Church History

Yesterday, I completed a rather lengthy survey of church history from the Apostles to the 1900s. I wrote a curriculum for teaching the basics of church history to teenagers over 7 one hour classes. Having completed this textbook, I have many observations about what I don’t know about Christianity.

1) I know very little about centuries of the church, namely in the Middle Ages. I went into the study of the period between Constantine (4th century) and Luther (16th century) expecting to find a nugget here and a story there. Something inside should have sounded alarms when 1200 years, or over 30 generations of people sat nestled in this period. The truth is, there are many people within this time period who contributed fascinating thought and effort to ensure a genuine faith arrived here for me. Chief among those who interested me were:

• Peter Waldo – 12th-13th century reformer who was excommunicated for his beliefs. Had he been born 300 years later, we would lump him with Calvin & Luther.
• Pope Gregory VII – monk who reluctantly became pope and ushered in many ideas and traditions that formed Christianity more than most would imagine

2) The Church is much bigger than I imagined. Having been more thoroughly introduced to the concept of the Greek Orthodox Church, its history, and its focus, I am floored that an entire worldview about Christianity exists without my knowledge. Whether or not its use of icons, the iconclast controversy, and the veneration of worship spaces is legitimate is not the point. Our American eyes present us with a lens than causes us to read and relate to the Hebrew and Greek Testaments in certain ways. For those in the Eastern/Orthodox Churches, the lenses are very different. Perhaps embracing a more global worldview isn’t such a bad idea. They definitely knew/know how to build a building.

3) Catholicism, while imperfect, has many elements today’s Protestant expressions are missing. There is something powerful about being able to convene a council of global church leaders to make a decision to thwart a heresy. As a result of schisms, protests, church splits, and more, we don’t have 1 pope – we have millions of popes (and a laity who progressively believe they are popes as well). It is unhealthy to assume we are all an authority about a faith with such a rich and critical heritage. At some point, to decrease the effects of the plethora of heresies floating around, some measure of authority or unity of authorities would do us a lot of good.

4) The Inquisition was worse than I thought. For those not up on this, the Inquisition was the Church’s response to heresies or those who refused to convert to Christianity. The sentence for the trials was eventually execution, a black eye for our history, to say the least. Its ugly twin, the Crusades, was also awful. The desire to execute Jews, Muslims, and even other Christians to politically take land is what I would call a great adventure in missing the point.

5) 19th Century theology was vast. I have been scarcely introduced to high criticism of Biblical text, though I am certain I will learn much about it. I will spare you the details about this, but just know that there is much more to the Holy Text than meets the eye.

The New Dark Age

A simple Google search for the term “new dark age” yields several results from Bad Religion’s “New Dark Ages” to right wing politicos fearing Obama, to fears of Europe being engulfed by Islam. But another less popular (and noisy) group emerges with news that (in my opinion) is more alarming than the others. Here’s a sample text from one source:

 Some leading thinkers and scholars have postulated that for all the convenience and expediency that society gets from the Internet, we may actually be surfing ourselves into a new Dark Age.

Another source on the subject remarked:

The arrival of Gutenberg’s printing press, in the 15th century, set off another round of teeth gnashing. The Italian humanist Hieronimo Squarciafico worried that the easy availability of books would lead to intellectual laziness, making men “less studious” and weakening their minds. Others argued that cheaply printed books and broadsheets would undermine religious authority, demean the work of scholars and scribes, and spread sedition and debauchery. As New York University professor Clay Shirky notes, “Most of the arguments made against the printing press were correct, even prescient.” But, again, the doomsayers were unable to imagine the myriad blessings that the printed word would deliver.

Hopefully, you’re still with me. What does all this have to do with anything? I’ve addressed illiteracy in previous posts like this one, but I’m convinced that it goes deeper than I first imagined. The Dark Ages, a historical period between the collapse of Rome and the Enlightenment, came to a close as at least partially as a result of Gutengerg’s printing press becoming mainstream. Until that point, only the upper echelon of society and religion were able to read, making the haves and have nots of society separated largely by this divide. Gutenberg made written text more accessible, and thus, led to people having the ability to greater process new thoughts, ideas, and perspectives.

