Tag Archives: culture

Guns

16 Friday Feb 2018

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Guns.  The mere mention of this topics causes a rise in anxiety level for many people.  Many others automatically start thinking of one-liners, defenses, attacks, and more – they know there is going to be a fight.  Still others are so attached to these issues that they become a part of their very identity and used as part of how they describe who they are – any discussion whatsoever on these topics is considered a questioning or an attack of the person.  Isn’t it interesting that something that can be used for violence creates anxiety, fear, and anger at the mere mention of the word?

And still others, although a much smaller minority, if I had to guess, hang their head in sadness over the intense division that we face in the United States.  How exactly are we “united?”  What exactly are we united about?  I don’t see it.

Two days ago there was another shooting in a school.  The next day there is debate about guns.  There is debate about whether it is appropriate to have a debate about guns.  There are some who call for “common sense” or “reasonable” gun control.  I don’t like those terms.  I think they do more damage than are helpful.  Image being on the other side of any issue and you hear your opponent talking about “common sense” or “reasonable” legislation on your hot button issue.  How do you like just being called unreasonable or without common sense because you don’t agree with your opponent?  How does that advance us any closer to a solution?

There are others who will raise the standard of the Second Amendment and claim that the way to deal with shootings is to arm more people in the schools.  The argument is that since many schools are gun free zones, all it means is that they are sitting ducks.  Is arming more people the answer?  Is increasing the potential or the means for more violence a way to deal with the threat of violence?  Is becoming more militarized a good direction for our culture?  What are the unintended consequences of such an action?

We are completely missing the issue at hand.  We seem to think that material solutions solve all of our problems.  We seem to believe that if we just pass this one piece of legislation, then people will stop doing evil things.  If we just arm everyone, then there will be enough deterrents to make it stop.

And we miss something deeper.

That the material solutions – legislation, guns, or anything else, are only one small part of the equation.  They will remain small as long as we continue to turn a blind eye on the non-material – the spiritual.  That doesn’t mean we should just sit around and wait for the next tragedy that is coming.  That doesn’t mean we just express “thoughts and prayers” as though that’s all that needs to be said.  Prayer isn’t some passive thing that we do, something that gets us off the hook from a responsible response. Prayer is supposed to cause us to get up and do something.  Otherwise, it is just empty words, from empty faith.  What’s the point of having a faith that doesn’t cause us to be so uncomfortable and inconvenienced to do something?  What is the point of having a faith that doesn’t afflict us in our comfort?  It’s worthless and it isn’t faith at all.

Our culture is a culture of sin, brokenness, and mistrust. I don’t mean this in the traditional, conservative, religious-political way.  I’m not arguing that we are sinful because we engage in this or that activity.

Rather, we are sinful.  Period.  As a result things happen because of that brokenness.  Sin is ultimately about broken relationships.  I think there are four broken relationships that impact everything else – our broken relationship with God, with ourselves, with others, and with the rest of creation.

If we think we can mend these broken relationships by using only material things, we are mistaken – fatally.  Sin always ends in death.  Death of a relationship, death of a life, death of hope, death of meaning.

I don’t know the answer to problem we face regarding gun violence.  I do know that it goes beyond a piece of legislation though.  And it does involve legislation too.

But, if all we do is pass another gun law, we are fooling ourselves if we think that will stop the violence that happens in our nation.

We have a culture that doesn’t value life – gun violence is a symptom of this.  It’s just one symptom though.  And treating the symptom doesn’t result in a cure.

We willingly consume food that is detrimental to our health and our bodies.  We do it because they cost less money – our money is more valuable than our bodies and our health.

We willingly consume entertainment that glorifies violent death and destruction of people and creation.  We consume this same entertainment that sees others as pawns in a game and useful agents meant to offer us pleasure.  We do it because we need a way to relax.

We willingly make abortion an option for women who, for whatever reason, feel that terminating a pregnancy is the best option for them.  We do it because paying someone to get rid of the problem is easier and cheaper than surrounding a woman and her family with the resources and care she needs to bring new life into the world.  That would take a lot of work, and require a change in our culture.  Besides, it’s fun to get caught up in arguing about the exceptions.  We don’t have the time or energy to talk about how to create an environment where better options exist.

