NeoZine

M. Walker triggers alarms crossing the border--was it the shirt?

It was a memorable trip, by all accounts: The Meeting House in Toronto is one of the few Christian movements in North America where revolutionary Christians can feel at-home. (Even teenage revolutionaries!) Ten representatives of The Crossroads Project (the CBS) piled into two vans and crossed international borders (where a certain M. Walker appeared as a “wanted man” according to Homeland Security computers–but it was a different M. Walker, and “you wouldn’t want to be that guy,” the guard said).

The CBS invaded their third meeting at the crack of noon Sunday, and what an amazing world we walked into: techno-music echoed from speakers everywhere, and waves of people were coming and going. (Much like a Rolling Stones concert.) Arriving in-between “shifts” was like shopping the week before Christmas (when husbands usually begin shopping). But where was the irritation or impatience in this crowd? Answer: nowhere. They  were having such a blast, some people even stopped in the middle of traffic to gab with some passing soul! (American despise such inefficiencies!)

Undaunted by the clamor or crowds, CBS students swarmed into the book store to grab revolutionary paraphernalia like T-shirts and books. (We emptied their shelves of cool “Revolution” shirts, too!)

The flagship of Christian Revolution at the Meeting House was Bruxy Cavey’s book, The End of Religion. The book was first discussed in Andy Doman’s 2007 NeoZine article about the Meeting House before its publication, and some were dismayed with its close ties to Emergent Village evangelists like Brian McLaren. The Canadians were befuddled over the controversy, since Canadian Christians were backwoods-outsiders to the spiritual hubbub in America, they said (quoting loosely).¹  Yet the Christian Canooks we met were actually far-advanced over their Christian American cousins as innovators of Christian Revolution.

For example, regarding “Sacred Space”, Cavey writes:

[The Early Church] believed that the Spirit of God dwelled within this relational temple, the sanctuary-as-community, and their entire lives were alters upon which to offer sacrificial love to God and others…There is no holier ground than the space between you and me as we connect in honest, vulnerable, forgiving relationships. p.139

A great book for the Ecclessiology Seminar book review--click to read more.

So much of his book is a delightful reinforcement of The Revolution we describe at RevolutionaryJoy.org. He discusses “subversive symbols” and he calls “family values” simply “tribalism” (as we would!) because God never created the family to be as isolated as Christians sometimes make them.  He devotes a chapter to “Breaking the Rules,” because Jesus by nature is “the scandal” who threw the Jerusalem Temple into chaos. Jesus was striking at the “temple mentality” that says we have to go to God, rather than having God come to us.

Loving Revolutionaries

We met with Tim Day, the Senior Pastor, and Bruxy Cavey, the prominent teacher at the Meeting House, and both men impressed us with their loving-kindness. Bruxy, for example, allowed 10 CBS rowdies to invade a quiet luncheon with his family, parents, and guests from Messiah College (the college of their denomination). He was exhausted after preaching three times, but he left half of his steak meal unfinished in order to talk with us and answer questions. Tim was equally hard-pressed to run the Meeting House, but still took the time to sit down and talk with us.

A great brother (Bruxy: long-hair, center) surrounded by good brothers (take your pick).

But kindness doesn’t negate their hard-driving revolutionary edge (unlike the rather soft “revolution of dance” from the Emergent Village). These people are driven to penetrate Canada’s dark, spiritual desert with a Revolution, and they’re winning! Although less than 5% of Canadians attend Christian groups, the Meeting House is flourishing with almost 6,000 weekly attendees, and 40% of which is convert-growth, according to their latest research. If true, this puts the Meeting House far-ahead of any other church in North America for convert-growth, according to Columbus Xenos research.²

Their balance as tough-but-loving revolutionaries is due to their close devotion to Jesus Christ, Bruxy said. The Meeting House is part of the Brethren In Christ denomination, which came from the River Brethren denomination, which came from the Mennonites, which came from the Anabaptists who rebelled against the tyranny of Calvin’s Reformed movement back in the 1600s. So their long history is aversive towards Church Institutions, and they promote the community of believers above whatever institutions they might leverage, much like Xenos. This alone makes The Meeting House a delightful and refreshing alternative to Church Institutions like “City-Within-a-City” championed by some.

It was amazing to find Bruxy & Co. employing sophisticated revolutionary tactics (not the crude political warfare so attractive to many U.S. Christians–read about the differences in Sins of the Past). Much like someone spreading revolution through persuasion, Bruxy kindly smiles while dismantling the folly of the opposition: “Listen friend, I love you, and by the way, you’re wrong,” is Bruxy’s approach.

Footnotes:

1. Canadians often view themselves as passive, rather fun-loving observers, according to this Web site. [↩]
2. According to Columbus research, the 25% convert-growth at Willow Creek is one of the highest found so far, outside of Xenos. Columbus is seeing about 60% convert-growth, and NeoXenos is seeing almost 80% convert-growth. [↩]

Related posts:

1. Disestablishment, Canada-Style
2. The Meeting House: Reloaded
3. The Meeting House