This Must Be a Sign
This is it for BattleCry, but they just don't understand the First Rule of Holes*. Another email was waiting for me this morning:
Friends, the reason I raise this for comment is that by its own words and actions, cultural and institutional Christianity in America is broken. Not irredeemable, not evil, not worthless; but wandering aimlessly and obsessed with minutia.
There are wonderful sprouts of fresh growth all around, including here at St. Peter's, and much to be encouraged by. I hope by attempting to shine a little light on BattleCry and its out-of-order values, as an example of cultural Christianity, you may consider unplugging from it and exploring the territory along a less-traveled path. -h
*When you're in one, stop digging.
What are the big concerns here? First, church culture - to the exclusion of the Love Commandment, following Jesus' path, serving the world and strengthening each other, etc. Second, the egos and job security of clergy - a clear case of a professional caste closing ranks and protecting its own interests. This is to be expected; it is typical (nay, universal) human behavior and pastors are people. But it is not a "crisis," and is not much relevant to following Jesus or to the purpose of church.Christianity in America will not survive another decade. How is that possible? At the current rate of evangelism, it is estimated that only 4% of this generation of teenagers will be Bible-believing Christians by the time they reach adulthood. 34% of adults today are Evangelical believers. Imagine an America at 4%:
- Church attendance dwindles
- Tithes and offerings are at an all-time low
- New church buildings sit empty
- Life-giving sermons go unheard
- The role of a church leader becomes irrelevantThis is an unthinkable crisis. We cannot let this trend run its course.
- BattleCry email, "Imagine an America with only 4% Christians" of 9/26/06
Friends, the reason I raise this for comment is that by its own words and actions, cultural and institutional Christianity in America is broken. Not irredeemable, not evil, not worthless; but wandering aimlessly and obsessed with minutia.
There are wonderful sprouts of fresh growth all around, including here at St. Peter's, and much to be encouraged by. I hope by attempting to shine a little light on BattleCry and its out-of-order values, as an example of cultural Christianity, you may consider unplugging from it and exploring the territory along a less-traveled path. -h
*When you're in one, stop digging.
This Must Be a Sign posted by St. Peter's UCC at Tuesday, September 26, 2006
3 Comments:
This is truer than we really understand ...
"the egos and job security of clergy - a clear case of a professional caste closing ranks and protecting its own interests."
... I'm not sure what the antidote is but I can identify with the problem. Thanks for posting it.
This deserves further discussion, and I hope to find a way to raise it again. In the meantime, let me be clear that my criticism is aimed towards problem-solving and realm-of-love-building.
Human subgroups of any type have a tendency to protect their own interests against those gnarly "outsiders." It's a natural, mostly subconscious process. The best solution is usually a wider circle of accountability.
These circles are not easy to maintain; witness the way that Congress and state legislatures have gerrymandered themselves lifetime offices and annual pay raises beyond inflation against the interests of their constituents. And, look at how happily partisans have cheered them on. Tribalism is just below the surface (I'll have more on tribalism this week).
It sounds simplistic, but all I can think is that in the church we need more Jesus-followers. Meaning that taking on that role means not being primarily a church-attender or pastor-supporter or whatever else. In these 3 minutes on Sunday morning, I'll say that a pastor's work is ideally to lead themselves out of a job; to help create a self-sustaining community of Jesus-followers that no longer requires professional leadership.
For the time being, there's enough of that to do that a pastor could always find a new commuity to work with.
Vert insightful Howie. Look forward to reading more.
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