Church, Future trends, General, Generations, Youth

Gen Y goes to church – or doesn’t

2013/08/04 Graeme Leave a comment

One of my favourite Christian bloggers, Rachel Held Evans, has recently turned her attention to some insights into the Millennial generation and their church attendance in the USA. She wrote a short blog on the topic for a CNN blog site, and sparked a very lively (if not useful) debate.

I was alerted to this issue a number of years ago by research from a variety of sources. The Barna Group and Walt Mueller’s Center for Parent/Youth Understanding have both been showing research about declining generational attendance at church for decades now. Mike Regele wrote about this in his book, “The Death of the Church” back in 1996 (buy on Amazon.com – still worth reading).

More recent research has emerged from Christian Smith’s National Study of Youth and Religion Project, and an excellent recent book is “unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity… and Why It Matters” by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons (buy on Amazon.com or Kindle @ Amazon.co.uk or Kalahari.com). Rachel also recently listed some of her research resources on this topic – see it here.

Anyway, after her experience on the CNN blog, Rachel revisited the topic with an excellent post entitled “Why Millennials Need the Church“.

She then provided links to a number of people who had written responses to her original article. If you’re interested in the issue, you will find them useful:

Churches definitely need to be thinking about this. Gen Y are seeking for something to believe in, but much of what the church dishes up for them today leaves them cold. What do you think are the best ways churches can connect with Millennials?

Bible, General

The Bible as a magic book with all the answers

2013/07/26 Graeme Leave a comment

Here’s something you might not hear at church: Stop reading the Bible (or, at least, stop reading it the way you’re currently reading it).

Many Christians use the Bible as if it was some kind of magical book. They dip into it every morning through their ‘Daily Devotions’ type inspirational readings that direct them to one verse of the Bible and add a pithy pop-psychology insight. They read the Psalms as if they were promises, and put bumper on their cars like, “This car is protected by Psalm 91” (I personally prefer locks and alarms). In times of trouble and distress, they open the Bible at random, maybe even literally putting a pin into a verse, hoping that “God will talk to them”.

All of these are not only deeply offensive to God and His Holy Scriptures but completely misuse and misunderstand what the Bible is and what it is for. I have spoken about this elsewhere, so won’t go into detail here. But this post was sparked by an email I received this morning which maybe shows the worst such usage of the Bible I have yet seen. What do you think?

Dear Reader,

Most people know Sean Hyman from his regular appearances on Fox Business, CNBC, and Bloomberg television …

Sean is notorious for his uncanny ability to predict precise moves in the stock market.

Recently, I asked Sean what his secret is for investing so successfully.

I expected Sean to say that it was his years of experience at Charles Schwab or perhaps one of the complicated algorithms he uses for timing the stock market.

So when Sean responded that his secret to investing was the Bible, I was thoroughly shocked.

Yes, I knew Sean was a Christian (anyone who spends more than 1 minute with him will pick that up!). However, people usually keep their faith separate from things like … investing.

But not Sean

For Sean, the Bible is his FOUNDATION for investing.

He explained to me how there is actually a “Biblical Money Code” woven into Scripture.

Sean says it is this Biblical Money Code that took him from making a mere $15,000 a year to now giving away up to $50,000 a year. Sean also credits this code with helping him turn his father’s $40,000 retirement account into $396,000.

In fact, certain investment titans such as Warren Buffett have already used this code to amass billions.

What Sean had to say impressed me so much that I asked him to put a presentation together that reveals how anyone could use this Biblical Money Code.

I’ve personally watched this presentation several times.

In it, you will discover how you can use this Biblical Money Code to get out of debt … make sound investments … and morally build substantial wealth.

I won’t give this email the dignity of supplying you with the website they linked to, but a quick Google search will find it if you’re desperate.

I am sorry, but there is nothing Christian (as in ‘Christ-like’) about this at all.

Church, Gender, General

Southern Baptists, Gay Scouts and how churches treat homosexuals

2013/06/15 Graeme 1 Comment

A few weeks ago, the Boy Scouts of America voted to allow openly gay scouts to be part of Scout troops across the country. The ban on sexual activity (heterosexual and homosexual) remains, which means that all the Scouts have done is to indicate that they will not take someone’s sexual orientation into account when engaging with them.

