trapped in a culture?

Back in 1960s and the Vietnam Conflict Era of the USA, a university professor named Timothy Leary advised American youth to “Turn on, tune in, and drop out” from the status quo of American society. Leary was a controversial figure in the American consciousness, a pilgrim going the wrong direction and taking many along with him in the eyes of conservative and middle-class America.
The reason why I mention him here is not to eulogize him, his message, or his legacy – it’s simply that his seven-word quote above is as apropos as anything I can summon in terms of what I think Christians worldwide need to do with the cultural church in its present state.
Personally I was drawn to the church after first being drawn to the Son of God and his invitation for freedom from sin and condemnation. Pummeled by my own ways of dealing with the world, I found a refuge as well as a training center through which I could learn more about this marvelous author of a marvelous faith. I think this is a fairly common pattern among newcomers to the church.
I realize that I owe the church a great deal in regards to its support, discipleship, guidance, etc. The church has to a large degree made me the person I am today. However there are times when I wonder if the bride isn’t being confused with the bridegroom, and just what kind of bride truly exists.
There is no singular turning point from where I began to wonder at the relevance of the church. First I began to question the priorities of church governance, which so often regarded the trappings of the sanctuary above the flockless. Then I began to notice how in the house of the redeemed there seemed a coordination of faith with lifestyles; SUVs, home schooling, larger families, real estate purchases, or in other words, more pronounced consumerism. It certainly did appear that riches accompanied the glory of knowing Christ, and I wondered where I was lacking in my faith walk.
I pressed further into my discipleship as a result, only to find that Christ’s message was indeed that which had drawn me in the first place; seek first his kingdom, don’t worry about the rest; it shall be added on.
I worked for Christian businessmen in my church. I tried to be appreciative of having employment, but I was aggrieved that profit seemed to be more important than a pursuit of excellence in so many instances. It was as if money had become the only respectable vice left to these men and women; hence it could be pursued with a zealous, sometimes reckless abandon.
Somewhere within this time I had begun to wonder, “Is this what Jesus had in mind? Is this going out into the world and making disciples? Is this the celebration of his victory, alas, our victory over the world?”
My discipleship eventually led me to training in overseas missions. Certainly here would be a different spirit, so I thought.
Instead I found that what I thought was the esprit-de-corps of the faith are only an extension of the cultural church that I had fled from in the USA. The first topic of conversation after the usual formalities of how-do-you-do is what organization (church) are you with, and how is your support? Missionaries I have known and worked with are consistently, without exception, financially endowed far beyond the populations they work with and witness to. Their financial assets are flaunted before a public that is much more impressed with their affluence than with their faith. Do you remember Christ, his disciples, or God’s prophets doing things this way?
What is the effect upon the faithful of the lands where overseas missions reach? By now you know what I’m going to say: extremely negligible. The harsh reality is that if you are a minister of Christ in overseas missions, you’d better have something tangible to offer the ministries of the land, and I’m not talking about just bible tracts. If you do not have money and gifts you will be politely dismissed with the unspoken message, “Go back home and get some, or just stay home.”
A tie-up with an affluent, generous American is a real feather in your cap if you are in the God business. Despite Jesus’ teaching that the servant should gird himself and serve the master before helping himself, I have seen it the norm that a pastor will lavish his household with vehicles, appliances, furnishings and conveniences first before tending to his often impoverished flock; in fact, his talisman is his display of the wealth and easy manner he has with his foreign benefactors.
The most ironic aspect of all this is that these cultural Christians seem to believe that they have escaped the worlds’ ways and have followed Christ to this haven of rest and plenty. They seem to have fallen for the myth that it’s their “good, clean living” that has brought them to such a desirable place.
A friend of mine once made the statement as he held up a dollar bill: “We are sending our God off to poor countries.” That note proclaims, as we all know, “In God we Trust”. Should it be so hard to realize the cause of the confusion?

two accounts

In the bible we have accounts of Elijah and of John the Baptist. John the Baptist comes in the spirit of Elijah and is spoken of as a forerunner of Christ.
We have a much more detailed account of Elijah than of John. We are given Elijah’s ups and downs, his wanderings, his conflicts, his turmoil and despair. We only get John’s steadfast purpose, his sudden rise to fame, his sudden demise. Elijah runs from pillar to post, chasing and being chased by people and God. John stands his ground in the wilderness until he is arrested. Elijah constantly prays and saves his neck, while John stays defiant and loses his. Elijah gets a sensational and emotional departure from earth, while John’s death seems so senseless, petty and cruel.
Jesus gives tribute to John after his death, yet strangely, he claims that he is least in the kingdom of heaven.
Elijah’s account is like “Gone with the Wind”, while John’s is like “The Great Gatsby”. The first is long and gets its appreciation from the story itself. The second is short and requires more reflection in order to gain its appreciation. The first is ornamental and triumphant, the second stark and disturbing.

