I’m an Episcopalian with a Seventh-day Adventist background. Most of the time, I attend a Lutheran church because it’s closer to my home. Occasionally I am a guest preacher at the Presbyterian Church in town when their pastor is away.
I teach world religions at a Roman Catholic college, and recently I was invited to make a presentation on Islam for the local Unitarian Universalist Church. Next year, in early spring, I will be doing a series of three meetings at another church on American denominations.
I’m not a gadfly or church shopper. I like being an Episcopalian. I find theological breathing room in the Episcopal Church. I find a lot of nonsense, too. But isn’t there nonsense in every church? There’s Lutheran and Presbyterian nonsense, Catholic nonsense, Methodist nonsense, Baptist nonsense, evangelical and fundamentalist nonsense, and on and on.
Every church has nonsense in it.
When I teach world religions, I tell the students that no one can swallow any religious tradition whole. We all pick and choose what makes sense to us while filtering out the nonsense, usually by ignoring it. I don’t believe that most people care all that much about theology. Most church members are not theologically astute and do not read theological books. Most people do not join a church because they’ve studied its theology in detail and worked through all the thorny issues.
No, we cannot swallow any religious tradition whole. We all pick and choose what matters most to us, and let the rest roll off.
The Lutheran Church I occasionally attend has great doughnuts and coffee between worship services. I have some wonderful conversations with people. It’s fun. It’s part of Christian fellowship and community and a sense of belonging. People don’t believe in order to belong; they belong in order to believe. It’s like St. Anselm said: “Theology is faith seeking understanding.”
Perhaps the pattern is this: Belonging-Faith-Understanding. And as we mature in faith, we are better able to sort through everything and filter out the nonsense.
October 30, 2011
October 13, 2011
The Fear-Based Rhetoric of Robert Jeffress & Co.
According to Pastor Robert Jeffress, Mormonism is a cult, Islam, Hindusim, and Buddhism are “false religions,” and the Roman Catholic Church came out of paganism. Members of his Dallas congregation clap when he says these things.
Jeffress has been pounding his chest recently and asserting a triumphalistic theology rooted, I believe, in fear. He supports Rick Perry and has urged evangelical Christians to vote for Perry, not the Mormon, Mitt Romney.
Jeffress is a Southern Baptist preacher. I wish he could visit my World Religions class sometime and learn something. I wish he could visit the many Christian churches that hold classes on the non-Christian religions in order to learn something. But pastors like Jeffress are more committed to fear-based rhetoric than learning something.
Peel back the onion of the conservative Christian rhetoric and you will find fear. Fear of gays, fear of women, fear of Obama, fear of liberals, fear of Mormons, and fear of the non-Christian religions. It’s all about fear.
The fear is usually masked by chest-pounding. The more fear, the louder these preachers shout. It’s an embattled spirituality that is reacting to a world that has passed them by. The Religious Right wants to “take back America.” What this means is they want to remake America into the image of their fear-based, dogmatic theology.
It won’t work. The majority of us don’t live there, and we don’t want to. To affirm the narrow worldview of Pastor Robert Jeffress is to take a huge step backwards and relive the religious ignorance and bigotry of a former age.
Furthermore, Mormons and non-Christians aren’t going away. They are all here to stay. It’s time to stop the fear-based rhetoric and learn something.
Jeffress has been pounding his chest recently and asserting a triumphalistic theology rooted, I believe, in fear. He supports Rick Perry and has urged evangelical Christians to vote for Perry, not the Mormon, Mitt Romney.
Jeffress is a Southern Baptist preacher. I wish he could visit my World Religions class sometime and learn something. I wish he could visit the many Christian churches that hold classes on the non-Christian religions in order to learn something. But pastors like Jeffress are more committed to fear-based rhetoric than learning something.
Peel back the onion of the conservative Christian rhetoric and you will find fear. Fear of gays, fear of women, fear of Obama, fear of liberals, fear of Mormons, and fear of the non-Christian religions. It’s all about fear.
The fear is usually masked by chest-pounding. The more fear, the louder these preachers shout. It’s an embattled spirituality that is reacting to a world that has passed them by. The Religious Right wants to “take back America.” What this means is they want to remake America into the image of their fear-based, dogmatic theology.
It won’t work. The majority of us don’t live there, and we don’t want to. To affirm the narrow worldview of Pastor Robert Jeffress is to take a huge step backwards and relive the religious ignorance and bigotry of a former age.
Furthermore, Mormons and non-Christians aren’t going away. They are all here to stay. It’s time to stop the fear-based rhetoric and learn something.
May 17, 2011
Great Personalities and Christian Theology
Great and gifted personalities arise throughout history. Their influence is so powerful they cannot be ignored.
In Christian theology we think of the Apostle Paul, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Friedrich Schleiermacher, Karl Barth, and Karl Rahner. The Christian tradition has been shaped by these men, all of whom viewed theology as the servant of the church. All of them attempted in one way or another to interpret the content of the Christian faith for their times. None of them arrived at truth without a personal struggle. A number of them were criticized severely and thought to be heretics.
And all of them are now dead, but their influence is still with us. Anyone seriously studying the history of Christian thought must pass through these personalities.
Theology doesn’t stand still. Christian theology is reflection on a living faith. It cannot afford to become brittle. Dogmas and doctrines can be outgrown, but Christ still remains. If Christian theology is the intellect applied to Christian beliefs and behavior, it must keep pace with every new generation, everything, in other words, that has to do with being “human.”
Jesus said the wise householder brings out of his treasure things both old and new (Matt 13:51-53). This is the task of theology—to reappraise the old in light of the new and to interpret the new in light of the old. What makes great theologians “great” is their creative power to reconstruct and reinterpret the Christian faith for their generation. This is why the task of theology moves on, synthesizing the old and the new, critiquing the tradition, formulating new approaches, and so forth.
Yet through it all, Christian theology is committed to the redeeming work of Jesus Christ as it is remembered, proclaimed, and lived in and through the church and in the lives of Christians. One could argue that all Christian theology is reflection on John 1:14: “The Word became flesh and lived among us.” Christian theology is Christology, no matter what topic is being discussed. Jesus of Nazareth—his person and work—is the normative center of Christian living, the church, and theology.
In the end, it really is about God’s self-disclosure through Jesus, and what this means for us and for the world.
In Christian theology we think of the Apostle Paul, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Friedrich Schleiermacher, Karl Barth, and Karl Rahner. The Christian tradition has been shaped by these men, all of whom viewed theology as the servant of the church. All of them attempted in one way or another to interpret the content of the Christian faith for their times. None of them arrived at truth without a personal struggle. A number of them were criticized severely and thought to be heretics.
And all of them are now dead, but their influence is still with us. Anyone seriously studying the history of Christian thought must pass through these personalities.
Theology doesn’t stand still. Christian theology is reflection on a living faith. It cannot afford to become brittle. Dogmas and doctrines can be outgrown, but Christ still remains. If Christian theology is the intellect applied to Christian beliefs and behavior, it must keep pace with every new generation, everything, in other words, that has to do with being “human.”
Jesus said the wise householder brings out of his treasure things both old and new (Matt 13:51-53). This is the task of theology—to reappraise the old in light of the new and to interpret the new in light of the old. What makes great theologians “great” is their creative power to reconstruct and reinterpret the Christian faith for their generation. This is why the task of theology moves on, synthesizing the old and the new, critiquing the tradition, formulating new approaches, and so forth.
Yet through it all, Christian theology is committed to the redeeming work of Jesus Christ as it is remembered, proclaimed, and lived in and through the church and in the lives of Christians. One could argue that all Christian theology is reflection on John 1:14: “The Word became flesh and lived among us.” Christian theology is Christology, no matter what topic is being discussed. Jesus of Nazareth—his person and work—is the normative center of Christian living, the church, and theology.
In the end, it really is about God’s self-disclosure through Jesus, and what this means for us and for the world.
April 28, 2011
Welcome to the Yellow Pages . . . and religion
The Yellow Pages of the phone book reflect the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century. If one flips to the “Churches” section, one should be prepared for confusion. The confusion of the Reformation lives on.
Where did all these churches and sects come from? They came primarily from the Protestant Reformation. That is when Europe blew up. When all the pieces finally landed, tens of thousands of people had died, incredible suffering had taken place, church creeds and confessions had arisen, political boundaries had been altered, and Protestantism was an international patchwork of churches competing with each other and maintaining their identities distinct from the Roman Catholic Church.
