by Chris Alexion, Copyright July 15, 2005, all rights reserved. 178 views
LONDON, UK–The first annual international meeting of Neo-orthodox and existentialist theologians, organized by the Society for the Advancement of Theological Progress (SATP), ended in disarray this week. The meeting, billed as a groundbreaking symposium designed to further elucidate the theology of the Encounter, was plagued by communication breakdowns from the outset.
Many members were unable to locate the convention center because of ambiguities in the directions they were given. "I couldn't tell which way to turn," said Richard Vogue of Manchester, England. "If all I'm given is 'Turn at the intersection of Fifth and Marshall,' how do I know whether it's left or right?" Others were angry, alleging that the directions were false in places, telling them that that the convention center was south of the Thames when it clearly was north. Daniel Emery, the society's secretary, defended his flyer, arguing that precision in matters like directions is irrelevant to the spiritual power of the Encounter. "Technical accuracy is not the issue; it's the passionate embrace of the Infinite that matters," he said, emphasizing that even false directions can speak spiritual truth.
Goings-on continued after the conference began, as participants could not locate the proper seating. Many of the reserved seats did not match the names members had on their individual passes, and in many cases two different seats were reserved for the same person. Members disagreed on the nature of the problem, as the Brunnerians held it to be a Kierkegaardian divine paradox, while Barthian members recoiled from the idea of supernatural intervention.
When the speaking sessions began, confusion took over. The audience, unwilling to take the speakers' statements literally, could not agree on the proper metaphorical interpretation. Many members took the proposition "I'm happy to be here today" to mean that the egoistic view of ethics depends on a prior commitment to a non-skeptical metaphysics and a Cartesian emphasis on individual existence. Similarly, the question "Does everybody have a handout?" sparked fierce debate over the nature of Christ's death as a metaphor for God's love. Tension grew to outright indignation at points, as "I'll now take questions from the audience" evoked cries both that members' mothers were insulted and that the building was on fire.
SATP president Michael Jamison, despite the unfortunate occurrences, declared the conference a success. "We all had an Encounter with the Divine," he said, "and that's what counts."
1 • Nathaniel Bluedorn • July 19, 2005 • 1:20 PM
Very funny. I'll have to put a link to this blog on our homepage soon.
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