Author's note:
One of my deep interests deals with interfaith work and practice. As part of this passion, I've begun to do more research on various Christian communities in particular, because I feel that understanding the different facits of the Chrisitan Church is tremendously helpful when trying to develop unity and witness for a global community. Writing about other Christian traditions is also helpful for me as a confimation class facilitator--having a measurement or context in which Methodist faith practices breathe and interact with.
Baptist Worship
For Baptists, worship can be considerably different because of a major Baptist principle—church autonomy. In other words, the church decides on the way in which it will express and witness worship to the Christian community. But there are some distinct Baptist notions of worship that may be seen in most:
Baptists have traditionally looked askance at formal liturgy. They have come out of a tradition which eschewed all but the most elementary symbols, such as Bible, pulpit, Communion table, and baptistery. All candles, crosses, stained-glass windows, pictures, clerical garb, and altar cloths were taboo; and churches even refused to celebrate Easter and Christmas. More recently, however, attitudes have changed, and it is now common to see a cross and candles on the Communion table and even acolytes who light the candles (Maring & Hudson, 1991, p. 55).
Again, it is the decision of the church as to how and what worship will look like behind its doors. Another aspect in terminology is distinct as well in the way Baptists view baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
Ordinances
Both baptism and the Lord’s Supper are considered an ordinance instead of the more common term for both in other mainline denominations—the sacraments. An ordinance recognizes these Christian rites as practices of the Christian community, whereas, churches such as those following an episcopacy view these rites as sacramental—meaning that the act itself evokes a spiritual awakening or change leading to one’s salvation. Not that the Baptist views these rites as unimportant or common place, but instead appreciates the fact that the act itself is a witness to the worshipping community as well as to the broader world. As colonial America took shape, so did the ordinances in Baptist life:
Together with most other Protestants, the Baptists emphasized as central to church membership and fellowship the two basic ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. What made Baptist persuasion different was its belief that only those old enough to make an oral profession of their faith (and their conversion experience) were eligible for baptism and that baptism should be total immersion…The Lord’s Supper, usually held monthly or bimonthly (among those in good Christian fellowship), utilized a common Communion cup and fermented wine (Brackney, 1998, p.119).
Thus, not only did Christian rites viewed as ordinances demarcate Christian practice and witness, it also provided accountability for the Christian community.
Friday, January 21, 2011
The Importance of Family in Promoting Positive Youth Development
The Role of the Family
The role of families in regard to their children’s development is much more than functionary—providing shelter, food, clothing, and transportation. In fact, research has shown that the most important influence in adolescents’ lives is their parents (Collins, Maccoby, Steinberg, Hetherington & Bornstein, 2000; Hutchinson & Baldwin, 2005). The categorization of 40 Developmental Assets from the research done at the Search Institute, indicate that external assets (support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations, and constructive use of time) are highly dependent on family involvement:
Support: Family life provides high levels of love and support and young person and his or her parent(s) communicate positively, and young person is willing to seek advice and counsel from parents. Parent(s) are actively involved in helping young person succeed in school.
Empowerment: Young person feels safe at home, at school, and in the neighborhood.
Boundaries and expectations: Family has clear rules and consequences and monitors the young person’s whereabouts. Parent(s) and teachers encourage the young person to do well. There are high expectations from both parent(s) and teachers to do wel(Search Institute, 1997; Witt & Caldwell, 2005, p. 10).
The Search Institute’s asset-driven approach towards positive youth development is based on the evidence that if a young person acquires a high percentage of those assets, he/she will have a better opportunity to achieve well-being:
For example, 49% of young people who indicate they have 0 to 10 of the 40 assets are likely to engage in problem alcohol use as opposed to only 3% of young people with 31to 40 assets. The same relationship holds true for being involved in violence, illicit drug use, and sexual activity…Similar percentages are found for other positive or thriving behavior attitudes such as exhibiting leadership, maintaining good health, and valuing diversity (Witt & Caldwell, 2005, p. 9).
Thus, the developmental asset model is helpful in monitoring positive youth development, especially when considering how the role of family plays such an influential part in the lives of adolescents.
It is research like the above-mentioned that suggests families should be included in the context of solution-based programs for youth. An example of utilizing the influential strengths of families is found within the multiple family group intervention approach. Within this approach or model, wisdom is diversified among group members (group leader, parent(s), and youth) in order to provide viable solutions for at-risk youth:
In multiple family group intervention, the attempt is made to acknowledge the private world of the individual, which may include suffering, alienation, and oppression, while simultaneously making an effort to help repair the fragmentation in the individual’s own community. Concurrently, each participant is viewed as a resource (Quinn, 2004, p. 8).
Viewing the family as a prominent resource, a youth development professional has a kaleidoscope of experiences and innate wisdom at his fingertips. Although family members may have ill-conceived or ill-advised notions of what constitutes productive parenting skills, they are more likely to listen and acknowledge appropriate responses if they are given voice within group scenarios.
A primary feature of a multiple family group intervention is the transformative process of viewing the “other” (Quinn, 2004, p. 189). For example, parent(s) are given the opportunity to view their children in a different light. Through a family solutions program, at-risk youth that have been perceived as “reckless,” “no-good,” “lazy,” or “dangerous” are empowered to shed those perceptions and adopt new ones through a renewed sense of narrative. The following Narrative Pedagogies Project demonstrates this type of youth empowerment through the writing and telling of their stories.
