People of all persuasions are dumping Christianity,
and for several years I tried to reason that it’s not Christianity they’re rejecting,
it’s “bad” Christianity. But lately I’ve begun to see that bad Christianity,
although affecting specific tenets of faith, stains the whole name of
Christianity.
Some groups have
opted for the prosperity gospel and rationalized wealth as a sign of God’s
favor. They use verses like
II Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to
provide you with every blessing [For a definition of “blessing”, look at Matthew 5:2-11;
however, in the original language, II Corinthians 9:8 uses a different word: χαριν (Ka – riv), meaning, literally,
gift or grace.]
in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share
abundantly in every good work.” Note the reason God gives the blessings/graces/gifts is “that…you may share abundantly
in every good work!”
The
gifts are given, not to own or hold, but to empower good works!
Some Christian
groups, having failed through witness and evangelism to convert the world to
their high-demand version of the faith, crawled into bed with political power
to force compliance. Churchmen (Yep, most of them are men—white men) like Pat
Robertson and Jerry Falwell opened the door and more recent names like Franklin
Graham and Doug Wilson have kept the momentum going.
From the other
direction, political leaders like House Speaker Mike Johnson and U. S.
Representative, Lauren Boebert joined hands with church leadership to
consummate the affair.
It is said that
power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In this case, did power corrupt,
or did corruption motivate the hunger for power? Either way, Christian
Nationalism (not to be confused with patriotism) is the love child conceived by
the merger of church and state.
Some elements
(and there’s a lot of overlap throughout these observations) have reduced
Christianity to an obsession with abortion, guns, and any expression of
sexuality that is not heterosexual and married.
Some factions have
been sucked into the Trump/MAGA cult, which currently is doubling down, putting
all its eggs in the basket of Immigration.
Strangely silent in all the above are
specific ethical teachings of Jesus, like “Love your enemy” (Matthew 5:43),
“Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matthew 5:9), “…I was a stranger and you
welcomed me…” (Matthew 25:35ff). In the original language, stranger is ξενος
(zee – nos), the root of the English word, xenophobia. In Matthew 5:43, various
English versions translate it “stranger” or “foreigner.” Elsewhere in the New
Testament it is translated “alien” (Ephesians 2:12 and Hebrews 11:13).
In all cases the Judeo/Christian Scriptures
are consistent in exhortations to welcome the stranger/alien/foreigner and in the
accountability extracted from one who does not extend hospitality to the
foreigner.
I have heard no one advocate for open
borders without accountability. Nor have I heard any credible source opposing legal
action regarding the undocumented. The illegality of undocumented presence (a
civil, not a criminal offense) is offset by the illegality of detaining without
due process or bench warrant, not to mention the indiscriminate detaining of the
totally “legal.”
Not only is
there silence regarding the ethics of Jesus; indeed, many are quite open in
their selective dismissal of Jesus’ ethical teachings, especially those
that don’t comply with their political agenda.
In a 2023 NPR
interview, former Southern Baptist pastor and denominational leader, Russell
Moore, spoke of many pastors who receive serious pushback when they preach
about the ethics and values of Jesus.
He shared that
one pastor preached Jesus’ admonition to turn the other cheek and love your
enemy, and after the sermon an angry church member raged, “Where did you get
all those liberal talking points?”
Moore said,
“What alarms me is that in most of these stories, the pastor would say, ‘I’m
literally quoting Jesus from the Gospels,’ and the response would be, ‘Yes, but
that doesn’t work anymore. That’s weak.’”
Moore
concluded, “When the teachings of Jesus are seen as subversive, we’re in a
crisis.”
I believe we’re
in a crisis. When partisan political ideology takes precedence over the ethics
of Jesus, Christianity morphs into Christian Nationalism, a corruption of and a
deep treat to both Christianity and our nation.
The temptations
of power and wealth are strong enough to receive a lot of biblical attention,
none of which is positive. Applied to Christianity I sense the focus emerges
from the assumption that “I/we” have the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the
truth: absolute, infallible,
non-negotiable and from the conviction that God has made “me/us” responsible
for the salvation of the world’s population; therefore, we must use every means
available to us, ethical or not, to enforce compliance with our doctrine.
It may be nobly intended; but an
end-justifies-the-means ethic cannot be supported by Judeo/Christian Scripture
and particularly not in the words and actions of Jesus. And once the mission
morphs into an obsession, the purpose of the mission gets lost in the power
struggle, and the focus narrows increasingly to control and enforcement of
compliance.
And see, here’s the thing that undergirds the
courtship with political power: the words and teachings and ethics of Jesus do
not guarantee that our side wins. In fact, remember that they got him
crucified.
On the other hand, attempts to legislate
Christian faith have been counterproductive, driving three generations away from
organized religion. According to Thomas G. Bandy, the largest and fastest
growing spiritual population in North America is “the spiritually yearning,
institutionally alienated public.”[1]
Gandhi is
reported to have said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your
Christians," and "If it weren't for Christians, I'd be a Christian."
The largest and fastest growing spiritual population in North America concurs.
It is by our fruits we are known.
That’s the way
it looks through the “Flawed Glass” that is my world view.
Together
in the Walk,
Jim
[1] Thomas G. Bandy, Kicking
Habits: Welcome Relief for Addicted Churches (Nashville: Abingdon Press,
1997) page 37. In other writings Bandy uses “disillusioned” or “disenchanted”
in place of “alienated.”
