An Open Letter from Sally Morganthaler

Dear Spencer and Fellow Ooz-ers,

Thanks for inviting me to share in the great re-launch of the Ooze. Brings back memories of our first interview ten or so years ago…you and Dave Trotter, hanging out in your just-purchased Newport bungalow. I couldn’t help being a wee bit jealous. There you were, doing “ministry” in the sand…combing the beaches, the sidewalks, and the web for any child of God who still had a pulse.

What’s happened in 10 years? That would be a door-jam of a book. But, in the words of that wise “anthropologist”, Dr. Seuss, “Oh, the places you’ve gone!” And you’ve taken as many of us wild and crazy friends with you as you could fit in your heretic’s bus. I know there are thousands out there – including myself – who count themselves darn fortunate to have ridden deep into the theological outback on the unstoppable little van with no shock absorbers!

So, kudos from all of us as you enter a brand new era with the Ooze. Thanks for being your utterly outrageous self. (I don’t know anyone else on the planet who can pull off the “audacity and grace” gig so well. How do you do it? I want lessons.) Thanks for your intrepid honesty. For your absolute commitment to co-creating the real kingdom. You have helped me to imagine so much more. To believe more about God, more about the people of God, and more about myself.

Mostly, you have helped me tell the truth at much greater risk, with the understanding that ones’ life is only as generative as ones’ detachment from image. A year and a half ago, I gave up the church speaker/teacher gig and boarded my own plucky little “bus.” The mission: to explore God in ways I used to years ago, but stopped. To explore God in ways I’d never let myself. And to explore God in “places” God has always been, but I’d never dared to go.

So far, the road out has been challenging, as in, “How am I going to pay the mortgage??” But fabulous, as in, “Why did I wait so long??” I’ve returned to my roots in the arts, both music and photography. But, even more importantly, new directions in faith.

If you want a peek at the highlights of my journey, I’ll be joining author and speaker Michael Dowd on December 22 for his free pod-cast series, The Advent of Evolutionary Christianity: Conversations at the Leading Edge of Faith. Michael’s passion is how an evolutionary view of life can enrich and energize faith. This series features thirty renegade thinkers, including the likes of some people you may know: Spencer Burke (!!), Doug Pagitt, Brian McClaren, and Richard Rohr.

Here’s the link, Ooze-ers. It’s going on right now, so catch it quick. See you there!

http://EvolutionaryChristianity.com

Walk softly, but be sure to walk.

Sally Morgenthaler

December 6, 2010

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For the past two decades, Sally Morgenthaler has been a trusted interpreter of post-religious culture as well as a prophetic voice, calling North American Christianity out of its inward-focus to become a transforming, generative presence in the world. In 2009, Morgenthaler left her work with religious institutions to explore the convergence of a developmental view of life and spirituality. Morgenthaler is a professional photographer, and resides in both Denver and L.A. You can see her work at morganmyers.photoshelter.com.