“Friggin’ evangelicals”

Posted by admin on Nov 21, 2007 in Issues & Ideas | 0 comments

I finished my 473 mL of ROCKSTAR bliss about four hours ago. It was a Looney Tune of a decision considering I get a good enough caffeine buzz off a cup of Orange Pekoe tea. It’s put me in a weird state: 1/3 asleep, 1/3 contemplative, and 1/3 anxious. I’m in one of those “you need to write down what you’re feeling” moods because I know I will want to refer to all these thoughts later. So here goes. This is not nice. If you’re offended, suck it up.

I grew up as a PK. My dad was a pastor; my mom was a worship leader. Since then, I have also been an MK (missionary kid), an avid church volunteer, a conservative know-it-all who critiqued everything the pastors did, all to become a jaded member of the congregation. Then I entered my young adult reflective years, and I started to wonder, “What is the point to all of this anyway?”

I began to notice all the kinks in the system. Why do a few volunteers do all the work, while the rest of the complacent Christians watch from the sidelines? Why do we raise money to make our churches bigger and better, when there are thousands of hopeless, needy people living 30 minutes away? How can we “evangelize to the lost” when we are set on making Christian clones rather than engaging in genuine conversation? What do I get on a Sunday morning besides worship songs with repetitive and shallow lyrics, and bullet point sermons, which are usually lackluster anyway?

You can call this “Christian community” all you like, but to be Christian literally means to be “Christ-like”. And Jesus sure as hell didn’t “call” us to potlucks and picnics. Pastors use a fragmented Bible; picking and choosing verses to support their sermon themes, all to create a temporary, heart-warming experience. There is irony in the fact that Christians think church ministry is an act of “service”, but it’s more like a political hierarchy, with the big pastor manipulating his little marionettes to fulfill his own agenda – with good intentions, of course. Here’s the kicker – Christians generally mean well, but unfortunately none of that pays off.

When our culture hears of Christianity, they do not think of self-sacrifical love or abounding grace. They think of us as judgmental and hypocritical, as gay-bashers and radical pro-life activists, and as Billy Graham enthusiasts who are raving supporters of George Bush. They think of the Crusades, the Inquisitions, the priests that molest and the televangelists that scam. They do not think of the character of Jesus. Christians are a cheap representation of all that Christ is. We are to religion and faith what Britney Spears is to the pop culture industry. You can call me bitter. I’d prefer blunt. And this is very obviously a postmodern critique, because I’m not offering any definitive solutions. I still believe that a man named Jesus Christ walked this earth, and I believe that His divinity cannot be reduced to words, images or experiences. I know that there is a historical context and a passionate poetry of the Bible that needs to be explored. I think that pastors need to start motivating their congregations to more than mediocrity, and part of that includes involvement in environmental, political and social justice issues. Most of all, I think that Christians must take risks and be creative, because only then will we engage in what it means to be fully human. For me, church and religion have always been synonymous with Christ himself. It was not until recently that I could separate the two, and yet I still lug around the Evangelical baggage packed with false teachings, Gnosticism, and conservative idealism. I am grateful for the lessons I’ve learned, but the system just doesn’t work for me anymore. I’m tired of the clean-cut, white, North American, Republican Jesus. If you are too, then either change things or get out now, because being a cynic is just a waste of your time. Trust me.