So now, in 2009, the trend myself and others are observing is that postmodernism is leading to a new way in which youth are viewing information. Knowledge is no longer a journey of exploration, but a commodity that is so easily accessible, it is passe. Perhaps the thought could be bullhorned:

Everything is already known, and I can find it in a matter of minutes.

This makes knowledge no longer power, but robotic. Reading in high school is no longer a journey, but a chore. Huck Finn has no pictures. Rather than reading (even blogs, commentaries, and newspapers), students today consume media only that involves imagery and sound. The parallels to the hundreds of years in the Dark Ages are enormous. In those days, the real way education took place was spoken word and paintings or other artwork.

Some will call Harry Potter, Twilight, and other novels encouraging. But these pail in comparison to the number of youth who have consumed High School Musical. I’m not in favor or against any of these, but seek to make a point that the best selling novels influence minds very little compared to other media. Film, YouTube, television, video games, text messaging, and other media are the books of today. Imagination long ago left the cutting room floor, as lights and sounds have replaced it. Only the great thinkers of today have creativity and imagination (and some of them are still just following the media others are giving them). High School Musical is a standard example of the power of media: 37 million views as of today for this music video alone on YouTube doesn’t lie.

 

IMPACT
The impact of this movement on Christianity is massive. Gone are the days of assuming Christians have/are reading the Bible. Instead, we must assume that upcoming (and perhaps current) Christians know very little of Scripture, the Creeds, the Parables, and more. This presents opportunities to shape Christianity in new ways, but also makes the work of those who are sharing the faith much more burdensome.

Most Christians over the centuries have been aware that the Apostles’ Creed is the benchmark for someone being a Christian or not. But in this new, illiterate generation, this concept is foreign. When teaching students about it this week, one who has undoubtedly been in church her whole life, asked, “I don’t even know what it is? What if I don’t agree with something in it?”

We must not approach these Americans as if they are lazy. We must approach them as an opportunity. The New Dark Age has arrived.

Empire (Part Five)

Since the tragic fall of humanity at the Garden of Eden, humanity has been the stage for a battle that is so spiritual, its physical. The Bible chronicles incredible encounters within an invisible realm where odd things happen, showing this at work:

• Michael, an uber-angel argued with Satan (leader of darker spiritual forces) over the dead body of a great follower of God, Moses
• In a showdown between Moses & prophets of another religous system, a friend of Moses named Aaron threw a staff on the ground that turned into a snake. The other prophets did the same thing for the other side!
• Satan once had a bet with God, himself, over what’d happen if God stopped blessing and helping one of his followers, named Job (pronounced “Jobe”)
• A person named Judas, who betrayed Jesus at one point, had Satan enter into him. That’s a pretty rough thing to have Satan at the joystick of your life’s controller.

These and other reasons in Scripture show this battle is at hand.  Even within society, the forces of anti-Kingdom have been at work to steal from God’s plan for peoples lives, kill their dreams and destinies, and destroy their hope for God to intervene.

Some people propose that this war is overtly obvious and dedicate their lives to praying for victory for God’s side. The truth is, this conflict is fought in a more subtle way: person-to-person. But that person-to-person battle, when played out, becomes bigger. It then becomes family-to-family, generation-to-generation, and more.

Christians often make a tragic mistake by attempting to turn the conflict into a bordered conflict between nations, labeling one as right and one as wrong. Even within their own borders, Christians will proclaim a certain political movement to be God’s Kingdom at work. This process has been played out again and again (and is happening in America), but never leads to the results promised. Jesus Kingdom is political in its conflict, but not to be engaged politically. It is a spiritual movement to reclaim a lost humanity.

 

Lord Vader

The conflict between the sides of Kingdom and anti-Kingdom sets the stage for the real conflct of Empires. Its not as simple as Darth Vader against his son, but instead takes the guise of two great empires on Earth constantly ebbing and flowing – the Empire of Christ and the Empire that opposes Christ. It is a conflict that is fought in battlefields rarely involving bloodshed, but rather, for brainpower, creativity, and household recovery.

