My Religion, Unplugged (Part 3)
For my third topic, I chose to talk about the Cultural Christian problem. This really is one of the lesser problems facing the church today, but still something which deserves some discussion. To me there are 2 facets to this issue, one deals with Christians, the other more with the church itself. Neither of these are long, detailed topics, but just things I would like to see change.
Have you heard the joke about Baptists and fishing? It goes like this: Take a Baptist fishing and he'll drink all your beer. Take 2 Baptists fishing and they won't touch your beer.
For some, sadly church is all about being seen and giving the perception of being a good Christian. These folks care far more about their appearances than the actual relationship they have with God. This is not really a church problem per se, just the result of our society which lately places a higher value on style over substance. The Billy Crystal character Fernando on Saturday Night Live would thrive in this environment, “It is better to look good than to (be) good. And you look mahhhh-velous.”
I only hope somehow the church can help turn the tide on this trend, and perhaps we can get back to a place where actions and substance matter much more than words and style. (I think there is a whole blog of material on society’s passionate love affair with appearances over substance, so I will save that one for later.)
I try to take a positive approach at times; maybe if these image conscious, cookie cutter Christians come to church often enough, hear the messages and have fellowship with more devoted Christians, in time, they will start to BE the light, rather than trying to be IN the spotlight.
The second facet I wanted to discuss is how churches are behaving more as businesses, and less like churches. There are a number of growing mega-churches and their success in growing their membership is getting a lot of other churches to try and follow the trend.
So many churches today are concerned, dare I say obsessed, with growth. The financial meltdown of the past year has been almost all as a direct result of the global obsession with growth. In the financial world it had to do with getting a big return on your investment quickly, and it led to a great deal of short sided thinking, a shift in focus to the immediate results rather than a long term plan for success. Eventually the drive for growth at any cost led to companies building a house of cards which had to fall under the weight their own blind ambition for growth and profit.
In the church world, it has appeared to be a carbon copy of the business world, only with membership. Mega-churches sprang up, some of the newer more contemporary churches focused more on the style of the service, rather than the substance of the sermons. Christianity became more of a country club hangout rather than a house of worship where you build a lifelong commitment to Christ. But the upbeat tempo, the shift in focus to sermons which tend to invoke less self-inspection and more “positive vibes” have helped some churches grow.
Yet, nationally the statistics show church membership is declining. Catholics, Southern Baptists, indeed 21 of the 25 largest Christian faiths are showing a declining church membership since 2006.
I know there is a balancing act here, I love the more upbeat services and music, and the more “open” access to Christianity the newer churches provide, but I would love to see more diving into the Word, and less fill in the blank for the missing word sermons.
So, I hope there will be a renewal in our faith, take the positive aspects of the contemporary church, mix-in the better parts of the traditional service, and worry less about how many new people come in the door, and focus on the many still lost souls ALREADY THERE. Focus on the personal growth first, and membership will grow eventually because the people who are growing will share their faith and their church with others.
These are simply my own humble opinions once again. I enjoy attending many different services, and I have appreciated nearly every one for some part or another. I hope to merely get you thinking about ways to be proactive in your own faith. I certainly don't have all the answers. I don't even know many of the questions. But, you will find me always trying to find the path to enlightenment, and like nearly everyone else on this journey, I am still finding my way.
Have you heard the joke about Baptists and fishing? It goes like this: Take a Baptist fishing and he'll drink all your beer. Take 2 Baptists fishing and they won't touch your beer.
For some, sadly church is all about being seen and giving the perception of being a good Christian. These folks care far more about their appearances than the actual relationship they have with God. This is not really a church problem per se, just the result of our society which lately places a higher value on style over substance. The Billy Crystal character Fernando on Saturday Night Live would thrive in this environment, “It is better to look good than to (be) good. And you look mahhhh-velous.”
I only hope somehow the church can help turn the tide on this trend, and perhaps we can get back to a place where actions and substance matter much more than words and style. (I think there is a whole blog of material on society’s passionate love affair with appearances over substance, so I will save that one for later.)
I try to take a positive approach at times; maybe if these image conscious, cookie cutter Christians come to church often enough, hear the messages and have fellowship with more devoted Christians, in time, they will start to BE the light, rather than trying to be IN the spotlight.
The second facet I wanted to discuss is how churches are behaving more as businesses, and less like churches. There are a number of growing mega-churches and their success in growing their membership is getting a lot of other churches to try and follow the trend.
So many churches today are concerned, dare I say obsessed, with growth. The financial meltdown of the past year has been almost all as a direct result of the global obsession with growth. In the financial world it had to do with getting a big return on your investment quickly, and it led to a great deal of short sided thinking, a shift in focus to the immediate results rather than a long term plan for success. Eventually the drive for growth at any cost led to companies building a house of cards which had to fall under the weight their own blind ambition for growth and profit.
In the church world, it has appeared to be a carbon copy of the business world, only with membership. Mega-churches sprang up, some of the newer more contemporary churches focused more on the style of the service, rather than the substance of the sermons. Christianity became more of a country club hangout rather than a house of worship where you build a lifelong commitment to Christ. But the upbeat tempo, the shift in focus to sermons which tend to invoke less self-inspection and more “positive vibes” have helped some churches grow.
Yet, nationally the statistics show church membership is declining. Catholics, Southern Baptists, indeed 21 of the 25 largest Christian faiths are showing a declining church membership since 2006.
I know there is a balancing act here, I love the more upbeat services and music, and the more “open” access to Christianity the newer churches provide, but I would love to see more diving into the Word, and less fill in the blank for the missing word sermons.
So, I hope there will be a renewal in our faith, take the positive aspects of the contemporary church, mix-in the better parts of the traditional service, and worry less about how many new people come in the door, and focus on the many still lost souls ALREADY THERE. Focus on the personal growth first, and membership will grow eventually because the people who are growing will share their faith and their church with others.
These are simply my own humble opinions once again. I enjoy attending many different services, and I have appreciated nearly every one for some part or another. I hope to merely get you thinking about ways to be proactive in your own faith. I certainly don't have all the answers. I don't even know many of the questions. But, you will find me always trying to find the path to enlightenment, and like nearly everyone else on this journey, I am still finding my way.
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