Narrative Pedagogies Project
The NPP (Narrative Pedagogies Project) is a religious education program for youth. It originated at Claremont Theological Seminary under the direction of professor Frank Rogers, Jr. Dr. Rogers’ initial aim in the program was to counter the prevailing consumer-driven mindset within youth culture. Because he believed youth were vulnerable to marketing ploys which mirrored desired cultural identities (refer to PBS’s Frontline Merchants of Cool for more information on youth consumer culture), Dr. Roger’s felt this current identity formation truncated their truer sense of themselves; and he advocated for the empowerment found within the arts (storytelling, poetry, drama, and the fine arts) in order to create meaning-making in their lives:
Young people, Rogers relates, internalize the narratives that are shaped by the people in power—in this case, by the folks who generate the commercials on TV. ‘Unfortunately,’ he goes on, ‘young people are not nurtured to be critically reflective, nor are they encouraged to question whether their own worth is tied to the products that they desire and acquire (Schier, 2009, p. 2).
The narrative design that Dr. Rogers utilizes has as much to do with the basic tenet of narrative theology as it does with youth development—having an appreciation of Life Story. A life story deals with the influential factors that create one’s narrative, which shapes discernment for moral action (Stone, 1995). In other words, the idea behind creating or rewriting one’s narrative is reflecting on the external factors (institutions, parents, other adults, peers, etc.) that become the backdrop of one’s story, and with this story one becomes empowered by this new, transcendent truth that compels a person to live and thrive within a newly-formed personhood. And it takes more than one person to do the work of narrative pedagogy.
Again, the family unit, an adolescent’s most influential source, can set the stage for positive youth development if they, too, are discerning a young person’s image through positive and productive means.
The role of families in regard to their children’s development is much more than functionary—providing shelter, food, clothing, and transportation. In fact, research has shown that the most important influence in adolescents’ lives is their parents (Collins, Maccoby, Steinberg, Hetherington & Bornstein, 2000; Hutchinson & Baldwin, 2005). The categorization of 40 Developmental Assets from the research done at the Search Institute, indicate that external assets (support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations, and constructive use of time) are highly dependent on family involvement:
Support: Family life provides high levels of love and support and young person and his or her parent(s) communicate positively, and young person is willing to seek advice and counsel from parents. Parent(s) are actively involved in helping young person succeed in school.
Empowerment: Young person feels safe at home, at school, and in the neighborhood.
Boundaries and expectations: Family has clear rules and consequences and monitors the young person’s whereabouts. Parent(s) and teachers encourage the young person to do well. There are high expectations from both parent(s) and teachers to do wel(Search Institute, 1997; Witt & Caldwell, 2005, p. 10).
The Search Institute’s asset-driven approach towards positive youth development is based on the evidence that if a young person acquires a high percentage of those assets, he/she will have a better opportunity to achieve well-being:
For example, 49% of young people who indicate they have 0 to 10 of the 40 assets are likely to engage in problem alcohol use as opposed to only 3% of young people with 31to 40 assets. The same relationship holds true for being involved in violence, illicit drug use, and sexual activity…Similar percentages are found for other positive or thriving behavior attitudes such as exhibiting leadership, maintaining good health, and valuing diversity (Witt & Caldwell, 2005, p. 9).
Thus, the developmental asset model is helpful in monitoring positive youth development, especially when considering how the role of family plays such an influential part in the lives of adolescents.
It is research like the above-mentioned that suggests families should be included in the context of solution-based programs for youth. An example of utilizing the influential strengths of families is found within the multiple family group intervention approach. Within this approach or model, wisdom is diversified among group members (group leader, parent(s), and youth) in order to provide viable solutions for at-risk youth:
In multiple family group intervention, the attempt is made to acknowledge the private world of the individual, which may include suffering, alienation, and oppression, while simultaneously making an effort to help repair the fragmentation in the individual’s own community. Concurrently, each participant is viewed as a resource (Quinn, 2004, p. 8).
Viewing the family as a prominent resource, a youth development professional has a kaleidoscope of experiences and innate wisdom at his fingertips. Although family members may have ill-conceived or ill-advised notions of what constitutes productive parenting skills, they are more likely to listen and acknowledge appropriate responses if they are given voice within group scenarios.
A primary feature of a multiple family group intervention is the transformative process of viewing the “other” (Quinn, 2004, p. 189). For example, parent(s) are given the opportunity to view their children in a different light. Through a family solutions program, at-risk youth that have been perceived as “reckless,” “no-good,” “lazy,” or “dangerous” are empowered to shed those perceptions and adopt new ones through a renewed sense of narrative. The following Narrative Pedagogies Project demonstrates this type of youth empowerment through the writing and telling of their stories.
Narrative Pedagogies Project
The NPP (Narrative Pedagogies Project) is a religious education program for youth. It originated at Claremont Theological Seminary under the direction of professor Frank Rogers, Jr. Dr. Rogers’ initial aim in the program was to counter the prevailing consumer-driven mindset within youth culture. Because he believed youth were vulnerable to marketing ploys which mirrored desired cultural identities (refer to PBS’s Frontline Merchants of Cool for more information on youth consumer culture), Dr. Roger’s felt this current identity formation truncated their truer sense of themselves; and he advocated for the empowerment found within the arts (storytelling, poetry, drama, and the fine arts) in order to create meaning-making in their lives:
Young people, Rogers relates, internalize the narratives that are shaped by the people in power—in this case, by the folks who generate the commercials on TV. ‘Unfortunately,’ he goes on, ‘young people are not nurtured to be critically reflective, nor are they encouraged to question whether their own worth is tied to the products that they desire and acquire (Schier, 2009, p. 2).
The narrative design that Dr. Rogers utilizes has as much to do with the basic tenet of narrative theology as it does with youth development—having an appreciation of Life Story. A life story deals with the influential factors that create one’s narrative, which shapes discernment for moral action (Stone, 1995). In other words, the idea behind creating or rewriting one’s narrative is reflecting on the external factors (institutions, parents, other adults, peers, etc.) that become the backdrop of one’s story, and with this story one becomes empowered by this new, transcendent truth that compels a person to live and thrive within a newly-formed personhood. And it takes more than one person to do the work of narrative pedagogy.