Whatever your beliefs about homosexuality, this surely can’t be a bad thing. Christians who are “against” homosexuality have an issue with the sexual act, and not the “orientation”, since these Christians also believe in “original sin” which means we are all born sinners and have a naturally sinful orientation. It’s not an orientation that is the ongoing problem before God (this is what Christ died for), but the fruits thereof: the sinful actions. Even if you are against homosexuality, your issue is with homosexual activity, and not with same sex attraction (the message from conservative Christians to gays is to remain celibate and not act out on their feelings). Otherwise, you’re simply homophobic rather than Biblical (at least, your version of “Biblical”, but I am trying to be charitable and make a point).

So, someone needs to explain to me why the Southern Baptist Convention voted this past week to recommend to their member churches that they cut all ties with the Boy Scouts of America (as Baptists each church will make its own decision). This is a problem for many Scouts troops, as they use church facilities as meeting venues.

But the bigger issue is surely a question for SBC churches about the message they’re sending to people – especially young people. Will all the other groups who use SBC churches be subjected to this mindset? Will the many Alcoholics Anonymous groups who use SBC churches as venues be required to check the sexual orientation of their attendees? And the Weight Watchers groups? And if not, why not? Will children who go to Sunday School or attend holiday clubs at these churches be asked about their sexual orientations? All the Scouts are doing is removing reference to sexual orientation from their charter (except that they continue to ban openly gay leaders, for now), so why target them in this way?

A bigger issue is what message this sends particularly to young people. It tells them that the church is the wrong place to be anything other than an “alpha male”, “totally hetero” guy, or a “traditional woman”. I can’t believe this would be what Jesus would want us to do.

Regardless of where you stand on the issue and politics of gay marriage, or the morality and sinfulness of same sex relationships, the message that a person has to become straight before becoming a part of God’s Kingdom is dangerous, damaging, untrue and contrary to the Gospel.

I really hope that individual SBC churches do not take the advice of their denominational leaders, and instead continue to support the excellent work that the Boy Scouts do in preparing young men and women to contribute to society and be good human beings.

Fun, General, Theology

15 Things Jesus Didn’t Say, by Jim Palmer

2013/06/04 Graeme 1 Comment

Here’s a few things you might hear in church this week, but shouldn’t. Mainly because Jesus never said them.

I picked this up from my good friend, John Benn, a pastor in Durban. It was originally written by Jim Palmer, an author and part of the Religion-Free Bible Project.

15 things Jesus Didn’t Say:

“For God was so disgusted with the world and you that he gave his one and only Son.”

“I have come to bring you a new religion.”

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have correct theology.”

“If anyone would come after me, let him disparage all other religions and their followers.”

“If you love me, you will regularly attend a church of your choice… within reason.”

“Blessed are the tithers for they shall be called the children of God.”

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in Heaven after the earth goes up in flames and destroyed.”

“You have heard it said, ‘Love your neighbor,’ which means the people with whom you attend church and relate to in your Christian sub-culture.”

Continue reading 15 Things Jesus Didn’t Say, by Jim Palmer →

Gender, General

The church, sex and yummy mummies

2013/06/03 Graeme Leave a comment

Driven mainly, it seems, by the alpha-male approach to church coming from Mark Driscoll’s accolytes, churches around the world are talking more and more about sex from their pulpit and lecturns. While there is nothing wrong with this per se, there is a dangerous edge to the message these alpha-male types convey. It’s mainly a message to the wife: stay sexy, satisfy your husband, or else…

As the father of three daughters, I am uncomfortable with this version of sexuality being promoted by the church. Just as much as porn, it objectifies a specific version of womanhood – one that is ultimately unhealthy. It’s not good. It’s not healthy. It’s not right.

And then, I discovered a great post on the her.meneutics blog that helped me understand why: Stay Sexy or Else? Well, Please Forgive These Mommy Hips, When the joy of sex gets replaced by the fear of not being sexy enough, by Janelle Aijian. This is definitely worth reading.

The church really is very messed up in the way it deals with sexual issues. Maybe it’s time to replace the alpha-dawgs who run these types of churches. Just saying…

Bible, Gender, General, Social Justice, Theology

Redeeming the woman at the well

2013/06/02 Graeme Leave a comment

In John 4, we read the story of Jesus’ encounter with a Samaritan woman at midday at a well. This woman is almost always thought of as a prostitute. There is nothing in Scripture that indicates this. Rather, it is a product of a male-dominated culture and reading of the Bible that sees her as a sinner and not a victim.

