Christian values

Christianity

Christians, stop protesting Starbucks red cups

Starbucks red cups are out to bring us holiday cheer but the response on social media has not been very cheerful.

Joshua Feuerstein, a former Arizona pastor shared a video on Facebook that went viral with over 12 million views. He stated in his Facebook post that “Starbucks REMOVED CHRISTMAS from their cups because they hate Jesus.” Feuerstein entered a Starbucks protesting the lack of Christian messages on Starbuck’s famous red cups while legally carrying a handgun. This social media protest is using the hashtag #MerryChristmasStarbucks to encourage customers to fight back against Starbuck’s supposed Christian persecution.

It seems like every year there is some cultural Christian crusader protests that a company hates Christians or is too politically correct to reference Christmas.

The ugly reality of these holiday protests is that it makes us Christians look like a bunch of paranoid lunatics. The problem with Feuerstein and his video is that it smacks of a superior attitude that all people, business, and institutions must comply with our Christmas demains. Often, these cultural Christian crusaders do more harm than good. Feuerstein proved this when he waved his concealed handgun at the end of the video. Such displays of “freedom” in the name exercising Second Amendment rights only further to marginalize Christians into a gun-nut and anti-government stereotype.

That is a real good idea: Continue Reading…

Christmas

How Jesus and Santa can get along

Every year I struggle with a Christmas ritual that millions of parents have no problem with: a visit with Santa Claus in a season that is about Jesus. How can Jesus and Santa get along?

Why do I struggle? For some parents, Christmas and Santa Claus go together like white and red striping on candy canes. You cannot separate the two. Santa is everywhere and just about every culture. For others, Jesus and Santa are a clashing pair like fruitcake and tofu. Many Christians lament telling the myth of Santa Claus to their children because they believe it sends the wrong message of Christmas: The holiday is about getting presents from a jolly fat guy and not the celebration of Christ’s birth.

At the same time, parents do not want to be a Grinch about Santa. Nobody likes that kid in school going around telling everyone that Santa isn’t real. Parents are then confronted with the reality of explaining how and why Santa is not real. Either parents go with the flow of Santa or become Santa haters.

There is a better way to involve Santa Claus into the Christian mythos that does not sacrifice the person of Jesus Christ.

mission

A garden center, a sign, and the missional church

My parents used to tell me that first impressions matter. So my mom always kept a very clean house in the chance someone came to visit or if I or my sister brought a friend home unexpectedly from school. My dad always keep the cars clean and the yard mowed. We always had clean clothes and reasonable times between haircuts. Probably not much different from your family.

Organizations also present “first impressions” with their buildings, employees who welcome, or the cleanliness of the facility. The front door might be one of the most important features of these organizations. Here are a few front doors I have come across in Midwest stores recently.

This is posted on a sliding door into a business. This store is a large chain and is located in the upper middle class section of town with low crime. Nothing about this sign says to me I am welcome to shop there. I have never seen a sign like this on any other business, that does not mean do not exist but I have never noticed one. I just found it to be a weird notice and felt it to be unnecessarily hostile.

This is a welcoming place. It has the clearly marked sign open, the door is open, and the hours are posted. There is plants that greet you from the parking lot to the door letting you know that this place holds a variety of , trees, flowers, porch/deck furniture, and other yard DYI things. But what you see outside is only a small taste of what is on the inside. The staff don’t just grow plants in a bucket. They are gardeners as well. They are capable of listening to garden ideas and advising how to proceed because they live in both places.

Churches have signs as well. Our churches often put up intentional or unintentional signs up with our actions. Perhaps they act like the fist sign. Your life will be scrutinized here. We will judge you and use a filter process to decide if you are like us. We will examine every aspect of your life until we are satisfied you look, sound, and act like we think you should. If you do not agree to these terms you are free to leave the facility.

What if our church and the way it functions looked more like this garden center? What if we were more inviting and welcoming? What would it look like if we could find the balance between being welcoming to all and strong in our Christian identity? What if we found a way to interpret and discern what God is doing in the world? A missional church needs to examine their church “signs”. What signal are they sending?

Much like the garden center, there is a a need for churches to have a welcoming presence with their building, signage, and people. The church must missionally welcome people and empower others to action. The missional church needs to have a welcoming presence of hospitality and be able to discern how God is calling us to act. God is at work cultivating our missional gardens and we need to realize what it takes to welcome and send others into his vineyard.

Church Leadership

Poll: Most Americans feel connected to local church

In an age where cries from denominations about declining membership and church participation, a new poll offers some encouraging news on American’s feelings towards their congregation.