We willingly create and participate in a “health” care system that is really more focused on sick care rather than health care. We do it because focusing on health takes more effort, requires us to be vulnerable, and has upfront costs.  And it would require us to change.

We willingly fight about “issues” in the abstract because if we really thought about the impact of those issues on real people, it would be too much to bear.  It’s so much easier to fight about issues, than deal with people’s lives.  We might feel guilty or shameful for what we support and oppose.

We willingly fight about immigration and foreigners in this country and what laws should be in place and how many of “them” should be allowed in.  Is it 5,000,000, is it 1,000,000, is it 0?  Does it matter?  Those are just numbers on a screen – not actual lives.  It’s easier to keep things in the abstract.  It’s easier to build an expensive wall so that we don’t have to even look at our neighbors – we can feel safer, even if the wall does more to trap us in our own yard than keep others out.  But gosh, we need to feel safe because we are fragile and live in fear apparently.

We willingly fight about race – a human construct that on the surface is ridiculous, sinful, and screams brokenness into our culture.  We aren’t willing to hear from those who have been oppressed because our experience has been just fine, thank you very much – so what are they possibly talking about?  It’s easier to fight about race, than to listen.  Listening would mean we would have to be open to change and then actually change.

I could go on.  But I don’t have to.  In each of these “issues” we, our culture, are oriented towards sin and brokenness.  We are oriented towards death.  We devalue and dehumanize our opponents and make them enemies because we have made being right and being comfortable an idol that we worship.  We fear change because of what it will cost us.  We don’t want to be uncomfortable or inconvenienced.  We would rather talk.  We’d rather scapegoat and blame others for the problems we face.  We’d rather be lazy and take the easy way out of the responsibility that is right in front of us.

Two days ago was Ash Wednesday.  I love Ash Wednesday.  It is a day in which I am reminded of the prevalence of death.  Death is smashed right in my face, on my forehead.  It’s not just ashes of something that was alive that is now dead.  It’s not just the reminder that I too will someday come face to face with death.  It is the recognition that we live in a world that is oriented towards death – it is besieging us constantly.  It is in our face, on our screens, in the words we choose to use, in our digestive systems, in our skin, in our relationships, and our money.

It is in the idols that we worship.

But Ash Wednesday is more than just a reminder of how prevalent death is – it is also the declaration of something else.  It is the declaration that we cannot over come death on our own.  No matter what we do or how hard we try, we will not defeat death. There is one only who has defeated death – Jesus.

Jesus brings a promise – a powerful promise.  A promise of resurrection.  But in order to experience resurrection, we have to experience death.  That could mean literal death of our bodies.  But it also means death in other ways – death of organizations, relationships, jobs, etc.  And death of things that we hold really close to us – our identities with human made constructs and ideas, our passionate desires to be right and to be recognized as being right while others are wrong, our focus on separating people in to those who are with us and those who are against us.  These need to die before we can experience resurrection.

I pray we have the openness to kill these things that need to die.  Yes, kill them, before they kill us.

The Good News of Jesus is that death does not have the final say.  It is merely a stop on the way.  We fear death because we think it is an ending – a permanent ending.  Yet, Jesus says no.  Jesus promises resurrection – renewed, restored, and transformed life.  Better life.  Better than we could ever imagine.

Jesus calls us to take up our cross and follow him.  We know what our crosses are – the things that we are clutching so dearly.  The things that will ultimately kill us.  The cross is an instrument of death.  Are we bold enough to allow it to do its job?  Are we bold enough to actually trust Jesus’ words and promises?  We we bold enough to allow these things that we clutch to die?

Or do we fear resurrection?  Do we fear what transformed life would be like?  Do we fear not being in control?