This woman had had multiple husbands. Is it possible that in a small community/village that the local prostitute would have had multiple husbands? One maybe. Two at a stretch. But not five. Seriously: pause to consider this. Even in our modern permissive society, prostitutes do not get married five times. This is an impossibility in the rural community Jesus encountered.

No, the very much more likely scenario (I’d say 100% only possible scenario) is that she was a widow five times over. For some reason, her five husbands had died. (These could not have been divorces, for the same reason of logic – but also because the religious law prohibited more than two divorces for a woman). Of course no-one would marry her now. Would you?

Jesus amazes this woman by not only showing knowledge of her five husbands, but also her current living arrangements. The man she was staying with was most likely a benevolent uncle or family member who was giving her shelter in some back room, and acting as her protector. In no way does Jesus suggest this arrangement was anything untoward. There is no hint of condemnation and no mention of sin in this passage. Jesus never condemns her for anything. In fact, for us to think of her as anything other than a tragic victim to whom Jesus showed compassion and love illustrates how badly screwed up our view of women, sexuality and culture has become.

This was a woman who had faced tragedy and horror in her life. Now ostracised from her community, she encounters Jesus. He knows her. He loves her anyway. And he gives her the dignity and honour of being the one to announce the coming of the Messiah to her people. What a story.

That should be a lesson to all who think that their views of Scripture and what is going on in the Bible are completely without fault or need of updating or questioning. What else have you misunderstood because of your cultural conditioning?

Church, General, Leadership, Social Justice, Theology

Protecting the Poor from Religion

2013/05/20 Graeme Leave a comment

Here’s something we should hear more of in church: stop exploiting the poor. I don’t mean that the church should tell other people to stop exploiting the poor; I mean the church itself should stop exploiting poor people.

The social situation in rural Africa is the closest we get today to the situation that existed in first century Palestine, when Jesus was teaching. And Jesus’ message – among other things – was that the religious leaders were exploiting the poor, and needed to stop. In fact, Jesus’ harshest words were reserved for the religious leaders of his day. He called them “white washed tombs” and “blind guides”. I wonder what he might say to many African church leaders who seem to be mimicking the message and methods of those first century religious leaders.

There’s a reason Jesus was so opposed to them. Religion – as Karl Marx most famously pointed out – can be a drug for the poor (“opium for the people”), sedating them and distracting them from their desperate lives. At one level, that could be a good thing. The problem is that this too quickly turns to exploitation. Fundamentalist religion does this by offering eternal security and certainty of a better life (either now or in the future); and then demanding sacrifice today in response. Its best form produces solid citizens who will work hard and contribute to society self-sacrificially. The worst form, though, produces crusaders and unloving – and unlovely – cultish disciples.

A more sinister religion, though, emerges out of a “wealth and health” based religion. It promises cures for diseases and riches on earth. This is the religion peddled in rich countries through the 24-hour Christian broadcasting networks that ask viewers to contribute financially in exchange for holy water, prayer mats, blessed items and other tat. Mostly harmless, but most certainly idolatry. It is almost always for the benefit of the leader.

It’s when this religion meets the poor that things get nasty. This past weekend in Ghana, a stampede for special anointing water blessed by Africa’s most high profile fundamentalist Christian leader, Prophet TB Joshua from (I am sure you guessed) Nigeria, resulted in at least four deaths and thirty serious injuries. TB Joshua has courted controversy many times, including recent incidents in Ghana where his security guards illegally detained journalists covering his “crusades” in Accra. His Facebook page continues to spout testimonies of the power of the anointing water (from an Indian student who passed his school exams to people finding employment and cures for all sorts of diseases) – but no mention of the disaster in Ghana, except that this coming weekend’s crusades have been cancelled.

There is a form of religion that really would be good for the poor. Sadly, much of what is happening in Africa right now is not that form. And the poor need to be protected from it. When people die, hopefully there is an opportunity for truth to shine through.

FutureChurchNow by Graeme Codrington

Gen Y goes to church – or doesn’t

The Bible as a magic book with all the answers

Southern Baptists, Gay Scouts and how churches treat homosexuals

15 Things Jesus Didn’t Say, by Jim Palmer

15 things Jesus Didn’t Say:

The church, sex and yummy mummies

Graeme Codrington's musings on a new kind of Christianity

Does Jesus care more about what we do or what we believe? (I’m going with the first option)

I Am Sorry

15 things Jesus Didn’t Say:

Graeme Codrington's musings on a new kind of Christianity