*culture is not optional

*cino: the mission and vision

by Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma

"Unite.learn.serve."

We identified this motto long before any of us fully grasped the structure or mission of *culture is not optional. We had vague ideas about equipping Christians to live more radical lives of faith, to have a public forum for their work and ideas, to pursue more risky and non-traditional vocations. And we felt a strong connection to the vision for the Christian community laid out in Ephesians 4:11-16.

The motto has turned out to be providential. Any time we've found ourselves paralyzed by the enormity of the *cino vision or by the amount of work to be done, the simple concepts of unity, learning, and service that are present in the motto have helped us focus, organize, and clarify.

Each part of the motto is a mission on its own, but they all build on each other as well. Our mission statement, therefore, draws on all three activities:

The mission of *culture is not optional is to equip Christians to be faithful servants by uniting the community of believers and learning together how to actively redeem all of culture.

But the unite.learn.serve motto does not exist apart from the name of our organization, *culture is not optional. You see, our vision is not just limited to what we can do with and for other Christians; our vision involves a comprehensive view of life that requires us to affect all parts of this world we live in, from the arts to the sciences, from every day tasks to major life decisions. We as Christians ought to be engaging and redeeming culture rather than wholly accepting or rejecting culture because culture is, after all, not optional.

Because this cultural mandate means different things to Christians at different stages of life, we found we could not just develop one catch-all program that would change the world. We needed to think about the specific needs of high school students, college students, and people already in the working world. We also needed to consider various modes of communication, including the Internet, the church, and the classroom.

The exploration of all of these factors has gotten us to where we are today. *culture is not optional is an umbrella organization for several programs that all serve the same mission in different ways. The other articles in this feature will give you an idea of what each of those programs looks like, which we have come to call "modes." As Grant, our resident philosopher explains,

Living in a culture as cultural beings requires one to take up a certain way of life, which is why we have chosen "mode" as the word to describe the programs of cino. A mode is a "manner, way, or method of doing or acting; particular form, variety, or manner; given condition of functioning; status; the current fashion or style; and any of certain arrangements of the diatonic tones of an octave" (yes, cino's modes are musical, too). Instead of sitting on the sidelines criticizing culture as if we aren't a part of it, we are resolved to actively sow the seed that has been given to us in the field where we have been called. This will be our mode of life in the Father's world.

As you read through the mode descriptions, notice how the various definitions of "mode" apply. You'll also probably notice how principles from each portion of our motto come up again and again in different ways.

We are seeking to unite Christians of various ages, vocations, denominations, and locations. We want to bring together those who have the same goals and interests as well as those who are very different from one another. We want to build on the work of other individuals and organizations rather than needlessly redoing or competing with what they are already doing successfully. We want to promote a unified view of life that boldly declares, "Our God is Lord of ALL!" and takes seriously our call to reclaim every corner of culture by doing all types of excellent work.

We are seeking to learn and promote learning at all stages of life. For some of us, this involves developing the skill of discernment so that we neither accept false messages wholesale, nor do we fear what we do not understand. For others, this learning involves the discovery of choices that will radically change the way we view our homes, our vocations, our daily tasks, our money, and our relationships. No matter what we have to learn, we can benefit from interacting with others who have different experiences than we do. We are all parts of the same complimentary body and we would do well to work together in order to learn how to navigate this earth.

Finally, we are seeking to serve through practical action that honors God and our neighbors. Actions that are not firmly rooted in principles are useless and easily abandoned. Likewise, principles that are not translated into practical action are weak and soon forgotten. We are witness to the fact that Christians who take the radical gospel of Christ seriously are easily identified by the practical choices they make. We "know they are Christians by their love" and that love is manifest in everything they do. Therefore, every mode that is part of *cino will have a distinct emphasis on guiding thoughts and ideas to practical action, for "faith without deeds is dead."

Even as you near the end of this exploration of our mission and vision, you probably still have questions. Because what we are doing has no precedent, and therefore no name, it is one of our biggest challenges to communicate clearly what we are trying to accomplish. Take the time to read the other articles in this feature because our modes put the meat on the bones of our principles.

And if you have any questions, we encourage you to contact us directly or post them on the discussion board. Our vision involves the whole body of believers and we are not fulfilling our calling if we cannot take you on this journey with us. This is our vision: that Christians are obediently growing and working together to provide positive, practical, and diverse leadership to a culture in which people are hungry for the grace of God and the mystery of the living Christ. Our time on earth prepares us to enjoy the perfection of heaven and we firmly believe that that perfection involves unity, learning, and service. Won't you join us as we discover together what these things mean?