religion

sacrament

Sacrament or Ordinance? (Part 1)

Recently, Karen Bullock, professor Christian heritage and director of the Ph.D. program at the B.H. Carroll Theological Institute, commented on Baptists celebrating their 400 year anniversary by saying, “…several theologians across the past half century have advocated that Baptists reconsider both the terms and meaning of sacramental acts…Some of this thinking re-engages the sacramental notions of churchly acts and ordinances…”

Over the past few years, I have been actively involved in reading confessions and writings of early Baptists who saw a theological strengthening in the acts of baptism and communion. Normally, to contemporary Baptists, the word “ordinance” is used over “sacrament.” This was done to avoid the Catholic understanding of “sacrament” and to avoid any hint of works related faith. However, over the next few weeks and months, I will present scholarly and lay research on the case for strengthening sacramental language among Baptists.

Indeed, the word sacrament was used among Baptists in the 16th and 17th centuries. However, “ordinance” stuck in favor of Zwingli’s view of baptism and communion. Even modern British Baptists use the word “sacrament” when they speak of baptism and communion.

I found this little bit of encouraging research that opted to spiritually understand what happens at communion. The 1689 London Confession of Baptist Faith, states:

Evangelism

Post Christian Europe: Not Dead

This past Sunday, we had the wonderful opportunity to have Pieter and Nora Kalkman visit us and share about their ministry in Europe. They spoke about their work in eastern Europe and their challenges in “post Christian” Europe. Nora and Pieter are based in Prague, Czech Republic where they serve through International Ministries as liaison and volunteer coordinators with the European Baptist Federation (EBF). They match the skills and interests of short term mission volunteers from the United States and Puerto Rico with the needs of more than 50 Baptist unions that are part of the EBF.

Some interesting information they shared:

There are only 2.4% Bible believing Christians in Europe, making this is a priority mission field.
Georgian Baptist pastors wear similar liturgical vestments that Orthodox priests wear because of the historical Eastern Orthodox presence in that region.
In some countries, only 3% of the population go to any type of “church.”
There are a variety of needs to do mission work. Week trips, short term, and long term ministry opportunities can be found here.

So if there only 2.4% “Bible believing Christians” living in Europe, we have to ask the question: Is Christianity dead in Europe?

christians

Is Western Christianity Suffering From Spiritual Amnesia?

This is part of a post by Diana Butler Bass, “Is Western Christianity Suffering From Spiritual Amnesia?”

In the 1990s, I taught history and theology at an evangelical college, a place where the students were serious young Christians. One day, lecturing on the medieval church and the Crusades, I explained how in 1095 Pope Urban II launched a holy war against Muslims. Most of the students took notes. One young woman, looking very worried by the idea of Christians starting a war, shot up her hand. “Professor,” she began, clearly wanting to blame Roman Catholics for the affair, “what did the Protestants say about this?”

“Well,” I answered slowly, “there were no Protestants in 1095.” I did not have the heart to tell her that Protestantism would not exist until more than four hundred years later.

Puzzled, she blurted out, “But where were they?”

The best quote of the article:

At the present juncture of history, Western Christianity is suffering from a bad case of spiritual amnesia. Even those who claim to be devout or conservative often know little about the history of their faith traditions.

So true. Especially for Baptists. We think we are the only church to exist since the time of Christ. I bet you 20% of Baptists think John the Baptist was the first Baptist!

Bass continues:

Our loss of memory began more than two centuries ago, at the high tide of the Enlightenment. As modern society developed, the condition of broken memory — being disconnected from the past — became more widespread. Indeed, in the words of one French Catholic thinker, the primary spiritual dilemma of contemporary religion is the “loss and reconstruction” of memory.

via Is Western Christianity Suffering From Spiritual Amnesia? – Diana Butler Bass – God’s Politics Blog.

spirituality

So you want to be spiritual? Try this:

With so many Americans calling themselves “spiritual” rather than religious, many in the Christian community have asked, “How can we make Christianity more spiritual?” That is a laughable question because Christianity is inherently spiritual. Prayer, baptism, worship, singing, communion, fellowship, reading scripture, and the list can go on. Sure, Christianity does not have rocks, stones, and other “new age” objects or artifacts, but there is a steady diet of spiritual things in Christianity.

For hundreds of years mystic, monastic, and ascetic Christians have sought to have a deeper connection with God. St. John of the Cross, Francis of Assisi, Julian of Norwich, and Thomas Merton are a few names that Christians may have heard before. Sometimes their stories are bizarre, but often many mystics simply wanted a prayerful spiritual life.

Some Christians may run the other way when they hear the word “mystical”, but believe it or not every time we pray we are being mystical. When we pray, we are praying to a transcendent God to ask or praise him for supernatural works. When we Christians use the word “mystical” we are talking about the spiritual life and we do not have to speak in tongues to be spiritual either.

