Category Archives: Christianity

Why Coexistence isn't Enough

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I’ve kept quiet about this because I know that I’d be shunned by my fellow Christians, but I’ve long liked the “coexist” bumper stickers. Not only are they creative and simple, but they also represent something that I think is truly central to the Christian story: relationship with those who are different from us.

Many Christians, I think, reject this bumper sticker because they fear that it gives consent to alternative understandings of God, creation, and hope. “If I have that bumper sticker than I am saying that there’s truth in Hindu belief system.” or “Coexist is clearly extreme relativism, it says that everything’s true.” or something along those lines. I don’t disagree that this is probably what many who own the sticker actually believe. But I do not think that this absolves Christians from coming to terms with the validity of its message. We have far too often drawn lines of distinction around us, creating our identity based on who or what we are not. I think this is not only destructive but also not in tune with the God who crossed many barriers in order to dwell amongst us.

When I see the sticker I am reminded that Jesus followers are invited to love all peoples, to find places of connection across cultural and religious barriers, they’re invited to be peoples of peace, to be boundary crossers, good listeners, to be gracious, creative, and humbly confident in discussing truth, reality, and hope*. I like the Coexist bumper sticker because it invites those types of actions. It reminds us that we’re a part of a larger world, that there is a massive diversity of thought, action, and perspective. I may not agree with the potentially oppressive** belief system of Hinduism but I can see the beauty of God in those that practice it and be willing to engage in dialog with them without feeling a need to place judgment on them.

With all that said I would like to conclude by saying that while I love the coexist sticker and what it stands for, I think that it completely 100% falls short. I do not reject it because it’s wrong but because it is not hard core enough. In absolutely no way are we called to simply coexist! There’s no hope in coexisting! To agree to coexisting is to give up on reconciliation. There’s hope in reconciliation, in relationship, in unity, in communion together. The metaphor that Christianity holds to is an image of the lion and the lamb lying together: former enemies finding peace and mutual comfort together. That image is not coexistence, it is communion.

Dear Jesus followers, don’t dislike the coexist sticker because you think its relativistic crap. Reject it because it falls short of what we truly desire! We’re invited to be much more hardcore than coexistence, we’re invited to the challenge of reconciliation. We have a choice of living in opposition, in coexistence, or in communion with our neighbors. My hope is that we choose the latter.

*yes, that was an incredibly long sentence!

**I call Hinduism oppressive, potentially unjustly, because it seems to me that its belief system has little to say to the imbalance of power that exists in cultural systems that allow extreme poverty and oppression. To me it seems that Hinduism at its core tolerates the status quo and thus supports oppressors. Sadly at times in history this can be said of Christianity as well. The difference, in my humble opinion, is that status quo supporting-oppressive Christian regimes are clearly incongruent with the center of Christianity—Jesus.

Stop Being Weird and Start Being Different!

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It’s time Christians start making more intentional choices about how we’re going to be weird. If you’re going to be awkward, if you’re going to be different, if you’re going to stand out then do it for good things! For too long those who call themselves followers of Jesus have been defined by making really odd and straight up weird choices. It’s time we stop.

The two lists below are not exhaustive in any way (is any list?) but I’ve outlined some of the things that I think Christians should be “weird for” and I’ve also identified a few of the ways that someone just needs to slap our foreheads and say “Hey, seriously stop being weird!” I understand that for most of these, each point deserves a whole discussion all to itself, so try not to get too worked up about small things. Also know that in every single instance here I do not have a specific person or people group in mind (unless noted otherwise) rather I’m ranting, thinking out loud, and potentially overstating (or understating) things to make a point…that’s just how I roll.

Be Strange!