All the global empires discussed in depth over the course of this series have been expressions of anti-Kingdom, that is, this world system, attempting to oppress Christ’s movement. Rome sought to execute Christians to put down the love revolution. Egypt opposed Israel leaving oppression to form a society of Christians. Even America’s political system, while more subtle (and perhaps less severe), is a system designed to get people to dedicate their lives to wealth accumulation, entertainment at all times, finding security through military, indebtedness, materialism, revenge, pride, and more.

The belief that a certain political movement, military conquest, political party, financial system, or individual can rescue a people in peril or crisis is a system of anti-Kingdom. Consider:

• Military conquests alone cannot bring Christ’s Kingdom without people who desire to seek Christ
• No financial bailout from a government system will bring happiness to people. Our source is not the government, for we are to put the government of our lives on the shoulders of Christ.
• No president, king, congress, justice, or politician, can bring the sort of change humans really desire. The change humans desire is a return to God’s original intent for humanity. This can’t be found through wealth redistribution, a contract with America, a radio show host’s opinions, or a stuffed ballot box for one candidate or the other.
• The Church’s biggest political movement ever was a disaster that is still providing advances to anti-Kingdom. Quite simply, the Crusades are perhaps the biggest scar on the Church ever beheld.

Christians really executed Jews and Muslims?!?

Christians must devote themselves to bringing the restoration of the Empire of God through the teachings of Christ. His message can and will repair Creation through the processes of discipleship, salvation, and love. Christians are called to spread Jesus message not through billboards, t-shirts, campaign promises, military conquest, or wealth transfer. We have a better banner. Our Kingdom doesn’t come by brute force like other religions propose. Christians have a banner that is appealing and unique. I like the trend in Minnesota bumper stickers to put it best:

Empire (Part Four)

The Bible is a story with several smaller stories that tell the story of insignificant nations being conquered by large Empires, and God’s provision for groups of people who cry out in despair for His aid (see this book for more). The problem is, after several generations, people begin to accept Empire as a normal way of life.

At the arrival of Jesus, many of the Jewish people were on pins and needles for God to intervene on behalf of their Hebrew nation to rid them of the Roman Empire. The Disciples craved Jesus’ end to the Roman occupation of their borders, but Jesus rarely acknowledged the Romans explicitly (though he implied such in many encounters, including the Gadarene Demoniac). Jesus told his followers to pray for God’s Kingdom to come, which was a very political statement (just ask the Romans, who executed Him).

After Jesus’ resurrection, his followers began to build this Kingdom Jesus proposed, but it wasn’t built with bricks. Instead, it was built with people (or “living stones,” as Peter called it). With their swords beaten into plowshares and their spears traded for pruning hooks, this people, known as “The Way” began constructing a different kind of Empire – the Empire of Christ. It was a community that chose love, had respect for the dead, gave before it took, and would die for their cause. Borders meant nothing, for this was to be a global nation.

One of their leaders from Turkey named Saul (later Paul) wrote something interesting to a mega-church in Ephesus:

We don’t fight against people. We fight against the Kingdoms and Kings of spiritual wickedness, darkness, and blindness.

This letter-writer was advising his fellow builders of Jesus’ Empire to lay down their guns and recognize their real struggle. It wasn’t Nero on the throne of Rome, it was the systems and spiritual inflences that made Nero do what Nero did. It was the structures and sources of Anti-Kingdom.

Another of Jesus’ followers, John, got in so much trouble for spreading this Empire that he was sentenced to die on an island. While there, he wrote a letter to other Kingdom builders, giving them a different perspective for their journey. This was a Revelation from John that saw the Roman Empire as a giant beast that arose from the (Mediterranean) Sea to swallow up their movement and destroy them, but the bigger struggle wasn’t with the political Rome, but the system Rome brought with it.

Everything from buying and selling to safety and homeland security required those within the Roman Empire to pledge allegiance to Caesar Nero and take a mark on their head or hand on the way (known to prophecy gurus as 616, possibly the true rendering of the infamous “666″). Worse, though, was that Rome was part of the world system of vengence, revenge, war, violence, and power structures designed to dehumanize.

