or a bad thing for the church, and why?

The blending of culture and tech is a good thing, if we (the church) recognize it as such and seize the opportunities computer and Internet technology afford us. There's a symbiotic relationship between technology and culture. Technology is a product of culture, and technology alters culture. It's been that way since the Stone Age. This symbiotic relationship has affected the church since the earliest days.  Communications technologies -- from the stone tablets to the scroll to the cathedral to the quill to the printing press to the satellite network to the Net -- have been vital tools for God's people to spread the Word. Consider the Reformation; Martin Luther and the reformers made good use of the printing press to get Bibles and tracts into the hands of the common people.  Consider the satellite; for better or for worse, radio and TV evangelists have made use of the broadcast media to spread their message. The Internet is yet another communications technology that can be used by the church to get the message out in a compelling and relevant way. But this technology has a difference: it not only allows us to communicate on a global yet intimate scale, but it also allows us to "inhabit" a virtual environment and create disembodied communities. For this reason, the "blending" you speak of in your question is occurring on a scale never before realized. We use the Internet, as a tool, and yet we also inhabit the Internet, as a space, a community.

3. as the "cyber-church" advances, what do you see as the three main pitfalls for the "traditional" church?

Leonard Sweet has a great quote that goes something like this: "The mainline church has become the sideline church, and is in danger of becoming the offline church." I love that quote; it's as clever as anything Sweet has said or written. But Sweet is defining the problem too narrowly. It isn't only the mainline church that is in danger. It's every church that isn't connected to the online world. And that's what I think you mean by "traditional" church. So, the three pitfalls for the traditional church are these:

1. The church has been slow to respond to the Internet's potential as a tool for sharing the gospel, and will continue to lag behind. (Nothing new here, as the church usually lags behind when it comes to recognizing technology's potential.)

2. Many in the church will continue to insist that the Internet is simply a "tool" rather than a place where community happens, and therefore will miss the chance to meaningfully participate in the growing community of online believers and seekers.

3. The church will try too hard to be "high tech" and "relevant" and will neglect the important things that make the church the church.

4. what do you see as the primary tools for ministering and evangelizing n-gen?

Effective evangelism on the Internet requires believers to do a bit of "reverse incarnation." We must enter the culture of cyberspace and dwell among its inhabitants, in essence becoming "incarnational" in cyberspace (even though we are leaving our bodies -- our "carnals" -- behind). We need to take John 1:14 -- "the word became flesh and dwelled among us" – and turn it inside out, so that we flesh-and-blood Christians become words in cyberspace and dwell among others in the cyber environment. For this to happen, the church on the Internet must be about more than just slapping up a static web page. The church – and by this I mean believers of all stripes – must actively engage in the cyberculture through the more interactive avenues of instant messaging, chat, blogs, online communities such as this one.

Off the Internet, the church must continue to be a place where N-Geners can come to feel a part of a community. The church must understand that N-Geners have a more global worldview, fostered by the Net, and will expect the church to see itself as part of the global church -- to be the "glocal" church, both global and local. They also bring a lot of baggage to the church. We're more likely to see N-Geners come from broken homes, to have substance abuse problems (I've heard N-Gen referred to as "the Ritalin Generation"), and to have less distrust in institutions than their predecessors. At the same time, they're more open to authentic community and want to have a real spiritual experience. That's what the Christian faith is all about -- or should be all about.

5. with the "underground" christian movement growing, how can churches best reach these people, or can they?

Christianity has always flourished underground. It's when the church becomes an institution and becomes institutionalized (think about that word -- "institutionalized" -- for a moment, and what images come to mind?) That it gets in trouble. I'm thankful for the underground Christian movement, and want to do everything I can as a believer to help underground Christians keep from becoming institutionalized Christians.

But how can churches reach them? Again, it boils down to providing an authentic community for them. Some churches have developed outreaches for underground cultures, from skate culture to rave, hip-hop and goth culture, and are doing well. Other churches are afraid to radically depart from the traditions that seem so alien to the undergrounders -- because to depart from those traditions would mean alienating their base of support. It's a tough time to be an institutional church. Some won't survive. But Christianity will. In fact, Christianity is thriving in Asia, Africa and Latin America, even as it declines in Europe and North America. I have great hope for the global church, even though the new church looks nothing like the church we see here where I live, in Bible Belt, USA.

6. in a world of tech, how can we, as a community fed by touch, minister with a face to face touch in the lives of people?

The Internet is all about having conversations and engaging one another. Step into a chat room and see how people are truly connecting with one another. (Sure, it'll feel disorienting the first few times, but stick with it.) If we understand that the "tech" of the Internet is really a medium for connecting with others in very real and intimate ways, then we will grasp the idea that we really can have something similar to "f2f" relationships fostered via cyberspace.

At the same time, the church must always be incarnational. Cyberspace does not replace physical space. Cyberpresence does not replace physical presence.

7. if i were a youth pastor, what would you say are some of the most important things i could do to help n-geners develop a deeper faith and walk with christ?

After 15-plus years as a bivocational youth minister, the most important lesson I could pass on is that I cannot pretend that I'm the authority, because I'm not. Teens today have access to more information than I ever had growing up, and they don't need me to spoon-feed them the gospel. I'm there to facilitate discussion and learning, and to join with them on our mutual journey as pilgrims in the faith. If you were a youth pastor coming to me for advice, would tell you to be real, be vulnerable, be humble, and don't be surprised that you get more from the experience than you could ever possibly give. Giving gets. It's as simple as that.

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