Month: March 2008

Children’s Museums and Spiritual Formation

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Yesterday we took Emma to a local children’s museum. She calls the place the “museum house” and begs to go there. Basically it’s a place where the kids get to “play” with all sorts of educational installations that supposedly teach them about gravity, light, sound, wind… Mike had never been, so we braved a museum on a Saturday in winter (if it feels like winter, it’s still winter – the picture’s from last summer btw). To clarify, Mike braved the masses and interacted with Emma and I sorta waddled around and claimed whatever chair/bench I could find.

We’re museum members, so I generally take Emma there on weekdays after lunch (when it’s not crowded). There’s generally mostly moms and grandparents there with kids, and a respectable number of dads letting the kids play. I had never been on a Saturday before and from my aloof pregnancy observation post I was intrigued by the new variety of visitor present. At the risk of gender stereotyping, I will call him the “Engineer/CEO Dad.”* The take charge and achieve perfection sort of dad. This is the dad who works a traditional schedule and so would never show up mid-week with the work-at-home, stay-at-home, flexible schedule dads. From what I typically see, most other parents at the museum might explain a certain exhibit to a kid, but they then let the kid play. The Engineer/CEO Dad jumped right in. Not to play with their kid per se, but to figure out how everything worked and to show their kid the right way to do things. If the kid was building a track for a ball to cascade down, the dad would jump in to improve on the design so it worked better. If the kid was building a tower of blocks, the dad would insist on strengthening the foundation so it wouldn’t fall. The drums had to be played in rhythm and the manipulable shapes had to be made into a recognizable design. If their kid couldn’t handle it, the dad did it for them.

I was fascinated. At first I was a bit annoyed – the point is about letting the kids discover things for themselves! Then I was convicted about how much I step-in to prevent Emma from having to struggle as she learns. Then I started to wonder about how much we as the church step in to prevent fellow Christians from struggling to figure things out for themselves. We want people to have all the right answers and especially the right theology. So instead of encouraging questions and self-discovery, we spoon feed answers. Not that I’m against education, but like these dads we assume we need to take charge of other people’s spiritual journey. But will that actually help them learn or develop a deep faith? Or does it just lead them to parrot answers they don’t really believe because they know those are the “right answers”? If we think allowing kids to discover things for themselves is good pedagogy, then why don’t we allow the for the same when it comes to spiritual formation?

*(I am sure that dads who are Engineers (hi dad) and CEOs are great dads and that there are a lot of moms who act this way too… just observing what I saw)

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Earth Hour

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Sorry for the lack of interesting thoughts this week, it’s been a “wow, pregnancy can suck” sort of week. Anyway, does everyone know about this –

On March 29, 2008 at 8 p.m., join millions of people around the world in making a statement about climate change by turning off your lights for Earth Hour, an event created by the World Wildlife Fund.

Earth Hour was created by WWF in Sydney, Australia in 2007, and in one year has grown from an event in one city to a global movement. In 2008, millions of people, businesses, governments and civic organizations in nearly 200 cities around the globe will turn out for Earth Hour. More than 100 cities across North America will participate, including the US flagships–Atlanta, Chicago, Phoenix and San Francisco.

We invite everyone throughout North America and around the world to turn off the lights for an hour starting at 8 p.m. (your own local time)–whether at home or at work, with friends and family or solo, in a big city or a small town.

For more info click here.

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Across the Universe

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To continue in the theme of recent posts…

I recently got around to watching Across the Universe. I know the movie was all the buzz last Fall, but I don’t get to see many movies these days so I waited until it finally arrived through Netflixs. I loved the whole concept of a musical journey through the sixties to the soundtrack of the Beatles, I just wasn’t expecting it to be so depressing. It had the obligatory happy ending of course, but the general message was “live for yourself because trying to make a difference in the world is pointless.”

