The Mountain

The city center of Victoria, British Columbia, is relatively flat. Not flat like Kansas, but flat, compared to – say -- Seattle. Still, the “Epiphany Explorations” conference held annually in that city is a mountaintop event. The vision, scholarship, and energy of the speakers reveal vistas far beyond the usual short horizons. The hard part is coming down the mountain to the land of immediate concern.
We have more to say about the Victoria conference, but the farther down the mountain we come, the less clear we are how to invite others into the experience.
For one thing, the conference appeals to people who have been keeping current with trends in Christian worship and theology. Such folk are often prepared to hear about the new quest for the historical Jesus, about the influence of worldly empire symbolized by reference to “Caesar” and “Pharoah.” They are already attuned to conversations that have been going on for many decades about “literal” vs. “more-than-literal” interpretations of the Bible. Without such preparation, the interpretive challenge is much greater, and the bottom end of the mountain path seems not to reveal any clue that any such a mountain even exists.
So we have more to write, but less clarity for what to say first, or how to say it. Keep checking.