Contemporary Preaching: Restatement or Reflection

I have always wondered why we don’t find any reflection of what we believe in. All we find is restatements – mostly denominational and/or cultural.  I have been reading the book, ‘ God is not Great: How Religion poisons everything’ and I thought Chris Hitchens possibly gives us a clue. We may not agree with everything he says but this one demands our attention.

Christopher Hitchens ( a fierce critic of religion) writes:

” Religion spoke its last intelligible or noble or inspiring words a long time ago. either that is mutated into an admirable but nebulous humanism, as did say Dietrich Bohnhoeffer, a brave lutheran pastor hanged by the Nazis for his refusal to collude with them. We shall have no more prophets or sages from the ancient quarter, which is why devotions of today are only echoing repetitions of yesterday, sometimes ratcheted up to screaming point so as to ward off the terrible emptiness”

[ God is not great: How religion poisions everything, p.7]

Something to think about. Really?!!What does it mean to be the ‘prophetic’ voice – a voice of disent – in the world of spin, hype and deception. What does it mean to ‘rebel’ againt the spirit of the age.

It’s worth listening to Chris Hitchen’s.

Why sport a Honorary Doctoral degree?

I wonder Why so many Indian-Christian preachers sport their honorary Doctorates with such fanfare? Any and every Christian preacher holds a doctorate. Atleast, that’s what their title suggests. I really find this funny. Worse, they don’t even let their audience know that theirs is no earned PhD – not even in fine print?

So most christian preachers are Doctorates – without an University. We now have doctorates without Universities and academia without doctorates. This is the tragedy of evangelicalism in India.

However, this is a question of integrity. We who speak so much of integrity defy the standards we preach to others. I sincerely feel that sporting a honorary doctorate is no help at all – to anyone except the one sporting it. It is tragic that Christian preachers find their confidence in the titles before their names. Worse, half the audience cannot tell the difference between an earned Doctorate, (re)awarded doctorate and bought doctorates.

Can doctorates be bought? Sadly yes! and worse, they sport their doctoral titles.  We must truly give rise to real intellectuals within the evangelical fold.  The best thing to happen to Indian evangelicalism would this: a genuine intellectual leading from the front. I hope it happens soon….

We have had preachers leading us. We have had personalities leading us. But… its been a long time since Indian Evangelicals have been led by an Intellectual. We must give rise to sound evangelical scholarship and build our intellectual forte. Thats the way forward… We must learn from our pentecostal brothers who in the last two decades have undergirded their shade of faith with intellectual fortitude.

Please…. let’s give up our pretense of intellectualism by sporting a honorary degree. Let’s safeguard our integrity by telling our audience that it is a honorary degree (given to felicitate many years of ministry). We would have gained a listening ear… with our integrity and the power of the message that we live and believe.

Without Words

I have realized that so much of our evangelism needs to be ‘without words’. In a world driven by images ‘visuals’ attract our attention. And so, we need to be seen and not heard (to borrow words from a popular petra song). We need to be brand ambassadors for Jesus. We are used to talking. Not just talking but talking aloud. We say things that we don’t believe, things that we don’t practice and even things we don’t intend to. It is easy to preach a sermon. You can google-search and pull it off the net. There are books that give you sermon outlines or you re-play a sermon that you have heard elsewhere. God has been gracious and even used our ctrl C + Ctrl v hermeneutics and copycat homelitics.

But then, God want us to make a definite difference. He wants our lives to speak out the gospel ‘loud’ and ‘clear’. Jesus said to his disciples, “You are the light of the earth”. We must shine…shine….shine. If we are lit on the inside, it is difficult to hide it. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

Jesus encouraged his disciples to shine the light for other people. He never asked us to be salesmen for lights and tubes. And often times, that is what we are. Mere salesmen roleplaying and mouthing big sales talk. Jesus asked us to live – and live a good/meaningful lives at that. Our lives are blogs that people read. They know how we live lives, how we find meaning, how we cherish relationships, how we are guided by godly wisdom, how good our values are, how consistent we are in living out our beliefs, how we are Jesus-like… etc. Those who see us would quickly spot the difference. Our ‘desires’, ‘needs’, ‘tastes’ ‘choices’ and ‘hungers’must be different – gospel informed and gospel transformed.