Whoever thinks the Protestant Reformation was a small blip on the screen of European and North American history, does not understand history.
In sixteenth century Europe, a person could be killed for not believing in the Trinity, for attending a Catholic mass, or for reading an English Bible. In France, the Psalms were set to music by Protestants; French Protestants went to the stake singing the psalms, which is why their tongues were first cut out.
William Tyndale was burned at the stake for translating the Bible into English. Sir Thomas More was beheaded for siding with the Catholic Church instead of King Henry VIII.
Anabaptists were drowned for their belief in baptism by immersion and their rejection of infant baptism. In some Protestant cities, people were fined or imprisoned for skipping a church service. That’s how things were back then. There was no “separation of church and state.” Religion was political and politics were always caught up in religion.
There was constant war. The wars didn’t end until 1648, when an exhausted Europe agreed to a ceasefire and Protestants and Catholics agreed to disagree without budging an inch on their different beliefs. There was no reconciliation. By that time, Protestants were fleeing to America and bringing their divisions with them.
Welcome to the Yellow Pages!
We take religious freedom for granted; we shouldn’t. If you own a Bible, remember that its pages are soaked in blood. Next time you read the Psalms, remember those French Protestants. Next time you attend a Catholic mass, remember the Catholics in sixteenth century England, rescuing priests on the run… when Catholicism was illegal.
Where did all these churches and sects come from? They came primarily from the Protestant Reformation. That is when Europe blew up. When all the pieces finally landed, tens of thousands of people had died, incredible suffering had taken place, church creeds and confessions had arisen, political boundaries had been altered, and Protestantism was an international patchwork of churches competing with each other and maintaining their identities distinct from the Roman Catholic Church.
Whoever thinks the Protestant Reformation was a small blip on the screen of European and North American history, does not understand history.
In sixteenth century Europe, a person could be killed for not believing in the Trinity, for attending a Catholic mass, or for reading an English Bible. In France, the Psalms were set to music by Protestants; French Protestants went to the stake singing the psalms, which is why their tongues were first cut out.
William Tyndale was burned at the stake for translating the Bible into English. Sir Thomas More was beheaded for siding with the Catholic Church instead of King Henry VIII.
Anabaptists were drowned for their belief in baptism by immersion and their rejection of infant baptism. In some Protestant cities, people were fined or imprisoned for skipping a church service. That’s how things were back then. There was no “separation of church and state.” Religion was political and politics were always caught up in religion.
There was constant war. The wars didn’t end until 1648, when an exhausted Europe agreed to a ceasefire and Protestants and Catholics agreed to disagree without budging an inch on their different beliefs. There was no reconciliation. By that time, Protestants were fleeing to America and bringing their divisions with them.
Welcome to the Yellow Pages!
We take religious freedom for granted; we shouldn’t. If you own a Bible, remember that its pages are soaked in blood. Next time you read the Psalms, remember those French Protestants. Next time you attend a Catholic mass, remember the Catholics in sixteenth century England, rescuing priests on the run… when Catholicism was illegal.
April 22, 2011
Good Friday and the God who can be trusted
After Gethsemane, Jesus walked to the cross a free man. So it is with us when we finally come to terms with “necessary losses.”
Jesus came to terms with the death of a dream, the dream that somehow the kingdom of God would come and Israel would repent and everyone would live happily ever after. This was not to be. The night in Gethsemane made this perfectly clear. He would die, and Israel would not live happily ever after.
But Jesus accepted this as God’s will. He put his trust in the God who can be trusted to bring new life out of death, new life from our crucified dreams.
Jesus walked to the cross a free man because he trusted the God who can be trusted in life and in death—even beyond death.
For the past two years I’ve been managing the estate of my deceased parents. At times it has felt like a two-year long Good Friday, without an Easter! I am so ready now for Resurrection that I can taste it. Even the pain of letting go gets old after a while. We get tired of wrestling with “letting go” and realize it’s time to move on.
Good Friday is about facing the stark reality of loss and letting go. It is about the death of a dream that perhaps never had a chance to survive in the first place. There was no way, for example, that Israel was ever going to repent and receive Jesus as the Messiah. That dream never had a chance.
And sometimes there is no way that some of our wants and needs will ever survive. Grief is the seasoning of daily life. Necessary losses are a part of life. But so is hope, as long as we trust the God who can be trusted to bring new life out of death.
The “genius” of Christianity is this core theme of death-resurrection. It reverberates throughout the life of Jesus. It is why, despite all our losses and the ongoing death of our dreams, we can walk into the future as free people. We can face losses as free people, unsaddled, unshackled, ready to let go our grip on things because we are in God’s loving grasp—no matter what.
We can trust, like Jesus, the God who can be trusted.
Jesus came to terms with the death of a dream, the dream that somehow the kingdom of God would come and Israel would repent and everyone would live happily ever after. This was not to be. The night in Gethsemane made this perfectly clear. He would die, and Israel would not live happily ever after.
But Jesus accepted this as God’s will. He put his trust in the God who can be trusted to bring new life out of death, new life from our crucified dreams.
Jesus walked to the cross a free man because he trusted the God who can be trusted in life and in death—even beyond death.
For the past two years I’ve been managing the estate of my deceased parents. At times it has felt like a two-year long Good Friday, without an Easter! I am so ready now for Resurrection that I can taste it. Even the pain of letting go gets old after a while. We get tired of wrestling with “letting go” and realize it’s time to move on.
Good Friday is about facing the stark reality of loss and letting go. It is about the death of a dream that perhaps never had a chance to survive in the first place. There was no way, for example, that Israel was ever going to repent and receive Jesus as the Messiah. That dream never had a chance.
And sometimes there is no way that some of our wants and needs will ever survive. Grief is the seasoning of daily life. Necessary losses are a part of life. But so is hope, as long as we trust the God who can be trusted to bring new life out of death.
The “genius” of Christianity is this core theme of death-resurrection. It reverberates throughout the life of Jesus. It is why, despite all our losses and the ongoing death of our dreams, we can walk into the future as free people. We can face losses as free people, unsaddled, unshackled, ready to let go our grip on things because we are in God’s loving grasp—no matter what.
We can trust, like Jesus, the God who can be trusted.
April 8, 2011
Why “the separation of church and state” is good for religion
I do not believe that religion is self-regulating or tolerant regarding social power unless constrained by democratic mechanisms based on liberty, equality, due process, human rights, and social justice. Without these values and principles, we might still be killing each other in the name of God.
For example, the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century never arrived at a consensus on the issue of church and state. Many people died on the battlefield of church/state relations.
Ironically, the Reformation unintentionally contributed to toleration. Religious wars and cruel bloodshed proved that religion could not manage itself. The different Christian churches and sects, if allowed to, would destroy each other for the sake of their “truth.”
A couple of hundred years later, “the separation of church and state” appeared to be the best guarantee of both religious toleration and social order. Unfortunately, religion has not demonstrated that it can handle unchecked social power without becoming intolerant and totalitarian.
If I were to begin building a social order from scratch, I would not put religion in charge. Religion would have a place, but it would not be in charge. This, to me, is the meaning of “the separation of church and state.”
This is actually good for religion. It is not good for religion to have the state meddling in its affairs. It is not good for religion to be ruled by secular politicians. It is not good for religion to be co-opted to the secular powers. It is not good for religion to be an arm of the government. It is not good for religion to be manipulated and exploited by policy makers. It is not good for religion to depend on the state to enforce its beliefs and rituals on others. In order to maintain its integrity, religion must remain free of state control.
Religion at its best should be a prophetic voice calling all governments to account to a transcendent moral standard. This is the prophetic role of religion. It speaks out against injustice, it calls into question blind nationalism, and it challenges economic policies and militarism.
Religion should speak out on behalf of the poor, the vulnerable, the needy, and the oppressed. Religion should take a stand for a transcendent order and a moral law grounded in God. It should stand in judgment of all governments and worship none. When religion does this, it is fulfilling its main function in relation to the state. But religion cannot do this apart from the separation of church and state.
For example, the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century never arrived at a consensus on the issue of church and state. Many people died on the battlefield of church/state relations.
Ironically, the Reformation unintentionally contributed to toleration. Religious wars and cruel bloodshed proved that religion could not manage itself. The different Christian churches and sects, if allowed to, would destroy each other for the sake of their “truth.”
