Yesterday was interesting. And, not because anything out of the ordinary happened. I had lunch with the Rector of the church I’ve attended since September. But, before I left to meet Fr. Alex, I watched “Ghosts of Christmas Eve” with The Trans Siberian Orchestra. I really like TSO. Being a musician I appreciate what the arrangers did. Especially, since I cut my musical teeth on Prog Rock from the early 70s, the mash-up of classically inspired shredding guitars is a favorite. So, when the first scene opened I found it strange that my emotions began to surface. In fact, until late in the program it took a concerted effort to not sit there and bawl like a baby. Now, I’ve had music affect me emotionally before. Certain passages and sequences of notes charge me up. Chills and constricted arrector pili muscles appear on my arms. Yesterday was different, though. And, honestly, I have no clue why. The script and acting in the program were mediocre at best. Contrived and frivolous at worst. Was it simply the music? I don’t think so. The wave of emotion began well before the music really took off. Maybe, it was the idea of the young runaway spending Christmas Eve in a run down old theater. The old story goes that no one should be alone on Christmas. As I write this, I’m still not sure what the deal was. But, I’m kinda glad for it. It proves, once again, that I am not Mr. Spock. I do have emotions that surface and cause me to reflect. And, in spite of everything, I am connected to other people and the World at large in ways that are not always predictable. Maybe, that’s a good thing.
Today, as I sat quietly, I remembered how I felt Sunday morning. Emotions rose within me as I considered the injustice of the “ruling class.” I held back tears as my I saw those who live privileged lives ignoring the pleas of those that they consider “Other.” Especially, those who profess to have faith in God through Jesus Christ.
How can they just stand there and do nothing? Less than nothing!
They are complicit in moral crimes against their fellow travelers on this Third Rock from the Sun!
This morning I reflected on that a bit. I realized that my emotions, my tears were
not directed toward those who are the victims of injustice. They weren’t poured out
for the poor and the needy.
No.
My emotion was kindled by those who instigate the injustice. My tears shed because
of their unbelief and unfaithfulness.
How can people stand by and actually feel that they are justified in their injustice?
It’s truly quite easy. As long as I can feel good about ‘Me’ and ‘My’ accomplishments;
‘My faithfulness’ and ‘My exceptionalism,’ I can separate myself from those “Others” who
don’t quite match up to ‘Me.’
A couple was visiting New Orleans. As they walked around the French Quarter,
a woman, smiling, approached them and said that she could tell immediately that they were “saved.”
She continued, “Isn’t it wonderful? Don’t you just fell the Rapture is coming?” For the next several
Minutes the woman talked to them about growing tension in the Middle East that would
lead to the end of the world. At that time the ‘elect’ would be whisked away to heavenly
glory forever and ever.
Of course, this presupposes that there will by “Others” who will not be so fortunate.
How is it that this woman was apparently quite giddy about leaving most of humanity
behind while she and her like-minded friends would escape into the “Sweet By and By”?
And, I weep over her hardness of heart. Her uncaring attitude toward anyone and everyone
who doesn’t think and believe as she does.
Then, a couple other stories came to my mind.
In one, Jesus is standing on a hill looking over the city of Jerusalem. His heart, breaking with overwhelming emotion he said, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. “Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! “For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”
His lament was not for the victims of injustice. He shed no tears for the murdered prophets and those who were stoned to death.
No. His sorrow was directed at those who perpetrated the injustice…the murderers.
In another story, Jesus went to a village called Bethany. A few days earlier he had been informed that one of his dear friends was very ill. By the time he reached the village, his friend had died. The text indicates that Jesus was aware of the condition of his friend, Lazarus. He was even aware that the man had died. When Jesus reached the village, Lazarus’ sisters came to him and said, “If only You had been here, Lazarus would still be alive.” Jesus looked and saw all of the mourners who had come to console the sisters over their loss. Now, what’s interesting, is the writer made it very clear that Jesus knew what he was going to do. Jesus had even told his followers on the way that Lazarus had died. He told them that he was glad that he had not been there to heal Lazarus. It was better for them, “So that you may believe.” Even with this foreknowledge, the text states that when Jesus saw the mourners, when he listened to the sisters as they knelt tearfully before him, the writer recorded these words…
“Jesus was troubled.”
The language that was used indicates that Jesus was “agitated; in great distress.” That his emotions were “stirred up.” This was followed by the shortest verse in the entire Bible,
“Jesus wept.”
The only record of Jesus shedding tears.
“Jesus wept.”