As an “emerging” new christian, living in the world of despair we must commit ourselves to missional living. We can (and must) shine ‘hope’ into their lives and situations…if only we live out the gospel! We must engage in evangelism. But as one follower of Jesus discovered,” use words only if necessary”. Let’s pray that we find grace to speak the gospel “without words”

Facing the “culture war” within our Churches

It’s strange but it nevertheless true. We get to meet everyone in Church except Jesus. Worse, we still haven’t recognized it as yet.

Tamil-Christian Churches have become places were cultural and/or caste identities are forged and reinforced. It is all about – “who we are” and “where we come from” – rather than “who we are’ in Christ.

Now, there is nothing wrong about celebrating our Tamil cultural identity but this should never be done at the cost of our Christian identity. The flavoring essence can never become the main ingredient. Any and every other identity must be subordinate to our identity in Christ.

 Sadly, Tamil-Christianity is entrapped by its own historio-cultural conditioning. Believe me! What goes around as “Christian” is nothing more than our perceptions, interpretations and cultural preferences. For example, wearing jeans to Church is considered abominable. Using contemporary music and art forms is sacrilege.

 Anything other than the tried – tested and trusted – evangelistic methods are a dilution of the gospel. So much so, Tamil-Christianity is all about do’s and don’ts. Religious language accords certain authority and even helps to legitimize them as bench marks for spirituality.

 At the heart of every Tamil-Christian community worldwide is a culture war. The church wants young people to adhere to its yesteryear cultural patterns – which are supposedly Christian. Young people rebel when compelled to follow a particular way of life which is not in sync with contemporary urban trends. They are caught between modernity and tradition, past and future, and rite and relevance.

 With the availability of ample opportunities and the inability to deal with rigid structures, many young people give-up on Church (thankfully not Jesus). Our immediate problem is our particular brand of cultural Christianity which has been carried by Tamil Diaspora worldwide.

 So much as changed within the last 15 – 20 years. Young people live and belong to the information age. They are distantly removed from our experience, lifestyle, tastes and preferences. What if they wear jean pants to Church? What if they express their faith in contemporary music and arts? What if they chip and chop our liturgy? Jesus would accept them as they are. What is our worry – loosing our ‘Christian-ness’ or our cultural identity?

 How do resolve the culture war? How do we help young people find sense of belonging and togetherness in Tamil-Christian communities? These are issues that we need to struggle with.

 Paul’s epistle to Christians at Galatia helps us resolve our predicament. At the heart of this Pauline epistle is the issue of culture. Some Jewish Christians had influenced the Galatians (mostly Greeks) to follow Jewish laws and customs. Judging by the tone of the epistle it looks like St. Paul was visibly hurt. (and may be even angry). Paul writes this epistle responding to the ‘culture war’ at the heart of the faith community there.

 Should those who choose to follow Jesus follow Jewish laws and customs? St. Paul responds by asking: “ How is it, that you force Gentiles (non Jews) to follow Jewish customs(Gal. 2:14b)?” Apostle Paul seems to be of the view that ‘circumcision’ (besides many other laws and customs) need not be forced on non-Jewish Christians. Paul himself demonstrated this by not compelling Titus (a Greek) to be circumcised (Gal. 2:3b).

 How can we compel young people (who belong to the information age) to follow our tastes, preferences, (dis)likes etc. Besides, they are growing up in an entirely different social location and face unusual cultural challenges and peer pressure. We need to be considerate and sensitive to the specific challenges that young people face today. 

 Secondly, Christ has called us into freedom. St. Paul reminds the church that “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free…do not let yourselves be burdened again by the yoke of slavery (Gal 5:1). Following Jesus cannot be reduced to a set of do’s and don’ts. It’s not about what you wear to Church, what you do, what you sing. God does not judge by external appearances (Gal. 2:6b).  

 Legalism makes people guilty since the focus is on how short we fall from the accepted standards. Legalistic Christianity can never be liberative. We must not burden young people with a set of do’s and don’ts. They must find the Christian journey enjoyable.