A couple of hundred years later, “the separation of church and state” appeared to be the best guarantee of both religious toleration and social order. Unfortunately, religion has not demonstrated that it can handle unchecked social power without becoming intolerant and totalitarian.
If I were to begin building a social order from scratch, I would not put religion in charge. Religion would have a place, but it would not be in charge. This, to me, is the meaning of “the separation of church and state.”
This is actually good for religion. It is not good for religion to have the state meddling in its affairs. It is not good for religion to be ruled by secular politicians. It is not good for religion to be co-opted to the secular powers. It is not good for religion to be an arm of the government. It is not good for religion to be manipulated and exploited by policy makers. It is not good for religion to depend on the state to enforce its beliefs and rituals on others. In order to maintain its integrity, religion must remain free of state control.
Religion at its best should be a prophetic voice calling all governments to account to a transcendent moral standard. This is the prophetic role of religion. It speaks out against injustice, it calls into question blind nationalism, and it challenges economic policies and militarism.
Religion should speak out on behalf of the poor, the vulnerable, the needy, and the oppressed. Religion should take a stand for a transcendent order and a moral law grounded in God. It should stand in judgment of all governments and worship none. When religion does this, it is fulfilling its main function in relation to the state. But religion cannot do this apart from the separation of church and state.
March 19, 2011
Crisis fatigue and the NCAA basketball tournament
Now and then we all need a mental break from the stress of life. In our imperfect world, imperfection rambles on day after day, problem after problem, one crisis following another. Even Jesus said to his disciples, “Come apart and rest a while.” He himself would disappear from time to time and no one knew where he was. Even Jesus needed a break!
This past week our news has been full of Japan’s disaster, Libya’s war, and more arguing about budgets and unions and boycotts. These are all serious matters, but I wonder if we’re not feeling some “crisis fatigue.” I know I am. Sometimes it’s all too much . . . too much pain and suffering, too much anger and hate, too much nonsense.
Now some people deal with crisis fatigue by getting drunk or using drugs or going on a shopping spree or maxing out their credit cards or going to movies or concerts or whatever. Yard work is nice way to get some space and forget the world, too. But it’s too early for yard work. Rats!
This is why I love the silliness of the NCAA basketball tournament. Think about it. Football season is over and baseball hasn’t really started yet. The NBA is a joke and I don’t know anyone personally who takes hockey seriously (doesn’t hockey last through June now?). So I wait for March Madness and hope my Wisconsin Badgers do well in the tournament.
I fill out my brackets and keep my fingers crossed. I don’t watch most of the games, but I keep up on the scores. It’s a nice mental break from crisis fatigue. Reality will be there when it’s all over. Japan will still be a mess, Libya will still be on the brink of self-destruction, the budget still won’t be balanced, and people will still either love or hate Gov. Scott Walker. Republicans and Democrats will still not get along with each other, the rich will still be getting richer and poor poorer, and Charlie Sheen will still be sounding stupid and deranged.
But for now, I’m following the advice of Jesus: “Come apart and rest a while.” For me that means filling out my brackets and watching some good basketball.
So far, so good. I’m 20-12 in my picks—62.5%. That’s better than most politicians and their predictions about the future.
This past week our news has been full of Japan’s disaster, Libya’s war, and more arguing about budgets and unions and boycotts. These are all serious matters, but I wonder if we’re not feeling some “crisis fatigue.” I know I am. Sometimes it’s all too much . . . too much pain and suffering, too much anger and hate, too much nonsense.
Now some people deal with crisis fatigue by getting drunk or using drugs or going on a shopping spree or maxing out their credit cards or going to movies or concerts or whatever. Yard work is nice way to get some space and forget the world, too. But it’s too early for yard work. Rats!
This is why I love the silliness of the NCAA basketball tournament. Think about it. Football season is over and baseball hasn’t really started yet. The NBA is a joke and I don’t know anyone personally who takes hockey seriously (doesn’t hockey last through June now?). So I wait for March Madness and hope my Wisconsin Badgers do well in the tournament.
I fill out my brackets and keep my fingers crossed. I don’t watch most of the games, but I keep up on the scores. It’s a nice mental break from crisis fatigue. Reality will be there when it’s all over. Japan will still be a mess, Libya will still be on the brink of self-destruction, the budget still won’t be balanced, and people will still either love or hate Gov. Scott Walker. Republicans and Democrats will still not get along with each other, the rich will still be getting richer and poor poorer, and Charlie Sheen will still be sounding stupid and deranged.
But for now, I’m following the advice of Jesus: “Come apart and rest a while.” For me that means filling out my brackets and watching some good basketball.
So far, so good. I’m 20-12 in my picks—62.5%. That’s better than most politicians and their predictions about the future.
March 10, 2011
“You must be born again”—The Rebirth of Democracy
Anyone trying to live a spiritual life knows that we are not converted once but many times. Salvation is an ongoing process, at least for Christians. The “mind of Christ” penetrates the soul step by step, here a little, there a little, as we submit to God’s Spirit and overcome selfishness incrementally. This means we must be “born again” over and over again, like moving from 1st grade through college—never stopping.
Jesus said to Nicodemus, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). If God’s Spirit is like the wind, then the Spirit can be active anywhere in human life. We must look for the Spirit at work not only in the church and in our personal lives, but throughout all dimensions of our social life, including politics.
How can someone fail to see God’s Spirit at work when oppressed people rise up and stand for justice? Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The universe is on the side of justice . . . This belief that God is on the side of truth and justice comes down to us from the long tradition of our Christian faith.” In other words, Good Friday may reign for a day and the righteous may be crucified for a time, but Easter is the fundamental belief of Christianity. The kingdom of God is the goal. This kingdom relates to our social life.
Thus, democracy must also be “reborn” in every generation. Organized sin must be countered by organized righteousness. Corporate evil must be stymied by corporate justice. Partisan lies must be exposed by truth. Liberty is a God-given human right that is maintained only through struggle against the demonic forces of oppression.
If there is anything positive in the chaos in Madison, Wisconsin, right now, it is the rebirth of a dormant democratic spirit. People are rising up. Many of them are being reborn. Young people are beginning to see democracy in action. Complacent Americans are realizing that our liberties are at risk and it is time to be “born again.”
What about complacent churches? In 1917 Walter Rauschenbusch wrote, “The saving power of the church does not rest on its institutional character, on its continuity, its ordination, its ministry, or its doctrine. It rests on the presence of the kingdom of God within her.” I would argue that the eyes of faith will recognize the kingdom of God at work right now in Madison, for God is on the side of justice and righteousness.
But in order to see this, we must be “born again.”
Jesus said to Nicodemus, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). If God’s Spirit is like the wind, then the Spirit can be active anywhere in human life. We must look for the Spirit at work not only in the church and in our personal lives, but throughout all dimensions of our social life, including politics.
How can someone fail to see God’s Spirit at work when oppressed people rise up and stand for justice? Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The universe is on the side of justice . . . This belief that God is on the side of truth and justice comes down to us from the long tradition of our Christian faith.” In other words, Good Friday may reign for a day and the righteous may be crucified for a time, but Easter is the fundamental belief of Christianity. The kingdom of God is the goal. This kingdom relates to our social life.
Thus, democracy must also be “reborn” in every generation. Organized sin must be countered by organized righteousness. Corporate evil must be stymied by corporate justice. Partisan lies must be exposed by truth. Liberty is a God-given human right that is maintained only through struggle against the demonic forces of oppression.
If there is anything positive in the chaos in Madison, Wisconsin, right now, it is the rebirth of a dormant democratic spirit. People are rising up. Many of them are being reborn. Young people are beginning to see democracy in action. Complacent Americans are realizing that our liberties are at risk and it is time to be “born again.”
What about complacent churches? In 1917 Walter Rauschenbusch wrote, “The saving power of the church does not rest on its institutional character, on its continuity, its ordination, its ministry, or its doctrine. It rests on the presence of the kingdom of God within her.” I would argue that the eyes of faith will recognize the kingdom of God at work right now in Madison, for God is on the side of justice and righteousness.
But in order to see this, we must be “born again.”
March 6, 2011
Governor Walker, Jesus, and “Outside Agitators”
I can’t help but chuckle whenever Governor Scott Walker complains (whines?) that many of the protestors in Madison are outside agitators. Many of them are, but the vast majority of protestors are Badgers standing up for justice in our state.
