I recently enjoyed a coffeehouse get-together with Gareth Higgins, founder and putter-onner of the Wild Goose Festival. He had been kind enough to ask to meet with me by way of extending to me an invitation to speak at Wild Goose 2012.
In the days since our chat I have not heard from Gareth. I can't say I'm expecting to, though do let me hasten to add that I found him a positively charming fellow. I'm pretty sure he found me, well, primarily as someone who wouldn't, after all, be such a great fit with Wild Goose.
Which is true. I know I'd fit in at the Wild Goose Festival like Bernie Madoff at an Occupy Wall Street protest.
During the last half-hour or so of our visit, I pretty much just talked at Gareth. If you had been sitting at a nearby table, here is some of what you might have overheard me say, especially since I think at times I was sort of almost maniacally not entirely whispering:
- "There are three topics that really matter in Christianity right now: hell, universalism and LGBT equality. You should make a big point of how Wild Goose will be about tackling those topics. People would love that. They want that substance. Distinguish Wild Goose from all the other similar Christian 'gatherings' out there by being clear, right up front, that you're going to actually talk about the only real things Christians are talking about anyway. If people thought honest, real, concentrated, in-depth conversations about those three topics was going to happen there, you'd triple your ticket sales. People would flock to Wild Goose. Get it? Flock? They'd flock? You gonna' finish that cookie?"
And ... like that.
Anyway, I'm pretty sure I won't be invited to Wild Goose 2012. Maybe 2013. We'll see. In the meantime, in case I do get invited, I'll be perfecting my killer imitation of Jim Wallis, which I'm sure would be a huge hit. (Kidding! Dear Mr. Wallis: please don't have me killed. My wife is short, and all the food on our top shelves would go bad.)
After Gareth left the coffee shop, I thought about how much I really do yearn to attend the sort of event I had encouraged him to produce. A gathering, the entire purpose of which is to get down in the mud, and really wrestle around with the issues that are currently tearing Christianity apart. A place where thoughtful, intelligent people come together not to argue or bitch or hurl Bibles at one another, but to talk. To start, wherever they're at, and through the process of conversing, thinking and praying with others, move to actual and real resolution on the issues of hell, Christian universalism and full LGBT equality.
That's what I want to participate in. That's a group I'd love to hang out with. That's a purpose and process I could get behind.
But where would I ever find such a group?
It doesn't exist. No one's putting on festivals like that.
But if anyone ever did, I'd be totally down with it.
Get it? Down? Goose down?
You gonna' finish that scone?