John was so worried about this that he called this system a prostitute and cautioned Kingdom builders about her temptation. All the other cultures had been “drinking the wine and wrath of her sexcapades, and the CEOs of the multinational corporations have propheted greatly through her endeavors. John warns (in Revelation 18), metaphorically:

Get your bodies out of that prostitute before she brings you sexual pleasure, too. You’ll become just like her if you don’t!

The Christians did build a great Kingdom, one we share in today. But what happens when that Kingdom, designed to be a spiritual Kingdom and an alternative community within society, is made to be a literal Empire with borders? And when it happens, and we live in the tension of these Kingdoms, how shall we live?

Stay tuned for the final installment of “Empire.”

Empire (Part Three)

Its not December. Its February (and 70 degrees in Missouri). Yet, the message of Christmas shouldn’t be confined to but a couple dozens squares on a calendar.

The angel said, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Savior has just been born in David’s town, a Savior who is Messiah and Master. This is what you’re to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger.”

In the cradle of the Roman Empire, we have an instant collision heralded by a messenger of God. Make no mistake – this was a political declaration.

Caesar Augustus, the emperor of those days, was supreme. The name, Augustus, meant respect, awe, or veneration. He was thought of as a savior to the world by bringing peace. Yet, we have an angel proclaiming that there’s a second Master, a Prince of Peace, Emperor of all the Emperors, President of Presidents born in the heart of Empire, a boats trip across the Mediterranean from Rome.

Countries cannot have two kings and have stability. We learned this a couple centuries later with the split of the Roman Empire. Global movements cannot withstand having two rulers. Hearing rumors of some other king being born, Augustus ordered male babies to be slaughtered to prevent this catastrophe.

Born of a virgin, cradled around animal dung in a crappy blanket, was the “Other Caesar.” A President announced to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3. He was the infant hundreds of years of prophets had craved. This was the Anti-Caesar. A nightmare for Empire. Without bombs bursting in air, shepherds scrammed from the scene to town, zealous to “make known the thing that has happened.” The first humans to herald the birth of Empire’s worst nightmare.

God was born.

He grew up in obscurity. So normal as an apprentice in his step-father’s carpentry business that his brother’s and sisters had no idea their big brother was actually the Son of the creator of the Universe. Contrary to a few gnostic gospels, He wasn’t doing some crazy tricks – this was just a boy. By age 12, he appears to have a clue about what’s going on, but must not have made the cut for Rabbinical training, as He wasn’t part of “the club” at the temple, later. He impressed the local religious gurus, but there must have been other kids his age who were better at being religious than a young God. Maybe there’s something to learn, there.

In adulthood, his cousin, John, went to a rural, swampy area and started baptizing people to “prepare the way.” John baptized God in a lake in a mind-boggling exchange. John had a band of followers, which wasn’t a smart political move. The ruler over those days, Herod Antipas, feared an uprising, agreed with his queen, and had John slaughtered around 36 CE. Empire doesn’t like those who don’t go with the flow. It really wasn’t uncommon for the Roman Empire to silence its critics by execution. Keeping peace flowing when you’re a global, human empire is impossible without finding ways to justify the slaying of other humans for expediency. One of the easiest ways is to label it as an act of homeland security or freedom.

John’s cousin, Jesus, spread a message that was dripping heavily with controversy. He told His followers to be “lights in the world,” something Caesar was already supposed to be. He paid His taxes, but didn’t do anything to build the kingdom of Rome. He preached that a different Kingdom was rising up, but it was a Kingdom who’s allegiance wasn’t pledged to kill by the sword, but to love. His top follower, originally called Simon, chopped off a Roman guard’s ear to the scolding of Jesus.

Empire doesn’t understand the language of love. It isn’t fluent in acts of sacrifice. Empire administers sacrifice. The Empire of God that Jesus was launching had other ways of spreading. It didn’t chase enemies into caves or spill blood into rivers. It loved the unloved. Brought good news to the poor. Elevated the underside of society.

