In honor of St. Patrick, we present this bit from Lutheran Satire that is not designed so much to be a knock on St. Patrick as on any attempt to use analogies to “explain” the Trinity. It’s also an overdue apology to Irish snake farmers.
Good for a laugh — especially you’ve downed your third beer today.
An excerpt from a post by Chaplain Mike, February 2011
My take on what has happened over the course of the last forty years is as follows. In evangelicalism in particular, we have raised a whole generation of Christians who were discipled not so much by traditional local churches as by parachurch ministries and churches that have become dominated by the parachurch ethos. That ethos is not “Church” but “Mission.” And so what we see today is the fruit of that.
We have many communities of faith that would be better described as “missions” rather than “churches.”
Campus Crusade for Christ, Navigators, InterVarsity, Youth for Christ, and a thousand other parachurch ministries have been the true engines of growth in evangelicalism over the course of my Christian life. Their emphasis on “evangelism and discipleship” influenced those who developed the church growth movement, the Willow Creek movement, the church-planting “community church” type movements, and the more contemporary examples we see today. Traditional Protestantism defined the church as a community where the Word of God was truly preached and the sacraments truly administered. Today, “church” is defined by many as a community that practices evangelism and discipleship.
I don’t totally disagree, and the emphasis on mission in today’s congregations is likely a reaction to a lack of that emphasis in more traditional congregations.
However, this leads to some problems. What, for example, would Paul say about a “church” that consists wholly of those age 25 and under? Or any “church” that exists primarily to reach a particular demographic? Or a “church” that, for the purpose of outreach, shapes its preaching and “worship” (i.e. music) after a particular culture rather than shaping it around the Gospel? (That is not the same as saying our worship and religious styles will reflect our cultural context.)
I think, frankly, that the Apostle would have problems with this approach. Certainly, in a broad sense, Paul saw himself as an “apostle to the Gentiles,” while others were “apostles to the Jews.” And he did say, in 1Corinthians 9, that he was willing to adapt his approach to reach as many as possible. That was his mission in the world.
However, that was not what he said “church” is about. When Paul gathered people from the various backgrounds he had reached into the church, he brought them together, and insisted that the ethos of the church was learning to accommodate to one another, accept one another, and become a cross-cultural community in Christ. Almost every epistle he wrote is designed in part to reinforce this ecclesiological perspective.
For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Gal 3:27-28)
[you] have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him — a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all. (Col 3:10-11)
Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. (Rom 14:5-7)
But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. (Eph 3:13-22)
From today’s Saturday Ramblings:
Andy Stanley met with pastors at some pastors conference in Atlanta. He encouraged them to make their church services “appealing and engaging” in order to keep the customers, er, congregations coming back. Ok, this doesn’t surprise me. Disappoints me, yes. But it doesn’t surprise me. Yet here is the line that really makes me question whether he knows the same God I do: “God is a God of systems and predictability and order, and God honors planning,” he said.
Commentary by Jesus: (click on image for full size)
Well, iMonks, it has been a very interesting week, has it not? We have a new leader of the church. We also have a new pope. Confused? So were those who selected the Final Four bracket. You ought to see the winner they came up with. And tomorrow—well, tomorrow is a day we all celebrate by turning Kermit the Frog. It’s not easy being green. Shall we ramble?
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, was elected the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church on the fifth ballot this week. He then took the name of Francis, the first of 266 such popes, to take that name. One of the first things the new pope did was to pay his hotel bill. This would not surprise those in the slums of Argentina where Bergoglio often visited, even washing the feet of drug addicts. It seems this pope plans to break many traditions. He has many interesting views on many things. I think I’m really going to enjoy getting to know Pope Francis.
Before the conclave, Cardinal Timothy Dolan wrote to his flock, expressing his hope for a quick vote as he was running short of, well, you can find out yourself.
But is Cardinal Bergoglio truly the new head of the Catholic Church? Not according to the results of the Final Four. In a rout, the winner of the Sweet Sistine tournament was Cardinal John Onaiyekan of Nigeria. So, do we have a new schism?
From the classic Michael Spencer post, Yo Ho Ho, A Papist’s Life for Me?
NOTE: In honor of the new Pope, we present this portion of an essay by Michael, in which he expresses several reasons why he appreciates the Roman Catholic Church and tradition. Be aware, this was not all he had to say. At this point in his journey, he still had some pretty strong negative views of Catholic doctrine and practice, especially regarding salvation, the Mass, and Mary. You can follow the link and read the rest of the story.
* * *
The fact is, there is much that I like about Roman Catholicism. The better I get to know it, the more I find to like. Some of it is personal and subjective. Some is mythical and ridiculous. Some are matters of perennial debate among Christians, and we are allowed to open our Bibles–and our minds–and take sides. I don’t expect you to like my reasons for liking Catholicism, but at least check them out. As usual, I believe honesty is a virtue.