Again, the family unit, an adolescent’s most influential source, can set the stage for positive youth development if they, too, are discerning a young person’s image through positive and productive means.
The Youth Professional Serving Within a Pluralistic Society
Religious Pluralism
Since the Second Vatican Council (1965), under the auspices of Pope Paul VI and his successor Pope John Paul II, ecumenicalism and interfaith dialogue have shaped the American religious landscape significantly. Documents were written, foundations were developed, and committees were formed (i.e., The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, The Commission for Religious Relations with Muslims and Jews, and the Nostra Aetate Foundation) in order to pave the way for interfaith dialogue from the perspective that the Catholic Church, among Protestants and other religious groups, lived in an environment of religious pluralism (Fitzgerald & Borelli, 2006). Such a whirlwind of interfaith dialogue was much in part a product of the lessons learned from the Jewish Holocaust—sentiments like the following ushered in the importance for tolerance and understanding of diverse religious traditions:
This monumental atrocity hovers over interfaith discussions like a brooding presence, warning that such a monstrous outrage must never happen again…We Christians will have to read the messianic prophecies with a new perspective and explain to Jewish friends why, for us, Jesus, in his death and in our experiences of his Resurrection, makes the break-through that anticipates the reign of God, and we have to listen to what our Jewish partners in dialogue have to say about the coming of God’s reign. (Sheerin, 1978, pp. 309-310, 312).
Within the cast shadow of the Holocaust, another necessity to understand one another emerged because of the demographic shifts within the American neighborhoods of a bourgeoning white majority, middle class. The need to understand one another became paramount when these shifts began to represent ethnic and cultural proximity.
In American society today, a culture shaped by a post 9/11 temperament, proximity is again an opportunity for religious awareness or interfaith dialogue to take place. Unfortunately, the reality that terrorism has landed on American soil has pushed the country’s religious conscience to point and demonize Middle Easterners, specifically those who are Muslim—often referred to as harbingers of terrorism.
Martin Marty, professor and author of numerous works on the subject of religious pluralism, suggests when faiths collide with one another that “the first address to these situations should not be the conventional plea for tolerance among them, but it is rather a call that at least one party begin to effect change by risking hospitality toward the other…Conversation and interplay follow the acts of reception; both are full of risk” (Marty, 2005, p. 1). In other words, practicing an interfaith dialogue among different groups of people, requires a proactive touch that must be genuine and authentic.
But within a world filled with militaristic agendas and entitlement notions of worth, a reactive scramble seems to be the normative response. Youth professionals should be aware that working within a context of religious pluralism is not always cut and dry. It takes a great deal of time to research and dialogue with youth and families of different faiths. And there is always the potential of an impasse. It is within those moments that the youth professional strives to do the best she can with the situation she is in. Thus, the goal is to educate and train youth in practices of hospitality.
Eduardo Ramirez, Assistant Professor of Youth Ministry at Eastern University, builds upon Marty’s notion of hospitality through his understanding of otherness:
The awareness of otherness is not a search for equality or uniformity that blurs or eliminates all differences. It is the acknowledgment of difference with the desire to relate to another individual. Yet because of otherness we attempt to go beyond differences in order to recognize the potential that others have for reciprocal relationships (Ramirez, 2005, p. 68).
Although his research is not focused on interfaith relations exclusively, he does make the case that “identity is fundamentally a relational concept; there is no identity without difference” (Ramirez, p. 70). It is differences that mirror and shape adolescent identity formation in order to perceive the inherent worth of the individual—the other.
If youth, who are of many different faiths and backgrounds, can see the value in one another’s differences, then there is the possibility for authentic religious pluralism to occur. It is the author’s viewpoint that discussing differences with one another, forces an individual to reflect and examine the inconsistencies and in congruencies as well as the inherent truths and mystery that foreshadow one’s values and belief systems. This is for the good because cognitive and effectual processes are working together—while honoring another’s feelings about his/her deeply rooted beliefs, one must examine uncomfortable areas of religious uncertainty that recently have been exposed. Thus, a place-sharing of humility and faith identity emerge for all parties involved in such an interfaith exchange.
Since the Second Vatican Council (1965), under the auspices of Pope Paul VI and his successor Pope John Paul II, ecumenicalism and interfaith dialogue have shaped the American religious landscape significantly. Documents were written, foundations were developed, and committees were formed (i.e., The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, The Commission for Religious Relations with Muslims and Jews, and the Nostra Aetate Foundation) in order to pave the way for interfaith dialogue from the perspective that the Catholic Church, among Protestants and other religious groups, lived in an environment of religious pluralism (Fitzgerald & Borelli, 2006). Such a whirlwind of interfaith dialogue was much in part a product of the lessons learned from the Jewish Holocaust—sentiments like the following ushered in the importance for tolerance and understanding of diverse religious traditions:
This monumental atrocity hovers over interfaith discussions like a brooding presence, warning that such a monstrous outrage must never happen again…We Christians will have to read the messianic prophecies with a new perspective and explain to Jewish friends why, for us, Jesus, in his death and in our experiences of his Resurrection, makes the break-through that anticipates the reign of God, and we have to listen to what our Jewish partners in dialogue have to say about the coming of God’s reign. (Sheerin, 1978, pp. 309-310, 312).
Within the cast shadow of the Holocaust, another necessity to understand one another emerged because of the demographic shifts within the American neighborhoods of a bourgeoning white majority, middle class. The need to understand one another became paramount when these shifts began to represent ethnic and cultural proximity.
In American society today, a culture shaped by a post 9/11 temperament, proximity is again an opportunity for religious awareness or interfaith dialogue to take place. Unfortunately, the reality that terrorism has landed on American soil has pushed the country’s religious conscience to point and demonize Middle Easterners, specifically those who are Muslim—often referred to as harbingers of terrorism.