But, why? The mourners all thought it was because of Jesus’ great love for Lazarus. They thought that, like them, Jesus was moved with sorrow for the loss of his friend. For the loss of a brother. That doesn’t make sense to me. Jesus knew what had happened and what he was going to do. Why did he weep? I think it was because of the unbelief of those gathered. Jesus had performed many miracles in and around Jerusalem. Many of these people were witnesses. For sure, the sisters were. Yet, they still did not believe. They did not have faith.
“Jesus wept.”
The only two times where it was recorded that Jesus wept or lamented there were people who lacked lacked faith or who were faithless. He did not lament the prophets. He did not weep for Lazarus. So, I weep. Not for those trying to escape death by journeying a thousand miles to seek refuge at our border. Nor, do I weep for the millions of people who may find their health care plans eliminated. I don’t shed tears for those trapped in addictions or who struggle with the fact that their own brain is their worst enemy. My tears…my lament…are offered for those in power, for those who aren’t trapped in systems that dehumanize and degrade them. I weep for those who can make a difference. Yet, choose not to.
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“Star Wars – A New Hope.”
Remember that?
It was called Part IV.
Part 4? We didn’t have Part 3, yet!
(Or, parts 1 & 2).
Interesting place to start a story. Right in the middle.
But, I digress.
I do want to touch on the idea of a “New Hope,” though.
In recent posts I was pretty hard on most organized religion. Especially, Evangelicalism. That’s where I came from, so I’m most familiar with it. But, I don’t want to leave everything up in the air. There must be a better way to live and express the Faith that has been passed on from the beginning.
Many, (most?), have tried to box faith up in some kind of systematic way. People pore over the ancient texts trying to find common thoughts and ideas. They look for patterns of behavior in the characters who live within the pages. They try to separate the “Do’s” from the “Don’t’s.” Then, they package it up nicely and place a bow on top. This System is then presented to the faithful as the True way to Truly live Truthfully. What this ‘truly’does is enable people to do something, then pat themselves on the back for having done…it…whatever ‘It’ is.
I think that this process skews the truth rather than revealing it. It distills the Truth into bite-sized bits that people can munch on. But, in truth, it dilutes the Truth rendering it pretty much useless.
I share all of that so that maybe I can offer an alternative.
DISCLAIMER: I really don’t know anything. I just want to toss this out there for consideration.
Ok, back to the alternative.
A couple of weeks back I wrote a kind of self-portrait in my journal how I felt that I had become hard. Descriptors like ‘granite’and ‘ice’ came to mind. I reflected on how I had built walls to keep people out. The walls had parapets from which I could cast down rocks and burning oil to keep folks away. After all, weren’t they all foreigners? Invaders? Enemies who desired to suck my life from me. Then…
“Take, eat. This is my body broken for you.”
“Take, drink. This is my blood poured out for you.”
WHAT?!
What kind of nonsense is that? That’s what Jesus said before He was crucified! What does that have to do with me?
I sat on that. Reflected on that. Chewed on that like a cow chews on cud.
I began to realize that as a person called to follow Jesus, I shouldn’t be surprised by the thought of self-giving. After all, isn’t that what God did?
“Take, eat.”
But, God?
“Take, drink.”
Really?
As Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem for the last time, he took the Twelve aside to tell them for the third and final time what was going to happen. He said to them, “We are going up to Jerusalem.” Previously, Jesus had only told them that “He” was going to Jerusalem. Now, he said, “We.”
“We are going to Jerusalem where I will be mocked and whipped and crucified.”
The story continues and Jesus promises two of his disciples that they, too, will share the cup that he was about to drink.
Where am I going with this?
The Church has created a place where people can feel good about themselves. We are glad to be a part of the ‘chosen few.’ We look forward to living forever, resurrected to new life. Yet, we forget that we have been asked to walk with Jesus to the bitter end.
“Take, eat. This is my body broken for you.”
Not just Jesus’ offering. It must be mine as well.
“Take, drink. This is my blood poured out for you.”
Jesus blood gives life. So, then, should mine.
This is the better way. This is not a ‘System’ that people can follow and feel good about themselves. There is certainly no “Us” or “Them” here. This is how granite is crushed and ice melted.
As I sat in silence this morning I saw an image of the president of the U.S. standing in the rain praising a ruling by a judge in Texas that states that the Affordable Care Act, the so-called “Obama Care,” is unconstitutional. My mind showed me the many people, conservatives, who have spent the last several years trying undo this simple act to help people who desperately need the help. I asked Why? Why do these people work so hard in order to hurt others? As my thoughts took wing, I looked down on the people lined up at our borders. Why are the institutions that we have created trying so hard to hurt others? I saw the poor in other countries with no clean water or consistent food source. Why are those governments not helping their own people? They only heap up riches and power for themselves. I considered the so-called religious of our culture. What are they doing? After all, aren’t they all followers of Jesus? Who was this Jesus? “Behold, the Kingdom of God is near!” he said. Yeah? Where? Because, I’m not seein’ it. I’m not seein’ it at all.
