03.22.08
Good Friday.. western style
Against my better instincts I attended a Good Friday morning service at a large church. It was all I could do not to walk out after the first song.
On the one hand, it’s a very personal reaction. My inclination is toward the contemplative and theological reflection. I found this service oriented toward feelings and sentiment, filtered through the frame of western individualism.
So, I resist saying I’m “beyond” this. I have to acknowledge I’m not all that far along in the spiritual life. I am still far too selfish, far too centered on my own agendas. At the same time, I want to acknowledge a place for critique of the theology that informs our gatherings, and that it is so easy to stay with milk and not move on to “meat” and the larger issues of mercy and justice in our world.
When a community is coming from a typical evangelical frame that is centered on one (substitutionary) view of the atonement, and a dualistic perspective that tends to view salvation as something otherworldly, it isn’t likely that I will ever feel at ease in that setting. Increasingly I find myself leaning to the theme of Christus Victor: Jesus beginning a process that will issue in the renewal of all creation, an ongoing expression of His care for the Universe and the summing up of “all things” in Christ, and the defeat of the fallen powers. I don’t argue we should leave other views of the atonement behind, only that we should embrace the ones we have neglected.
In view of the larger purposes of God in establishing His kingdom “on earth as in heaven,” I found the opening song, a sentimental, romantic response to the love of God in His keeping covenant and in His sacrifice for us, trivializing and offensive. When we were later invited to write our individual needs or our family needs on small pieces of paper and bring them to the large wooden cross, the issues offered as examples completely excluded anything beyond personal and health concerns. I found myself thinking about Iraq, Kenya, the Sudan, Tibet, AIDS, the environment. I found myself getting depressed at this small view of God that put Him at my personal service. I found myself getting angry.. in a devotional setting. It was a painful experience to be so out-of-sync in a believing community.
“The gospel of sin management produces vampire Christians who want Jesus for his blood and little else.â€
Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy
related: the solace of desert places.. Also related, Michael Spencer reflects on the Psalms as shaping worship.
grace said,
March 22, 2008 at 10:46 am
Len,
Thanks for putting this into words. That is exactly how I feel, and I often feel guilty about how out-of-sync I am with most believers because the last thing that I want is to be critical or elitist.
len said,
March 22, 2008 at 2:14 pm
grace, thanks, glad not to be alone in this. May the Lord give us grace for ourselves, and for our brothers and sisters so caught in this narrow paradigm.
len said,
March 22, 2008 at 2:49 pm
btw, I am still reflecting on this experience, trying to make sense of the anger I felt. In part, its this seeker-sensitive and romantic paradigm. I suspect that the paradigm has transformed what should be a starting point for the gospel — the tender (but also violent and jealous) love of God in Christ — into a place believers camp. As a result, it keeps us children, centered on our own needs, and dependent on others to continue to “feed” us (though one can starve in these McChurches). Much better to embrace the wide and powerful gospel described by Tom Wright above, summarized by Paul like this.. “Because Jesus is raised from the dead, God’s new world has begun. We are not only the beneficiaries of new creation; WE ARE THE AGENTS OF IT.. when we do new creation— [SO] when we encourage one another in the church TO BE ACTIVE in projects of new creation, of healing, of hope for communities—we are standing on the ground that Jesus has won in his resurrection….â€
Roger said,
March 23, 2008 at 5:49 am
Len
I continue to affirm, and I guess assert, that church leaders must become thoroughgoing theological leaders. Too often church leaders have become psychological or technological or utilitarian leaders. Henri Nouwen, in In the Name of Jesus, writes: “Without solid theological reflection, future leaders will be little more than pseudo-psychologists, pseudo-sociologists, pseudo-social workers. Would that church leaders become everyday Christologists and theological Ecclesiologists governed by Spirit and Scripture in the context of Culture and the Community of faith. Perhaps a start would be for churches to cultivate design teams that will design and evaluate every church service theologically, from the word of the songs, to the Scripture read, to the preaching, to the prayer, to the art and drama, to the sharing and extras like bringing your lists to the cross, to the communion, to everything else that is placed into the context of the “worship service.”
Rog
grace said,
March 23, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Len,
In spite of the fact that the seeker-sensitive service’s main focus is evangelism, I believe it has drifted away from a “full” gospel. Not only that, but I believe the service that is almost like a television production presents a really distorted and artificial view of what church is.
My daughter danced in the service at our local mega-church this week. Seeing all of the hours poured into preparation and practice for the performance was discouraging when you realize this is the “work of the ministry” that occurs week after week. All so the audience can be blessed by the wonderful show.
In the end, both the gospel and the image of church become disconnected from reality, just something you can tune into and passively watch.
len said,
March 24, 2008 at 8:35 am
grace, helpful, thanks. Its depressing to be helped to see more clearly what we have lost. You’re right. Even though the service we attended was interwoven with dramatic readings from the gospels, it was largely spectacle until the “pin your prayers or confession” or whatever to the Cross. And then it was highly pietistic. Even the Sunday sermon we heard was devoid of any political implications, Christus Victor itself reduced to something more like personal transformation and eternal security. Oh God…
len said,
March 25, 2008 at 6:46 pm
thanks Rog, your friendship is a source of strength to me
WaynO said,
April 6, 2008 at 6:29 pm
Sounds like you would like the old Calvinist church. The pastor is the teaching elder then the session becomes the ruling elders (making sure the teaching stays within the theological confines of the church) the deacons then the caretakers of church and community.
Pretty loose description but I think it is fairly nutshell accurate.
Keeps things decently and in order I suppose but seems to have gotten lost even in the Presbyterians.
Not what the bolg started as but seems like you have gotten there????
WaynO
WaynO said,
April 6, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Sorry here but I read again the post and comments and the quote from Henri Nouwen. I am concerned about my own role in the church and am struggling with it. I am not willing to just walk away, I am the pastor and have a chance to move a group of believers to a new level of faith.
I want to stay true to the gospel and work to accomplish it. I also know if they do not come there is no way to share the story, is it seeker friendly or is there another way?
I have Holy week services that I work hard to call people to the real sacrifice and the purpose of that. To lift up what we got, what it cost, and that because of that what we respond with.
I know it is better to be right than big but in the same sentence there is all that other stuff like bringing people in and the ultimate that is my own personal thought is we already have a lot of stuff. We have a lot of useable resources at our disposal. It would be in my mind the redirection of all of this more than the abolishment.
Am I somewhere relevant??? BTW I have an issue with the hymnal, just to much what we got not what we are and need to be. To my world and not enough all the world.
WaynO
len said,
April 7, 2008 at 11:39 am
wayne, these are difficult times.. and its important to be where you are called to be. Established churches can work at being more missional, but I dont’ think that translates as “attractional” (see Frost and Hirsch or Reg McNeal on this). It means somehow connecting in our neighborhoods, and in other places where we rub shoulders with pagans.