disruptive grace

In the last post I wrote about “adding to the stock of available reality” this fits in with the idea promoted by Walter Brueggemann of “The Prophetic Imagination” [a book I cannot recommend highly enough]. Taking a route through the biblical narrative from Moses to Jesus, Brueggemann recasts the role of the prophet as more than just a ‘predictor’ but as one who engages the imagination in ways that moves beyond the dominant mentality [the 'managed data' of the prevailing culture] and gives freedom for the life of God to be revealed.

“The prophet engages in future fantasy. The prophet does not ask if the vision can be implemented… The imagination must come before the implementation. Our culture is competent to implement almost anything and to imagine almost nothing… Every totalitarian regime is frightened of the artist. It is the vocation of the prophet to keep alive the ministry of imagination, to keep conjuring and proposing alternative futures.” [Brueggemann]

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I wrote to a friend today (concerning a particular piece of writing) saying:

‘all i want to do is “add to the stock of available reality” – i think personal stories and dreams are a perfect way of doing this. As we hear each others stories and dreams it releases us to dream also.’

“Adding to the stock of available reality” is a phase I picked up from the Image Journal — there Gregory Wolfe writes about how good art gives us fresh idioms, through new juxtapositions and new forms that spark our imaginations. I’ve been thinking how here the stories of others, their successes and failures work in a similar way. As a result I’m trying to encourage others to write and report on their stories, and dreams. Watch this space.

Listening to Steve Chalke talk on the Mars Hill podcast helped me today. I highly recommend a listen it. Look for: ‘Stop the Traffik’ by Steve Chalke over at Mars Hill – he tells his own story there on how and why he ended up doing what he’s doing. Let your imagination be ignited.