So here are a few things I read this past week that have been bouncing around in my head. Feel free to click on the links if you want to read the articles so your own thoughts can bounce around with mine.
- ITEM 1: Last week, the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) published its 2020 Census of American Religion that showed some interesting trends and shifts.
- ITEM 2: In an opinion piece for CNN, Diana Butler Bass, a religion scholar and writer whose personal faith journey resonates with my own, reflected on the results of the PRRI survey above.
- ITEM 3: An article from the Washington Post about a church in Fort Worth Texas that stirs up several emotions and thoughts.
Here are the few things that stuck out to me:
First is the forever shifting landscape of religion in the United States and of Christianity in general. I understand the handwringing or rejoicing that comes with the results of a survey like this as people, especially Christians, see the waxing or waning popularity of their particular expression of faith. I say popularity because many people believe success is a numbers game.
Thankfully, faithfulness to the gospel isn’t measured by the biggest budgets or highest attendance. In our consumerist, modern-mindset in America, we’ve mistaken success with numbers. Christianity has enjoyed a privileged position in American society for many decades but that doesn’t mean it’s been faithful to the gospel—sometimes the very opposite is true. Sometimes difficult and challenging parts of the gospel have been sacrificed or jettisoned to gain popular and widespread appeal. There’s been the temptation to create idols of our beliefs about God because static idols are easier to worship than a living God that continually calls us to grow, adapt, and examine our hearts.
So while I find the results of the survey interesting, the question that matters most to me is not whether or not our popularity is growing or declining, but rather are we actively pursuing, honestly wrestling, and hopefully engaging the promise and power of the gospel.
What struck me about the story of the church in Fort Worth was two images that embody how they’re living out their faith in ways I find both troubling and moving.
Let’s start with the troubling. While watching volunteers set up for Sunday service, the reporter notes how “In the lobby, they place straw baskets filled with earplugs.” Now, I know the logistical reason for these earplugs is that sometimes worship bands can get a little louder than some people would like. But I can’t help but be struck by the symbolic meaning of literally plugging your ears when going to church. It reminded me of a sign (pictured above) our tour group saw outside one of the holy sites in Jerusalem. This sign was instructing tour guides to not give presentations or ‘explanations’ within the church, but we couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. Similar to putting in ear plugs before service so as not to be bothered by what you might hear.
We’re often guilty of plugging our ears to anything that doesn’t align with our ideology or preconceived notions. We’re cover our ears so we don’t hear how the Spirit is calling us to move or change or repent. It’s tempting to plug our ears from the Christ’s call especially when it’s not something we want to hear. But Christ was always often telling people things they didn’t want to hear.
While the image of the ear plugs made me sadly laugh, I couldn’t help but be struck by the sincerity of one young church member, Nick Davenport who went out with one of the church’s mission teams to evangelize a busy touristy part of Fort Worth marked by bars and souvenir shops. The reporter described how he walked through the crowded streets looking for folks that could use a word of comfort, hope, or even just connection with some who cares. The article wasn’t clear to what end, Nick was reaching out to make these connections, so while I might disagree with the ends, I was struck by what it would mean if we all we’re so proactive in reaching out to connect with folks around us—to understand what’s going on, to comfort those in pain, and care for those who feel all alone because that’s the heart of the gospel.
The gospel is about making connections—of loving and serving one another. It’s not about gaining power, winning local elections, building bigger buildings, adding another service, or turning up the volume and production value of those services. It’s not about following trends or changing landscapes. The gospel is about love. It’s about honesty and vulnerability. It’s about humility and authenticity, forgiveness and redemption.
Thanks for bouncing along with me in these musings as we continue to discern and dream about how God is calling us to be faithful to the gospel in our community.
In Love,
Pastor Annette