The Music Matters

Everyone has a song, I believe. Each utters meaning from the voice within. Walt Whitman splendidly conveys this idea in his “Song of Myself” prose, and the minstrel and great Hebrew King David expounds continually on this theme. A more contemporary example comes from one of my favorite singer/songwriters who passed away only a few years ago, Hoyt Axton, who sang “I am less than the song I am singing; I am more than I thought I could be”.
If I seem to be putting undue emphasis upon the importance of music in our lives, it’s only because music matters so much to me. I suppose only another musician can truly relate to my conversation about that tingling that effervesces from deep within whenever I get near a guitar, drum set, piano, etc. From my earliest recollections I have been fascinated with instruments: their shape, color, their flourishing, shining, dazzling designs. Oh! to be able to play them was equal to being a worker of miracles!
Despite my decades of experience with musical instruments, I still behold something miraculous in musical expression. The combination of sounds is never exactly the same, thereby making each musical instant unique, if not marvelous. We musicians look upon one another's performances with admiration, reverence, envy, and disdain, sometimes simultaneously, because we are so “in the moment” whenever we first hear a chord struck.
I cannot speak for that person who doesn’t play an instrument, sing in a choir, or even in the shower, yet I have observed the music motor humming within practically everyone I have ever known. So then I wonder if it is exaggeration to conclude that music connects with life at its very core.
There was a wonderful film back in the 1980s titled “Mr. Holland’s Opus”, in which an aspiring young musician finally faces his reality that he will not be able to subsist solely as a musical performer, and thus becomes a high school band director. Along with this disappointment, he is devastated to learn that his only son was born deaf. Mr. Holland’s challenge is to learn to connect with his son through a medium apart from sound, which in Mr. Holland’s case is particularly painful. Part of that connection comes when Mr. Holland notices that the boy, who has an avid interest in auto mechanics, is able to tune an engine through his sensitivities to its vibrations.
I use this example to defend my notion that music is much more intrinsic than we might first suspect. And because music is so intrinsic to our nature, it carries vast potential in its ability to affect us.
Music is almost always a part of ceremony or campaign to prompt people to action, to clinch the theme, to capture the hearts and minds of its listeners and lead them down the intended path. It summons the warrior to battle, calms tattered emotion, rejuvenates the the weary or indifferent soul, tugs the mournful and melancholy spirit to catharsis. The use of music as a force can be for good or for evil, and in its use I believe the musician holds a responsibility.

good ol' boys?

Do you think you’re good? C’mon now. . . do you? I mean, can you be trusted? Really, we all have our flaws, but overall, deep down inside, don’t you think you’re a good person? It’s not really healthy to think otherwise, is it?
How about me? Do you think I’m a good person?
If we’re going to get through this conversation cordially, we’d better acknowledge some goodness with each other, right?
Now it might seem necessary to admit that we used to be horrible, but then we gave our lives over to righteousness and justice through the wonder-working power of God; we’re not perfect, mind you, but we are much improved over our former qualities.
Sounds like flawed Pauline doctrine to me, and more of the same milk-toast diet of the universal church that Christ will judge.
Truth is, according to Jesus, we’re not any of us good at all. Truth is, Christ didn’t ask us to scoot over a little and make room for him to enter. Truth is, he eradicated us with his blood, sealed and grafted his righteousness onto us with his blood.
After Jesus settled matters with the seeker (rich young ruler) about righteousness and goodness, the commandments, and all that, he told him to sell all his goods and “Follow me”. That was what the seeker failed to do, and that made everyone feel sad. The seeker didn’t need to be made better; by his own words I’m convinced that he is a better man than me. But by Jesus’ words I’m convinced he needed to be saved.
Sometimes it only seems like Paul is urging the brethren in the churches and his close personal friends to be better. If we inspect more closely, we will see that he is generally just telling them to believe, to enthusiastically enter into the faith he holds. Sometimes he becomes overbearing, in my opinion, urging others to follow his example, itemizing his credentials and exploits, going for the heartstrings of the readers; he wasn’t perfect, after all.
Paul had a lot of issues to work out. He was responsible for a lot of suffering and many deaths. I would think that the martyrdom of Stephen would be pretty hard on any man’s conscience.
Saul who became Paul held the qualities of a driven man both pre-and-post the Damascus Road Experience. He was obviously a man who could galvanize men into action, but that doesn’t make him a good man. He was neither a good man before or after he surrendered his will to Christ; he just got saved.
The problem with Christianity is this constant forgetfulness that there are none good except God. Granted, we’re all each other has, and therefore we will have to make the best of the situation, but this tendency to place certain men in exalted reverence only proves just how foolish people really are. I have known many Christian leaders whose biggest stumbling blocks have been their fawning followers who insist that the anointed of God are error-proof. A lot of good that does in bringing forth Jesus’ message that he is the light of the world!
Those of us who tend to question any inconsistencies in leadership are often led to the teaching on Moses and the sons of Israel as they journeyed through the wilderness. The people defied God and his appointed one, Moses, and most if not all grievously regretted the act. However you and I are not following a cloud by day or pillar by night through a desert region, dependent upon mysterious manna for our next meal. We live in homes and go to our pantry or the store for food. Therefore the example of submitting to leaders is good, but not to be taken any more literally than the situation at hand!
Actually someone might have done Moses some good by talking to him about his anger management problem. It was his uncontrolled temper, after all, that made him a fugitive of Egyptian justice. And even after more than forty years of that experience behind him, it was still his temper that prevented him from entering the Promised Land. Moses is another great role model, but if we sugar-coat those aspects of his character that are less than desirable, we show a lack of depth and discernment as Christ’s disciples.