Two empires – one within the other. Something had to give – and fast. Rome couldn’t find anything wrong with what Jesus was saying, but with what others said about Him. They arrested Him, brought Him on trial, and asked a question more important than we realize.

Pontius Pilate: Are you the Emperor of the Jewish Nation?
Jesus: What you say is true.

Pilate didn’t find fault for this, but due to some border issues, he was shipped to another ruler who asked Him questions to find a crime, to no avail. In the crowd, several politicians who also had religous licenses wanted this guy gone. Their kingdom of decrees, prosperity and power couldn’t stand up if this religious leader with politicial implications survived. They managed to have Pilate agree to let Him be executed.

God was assassinated by the religious elite.

Three days after the horrendous murder of the “Other Emperor,” Jesus rose from the dead, a spit in the face of Empire. Their ultimate tool of rule, death, couldn’t stand. His message and renown spread further and further, even after He temporarily left visibility on Earth.

All Empire needs people who believe its system is preferrable to any alternative. But what if that alternative is available?

What if we are living in the tension of two empires right now?

To be continued…

Empire (Part Two)

If I were an Egyptian growing up circa 1200 BCE, it would be difficult for me to understand the culture in which I lived. People rarely venture to other nations or read history to gain a perspective of their own, but have their ideas shaped by an ellusive term.

“They.”

We speak often about this concept when imagining new concepts, inventions, frontiers, injustices, and opportunities. “They” are people who have the ability to influence cultures, borders, arts, minds, and more. But to those who are not part of a culture, thanks to stereotypes and nationalities, everyone is a “they.”

I’ve been reading more of the “wrong books.” Enter two more suspects, and their impact.

Jesus Wants to Save Christians

In growing up in an empire called Egypt, with a very revered Pharaoh named Ramesses in whom people placed their hopes and trust, I would know little of the problems my empire was producing. Hebrew slaves being tortured in the name of yet another elaborate pyramid. Forced worship of a political deity. Firstborn children ordered to be executed upon birth. Wars fought to extend borders, with human casualties chalked up as little more than tally marks called “collateral damage.” Starvation of the poor in the midst of a lavish lifestyle for those in power. And the truth is, those at the top of the power structure had no intention to improve things, as they needed to prosper to maintain their power.

And yet, from Mount Horeb, an agricultural nobody who had survived as an infant in a basket raft emerges from obscurity to organize a revolution of slaves. These oppressed, numbers growing expoentially, had cried out to God to end the cycle of death. This empire, structured to make the greedy succeed, was strangling them of their ability to live their lives. Ramesses couldn’t afford this giant labor union to suddenly walk out on his job site. It was as if every construction worker in a region suddenly wanted to quit work and walk away.

Jesus for President

Empire thrives on cooperation. Empire demands having, under its god, just one nation, indivisible. It must have adherents who return to its throne, seeking the treasures of awe and allegiance. Empire cannot survive a people who question its lavish spending, its distrust for the leaders of the state, or taking the dominant script and feeding it into a paper shredder.

And yet, there’s this little problem. This man, who history calls “Moses,” led a slave rebellion for these Jewish families to start something new and fresh. A departure from a system of confusion. Empire hadn’t brought liberty and justice for all. What they needed was an exodus.

Moses’ people started their own nation, which a few generations later, mirrored what they left in Egypt, With the lavish temples, polytheism, and pursuit of military prowess to expand the empire through shock and awe, this small nation bit off more than it could chew. They faced judgement for not doing justice and pursuing their own grandiose vision. This nation-state called Israel was swallowed up by a bigger empire.

And another.
And another.

The Hebrew Testament and New Testament have a name for this endless system of empires, kings, caesars, rulers, presidents, and senators. Its a word that means “confusion,” and does little more than twist God’s agenda for the human race. In the guise of freedom, prosperity, and the will of God, Himself (in whom empire allegedly trusts and is blessed), its called Babylon.

Moses’ nation spent years crying out for a release from the occupation. They were forced again to work to build a kingdom that was designed to keep them building a kingdom. They cried for an end to it all. A release. Freedom.