The film portrayed the existential struggles of youth, the crisis of the Vietnam war, and the struggles of the civil rights movement during the sixties in ways that deliberately spoke to their exact parallels today. On one level it is disturbing how little has changed since then. The characters sought to bring change to their world and failed. As the characters sought unity they found selfishness. As they sought spiritual answers they met the hollowness of consumerism. As they attempted to serve something bigger than themselves they found despair, madness, and death. As they sought to work for peace they found apathy, hypocrisy, and corruption. In the end they just had to give up on those passions and causes and find contentment for themselves. To put it in Beatles terms – “And, in the end, the love you take/ Is equal to the love you make.”

I found the message depressing and disturbing mostly because I’ve heard forms of it over and over again from the church. “Don’t bother trying to change the world, you won’t make a difference anyway.” “Just focus on your own relationship with Jesus, that’s all that really matters.” “There is so much evil and corruption out there that you can’t ever really change things.” And the implicit message – “see none of this is new, people have tried to work for peace and justice before and they failed, so just grow up and get over it.” I’m sick of these messages. I’m sick of the defeatist, “all things conspire against you so just give up” attitudes. What will it take for people to actually have hope?

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Rethinking Discipline

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Thinking out loud here on the topic of discipline. I know that there are different meanings of the word depending on one’s intent and purposes, but I sometimes wonder if we restrict what we mean by the term too much in certain circumstances.

The etymology of “discipline” takes us to the Latin terms referring to the instruction given to a disciple. Instruction/discipline was necessary in order to shape a disciple. So Jesus instructing his disciples is discipline. Yet over time the emphasis shifted from shaping a follower to dictating the manner or rules by which the disciple should live. Later the term evolved to refer to punishments inflicted if said rules were not followed.

The two areas I most commonly hear the term used are in reference to child rearing and spiritual disciplines. In both areas, I think we often focus so much on the later meanings of the term that we fail to remember its roots. Instead of shaping disciples (ourselves spiritually or our children) we dwell on legalism and rules. We have checklists for how to be a good Christian and are often punished personally by guilt or corporately through ridicule and ostracism if those rules aren’t followed. We don’t go to church, do our quiet time, appear engaged in worship and we suffer the consequences. And of course we all know the arbitrary rules and punishments we inflict upon our kids all the time. But I wonder if we are effectively making disciples? Are we instructing them and helping shape them (and ourselves) into disciples who choose to follow a certain path? Or have we just created good systems of rules and punishments that keep some people in bounds some of the time?

I’m not saying get rid of rules, just wondering if we limit our understanding of discipline to our detriment.

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Happy Easter

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Happy Easter All.

The quote of the day. After the war-protesters were arrested at Holy Name Cathedral this morning, Cardinal Francis George responded “We should all work for peace,” George said, “but not by interrupting the worship of God.”

Because this is America. Peace has nothing to do with worship, or Easter, or Jesus…

Edited to clarify my thoughts –

I honestly have really mixed reactions to the whole thing.  I don’t think the protest was the best approach to getting the message out there.  As the paper mentioned this morning, doing something like that in Chicago in the wake of the NIU shootings is a bit too much.  Luckily this was a Catholic church and not an evangelical megachurch or the protesters could have been shot on site.

But I understand the need to do something for peace and that yes shocking people out of complacency is needed.  They might have had a somewhat sympathetic audience at the cathedral, but how many people there are actively working to bring an end to violence?  If their words don’t translate into action what are they worth? (and yes I am speaking to myself here as well).  Perhaps the homily would have encouraged some to action, perhaps not.  This is an issue that goes much deeper than politics and should not be ignored by the church because it can be labeled “political.”  If we care about peace, if we care about the Iraqis who deal with real horror everyday, we wont shut such things out of our worship services.  We wont be more pissed off that our “Easter finery” got fake blood on it and that we had to think about uncomfortable things than the fact that those horrific things are happening to real people.