Martin Marty, professor and author of numerous works on the subject of religious pluralism, suggests when faiths collide with one another that “the first address to these situations should not be the conventional plea for tolerance among them, but it is rather a call that at least one party begin to effect change by risking hospitality toward the other…Conversation and interplay follow the acts of reception; both are full of risk” (Marty, 2005, p. 1). In other words, practicing an interfaith dialogue among different groups of people, requires a proactive touch that must be genuine and authentic.
But within a world filled with militaristic agendas and entitlement notions of worth, a reactive scramble seems to be the normative response. Youth professionals should be aware that working within a context of religious pluralism is not always cut and dry. It takes a great deal of time to research and dialogue with youth and families of different faiths. And there is always the potential of an impasse. It is within those moments that the youth professional strives to do the best she can with the situation she is in. Thus, the goal is to educate and train youth in practices of hospitality.
Eduardo Ramirez, Assistant Professor of Youth Ministry at Eastern University, builds upon Marty’s notion of hospitality through his understanding of otherness:
The awareness of otherness is not a search for equality or uniformity that blurs or eliminates all differences. It is the acknowledgment of difference with the desire to relate to another individual. Yet because of otherness we attempt to go beyond differences in order to recognize the potential that others have for reciprocal relationships (Ramirez, 2005, p. 68).
Although his research is not focused on interfaith relations exclusively, he does make the case that “identity is fundamentally a relational concept; there is no identity without difference” (Ramirez, p. 70). It is differences that mirror and shape adolescent identity formation in order to perceive the inherent worth of the individual—the other.
If youth, who are of many different faiths and backgrounds, can see the value in one another’s differences, then there is the possibility for authentic religious pluralism to occur. It is the author’s viewpoint that discussing differences with one another, forces an individual to reflect and examine the inconsistencies and in congruencies as well as the inherent truths and mystery that foreshadow one’s values and belief systems. This is for the good because cognitive and effectual processes are working together—while honoring another’s feelings about his/her deeply rooted beliefs, one must examine uncomfortable areas of religious uncertainty that recently have been exposed. Thus, a place-sharing of humility and faith identity emerge for all parties involved in such an interfaith exchange.
My Call Statement
Growing up in rural, middle Georgia, I enjoyed the lazy summer days of country life as well as spending time with my close-knit group of friends and family members who were always there for me. My adolescent years consisted of playing sports (football and baseball) and participating in church-related events—family picnics, UMYF, Christmas and Easter productions, etc. My upbringing resembled the quintessential makeup of most middle-class families—consisting of two parents, three kids, and two dogs, all of which lived under one roof.
This is the backdrop of who I am. And yet, as I’ve matured in faith and in years, God continually illuminates and replenishes areas of my life in need of renewal and restoration, suggesting that I’m a work in progress. Such illumination is humbling indeed, but is well worth the path I’ve chosen to follow from the one who called me to take up my cross and follow him. And it was those early, developmental years, foundational to my present growing in faith, that have shaped me with a positive sense of self, a belief in a loving God, and a vision of a hopeful world.
Me, Myself, and I
My parents and grandparents were very influential in my life in that they passed on their most treasured values to me: “Finish what you start,” “Live a life of integrity,” “Get an education,” “Pursue your dreams with earnest,” and “Lean on God and family for assurance.” Of course, as a teenager, I doubt I appreciated those gleanings of wisdom as much as I do now. But they did eventually seep into my late, adolescent brain.
As a teenager, I was much more inclined to strive for coolness than for positive youth development. I was the type of kid that could meander well through all of those “typical” middle and high school social cliques that vied for my attention. And though I did well within that season of life, I always felt that something was missing. I couldn’t articulate it then, but God, pushing through an elaborate montage of self-identifiers (athletics, grades, girl friends, band, art, church, etc.), was calling me to do “something.” It wasn’t until my college years that I realized God is always there, calling us to do “something” if only we will listen.
So, in response to this calling, my pastor allowed me to become the group leader of the UMYF during my senior year of high school. Later, as a freshman in college, the church employed me as their first paid youth director. The church paid me an income of $200 a month. Even though the pay was small, I loved the opportunity to work within the church. Those years of serving my home church gave me insight into what life could be like in service to others, and, in my case, to serve and minister with teens. I felt connected to a cause, and I was emboldened to pursue it.
A Loving God
As college graduation approached and I moved into full-time ministry as a youth pastor, I became overwhelmed with the intricate group dynamics and responsibilities attached to working within a mid-size congregation—200 to 350 members. My mentor and boss, Reverend Barry Ferguson, took me under his wings and showed me the ropes, so to speak. We spent numerous lunches discussing how to empower members for the ministries of the church and how to be sensitive to the needs of parents and youth. During one of our lunches, as I was asking him how to handle some issues that were arising in the youth department, he stopped me midway in the conversation and asked, “Brad, how do you spell your name?” I wondered what he was getting at, but I played along. “Barry, I spell it B-R-A-D.” “Good,” he said, “Because once you realize that your name isn’t spelled G-O-D the better off you’ll be!” I believe what he was trying to convey to me was that, when it’s all said and done, God is ultimately in control. Barry’s words of wisdom have stayed with me since those early days in my ministry, and I often reflect on them.
I’ve learned that the ministry of the church will go on with or without me. And yet, I have a great opportunity to be an agent of God’s love and mercy if I but learn to be obedient to God’s calling in my life. The apostle Paul said it best, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). In other words, learning to heed God’s calling in my life takes discipline through prayer, study, worship, and reflection. And this discipline (being a disciple) enables me to sense God’s presence in the world—I need not fear, for God has redeemed me and called me by name; I belong to God (Isaiah 43:1).
