Erwin Raphael McManus
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Erwin Raphael McManus is the lead pastor and cultural architect of Mosaic, a Christian community in Los Angeles, California. A futurist and author, McManus was named by ChurchReport.com in January 2007 as one of the "50 Most Influential Christians in America." [1] McManus serves as both an inspirational and controversial figure in what is known as the emerging church movement.
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[edit] Biography
A native of El Salvador, and graduate of the University of North Carolina and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, McManus also serves as the lead pastor and cultural architect of the Mosaic community in Los Angeles.
He is the founder of Awaken[2], a collection of people from poets, artists, film and humanitarians whose stated goal is to "maximizing the divine potential" in every human being. [3]
McManus is also the author of An Unstoppable Force, a Gold Medallion Award finalist; Chasing Daylight; Uprising: A Revolution of the Soul (also companion The Uprising Experience life storyboard); The Barbarian Way; Stand Against the Wind, and Soul Cravings.
As Mosaic lead pastor, McManus speaks at four regular Sunday gatherings in Pasadena, Beverly Hills, and downtown Los Angeles. [4]
Speaking engagements have taken McManus to over 30 countries. [5] His work is featured in numerous films, articles, and magazines across the US and internationally. He partners with Bethel University as a distinguished lecturer and futurist.
McManus was employed in the late 1980s and early 1990s by the Southern Baptist Convention (Home Mission Board) to facilitate struggling churches in replacing "outdated" stagnant leadership teams with "younger" and "fresher" thinkers.
[edit] Controversy
Vehemently anti-religion, McManus states on the Mosaic website, "the greatest enemy to the movement of Jesus Christ is Christianity." [6] He believes that the Gospel message has been made irrelevant by Christian speak, or Christianese and consequently, that Christians have "lost touch with reality." [7] This stands in direct conflict with many other evangelical Christians who view God's word as absolute, believing the Gospel message should not be made relevant or reinvented to suit individual cultures. [8]
[edit] Family
He and his wife Kim have two children Aaron and Mariah and a foster daughter, Paty.
[edit] Books
- An Unstoppable Force (ISBN 0764423061)
- Seizing Your Divine Moment ~ re-released as Chasing Daylight (ISBN 0785264302)
- Uprising: A Revolution of the Soul (ISBN 0785264310)
- The Barbarian Way (ISBN 0785264329)
- Stand Against the Wind (ISBN 1404102965)
- Soul Cravings (ISBN 0785214941)
