Boots and Bibles

Quick Thought Re: Exodus 20:7

All right, go read it real quick.

Now, proposal: could one definition of blasphemy be using God's name to justify ungodly things?

Please discuss.

Open the Eyes of Our Hearts

There's a good deal of bellyaching about the "post-modern" or "emergent" movements in Evangelicalism. Some of it is quite necessary; other parts, not so much. The "I'm Okay - You're Okay" theology moving along within that sect and the glorification of old church traditions and rituals that still aren't old enough to accurately reflect the beliefs or practises of original Christians are two examples that come to mind. To be sure, a great deal of what they're resurrecting within Protestantism might be some of the most nefarious examples of syncretism that set Jesus' movement down the wide and comfy path that leadeth unto Constantine.

But not all of it is...

A few criticisms in particular strike me as burning the body to fix the warts. While "messy spirituality" has become a codeword for cheap grace, and the "solidarity" with the felt needs of unbelievers seems like the new wave of seeker sensitivism (which the emergent movement supposedly goes against) – not to mention an easy out on ever having to stand for anything, other aspects of the emergent church could probably use re-assessment from some of those so thoroughly opposed to it.

What troubles me more is that some of these aspects seem so integral, so utterly biblical that it boggles my mind how the theological intelligentsia has come to have such grave issues with them. Particularly, I keep hearing about the evils of "mysticism", "contemplation" and "spirituality".

Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to pick these notions apart right now, and point out that while the emergent toffs still probably get it wrong, these matters in themselves are absolutely vital in experiencing God, and living out the Christianity fully.

By Jesus, Said Patty...

The national holiday of my preferred forebears once again casts its green shadow over the land. Today, thousands, perhaps millions, of people, many of whom have no Irish ancestry whatsoever, will get together to do which of the following:

• Pay homage to the man who years after escaping a life of slavery and deprivation, returned to the realm of his bondage to live in solidarity with its most impoverished people, and preach freedom, charity and peace?

• Thank the Irish for saving civilisation?

• Count the cost at which Irish independence was won, and the violence and tyranny with which foreign agents (who shall momentairly remain nameless) tried to suppress the Irish people?

• Remember the millions who died under oppression by the certain unnamed people, who, despite crop failures pushing Ireland to a pandemic state of famine, still stole food from the Irish and sent it to their other colonies?

• Commemorate the thousands killed during "The Troubles", and that peace in Ireland is still precious and tentative (especially with deteriorating economic conditions)?

No! Of course not! Because like with every meaningful celebration nowadays, it is either being marginalised or totally undermined. "Celebrate the Irish and their patron saint? No, I'd rather just have an excuse to get drunk and act like an idiot."

The Brain Drain: or The Truth Shall Make Ye Fret*

Christians are supposed to love the truth. I mean, that's one of the axioms of our faith, right? Invariably, you'll see this cliché capitalised upon at Christian bookstores everywhere. When Jesus says "I am the way, the truth and the life," we at least pretend to take it seriously. We always affirm our Lord when He says "The truth shall set you free."

So what are we afraid of, then?

I don't know how many lies I've heard on Christians' lips recently, on issues ranging far and wide, from science to politics and most every subject in between. Granted, I hear lies from all types of people on these subjects, too, so it's not that bad I guess – until I take in the scale and scope of the deceptiveness that modern evangelicals seem to revel in.

There's a bell-curve^~ on preposterousness that while perhaps not set in stone still gives one a general idea as to when healthy scepticism is, in fact, healthy. Perhaps because scepticism is so often employed in the war against faith, this may go a long way in explaining why Christians – often so eager to hold onto their beliefs for purely psychological or sociological reasons – seem to want to burn scepticism along with the witches who wield it as a cursing wand.

Mainstream for/vs. the Underground?

Hat-tip to Fabio for pushing me to clarify my concerns a bit...

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Why would a fifty-year old investment banker who listens to Barry Manilow and thinks The Crow is actually about the life of a Corvus brachyrhynchos give a rat's rear-end about Goth culture? Well, to be Jewish about the point, let me answer that question with a question: why does a wolf care about a sheep?

I would hope at this point, after seeing what both secular and church cultures have done to undermine, exploit, and destroy the underground that we wouldn't need a lesson on being "innocent as doves and crafty as serpents", but I think it's a lesson that bears repreating: many corrupt, dying and Babylonian mainstream ministries will put on their holy makeup and offer a deal in order to exploit you like a commodity or an equity. The mainstream church knows that the underground has a high threshold for returns, and they want a piece of that pie.

For the sake of the Kingdom, for the sake of the souls that God is entrusting you to shepherd – do not let them take it.

By all means, work with mainstream ministries, but the minute they start telling you how to run things, or start pulling strings with funding, or start moving the ministry away from its original vision, you need to take a stand and tell them where they can take their hostile takeover corporate tactics. There are many great men and women of God who want to open their doors up to us – but there are plenty of murderers and adulterers waiting for the foolish young man to come by so they can say "Today I have paid my vows, therefore I have come out to meet you, to seek your presence earnestly, and I have found you!" Trust me on this point, I've been there. When the whores who have decimated God's Kingdom come looking for the lifeblood pumping through our counter-cultural veins, run. And don't look back.