 We must reflect on the freedom that Christ offers us. It’s no longer what we wear, eat, and do. It’s more about following him and enjoying the freedom he brings to our lives. (However, Paul also adds a caution: “do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature Gal 5:13)

 Thirdly, we need to grasp the meaning of real Christianity. Real Christianity is not about earning God’s favor. It is not about blindly following laws and customs. On the contrary, it is all about ‘faith’ in God. In the words of St. Paul: “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision or uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love (Gal. 5:6).  “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is New Creation (Gal. 6:15).

 What matters is what God does to our life and how we yield ourselves to the work of the Spirit. Real Christianity is an invitation to a life by the Spirit. This is not to suggest spectacular out of the world experience. What do we mean by ‘life by the Spirit’? You live by the spirit when you don’t gratify the desires of the sinful nature. Instead, you bear the fruit of the spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal. 5:22).

 This life of emotional intelligence is the privilege of the Christian life. Life by the Spirit must be central teaching of Christian discipleship. Sadly, Christian communities do not teach the privilege of Christian living to young people in church.

 Fourthly, he asks the Galatians to understand what the gospel means. This is so important. We do not yet fully understand the Christian gospel. The language we speak has not yet sunk into our consciousness. We have been made sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus (Gal.3:26). We are heirs (Gal. 4:7) St. Paul, then asks the church a poignant question: You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? (Gal 5:7). He even chides them: “foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?” (Gal. 3:1).

 We have read Galatians devotionally. But, when we read and reflect on Galatians we find that it teaches us about locating the gospel within a culture. Today, we face the challenge of locating the gospel within the contemporary youth culture.

 Should we preach/impose our cultural interpretations, perceptions and preferences on young people? What really matters is young people committing to deeper Christian life – and that they would strive to live by the Spirit.

 We must not lead them to cultural Christianity and/or legalistic Christianity which is devoid of any power. The principles that Paul outlines in Galatians is this:

1. How is it that you force the gentiles to follow Jewish customs (Gal 2:14b)
2. We have been made sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus (Gal.3:26).
3. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free (Gal. 5:1)
4. “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is New Creation (Gal. 6:15).

 We need to reflect on these principles as we face the “culture war”. Most people in Church think that young people are not “spiritual’ enough – simply because they do no comply to behavioral patterns of yesteryear spirituality.

 Most young people are confused and give up on the Church. Or, they are left to slide down the downward spiral of guilt since they are unable to meet the standards of our brand of cultural Christianity.

 If St. Paul were to visit our Tamil-Christian churches he would say: You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? (Gal 5:7). What we need to do is to help young people find Jesus attractive – that they would feast on the living bread, quench their thirst with the living water, find rest in his arms, and find courage to make a difference to our world. Christian life is all about New Creation.

 Lamin Sanneh quotes a young man (in the Preface to the third edition of the book Christianity Rediscovered by Vincent J Donovan) who said: 
 

In working with Individuals/cultures do not try and call them back to where they were and do not try and call them where you are, as beautiful as that place might be. You must have the courage to go with them to a place that neither you nor they have ever been before”

 We must be willing to join hands with young people and take on this faith adventure. I am sure St. Paul would say “Amen” to that.

On Mother Teresa’s Confession

- By Bobby Thejus

“Nay, Diamond, if I change into a serpent or a tiger, you must not let go your hold of me, for my hand will never change in yours if you keep a good hold. If you keep a hold, you will know who I am all the time, even when you look at me and can’t see me [the least like the North wind]. I may look something very awful. Do you understand?”- At the back of the North Wind, George MacDonald.

Mother Teresa’s confession: Surprised?

We all must be really surprised with Mother Teresa’s confession- A little more shocking than Augustine’s confession. I want you to pray for me- that I let him have [a] free hand.” I’m not going to try and draw parallels and show how one is different from the other nor am I going to defend Mother Teresa’s case with whom we differ greatly on theological issues. My thought here is the challenge which Mother Teresa’s s letters has left us with. Can it be possible for a Christian to go through spasms of loneliness and depression?

