Bandits No More

Last week in OpinionJournal.com, Frederica Mathewes-Green wrote about contrasting understandings of church unity held by the Orthodox (her own tradition) and the Catholics. The former understand unity to be rooted in a unity of faith: believers today believe what the early church believed. Catholics, on the other hand, see unity rooted in the institution of the church. Though they’d see an important role for ancient shared faith, what really matters is proper connection to Rome and the Bishop of Rome.

Which kind of unity characterizes the United Methodist Church? I think part of our recent conflict stems from these two views competing against each other. Though the conflict is usually seen as the “liberals” vs. the “conservatives” (and on many issues, that conflict is very real), there is also a conflict between both these groups and the “moderates” who say something like, “Quit fighting over doctrine. Let’s just be united!” Since both “moderates” and “liberals” tend to view doctrine as less important than “conservatives” do, the bulk of this conflict is between the “conservatives” and “moderates.” This is one reason why I think it is silly to think that the UMC will split into two pieces if it does split. The fault lines are too numerous for that.

If one identifying factor of UM “moderates” is their understanding of unity as institutional, I think it’s clear they are the strongest group – numerically, at least – in the church today. There power was shown in the recent General Conference resolution for unity. I have my doubts that an institutional view of unity will last long in the UMC since we lack the authoritarian structure of the Catholics (and their’s may be falling apart also). We’ll see.

Both Marxist & Islamic countries have a heritage of persecuting Christians. If you’ve read anything by Solzhenitsyn, Brother Andrew, Richard Wurmbrand, et al., you know how brutal oppression was under the Communists – inspite of claiming freedom of religion. Most of the communist givernments have fallen (failed) and have been replaced by something less antogonistic. China and North Korea remain – both repressive, though the latter much more so than the former (due to less paranoia?). In Africa, Eritrea remains governed by Marxist principles. Those principles dictate that Christians are parasites and dangerous to society and must be “dealt with.” If intimidation doesn’t work, then they use torture. If torture doesn’t work, then murder. Read the article linked in the title for the latest on persecution in Eritrea and for guidance on how to respond.

Similarities abound between the Anglican and United Methodist Churches. Both continue a long struggle to figure out how to deal with doctrinal pluralism and indifferentism. I’ve learned a lot from Tom Wright over the years, not only from his works on the New Testament (his field of specialization), but also from what he has written on the church. Here’s a recent newspaper column arguing for a return to “reasoned discourse” within the church, moving away from mere opinion and the “more victimized than thou” approaches so prevelant today. Good stuff.

I enjoyed reading Richard’s assessment of the camp from which he has just returned. I leave tomorrow for a senior high camp at Glen Lake Camp in the Central Texas Conference. I have been volunteering at this camp for about a decade, and enjoy immensely the contact and ministry I am able to have with the youth, the college-age staff, and with other adults.

After a hiatus at last year’s camp, I am preaching one of the evening worship services this year. My topic? The existence of God.

I look forward to the entire week, but I must admit I am especially excited about getting to preach. I don’t recall ever having preached on the topic of God’s existence.

Reminds me of a discussion I had with a grad student a couple of days ago. I described myself to him as a postmodern Christian. I could tell from his reaction that he was concerned about me. Having once been very near the place he is now, I decided to try to explain myself in terms he might understand and accept.

(I admit some of my motivation for describing myself as postmodern was to get a reaction similar to the one I got; sometimes I like to say things more provocatively than I might otherwise to get a conversation going)

For the purposes of this piece, the main point of difference between he and I was that he thinks the most important thing Christians can do is rationally and philosophically prove God’s existence. I, on the other hand, think the most effective evidence we can offer to those who don’t believe is changed lives. For lives to be so changed we need the church.

What will I offer the youth and other adults at camp this week when I preach on God’s existence? The evidence of changed lives. Hopefully someone there will want his or her life touched and changed by God.