Money and The Message

I’ve just read “A Christian Manifesto” by Francis Schaeffer. It’s very informative. I think he is spot-on with his insights. I disagree with him on one point, however. He says that “it is up to Christians to show that Christianity is the truth of total reality in the marketplace of freedom.” Maybe then it was, but now it’s up to God. Christians have blown it.
Everyone misses the point regarding affirmative action and Christian Freedom. Solomon was right. Money is the answer to everything. Jesus was right, too. The widow’s mite was more precious than all the others’ offerings combined.
Christian advocacy is all about money. Widows and tycoons respond to the call to give. The groups that handle the donations seek them out. They say things like, “We need your money to get the message out.” This is foolish. How much money did it take Jesus to get the message out? Moses? David? The First Christians? They were getting the message out while they were re-establishing themselves on foreign soils, broke and broken-hearted.
What is the message of Christianity? Christ died for sinful mankind and is the propitiation of sin; how much money is required to thus say?
What is the message of Christian advocacy? Beats me, but apparently it’s much more expensive to deliver than Christianity’s.
Christian advocacy is the use of money to sway perceptions/policy. Want less taxes . . . give to an advocacy group. Want to regulate abortion and immorality. . . give to an advocacy group. Want more respect shown to Christians. . . give to an advocacy group; as if the battle and the message of Christianity were the same thing!
This is also going on in the church worldwide. Money is the answer to everything. Money does make the world go round. Everyone understands this except Western Christians. The best thing going financially in most societies is as a designee to a religious title. Levites are always fat. They may or may not minister wholeheartedly to their skinny devotees, but the only meals they ever miss are the ones they deign not to eat.
So we send Christian advocacy messengers across the waters to make men twice the sons of perdition that we are; does this sound like progress? Not to me!
The message of Christianity never cost anyone anything except his/her status in the world. The message is simple and as affordable as ink on pages, like newspapers that slum dwellers and wait-listed train passengers in India spread out and sleep on.
There’s not near enough money available to propagate to the world “that Christianity is the truth of total reality in the marketplace of freedom”. Only Western Christians are foolish enough to believe they can buy or sell this concept as though it were a patent. The true message, however, will sail as free as the breezes to every nook and cranny of the world, as it always has and always will be.

milk toast

Do you like milk toast? Some people do. It gives a warm feeling. It gives comfort. It aids sleep.
Do you like whiskey? Some people do. It puts fire in the belly. So does red chili. Whiskey puts fire in the belly and in the eye. Whiskey is pretty fiery.
Most of vocational Christianity on display is milk toast. There are songs about fire, but they are not fiery songs. There are sermons about fire. Sometimes there are fiery sermons. Everyone is sitting down during them. Then the service ends, sometimes with a milk-toast song about fire. There was never any fire.
Why do they always serve milk-toast? It gives a warm feeling. It gives comfort. It calms down frayed nerves. They can’t serve whiskey. They can pretend to, but they can’t.
Events in The Bible are not milk toast. They are blood and fire. But stories are only milk toast, even if they are about fire.
Missionaries go to countries to spread the gospel. They feel called to. The Bible says to go, and they do. Sometimes they suffer hardship. Usually they are just missing their milk toast. Eventually they find it.
Missionaries have organizations to protect them. They plan carefully. They take enough money for food, shelter, maybe even a car. They usually have a return ticket home. They put their children in the best schools. They have nice quarters and good food. They start churches. Miraculously whiskey changes to milk toast. Many people say this is good.
Events like The Bible’s sometimes occur in missions. Usually they don’t. People often think the missionaries’ lives are like the heroes from the Bible. Usually they aren’t. People in the Bible were forced into their situations. They got the blood and fire, but they didn’t choose it.
Missionaries aren’t forced. They choose to go, but they don’t choose blood and fire. They choose milk toast. They want a warm feeling. They choose comfort over discomfort. They want calm and order. Why shouldn’t they? They are inclined to call their situation blood and fire, however. That is the problem.
They weren’t struck blind on Damascus Road. They’ve never had anyone killed. They’re not crossing a wilderness. They know where their next meal is coming from. No one is chasing them. They take a chance on offending heathens. They might get sent home. Usually that is the extent of their risk.