The heart of the matter

What does it mean to be, dry, lonely, and in the dark to a woman who said, “Christ in our hearts, Christ in the poor we meet, Christ in the smile we give and in the smile we receive.”? What does it mean to be a Christian? Is Christianity a drug or like Marx said ‘opium to the masses’? Do we get a kick in being religious? And if we aren’t entertained by it, are we being hypocritical to still practice it?

‘Disnifying’ Spirituality

It isn’t surprising that the church with its tele-evangelists have the whole act and screenplay suited for today’s “make me feel good” audiences. Some of us have taken it upon ourselves- the role of entertaining the masses; an attempt to ‘disnify’ Christianity. If one needs to be happy and entertained he doesn’t need the church, a little vodka will do him some good. And we know that vodka all the time will kill us. When entertainment and pleasure becomes common place boredom becomes home. And that is why “our father refreshes us on the journey with some pleasant inns, but will not encourage us to mistake them for home” says C.S. Lewis.

The ‘real’ difference

So then what is Christianity all about? It is about doing the will of God. Mother Teresa in those letters said, “I accept not in my feelings-but with my will, the Will of God- I accept His will.” And His will is good. Good not in human rational terms but rather in divine terms. Like the difference between a good circus monkey and a good human being. Monkey morals are different from human morals. Now if a human were to become a good monkey he will only be regressing into a state of imperfection and weakness. So is the difference between human goodness and divine goodness. A good parent cannot have their child shove his hand into an electric socket and then save him. But God can save him miraculously. G.K. Chesterton writes, “The Old Testament hero is no more supposed to be of the same nature as God than a saw or a hammer is supposed to be of the same shape as the carpenter.”

The spiritual mystery

Every human being goes through these periods more so the Christian because for them it is to do the good will of God- against all odds and against the grain; for instance, Elijah, Jeremiah, Job and Apostle Paul and the plethora of missionaries. When we are taken through these tough periods unlike what most of us think we will come out better human beings. Just like, only when a seed falls to the ground and dies will it bear fruit. Life then, will be a mystery to be lived and not a problem to be solved. “The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man”, said the wise G.K. Chesterton. “When he has tested me, I will come forth as gold ” (Job 23:10).

Living the mystery

It isn’t strange for a believer to go through periods of loneliness and maybe even depression but not boredom. Could it be that because we are a generation that gets bored easily – of this, that and the other, we are incapable of appreciating and engaging in a mystery? While actually it is a mystery that brings us back to life. This is not masochism; only perverts are masochists.

The logic of pain

It isn’t surprising to see the rich and the famous indulging in crime when they have everything they want. Some of them are so comfortable that they can no longer bear it, and drown themselves in it. If happiness is regarded as a reward for a good life, then we will stop making good people happy and take on the stupid task of making happy people good. C.S. Lewis contends, “Pain often produces brilliant work and strengthens, hardens, and sharpens character till we become tempered steel”. The mystery of pain puts character in us.

Facing the challenge

Mother Teresa’s life and ministry has challenged many lives. Now, her spiritual struggle provides yet another challenge. Malcolm Muggeridge, the famous British Journalist writes this about Mother Teresa: “The tendency in our spiritual life but also in our more general attitude toward love is that our feelings are all that is going on… And so to us the totality of love is what we feel. But to really love someone requires commitment, fidelity, and vulnerability. Mother Teresa wasn’t feeling Christ’s love, and she could have shut down. But she was up at 4:30 every morning for Jesus, and still writing to Him, ‘Your happiness is all I want.’ That’s a powerful example even if you are not talking in exclusively religious terms.”

My father once reminded me that treasures can also be found in darkness, Isaiah 45:3; Psalm 139:7-12. As Christians we shouldn’t be very shocked with Mother Teresa’s confessions. Her Savior went through it as well, which she writes herself, is nothing compared to what he went through on the cross-”My God my God why have you forsaken me?” But before we ask Him that question, we will have to allow ourselves to be asked questions that will probe into the deep recesses of our hearts and minds- to be put under the scrutiny of Gods Light (Job 38-42; Jer. 15:19-21; Psalm 139: 23-24)

– Daniel P. Thejus