One the most transformational components of the spiritual life is reading scripture. However, many find the Bible boring and need a guide when reading. One the most spiritual things we can do when we read scripture is to participate in lectio divina. What the heck is that?

Jesus

Americans Feel Connected to Jesus

With the “fall of Christianity” threatening to end the faith as we know it (yeah right), The Barna Group conducted a study of 1,002 U.S. adults, discovered:

Two out of every three adults (67%) claimed to have a “personal relationship” with Jesus that is currently active and that influences their life.
While a majority of most demographic segments said they had such an active and personal relationship with Jesus, some segments were more likely than others to claim such a connection.
Women (72%) were more likely than men (62%) to do so.
Protestants were more likely than Catholics to cite such a relationship (82% versus 72%).
People who describe themselves as mostly conservative on social and political matters were far more likely than those who see themselves as liberal on such issues to connect with Jesus (79% compared to 48%).
And one of the most instructive findings was that the younger a person was, the less likely they were to claim to have an active and influential bond with Jesus. Specifically, while 72% of adults 65 or older and 70% of Boomers (i.e., ages 46 to 64) had such a relationship in place, 65% of Busters (i.e., ages 27 to 45) and only 52% of Mosaics (ages 18 to 26) did, as well.
A large majority of Americans (59%) also believes that Jesus gets personal in their lives, going so far as to feel their pain and share in their suffering.

via The Barna Group – Americans Feel Connected to Jesus.

Churches

Reports of the Demise of Mainline Churches Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

A fresh report from the Barna Group has yielded some surprising results: Mainline churches are not dying! I should be honest with you, nation wide, mainline churches are not growing either. In the past decade, the six mainline church denominations (American Baptist Churches in the USA, Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Presbyterian Church (USA); United Church of Christ; and United Methodist Church) have experienced some stability. The Barna Group concluded:

Over the course of the past decade, the number of adults who attend a mainline church on any given weekend has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100.

In addition, some other encouraging news was reported:

One reason why that average has remained steady has been the population growth of the United States, with the mainline churches attracting just enough newcomers to maintain attendance levels that are similar to the years when the nation’s population was considerably smaller.

Even though these have been tough economical times, signs of finical growth occurred:

… during the past decade the median church budget of mainline congregations has risen substantially – up 51%, to about $165,000 annually.

This is fantastic! Although I am an American Baptist clergyman, I whole-heartily support and have great affection for “mainline churches” (I served in 3 different mainline denominations: ABC, UMC, & PC USA). For years, the mega-church moment has told Christians, “Come here! We are young, happening, and different. Your old corner church is weak and feeble.” Not really. I’m joking, but you get the picture. I have been very clear in past posts that I believe megachurches are not evil and are worshiping, faithful, and Godly communities – but they are not the end-all-be-all of “church.”

What does this Barna report mean for the mainline church? (There is also some bad news)

blog, christians

Jon Gosselin, Please Stop!

As I mentioned before, I was very hopeful that Jon and Kate Gosselin would patch things up, but things have certainly gotten worse since Jon and Kate have split. The media circus has heighten the tension of the conflict between Jon and Kate. Despite Jon’s disclosure of seeking a “higher power” the relationship between him and his family is almost at a point of no return. The girlfriends of Jon, other “reality celebrities”, and the media have virtually wrecked any chance of reconciliation. I cringe every time Jon says, “I’m just here for my kids… I love them.” If he truly loved his kids then he would not engage in activities or conflicts that bring the worst out of the couple. Kate has admitted to her own issues, but Jon’s are more public.

In a strange development, Jon was planning a show with “Octo Mom”:

There were terrible, terrible rumors going around that Jon Gosselin and Octomom Nadya Suleman were going to have their own reality show entitled, Jon – Kate = Jon + Octomom. However, Jon has had time to have a long, hard think about this career decision and has come up with the surprising decision to opt against famewhoring.

You got to be kidding me. I think it is a little late for cashing in on his family’s publicity. However, one silver-lining could be the fact that Jon now has “spiritual advisers”:

NFL

The NFL Needs God

Many people ask me what I’d being doing if I was not a pastor, often I say, “I don’t know, but I know I would not be happy if I was not a pastor.” I truly cannot imagine doing anything other than ministering to others, cultivating faith, teaching, and providing spiritual care. However, I could be a chaplain to an NFL team. What a dream job!

I have already blogged about my experience providing the invocation at the NFL Players Gala in Washington D.C. Besides doing my ministerial duties, I got to meet Bill Cower, Ben Roethlisberger, John Riggins, Clinton Portis, and Larry Fitzgerald. Believe it or not, the NFL regularly uses chaplains and spiritual advisers for players and teams. You could imagine the sweet perks of the job!

