A major theme of the book is an examination of the ways that each individual person, each organization and each society is driven by it's dominant "framing story." A framing story is a guiding principle that guides everything we think and do. In my own family, part of our story is that we are "outdoors people." I grew up along streams and lakes fishing with my father and grandfather in the spring and summer... and the stories told in the car while journeying to those places shaped who I am. The stories told and experiences shared with those men taught me respect for wildlife, good practices of care for the earth, and gave me a grateful appreciation for God's creative goodness and love. In retrospect, I am sure I learned as much about what it meant to be a human being, a Masland and a person of faith on those trips than anywhere else, even church! That framing story still shapes who I am to this day... how I treat people, how I view creation, and how I take care of myself on days off. Likewise, our corporate framing stories provide the same kind of guiding principles to us as groups of people.
In McLaren's words: "If our framing story is wise, strong, realistic, and constructive, it can send us on a hopeful trajectory. But, if our framing story is dysfunctional, weak, false, unrealistic or destructive, it can send us on a downward arc, a dangerous, high-speed joyride toward un-peace, un-health, un-prosperity and even un-life." (p.67)
He continues: "If our framing story tells us that we humans are god-like beings with god-like privileges... we will have no reason to live within limits, whether moral or ecological. Similarly, if it tells us that the purpose of life is for individuals or nations to accumulate an abundance of possessions and to experience the maximum amount of pleasure... during our lives, then we will have little reason to manage our consumption. If our framing story tells us that we are in life-and-death competition with each other, that only the fittest will survive, and that every species is in violent struggle to compete... then we will have little reason to seek reconciliation and collaboration and nonviolent resolutions to our conflicts.... But, if our framing story tells us that we are free and responsible creatures in a creation made by a good, wise, and loving God, and that our Creator wants us to pursue virtue, collaboration, peace and mutual care for one another and all living creatures, and that our lives will have profound meaning if we align ourselves with God's wisdom, character and dreams for us... then our society will take a radically different direction, and our world will become a radically different place."
What do you think about McLaren's idea of "framing stories"? Is he right about the power of our framing story to drive us in different directions? What do you believe is the dominant framing story in our culture? In your own individual life? In your church? And, how are these framing stories different from what you believe God has in mind for you/us.
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3 comments:
While I agree that our "framing story" impacts our lens for viewing our world, I see our framing story as fluid, not concrete. Events, people and places have impacted how we see, and we are constantly experiencing new events, people and places. Therefore our framing story may provide a groundwork, but as long as we are committed to learning, the story will not become statuc, thus forcing us to view our world through a limited lense.
I think it is very freeing to discuss the idea of framing stories. All of us have attitudes and behaviors that silently shape our lives, many of which are driven by the narratives that we hold inside of us. Too often, we are completely unaware (and thus uncritical) of the narratives that shape us. Christians, as a people who tell a lot of stories, need to be aware of and reclaim the power of the stories that shape us.
I believe our life has the ability to be what frames us; however, because I move and live in a way that is much different than how I was raised, I would like to point out that its not necessarily our past that frames us. I believe it was the Holy Spirit who framed me. And by that, I mean that for some reason unknown to me at the time when I grew up, I was open to listening to the beat of a different drum. Whereas, my brother and sister were not. I thus allowed something else to frame me. So yes, our past can frame us, but so can many other things. Some are born with an intrinsic desire to live something different - I saw this in several of the young adults I met in Africa. They don't know what is out there, but they know there is something better and THAT is what is framing their life...I would refer to that movement in the core of their being as the Holy Spirit.
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