A promise has been made to us.  Do we trust it?  If so, how do we respond today?  How will you respond today?  I start with prayer and it pushes me out of my comfort zone to go and see the humanity, the very essence of life, that is around me.  It pushes me out with open eyes in uncomfortable ways in inconvenient times to see what is around me and to respond.  To bring life, hope, grace, and forgiveness because these have been given to me.  It is my prayer that you become so afflicted by violence, tragedy, homelessness, drug addiction, prostitution, human trafficking, porn addiction, alcohol abuse, racism, sexism, nationalism, and other sins that besiege us that you respond.  It is my prayer that you are made so uncomfortable and inconvenienced by these things that the only option you have is to respond to eliminate these things in your context.  It is my hope that your thoughts and prayers are not empty, but that they pour salt in your open wounds and cause you to get up and go.

The “Christian” lament of degrading culture

15 Friday Dec 2017

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When I drive, I listen to the radio.  There are times when I get tired of listening to music, so I scan, listening for something that might catch my attention.  I can usually count on “Christian” radio to grab my attention.  I usually stop to listen.  Not to be reaffirmed in my faith, but rather to see what I’m up against and what I may need to preach about – usually something that isn’t in line with what ever it is the hosts of these shows are talking about.

The fact is, most evangelical radio programs drive me nuts.  I listen though for a few minutes from time to time to hear what bad theology is being spouted off over the airwaves.

At any rate, the program I stopped to listen to was talking about culture and Christianity and lamenting how the culture has moved away from what the bible teaches.

My question is this – what is it that the bible teaches?  I get what the host of this program was saying, but I think it is misguided.  It’s the assumption that the culture was in alignment with “biblical” teachings not so long ago, but has some how drifted off of that recently and is in decline.  I argue that this has never been the case.

What teachings exactly was the host referring to?  I don’t know because he never cited what teachings he was referring to.  I can make some assumptions, but that isn’t really being fair to the host.  Maybe he’s thinking in terms of biblical family values.  But the problem with that is defining what that means.  That’s more a slogan than something that can be defined using the bible.

When I read the bible and think of it in terms of culture, what I hear is recognition that culture is sinful and broken and that God is the one who will move us to something new – resurrection, restoration, renewal, and transformation.   That’s because culture is made up of people and people are broken.  In the bible we read stories of murder, rape, slavery, war, violence, idolatry, manipulation, slaughter, division, broken families, lying, control, power, etc.  This is what culture is full of for bible times.

Is this what the host is referring to?  Of course not.  I think what happens is that people take a rose-colored lens by which they think of the past.  That the past was this pristine time when the culture was God-fearing and no one sinned.  But this isn’t realistic or accurate.

But it’s not all bad news.  The bible is full of other things beyond the list above – that God doesn’t abandon the culture, but because of God’s love for the world – all the world, not just humanity – that God continually comes to us, encounters creation, and brings about transformation.

The culture isn’t moving away from biblical teaching now any more than it was in the past.  The bible recounts the reality of human culture – that it is broken.  Rather, what the bible teaches is how God is active in the world and calls on us to live and be different, yet in the world.  To not accept the ways of the world, but to be different – a beacon of light in a world of darkness.  Not to change the culture by trying to manipulate it and bend it to our will, but rather to live differently and in relationship with one another, invite others to this new life, and in so doing, others will come and as a result, a new culture will come into being.  It’s not about confrontation and battle.  It’s about Jesus not accepting the status quo as legitimate and instead offering an alternative life-giving model in which to live into.

Death

06 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by in Church, Humanity, Theology

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It’s a subject most people don’t like to talk about.  We live in a culture that has a difficult time even saying the word.  We’d rather avoid it and say “passed away” or “fell asleep.”  Yet, it is the one thing in life we’ll all face.

Death is inevitable.  Yet, we don’t know the day or the time.

Our culture has a weird relationship with death.  When we see death in entertainment, we don’t shudder or fear it.  Is that because in entertainment, we know it is fake?  The actor will just get up and go on with life?  I wonder what kind of effect this has on how we deal with death.  Does it cheapen death or push the reality of death even farther away from us?

Yet death is inevitable.

But it doesn’t have the final say.  God has made sure of that and made a promise to us that death does not have the final say.