Why all the complaining about people from out of state joining the movement for workers’ rights and social justice? First of all, Gov. Walker has received enough “outside” money to help his cause. “Americans for Prosperity” out of Washington, D. C., has also been visiting our state, renting a bus, and running radio ads promoting their right-wing agenda. It’s a bit hypocritical for Gov. Walker to whine about outside agitators when he himself uses them for this own political purposes.
Gov. Walker comes from a strong Baptist background. His dad is a Baptist minister. Maybe this will help him understand this issue from a biblical perspective. For example, many of the Old Testament prophets were outside agitators. Elijah the Prophet went all the way up to Samaria to confront Ahab and Jezebel. King Ahab said, “Are you the one who’s causing so much trouble in Israel?” Elijah, answered, “No, you are.”
Gov. Walker the problem isn’t the outside agitators; the problem is YOU.
Everywhere Jesus went he was an outside agitator: Capernaum, Tiberias, Tyre and Sidon, Samaria, and especially Jerusalem. He was kicked out of Samaria and even his home town of Nazareth. He was crucified in Jerusalem. The Apostle Paul was imprisoned at least three times for being an outside agitator. He was stoned almost to death numerous times and was kicked out of countless synagogues. The whole history of Christ and the Apostles and the early church is a history of outside agitators.
But what about America? I will use only one example, Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1963, King wrote his famous “Letter from the Birmingham Jail.” He went to Birmingham from Atlanta to protest (nonviolently) racial injustice. He was jailed as an outside agitator. From his jail cell he wrote one of the finest social justice documents ever written…on a few scraps of paper brought to him by a friend:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere . . . whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial ‘outside agitator’ idea. Anyone who lives in the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.”
Martin Luther King, Jr. was being true to Jesus and to the spirit of democracy. Gov. Walker isn’t. His complaints about ‘outside agitators’ are hypocritical, unbiblical, and undemocratic.
Why all the complaining about people from out of state joining the movement for workers’ rights and social justice? First of all, Gov. Walker has received enough “outside” money to help his cause. “Americans for Prosperity” out of Washington, D. C., has also been visiting our state, renting a bus, and running radio ads promoting their right-wing agenda. It’s a bit hypocritical for Gov. Walker to whine about outside agitators when he himself uses them for this own political purposes.
Gov. Walker comes from a strong Baptist background. His dad is a Baptist minister. Maybe this will help him understand this issue from a biblical perspective. For example, many of the Old Testament prophets were outside agitators. Elijah the Prophet went all the way up to Samaria to confront Ahab and Jezebel. King Ahab said, “Are you the one who’s causing so much trouble in Israel?” Elijah, answered, “No, you are.”
Gov. Walker the problem isn’t the outside agitators; the problem is YOU.
Everywhere Jesus went he was an outside agitator: Capernaum, Tiberias, Tyre and Sidon, Samaria, and especially Jerusalem. He was kicked out of Samaria and even his home town of Nazareth. He was crucified in Jerusalem. The Apostle Paul was imprisoned at least three times for being an outside agitator. He was stoned almost to death numerous times and was kicked out of countless synagogues. The whole history of Christ and the Apostles and the early church is a history of outside agitators.
But what about America? I will use only one example, Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1963, King wrote his famous “Letter from the Birmingham Jail.” He went to Birmingham from Atlanta to protest (nonviolently) racial injustice. He was jailed as an outside agitator. From his jail cell he wrote one of the finest social justice documents ever written…on a few scraps of paper brought to him by a friend:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere . . . whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial ‘outside agitator’ idea. Anyone who lives in the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.”
Martin Luther King, Jr. was being true to Jesus and to the spirit of democracy. Gov. Walker isn’t. His complaints about ‘outside agitators’ are hypocritical, unbiblical, and undemocratic.
February 27, 2011
How we got labor unions and workers’ rights…lest we forget
Here are a few excerpts from an essay I wrote last year on the social gospel in America:
According to historian Howard Zinn, 1,118,000 children under the age of sixteen were employed in this country in 1880. On May 1, 1886, nationwide strikes occurred: 350,000 workers in 11,562 establishments walked off the job. In New York City, 25,000 of them marched in a torchlight parade to protest capitalistic injustice. That year, 1886, was called “the year of the great uprising of labor.” There were over 1,400 strikes involving half a million workers.
The Homestead Strike of 1892 bore witness to the increasing divide between labor and owners. Workers walked off the job in Pennsylvania at the Carnegie-Phipps steel mill. There was violence and bloodshed. At this time a factory worker earned $446 annually, a miner earned $393 per year, a school teacher $273 per year. But Andrew Carnegie’s income was $4,000,000 a year.
December 1907 was a bad month for miners. A West Virginia coalmine explosion killed 361 miners; an explosion in Pennsylvania killed 239 miners; in Alabama a coalmine explosion killed 91 miners. But there were positive signs on the social front: twenty-three states passed laws reducing work hours for men employed in mines, smelters, underground work, and train operators.
Walter Rauschenbusch was a pastor in the slums of New York City. In 1892 he went to John D. Rockefeller and told him, “It has been a hard year for many of our people. Many of them have been laid off for weeks, and even months.” That took guts.
Urban pastors like Rauschenbusch supported the causes of the Progressive Era. These causes included taxation of income and inheritances, safety standards for factories, shorter work hours, accident and unemployment insurance, public health initiatives, old age pensions, regulation of tenements, and conservation of natural resources.
New York City changed Walter Rauschenbusch. He never forgot the funerals he performed for children who had died from disease, abuse, neglect, or starvation. He never forgot the plight of the workers and the unemployed. To him, “the Gay 90s” were not gay at all. Machines, money, and the metropolis were killing people…
And so we have come a long way from those days, largely because people spoke up, churches got involved, workers united, and government policies became more humane—but not without effort and sacrifice. The work goes on now under different circumstances, yet it’s based on the same principles of the dignity of human beings and social justice. The Gospel of Wealth is a false gospel.
According to historian Howard Zinn, 1,118,000 children under the age of sixteen were employed in this country in 1880. On May 1, 1886, nationwide strikes occurred: 350,000 workers in 11,562 establishments walked off the job. In New York City, 25,000 of them marched in a torchlight parade to protest capitalistic injustice. That year, 1886, was called “the year of the great uprising of labor.” There were over 1,400 strikes involving half a million workers.
The Homestead Strike of 1892 bore witness to the increasing divide between labor and owners. Workers walked off the job in Pennsylvania at the Carnegie-Phipps steel mill. There was violence and bloodshed. At this time a factory worker earned $446 annually, a miner earned $393 per year, a school teacher $273 per year. But Andrew Carnegie’s income was $4,000,000 a year.
December 1907 was a bad month for miners. A West Virginia coalmine explosion killed 361 miners; an explosion in Pennsylvania killed 239 miners; in Alabama a coalmine explosion killed 91 miners. But there were positive signs on the social front: twenty-three states passed laws reducing work hours for men employed in mines, smelters, underground work, and train operators.
Walter Rauschenbusch was a pastor in the slums of New York City. In 1892 he went to John D. Rockefeller and told him, “It has been a hard year for many of our people. Many of them have been laid off for weeks, and even months.” That took guts.
Urban pastors like Rauschenbusch supported the causes of the Progressive Era. These causes included taxation of income and inheritances, safety standards for factories, shorter work hours, accident and unemployment insurance, public health initiatives, old age pensions, regulation of tenements, and conservation of natural resources.
New York City changed Walter Rauschenbusch. He never forgot the funerals he performed for children who had died from disease, abuse, neglect, or starvation. He never forgot the plight of the workers and the unemployed. To him, “the Gay 90s” were not gay at all. Machines, money, and the metropolis were killing people…
And so we have come a long way from those days, largely because people spoke up, churches got involved, workers united, and government policies became more humane—but not without effort and sacrifice. The work goes on now under different circumstances, yet it’s based on the same principles of the dignity of human beings and social justice. The Gospel of Wealth is a false gospel.
February 26, 2011
Why American Christians Reject Fundamentalism
American Christians, on the whole, are wary of fundamentalism. The dominant form of Christianity in America has never been fundamentalism. Christian fundamentalists are among us, but most Americans view religious fundamentalism as a form of tyranny. We don’t like tyranny or tyrants. We prefer freedom, particularly religious freedom. Fundamentalism strikes us as oppressive and unfree.
