Confessions of a heretic
I’ve often spoken (not necessarily written but I’m getting there more and more) about the development of a new expression of Christianity, a new architecture shaped by current conversations and historical developments. This suggestion is often met with raised eyebrows and questions and equally often with accusations of heresy.
The above pic is a selection from a webcomic, the Order of the Stick, which offers a profound insight into religion and religious people. You really must read it to give it sufficient justice. It is profoundly insightful.
This post is part of the synchroblog on herey.
I find the Order of the Stick webcomic a mixture of profound, humorous and insightful. You either find it funny or you don’t. I do. I’m not skilled at language enough to explain the humour. It is a sharp and insightful critique on religion in general and validly speak to us on the issue of “heresy” and “orthodoxy”.
It would seem that some who self-identify as Christians are eager to throw out everything that happened after they codified their historical particularities as canonical while others are eager to throw out everything that came before in order to redefine their faith according to their own vision, which is often a romanticised blueprint made of the same substance of the emporer’s new clothes. Though many readily acknowledge both extremes as being unhelpful I believe we who call ourselves “evangelical” and “Christian” ought to lighten up a bit, and by a bit I mean a lot, and get our hands and mouths dirty again.
When it comes to the emerging church, with the coming to faith of people already concerned with the social and ecological crises of our day many evangelicals are concerned that the Christian faith is being undermined.
Commenting on our Creational and Redemptive Story Dan Wilt says the following:
I believe that a subtly diminished view of the biblical Jesus, and an aligning of ourselves with all things eco-, socio-, enviro- and human friendly is beginning to replace (for some) a vibrant connection with Jesus as Lord.
Sure, the accusation of heresy is valid when there is a clear and deliberate leading people away from the truth. I believe the following quote summarises the issue profoundly:
Christians put more stock in Satan’s ability to deceive than in the Spirit’s ability to guide Godde’s people into all truth (I don’t know who made the original statement).
I find it sad that we evangelicals, believing in salvation through correct theology, have been so mutually complicit in enslaving people and destroying our environment. It sounds to me like we don’t recognise that the mandate Godde framed us for continues to be expressed by the image of Godde. Just like other religions, Christianity has blown its witness.
I made a conscious decision a few years ago to be more concerned with people who were searching than with Christians’ need to preach at people. I chose to enter into the language and culture of those considered postmodern spiritual explorers, including the “New Age”, but by default those considered “tainted” and “untouchable” by good evangelicals. I changed my language. I changed the words used to express the central message of Jesus - that the kingdom/reign/dream of Godde is really amidst us and we can live in keeping with it rather than not it. I discarded the evangelical approach of preaching at people and requiring an up-front subscription to one where I demonstrated the reality of the kingdom/reign/dream of Godde by evidence that S/He speaks and acts today in the present tense in real, tangible and life changing ways.
Daresa I started to put the gospel into practice…
I discoverd that Christians are very, very superstitious. I also discovered that Christians are incredibly threatened by anything that differs to what they’re comfortable with, with anything new, with anything that isn’t sanctified by the pulpit. I was accused of heresy. In fact, someone even argued I was starting a cult and called for me to be stopped.
“But wisdom is shown to be right by what results from it.” (Matthew 11:19).
“For if I drive out demons by the finger/power of Godde, then the kingdom of Godde has arrived among you.” (Luke 11:20).
So I held my course and was priviliged to see Godde work.
I am now much less concerned with heresy than I am with how Christians and Christianity gets in the way of people looking to experience Godde, in search of healing and guidance. I saw dozens of people offended by Christians because they were in process. Having discovered Godde’s soteria they were rejected by Godde’s ecclesia. I fear for us in light of Jesus’ words:
“How terrible it will be for you experts in religious law (theology)! For you crush people beneath impossible religious demands, and you never lift a finger to help ease the burden” (Luke 11:46).
“How terrible it will be for you experts in religious law (theology)! For you hid the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.” (Luke 11:52).
I’m with Dan and others in my concern that Jesus is the centre of our faith. But I’m not with many evangelicals in requiring that those who’s faith is work-in-progress evidence a theological repertoire to rival my own or anothers’. I don’t believe that people are saved through a church subscription or through having a neatly articulatable theology in keeping with evangelical doctrine.
I believe that this is because we’ve wrapped our theological edifices as well as the church franchises we subscribe to so closely and tightly to the truth that to unwrap the truth is viewed as denying it. This is certainly the case when the tenets of modernism and evangelicalism, threatened by postmodernism, are taken as a threat to peoples’ salvation and the gospel itself. Let’s not confuse the church and a weekly subscription to it with Godde, discipleship and a Spirit filled life.
Others involved in this synchroblog:
Aratus - The Gender of the Creator and Face forward
Cobusvw - Conversing with the heretics
FakeExpressionsOfTheUnknown Who’s Heresy
Liquid Light - Coming out a heretic emerges
Mike Smith - Emerging Heresy
Nic Paton - The Lif Cycle of Heresy and The Blessings of Heresy
Roger Saner Towards a heretical orthodoxy
Ryan Peters - Calling the “H” word and dropping the “H” bomb
Steve Hayes Cult
Tim Victor - Confessions of a heretic
Filed under: christianity, emerging church, heresy, postmodernism
Strong observation, Tim, that the church rejects those whose faith is work-in-progress.
The “error” at fault pertains to the comic - that there is in fact a discreet “before and after” the start of worship. I see it more as an ongoing process.
Also I thought the statement “to be more concerned with people who were searching than with Christians’ need to preach at people” is very apt. It shows the hospitable heart of G-d rather than the insecure, xenophobic heart of orthodoxy.
Good solid fessin’.
The “work in progress” comment is certainly right on. I think that many forget Jesus’ own analogies of growing - ie. a seed planted, a tender shoot, a tree that produces fruit and provides shelter for the birds.
This is a process, and to judge someone harshly for where they are in this process is probably a sign that you, yourself, are not quite ‘there’ yet either. It’s time for some people just to get honest and real, and realise that there is a bigger mission out there : the kingdom of God.
To quote you Tim : “I believe that this is because we’ve wrapped our theological edifices as well as the church franchises we subscribe to so closely and tightly to the truth that to unwrap the truth is viewed as denying it. ”
Great insight!
Thanks Nic & Stray,
Both “process” and “becoming” are coming more and more into focus for me.
The cartoon is disturbingly apt, and the “throwing out of all that has gone before” would certainly be an overkill which could affect a concept of emergence. I’ve been pleased to see that huge (although well discerned) sections of what has gone before are readily incorporated in the emergent movement. I guess that valid spiritual insights tend to remain valid, whether they are third century, reformation, or indeed biblical.
Also struck by the Luke passages, particularly with respect to those who are work-in-progress with their faith. There is so often a drive to smother the borderline potential Christian with theology, perhaps to try and sufficiently weigh him down with scriptures and doctrine that he can’t escape, that there is seldom the wilingness to let people discover at their own pace and their own way, simply being on hand should they ask for help. So many things are only valued once learnt personally, rather than taught, and I fear that many newcomers to faith never get that chance.
Great post.
What is heretic? Someone who disputes orthdox views?
If the orthdox views in dispute actually reflect spiritual truths then the only real way forward is for the so called heretic to experience these truths for themselves. Seeking for ways to enable that to happen is the most useful thing that others can do.
If they do not reflect spiritual truths then the dispute is in the humanrealm.
Rory,
Great observation. Often the “heretic” feels legitimated because of their position, which may be ‘real’ in their personal world but not real in the world at large.
I agree that the primacy should to be on experience, for experience is the data upon which spirituality and religion ought to be built.