This interview in the TimesOnline offers a unique picture of how suicide bombers think. Sounds to me like they need the Gospel – some real good news.

Now that I’m back from church camp, regular posting should resume.

I worked Senior High camp at Lakeview Methodist Camp. Our camp had about 160 kids and was very well run. Richard Luna & David Luna (no relation, though both on staff at Pollard UMC in Tyler) did a fine job directing the camp. I’ve been working camp since 1981 and this was clearly one of the best. Strengths of the camp this year include:

• A large number of hard working adults. We had 6 pastors, numerous youth directors and other adults who gave of themselves from early in the morning until very early in the next morning (that happens when you get to bed after midnight everynight and have to mobilize the kids in your cabin to get to breakfast on time. These leaders showed clear dedication to Christ and to the kids. We had both quantity and quality.
• Good small group interaction. Since I had a group, I don’t know the details about the other groups, but from what I did see they went well. My group came together better than any other I’ve had a camp. This was partly a function of the adult leaders (we had three), but also of the kids. They were hungry for God & for his work in their lives. It makes a big difference.
• Good preaching. Jeff Gage, pastor of FUMC in Hooks, Jonathan Bynum pastor of Greggton UMC in Longview, Eric Ryburn, pastor of St. Andrews UMC in Mt. Pleasant, John Whitehurst, pastor of FUMC Ore City, Richard Luna, and I were the preachers. Good, challenging, substantive preaching – the kids responded well.
• Changed lives. The more time I spend with kids today, the more I see broken and hurting lives. Huge numbers are impacted by divorce. Huge numbers are affected by major tragedy. Many are struggling. Most of the things they deal with don’t come from within but from without. At the testimony time Thursday night many shared about their experiences of God during the week. Bishop Huie’s vision is to plant 10 new churches a year for the next 10 years. Some of those future pastors were touched by God at camp this week.
• Technology. Adam Lema (on staff at Greggton) and John Whitehurst integrated technology into camp with skill and humor. The movies John’s video workshop participants made were entertaining and fir well with the message of the day.

Things to work on:

• Raising the articulacy level in youth. Of course, we need to do this with all ages within the church. We’ve understood Christian education too long as a passive activity – sit still and be quiet. We need to work on helping people develop skills at articulating the (and their) faith. This is a job for the local churches, but perhaps we can find more ways to do this intentionally at camp.
• Bringing kids into leadership. In his worship workshop David Luna did a great job of drawing kids into planning and leading worship. Perhaps next year we can find a way to have some kids who are spiritual leaders who will connect with the mission of the camp from the get-go and join in the prayer support needed for each segment of the camp.

Someone referred to my daughter by saying “hey, kid.” Oddly enough, it was another kid!

It’s not that she’s not a “kid.” She is 16, well within the normal range for being called a kid. The problem was, the young man who called her that, a “kid” himself, meant it in a condescending manner. At least that was the tone and context in which it happened.

He was in a position of alleged leadership, my daughter merely in attendance at the event. I say alleged leadership because I don’t consider anyone with a condescending attitude an actual leader.

Leadership, as well as authority, by my best understanding, are things that come along with respect and credibility. Once this young man, probably the same age as my daughter, said “hey kid” to her, he lost all credibility and respect, and thus his ability to lead.

Oh, sure, being in a “position of leadership” he still did have some ability to control my daughter, but when such control is exercised entirely absent respect and credibility it loses the character that leadership, authority, and control ought to have in the context of Christian community.

Once upon a time, when I was a “kid,” an older adult referred to me as “you people.” Instantly, I had no respect for him, nor did I care what he had to say at me following that phrase.

If we want the world to hear us; if we want other Christians to hear us, we need seek credibility and respect so far as it is up to us.

Greetings from SpiLiRa!

Heard a message on Micah 6:8 last night. “God has shown you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you? But to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God.” The message was presented in an interesting way; three men each spoke on one of the three requirements.

