More than half described Christians as anti-intellectual, judgmental, self-righteous, and bigoted. ~ Marcus Borg
I John 4
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love...12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us... 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
My spiritual and theological reading encompasses an eclectic range of material and interests. I like reading Marcus Borg, the noted liberal-progressive scholar, but equally value N. T. Wright, his more conservative friend and counterpart. Their dialogue on Jesus, The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions (1999) remains one of my favorite books and resources. I value the scholarly work of each and the spiritual insights of each. Whatever one's theological tendency, few of us can question that Borg is right when he talks about the assessment of Christians by many outside the Church; and for that matter, many within the Church. While committing ourselves, as I noted yesterday, to this Jesus, we haven't necessarily come across to many in our world as truly loving and caring. This is really unfortunate because I have found over my many years of ministry that the vast majority of Christians I know are seeking, as best they can, to be as Christlike as possible. The overriding issue for those who view us skeptically, I believe, is the sense that we are dogmatic, entrenched, comfortable and cozy, set in our ways, and greatly exclusive. There are countless stories and testimonies of those who have "been hurt by the Church." This isn't to say that every critique of us or every story about us is true. It is to say that we cannot deny that this community of faith known as the church of Jesus Christ can be all too narrow at times. Here in John 1, we find the essence of faithfulness to Christ...love. Everyday, self-giving, sincere, embracing love. Loving others whoever they are or whatever they are. Loving those who don't care at all about us. Loving those who've given up on us. Loving those who don't believe or who don't know what they believe. Loving those who can't wait to see the Christian faith give away to secularism. We are called, however difficult it is, to love! After all, we can't ignore this biblical truth...Whoever does not know love does not know God, because God is love! |