“How long, O Lord?” People have said this simple prayer for thousands of years.
“How long, O Lord?” Will You wait? Will You allow injustice? Until You uphold the widow? The orphan? The stranger?
“How long, O Lord?” Our governments are corrupt. Our leaders care only about their own power and prestige. They abuse those that they have been called on to serve.
“How long, O Lord?” The institutions that are established suffer from rot. They care only about surviving. They care not a whit for those that put their trust in them.
“How long, O Lord?” The systems that prevail over all things are altogether corrupt. Racism, sexism, corporations…all tools of the powerful against Everyone Else.
“How long, O Lord?” Atheists trust in knowledge and humanity’s ability to grow. They trust in the wind. Progressive Christians trust in humanity’s ability to usher in the Kingdom of God. How many centuries ago was this proven to be folly? Evangelicals. Well, they are just dangerous. They hide behind their faux faith and Like the Pharisees of old, “do not enter the Kingdom and prevent others from doing so. Rome is altogether corrupt. Self-seeking old men who crave honor, prestige, and power. Yet, they have castrated themselves and are now impotent. Orthodox seek God in Spirit and Truth. Yet, they do nothing for anyone outside of their own cloisters and cathedrals.
“How long, O Lord?” Martin hoped that the arc of history would bend toward justice. I don’t see it.
This past week was hard. I wrote and posted some pretty harsh words. The topics engender my ire and stoke my passion. Injustice and hatred have always been triggers for me. The issues that I wrote about are absolutely links in chains that bind many, many people. I would love to see those links broken, lying on the ground in pieces. So, I write about them hoping that my words may enlighten and encourage others who struggle, as I have. There are other links and other chains, though, that are just as binding. These are ones that bind us to a particular path in life. They hold us fast to iron fixtures that are fastened to the cold, stone of dungeon prisons. We all have them. They are made up of the expectations that we, and others, have piled on us over the years. The lost or missed opportunities to pursue our dreams are the bolts that secure the chain. Words that may have been meant to guide, yet became the shackles that have held us fast, unable to move. When I was young I remember wanting to make things that people liked. I drew pictures. I made up songs and dances. I was a kid! And, kids do these things as expressions of what they are learning. We all wanted our productions, our ‘art,’ to be accepted. How many of us who drew a picture that our mom or dad just gushed praise on said, “Here! Wait! I’ll do another one!” Then we ran off to our paper and crayons and instantly produced another masterpiece. Just walk into any American home today where young children live and take a look at the refrigerator. Most will have all kinds of magnets that secure the work of a budding Renoir or, maybe better, a young Picasso. “Here! Look what I made!” We grow older, but the desire to create things that please oneself and others is still there. We just choose other ways of expressing that creativity. For me, it was music. I was blessed, (cursed?), to grow up when rock was young. Bands like The Beatles and Jan & Dean were popping up all over. Folk music was at the pinnacle of its popularity. I remember standing in our living room with The New Christy Minstrels playing “Green, Green” on our mono record player while holding a tennis racket like a guitar. Yep! The beginnings of air guitar right there. My parents thought that I might like learning how to play the real thing. So, at 9 years old, I was presented with my first instrument. I don’t remember the brand. I just remember that it was a big old acoustic with a warped neck. I couldn’t even press the string to the fretboard past the third fret. But, it was mine! My dad signed me up for lessons at a local music store. “Gardner’s Academy of Music.” My teacher was the owner. King Gardner. He was an older guy, thinning hair and a mustache. After taking lessons for a while it became apparent that the instrument I had was woefully inadequate. So, my dad parted with $80 to buy me a red sunburst Harmony Rocket. Wow! My first electric guitar! King also sold us the small Danelectro amp that we used in his studio. I was set. Watch out world! Here I come! I joined my first band when I was 12. We knew, I don’t know, about 8 songs. But, that was enough to play parties and some dances. And, if nothing else, we were loud! I continued to play and learn. At one point I spent about 8 hours everyday practicing. I walked around thinking guitar and playing air guitar. My dad used to chide me, “What? Are you afflicted? One hand waving in the air and the other scratching your navel.” Soon, though, reality began to set in. At least for those people who knew better. My parents began to press me toward learning something that I could actually make a “real” living at. Aunts and Uncles soon joined that chorus. I had to listen. They were older and wiser that I was. “You can have it as a hobby, of course. But, you’ll never make a living doing that.” Ok. I kept playing in small bands on weekends. It was fun, I guess. But, the joy of discovery and forging a new path in the Unknown