On Sunday I spoke about why we say the creed.  There are many reasons to say the creed in worship, but I focused on one reason.  During a funeral, you have a body – a dead body or the ashes of a dead body present.  Death is there – very present.  The people who show up to pay their respects have to deal with death.  There is no escape, there is no way to distract from the reality of death.  And it is at this very moment when the promises of the creed become very relevant – the promise of the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.  We say the creed in church in preparation for times when it might be difficult to belief what we claim.  Yet, the promise is there.

Death is inevitable, but the promise of God is sacred.  And God doesn’t ever fall back on God’s word.  That is a certainty.

We may not know the time or the means, but we have the promise.  The promise that we will not be forgotten.  The promise that death will not have the final say.  The promise that God will resurrect and restore life and all of creation.  The promise that God wins.

 

Tell it like it is

03 Monday Jul 2017

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Why do many people like someone who “tells it like it is?”

…and what does that really mean anyway?

Is telling it like it is about truth when it comes down to it?  Or is about being really pissed off and expressing anger vocally?

Are those that are interested in someone who “tells it like it is” really just interested in someone who sounds pissed off because that’s what they are?

Does “telling it like it is” give that person a license to be a jerk?  What if someone else calls that person a jerk because they are “telling it like it is” about that person?

Is there a way to tell it like it is in a different way than being rude and obnoxious?

Is there a metric or something to measure against what the “it” is – you know something that fact checks the “it” in “telling it like it is?”

Or is that just not important because the person who is “telling it like it is” is saying whatever they are saying with passion and lots of emotion for others to get wrapped up in.

Do we really believe that there really are politicians who tell it like it is out of the goodness of their hearts?  Politicians, whether long-term politicians or new comers, couldn’t possibly “tell it like it is” in order to build up their own power could they?  In order to manipulate and get more support for a political message, maybe?

What if asking all of these questions is a way of telling it like it is?  What if you don’t like it?  Does that matter since I’m telling it like it is?  Or am I not doing that because I’m not insulting you, the reader, in the way I tell it like it is?

Someone else told it like it is – long ago.  But did it in a far different manner.  He pointed out the flaws of society and culture and offered an alternative.  It was very upsetting, but not because he insulted people or was rude.  It was upsetting because he told the truth about the world – a truth that the world didn’t want to admit.  It was so upsetting that he was killed by those who didn’t want to acknowledge the truth that he talked about.  That person was Jesus.  Jesus told it like it is.  Yet somehow, so many don’t want to listen to what Jesus had to say and continues to say today about the world, society, and culture.  Jesus’ telling it like it is doesn’t fit into our anger – we want someone to pay damn it!  Jesus’ telling it like it is doesn’t fit with our desire to exclude and separate.

Maybe telling it like it really is not something we really want to hear – especially when it is focused on us and our lives and our culture.  Maybe we’d rather just be angry and throw a tantrum and be a victim instead.  It’s much easier.  It’s not pleasant to be told what it is, regardless of what “it” is.

But that’s what Jesus does.

 

What is natural?

24 Friday Mar 2017

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An accompanying question would be “what is normal?”  I’m thinking specifically of American culture right now.  Is what we are experiencing normal?  Is it natural?  Are we on a trajectory on the cycle of civilization?  Can it be stopped or changed?  Should it?

I don’t have the answers.  But then again, I don’t think the answers matter that much.  It’s the questions that matter.  The questions are what open us up to possibilities.

These questions have been a constant through theological history too.  It’s a question of predestination – or is everything all set and there can be no variation?  Another variation of this expresses a different view – the end result is set, but the way we get there is open.  This opens up possibilities whereas the first view leaves us hopeless, mere puppets in a play.  I wonder how there can be love when there is no openness to possibilities of how things progress.

What is natural in our world?  Sin, death, anger, violence, power, control.  There have been more positive things too, but when we measure and mark history, it is often based on events like war, devastation, and rulers.

The Gospel and the reign of God are the things that are unnatural in this world.  That’s because the world is broken by sin.  The world’s norm is that might makes right. Yet Christ declares that the meek and poor in Spirit are blessed.  The world celebrates the division and war, yet Christ declares that those who are doers of peace are the blessed ones.