A Hopeful World
I do believe there’s hope for our hurting world. Over the years within the ministry, I’ve seen children, teenagers, families of all shapes and sizes give of themselves to minister to those in need through various work camps, outreach projects, and congregational settings. I’ve had the privilege to pray with and sponsor youth and adults who have ministered in places such as Haiti as well as other countries within the continent of Africa. I’m fortunate to have come across ordinary folks who are doing extraordinary things for the Kingdom…who are impassioned with God’s calling and are meeting the need wherever it appears. This is Good News!
For me, being in ministry is not by default. It is my vocation—a challenging vocation, but mine nonetheless. Whether I’m ministering to a group of youth in a Sunday school classroom or preaching to a multi-generational congregation on Sunday morning, my calling is the same and all too familiar—“speak the truth in love.”
My grandfather shared with me once that the reason he joined the Marines as a young man was because he felt that if he could become a marine, he could do anything in life. Well, I share a similar sentiment: If I can serve as a pastor with integrity, passion, love, and humility, then there’s no telling how God may use my life in order to further the Kingdom of God.
This is the backdrop of who I am. And yet, as I’ve matured in faith and in years, God continually illuminates and replenishes areas of my life in need of renewal and restoration, suggesting that I’m a work in progress. Such illumination is humbling indeed, but is well worth the path I’ve chosen to follow from the one who called me to take up my cross and follow him. And it was those early, developmental years, foundational to my present growing in faith, that have shaped me with a positive sense of self, a belief in a loving God, and a vision of a hopeful world.
Me, Myself, and I
My parents and grandparents were very influential in my life in that they passed on their most treasured values to me: “Finish what you start,” “Live a life of integrity,” “Get an education,” “Pursue your dreams with earnest,” and “Lean on God and family for assurance.” Of course, as a teenager, I doubt I appreciated those gleanings of wisdom as much as I do now. But they did eventually seep into my late, adolescent brain.
As a teenager, I was much more inclined to strive for coolness than for positive youth development. I was the type of kid that could meander well through all of those “typical” middle and high school social cliques that vied for my attention. And though I did well within that season of life, I always felt that something was missing. I couldn’t articulate it then, but God, pushing through an elaborate montage of self-identifiers (athletics, grades, girl friends, band, art, church, etc.), was calling me to do “something.” It wasn’t until my college years that I realized God is always there, calling us to do “something” if only we will listen.
So, in response to this calling, my pastor allowed me to become the group leader of the UMYF during my senior year of high school. Later, as a freshman in college, the church employed me as their first paid youth director. The church paid me an income of $200 a month. Even though the pay was small, I loved the opportunity to work within the church. Those years of serving my home church gave me insight into what life could be like in service to others, and, in my case, to serve and minister with teens. I felt connected to a cause, and I was emboldened to pursue it.
A Loving God
As college graduation approached and I moved into full-time ministry as a youth pastor, I became overwhelmed with the intricate group dynamics and responsibilities attached to working within a mid-size congregation—200 to 350 members. My mentor and boss, Reverend Barry Ferguson, took me under his wings and showed me the ropes, so to speak. We spent numerous lunches discussing how to empower members for the ministries of the church and how to be sensitive to the needs of parents and youth. During one of our lunches, as I was asking him how to handle some issues that were arising in the youth department, he stopped me midway in the conversation and asked, “Brad, how do you spell your name?” I wondered what he was getting at, but I played along. “Barry, I spell it B-R-A-D.” “Good,” he said, “Because once you realize that your name isn’t spelled G-O-D the better off you’ll be!” I believe what he was trying to convey to me was that, when it’s all said and done, God is ultimately in control. Barry’s words of wisdom have stayed with me since those early days in my ministry, and I often reflect on them.
I’ve learned that the ministry of the church will go on with or without me. And yet, I have a great opportunity to be an agent of God’s love and mercy if I but learn to be obedient to God’s calling in my life. The apostle Paul said it best, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). In other words, learning to heed God’s calling in my life takes discipline through prayer, study, worship, and reflection. And this discipline (being a disciple) enables me to sense God’s presence in the world—I need not fear, for God has redeemed me and called me by name; I belong to God (Isaiah 43:1).
A Hopeful World
I do believe there’s hope for our hurting world. Over the years within the ministry, I’ve seen children, teenagers, families of all shapes and sizes give of themselves to minister to those in need through various work camps, outreach projects, and congregational settings. I’ve had the privilege to pray with and sponsor youth and adults who have ministered in places such as Haiti as well as other countries within the continent of Africa. I’m fortunate to have come across ordinary folks who are doing extraordinary things for the Kingdom…who are impassioned with God’s calling and are meeting the need wherever it appears. This is Good News!
For me, being in ministry is not by default. It is my vocation—a challenging vocation, but mine nonetheless. Whether I’m ministering to a group of youth in a Sunday school classroom or preaching to a multi-generational congregation on Sunday morning, my calling is the same and all too familiar—“speak the truth in love.”
My grandfather shared with me once that the reason he joined the Marines as a young man was because he felt that if he could become a marine, he could do anything in life. Well, I share a similar sentiment: If I can serve as a pastor with integrity, passion, love, and humility, then there’s no telling how God may use my life in order to further the Kingdom of God.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
A Christian Ethicist Laments Pew Research on Torture
A year ago, I came across this and it definitely gave me food for thought. Unfortunately, I didn't take any course work from Dr. Gushee. He came to Mercer's McAfee Theological Seminary the year I finished my studies. This is a complex issue, so I must say that I post this only because it opens a much-needed conversation as to how we are perceived by the rest of the world. And I have to admit, it does make me squirm a little...maybe I need to. I also have to mention that I have mixed emotions on torture, especially since I, like a lot of other folks, have lost relatives in places such as Iraq...but I know that somehow the Jesus of the New Testament forces us to wrestle with this tension, and to finally fall on the side of serving and loving neighbor no matter how insane it may feel to our human nature. Glory be to God.
