This will come as no surprise to some of my friends but I'm in favour of Unprogressive Christianity. I'm in favour of all that old time religion stuff like feeding the hungry and clothing the naked and visiting the lonely and imprisoned. And I'm in favour of doing it because I believe in God, the Father almighty, and in his Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Spirit and all the stuff in the creeds that come in between. And while it doesn't come easily to me I believe in turning the cheek and forgiving those who have sinned against me. And I believe in standing with the oppressed and the persecuted even when I'm terrified. And I believe all these things are possible because Jesus lives.
And here are a couple of defenses of old time religion I quite enjoyed...
First Colbert takes on Bart Ehrman here.
And then Jane Barter Moulaison takes on Gretta Vosper here.
Showing posts with label Christian life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christian life. Show all posts
Friday, April 17, 2009
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Systemic Sin
Matthew over on Global Turtle has a piece on the Mattel toy recall story:
I really struggle with the issues Matthew raises here. I know that there are people who do everything they can to buy only locally raised food and Canadian made clothing and I really admire that. I don't know how they do it though. I've tried reading labels and it is a nightmare trying to find products that aren't made in China. The young son of a friend of mine started reading all the labels in their clothes and refusing to wear clothes made in China and she had a heck of a time trying to respond without denying the point this seven year old was making about unsafe labour practices in other countries.
Years ago, when I was working at the University of Manitoba with the chaplaincy, I brought Fr. Bert Foliot, S.J. to campus to give a talk on something. I remember he talked about how much he liked hearing confessions because people were honest about themselves. He said that in all his years of hearing confessions though he hadn't heard anyone confess their participation in systemic sins. No one confessed that they ate well and cheaply because farmer workers were paid peanuts. He said that it wasn't possible to remove yourself from these systems of exploitation unless you lived off the land and maybe not even then. But he said that there was value in confessing sins you couldn't stop committing if only it made you more aware of what you were doing.
I've thought about that a lot in the 20+ years since I heard that talk and I do try to do some things to keep from sinning even when I know that they are symbolic gestures. I don't shop at WalMart. I read labels. We use fair trade coffee at church. I shop at 10 Thousand Villages. But truthfully I'm still a far way off from making the changes that Matthew is talking about.
My fault, my fault, my most grievous fault...
I know I am behind on my blog in relation to home reno pics, writing about the west coast trail, Some Southern Alberta trips, and other things on my mind, but I have to put a comment out there about a sad news story.
Last night Fisher Price (owned by Mattel) has recalled up to 83 different toys that are manufactured in China because of the high likelihood that the paint on them contains large amounts of lead. Read more here.
I really struggle with the issues Matthew raises here. I know that there are people who do everything they can to buy only locally raised food and Canadian made clothing and I really admire that. I don't know how they do it though. I've tried reading labels and it is a nightmare trying to find products that aren't made in China. The young son of a friend of mine started reading all the labels in their clothes and refusing to wear clothes made in China and she had a heck of a time trying to respond without denying the point this seven year old was making about unsafe labour practices in other countries.
Years ago, when I was working at the University of Manitoba with the chaplaincy, I brought Fr. Bert Foliot, S.J. to campus to give a talk on something. I remember he talked about how much he liked hearing confessions because people were honest about themselves. He said that in all his years of hearing confessions though he hadn't heard anyone confess their participation in systemic sins. No one confessed that they ate well and cheaply because farmer workers were paid peanuts. He said that it wasn't possible to remove yourself from these systems of exploitation unless you lived off the land and maybe not even then. But he said that there was value in confessing sins you couldn't stop committing if only it made you more aware of what you were doing.
I've thought about that a lot in the 20+ years since I heard that talk and I do try to do some things to keep from sinning even when I know that they are symbolic gestures. I don't shop at WalMart. I read labels. We use fair trade coffee at church. I shop at 10 Thousand Villages. But truthfully I'm still a far way off from making the changes that Matthew is talking about.
My fault, my fault, my most grievous fault...
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Altar Calls
I've driven the GD out to Winnipeg to return her to the bosom of her family and have much to write of the trip through Saskatchewan and our holy pilgrimage to Rouleau but I want to download my pictures first....so later.
On the trip I spent some time thinking about the service we had Sunday in Coaldale. It was Settlers'Days last weekend and is our custom all the churches organize a joint service for the Sunday. It was in the field behind the Sportsplex and about six different churches had representatives involved. It was a nice service with some good music lead by a praise band from one of the Mennonite churches. I really enjoy our ministerial when I get to it and they had done all the work organizing the service. All I had to do was show up and do the final blessing.
