The Millennium Matrix: Reclaiming the Past, Reframing the Future of the Church - Softcover

Miller, M. Rex

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1118602412 ISBN 13: 9781118602416

Publisher: Jossey-Bass, 2004

Synopsis

In this dynamic book, theologian, futurist, and communications expert M. Rex Miller presents the innovative millennium matrix, that explains the way we store and distribute information changes our worldviews. Based on the author's extensive research, The Millennium Matix explores the major paradigm and worldview shifts over the past two thousand years and maps them into an easily accessible chart summarizing the entire history of culture and church. From the oral culture of Jesus' time to the print world of Gutenberg's Bible to the broadcast era of television to the emerging digital culture, readers will see the impact of communication on worship and spirituality. Even more, the book then provides practical suggestions on how Christians can successfully navigate the rapid cultural changes that are occurring and that will continue to occur over the decades to come.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

“What happens when a mature Christian with a truly brilliant, active, fertile mind also has deep experience and broad knowledge of theology, philosophy, business, art, history, technology, spirituality, the local church, and future studies? You have the makings of a masterpiece . . . Rex Miller’s book will afflict the comfortable and stimulate, prod, challenge, and inspire innovators.”--Brian McLaren, pastor, author (anewkindofchristian.com), and fellow with Emergent (emergentvillage.com)

In this dynamic book, theologian, futurist, and communications expert M. Rex Miller presents the innovative millennium matrix, that explains the way we store and distribute information changes our worldviews. Based on the author’s extensive research, The Millennium Matix explores the major paradigm and worldview shifts over the past two thousand years and maps them into an easily accessible chart summarizing the entire history of culture and church. From the oral culture of Jesus’ time to the print world of Gutenberg’s Bible to the broadcast era of television to the emerging digital culture, readers will see the impact of communication on worship and spirituality. Even more, the book then provides practical suggestions on how Christians can successfully navigate the rapid cultural changes that are occurring and that will continue to occur over the decades to come.

The Millennium Matrix is a compelling framework that can be used to

• Understand the historical church in a new way.
• Recognize the root causes of many of the present conflicts that concern church leaders and use that knowledge to generate viable solutions.
• Bridge old barriers within the church and find common ground.
• Reclaim lost virtues that were once so vital in the expression of faith.
• Understand the shaping forces within the emerging medium of digital communication and create new cultural and organizational “design criteria” that fit the new realities.

“In the tradition of Marshall McLuhan and Neil Postman, Rex Miller shows how the Christian church, born in an oral culture, adapted first to print and then to broadcasting. . . . (then to) today’s emerging digital culture. The Millennium Matrix offers clarity and hope for our rapidly changing world.” --John P. Ferre, professor of communication, University of Louisville

From the Back Cover

"It was Leadership Network’s privilege to publish Rex Miller's ground-breaking millennium matrix diagram some years ago. The buzz, conversation, and questions that created have now been addressed in this eye-opening work."
—Bob Buford, founding chairman, Leadership Network, and author, Halftime: Changing Your Game Plan from Success to Significance

"The Millennium Matrix is not the kind of book you will read and put on the shelf. You will want to study it and come back to it again and again because it is a book that clarifies where the church has been, where it is now, and where it is headed. . . . It is a great read . . . an indispensable tool for ministry in these times of rapidly changing cultural patterns."
—Robert Webber, Myers professor of ministry, Northern Seminary

"The ideas that Miller is sharing in The Millennium Matrix will help leaders quickly synthesize a large body of history and prepare them as we move into an uncharted future. We need new models for our organizations, we need practical guides, and we need a conceptual context for understanding our current times. The Millennium Matrix provides these and will become an important reference manual to anyone serious in engaging the emerging culture."
—Mike Coleman, founder, president, and CEO, Integrity Communications

"Our world is literally being remade in the digital soup we inhabit. Yet so often, the Church feels as if it's not even inside the bowl. If you're tired of feeling like you just don't "get it". . . that every new program you create is destined for the trash heap in a few short months . . . The Millennium Matrix was written for you. Beyond a manufactured, reactionary approach to change, The Millennium Matrix provides leaders with a framework for understanding both the sweep of past eras and the complex, wondrous metamorphosis in process as we speak. An indispensable read."
—Sally Morgenthaler, founder, Sacramentis.com and Digital Glass Videos

Edition details

• Publisher: Jossey-Bass
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1118602412
• ISBN 13: 9781118602416
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 306