So, a pastor-friend of mine had a copy of this magazine: Revevant. He (a mid-50s clergy) was very impressed by it, and subscribed. He let me borrow his copy, and I must admit, I was quite skeptical, because he said that it was conservative theologically and in some other ways, but that he still found it, well, relevant. I frankly found this hard to believe.
But, I flipped it open last night, and so far have been quite impressed. I can't say I agree with everything, but there are a lot of intriguing articles in there, like about the pros and cons of "Christian Culture," suggesting that perhaps just living as Christians in a "secular" world is often a better path. I tried to find out more online - here's who they say they are:
RELEVANT magazine :: GOD.LIFE.PROGRESSIVE CULTURE.:
"We get a lot of emails asking who we are and what we believe, so here it is:
We're twentysomething Christians. We want to break stereotypes, challenge status quo and enact change through the media. We're seeking God, living life and striving to impact the world around us. It's pretty simple, really.
Oh yeah, and we're a self-contained, for-profit business (although the profit part is debatable)."
Hm. Anyone know more about this magazine? Thoughts on it? I'm thinking of subscribing, anyway...
3 comments:
I spent some time on their website awhile back when doing a search for progressive Christian sites and I'm not sure I see what their use of "progressive" comes from. Perhaps it's just a reference to being different.
Personally, when I think of progressive, I think of open-minded, accepting Christianity with an emphasis placed on social justice. There was one tiny quote by Jim Wallis on the "Revolution" page but the rest of the site looks much like anything you'd see in the youth section of Cokesbury.
There is a phenomenon in churches, I believe, as 20-somethings become interested in attending. There's a disconnect between this age group and the congregation members who are married and have kids, etc. This sort of site (and liekly it's corresponding magazine) might serve you well if you have a need to reach that age group - it (the age cohort) is much more techically savvy than the majority of the UMC and the communication style should work well.
Don't mistake these people for progressive in what I believe is your sense of it, though. One can be "relevant" and still hold extrememly old-school views of religion. Take a look at some of their book reviews and the review of the GOP convention.
marh (http://www.researchandrescue.com/psychotria/)
I agree with you - I guess I should have clarified more that I was pleasantly surprised considering what I expected to find in this magazine. I really do think some of the articles, particularly in the print version, were more open-minded than I expected. But I do know what you mean. Also, this magazine is generally very music/art/movie heavy - good for some, less interesting to others!
Be very careful of the "progressive" term. While it sounds "open-minded" the social justice message when combined with political objectives can be downright anti-christian. Jim Wallis is someone to be wary of. The magazine, at first glance, seemed harmless enough but upon my closer and more in-depth review it caused some red flags to be raised in my mind. Use your discernment and don't be swayed by the "fancy and friendly" packaging.
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