Unintentional Saboteurs of the Christian Faith
They were in the coffee room, upperclassmen, three of them, preparing to become Christian ministers. My office was just around the corner so I heard everything they said. It was midmorning, September 12, 2001. It was not just their words; I could hear their posture, gesture, tone, and attitude. These were Christian Studies majors (Christ-ian Studies).
I have read all four accounts of the Jesus story. I have taught Christian Studies for thirty-some years. I taught "The Life and Teachings of Jesus” for more than twenty years. Jesus did not get his words and attitude from his surrounding culture. These fellows did. They sounded just like their surrounding culture.
They were venting. I wasn't at all surprised by the response of the typical citizen. It was in complete accord with the character of their culture, their socialization. It was what patriotic emotion deemed appropriate. But these guys called themselves followers of Jesus; they claimed to be believers.
There was a disconnect. And they were not the only ones in the Christian community saying things like this.
We ought to nuke Afghanistan back into the Stone Age.
Yeah!
We ought to bomb Afghanistan off the map.
This did not come from Jesus. They were not following the one they called their Lord. Claiming to be, studying to be, and training to be God's representatives, they misrepresented the God who came to us in Jesus Christ, "God among Us," "Immanuel."
September 12, 2001 is not the only time God's "representatives" have misrepresented God. For a variety of reasons, and to the undermining of Christian faith, this kind of unintended and unconscious sabotage has a long and widespread history.
Don't look at or listen to them. Pick up a Bible; read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Look at, look to, and listen to Jesus.
About Me
- WRoark
- Professor of Christian Studies and Philosophy for more than thirty years. Author of Think like an Octopus: The Key to Becoming a Good Thinker. Now the blogosphere is my classroom. I am a contrarian, challenger of the status quo, a voice from a differing perspective. When I retired, I took off my watch, my shoes, let others answer the phone, and refuse to hurry, unless life is at stake.
2 comments:
when questioned how this is loving our enemies ive heard them say we are being loving by showing them justice.
i wonder if we would so quickly desire a 'just' love that came with weaponry?
Dr. Roark,
I might have been one of those students you overheard that day. I definitely remember making similar comments about the "appropriate" response to the attacks of September 11.
I also remember meeting for one of your classes that day. When our school and nation was in a state of near hysteria, you calmly and briefly spoke of reconciliation and Christ's call to love our enemies - then you dismissed class. I will never forget that you FIRST response was not revenge, but the words of Jesus.
I knew you were right, but it took awhile for me to come to agree with you and see your wisdom. You spoke from deep conviction to the truth, while many of us merely REacted. This was the first time, but definitely not the last, that my nationalism and my faith collided in such a way.
Thank you for that day and many others like it when you spoke from profound depth of thought and conviction. Thank you for teaching me and so many others to view our actions and reactions in light of the Person of Jesus Christ.
- Matt McGowen
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