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Encountering Exile

The Exile motif

Many Christians believe that the parts of scripture most appropriate for understanding ourselves within our secular western European context today is not the Acts of the Apostles, but the pre-exilic and post-exilic period of the Old Testament. In our present day post-Christendom context where the Christian faith is neither new nor assumed to be the answer to spiritual hunger, this period of Jewish history can give us insight and perspective. 

This Encounters on the Edge issue no.13 Encountering Exile explores the similarities between this exilic period and the times in which we currently live. Parallels include a decline of influence (despite examples of thriving churches and renewal movements), the abuse of power by which seeds of decline were sown and a preoccupation with religious buildings and public worship which exaggerates the sense of importance of place. 

This issue reflects on the call to repentance in the book of Daniel, the sense of living in times of judgement in Jeremiah, Haggai's encouragement not to give into fears and Zechariah's call to not despise the day of small things. This issue suggests that, just as the "return from exile" happened in an unexpected way, we too should look for hope in unexpected places. Perhaps the small contribution fresh expressions of church are making, in all their uncertainty and fragility, are the small things that will bring us the new ways forward we need.