  1. Community—the way we live together, the way we invest in our neighborhoods, the way we live for others should be a defining and really different characteristic about those who call themselves followers of Christ. So if we’re going to be weird, let’s be radically awkward in our willingness to love each other, to be hospitable, to entertain others, and to throw good parties. Let’s have people think we’re weird because of our willingness eagerness to die to ourselves for others.
  2. Love—let’s be known as the odd people who love everyone regardless of race, belief, or background. We’ve got something to learn from the LGBT community because I think they do this pretty well. We don’t have to agree with a person’s beliefs, with their lifestyle choices, with their theology, or any of that to love and respect them as creatures deserving of dignity! While I understand that in many ways I am opening  Pandora’s box because of the varied ways that we could define what it means to love a person (some would argue that the best way to show love to someone is to “not let them live in sin”…I would disagree…but that’s just me)
  3. Compassion—who needs health insurance when you’re meeting each other’s medical needs? Who needs pantries and clothes closets and other similar social services when people are freely giving of what they have, creating opportunity for others to grow and buy what they need (at affordable prices) etc? If compassion was more primary to our identity many of the political arguments would not matter because needs would already be met within our communities! What if Christians were known as those weird people where poverty wasn’t much of a problem (either because many of them embraced being poor, or because there was so much sharing, or…)! What if Christians were looked on as oddballs because they had compassion for those that others might normally reject?
  4. Learning—if God is creator then we need not fear knowledge. We need not fear truth even if that truth is found in a not-very-truthy-feeling-place because Jesus has stated very clearly that he is Truth. So if you discover truth, and it’s really true, then you’ve discovered something originating in Jesus. You can own it because it belongs to the one that you follow. Science, history, alternative medicine, etc. are all areas where God can be found. Christians should be known as the odd people whose thirst for learning is never satisfied. We crave learning, we love learning, we see it as a way of life not as something you accomplish. And because it’s all about a lifestyle, all about a journey—it ceases to be about right and wrong. It’s not about figuring out the right and wrong way to see the world, it’s about the journey of growing closer and closer to our creator. That would be a weird set of people.
  5. Innovators—God is a creator, an artist. God created the naked mole rat, he created pinkies and balsa wood. Can we say that God is an innovator? Or must we say that God is THE innovator? Christians are notorious for being behind the times. Our music is traditionally a mirror of what was popular three years ago, our art is not usually cutting edge, the schools we open are not usually on the cutting edge of educational research, etc. Christians are not known for their innovation, they’re known for opposing innovation. I love tradition, I value tradition, but tradition is not the end—it’s a means. So let’s try to be identified as those odd balls who feel an amazing sense of freedom to experiment, to explore, and to innovate. How can we follow THE innovator without a sense of innovation?

Stop being so weird!

  1. It’s weird when your biggest mobilization movement in recent memory is to defend marriage as one man and one woman. I’m one man and I’m married to one woman. I think it’s a good idea. But if I were to choose an area that I could imagine (maybe the problem is with my own imagination?) Jesus standing up and rallying the troops to fight over, it doesn’t seem like it would be the definition of marriage! And it’s not like there haven’t been other fights to mobilize for in recent memory. AIDS, child abuse, adoption, divorce (seriously, maybe we should defend marriage by pursuing having healthier marriages first), extreme poverty, genocide, and the list could go on. Seriously, we should stop being weird.
  2. It’s weird when we have our own mini-culture. I might not be saying this clearly, but I’m referring to Testamints, to 89% of the things found in a Christian bookstore. Let’s be honest, most of the stuff in those stores are incredibly weird and if you walked in there with your neighbor who does not follow Jesus it would be very clear how weird it really is.
  3. It’s weird to imply that following Jesus is concerned with Sunday “church” attendance. If Jesus died so that we could go to church we’re all screwed. Seriously. It’s weird to look at the life of Jesus, a man who lived radically, died radically, and sent his radical Spirit to transform the world and think that somehow this could be captured, encapsulated, lived out, or practiced on Sundays! That’s weird, it doesn’t make any sense. Don’t get me wrong, I firmly believe that the communal gathering of Christ followers is crucial and hugely important. But it is a result of a life of following Jesus. It is not the beginning, it is not the bulk of our faith expression, it is the natural response to living your whole life for Jesus. Let’s stop being weird and not try to pretend that living for Jesus has anything to do with your Sunday attendance.
  4. It’s weird that some Christians won’t see doctors. Ok, I realize that there are lots of marginalized extreme Christians that we could spend all our time talking about. The only reason I bring this one up is because I just read a story in the newspaper about a family who let their infant almost go blind because they wouldn’t let her see a doctor. They anointed her with oil, they prayed, and they just had their child taken away by CPS. I won’t say much more here because I think a majority of my readership would agree…but I think it’s important that we not be weird and allow our children to die or suffer when God has given us great freedom to use what he has provided us in his creation.
  5. It’s weird that we’ve created such a static system of morality that is not consistent in Scripture or in Jesus’ life. Most Christians look down on someone who smokes a cigarette or drops the F-bomb often while turning a blind eye toward the more destructive and sinister sins of gossip, materialism, gluttony, laziness, and greed. It’s weird. Remember when previous generations said it was wrong to play cards (I understand that there’s some contextual stuff here)? Can we be less about our position of right and wrong and more about whether our direction is taking us toward or away from Jesus (love, goodness, peace, etc.)?
  6. It’s weird when politics and faith have become so incredibly enmeshed like they are. I think that my choices about politics are intimately tied to my choices in faith. The two are incredibly and undeniably connected. But when the Christian vote becomes a sought after chip in the high stakes game of political power, when Christianity has become associated with such political stances as: supporting war and opposing anything that will make the rich poorer, when our views on society are shaped more powerfully by a political agenda than by the kingdom message that Jesus proclaimed…that’s weird. It just is.