And in the midst of a land they spent generations living, they had fashioned a cradle. Their cry gave birth to the answer to their passionate pleas for help.

In the form of a baby’s cry.

To be continued…

Empire (Part One)

I never much liked reading the book of Exodus. Can I say that? Yes – I just did. I knew it was important, what with all the miracles and leaving Pharaoh. But what does that really have to do with a modern boy in Nowheresville, USA?

In the last several years, some key Christian thinkers have been releasing books and speeches that re-position Exodus in a way that screams something else. Something fresh. Something – modern.

One of the more prominent books is Walter Brueggemann’s Prophetic Imagination, written in 2001. Walter speaking with authority and power, defines the term “empire” in ways that would make politicians cringe, history professors dance, and everyday people’s eyebrows stand at attention. It isn’t that he explicitly spells out what the empire “is,” but the applications are violently intense.

Imagine that I went to Epypt or Rome at the height of their rule as a journalist and returned home to compose an article about the things I saw. I would think it could look something like this:

I went to the empire everyone’s been talking about for a visit and saw sights of great majesty the likes of which mere mortals could not have constructed on their own. The buildings were massive, constructed by men with great wisdom, though the people I saw building them were not very wealthy. They had other nations craving to meet their political leader, who had great charisma and was revered almost like a deity, himself. At his crowning, they held a lavish festival with music, dancing, dining, and speeches that heaped praise upon him. This empire had a story of their history, where they were once an oppressed people, but fought off their enemies, gained independence, and built a better way of life. They were proud of their way of government, even willing to conquer distant countries in the name of spreading their government and renown. On their currency, images of their historic leaders, revered forever for their infinite wisdom in laying the foundation for such a great empire. Their people turned the country, itself, into what amounted to a religious system, where they believed their system was one that brought peace to the world, and from every mountside to shining sea, it let freedom ring.

But there is a darker side to this empire. People are born into poverty with little ability to climb out of it because those in power have the wealth to educate their children, while those on the underside of society have little hope to bring their kids to wealth. War is an expensive side-effect of this system where battles are fought in the name of security of empire, but are really designed to expand its borders. Immorality is rampant. Leaders are trusted with their power, but distrusted to wield it with integrity. The empire consumes resources at will, even to the detriment of other nations who have not yet joined. Children are trained to think like the empire, and scolded for questioning it. Battles are fought in public places to progress people to an ideal empire, either one with unlimited empire rule, or one that mirrors the ideals of its founders, who themselves were more godless than we thought.

This sort of article would be blasted by those in power for being incoherent and irrelevant. The results of the empire’s prosperity would be heralded, while the darker side of empire would be hidden. The writer, perhaps better labeled a prophet, would be cast into a prison for speaking out against empire, or, at the very least, lose credibility.

What if this empire isn’t just history that we can’t see and touch?

To be continued…

Boxianity and Boundaries

I’m the sort of person who tries to read things from the various “camps” in Christianity. I’ve had my share of charismatics (growing up as one) and very protestant churches (went to a few of those, too). I like reading stuff from Tozer and CS Lewis to Brian McLaren to NT wright. There’s nothing wrong with searching for truth in odd places. That being said, Rob Bell’s Velvet Elvis is a book that wrecked me in 2006. Never before had I read something so fresh and from such a different viewpoint. Some call me a heretic for liking it. If that’s the case, I guess that’s okay. I’d rather be an exploring heretic than the alternative.

The alternative scares me. Christians find themselves trapped in something of a self-imposed box like my friend below:

Mime trapped in glass box

Imagine that I took you to the zoo and dropped you off in the seal exhibit. Now there’s nothing wrong with visiting the seal – they are quite cool and amusing. But if I told you its the only exhibit, you’d cuddle up and would miss out on all the other exhibits – tigers, penguins, giraffes, and more. The truth is, many Christians have mimed themselves into the seal exhibit and refuse to explore.