was gone. What had once been a fiery passion had now been tamed. As B. B. King once sang, “The Thrill is Gone.” Of course, his song was about a relationship between two people. It was still fitting for me, though. A link was forged. The chain made longer…heavier. I share this because I think that we all have similar experiences. We find something that fires our passions. We find joy, love, acceptance, and accomplishment. Then, someone comes along and says, “Well, that’s real nice and all. But, it’s not real.” Or, “That thing will never fly, Orville.” Over years we listen to these voices. Many times, perhaps most, it’s our own voice telling us these things. We become so conditioned to what’s right or acceptable that we learn that language and speak it to ourselves. I don’t know. I’m just rambling. Maybe, it’s the time of year. Maybe, it’s the time of life. They say we can never go back. And, they’re right. But, maybe we can start something new. Maybe there’s still hope for that child who was so full of wonder and delight to poke an impish face around that corner and say,
Ok, I’ve been a bit hard on Evangelicalism recently. And, with good reason. The theology that this particular brand of Christianity preaches is toxic. Like I wrote yesterday, Evangelical theology is rotten. The whole root is rotten. It needs to be yanked out of the ground and burned on the garbage heap.
That being said, I really need my readers who are Evangelical to know that I don’t begrudge them their faith. I wrote yesterday that these folks really desire to follow Jesus faithfully. But, I don’t believe that they are being given that chance. They are locked into a system that cannot accept any kind of question or dissent. For Evangelicalism to survive it must enforce a “my way or the highway” mentality.
It’s very clear that many religions deal in binaries. That is, everything is either right or wrong; black or white; good or bad. That’s the primary way in which they determine who is in and who is out. (Another binary.) Perhaps more importantly, these binaries assure ME that I am right. Evangelicalism provides this kind of hope to its adherents. By making a “decision” to “commit my life to Jesus” and be “born again,” I place myself on the “right” side rather than the “wrong” one.
And, this produces a real feeling of security for a person. It allows them to see themselves as part of a large family.
It also places them within a theocratic bubble.
A line is drawn that separates my new family from everyone who is NOT a member of that family.
This is problematic. Mostly because, unlike Paul Simon’s wish to be a Rock or an Island, humans are not isolated like that. We are all members of humanity first and foremost. That, my friends, isn’t wishful thinking. It’s an empirical fact. So, even if Evangelicalism provides a mechanism to divide Us from Them, this is at best a false dichotomy. People become lulled into thinking that all the stuff that those people “out there” are part of or produce is somehow tainted. “We can’t be a part of that!”they say. Or, “Those products are part of that world. We can’t use them! Let’s make our own!”
Walls go up. Divisions become set in stone. Dislike and disdain grow steadily until their natural fruit, “Hatred,” is ripe.
I hope that you can see where I’m going with this. Evangelicals are all good, well-meaning people. But, they have been duped into believing a false narrative that positions them in opposition to EVERYTHING ELSE!
This is not the Way of Christ. Never has been; Never will be.
The Way of Christ is one where the playing field is level. There is not male or female; slave or free; black or white; gay or straight; us or them. There isn’t. There just isn’t.
It’s wrong whenever people build walls to keep the ‘Other’
out.
It’s especially egregious when they use God as the mortar to build those walls.
That is exactly what Evangelicalism does. It is Evangelicalism’s only raison d’être. It’s sole purpose to exist. From the beginning this theology was designed to separate people. It is past time to put a stake in it and move on to a better Way.
When I was in seminary at Ashland Theological Seminary working toward an M. Div., I wrote a paper for Church History on Erasmus. Before then, I had never heard of the man. But, at that time there were a lot of things I didn’t know. (That’s not to say that I know much of anything now.)
For me, Erasmus became a hero of sorts. He was the first person at the time to show the importance of studying the original Greek texts of the Scripture. He was a true ‘Humanist’ at that time. That word meant something much different than it does today. In the 16th century, a humanist was a person who sought to get back to roots. So, for Erasmus, that meant a return to the teachings of the Church Fathers and original texts.
I remember sitting in a church service and the person who was speaking bad-rapped Erasmus. He was an ignorant twit who had never met Erasmus. But, I digress. Enjoy this post be Brian Zahnd and,
Here is an excerpt from a book by Brian Zahnd. Sinners in the Hands of a Loving God. I have not read the book. Zahnd did share one chapter that I have read. It follows on what I shared here yesterday and today. The God I follow is not the judgemental, hateful god of fundamentalist evangelicals, (fundagelicals for short). The God I have committed to follow is One Whose name is Love. Period.
