Last night we held our first Theology Pub at a great, local Irish Pub (McNally’s). We’ve wanted to do this for a long time now, but things just seemed to get in the way. God’s timing and all. Well, we finally launched and it was a great time.
What is Theology Pub? For us it is a public dialog about matters of faith and culture. What we are doing is creating a context for and a culture of open discussion concerning the subjects that really matter – subjects that are inherently theological. These are often the issues that we should be talking about, but rarely do. So I really don’t teach here, but I introduce the subject, ask questions and facilitate the dialog. The exchange of opinions, even conflicting opinions, is good for everyone as it can help us all to evaluate our own convictions and gain a better understanding of each other. For many this is a time to begin thinking through ideas long neglected that merit our attention. For some it will amount to a kind of pre-evangelism where we discuss issues that do ultimately relate to Scripture and the gospel, but this is no bait and switch. You know, where we advertise a discussion on poverty, and then tell them that unless they are “poor in spirit” they will never see the Kingdom of God. We’re up front about what we’re talking about. The goal is to get people thinking and talking through the things that matter. This builds relationships between individuals, between the church and the community, and that provides more opportunities for the gospel to be seen and discussed.
The pub we meet in is one of my favorites. Great food, great people and the atmosphere is awesome. I don’t have any photos that show off the inside, but I hope to have some next time. We meet on the second floor of the pub where we can seat 50 or more for sure. At our first gathering we had 20 people, though we heard from many who wanted to come but couldn’t. We’re expecting a bigger turn out for our second Theology Pub.
This first gathering focused on “spirituality and religion in suburbia,” and it was a great mix of people who had many insightful things to share.
People have asked about the structure. We’re still figuring things out, but here’s how it went down.
7-7:15 people hanging out, ordered food, drinks, etc.
7:15-7:20 I introduce Theology Pub, and then the subject of the night.
7:20-8:30 Questions and answer, back and forth.
8:30-8:35 Wrap up – why this format and subject matters to me and our church.
As I continue to talk with non-Christians I find that many are ready to have these kinds of conversations – so long as they aren’t sitting down for a sales pitch. People are ready to talk theology! Just ask Rainn Wilson (you know him as “Dwight” from The Office).
I have been talking to Jonathan McIntosh (Hanley Road Campus Pastor at The Journey, he’s also the guy who developed “Theology at the Bottleworks”) for years about this, and even went down to Saint Louis to see how the people from The Journey do it (and they do this very, very well). Big thanks to Jonathan and the people at The Journey for all your encouragement and advice. I know a few others who do similar events and would love to have everyone sharing their experiences.
I am the Lead Pastor of Redeemer Fellowship; husband to Jen; Dad to Katherine, Elias, Madeline, and Kilian. If you're in town you can probably find me in the local coffee house or running through the neighborhoods.
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Glad this went well Joe. Thinking through something similar here. Would love to hear what some of your questions were and some comments from the people.
Do you have a good idea about how many non-Christians were there? Were these people who had been to your church or brand new ones.
Thanks for blogging about this!
Chuck, this first time – seemed like mostly Christian, or Christian friendly perspectives. It was a mix of people from Redeemer and invited guests. We really just wanted to kick things off, begin developing the culture of this thing. We expect there to be more skeptics, non-Christians and/or unchurched people there at the next one.
Just a few of the questions from the night:
What’s the difference between religion and spirituality?
Does “spirituality” speak more to our nature, or our behavior? (Who we are, or what we do?)
Does our 21st century suburban culture work against or encourage spirituality/religion? How?
Thanks for blogging this, I’m really interested in hearing how this goes. I’ve attended Monday Night Brewery here in Atlanta (mondaynightbrewery.com), which started with a group of guys who met in a small group and decided to start a craft beer company. It’s like my Narnia where I meet a lot of guys with common interest from different churches and even some secular heathens. It’s something I really look forward to attending just b/c of the community that it creates. Not to mention the fact that the guys brew beer on location and serve free craft beer to all who come. There is no topic per se but the conversations often revolve around theology. I always leave so encouraged.
I like the idea of “developing the culture for this” and throwing out topics for conversation without a bait and switch, so I hope it goes well for you and please keep us updated.
Thanks for posting the info! I am thinking/praying through doing something like this in my community and love all the info you want to/can share on how to do it!
Sounds like it was a good night! We have been doing something like that here in Albuquerque for about a year, although are right now thinking about how we format it. With having the whole 2nd floor do you use a mic and speakers or p.a. system to hold the discussion or do you arrange chairs a certain way??
This has been our biggest issue, and possibly cause Albuquerque is not known for its pubs, so our options are limited to meet at. Any info you could provide would help.
Thanks and stoked for your pub night!
Los
The room is great, and the acoustics are fine. The chairs and tables are set up in such a way that it just works well. No mics needed, but we did need to speak clear and loud. All the real noise is on the first floor.
Awesome man. Glad things went well. Got my gears turning for sure. What elements would you say are necessary to think through in choosing to do something like this in varying contexts?
Well, we’re still figuring it out. But I think its important to know your 1. religious context (for us it’s mixed, but largely Catholic), and 2. larger social context (for us, a lot of middle class/upper middle class, younger families), etc. And you have to 3. determine what your goal is; teaching, defending Christian truths? open dialog and discussion on spiritual/theological topics? open dialog with more emphasis on cultural/social issues? The options are endless, but you need to know what you are trying to accomplish, and what your emphasis will be. 4. Best venue (coffee house, pub, campus lounge, etc.).
Thanks Joe!
Joe,
Hey brother- it’s exciting to see the Theology Pub kicking off in St Charles. Sorry I couldn’t make it out. We have just started leading a worship team for a new church plant in Schaumburg. We have been doing a Thursday night Bible study, and will be launching our Sunday morning service on Easter Sunday. Needless to say, we have been busy trying to get all of the pieces in place. Our lease is up soon, so we will probably be moving towards Schuamburg. I will definitely try to make it out to a Theology Pub before we move. Hope you and your family are well. Later!
There is a new study going on through a local church here in Columbia, SC. They call it “Theology on Tap” where we go to a bar every other Thursday and is pretty much similar in format to what y’all have going here. I thought I’d share this with you…
I haven’t had time to join this event due to other commitments on Thursday’s but I think this is an excellent area for ministry… and can break down many barriers between some stereotypes of Christians that some non-Christians have…
anyways, just thought I’d share.
Thanks for doing this. We need more of these. Our Grab a Brew Share Your View does this every 2nd tuesday in rural Iowa and the first night we did it, we were shocked that the local atheist group and freethinkers came out in droves.
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