A Rasmussen poll found that 54% of American adults feel at least “somewhat connected” to their local church. In addition, 34% said they are “very connected.” The poll did not ask respondent’s religious affiliation. However, the poll did match responses to political connection questions. About 42% said they are not at all connected to a local political party. On the church side, 25% they have no connection to a local church.

The survey also provided some other interesting results:

35% of adults said their strongest personal allegiance is to their church
31% said their strongest allegiance is to their country.
Only 30% of Catholics said their greatest loyalty was to their church, while 38% said they were more loyal to their country.

Aside from political allegiances, this study shows that most Americans feel a connectedness to a local church. Perhaps that may be the drawing power of a non-denominational church. No overarching identity that is in conflict with local values. As mainline churches are declining in membership, many independent churches are seeing an increase in attendance and membership. Mega churches are an example. At sizes measuring in the tens of thousands, they dwarf many smaller denominations.

This is a opportunity for church leadership to wake up and start seeing the local church as the key connection for communities. Focusing on the local impact of the church is what makes people want to come to a particular church. Folks want to feel connected to their community and to God. Food pantries, after school programs, youth ministries, community service, and other missional opportunities are ways churches can grab hold of people looking for faith.

The question for local religious leadership is, “What are you doing to actively help people in your community feel connected to your church?” If church leadership cannot come up with ways to encourage connection, then their church will increasingly find it difficult to retain and attract new members.

blog

Pregnancy from rape is not God’s intent

By now you have heard of Richard Mourdock, the Indiana Republican Senate candidate who said in a debate:

“I just struggled with it myself for a long time but I came to realize: Life is that gift from God that I think even if life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen.”

The backlash from these comments have been swift and harsh. Mourdock was quick to distance himself from his comments. He stated that his comments were used to politically advantage his opponent. The problem with this whole story is not necessarily about abortion, but about rape. Did Mourdock mean that rape is intended to happen or that life is intended to happen?

At a dinner for GOP leaders Mourdock said: Continue Reading…

Facebook

Why do you love the Devil?

I stopped in at the Albany Times Union this week and had lunch with one of the editors there. I have developed some great friendships with a number of reporters and staff. I bumped into Mark McGuire.No not that Mark McQwire but the Times Union’s Mark McGuire. We chatted about sports, college, and life. Then, he showed me this Facebook picture making the rounds:

At first, I thought it was a fake and said, “That has to be a joke. I mean, that’s not real. Who would make something like that?”

What confused me were the phrases “emo’s”, “high fullutent”, and “sport’s nut’s”. Those are typically not the type of people who are persecuted by ugly self-righteous Christians. That just doesn’t make sense. Plus, the incorrect use of the possessive (‘s).

If real, this type of ugly proselytizing is not real evangelism. To use offensive words to persecute folks and then tell them to repent and that they need Jesus is just ugly. Jesus reserved his harshest words not for sinners, but for the religious hypocrites.

This Fred Phelps type of tactic is not about turning people to Jesus but is an attempt to taunt and bring attention to the protestor.

What’s the back story on this? Anyone else seen this picture of Facebook?

anger, Leadership

The day I was cursed at in church

In ministry, one day is always different from the next. Sometimes, there are wonderful and rewarding experiences. Other times, there are difficult experiences.

I’ll never forget the day I was cursed at in church. Samuel L. Jackson style.

I was in my office working on the bulletin for the upcoming Sunday worship service. My office manager was not in so I was alone on the first floor of the church. I heard a commotion outside my office. I heard someone yelling at the top of their lungs. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I stood up to get a better look through my window to the common area outside of our church offices. There I saw a women who started into a profanity laced speech:

“What the f**k is going on? Who’s in charge here? Someone has to help me with this sh*t”

Ignoring her cursing, I immediately greeted her, told her I was the pastor, and ask how I could be of assistance.

“How you going to fking going to solve my problem. You don’t fking understand!” She said. And directed her anger, misplaced as it was, at me. I was floored. I never met this woman and had no clue what was going on to produce such craziness.

9/11, Culture, September 11

Three responses to 9/11 grief

On September 11, 2001 I was in college. I was getting out of a Tuesday morning class when I heard people talking about an airplane crash. As I walked back to my apartment, I heard more and more information. I walked by a utility truck and heard words on the radio, “World Trade Center… airplane… Pentagon… crash.” I thought to myself, this is serious. Minutes later I watched the towers come down.

With the 11th anniversary of September 11, 2001 here, many Americans are sorting through their minds and hearts. How have I changed from 2001? What do I feel when I think of September 11, 2001? Where was I on that fateful day? Am I still sad? Where can our country go from here?

