Ethos

Tonight I'm attending "Ethos: A Dialogue on Faith and Culture," an event held at Colorado Christian University. I attended the two-night conference last spring and was really impressed. Check out the description:

ETHOS brings creative Christians together to explore innovative ways to authentically engage popular culture and the media. The conference focuses on how Christians can become involved, renewing agents of the gospel in their world. Participants will learn to understand trends in culture and discover a more effective voice for their communities. Not only will it help them use aspects of culture to develop authentic and meaningful conversations with the world around them, it will also work toward an evangelical ethos that does not wall itself off from the world, but dialogues with it for mutual enrichment.

I realize there are a lot of buzz words in there, but this conference delivered! Last year we discussed topics including internet evangelism, evidence of redemption in secular culture, art and Christianity, and excellence in worship. I didn't agree with everything I heard — which I loved! What I appreciated was the practicality of the event. The workshops gave me tangible ideas for engaging culture that I have been able to put into practice.

This year's sessions include "Authoritarianism and the Church," "Faith and Film," "How Should Christians Engage Culture?" and "Sacred and Secular" (on one of my favorite topics, the emerging church).

So if you're in the area, it's not too late to check out Ethos. It's going tonight and tomorrow night, and you can sign up for one or both nights. Look for upcoming posts on these topics.