Creed of our times

The poem "Creed" by Steve Turner says it all... http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/creed/

Heaven, Hell and Hitler

Hell's Pizza have just taken down a billboard with a saluting picture of Hitler and the words "It is possible to make people believe Heaven is HELL (Adolf Hitler)." Apparently they removed it after a complaint by a Jewish group.

Where are the churches? They should all be up in arms about this and calling for a boycott on Hell's pizzas. Here we have a commercial company trying to make money by disparaging what we believe.

They should also be pointing to the bill board and saying "Hitler was right." Look at what has happened since Hitler ....

In the name of freedom the joy of sex in the arms of a life long spouse has been replaced by the gratuitous lust of strangers of any number, any gender, any age.

In the name of freedom thousands die before they are born

The right to hold an opinion has become the right to do what every one wants

The freedom to worship has sprouted malls and mega-stars

The joy of worshiping one's creator has been transformed into entertainment with a Christian label.

Information has obliterated wisdom

The image has displaced the word

The uniqueness of Christ is at best an embarrassment, at worse intolerant

In the name of diversity Allah, Buddah, Jesus, Hare Krishna and David Beckham are all considered equals.

It is a sin now to claim to know the truth for everything is relative

It is sinful to proclaim the truth, for thou shalt not be intolerant

Gluttony is no longer a sin, one has a right to over eat

Violence is a sickness, not an evil

Humans are resources, not neighbours

Values are private and morals can't be taught

One parent is as good as two

The right to own has displaced the responsibility to budget

"Because you deserve it," is believed

Children are only loaned by the State to the parents

and the Church charged with proclaiming to the world "here is the light" has switched off the power and is huddled in a corner playing charades hoping the world will go away and let them be.

Orangutan And Grim Reaper Protest Outside ANZ

The Green party have just posted a press release entitled "Orangutan And Grim Reaper Protest Outside ANZ"

Does that make them a "deadly bunch of chimps?"

Seriously - good on people for taking a stand on what they believe. Unfortunately, this kind of protest by a political party makes it less credible to working in parliament (can you imagine a Green member as minister of Finance when they are trying to publicly humiliate banks?).

It is right and proper for groups to "have their say." Political parties, though, should have their say in parliament and be engaging in dialog with the public.

Choices

If you choose to serve you can help people clean up themselves and the mess when stuff happens or you can choose to improve the sanitation system. Of course, most people choose to do nothing, be nothing, and expect everything.

God, sort us out, but please be merciful.

Sharing God's Anger

I've been reading Deuteronomy and Joshua lately. The violence with which Israel entered the promised land is sickening - I've a real hard time understanding it. One thing, though, is obvious and that is God's abhorrence of false religions and what they may do to his people. The practices of the people of the land Israel is to enter are detestable to God (Deut 18:9-13) and destruction is the price to pay for becoming corrupted and following other gods and worshiping them. The story of Aachen in Joshua 7 makes the telling point that the failure of one to obey God's injunctions can lead to all of Israel having sinned with disastrous consequences.

For me, as a Father, this raises the question once more .... what do I bring into my house that may be abominable to God and a threat to my family? I'm not necessarily talking about obvious things such as a different religion or some immoral practices, but ideas like striving for wealth without fulfilling obligations to the poor and the sick and the widowed, or a "live and let live" attitude about unbelieving neighbours.

Similarly, what have I and my church let in? Have we corrupted the gospel by allowing the form in which it is presented to convey an additional message that this form of behaviour outside of the church is OK. I'm thinking here that with the attempt to reach youth we have sometimes adopted the outward trappings of youth culture to the extent that the form dominates the message. Alternatively, we may have compromised on the uniqueness of the gospel because we fear losing the respect of friends.

When I read at just how strongly God abhors this kind of syncretism I am compelled to inspect my own life to ensure that I am not an offender.

Simply Christian: Tom Wright.