At least, that’s what we were led to expect. That is what the power point said on the screen. What happened was each of the three men took the opportunity to tell us God loves us. I’ll admit the first did refer to justice a couple of times, and the second was by all reports a very kind man. The third admitted he had a lot of ego, probably too much to be talking on “walking humbly with God,” but that God loves us anyway.

Not a one of them said anything that was unscriptural, but neither did they speak to the scripture on which they were purporting to preach!

I’ve run into this homiletical practice before; perhaps it is a method taught at some seminaries. Between you and me, though, it drives me crazy. How could you preach on a text as powerful as Micah 6:8 and ignore the text?

The good news is the scripture for the week is one of my favorites, an essential text for faithful postmodern Christians, John 8: 31-32. Surely someone will actually speak, teach, or preach on this one!

If I were president and faced with making an appointment to the Supreme Court, one person I’d want to look at closely is Stephen L. Carter of Yale. As far as I know he’s never been a judge (though he clerked for Thurgood Marshall), but has spent his career in academia. I’ve read a few of his books and many of his columns. I have a great respect for him as a Christian and a scholar. Of course I haven’t heard his name mentioned in any of the lists of prospects, so we’ll have to wait and see.
UPDATE: Here’s Carter’s recent commentary on the nomination process.
UPDATE: (7/19/2005) I see that John Podhoretz at National Review’s “The Corner” i slooking at Carter also.

John Derbyshire of The Corner at National Review Online says this about war (the link is here. Since The Corner doesn’t have links to individual messages, you can find it at 10:32 a.m. on July 8, 2005):

Wars should be fought with the utmost ferocity, to the complete destruction and humiliation of the enemy, and without any regard to casualties among noncombatants in his territories. To fight a war in any other kind of way is to sow dragon’s teeth, as the second half of the 20th century illustrates. Yet such a war is impossible under present Western sensibilities. America has now been fighting the War on Terror for longer than we fought WW2 — yet we have not even captured Osama bin Laden!

I understand this purist view, though unlike Derb I don’t lament that we can’t pursue it. “Present Western sensibilities” are still influenced (though less than at other times) by Christianity. Though Derb’s war proposal might fit with Saul’s mission to smite the Amelekites, it’s a far cry from Jesus.

When, in recent history, has this kind of war been fought – and by whom? The Axis powers (at least Germany and Japan) fought this way, and in response the Allies tended in this direction. But that was a change in the American way. We certainly didn’t fight that way in our earlier wars (though there were instances during the Civil War, it was never the policy of the US government to fight this way).

IF we can come up with a Christian justification for war, it will not be a justification for this kind of war. The most positive Christian response to war (I don’t count the practice of “Christian” states and organizations since Constantine as seriously Christian) has been the Just War tradition. Its restriction that war must be not only defensive (which Derb would likely have no difficulty with) but proportional form absolute barriers to total war.

MORE: We preachers and church leaders sometimes lament that people don’t focus entirely in their life with God – when we mean something more like their life “with the church.” This kind of totalism sounds so spiritual – but so easily becomes misguided, just as the total war approach.

I will be at the front of the line to argue for the importance of the church and that church is part of what salvation is all about. But in itself it is not what salvation is all about. The life completely sold out and dedicated to God is not about God alone. Back in Genesis when God made Adam, their mutual relationship was perfect. But consider what God did. First God distracted Adam with work – naming and interacting with a bunch of animals. Then God took a more drastic step. Not only was the perfect relationship with God not enough, not only was the naming job not enough, but God own judgment was that Adam needed someone like him: an Eve. I believe that the salvation offered us in Jesus is a restoration of all the good of Edenic existence – except better, and that God wants that salvation to start now. If that is the case, a single minded focus on glorifying God will not lead to a one track mind or a totalizing way of life of absolute focus. God’s simply too big for any single activity of ours to be the complete fulfillment of his will.