Let’s be clear on one thing. I am not talking about Roman Catholic theology about the Gospel and the sacraments. I’m talking about Roman Catholicism as I’ve experienced it in books and people. Your experience is probably much different. I know, I know, I KNOW that some of these positives have negative aspects, and some are the result of grievous RC errors. But I will admit that I am not impressed by the idea that the errors of Catholicism make it impossible to be a fan–or a Christian–within its confines.
I’m not trying to repudiate the reformation. I’m just telling you what I like. I’m not trying to bug ‘ya. But if I do, so be it. Forgive me. It’s the Christian thing to do.
I’m impressed by a very balanced view of Jesus and the Christian life. We often criticize Roman Catholics for not embracing the language of “personal Savior” when speaking of Jesus. That’s precisely what I admire. Serious Roman Catholics aren’t having a debate about evangelism versus missions versus social action versus devotion. The Catholic ministries I’ve worked with put all these things together in a more balanced way than my Baptist Christianity ever did. And where we had learned that sort of balance, we usually learned it from Catholics.
Starting a ministry to the community would have been a big deal in most of the churches I’ve served. As soon as you started talking about food for the poor, the subject of evangelism had to be put forward as the more important counterpoint. The caricatures of poverty that populate middle class America usually turned it into a long business meeting. Maybe Father Maloney had the same headaches down at St. Joe and Paul, but it sure seemed that our Catholic friends did a lot more for the community than the Baptists did.
In fact, it seemed that the whole subject of individually imitating Jesus in our concern for the poor and suffering just got expressed in Catholicism far better than it did in our tradition. I don’t think it was just that we got burned by liberals espousing the social Gospel. I think the Catholics had a better grip on what it meant to be following Jesus.
Roman Catholicism, in its system of designating saints, holds up a multi-dimensional portrait of the Christian life. Academics, evangelists, missionaries, monks, bishops, intercessors, warriors, servants of every kind–they all have a place in the Catholic approach to the Christian life. St.Thomas and St. Francis are both manifestations of the Spirit of Christ. Mother Theresa and Benedict are both living out the calling of following Jesus. Protestantism seems hampered in any effort to synthesize these gifts together into a coherent Christian life, except, as I said, in emulation of Roman Catholicism.
It’s remarkable how many good Protestants, when coming across an Augustine or Merton or Manning or O’Connor, feel like they are stepping from a tiny stream into a mighty river. Now streams are typically more cluttered than rivers, and even though rivers have more pollutants, they are also able to cleanse and dilute their waters. Even so, Catholicism’s river, polluted as it may be, still impresses me as being “deep and wide” and containing, within itself, so much that other traditions have never been able to bring together. I will freely admit this appeals to me, and powerfully.
I am impressed by the Catholic intellectual tradition. Where are the Notre Dames of evangelicalism? Liberty University? Evangelicals decry their own intellectual backwardness, and commendably, are trying to correct this deficit. But Roman Catholicism, a tradition that once condemned scientists, has also produced an intellectual tradition that embraces science and knowledge in a far healthier way than evangelicalism. Where is the creationist controversy in the RCC? Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that Catholicism has a vital involvement in almost every intellectual endeavor?
Catholic Biblical studies continue to impress me and many others. Raymond Brown may be the greatest New Testament scholar of our generation. His work on the Johannine literature, and the New Testament in general, was standard fare at my Baptist seminary, and I am more than glad of that today. Brown is critically astute, yet reverent to the text as a devoted Christian scholar. Despite the constant Protestant criticism of how Catholics use the Bible in theology, their own Biblical studies are highly respected. Just look at the current quest for the historical Jesus, and how John Meier’s A Marginal Jew towers above everyone else because of detailed attention to the text New Testament.
And if Roman Catholicism has any Bishop Spongs or Bishop Robinsons being openly ordained, I am missing them. I am very well aware of the problems, but I can also say that the Catholic church has created a “big tent” better than any church I know, and without allowing the extremes of right or left to dominate the middle. American Catholics, with their tendency toward individuality, often challenge the Vatican on issues like abortion and homosexuality, but the church doesn’t budge. When I hear the liberal vanguards haranguing the church for not changing, I am always reminded that the RCC is far more sure of itself–right and wrong–than that amorphous blob known as Protestantism.
Continue reading “iMonk: Roman Catholicism – An Appreciation”
O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
When God restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.
– Psalm 53:6
When we read and pray the Psalms, we enter into the prayers of David and the other psalmists, we enter into the prayers of the exiles who composed, edited, and arranged the Old Testament, and we enter into the prayers of Jesus the Christ, the Son of David, the ideal King who brought us salvation.
Tonight in Psalm 53, we hear the voices of those Babylonian exiles most clearly. In this psalm they lament the ungodliness of their captors, they lament their own captive condition, and they pray for God to save them and restore them.
All through the Bible, the theme of “exile” is present. The worst penalty imagined is to be exiled from the good land, separated from home, alienated from God, under enemy rule. So tonight, in Psalm 53, we hear the voices of the exiles.
Tonight we hear the voices of Eve and Adam, cast from the Garden because of their transgression to a life east of Eden.
Tonight we hear the voice of Cain, sentenced to wander the earth after failing to be his brother’s keeper.