As we reflect and look back, we have three main responses to the attacks on September 11, 2001:

Chick-fil-A

Did you support Chick-fil-A day?

You will not find me eating a Chick-fil-A sandwich in a Chick-fil-A restaurant today.

Why? Am I supporting gay marriage by boycotting Chick-fil-A? No.

The comments from Chick-fil-A’s president, Dan Cathy affirming traditional marriage has set off an ugly firestorm. “Guilty as charged,” was his smug response in a Baptist Press interview on the corporation’s support of the traditional view of biblical marriage: “We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit.” Then mayors, governors, politicians, religious leaders, and radio personalities blasted Cathy. In return, even more mayors, politicians, and religious leaders responded to critics of Cathy. Then, the pro-gay marriage folks call for a boycott of Chick-fil-A. In return, pro-traditional marriage people created “Support Chick-fil-A day” and I’m not going.

I’ve never been a fan of business boycotts that involve entertainment or eating. Years ago, many conservative Christians boycotted buy anything Disney related because of Disney’s pro-gay employee practices. I went to see Disney made movies.

Both pro-Chick-fil-A and anti-Chick-fil-A people have really upset me. One group supports Chick-fil-A and says, “Look at our support and piety!” The other side yells, “That company is made up of bigots! If you buy their stuff it makes you one too!” Both reactions are Pharisaic.

The Blind Side

Christian publisher boots ‘The Blind Side’

Let me tell you a great story: A husband and wife adopt an impoverish teen who grows up to become a college football player and goes on to the NFL. Except, if you walk into a store of one of the largest Christian publishers, you will not be able buy the movie.

“The Blind Side“, a movie based on a book by the same name, stars Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw and apparently is deemed too dangerous with its PG-13 rating (because of a racial slur and a few minor curse words) by LifeWay Christian Resources, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.

A Southern Baptist pastor successfully fought to have the movie dropped from LifeWay. Rodney Baker, pastor of Hopeful Baptist Church in Lake City, submitted a resolution to the SBC Resolution Committee. According to the Associated Baptist Press, Baker was able to push for a similar resolution to pass in the Florida Baptist Convention.

I asked Ed Stezter, President of LifeWay Research, for a response: Continue Reading…

clergy

The cult of Christian celebrity

I must admit, as a pastor it is very easy to raise up followers of your ministry. That might not sound bad, but it is. Your purpose as a pastoral leader to raise up disciples of Christ. There are a lot of pastors out there that just make mini-disciples of themselves. Pastors who make people pledge their authority to a leader fail to see how hurtful it is, such is the case if you join Mark Driscoll’s Mars Hill Church.

As we have seen the rise of mega-churches, we have also seen the rise of mega-egos. Churches who center a cult of celebrity around their pastors often feature the pastor’s image alongside the church. If a church presents itself as, “Pastor Joe Smith and Christ Community Church” (not intended to be a real church) then, Houston, we have a problem.

Case in point, Bishop Eddie Long, who recently was tainted by a sex scandal, was recently crowned “King” with a kingdom as a Torah scroll was wrapped around Long. Worshipers bowed before him.

Check out the video: Continue Reading…

NFL

Who does God want to win the Super Bowl?

I remember watching the pregame coverage of Super Bowl XXXII in 1998 and being shocked when a reporter asked Green Bay Packers’ defensive end and ordained minister Reggie White if he thought God wanted him to win the Super Bowl. White shot back, “Well, I’m praying to win.” The reporter replied, “Do you think the Broncos are praying to win too?” “I’m sure they are,” White said. Then the reporter asked this bombshell: “If you are praying that Green Bay wins, and the Broncos are praying to win, then who does God want to win?”

With this year’s big game set for Sunday, it seems that God and football have been the hot topic lately. Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow has been criticized for appearing in an ad to be aired during the game paid for by Focus on the Family that promotes the Christian organization’s pro-life stance. Tebow is also known for biblical references to “John 3:16″ and “Phil 4:13″ on the eye black strips he uses to cut glare.” Tony Dungy, a Super Bowl champion coach and author of The New York Times best-seller, “Uncommon,” has attributed his success to Jesus Christ.

According to the NFL, 87 percent of its players come from some sort of “Protestant background.” Every team in the league offers its members Bible study groups, chapel or worship services. Athletes in Action, a division of Campus Crusade for Christ, provides chaplains for numerous NFL teams. Tom Krattenmaker, in his book “Onward Christian Athletes: Turning Ballparks into Pulpits and Players into Preachers,” makes the case that public displays of faith are not spontaneous, but rather part of a large Christian presence in the professional ranks.

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