Opinion: A Christian's lament over the Pew torture poll
By David Gushee
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
From the Associated Baptist Press; http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/4052/9/
(ABP) -- Dear Jesus,
Everyone seems to be talking about the poll put out last week by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. They found that 62 percent of white evangelical Protestants believe “the use of torture against suspected terrorists to gain important information” to be often or sometimes justified. Only 16 percent of this group -- a community that by self-definition is very, very serious about following you -- believes torture is never justified. That number was lower than any other group polled.
I think that what really got people’s attention with this poll, Lord, is that both evangelical identity and church attendance were positively correlated with support for torture. Thirteen percent more evangelicals said torture was often or sometimes justified than in the general population. In other words: The more often people go to church, the more they support torture. So those of your followers who go to church every week support torture at 54 percent, while those who seldom or never go support it at 42 percent.
These results have bounced around the country all week, reinforcing the opinion here that Christianity -- the faith that purports to be related to loyalty to you, Jesus -- leads people to support torture. It would be easy for casual news-watchers to conclude that if you want to end torture in this country, the best thing to do would be to empty out the churches. What a negation of the Great Commission (Matt. 28:16-20)! We could call it the Great De-Commissioning!
But, Jesus, can it be that the problem is that the churches are already empty? Can it be that the institution that you founded to advance your mission in the world is already empty of any understanding of what it might really mean to follow you? Is it already empty of people who take your teachings and example so seriously that they might have the capacity to resist seductive and dangerous ideas floating around our culture -- like the idea that if torture “works” to “protect national security,” and thus is something that followers of Jesus Christ ought to support as good loyal Americans?
Is your church already empty of courageous leaders who are willing to lose their jobs in order to say a resounding NO to a heretical idea like that? Is it already empty of people who understand that if you are a Christian, you cannot serve two masters, like, for example, Jesus and National Security? Is it already empty of people who understand that because all human beings are made in your image, there are some things that we just can’t do to anyone, no matter who they are?
What is this thing called “Christianity” in this country, Lord Jesus? Does it have anything to do with you? It seems a strangely Americanized thing, a disastrously domesticated faith toward which people can nod their heads in loyalty as long as it doesn’t conflict with their full participation in whatever this country feels like it wants to do.
You founded an international, countercultural movement filled with followers who did everything you taught them to do to advance the peaceable and just reign of your Father in this rebellious world. We American Christians have turned it into a culture-religion that has nothing to say even about, say, waterboarding, slamming people repeatedly into walls, forced nudity, prolonged shackling, 11 days of sleep deprivation, psychological terror, sexual humiliation, religious desecration, and so much more! Or that even supports all of this to protect ... America!
O Jesus, what have you to do with a religion like this? “I spit you out of my mouth” -- these words of yours somehow come to mind (Rev. 3:16)!
Lord, you taught us much about resisting temptation. You talked about not giving the Devil a space in which to operate, and about cutting off the sources of temptation at the root (Mark 10:43-48). It seems like on this torture issue, Jesus, our nation got tempted by its fear and anger and grief to go down a road we had repudiated since our founding! When what we were doing first surfaced (Abu Ghraib, 2004), we all purported to be shocked, shocked. Now at least half of your people say it’s fine to do worse than what we did there! Where’s your Holy Spirit, leading us into righteousness and convicting us of our sins? Or, better, where is the responsiveness of your people to your Holy Spirit, the One who speaks truth to your people if we will but listen?
O Lord, you know that some of us have been fighting this torture thing for several years. We thought that America would come to its senses eventually. We thought that a transition to an anti-torture president would make a difference. Well, the policies may be changing right now, but support for torture among even your own self-identified followers remains sufficiently strong that it looks like, under a different president, we would go right back to doing it, and Christians would go right back to supporting it or just remaining acquiescent! The more torture memos that get released, the more we argue about whether torture is okay! Can nothing end this cancerous debate?
Jesus, this doesn’t look like a problem that can be solved through garden-variety activism. Another press conference, another media alert, another academic meeting, another document or article -- none of this seems to make any difference.
Lord, it seems that the problem runs deeper than what such activism can solve. Clearly, your church in this land has been deeply corrupted. I’m still trying to figure out all the sources of that corruption, but it looks like some combination of an inadequate understanding of what the Bible really teaches, an inadequate grasp of who you really are, an inadequate commitment to your Lordship over all of life and thus our obligation to follow your teachings in all things, inadequate disciple-formation processes in our churches, inadequate leadership from the pulpit, inadequate social ethics (especially the lack of any firm commitment to human dignity and human rights), and inadequate understanding of the distinction between the church and the nation. I’m sure there’s more.
There are times when a church so badly misunderstands what it means to be church that it must be repudiated as fundamentally ungodly, fundamentally a negation of true Christianity. This has sometimes been called a status confessionis moment -- a situation where the basic integrity of the gospel and the core witness of the church are at stake. Jesus, I believe this is one such moment.
Any church -- congregation, parachurch organization, denomination, or group of individual Christians -- that supports torture has violated its confessed allegiance to you and can no longer be considered part of your true church. Let them be anathema.
Jesus, I pray with all my heart for the survival of a remnant of faithful Christianity in this country. It goes far beyond torture. It has to do with whether we are really your people or are liars and hypocrites, just deluding ourselves on the way to Judgment Day.
-30-
David Gushee is distinguished university professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University.