 

Don't just look at this guy

 

 

Then there’s the other ditch – exploring outside the boundaries of orthodox Christianity. Since as early as 85 AD, Christians have been required to believe in the Apostles Creed. This Creed (a subject for a discipleship program I’m plotting for February) is essential for Christians to find as boundaries to never cross. It reads:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate
Was crucified, died, and buried,
He descended to the dead; the third day he rose again from the dead
He ascended into heaven,
And sitteth on the right hand of the Father Almighty:
From thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit:
The holy Christian Church; The Communion of the Saints:
The Forgiveness of sins:
The Resurrection of the body,
And the Life everlasting.
Amen.

Now there are other Creeds that extend on this (Nicene, for instance) extend on these concepts, but the boundaries are set. You see Scripture woven into this – Acts 16:31 and Genesis 1, for instance. But one could possibly say that once you agree with these Creeds and Scripture, itself, the rest could be discussed.
 

Within this text, we see a few boundaries that are being violated today. The Early Church wouldn’t allow someone to be called a Christian if they said they didn’t say they believe in the Church. Christians must believe that they will resurrect from the dead one day. Mary was a virgin when Jesus was conceived. Communion is necessary (which can’t really be done alone, by the way). God created this whole shabang. Jesus really rose from the dead. On and on.
 

Let’s be the sort of Christians who don’t trap ourselves in boxes. Let’s also be Christians who don’t leave the boundaries of our Ancient Faith. There is plenty of evidence to dictate that this faith is inspiring and genuine.

Sexual Screw-ups & Church Authority

I was reading a friend’s blog about a news story out of Jacksonville, Florida. A woman from a church has been living with her boyfriend in a sexually active relationship and is slated to be “outted” by the church on January 4th in front of her friends and children for refusing to repent and change.

The church has followed a process they call the “process of loving accountability,” wherein they first have someone talk to her privately, then with a group of women, all encouraging her to sever the relationship with the man whom she says she loves. With her refusal, they have given her one month to change before her dirty laundry is aired before everyone.

The story is written from her side to make her good and the church evil for this process. The truth is, the church is doing what is probably in her best interest. Human beings aren’t made to have sex without commitment. There are no worse break-ups than those that stem from a sexual relationship that lacked both sides committing to give each other everything they can, from their possessions to their dreams. Sex without commitment could be thought of as assisted masturbation – its designed to pleasure yourself rather than someone else.

That being said,  Paul wrote a letter to the church of Corinth (commonly called 1 Corinthians) to deal with a church member who was sleeping with his step-mother. The process this church is following is actually what Paul prescribed to deal with the situation right down to the letter. The person had been spoken to personally, mentored by a church member, and even outted to the entire community, but refused to change his lifestyle. Paul recommended full excommunication until the person changes his lifestyle.

The purpose of this was not to undermine the individual, but to maintain the integrity of the community, ensure that the church was different than the Vegas-like Corinthian culture, and ensure that the person isn’t in sexual sin (which makes the person’s heart a heartbeat from a heartbreak).

2 Corinthians was later written after the incident. The person who’d been sleeping with his stepmother finally repented and wanted to change his life. Paul used this book to prescribe a discipleship and grace process to restore him into the community.

This woman is going to be outted in front of Grace Community Church, but its the church’s way of trying to help her. One of the downsides of the Protestant Reformation has been the death of excommunication, the removal of a person from full participation in the community (such as activities, communion, and more). Since there are 30 churches in town, the First Baptist Church’s excommunication means nothing when a parishioner can drive down the road to First Episcopalian or Jesus Tabernacle the following week. 

Churches must find ways to re-establish the value of their authority. Churches must instill a belief that this isn’t for their benefit so much as the individual’s benefit. Telling someone not to do something just because the Bible says so won’t fly to a postmodern world. But making your truth become their truth will always fulfill a need for both parties.

As for the church in Florida, I hope to get an update on the result soon. Should be interesting.

Jesus: Don’t Follow Me

American Christians are obsessed with “going places.” Perhaps its our hustle-bustle lifestyles once again affecting our spirituality, but let’s be truthful: sermons about Moses or Jesus “going to the other side” really get our mojo going.