There are theological reasons for this. First, the sovereignty of God. God’s sovereignty over all is not a call to tyranny but humility. If God is sovereign, then I am not! If God is sovereign, then I should be humble about my views and recognize that I could be wrong. God is, in essence, beyond human knowledge. Statements about God and God’s will are always human interpretations; they must be evaluated on a large mental field by many people. This saves us from fanatics and religious tyranny. God is sovereign. We are not. Every human government, institution, and church stands under the judgment of God.
Second, God is free. If we believe in the sovereignty of God, then we also affirm that God can do whatever God wishes to do. We cannot control God any more than we can control salvation. Because God is free, salvation can appear anywhere, anytime, and through anyone. God is not restricted as to the means of salvation or the persons God chooses to be his prophets. Revelation, in other words, can come from all directions, from any source, at anytime, from any place. This is the freedom of God. We cannot restrict God’s revelation, God’s grace, or God’s salvation. We cannot pronounce judgment on who is everlastingly saved or everlastingly lost.
Third, the cross of Christ. The greatest argument against religious fundamentalism is the cross of Christ. Jesus was crushed by the combined powers of altar and throne, church and state. We cannot call the religious leaders of his day “fundamentalists,” but they certainly were not committed to religious freedom! The death of Christ is a warning against religion in politics. How does this connect with our time? Since the late 1970s conservative and fundamentalist Christians in America have been expressing the need to “take back America” for God. They continue to have a political agenda for our nation, to “Christianize” America according to their definition. This is a dangerous blend of religion and politics. This blurs the line between church and state. The cross of Christ condemns the union of church and state; it also condemns the efforts of religious fundamentalists to impose a theocratic ideal on our country.
Finally, the sources of Christian theology keep us from fundamentalist extremes. Over the centuries a method of doing theology has been developed. This method revolves around four sources of truth: Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience
The church has used all four sources to discern God’s revelation and God’s will. Fundamentalists reduce the Christian revelation to a book—the Bible—and interpret this book through the lens of inerrancy (an error-free book straight from God). The church as a whole has never done this. Fundamentalism is a freak when compared to centuries of interpretation and discernment by Christians and theologians. Fundamentalism turns Christianity into a “religion of the book,” like Islam and Orthodox Judaism. But Christianity has never been a religion of the book.
Rather, Christian truth has always been a blend of scripture, tradition, reason, and experience. Ideally, we aim at the Bible without biblicism, tradition without traditionalism, reason without rationalism, and experience without subjectivism. This is balance. We need balance, and there is nothing about fundamentalism that is balanced.
To sum up, we have four checks against religious fundamentalism:
•The sovereignty of God
•The freedom of God
•The cross of Christ
•Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience
These save us from fundamentalism and the tyranny of religious fanatics.
There are theological reasons for this. First, the sovereignty of God. God’s sovereignty over all is not a call to tyranny but humility. If God is sovereign, then I am not! If God is sovereign, then I should be humble about my views and recognize that I could be wrong. God is, in essence, beyond human knowledge. Statements about God and God’s will are always human interpretations; they must be evaluated on a large mental field by many people. This saves us from fanatics and religious tyranny. God is sovereign. We are not. Every human government, institution, and church stands under the judgment of God.
Second, God is free. If we believe in the sovereignty of God, then we also affirm that God can do whatever God wishes to do. We cannot control God any more than we can control salvation. Because God is free, salvation can appear anywhere, anytime, and through anyone. God is not restricted as to the means of salvation or the persons God chooses to be his prophets. Revelation, in other words, can come from all directions, from any source, at anytime, from any place. This is the freedom of God. We cannot restrict God’s revelation, God’s grace, or God’s salvation. We cannot pronounce judgment on who is everlastingly saved or everlastingly lost.
Third, the cross of Christ. The greatest argument against religious fundamentalism is the cross of Christ. Jesus was crushed by the combined powers of altar and throne, church and state. We cannot call the religious leaders of his day “fundamentalists,” but they certainly were not committed to religious freedom! The death of Christ is a warning against religion in politics. How does this connect with our time? Since the late 1970s conservative and fundamentalist Christians in America have been expressing the need to “take back America” for God. They continue to have a political agenda for our nation, to “Christianize” America according to their definition. This is a dangerous blend of religion and politics. This blurs the line between church and state. The cross of Christ condemns the union of church and state; it also condemns the efforts of religious fundamentalists to impose a theocratic ideal on our country.
Finally, the sources of Christian theology keep us from fundamentalist extremes. Over the centuries a method of doing theology has been developed. This method revolves around four sources of truth: Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience
The church has used all four sources to discern God’s revelation and God’s will. Fundamentalists reduce the Christian revelation to a book—the Bible—and interpret this book through the lens of inerrancy (an error-free book straight from God). The church as a whole has never done this. Fundamentalism is a freak when compared to centuries of interpretation and discernment by Christians and theologians. Fundamentalism turns Christianity into a “religion of the book,” like Islam and Orthodox Judaism. But Christianity has never been a religion of the book.
Rather, Christian truth has always been a blend of scripture, tradition, reason, and experience. Ideally, we aim at the Bible without biblicism, tradition without traditionalism, reason without rationalism, and experience without subjectivism. This is balance. We need balance, and there is nothing about fundamentalism that is balanced.
To sum up, we have four checks against religious fundamentalism:
•The sovereignty of God
•The freedom of God
•The cross of Christ
•Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience
These save us from fundamentalism and the tyranny of religious fanatics.
February 18, 2011
The Things That Make For Peace
As I write this, Wisconsin is making front page news. Tens of thousands of protestors pack the capitol, Democratic legislators have left the state, and Republican Governor Scott Walker appears to be in meltdown mode for trying to ram his agenda through the state senate.
In Badger Country we don’t like being pushed around by cocky, upstart governors who act like bullies. It’s a showdown now as Republicans attempt to bust up the unions for state employees under the guise of “cutting the budget because we’re broke.” We’re not broke, and this is not about the budget as much as it is about Republican anti-labor policies.
Republican are not on the side of middle class workers and families; they are owned and operated by large corporate interests. The people have finally marched on Madison and they aren’t leaving. There is now gridlock and stalemate.
Gov. Walker, in my opinion, blew it. He is blind to “the things that make for peace.” He is ignorant about “the day of his visitation.” This is a key moment, a key learning moment. But it appears that Scott Walker is learning nothing. Specifically, he is not learning how to govern. He is not learning that folks in Wisconsin, at least, are committed to consensus-building, negotiation and the democratic process. We don’t like autocrats.
But Walker is a Tea Party person. This is what the Tea Party looks like close up. It isn’t pretty. We can only hope that the people will be heard and respected, and that this right-wing Tea Party spasm will soon pass. Then we can get some rational leadership that understands the art of negotiation, working together, and compromise.
After all, isn’t that what politics is about?
There are “things that make for peace,” as Jesus said. And then there are certain politicians who don’t understand this. Gov. Scott Walker is one of those politicians. He will have to learn his lessons the hard way—and look foolish in the process.
Go Bucky!!
In Badger Country we don’t like being pushed around by cocky, upstart governors who act like bullies. It’s a showdown now as Republicans attempt to bust up the unions for state employees under the guise of “cutting the budget because we’re broke.” We’re not broke, and this is not about the budget as much as it is about Republican anti-labor policies.
Republican are not on the side of middle class workers and families; they are owned and operated by large corporate interests. The people have finally marched on Madison and they aren’t leaving. There is now gridlock and stalemate.
Gov. Walker, in my opinion, blew it. He is blind to “the things that make for peace.” He is ignorant about “the day of his visitation.” This is a key moment, a key learning moment. But it appears that Scott Walker is learning nothing. Specifically, he is not learning how to govern. He is not learning that folks in Wisconsin, at least, are committed to consensus-building, negotiation and the democratic process. We don’t like autocrats.
But Walker is a Tea Party person. This is what the Tea Party looks like close up. It isn’t pretty. We can only hope that the people will be heard and respected, and that this right-wing Tea Party spasm will soon pass. Then we can get some rational leadership that understands the art of negotiation, working together, and compromise.
After all, isn’t that what politics is about?
There are “things that make for peace,” as Jesus said. And then there are certain politicians who don’t understand this. Gov. Scott Walker is one of those politicians. He will have to learn his lessons the hard way—and look foolish in the process.