There is so much more that could be said. There are so many ways that we’ve become weird, so many ways we’ve become caricatures of  real people. It’s like when we put on our Christian hat we start acting all goofy! So why don’t we all make a concerted effort to be intentional about what kind of goofy we choose to embrace. Lets be goofy lovers, caretakers, servants, learners, and creators! That’s worth being weird for.

Top Ten Recycling Habits From a New Perspective

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You should be all about recycling. If you aren’t, you should be. If you’re a Christian you should be especially passionate about recycling. Recycling is core to the Christian message, recycling is just smart and common sense, recycling is better for our world (and our kids world).

Recycling is core to the Christian message if you consider the fact that in recycling you are taking something that is spent, used up, and old and giving it new life, purpose, and usefulness. Jesus said that he did not come to destroy the old stuff, but to fulfill/complete it. In other words, he doesn’t throw out the old stuff, he restores it and reinterprets it and gives it new meaning. Some words that can be tossed around here might be redemption, renovation, transformation, new creation, etc. Christians should be all about the idea of recycling. If God isn’t into restoring broken and old things, making them new, and bringing new life all of humanity is in trouble!

As a follower of Jesus, listed below are some of the ways both big and small that I think the invitation to recycle is available. It is obviously in no way an exhaustive list, and neither is it listed in any particular order. So without further adieu here are my top ten recycling habits:

  1. Food. If you don’t have chickens to give your old scraps to (and thus produce eggs and great fertilizer) then get a compost pile so that your old food will turn into rich soil. Also, using old veggies and animal parts (eww) to make stock is a great way to recycle stuff that you will not (and should not) eat.
  2. Water. There are some pretty amazing ways you can recycle water, but I’m too lazy or inept to practice most of them. I know some people who collect the water from the bathroom sink in a bucket and use that bucket to flush the toilet. I know others who have water from dishwashers and washing machines drained out to use for gardening etc. I don’t do that stuff. But I do collect our rain water and use it to water the garden! I do use my kids kiddie pool water to water my plants (instead of dumping it every few days). Next time you’re about to dump out the remains of your glass of water, dump it in your houseplant instead.
  3. Bags. You can buy cloth bags for grocery shopping. We do. But we also forget to use them as often as we remember. So if you have to do the unthinkable (haha) and use plastic shopping bags, they work great as your new garbage can liners. We have nor purchased garbage bags in years ’cause we just use these from our local supermarket. Sure you have to empty the garbage a bit more often, but it’ll shave a few bucks off your grocery bill and it will put those bags back to use.
  4. Money. Buy locally. If you buy locally from local businesses and local owners and local shops and local food and…then your money stays in the community you love. The money you use to buy your kids a birthday present will go to a local family who owns the local toy shop that employs local individuals who buy things from their local supermarket who…etc. When you spend and shop locally, your money is recycled within your community to grow and develop the community you love.
  5. Clothes. Buy from used clothing stores, give your old clothes to others, but also old clothes can be quite useful for household projects! I grew up with a giant canvas tent for camping. The tent bag for our giant tent was a pair of my dads old jeans. The pockets were where the stakes were kept, the tent slid into the legs (that had been sewed together into one large space), and a drawstring was put through the belt loops. My wife has made purses out of old t-shirts, hats out of old sweaters, skirts out of old shirts, etc. Put those old clothes to work.
  6. Travel. Ok, this is a bit of a stretch, but if we change our behaviors so that our travel accomplishes more than getting us from A to B then we are creating more out of something than previously existed. If you ride your bike, not only are you cutting down on emissions and traffic, but you’re also exercising at the same time. If you take the bus not only are you cutting down on emissions and traffic, but you’re also being able to read or work on homework. If you carpool not only are you cutting down on emissions and traffic, but your also creating community and relationship.
  7. Death. Even in your death you can allow life to emerge by being an organ donor. Don’t hold out, you won’t need your heart anymore, so give it away.
  8. Yard. We American’s love our grass. I’m not totally sure why we’re so hardcore about our grass, because how often do you usually play in it? That’s what parks are for. Our yards can be so much more than pretty grass, instead we can make them work for us by putting garden plots, by growing strawberries and lettuces where grass might have been before. Get some chickens, grow some blueberries or grapes, allow your yard to do something for you, to be useful, and to bring more to your life.
  9. Books. I love books. I hate borrowing them, I love owning them. But as I work to get over my ownership mentality I’m seeing that not only is borrowing books from the library a great recycling practice, but loaning your books out to others and borrowing others books is a great way to let books have a greater life than the shelf. How cool would it be if we began to loan our books out and asked people to mark them up, highlight them, and jot down notes in the margins so that when you got the book back it would carry with it some of the life of the previous reader!
  10. Paper. This one should be redundant in our culture, but don’t use paper. Read your newspaper or magazine online. Use email instead of snail mail. Cut down on your junk mail by opting out (whats that website to do this again?). Setup your bills so that you don’t receive hard copies but only electronic copies. Dare I say buy a Kindle? Ok, I’m not ready to go there yet, but it’s probably inevitable!