What is natural?  What is normal?  Is it what the vast majority of human history has been made up of?  Or maybe this history is not normal at all.  Maybe it’s out of whack.  Maybe Christ has what normal is, but we’ve been looking at the world upside down.  Maybe he’s turning the world right side up again – making all things right – bringing the world back to normal.

Quick fixes won’t fix us

20 Monday Mar 2017

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American culture has a fascination with quick fixes.  I don’t think I need to go into detail about this.  Just look around.  Think about the next time you are sitting at a traffic light and you grow impatient waiting for the light.  Or how about waiting in line at the grocery store.  Americans don’t like a church service to go over one hour.  Our political candidate “debates”, if you want to call them that, offer candidates 1-2 minutes to express their solution to any given problem facing the nation – as if fixing a large problem can be solved in a matter of a few sentences.

Quick fixes sound good on the surface, but they are like microwave dinners.  Sure, they look good on the packaging.  Sure, they smell good when you take them out of the microwave.  But if you don’t scare it down in a matter of minutes, the meal is cold.  And to be honest, it doesn’t taste nearly as good, and isn’t even close to as healthy if you took the time to make a proper meal.  But hey, who has time for that right?  Just don’t expect to be healthy then.

I don’t have the answers to our culture’s challenges that we face. I don’t know what policies we should be implementing.  Based on my experience, I do know this much – there are not one-size-fits-all solutions for any problem out there.  What works here probably won’t work in another part of the world, let alone in another part of the country.  That’s because there is a unique set of people, with their own experiences, knowledge, level of trust, and more.  It’s what makes us the context of an area.  It’s what makes it unique.  Sure, there are some overarching themes that can be taken from one place to another, but when it comes to implementing those themes, I’m willing to bet that they must be implemented in different ways for different cultures and contexts.

So, does that means we just throw our hands in the air like we just don’t care – no, of course not.  What are we to do.  Here’s a start – sit down with people and eat with them.  Sit and eat and drink and talk.  This is how community is created and sustained.  Eating and drinking with others has this weird effect – it slows things down, it forces conversation, it equalizes people, it opens people up.

I think this works in a variety of situation – not just people you have a relationship with.  Ever try eating with someone who is your enemy?  Try it sometime.  You might see someone different at the table across from you than you thought was there.  You might be different too by the end of the conversation.

I’m willing to bet that when we eat with people – regardless of friend or foe – we’ll come away with new insights.  We may find that the person across from us is a lot better than we thought.  Then again, we might also come away realizing that they are worse.  We aren’t living in la-la land here.  We may come away with brand new ideas, ways of doing things.  We also may come away having shared something incredible too.  And these things could take on a whole new life of their own.  Even if none of that happens, even if you head isn’t full of new ideas and options, even if your heart isn’t full of appreciation and love, your stomach will be.  And that’s a start.

What is Christianity?

17 Friday Mar 2017

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Is Christianity the culture?  Is Christianity tied to what it means to be American?  Is it counter cultural?  What does that even mean?

Christianity came about because of Jesus, who lived in the first part of the first century CE (or AD if you prefer).  He lived in Palestine, which was under Roman jurisdiction – actually it was under the rule of a client kingdom.  This may sound like a technicality, but it’s important.  It was an independent kingdom that paid tribute to Rome and did what it could to keep itself in Rome’s good graces.  This of course would end after Jesus’ death.  The Zealots (political extremists who didn’t like any dealings with Rome) were often causing problems for the ruling party and eventually created a rebellion that ended when the Temple in Jerusalem was leveled by Rome.

Christianity rose up in the midst of this.  It continued to grow, thanks to people like Paul, who spread the message far and wide throughout the Roman empire.  It grew large enough that it caught the attention of the Roman rulers who eventually persecuted Christians – they needed a scapegoat when things got bad and a minority religion was a perfect fit for this.  (Yes, I’m simplifying things greatly here.)

Because of this, along with the radical teachings of inclusivity, overturning honor and shame in society, monotheism, and more, Christianity was counter cultural.  A huge difference, and cause of great pain, for Christians was loyalty to the reign of God, rather than the reign of Caesar.