Go Bucky!!
October 19, 2010
When is religion good? When is it bad?
Religion can find you cracked or leave you cracked. I teach world religions, and perhaps I’m a bit cracked for doing that, too! Religion has everything in it from soup to nuts. But there is also a lot of good in religion, as well as the bad and the crazy.
How do we tell the difference? When is religion good, and when is it bad?
The criterion seems simple: religion is good when it’s a blessing to human beings; it is bad when it is a curse to human beings. Religion is good when it serves humanity; it is a curse when it oppresses humanity.
Religion is good when it sets people free to be fully human, as God wishes them to be. It is a curse when it enslaves people, bullies people, and destroys their humanity.
Every religion has a bright side and a dark side. Every religion has good in it, and yet every religion can become demonic. Whatever is good can be twisted into the demonic. Religion becomes demonic when it ceases to serve people and, instead, hurts people.
The question today is not whether or not religion will survive. It will survive. The question is: what kind of religion will survive? Will the world be blessed by a religion of service, love, and compassion? Or will the world go down in flames with a religion of anger, retaliation, and violence?
Speaking as a Christian, I can’t think of God without thinking of Jesus. My God is the God of Jesus Christ. This is the God who is not just “up there” in heaven but who came down to earth. This is the God who loves all humanity and who suffers with us, just as Jesus suffered on the cross.
Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for humanity, not humanity for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Here is an important principle. Religion was made for humanity, not humanity for religion. This means that all religious laws and commandments and institutions are to be judged by how much they serve humanity.
People are more important than religious laws and commandments. People are more important than doctrines. People are more important than creeds and religious institutions. God wants to save people, not religion.
No religious norms or institutions are absolute. No religion is absolute. Everything is to be judged by the criteria of love and service to humanity. That’s when religion is good for the human race.
How do we tell the difference? When is religion good, and when is it bad?
The criterion seems simple: religion is good when it’s a blessing to human beings; it is bad when it is a curse to human beings. Religion is good when it serves humanity; it is a curse when it oppresses humanity.
Religion is good when it sets people free to be fully human, as God wishes them to be. It is a curse when it enslaves people, bullies people, and destroys their humanity.
Every religion has a bright side and a dark side. Every religion has good in it, and yet every religion can become demonic. Whatever is good can be twisted into the demonic. Religion becomes demonic when it ceases to serve people and, instead, hurts people.
The question today is not whether or not religion will survive. It will survive. The question is: what kind of religion will survive? Will the world be blessed by a religion of service, love, and compassion? Or will the world go down in flames with a religion of anger, retaliation, and violence?
Speaking as a Christian, I can’t think of God without thinking of Jesus. My God is the God of Jesus Christ. This is the God who is not just “up there” in heaven but who came down to earth. This is the God who loves all humanity and who suffers with us, just as Jesus suffered on the cross.
Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for humanity, not humanity for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Here is an important principle. Religion was made for humanity, not humanity for religion. This means that all religious laws and commandments and institutions are to be judged by how much they serve humanity.
People are more important than religious laws and commandments. People are more important than doctrines. People are more important than creeds and religious institutions. God wants to save people, not religion.
No religious norms or institutions are absolute. No religion is absolute. Everything is to be judged by the criteria of love and service to humanity. That’s when religion is good for the human race.
August 22, 2010
Obama can’t win regarding faith and religion
A Pew research poll this week indicated that only 1 in 3 Americans are certain that President Obama is a Christian. This means 2 out of 3 Americans are either in a coma, clueless, or simply prejudiced against the man.
Many Americans believe Obama is a closet Muslim, just like many believe he is not an American citizen. People believe what they want to believe, no matter how ridiculous it is. Yes, there are still some people out there who also believe the earth is flat and the Pope is Antichrist.
But a President can’t win in regard to religion. If he comes on too strong with religion he is seen as pushy or a fanatic. If he takes a low-key approach to religion he is viewed as lukewarm or suspect. It’s a tough position to be in. In my opinion, the more careful a President is in his religious statements, the better. The last thing I want is a President who pretends to be an evangelist!
My question is this: what would President Obama have to do to convince all the unconvinced that he is a Christian? My answer? Nothing. It wouldn’t work anyway. Some people just don’t like Obama, they won’t believe him, and they simply keep creating things to use against him. So be it.
But just for the record, Obama is indeed an American citizen, he is a Christian (if that really matters), and he was legally elected as our President. Sorry to disappoint so many Americans, but facts are facts.
Many Americans believe Obama is a closet Muslim, just like many believe he is not an American citizen. People believe what they want to believe, no matter how ridiculous it is. Yes, there are still some people out there who also believe the earth is flat and the Pope is Antichrist.
But a President can’t win in regard to religion. If he comes on too strong with religion he is seen as pushy or a fanatic. If he takes a low-key approach to religion he is viewed as lukewarm or suspect. It’s a tough position to be in. In my opinion, the more careful a President is in his religious statements, the better. The last thing I want is a President who pretends to be an evangelist!
My question is this: what would President Obama have to do to convince all the unconvinced that he is a Christian? My answer? Nothing. It wouldn’t work anyway. Some people just don’t like Obama, they won’t believe him, and they simply keep creating things to use against him. So be it.
But just for the record, Obama is indeed an American citizen, he is a Christian (if that really matters), and he was legally elected as our President. Sorry to disappoint so many Americans, but facts are facts.
June 27, 2010
Three types of spirituality
As I see it, three different types of spirituality have been competing against each other in Christianity from the beginning: (1) Apocalyptic; (2) Mystical; and (3) Prophetic. It is interesting how people gravitate toward the spirituality that suits their temperament, or they simply swallow whatever spirituality has been drilled into them over the years.
I was raised in an apocalyptic sect. I was taught from childhood that “Jesus is coming soon!” One woman in the church told me that I shouldn’t plan to go to college because Jesus would return before then; there wasn’t time. Needless to say, I’m glad I went to college. I’m also glad I left that church!
From that time on, I have been skeptical of apocalyptic spirituality. I reject dispensationalism and I don’t believe in “the secret rapture.” I view “doomsday theology” as a distortion of the gospel.
Christianity by nature is not a mystical religion (like Hinduism), but it has always had a mystical element in it. Mysticism, of course, aims at personal union with God. Through prayer and meditation, we can make our life a prayer. To be a Christian is to walk with Christ and to be awake to the Holy Spirit within us. Yet I would not describe myself as a mystic. Jesus himself had mystical qualities, but I do not believe Jesus was a mystic either.
This brings us to the final type of spirituality: prophetic. Christianity is a prophetic religion. It is based on the view of Jesus as the Messiah who spoke the prophetic word of God and did the will of God. Jesus was a prophet similar to the Old Testament prophets. Like those prophets, Jesus delivered a message of salvation that was social, and he died for God’s cause in the world. He was raised from the dead and now lives on in the Spirit through the church and its prophetic mission.
Prophetic spirituality applies the message of righteousness and justice to the social ills of our age. Prophetic spirituality is ethical. Its focus is not the apocalyptic end of the world, nor the mysterious inner life of the individual. Rather, prophets speak out against racism, social greed, militarism, poverty, and environmental destruction. Prophetic spirituality aims at social action. Like Jesus, the church is called to social action.
Having rejected apocalyptic theology, I try to blend mystical spirituality with a strong dose of prophetic spirituality. I’m not saying this is the only way to be a Christian, but it works for me.
--Brad
I was raised in an apocalyptic sect. I was taught from childhood that “Jesus is coming soon!” One woman in the church told me that I shouldn’t plan to go to college because Jesus would return before then; there wasn’t time. Needless to say, I’m glad I went to college. I’m also glad I left that church!
From that time on, I have been skeptical of apocalyptic spirituality. I reject dispensationalism and I don’t believe in “the secret rapture.” I view “doomsday theology” as a distortion of the gospel.
Christianity by nature is not a mystical religion (like Hinduism), but it has always had a mystical element in it. Mysticism, of course, aims at personal union with God. Through prayer and meditation, we can make our life a prayer. To be a Christian is to walk with Christ and to be awake to the Holy Spirit within us. Yet I would not describe myself as a mystic. Jesus himself had mystical qualities, but I do not believe Jesus was a mystic either.
