Amsterdam, Netherlands. 2013
(Photo krb)
I am finding that while Brian McLaren doesn't say anything that is particularly new in his critique of the church in "Do I Stay Christian", he does articulate the current problems and frustrations that many of us are feeling about the church, very clearly. We can all identify with what he has to say even though the circumstances of his experience are different from ours. To no small extent we have been impacted by American religious and cultural hegemony in relation to the church in the West. I have no simple explanation for the seemingly recent alignment of my Church with right-wing fundamentalism and political conservatism which has been imposed upon the church in most parts of NSW but more generally across the country. Is it a response to the recent rapid decline in regular church attendance? If so, it would seem somewhat counterproductive.
I have particularly noted Mclaren's comments about leadership in the context of this current crisis, which I thoroughly endorse. He writes, 'Why can't we Christians admit that we, like everything else in the universe, are in process, and that our religion, like all religions, is constantly, unavoidably changing, for better or worse? Why can't we allow our leaders' job description to evolve from belief police to ... actual leaders who help lead the way? Why can't we admit that we are stuck in an old model of the universe and that it is time to rethink everything?" He goes on to say of the church which adheres to its current model of the universe that, "in its dominant form, it has become conservative, nostalgic, arthritic, cramped, stuck."
The church can be better! .... much, much better! That means that it must stop being the cozy club for those who believe that they are 'saved', a closed community that only accepts people 'like us' and enter that vulnerable space of open community that accepts all people whether they are 'like us' or entirely different from us and genuinely offers a journey, a pilgrimage for all, open to all, a journey towards truth and meaning for all.
Every blessing as you continue on your journey. May God bless you and be your companion on the way. Please get in touch any time to say g'day.
Peace, justice and blessings to all.
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