The “ecclesiology/ies” of DIY punk rock
Over the past year or so I have given a couple talks on punk rock and ecclesiology. I’m currently working some of those thoughts into a proper paper (partially as a distraction from another paper!). In the paper I hope to show that the Church can learn from the world of DIY punk rock culture in two ways. First, it can learn from these communities, as other communities and projects have, sets of practices that are “fitting” for the life of the Church, particularly in terms of the practice of making and experiencing music. Various Christian communities have engaged in reflection and action developing practices that could be said to “anticipate the Kingdom of God,” sometimes by borrowing “fitting” practices from the wider culture(s), for example, practices which embody a respect for creation (such as new Christian agrarian movements) or a resistance to North American middle class consumer culture (such as fair trade and buy local campaigns). The music making practices of the DIY music community can help individual Christians and their communities to imagine what our music-making (and music-“consuming”) practices would look like as Kingdom practices.
On a deeper, and more explicitly ecclesiological, level, the “ecclesiology/ies” of DIY punk communities—i.e., their understanding of themselves as communities that are, in a sense, “called out” of the world as a revolutionary way of engaging the world—can help the Church to reflect more deeply about what it means to be the Church, that is, about what kind of community the Church should be in the world, its socio-political character, its revolutionary potential, etc. In short, what would the Church look like if we thought of it in terms of DIY culture making and political action?
I cannot say that this is a topic (DIY punk) that I have anything to contribute about, but I can say that I am intrigued by your thinking and pursuit here. Thank you.
Very interesting! I don’t think, following the DIY music model, the churches would or could reach out very much beyond their own core. But they would certainly be very energized within, and tap into everyone’s talents.
When I hear “church” I think RC, but I wonder how your model compares with the little storefront pentecostal churches one sees.
You could call it Calvin(Johnson)ism
I hope your paper balances some of the advantages and disadvantages that the internet, mp3 players, etc. have brought about to making your own music. And the way some of those technologies are structured in sort of anti-independent ways.
Yes I was thinking about that this morning… that when I was first involved in DIY circles, it was pre-internet, pre-mp3, pre-digital recording, etc. There certainly are advantages and disadvantages, and I’ll touch on that in the paper, but only a bit. Maybe I can explore it more thoroughly in another paper.
I have had these conversations with people in the last few years. The paper should be great and I hope you keep us up to date.
I can’t wait to see this, man.