This brings us to the final type of spirituality: prophetic. Christianity is a prophetic religion. It is based on the view of Jesus as the Messiah who spoke the prophetic word of God and did the will of God. Jesus was a prophet similar to the Old Testament prophets. Like those prophets, Jesus delivered a message of salvation that was social, and he died for God’s cause in the world. He was raised from the dead and now lives on in the Spirit through the church and its prophetic mission.
Prophetic spirituality applies the message of righteousness and justice to the social ills of our age. Prophetic spirituality is ethical. Its focus is not the apocalyptic end of the world, nor the mysterious inner life of the individual. Rather, prophets speak out against racism, social greed, militarism, poverty, and environmental destruction. Prophetic spirituality aims at social action. Like Jesus, the church is called to social action.
Having rejected apocalyptic theology, I try to blend mystical spirituality with a strong dose of prophetic spirituality. I’m not saying this is the only way to be a Christian, but it works for me.
--Brad
June 5, 2010
Christ Still Suffering in Nature
If I’m not mistaken, Christians believe that “in the beginning” God gave us a job to do: take care of the earth. We are stewards and caretakers appointed by God to manage “the garden.” We’re doing a lousy job. I think God expected more from us. We owe God and the environment a huge apology.
It’s time for Christians to stop obsessing about heaven and get back to taking care of earth—our first task, according to God’s command. Furthermore, Christ isn’t in heaven. He is still hanging on the cross. He is still dying for the sins of the world, and those sins are worse now than ever.
Christ is still suffering on the cross in solidarity with all who suffer, including nature itself. We should not think that Christ is indifferent toward nature. God created a pretty good world. We’re screwing it up. With every ecological disaster, Christ bleeds more. With every dying animal or bird, every polluted river, every stinking chimney or gas-guzzling vehicle or oil spill disaster, Christ bleeds more.
The apocalyptic sufferings of the Crucified Christ continue with every apocalyptic ecological disaster.
Now, however, the enemy is not “the Jewish leaders” or “the Roman Empire.” The enemy now is corporate power, greed, and the “American dream” of unlimited natural resources. Here’s the deal, folks, we are running out of oil and our days are numbered. We have constructed a society based on fossil fuels, and time is running out.
We have constructed a lifestyle based on massive consumerism, and time is running out. We have glorified the “American dream” as if it came from God himself, and time is running out.
But what is time to the crucified Christ? He has been up on the cross a long, long time. He has always suffered with those who suffer. He has always symbolized resistance to evil, injustice, and self-interest. He favors no nation. He is on the side of God alone—and God’s abused creation.
--Brad
It’s time for Christians to stop obsessing about heaven and get back to taking care of earth—our first task, according to God’s command. Furthermore, Christ isn’t in heaven. He is still hanging on the cross. He is still dying for the sins of the world, and those sins are worse now than ever.
Christ is still suffering on the cross in solidarity with all who suffer, including nature itself. We should not think that Christ is indifferent toward nature. God created a pretty good world. We’re screwing it up. With every ecological disaster, Christ bleeds more. With every dying animal or bird, every polluted river, every stinking chimney or gas-guzzling vehicle or oil spill disaster, Christ bleeds more.
The apocalyptic sufferings of the Crucified Christ continue with every apocalyptic ecological disaster.
Now, however, the enemy is not “the Jewish leaders” or “the Roman Empire.” The enemy now is corporate power, greed, and the “American dream” of unlimited natural resources. Here’s the deal, folks, we are running out of oil and our days are numbered. We have constructed a society based on fossil fuels, and time is running out.
We have constructed a lifestyle based on massive consumerism, and time is running out. We have glorified the “American dream” as if it came from God himself, and time is running out.
But what is time to the crucified Christ? He has been up on the cross a long, long time. He has always suffered with those who suffer. He has always symbolized resistance to evil, injustice, and self-interest. He favors no nation. He is on the side of God alone—and God’s abused creation.
--Brad
May 12, 2010
Redefining Redemption
Maybe God redeems the world one person at a time, one heart at a time, one square foot at a time.
Maybe redemption is a process that occurs in stages and includes temporary setbacks as well as humble steps forward.
Maybe the redemption of the world is happening every moment, but we don’t see it because we are looking for something else, something more sensational. Maybe we are looking for an apocalyptic big bang or cosmic fireworks instead.
Maybe there is more to redemption than simply enduring what some say is a “sinful” world while hoping to go to heaven.
Maybe redemption is actually here and now—a here and now that opens up to God’s future that is on the way.
Can our concept of redemption itself be redeemed? Can we be redeemed from a narrow, sectarian view of redemption? Or are we stuck? The world keeps moving and changing, and the world doesn’t wait for people who are stuck.
Carl Jung believed that at the bottom of every neurosis there is a type of “stuckness.” Can religion itself become neurotic? Can religion become so stuck or fixated that it results in irrational, neurotic inflexibility, out of touch with reality and the world? We have all met people like this. They are stuck on “Middle C” and have no other notes or melodies to play. We see this in the person who can’t get beyond a divorce that happened twenty years ago, or in an apocalyptic fanatic who knows only the book of Revelation. This happens in religion whenever when it loses its ability to adapt or to re-interpret anything. The theology of neurotic religion resembles a former geological age; it shoots certitudes at people like spit wads, but nothing sticks. People just walk away. We instinctively sense that neurotic religion is for the like-minded who have lost their minds. We instinctively know there is more to God’s music than “Middle C.”
If God is at work in the world, everywhere and every day, then redemption is happening now, not just in some far off future. And if God is a God of love, then we need to see God’s love popping up in all sorts of places and among all sorts of people. If we take God’s redeeming love seriously, we will also take the world seriously. We might even embrace the fact that we are co-workers with God to bring about a new redemption here and now, in this place, at this time—our square foot of space.
--Brad
Maybe redemption is a process that occurs in stages and includes temporary setbacks as well as humble steps forward.
Maybe the redemption of the world is happening every moment, but we don’t see it because we are looking for something else, something more sensational. Maybe we are looking for an apocalyptic big bang or cosmic fireworks instead.
Maybe there is more to redemption than simply enduring what some say is a “sinful” world while hoping to go to heaven.
Maybe redemption is actually here and now—a here and now that opens up to God’s future that is on the way.
Can our concept of redemption itself be redeemed? Can we be redeemed from a narrow, sectarian view of redemption? Or are we stuck? The world keeps moving and changing, and the world doesn’t wait for people who are stuck.
Carl Jung believed that at the bottom of every neurosis there is a type of “stuckness.” Can religion itself become neurotic? Can religion become so stuck or fixated that it results in irrational, neurotic inflexibility, out of touch with reality and the world? We have all met people like this. They are stuck on “Middle C” and have no other notes or melodies to play. We see this in the person who can’t get beyond a divorce that happened twenty years ago, or in an apocalyptic fanatic who knows only the book of Revelation. This happens in religion whenever when it loses its ability to adapt or to re-interpret anything. The theology of neurotic religion resembles a former geological age; it shoots certitudes at people like spit wads, but nothing sticks. People just walk away. We instinctively sense that neurotic religion is for the like-minded who have lost their minds. We instinctively know there is more to God’s music than “Middle C.”
If God is at work in the world, everywhere and every day, then redemption is happening now, not just in some far off future. And if God is a God of love, then we need to see God’s love popping up in all sorts of places and among all sorts of people. If we take God’s redeeming love seriously, we will also take the world seriously. We might even embrace the fact that we are co-workers with God to bring about a new redemption here and now, in this place, at this time—our square foot of space.
--Brad
April 9, 2010
The bogus battle between science and religion
A college student once asked me, “How can I believe there is a God out there when there is no scientific proof of it?”
I answered him, “Is reality limited to that which can be proven by the scientific method of investigation? Are we required to reduce reality to the findings of science?”
I have a problem when science becomes “scientism,” just like I have a problem when religion becomes “fundamentalism.” I reject scientism and I reject fundamentalism.
The so-called “battle” between science and religion is bogus and is based on a misunderstanding of both. Science is one mode of knowing, and religion is another mode of knowing. Science and religion represent two valid ways of knowing, but they are different in their goals and methods.
Science deals with data of the observable, natural world, and tries to explain why things happen according to the laws of causality—cause and effect. Think of modern medicine. I’m glad that science has discovered how to relieve pain and cure diseases. I’m thankful for the many inventions of science that have made our lives better compared to centuries ago.