I’m certain there are many other creative ways to recycle. Spend a few hours on Etsy.com and let your brain cram all the amazing and creative ways to recycle old materials. Shop at recycled stores, shop less, etc. There are so many ways we can embrace the beautiful opportunity to be a part of giving old, spent, and used up things new life and purpose. I mean, isn’t this what God does with humanity? Why should we do anything different?

Westboro

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Today the Westboro Baptist Church will be in little ol’ Vancouver Washington protesting at one of the local high schools because of the rampant homosexuality taking over our schools in Vancouver and Portland. We hope to be able to go to a counter protest today at the local YWCA.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon:
where there is doubt, faith ;
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
where there is sadness, joy
O divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Or, in the words of Jesus…

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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Seriously, Do We Really Need God?

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Being a follower of Christ is not rocket science. I spent much of my life thinking that it was. I spent many years placing guilt on myself if I could not “sufficiently” give “proof” for my beliefs. That is, I had to be able to both show from science and history that the Bible and Jesus were everything that they claim to be, and I also had to be able to prove from the Bible that the certain set of rules that I followed from Scripture were the “right” set of rules. This carried with it the constant fear of being wrong in your interpretation of the Bible, it cultivated a defensive atmosphere and also was very good at creating sides that we could all pick and defend.

I would contend that being a Christian is not rocket science. It’s not all that hard to figure out…living it out is something entirely different!

**page break**

Ok I’ve got to shift. I’ve written this whole post now (you just haven’t finished reading it) but another post, a more important post has emerged that I’ve got to get your input on. Here’s the question, do we really need Jesus to be a “Christian” (obviously the term christian itself is worthless without the christ part, but lets thats not the point)? Jesus simplified things by saying that the whole of Scripture could be summed up in two statements. Love God. Love people. But what I’m wondering right now is how essential is the “love God” part to what it looks like to be a follower of Christ.

Virtually all of the practices that define Christianity (if we’re being positive and not deconstructive) would be and should be practiced if you lived by the one simple rule to “love your neighbor” Here are some quick examples:

  • Alcohol: If you continually  lived out of your love for people you would not drink too much alcohol because you would never want to impair your decision making in such a way as to do something destructive and to hurt people. Also it could be argued that a strong love for people can only be healthy within the context of an appropriate love of self. And if you value yourself you would take care of your body.
  • Sex: You definitely wouldn’t be sleeping around or sleeping with anyone that was not firmly committed to being “yours” (I’d consider marriage to be this appropriate context) because how in the world could you ever justify sleeping with another mans not-yet-wife! Not to mention the fact that anyone who has had sex can attest to the life changing intimacy that takes place and the fact that if you love others you cannot take that piece of intimacy away from people that you are not forever committed to!
  • Compassion: This is the most obvious of all. If your only rule in life was to love others than you would be serving the poor, collecting clothes for children, feeding the hungry, caring for widows and single mothers, etc. How could you not if you loved people (oh the irony I see in this bullet point)
  • Church: you would most definitely be a part of a church. But it might not look like churches traditionally look like. If your only rule was to love people I imagine you would be compelled to get together with like-minded people to recharge and challenge each other to go back out and continue loving people in new and creative ways.

That was a quickly assembled four examples, but I believe that you could nearly reassemble all the practices of the Christian faith under the one umbrella “love your neighbor”. So the question is, do you really need to love God? And if so, how in the world is that played out? And please tell me that going to heaven and thus avoiding hell is the only impact of bringing God in the mix!