I was wondering . . .
who in bloggernacle would finally break the ice and speak favorably of Brian McLaren. It was only a matter of when.
Predictably, finally, we have John posting his likes for the man. Movements within American evangelicalism greatly influence American mormonism. You can trace it through history. As American evangelicalism changes, so will Mormonism. I always wonder about which religious “prophets” are the ones really leading religion in this country.
Yet some Idaho noncomformists like to jest over how easily swayed they are by the ever smiling Brian McLaren.
Jesus in Idaho Falls 
I was only exposed to Brian McLaren recently. I like his views. It seems like we have so much in common with other people out there. I would love to see more bridges built with the evangelical community.
Valoel, Brian is publicly burning the bridge to my Christianity and very persistent in his recruiting.
Todd,
Thanks for the pingback on Mormon Matters. It’s nice to have some interfaith dialogue. Brian’s take on Christianity is much closer to that of liberal Mormonism than most other evangelicals I’ve seen.
I’ve always been a fan of Brian McLaren.
Perhaps less so than I was originally, but I still agree with many of his points.
But I am also departed of my LDS ways, so…
Brian and I will both challenge institutionalized, externalized Church, but from completely different angles . . . actually we are immersed in different authorities that tell the story of Jesus.
And Brian’s story is not anything new.
Ah, but Todd, there is no Church in any sense of that word which is not institutional, external, and, yes, social because there can be no community which is not institutional, external, and again, social (or, for that matter, especially in terms of the Church, historical: we cannot ignore our ancestors, even if the only ones we acknowledge are those found in the pages of the Bible).
Faith, any faith, which is purely indvidual and internal will ultimately lead only to the worship of “the god within”, that is, the self. Another word for this is narcissism.