Opinion: A Christian's lament over the Pew torture poll
By David Gushee
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
From the Associated Baptist Press; http://www.abpnews.com/content/view/4052/9/
(ABP) -- Dear Jesus,
Everyone seems to be talking about the poll put out last week by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. They found that 62 percent of white evangelical Protestants believe “the use of torture against suspected terrorists to gain important information” to be often or sometimes justified. Only 16 percent of this group -- a community that by self-definition is very, very serious about following you -- believes torture is never justified. That number was lower than any other group polled.
I think that what really got people’s attention with this poll, Lord, is that both evangelical identity and church attendance were positively correlated with support for torture. Thirteen percent more evangelicals said torture was often or sometimes justified than in the general population. In other words: The more often people go to church, the more they support torture. So those of your followers who go to church every week support torture at 54 percent, while those who seldom or never go support it at 42 percent.
These results have bounced around the country all week, reinforcing the opinion here that Christianity -- the faith that purports to be related to loyalty to you, Jesus -- leads people to support torture. It would be easy for casual news-watchers to conclude that if you want to end torture in this country, the best thing to do would be to empty out the churches. What a negation of the Great Commission (Matt. 28:16-20)! We could call it the Great De-Commissioning!
But, Jesus, can it be that the problem is that the churches are already empty? Can it be that the institution that you founded to advance your mission in the world is already empty of any understanding of what it might really mean to follow you? Is it already empty of people who take your teachings and example so seriously that they might have the capacity to resist seductive and dangerous ideas floating around our culture -- like the idea that if torture “works” to “protect national security,” and thus is something that followers of Jesus Christ ought to support as good loyal Americans?
Is your church already empty of courageous leaders who are willing to lose their jobs in order to say a resounding NO to a heretical idea like that? Is it already empty of people who understand that if you are a Christian, you cannot serve two masters, like, for example, Jesus and National Security? Is it already empty of people who understand that because all human beings are made in your image, there are some things that we just can’t do to anyone, no matter who they are?
What is this thing called “Christianity” in this country, Lord Jesus? Does it have anything to do with you? It seems a strangely Americanized thing, a disastrously domesticated faith toward which people can nod their heads in loyalty as long as it doesn’t conflict with their full participation in whatever this country feels like it wants to do.
You founded an international, countercultural movement filled with followers who did everything you taught them to do to advance the peaceable and just reign of your Father in this rebellious world. We American Christians have turned it into a culture-religion that has nothing to say even about, say, waterboarding, slamming people repeatedly into walls, forced nudity, prolonged shackling, 11 days of sleep deprivation, psychological terror, sexual humiliation, religious desecration, and so much more! Or that even supports all of this to protect ... America!
O Jesus, what have you to do with a religion like this? “I spit you out of my mouth” -- these words of yours somehow come to mind (Rev. 3:16)!
Lord, you taught us much about resisting temptation. You talked about not giving the Devil a space in which to operate, and about cutting off the sources of temptation at the root (Mark 10:43-48). It seems like on this torture issue, Jesus, our nation got tempted by its fear and anger and grief to go down a road we had repudiated since our founding! When what we were doing first surfaced (Abu Ghraib, 2004), we all purported to be shocked, shocked. Now at least half of your people say it’s fine to do worse than what we did there! Where’s your Holy Spirit, leading us into righteousness and convicting us of our sins? Or, better, where is the responsiveness of your people to your Holy Spirit, the One who speaks truth to your people if we will but listen?
O Lord, you know that some of us have been fighting this torture thing for several years. We thought that America would come to its senses eventually. We thought that a transition to an anti-torture president would make a difference. Well, the policies may be changing right now, but support for torture among even your own self-identified followers remains sufficiently strong that it looks like, under a different president, we would go right back to doing it, and Christians would go right back to supporting it or just remaining acquiescent! The more torture memos that get released, the more we argue about whether torture is okay! Can nothing end this cancerous debate?
Jesus, this doesn’t look like a problem that can be solved through garden-variety activism. Another press conference, another media alert, another academic meeting, another document or article -- none of this seems to make any difference.
Lord, it seems that the problem runs deeper than what such activism can solve. Clearly, your church in this land has been deeply corrupted. I’m still trying to figure out all the sources of that corruption, but it looks like some combination of an inadequate understanding of what the Bible really teaches, an inadequate grasp of who you really are, an inadequate commitment to your Lordship over all of life and thus our obligation to follow your teachings in all things, inadequate disciple-formation processes in our churches, inadequate leadership from the pulpit, inadequate social ethics (especially the lack of any firm commitment to human dignity and human rights), and inadequate understanding of the distinction between the church and the nation. I’m sure there’s more.
There are times when a church so badly misunderstands what it means to be church that it must be repudiated as fundamentally ungodly, fundamentally a negation of true Christianity. This has sometimes been called a status confessionis moment -- a situation where the basic integrity of the gospel and the core witness of the church are at stake. Jesus, I believe this is one such moment.
Any church -- congregation, parachurch organization, denomination, or group of individual Christians -- that supports torture has violated its confessed allegiance to you and can no longer be considered part of your true church. Let them be anathema.
Jesus, I pray with all my heart for the survival of a remnant of faithful Christianity in this country. It goes far beyond torture. It has to do with whether we are really your people or are liars and hypocrites, just deluding ourselves on the way to Judgment Day.