Yet religion deals with other questions, ultimate questions. Where did we come from? Why are we here? What is the meaning of truth? What are the sources for ethics and morality? What is our destiny? What happens when we die? Why should we care about the world and each other? To what or to whom are we ultimately accountable? How do we deal with meaninglessness, condemnation, guilt, and fear?
None of the above questions are scientific questions. They deal with spiritual realities. Such questions cannot be put into a test tube, but they are essential to what it means to be human.
Yet religion makes a huge mistake when it tries to be scientific! For example, when religious persons try to use the scientific method to “prove” that God exists or to “prove” that the earth was created in six days . . . this is when religion oversteps its bounds.
Let science do what it is meant to do, and let religion do what it is meant to do. But don’t try to turn science into religion or religion into science. Science is one valid mode of knowing; religion is another valid mode of knowing. As long as we remember this, the battle between science and religion is bogus.
I answered him, “Is reality limited to that which can be proven by the scientific method of investigation? Are we required to reduce reality to the findings of science?”
I have a problem when science becomes “scientism,” just like I have a problem when religion becomes “fundamentalism.” I reject scientism and I reject fundamentalism.
The so-called “battle” between science and religion is bogus and is based on a misunderstanding of both. Science is one mode of knowing, and religion is another mode of knowing. Science and religion represent two valid ways of knowing, but they are different in their goals and methods.
Science deals with data of the observable, natural world, and tries to explain why things happen according to the laws of causality—cause and effect. Think of modern medicine. I’m glad that science has discovered how to relieve pain and cure diseases. I’m thankful for the many inventions of science that have made our lives better compared to centuries ago.
Yet religion deals with other questions, ultimate questions. Where did we come from? Why are we here? What is the meaning of truth? What are the sources for ethics and morality? What is our destiny? What happens when we die? Why should we care about the world and each other? To what or to whom are we ultimately accountable? How do we deal with meaninglessness, condemnation, guilt, and fear?
None of the above questions are scientific questions. They deal with spiritual realities. Such questions cannot be put into a test tube, but they are essential to what it means to be human.
Yet religion makes a huge mistake when it tries to be scientific! For example, when religious persons try to use the scientific method to “prove” that God exists or to “prove” that the earth was created in six days . . . this is when religion oversteps its bounds.
Let science do what it is meant to do, and let religion do what it is meant to do. But don’t try to turn science into religion or religion into science. Science is one valid mode of knowing; religion is another valid mode of knowing. As long as we remember this, the battle between science and religion is bogus.
April 1, 2010
Bearing witness to the crucified Christ
In my World Religions class I try to encourage students to develop at least a partial appreciation for the non-Christian religions. It is not evangelism but an academic course on global religion in a college setting. Students are expected to be open to new learnings, to consider the various ways that “truth and grace” have manifested themselves in different cultures.
Yet I am aware on a personal level that, as a Christian, I have a place to stand. One needs a place to stand, a referent point, a normative center. At the heart of Christian faith is Jesus Christ crucified and raised from the dead. The biggest difference between Christianity and the non-Christian religions is Jesus himself—the message of the cross and resurrection. It is not a matter of “converting” people to this. The traditional “conversion model” of mission is laden with problems. For one thing, it ignores the new parity there is now between the world’s religions, and it smacks of arrogance.
Rather, Christians are called to bear witness to the crucified Christ through cruciform living. How do we do this? We bear witness through our words and deeds. We bear witness through our worship and service. We bear witness through suffering and sacrifice and by loving a world that needs the healing power of the gospel. We bear witness by following Christ and sharing his fate: cruciform living in the name of the crucified Christ.
Jesus willingly died without retaliation or violence. He died with a vision of the coming kingdom of God. God raised him from the dead as the sign that the New Age has already begun. Therefore, Christian faith is hope—hope in the God who turns crucifixion into resurrection, and who brings in the kingdom through vicarious suffering: the triumph of love over hate.
There are many Christians in America right now who are very good at hating and very good at being angry. They are very good at judging who is saved and who is lost. Do they really understand the crucified Christ?
Sooner or later the message of the crucified Christ has to get through. The world needs to hear it. But more importantly, the world needs to see it.
Yet I am aware on a personal level that, as a Christian, I have a place to stand. One needs a place to stand, a referent point, a normative center. At the heart of Christian faith is Jesus Christ crucified and raised from the dead. The biggest difference between Christianity and the non-Christian religions is Jesus himself—the message of the cross and resurrection. It is not a matter of “converting” people to this. The traditional “conversion model” of mission is laden with problems. For one thing, it ignores the new parity there is now between the world’s religions, and it smacks of arrogance.
Rather, Christians are called to bear witness to the crucified Christ through cruciform living. How do we do this? We bear witness through our words and deeds. We bear witness through our worship and service. We bear witness through suffering and sacrifice and by loving a world that needs the healing power of the gospel. We bear witness by following Christ and sharing his fate: cruciform living in the name of the crucified Christ.
Jesus willingly died without retaliation or violence. He died with a vision of the coming kingdom of God. God raised him from the dead as the sign that the New Age has already begun. Therefore, Christian faith is hope—hope in the God who turns crucifixion into resurrection, and who brings in the kingdom through vicarious suffering: the triumph of love over hate.
There are many Christians in America right now who are very good at hating and very good at being angry. They are very good at judging who is saved and who is lost. Do they really understand the crucified Christ?
Sooner or later the message of the crucified Christ has to get through. The world needs to hear it. But more importantly, the world needs to see it.
March 24, 2010
Judged by Our Words
I spend most of my work days driving throughout northeastern Wisconsin and visiting patients who are dying. I’m a hospice chaplain. For better or worse, I often listen to the radio. It’s hard nowadays to find a radio station that has decent programming, other than some FM stations that play recycled music all day long—and that gets old, too.
I listen to sports updates, but I also tune in to conservative talk shows. I try to give the hosts a chance every time, and every time I turn them off after about ten minutes because that’s all I can take. The hate-talk, the bombastic rhetoric, the stereotypes and generalizations, the one-sided propaganda—it’s all too much for me.
But I always wonder about those people who digest this stuff day in and day out…what effect does it have on their minds and souls? I believe thoughts have karmic consequences. That is, we are what we think, and we become what we think. Not only this, our words proceed from our heart. Our words reveal our heart. To me, talk radio reveals a bunch of hearts that are really in trouble and words that can set off karmic ripples of negativity and prejudice.
Don’t ever think that words are irrelevant. Words do matter. Words are powerful. Words can save us or harm us. Words can build up or they can destroy.
One of the things that disturb me most about America today is intemperate speech. We’ve reached the point where “freedom of speech” means the freedom to say whatever we want, no matter how obscene or hateful it is. I don’t believe that is what is meant by the First Amendment.
But why limit ourselves to the First Amendment. Let’s go further back to Jesus, who said, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks . . . on the Day of Judgment you will have to give an account for every careless word you have spoken. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matt 12:34-37).
Speaking of words, these are some of the most stunning words in the New Testament. I’m fairly certain, however, that radio talk show hosts aren’t listening. After all, they aren’t getting paid to really listen, are they? But I think God is listening . . .
I listen to sports updates, but I also tune in to conservative talk shows. I try to give the hosts a chance every time, and every time I turn them off after about ten minutes because that’s all I can take. The hate-talk, the bombastic rhetoric, the stereotypes and generalizations, the one-sided propaganda—it’s all too much for me.
But I always wonder about those people who digest this stuff day in and day out…what effect does it have on their minds and souls? I believe thoughts have karmic consequences. That is, we are what we think, and we become what we think. Not only this, our words proceed from our heart. Our words reveal our heart. To me, talk radio reveals a bunch of hearts that are really in trouble and words that can set off karmic ripples of negativity and prejudice.
Don’t ever think that words are irrelevant. Words do matter. Words are powerful. Words can save us or harm us. Words can build up or they can destroy.
One of the things that disturb me most about America today is intemperate speech. We’ve reached the point where “freedom of speech” means the freedom to say whatever we want, no matter how obscene or hateful it is. I don’t believe that is what is meant by the First Amendment.
But why limit ourselves to the First Amendment. Let’s go further back to Jesus, who said, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks . . . on the Day of Judgment you will have to give an account for every careless word you have spoken. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matt 12:34-37).
Speaking of words, these are some of the most stunning words in the New Testament. I’m fairly certain, however, that radio talk show hosts aren’t listening. After all, they aren’t getting paid to really listen, are they? But I think God is listening . . .
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