I don't really remember our conversations about what the theme would be other than that it was good for us as Christians to gather together. I had to chuckle though when much of what was said was a kind of altar call. The guest preacher told the story of his own conversion, of how he was raised in a good home and thought he was a Christian until a young woman he was interested in told him he wasn't. He was drinking and brawling and she told him he wasn't living like a Christian and six months later he fell down on his knees and gave his life to Christ. Now we might think we are Christians but maybe aren't and need to give our lives to him.
Looking around the congregation of folks meeting on a beautiful July morning in a field in the middle of town I thought it rather unlikely that there going to be many people there who would respond to such an altar call. It seemed likely most of them probably think that they are Christians. They might struggle with faith, they might anguish over their sinfulness, but I think they probably understand themselves to be Christians involved in this struggle. Sanctification was probably more of an issue than justification.
But maybe I'm wrong and someone was responding in their heart to his words. My problem is that I've never found altar calls all that moving. Years ago I attended a friend's Pentecostal church with her and they had a visiting preacher who was determined to convert that congregation. He preached an altar call that was still going on after two hours when we slipped out that door. He was determined that people were going to come up and give their lives to Jesus but he really was preaching to the converted.
The sermons that have grabbed me heart and mind are not the ones that raise doubts about whether I've actually 'given my life to Jesus' because isn't the point that we are always 'justified and yet still sinners'? I know that my following of Jesus is fraught with moments of doubt, looking back, distraction, losing my way. I give and then I try to take it back all the time. The times that call my attention back to what I have set my heart on are the times when I see others following Jesus and I realize I'm going off in the wrong direction. The preacher told us that when he was drinking and brawling he wasn't really a Christian and after he prayed in a particular way he was. Maybe. But his story sounded a lot more to me like the story of the prodigal son who had lost his way and then came to his senses and started home again. I wished he had told us more about what it was like when the father welcomed him home. I wanted to hear more about what it is like for him to be a follower of Jesus. It is always the lives of saints that convict me of my shortcoming and spur me on to a new commitment.
On the trip I spent some time thinking about the service we had Sunday in Coaldale. It was Settlers'Days last weekend and is our custom all the churches organize a joint service for the Sunday. It was in the field behind the Sportsplex and about six different churches had representatives involved. It was a nice service with some good music lead by a praise band from one of the Mennonite churches. I really enjoy our ministerial when I get to it and they had done all the work organizing the service. All I had to do was show up and do the final blessing.
I don't really remember our conversations about what the theme would be other than that it was good for us as Christians to gather together. I had to chuckle though when much of what was said was a kind of altar call. The guest preacher told the story of his own conversion, of how he was raised in a good home and thought he was a Christian until a young woman he was interested in told him he wasn't. He was drinking and brawling and she told him he wasn't living like a Christian and six months later he fell down on his knees and gave his life to Christ. Now we might think we are Christians but maybe aren't and need to give our lives to him.
Looking around the congregation of folks meeting on a beautiful July morning in a field in the middle of town I thought it rather unlikely that there going to be many people there who would respond to such an altar call. It seemed likely most of them probably think that they are Christians. They might struggle with faith, they might anguish over their sinfulness, but I think they probably understand themselves to be Christians involved in this struggle. Sanctification was probably more of an issue than justification.
But maybe I'm wrong and someone was responding in their heart to his words. My problem is that I've never found altar calls all that moving. Years ago I attended a friend's Pentecostal church with her and they had a visiting preacher who was determined to convert that congregation. He preached an altar call that was still going on after two hours when we slipped out that door. He was determined that people were going to come up and give their lives to Jesus but he really was preaching to the converted.
The sermons that have grabbed me heart and mind are not the ones that raise doubts about whether I've actually 'given my life to Jesus' because isn't the point that we are always 'justified and yet still sinners'? I know that my following of Jesus is fraught with moments of doubt, looking back, distraction, losing my way. I give and then I try to take it back all the time. The times that call my attention back to what I have set my heart on are the times when I see others following Jesus and I realize I'm going off in the wrong direction. The preacher told us that when he was drinking and brawling he wasn't really a Christian and after he prayed in a particular way he was. Maybe. But his story sounded a lot more to me like the story of the prodigal son who had lost his way and then came to his senses and started home again. I wished he had told us more about what it was like when the father welcomed him home. I wanted to hear more about what it is like for him to be a follower of Jesus. It is always the lives of saints that convict me of my shortcoming and spur me on to a new commitment.
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