-30-
David Gushee is distinguished university professor of Christian ethics at Mercer University.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Lament
Lament is a powerful process of emotions, a process in which Westerners do their best to cover up from those whom they either want to impress or want to compete against. The lack of trust and lack of vulnerability towards others takes its toll on the believing community because, frankly, we weren’t made to be this way at all! As Yahweh once declared, “It is not good for man (humanity) to be alone.” In other words, we were never created to be an “island onto ourselves” with the notion that lamenting is a solitary endeavor. In fact, lamenting (that which is found in scripture) is a relational response of emotion, publicly acknowledged by all. Any purveyor of scripture will find kings, judges, prophets, and assemblies of people crying towards the heavens for relief and solace from the God of all—most of which was done in the presence of the community of the faithful. But for most of us raised in the continental U.S., the notion of weeping in public is a sign of weakness. We are told to “man up!” and bottle all that we have inside us until we eventually have a heart attack, develop an eating disorder, become an alcoholic, or, even more sobering, we exit off the stage of life by our own volition. Instead, lament should be viewed as a witness of one’s humanity in the midst of life’s turbulent waters and embraced as a gift from a Creator who designed us to be relational beings through watershed experiences. Lamenting is our God-given salve to redirect our hearts and minds and find the courage to be in community.
“Cry aloud to the Lord! O wall of daughter Zion! Let tears stream down like a torrent day and night! Give yourself no rest, your eyes no respite!” (Lamentations 2: 18)
“Cry aloud to the Lord! O wall of daughter Zion! Let tears stream down like a torrent day and night! Give yourself no rest, your eyes no respite!” (Lamentations 2: 18)
Thursday, February 18, 2010
What About The Cross?
About a couple of years ago, I began to read a number of theologian’s viewpoints on the atonement theories of Jesus of the cross. I think the reason behind my investigations, so to speak, had to do with my nagging preoccupation that I wanted to view the cross in a different light or different way than the more heavily-held viewpoints of substitutionary or ransom theories that place Jesus as satisfactory payment for our sins, once and for all, and either trick the devil or relieve us from a debt we couldn’t pay. And I struggle, at times, with these views because I think it gets humanity off the hook from future offenses and puts Christian accountability on a slippery slope, and I much rather view the event of the cross as transformational than its traditional notion of being transactional. But with all that said, I am mesmerized by the power of the cross—with all of its critics and skeptics, it has stood the test of time. May the Christ of the cross continue to form me and you in new creations of loving-kindness.
Well, my investigations first led me to look over those copious notes from my Theology I & II class in seminary, which only prompted more questions and reminded me why I’m not a systematic theologian in the first place. And yet, I didn’t want my lack of understanding to stop me in my tracks, so I began to read a number of works by those that are in a similar search—Mark Heim, Walter Wink, Douglas John Hall, J. Weaver, Stephen Patterson, and, last but not least, C. S. Lewis. I found myself making new friends and revisiting some old friends as well. And as I find a place to call home in their writings, I still remain determined to eventually wrap my mind around a Christology that not only makes sense to me but also to my neighbor who may be searching for a similar truth found in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. But for now, I’m in awe of the mystery. For me, the cross is a powerful symbol of faith because, even with all the struggles I may have with the historic theories, I still view myself as totally deprived in the shadow of that cross. Because you see, those passion narratives from our friends Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John depict those last days of Jesus as the unveiling of humanity’s maligned nature—that the host of characters and factions back then reflect the inherent nature of us today…that we would crucify the innocent in order to bring peace and the status quo back into the ranks of our lives is horrific! And that has become the over-arching point of reference for me for these past Lenten seasons—to reflect on the innocence I’ve crucified in others till it reaches its magnitude in the crucifixion of my Lord, Jesus the Christ.
It’s strange how my prayers on Palm Sunday and Easter have changed from hurried prayers of “thank you” to cracked whispers of “I’m sorry.” That’s quite a blow to my Christian ego because I can no longer stand on my own, but rather I must rely on the assurance of who God is through Jesus the Christ. Of course, why wouldn’t I want to lean on God rather than myself, but my humanity tends to be that old curmudgeon who believes in the popularized adage, “God helps those who help themselves.”
I continue to read from the theologian’s armchair even though I know that God’s thoughts and plans are not our own (Isaiah 55: 8-9) because as the pages unfold, the kernels of truth (of which God uses) are hidden within the questions of our faith. To God be the Glory. Amen and Amen.
Well, my investigations first led me to look over those copious notes from my Theology I & II class in seminary, which only prompted more questions and reminded me why I’m not a systematic theologian in the first place. And yet, I didn’t want my lack of understanding to stop me in my tracks, so I began to read a number of works by those that are in a similar search—Mark Heim, Walter Wink, Douglas John Hall, J. Weaver, Stephen Patterson, and, last but not least, C. S. Lewis. I found myself making new friends and revisiting some old friends as well. And as I find a place to call home in their writings, I still remain determined to eventually wrap my mind around a Christology that not only makes sense to me but also to my neighbor who may be searching for a similar truth found in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ. But for now, I’m in awe of the mystery. For me, the cross is a powerful symbol of faith because, even with all the struggles I may have with the historic theories, I still view myself as totally deprived in the shadow of that cross. Because you see, those passion narratives from our friends Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John depict those last days of Jesus as the unveiling of humanity’s maligned nature—that the host of characters and factions back then reflect the inherent nature of us today…that we would crucify the innocent in order to bring peace and the status quo back into the ranks of our lives is horrific! And that has become the over-arching point of reference for me for these past Lenten seasons—to reflect on the innocence I’ve crucified in others till it reaches its magnitude in the crucifixion of my Lord, Jesus the Christ.
It’s strange how my prayers on Palm Sunday and Easter have changed from hurried prayers of “thank you” to cracked whispers of “I’m sorry.” That’s quite a blow to my Christian ego because I can no longer stand on my own, but rather I must rely on the assurance of who God is through Jesus the Christ. Of course, why wouldn’t I want to lean on God rather than myself, but my humanity tends to be that old curmudgeon who believes in the popularized adage, “God helps those who help themselves.”
I continue to read from the theologian’s armchair even though I know that God’s thoughts and plans are not our own (Isaiah 55: 8-9) because as the pages unfold, the kernels of truth (of which God uses) are hidden within the questions of our faith. To God be the Glory. Amen and Amen.
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