Tonight we hear the voice of Joseph, sold by his brothers into slavery and exiled in Egypt. We then hear the voices of Jacob’s entire family as they are forced to resettle in Egypt, where eventually they become slaves to the cruel Pharaoh.
Tonight we hear the voices of the people of Israel, wandering through the wilderness until an entire generation died off, because of their unbelief.
Tonight we hear the cries of women like Naomi, who left the land in time of famine and suffered the loss of her husband and sons.
Tonight we hear the sad prayers and songs of David, God’s chosen king but also the exiled king, as he dwelt among the rocks and the caves while fleeing King Saul – David, who was later forced from his throne by members of his own family, exiled from Jerusalem.
Tonight we sit in silence with Elijah the prophet, who hid in the wilderness from King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, alone by the brook, fed by ravens.
Tonight we watch in horror as the Assyrians conquer and scatter the northern tribes of Israel, demolishing their kingdom and dispersing the people far and wide into foreign lands.
And then we lament as the Babylonians sack Jerusalem, plunder and destroy the Temple, and then take the people captive, transporting them into exile, where they hang their harps by the waters of Babylon, longing for home.
We rejoice when they return to the land by King Cyrus’s edict, but our joy is mixed. For tonight we remember that, generation after generation, other nations came in to rule over Israel. Though they had returned from literal, geographical exile, they remained captives and slaves in their own land under enemy rule.
And so we pray with them. We pray for an end to the exile.
O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
When God restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.
We’re open blogging today on the subject of the new Pope. We invite you to share your thoughts, opinions, hopes, prayers, and concerns.
Here are a few links for further reading:
I hadn’t expected to be talking about church architecture and art this week. But that was changed when I saw the 60 Minutes segment we talked about this morning and the following video from our local newspaper. It’s about iconographers from Greece who are painting in the Byzantine style in the interior of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Carmel, Indiana.
Stunning.
You can also see a display of photographs at IndyStar.com.
Sometimes words fail in the face of divine beauty.
http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1
Since watching 60 Minutes Sunday night, I have not been able to stop thinking about the majestic vision portrayed in the show’s piece about one of the most remarkable buildings ever built by human hands: The Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain.
The church was begun on March 19, 1882 by architect Francisco de Paula del Villar. At the end of 1883 Antoni Gaudí was commissioned to take up the work, which he continued until his death in 1926. Since then different architects have carried on his vision for this grand church in a project that has now proceeded for 140 years.
The building is in the center of Barcelona, and over the years it has become an icon of the city and its country. Millions of people visit every year and many more study its architectural and religious content.
It has always been an expiatory church, which means that since the outset it has been built from donations. Gaudí himself said: “The expiatory church of La Sagrada Família is made by the people and is mirrored in them. It is a work that is in the hands of God and the will of the people.”
in November 2010, La Sagrada Familia was consecrated as a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI. Though incomplete, it has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. The project is scheduled to be completed some time between 2020-2030, some 100 years after the death of its visionary, who has been called, “God’s Architect.”
I could go on talking about Gaudi’s amazing tribute to God’s majesty, but this marvel begs to be seen. I have included two videos below. The first is a shorter, contemplative portrait of the basilica. The second is a longer look at its history, and includes a fascinating look at the church’s facades and some of the symbolism portrayed on them.
If you want more, click the “60 Minutes” link above and you can watch their segment. And the website devoted to La Sagrada Familia (also linked above) is a treasure trove of information, pictures, etc.
Of this great building, one art critic said, “It is probably impossible to find a church building anything like it in the entire history of art.” One may have to go back to the Middle Ages to find such a building project for the glory of God. When asked about the time it would take to build such a structure, Gaudi is reported to have said, “My Client is not in a hurry.”
If any of our readers has visited La Sagrada Familia, I would especially love to hear from you today.
1. The Disney-ization of Christianity continues apace.
Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, famous for Pastor John Hagee and his over-the-top dioramic teaching on prophecy and the End Times, is about to treat us with a 28,400 square foot building portraying Noah’s Ark, complete with “true-to-size animatronics animals…to underscore the Bible’s authenticity.” Here’s the promotional poster on their website:
In case you missed our post from a couple of years ago that is linked above, here is my description of “Disney-ization” —
But I know what Disney is and what they do — They take classic stories and make cartoons out of them.
Disney does not fool me into thinking what they do is great art containing profound insights into life and the human experience. I accept and enjoy them for what they are, no more. Their artists and animators are first class and what they do, they do well. But whether you are talking about their films, their theme parks, or their pervasive merchandise, the bottom line is that Disney is an animation corporation. They take stories that are classic because of their universal themes and dumb them down so that the kids can enjoy them with mom and dad. They remove all the messiness, complexity, nuance, and grit from these tales and sanitize them for a G or PG-rated modern entertainment audience. They are enjoyable, but as subtle as a punch in the face; as deep as the puddle in my driveway after a light rain.
I guess if your goal is to sell a product, Disney is the way to go; after all, they’re pros at it.
If your goal is to follow Jesus, I’m not so sure.
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