Time Magazine wrote a piece on NFL chaplains who regularly counsel and meet with players. What is most interesting about the article is how one chaplain tells players they shouldn’t “pimp out Jesus”:

Halloween

When Christians meet saints after Halloween

Some of us may be uncomfortable with the holiday that is upon us: the dreaded Halloween! What an evil holiday! But, wait! Is Halloween really that evil?

The word “Halloween”, as originally indented, was a Christian term. More accurately called, “All Hallows Eve” (hallow meaning “holy”) was a preparation day for All Saints Day, a day that was originally created to remember the Christian martyrs and saints.

Halloween is often associated with the pagan concept of Samhain, the festival where ancient pagans believed that the worlds of the living and dead would been thinly divided. But, we have seen from the other ancient pagan festivals associated with Christmas and Easter, pagan connections do not serve as a reason why we cannot celebrate a Christian holiday. The pre-Christian practices of Samhain have been clearly separated from All Hallows Eve by the historical Church, but many Christians have abandoned this day of remembrance.

However, by understanding Halloween through All Saints Day, rather than evil occult connections, Christians can take comfort in knowing that All Hallows Eve or Halloween be a Christian observance. Here is why:

Book Reviews, nuChristian

Q&A with Author Russell Rathbun

Author Russell Rathbun spoke with On the Bema about his new book, nuChristian: finding faith in a new generation (Judson Press). Russell is a founding minister with Debbie Blue of House of Mercy, a pioneering emergent church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Rathbun is also the author of Midrash on the Juanitos (Cathedral Hill Press,2009) and the critically-acclaimed Post-Rapture Radio (Jossey-Bass, 2008). He lives with his wife, two kids, and dog KoKo in St. Paul.

OnTheBema: You begin your book with examining the postmodern framework. Christians need to understand it. Where do you draw the line between understanding postmodernism and using postmodernism to a church’s advantage without compromising the Gospel message?

Russell: The way I understand it, Postmodernism, is not a “thing” we can use or not use, it is just the way the world operates. It is the underlying ethos of our time. It is important to understand that the Post-Baby Boomer generations came of age and are informed by this ethos (whether they realize it or not). There has been a radical shift in how truth claims can be made. We can not assume that dominate Western Christian ideas (which may or may not be the same as the Gospel–often they are not) hold sway in the way they once did. This is why it is important to be in relationship with people instead of being in a debate with people. In the end the debate doesn’t matter, loving your neighbor as a response to the love of God through Jesus Christ is what matters.

OnTheBema: You make a good point about how Christians need to make disciples rather than just converts. You say, “We are not called to save people, we are called to love people.” (pg. 43) This is a radical departure from Evangelical Christianity’s emphasis on “saving souls.” Why do you think evangelism ends at the altar call?

Continue Reading…

Cross

When is a Cross not a Cross?

Be sure to vote in the poll at the end of this post.

Is the cross just a cross? Is there a way that a cross cannot be a religious symbol? In the interest of separation of church and state, the Supreme court will rule on an upcoming case that could redefine the boundaries of how religion can play a role in governmental life: Salazar v. Buono

The story goes like this:

A white cross erected on a rock outcropping on federal land in California’s Mojave Desert is at the heart of a Supreme Court case about the government’s display of religious symbols. The Veterans of Foreign Wars’ Death Valley post first built the cross at Sunrise Rock in 1934 to honor Americans who died in combat in World War I.

Neither the VFW nor Sandoz ever owned the land where the cross is located — nor did they have permission to build on the land.

But in 1999, a Buddhist asked the National Park Service for permission to erect a Buddhist shrine on federal land near the cross. The agency refused, setting in motion a series of events in the courts and Congress, culminating in Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing.

Is it possible that a cross could be refined by the federal government as a non-religious symbol? If you think that is impossible, then consider this:

religion

The Most Religious Cheerleaders… Like Ever

Usually, cheerleaders are not known for being very religious, but a group of cheerleaders put on a public display of their faith. In a news story that is quickly gaining national attention, cheerleaders in Georgia painted Christian scriptures on large banners for their school football team. The banners were painted off school property, with private funds, and during the summer when school was not in session. However, the banners were displayed at public high school football games.

The Cheerleaders at Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School efforts were foiled when a lone objector filed a complaint. Hundreds of parents, students, and friends gathered at a rally in support of the cheerleaders. The school superintendent remarked,

“Personally, I appreciate this expression of their Christian values. However, as superintendent I have the responsibility of protecting the school district from legal action by groups who do not support their beliefs.”

What’s the big deal? Why can’t these cheerleaders do this? Is this about the government taking away people’s right to free speech or religious freedom?

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