This was an Easter service.  A celebration that God has overcome death – that enemy has been destroyed.  It comes just a week after we remember when Jesus challenged political powers in a triumphal entry into Jerusalem and then marched into the Temple to speak out (in physical action) against the injustices being perpetrated there against foreigners and the poor.  Was what he just did a silly stunt to gain a bit of media attention?  Shouldn’t he just have let the people worship the way they expected to worship over the Passover holiday?

Honestly I’m conflicted.  I don’t know if the protest was useful, but I think something is needed.  What would have been better and effective?  How can the message of Jesus and the hope of Easter be translated into action and not just warm fuzzies?  How can we get over just our comfort and care about the needs of others (in Iraq and elsewhere)?  There are deeper questions here than just the “disturbance of peace” and I think they need to be addressed instead of just brushed aside because something challenges our assumptions regarding what is appropriate behavior for church.

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America, Race, and the Church

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This past week in America we have witnessed a rather disturbing portrayal of the the church. The reactions across the blogosphere and in newspaper editorials to the Rev. Wright’s comments and Obama’s response have helped demonstrate the underlying attitudes of priorities of the American church. First I should say, although I don’t agree with some of what Rev. Wright said, I do think he spoke prophetic truth and pointed out some real issues in America. I thought Obama’s speech on racism was accurate and something our country needs to hear. I am shocked at the extreme denial of “race issues” in America that has resulted from the speech. I’m sad that Obama’s first real public act “as a black man” has caused so many to turn on him. Obviously there are still deep race issues in America, regardless of the number of white editorials that say “I don’t look at a person’s skin color.”

But it’s the church issue that really gets me. Two thoughts keep surfacing in the things I read – first that Obama should have caused dissension and left his church community years ago. This assumption reveals the opinion of many Americans that this is how church should operate. If you don’t like something at church, you need to initiate a coup and/or leave the church for a better option. Community doesn’t matter as much as getting what you want from church. Apparently challenging words and honesty about issues in America are cause enough to destroy or abandon community. Church splits, gossip, backstabbing, and church-hopping are all apparently what America expects and wants from church. I know this is a complicated issue for many churches, but why has the first priority become leaving or kicking people out instead of building community and engaging in dialogue?

The second assumption I’m encountering is that pastors shouldn’t be controversial or prophetic, especially if that involves questioning America. This elevation of civil religion and America worship is scary. To place pointing out the sins of the country or just areas where growth is needed as out of bounds for the church prevents real change from ever occurring. I’ve heard plenty of sermons pointing out the issues with other countries, minority groups in America, or the poor, but they never cross the line into questioning establishment America. I could get soundbites of vitriolic hatred (lacking any constructive outlook) from any number of churches regarding “minority” issues (against homosexuals, women, Muslims, the poor…) and for some reason those statements are generally tolerated or at least ignored (if not taken up as a battle cry). Question the greatness of our empire or suggest lifestyle changes for the average American and you are ostracized (and told you are unbiblical for causing division).

What a freaking load of crap. What has happened to the church? When did questioning America become a greater sin than permitting injustice? For me, this is no longer about a political race, this is about having lost the idea of what church is.

Church doesn’t exist to rubber-stamp the status-quo of the empire’s powerful. Church isn’t about a nice experience that helps you feel content with your life as it is. Church isn’t about getting to sing happy songs. Church isn’t about what makes you feel most comfortable. Church isn’t about ignoring the problems of the world until you actually believe they have disappeared. Church is not about complacency in the American Dream.

The church is about being salt and light. About being a city on a hill. About loving God and loving others. About overturning the tables in the temple. About loosing the chains of injustice and setting captives free.

America – it is about getting over ourselves, laying down our lives and giving ourselves fully to following Christ. Somewhere we have seriously lost our way.

