I spent last week at the grand-daddy of Christian festivals, Cornerstone, in Western Illinois. And boy did I have fun!
I have been to more than a dozen festivals before (Alive, Creation, Atlanta, Fishnet, and others), and have enjoyed them. But there are a few ways in which Cornerstone is different from the others, and why I finally wanted to make it out there.
Cornerstone is visually artsy. I am not artsy myself in that way, but can appreciate the high value the fest places on visual expression. Much of the evangelical church is skeptical of the visual arts, so enjoyed being in a place that puts such a high value on that type of expression.
Cornerstone is an eclectic community. It's where the hippies meet the punks meet the goths meet ...... me!
Cornerstone is not just music. Before it was a fest, it was a magazine of ideas, and this spirit is alive and well in the seminars. I expect to share some of the notes I took, on such topics as the theology of NT Wright, the globalized gospel, and the emergent church.
One stream that I found running through some of the teaching and expression was "the ancient modern," the church recovering worship modes and teaching from ancient Christians. This includes the Celtic monastics, who I started paying attention to more than a decade ago, and have become "in" in the last few years in some circles.
And the music, too. I dug that, needless to say.
2 comments:
Wow, that sounds fabulous! I hope you do share some of the teachings - it sounds interesting.
I don't have lots of opportunities to hang out with "different" kinds of Christians, so I enjoyed this chance.
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