Liberation
Many of us have long, often painful, histories with the Church of Christ. I am the fourth generation in my family, a Hebrew among Hebrews from the tribe of Benjamin. I have a degree from Harding's College of Bible and Religion, first lead "Victory in Jesus" when I was twelve, was baptized for the remission of sins at 11, traveled to foreign missions since age 7 with my missionary grandparents and now am teaching at one of "our" universities.
I also have been accosted by a elder's wife after a teenage devotional at church for suggesting that my Baptist and Methodist friends were Christian, have had a worship service shut down by Harding administration operatives for showing a video that included music, have been disfellowshipped in a church parking lot by a guy who just called me a blasphemer for suggesting that Jesus (not baptism) is the only "thing" essential for salvation, had a blog shut down by an eldership because I did not answer a controversial question with enough gusto and have had to defend my wife at a "men's business meeting" because she led a prayer with baptized, teenage boys in the room.
Even so, I love the Church of Christ. It is my tribe, and I am devoted to the people the Lord has given to me in our tradition, my family, my classmates and teachers, my colleagues, the Fellas. I am moved by the roots of our movement and believe that some fruit may still be borne from the ideas of unity, sola scriptura, restoration and peacemaking. The Church of Christ, despite its acute problems, has been a mighty tool in many lives.
My wife and I used to pray, hope and wonder what a Church of Christ could do if it ever could get beyond the crippling fear of controversies, like shaking off unscriptural shackles on women, like breaking the hamstrung fixation on Sunday morning form, like freedom from the fear of “offending” those who merely disagree. We have worshiped in paralyzed churches to our exhaustion. We have worshiped in a church that was on the verge of liberation but rested on the verge for so long that inertia set in on an incomplete journey.
The Good Lord, however, has delivered us to a Church of Christ who is liberated in many, lovely ways. We exist and honor our heritage and best of our traditions but do not worship them. Women participate more and more and Jesus as His apostles taught the Church, that is, praying and prophesying before the church, teaching and admonishing and leading souls to Christ. We claim history earlier than 1820 with the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Book of Common Prayer. We sing a capella, and we celebrate with instruments as the Word encourages us to do. We are striving to live in Acts 2 community, and we discipline ourselves to offer hospitality to all who call on the name of the Lord and those who do not.
We have problems and obstacles, of course, and always will. Even so, the Lord answered our prayers with a Church of Christ liberated from its own dying quagmire.
Hallelujah.
In the full, abundant joyous life we share at our Church of Christ, this sort of proclamation (described better here) just looks silly, anachronistic, desperate and sad. I pray that our Lord still saves folks who strain at gnats while neglecting the camels and that He can work around this pernicious distraction as He continues to save the rest of the world.
I also have been accosted by a elder's wife after a teenage devotional at church for suggesting that my Baptist and Methodist friends were Christian, have had a worship service shut down by Harding administration operatives for showing a video that included music, have been disfellowshipped in a church parking lot by a guy who just called me a blasphemer for suggesting that Jesus (not baptism) is the only "thing" essential for salvation, had a blog shut down by an eldership because I did not answer a controversial question with enough gusto and have had to defend my wife at a "men's business meeting" because she led a prayer with baptized, teenage boys in the room.
Even so, I love the Church of Christ. It is my tribe, and I am devoted to the people the Lord has given to me in our tradition, my family, my classmates and teachers, my colleagues, the Fellas. I am moved by the roots of our movement and believe that some fruit may still be borne from the ideas of unity, sola scriptura, restoration and peacemaking. The Church of Christ, despite its acute problems, has been a mighty tool in many lives.
My wife and I used to pray, hope and wonder what a Church of Christ could do if it ever could get beyond the crippling fear of controversies, like shaking off unscriptural shackles on women, like breaking the hamstrung fixation on Sunday morning form, like freedom from the fear of “offending” those who merely disagree. We have worshiped in paralyzed churches to our exhaustion. We have worshiped in a church that was on the verge of liberation but rested on the verge for so long that inertia set in on an incomplete journey.
The Good Lord, however, has delivered us to a Church of Christ who is liberated in many, lovely ways. We exist and honor our heritage and best of our traditions but do not worship them. Women participate more and more and Jesus as His apostles taught the Church, that is, praying and prophesying before the church, teaching and admonishing and leading souls to Christ. We claim history earlier than 1820 with the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Book of Common Prayer. We sing a capella, and we celebrate with instruments as the Word encourages us to do. We are striving to live in Acts 2 community, and we discipline ourselves to offer hospitality to all who call on the name of the Lord and those who do not.
We have problems and obstacles, of course, and always will. Even so, the Lord answered our prayers with a Church of Christ liberated from its own dying quagmire.
Hallelujah.
In the full, abundant joyous life we share at our Church of Christ, this sort of proclamation (described better here) just looks silly, anachronistic, desperate and sad. I pray that our Lord still saves folks who strain at gnats while neglecting the camels and that He can work around this pernicious distraction as He continues to save the rest of the world.
posted by JRB at 10:05 AM
4 Comments:
I am proud too that I have preached on social justice at FU chapel with resounding encouragement and challenged our church with a sermon on the beauty and spiritual importance of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and all the white folks who lived through it with some apathy then, gave me much love in 2007.
trying again. hope this works.
What else is there to say except "Amen. And Amen?"
This is a great post. I struggle and complain about so many things regarding the CofC; I too should pray that we just focus on the word and not the small things that divide us.
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