It goes without saying that this creeps into our perceptions about saying “Jesus, I’ll follow you.” This is said with the best of intentions when it is said, but how does that actually play out in everyday life? “I’ll follow you anywhere” is pretty ambiguous when Jesus isn’t physically on Earth, and especially when we seem to think Jesus is trapped in churches we can only interact with during certain times of the week like “adult swim” or something.

What if the term “follow” isn’t what we thought? What if its a call to a different perspective of life?

In Mark 5, an interesting exchange takes place. A man who is heavily influenced by demons has been living in caves like a savage and is so animalistic (anti-human) that people would try to restrain him with chains. Funny thing is, even that couldn’t control him. This guy was a fanatic. I would imagine that even without the demons, this was no Mr. Rogers – this was the college party guy who loved to get in bar fights and has a cell reserved for 72 hour jail time. He would take sharp rocks and cut himself like they were razor blades just to see himself bleed. For the record, being a “cutter” isn’t anything new.

Jesus encounters the man, though he is so vexed by demons that he talks back and forth to the demons. They had a military name (Legion), and thus were quite unified in their actions. Jesus commands the demonic military to hitch a ride in some pigs, which in turn leads to what had to be an amazing site – 2,000 maniacal pigs spinning circles, oiking in a frenzy, and hurling themselves one after another off a cliff into the sea. Kind of what the disciples were hoping Jesus would do to the Roman government.

Gadarene Demoniac

 

Following the pig bath, there was this man left in his home of caves and graves. He had lived for a very long time out of his mind around dead bodies and couldn’t have any healthy interaction with humans. This was a man who was probably thinking clearly for the first time in ages. The “Gadarene Demoniac,” as he is often called, did what every preacher craves to see when they deliver their favorite softball altar call.

“Parakleo autos hina o meta autos.”
“I beg that I might follow you.”

For the average preacher, this craving would be the ultimate! To pray for a man like this in a church who is bound by chains, cutting himself with rocks, and lives in a graveyard to be freed of demons, then in one swoop delivers the “I’ll follow you, Jesus” would make a preacher take his wife and kids out for stake after church.

Funny thing is, Jesus isn’t who we thought He was. His reply doesn’t follow the script.

“No, go home to your friends. Tell them what has happened to you, what God has done for you, and that God had compassion on you.”

Yes, if you’re asking – Jesus told the man not to follow Him.

Maybe Jesus knew something about this man that we don’t, but I think there’s quite a bit of instruction, here. We often fall into a trap of trying to overspiritualize “following Jesus.” We turn our “God-given destiny” into an unreachable, unidentifiable, unpredictable place we must follow Jesus for all our lives to reach. Yet, Jesus commandment to this brand new follower was to take His newfound narrative to his everyday, mundane life and spice it up.

This man was from a city called “Gadara.” This was no ordinary city – this was a cultural center for a region called “Decapolis” (Ten Cities) and was home of a lot of activity that influenced regions all over. Think of Silicon Valley, Seattle, New Orleans, Rome, Venice, Paris, and the like. The city had plumbing. The city had a lot of history (including the place where Balaam was stopped by an angel). The father of satire (who’s name was Menippus) was a local boy. There was an incredible library, as one of the Empire’s best poets had lived and died there 50 years ago. Around this time, Theodorus created a school where he trained future Emperor Tiberius. Basically, this place was hugely important.

 

Ruins of Gadara

 

 

Jesus, a culturally engaged prophet, sent this famous delinquent back into this city to tell all these influential people what had happened. Imagine those in Theodorus school hearing about this healing prophet turning “The Demon Guy at the Graveyard” into a perfectly sane man. By Jesus sending this man back into everyday life, he sent the first real missionary.

But he sent him home.

In our lives, we all have an influence on our own cultures. In our schools, jobs, and families, perhaps we do a better job of following Jesus by taking our stories of insanity gone sanity into everyday life. It would be as if Curt Cobain had had a life altering transformation at the peak of the Nirvana days, but instead of quitting the band, he took his new story and influenced an entire culture with it.

Follow Jesus. Where you are.