Introduction
An introduction to viralJesus.org…
To learn more about the originator of viralJesus.org, check out the “About” page.
What we’re doing here…
This is a discussion of the Christian church, especially in America, specifically in the greater Seattle region. The thought is to try to find an authentic way to live as a community of faith in current American culture. It begins with a season of preparation and repentance, then proceeds to an ongoing discussion of where we are and where we should be going. It has no defined end.
What we’re NOT doing here…
Any registered user is welcome to post, but this isn’t a study in comparative religions. It’s also not a political forum. It is a discussion about Jesus Christ and His intentions for His church.
What’s with the name?
As of this posting, viral video is all the rage (though I’m sure the next big thing will have come around by the time most of you read this). The idea is that one person discovers a video, then tells someone else about it, and they are so entertained / amused / horrified / enraged that they pass it on to someone else, then they tell two people…then they tell two people…and soon it’s the biggest thing on the Web. The concept has been applied to “viral marketing” – grassroots ad campaigns that are spread by people, not mass-communication forms. Information spreads like a virus – passed by human contact.
Jesus intended His church to grow in the same way. In the days before billboards and websites, he told His followers to go a make “disciples” – literally students of His way of living. Making a disciple is a tedious, involved, messy process of one-on-one contact by which the message of Jesus is spread, one heart at a time. This influence multiplied and radiated from Jerusalem to the edges of the then-known world. In its most effective form, it continues to spread in the same way today. Thus, it is the viral message of Jesus Christ – short-version: viralJesus.
Short question. Long answer. Mostly because I would rather spend time talking about Jesus than the name of a website over…and over…and over….
Full disclosure…
I’ve been a Christian pastor (full-time, part-time, or volunteer) since 1996. I have worked with existing congregations, helped plant a new church congregation, and intend to plant another community of faith in the greater Seattle region. This site is my journey of faith, the journal of my soul, and an online attempt to work out my faith with “fear and trembling.” I have a motive beyond simple exploration, and am looking for people in my area with a similar passion. I am also open to other points of view and ideas from those who will never participate materially in that vision. I am flawed, opinionated, sinful, righteous, and scared to death to be posting my first ever blog. I have ongoing internal arguments with myself, I don’t always fully believe everything I say, and am completely aware I don’t have all the answers.
That’s all I have to say about that….
If you have more questions, email me. Or learn to live with unanswered questions (which may, indeed, be the first step toward maturity as a human being).