“Insisting that Abraham Joshua Heschel, Anne Frank, Albert Einstein, and all other Jews are condemned to hell is an arrogant and malevolent doctrine that is responsible for the creation of countless atheists. I am sympathetic with the atheist who cannot believe in a god who is so petty and cruel that he defends his so-called honor by torturing billions of souls for eternity. I don’t believe in that god either. But I’m no atheist. I believe in the God who is the Father of Jesus and who relates to sinners in the very same way that Jesus did. I believe in the God revealed in Christ, the heaven-sent Savior who harrows hell to rescue sinners…sinners like me.”
Yesterday I wrote a piece about how Evangelicals embrace something called Penal Substitution. They believe that this is foundational for the Real True Gospel, (RTG). I also said that along the way people who really don’t care about religion or theology would be able to take from it. After all,who really does care what a bunch of religious folks think? As long as it doesn’t affect me, let them believe whatever nonsense they want.
Ok, fair enough.
In 2016 a person was elected president of the U.S.This person is at best unqualified for the office. At worst, he’s a danger to the Republic. How did this happen? Social scientists, anthropologists, news pundits…everyone has a theory. And, they all make sense.
One thing, though, that sometimes gets overlooked is that 81% of White Evangelical Christians voted for this person.
Eighty-one Percent!!!
And, some recent polls indicate that support has remained at or near that level throughout the last two years.
How is that possible? Seriously. How can an entire demographic that has historically touted its moral superiority over the immorality of “the world” support a known liar, adulterer, womanizer, misogynist, thrice married, ignorant buffoon? It boggles the mind.
Unless…unless you understand the Evangelical mindset.
The simple answer is a single issue.
Abortion.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Evangelical position swung from being OK with abortion to one of vicious opposition. That one issue became the rallying cry for all who followed the likes of Pat Robertson and,especially, Jerry Falwell, Sr. So loud was the cry that the Christian Right made it the litmus test for any political candidate. If a candidate’s platform included the words, “anti-abortion,” then they were a good choice.
The Republican Party sensed that and made abortion a part of the party platform. Now, when Evangelicals went to the polls their decision was made easy. Vote Republican! Easy-peasy!
So, when the current president embraced the Republican platform, including the anti-abortion plank, Evangelicals saw their savior.
Ok, that’s the simple answer.
But, it’s not the only or even best answer.
To find that we need to look deeper into the heart of Evangelicalism.
Yesterday I wrote that many in the Evangelical camp sincerely believe that God is so Just that it’s impossible for God to be in the same room as sin. (Whatever that is.) In fact, God hates sin, and by extension, those who practice sin. Hate, hate, hate! Over time this has been hardwired into the hearts of the faithful.
God Hates!
This has enabled those who embrace this picture of God to also hate. They, by Divine example, now have a binary that they can follow. They can know in their knowers that they are righteous and oh so good with confidence. There is a line. On one side the righteous followers of God; on the other is Everyone Else. There is no gray.Everything is black and white. They can even go to their Holy Book and find all sorts of texts to prove just how righteous they are and how worthy of their hate everyone else is.
This is where the danger lies for us and for the world. By dividing everything and everyone into Us and Them they can in all good faith destroy what they don’t like or agree with and tell themselves, “Well, it’s what God wants us to do.”
Are you reading this starting to see the picture form?
Evangelicals in the U.S.have and agenda. And, it’s not simply a religious agenda. It is entirely political. Falwell and friends decided that there could be a political solution to a very Spiritual issue. Their Evangelical followers then sold their collective soul to the devil in order to see their twisted and misguided theology become a physical reality.
The U.S.,to them, was a Christian nation that they could reclaim and, through political means, force their idea of God and righteousness on everyone. (This is the main reason that I think that Mike Pence is more dangerous than our current president.)
Now, I admit that this is an oversimplification of a very complex issue. Evangelicals are not monolithic. There are sincerely faithful people who hold to the tenets of historical Evangelicalism. I know many personally. They are good people who really want to follow Jesus faithfully.
But, the truth of the matter seems to be that the root of Evangelicalism that has been passed along from the First Great Awakening until now is rotten. It has grown into a macabre caricature of the Church that started as a result of Jesus Christ’s life.
It is dangerous.
It is foul.
It must be resisted at every front vigorously.
Hopefully, this is something that you can take home with you.