It was only later with Constantine that Christianity became a state religion, and then the official religion of the state.  He used it for his own purposes and power.  And it became a part of the state and what it meant to be Roman.  And as a result, criticism of the empire changed.  You can’t be criticizing openly the very people who are building you basilicas now, can you?

Yet here we are almost two thousand years later and an ocean and sea apart from the origins of Christianity.  A great deal has happened since that time.  If we are guilty of anything, it is thinking that we fit into the early story of Christianity – as if anyone around at the time of Jesus knew there would be a USA – let alone a land across the ocean, outside the known world.  The world was believed to be flat back then remember?

Is Christianity counter cultural?  It has been.  It has also been the basis for the culture, or so we like to think this way.

Is Christianity American?  Nope.  We can’t lay claim to it solely.  Besides, which version of Christianity are we talking about anyway?  What does it mean to be an American Christian?  Where do our loyalties lie?

When we look at the American landscape we see a wide variety of Christians which mean there is no one answer to these questions.  And maybe that’s the point and a good thing.  Uniformity is a nice idea, but I don’t think that’s what Jesus had in mind when he said “Follow Me.”  I don’t think he meant that to mean “do as I tell you to do like a bunch of robots.”  I think it means variety and context.  And it will change over time and with location and different people.

Christianity might be counter cultural.  Or it might be totally consumed by culture.  Or, just maybe, it will be both depending where and when we are talking.

House of Culture and Learning

09 Thursday Feb 2017

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As we left the Cathedral of Learning, we took one last view of this incredible building that houses culture and learning.

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There’s a ton in the building.  I couldn’t help by wonder – does it get a lot of visitors?  I hope so.

Do people actually appreciate the different cultures?  The different languages of those cultures?  The long histories of these nations and peoples?  I have no idea.

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Of course we can’t make people care.  Spending our time forcing people to care is a waste of time.  The only ones we have real influence over is ourselves.  And even then, sometimes I wonder.  Forcing people to appreciate culture only makes many people have a negative reaction.  But invitation usually has a better effect.

Lesson for church: I heard a preacher on the radio this past Sunday talk about change starting in people through their heads.  I think that’s bogus.  Want people to change – reach them at their heart level.  Look at the current environment in politics – all of the talking is directed at the head.  And the reaction – we have two sides that are farther apart now than they have been in awhile.  Let’s not be like politics.  We’re in the heart business church.  Touch the heart and it will impact the head.

A room with a view

08 Wednesday Feb 2017

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After the Welsh room, we headed up to the 36th floor of the Cathedral of Learning.  From there, we had the opportunity to get some incredible views of the Pittsburgh area, which we took advantage of.

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Considering I have a pretty severe fear of heights, I even amazed myself with being the one taking the pictures.  Maybe I was fine because the windows were not that big and I didn’t feel like I was going to be sucked out to my death.

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Regardless, I was thrilled to be able to enjoy the view.  Small steps my friends, small steps.

Lesson for church: Small steps. We can’t expect huge changes in the church. Change is not the norm in church. It’s an institution and institutions don’t change on their own or willingly.  The church has a culture and cultures don’t like to change either.  There has to be a good reason to change – you can’t just change for change’s sake.  There’s no purpose to that.  But we can and should change in order to better carry out the mission of God.  Any step in that direction is a step forward.

Let me tell you a story…

02 Thursday Feb 2017

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The next stop in the Cathedral of Learning was the Japanese room.

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It is very simple, yet eloquent at the same time.  It is very functional, yet not off putting either.

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In the back of the room (shown above) you see some Japanese writings.  Here’s a close up of the one on the left.

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I’m told that often these images and the words that go with them are telling a story.  It’s my understanding that Japanese culture is conveyed through story very often and that the Japanese are master story tellers.

Lesson for church: we have a story to tell.  The culture won’t tell the story for us anymore, which I think is a positive thing.  The Rev. Dr. David Lose once said that the church in the US has gotten lazy with telling its story.  I agree.  It’s time to relearn the story of faith and proclaim it.  This isn’t a story about facts and figures – it’s a story about relationship:  God with creation, including humanity.  Tell that story, and see what happens.