The Church of Causes

I want to start this by acknowledging that I knew this day was coming but did not know exactly what it would look like. We have been living in a time that many would call the age of denominations. People once clung to their denomination and shunned all others. We see it in our little town where there are only three churches and none of them work together. It's a very odd, old-school way of thinking. It was interesting to trace some of these rivalries back almost two hundred years. Who knows why it began- theological perspectives, church polity, politics. But, we are coming into a time when pastors and denominational leaders are not as concerned about following the denominational policies.

A good example is that I was at my dad's church last weekend. It's a presbyterian church. I grew up Presbyterian and appreciate the traditions of the church. However, the men in a particular Bible study believed there was no longer a need for the Presbytery- in a Presbyterian church! They wanted to have autonomy- similar to Southern Baptists. This is going on in churches all over the country. When we were in our church planting class last year many of the newly approved pastors admitted they were not going to teach Wesleyan theology or stay with Wesleyan policies even though the Wesleyan church was sponsoring them. The surprising thing is the denominational leaders approved of it.

So, where does this leave us? Several years ago I attended a church conference where the leaders were talking about affinity groups. These have a different feel than denominations because denominations were based on theology and doctrine as a uniting factor. In our culture people are more drawn together around particular causes- from environmentalism to Africa. Theology and doctrine are seen as pretty much the same regardless of the name on the front of the church. Even though there are vast differences between denominations in beliefs of baptism, salvation and sanctification many people are more concerned with style of worship and the causes a particular church supports.

Church leaders tend to gravitate towards this because it can take some pressure off of more traditional discipleship (personal Bible study, prayer, spiritual disciplines such as fasting and silence, and accountability). Instead of using the Bible we are fed conventional wisdom from rock stars and celebrities (Bono, Oprah, George Harrison). Attending church can feel no different than attending a rally sponsored by ONE or a U2 concert. It can actually be significantly more boring and less fulfilling.

So, righteousness is seen in the passion for a particular cause and how much you are willing to support it- through wearing shirts, bracelets, having a background on your blog or myspace and actual giving. We have exalted our causes over Christ. It is easy to take whatever cause is popular for a particular community and tag on a Bible verse. But, this is not just happening in churches it is also happening in politics. Nancy Pelosi (the Speaker of the House), this week, used scripture to fit her particular theology. She talked about our taking care of the environment as an act of worship. Many of those running for office have made clear that they are Christian, as opposed to some other faith (which will be another post), and have shown how Jesus would support them. It is really embarrassing.

I guess the Church is continuing to evolve and will continue to change. I believe in raising awareness (I was talking about Darfur long before it became trendy) and I support several different causes myself (I don't want to be seen as a heretic after all). But, I also like being a part of a church that teaches discipleship as becoming like Jesus that transforms us from the inside out. Causes do not change our hearts- only Christ can. Causes alone will leave us empty and our message powerless.