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God and Gender

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A couple of days ago, Mark Oestreicher posted his thoughts on gender pronouns for God. He described his lengthy journey into understanding that solely using male pronouns limits God and alienates many women. It is an open an honest reflection on how seeking to understand God and scripture better brought him to a place of seeing how he needs to be careful about how he speaks of God. First, I want to thank Mark for being one of the first men I have encountered who not only thinks this way, but believes it is important enough to discuss. This is a huge issue for a lot of women and a significant issue regarding truth and idolatry (my thoughts on that here). I appreciate men being willing to acknowledge that and challenge taboos to actually discuss it.

But of course his post has stirred much controversy. There are those fearful that Youth Specialties will take a similar stance (to which my reply is – “what? actually be biblical?”). They claim that they (as youth pastors) would not be allowed to attend YS events if YS said that God isn’t strictly male. I personally find it depressing that a church would promote idolatry over unity or truth. Others there though claimed that if one doesn’t believe God is male then one therefore doesn’t believe the Bible is inerrant (which I think they are inappropriately using as a synonym for true). I was just fascinated by the whole thing. I’m used to this topic being taboo, I’m used to being told that it’s just easier to use male default language, I’m used to people being uncomfortable with including female metaphors in their God talk, but I haven’t heard such extreme “God has a penis” rhetoric in a long time. Do these people really think they are being biblical? (have they studied the Bible???) Do they just really hate women? Are they so narcissistic that God can only exist in their own image? I know those are harsh questions, but have they ever really thought about it?

I thought I’d ramble on here with my questions since I didn’t want to jump into the mess over there. I know this whole topic has been a journey for me, and I still often default to male pronouns for God. But I’m convinced that if I want to be respectful to God, this is an issue I can’t ignore. I don’t want to limit God by the smallness of my biases and God is constantly pushing me into a deeper relationship. I can’t go back now.

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Going Green

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One of the unexpected outcomes of having a complicated pregnancy and having to spend a lot of time waiting in doctors’ offices is that I have ample time to read a variety of magazines (at least the varieties that are to be found in the typical OB/GYN office). Well the April issues of all the home and garden, parenting, and cooking magazines just came out. Given that Easter is in March this year, I suppose that they all had to come up with some other trendy April event to focus the issue on. So in honor of Earth Day, I’ve read a good number of “going green” articles recently. And while these articles have been generally informative, they have also been highly amusing.

There is of course the home magazine that interpreted “going green” beyond environmental themes and had a whole section on incorporating green (as in the color) accents in your house. Cute. The fitness magazine that encouraged readers to buy an eco-sports bra – which of course was only “eco” because a tiny portion of the sale would be donated to some earth friendly cause. I’d really love to know how green (if at all) the production of said sports bra really was. My favorite was an article on “Growing Green Kids” that listed as its number one way to accomplish that as watching a nature movie with your kids so that kids will “develop empathy for the natural world.” Okay, I’m not opposed to watching movies but doesn’t that seem just a bit counter-intuitive? (to give the list credit, gardening made it as #4 on the list).

What struck me the most though were the underlying attitudes present in all of the magazines. Going green wasn’t necessarily about caring for the earth or for others – it was about helping you have a better life (which yes I know is kinda the premise behind most of those sorts of magazines, but still). The message was to say, eat organic for your own health. There were even lists provided as to which foods to buy organically and for which ones that “didn’t matter.” But of course the criteria for “didn’t matter” involved solely the amount of toxins you personally might be exposed to – ignoring anything to do with the amount the earth or the farmers might have been exposed to. Then there were the fashion articles on how to dress eco-friendly and still look trendy and cute (as mentioned above the definitions of eco-friendly varied widely). And it seemed like great lengths were taken to somehow fit what people already do into the idea of “going green.” For example do you know that you are eco-friendly if you shop at Walmart? They apparently provide space for plastic bags to be recycled, so therefore they must be eco-friendly (duh). The message I came away with is that I really don’t have to change much to care for the earth and that going green is just another way to feed my selfish tendencies. It was a bit depressing.

I know I really shouldn’t criticize, each magazine also provided some really good information. But some things just really make me wonder.

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