Simply Christian
Tom Wright
SPCK 2006

This book has been touted as the most thrilling attempt to re-express the heart of the Christian faith since CS Lewis's Mere Christianity. I can't say I was thrilled, I was certainly fascinated. The difficulty for Tom Wright is that the audience is much more diverse in their presuppositions and attitudes than it was when Lewis wrote. I got the feeling that the book is such that few would follow and nod in agreement with all the premises and arguments throughout. However, there is much that would ring bells for many. The difficulty is, in an age of image and sound bite, would they persevere through the parts of the book that seem somehow foreign to them.

In Part I Wright looks to connect with his audience through what he calls "Echoes of a voice." In an age where traditional concepts of sin, salvation, authority of the bible are but echoes of a bygone era, I think Wright does very well to find what I call a "point of engagement" with his audience. These are, simply: A shared passion for justice, a hidden spring of spirituality, an ache for right relationships, and an appreciation of beauty. Through each of these he paints a picture of seeing what is right, but having it so often slip through our fingers - justice not given in full, beauty marred by carelessness or greed. Both his points of engagement and the development of his argument are worth of study and imitation. The proof will be if they lead to a more in depth look at the claims of Christianity.

Wright goes on to place today's beliefs and believers in historical context. This is refreshing to see as so often the gospel has been presented out of context of God's story. He also introduces three options which he continually refers to as options 1, 2, and 3 as a way to avoid mentioning "isms" too much. I wish he'd come up with some more descriptive labels, though he is right to avoid the more academic, thought meaningless to most, pan(en)theism and deism labels. Perhaps "All God", "Distant God", and "Engaged God" would have served his purpose better.

This book is likely to be of benefit to many Christians who are lacking in seeking their faith in relationship with other faiths and with history. It is less likely to be understandable by the non-Christian unless they have some prior understanding of Christianity and the Christian language (despite Wright's efforts to minimize these). As such it will serve a very good purpose for many, but it is unlikely to be revelationary for the masses.

Mainly Music and much much more

I was thrilled on Sunday to hear and read a little more about an initiative in our church called "Mainly Music" that involved an hour or so during the week where parents and children can gather for music, stories, and a chat. I have witnessed many similar initiatives before that are aimed to reach out to certain sectors of the community. Many of them are very worthwhile, but given the way they are set up and portrayed I believe they should not be functions of the church. I say this, because they fail to identify who they are and what they do with the fundamental message of the gospel - the unique salvation available to all through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

What impressed me about Mainly Music (other than the enthusiasm and competence of those involved) was that it was deliberately "Jesus with skin on" with the intention for people to connect to the local church. Furthermore, it was using methods and points of contact appropriate and meaningful to the people being reached out to.

"Jesus with skin on" is an interesting concept. I like it more than "What would Jesus do" because that tends to turn Jesus into some kind of superhero to be mimicked. "Jesus with skin on" seems to me to strike an important note - namely that we are not merely the representatives of Jesus Christ on earth, but that his Spirit lives in us - not merely for our own sake, but for the sake off all. When Jesus prays for us (John 17:20ff) it is for us to be in the Godhead so that the world may believe. This being only possible through the gift of the Spirit and only properly shown in our lives by our mission focus.

In the material I read on Mainly Music it spoke of speaking about God. In the past I have heard the argument that all we need to do is to "act Christianly" and it will attract people to the church. Unfortunately, this is a failed method in this country and it is a little naive. It also, is a little lazy. Biblically, the gospel is always communicated by words and demonstrated by actions. There can not be one without the other. I commend the Mainly Music team for recognizing this.

I believe that churches need to be very careful to test their ministries to see that they have a mission focus. Everything that the church does - from its fund raising, to its ministries to the bereaved, ill, young, parents etc MUST be focussed on conveying the gospel - not just parts of it, all of it. Necessarily they must contain an element of spoken word about Jesus Christ. I recognise that for many Christians the "speaking part" is harder to do than the "service part" - it is up to churches everywhere to equip their members to do the speaking part.

Aims of mainly music

• To ensure that all those who attend mainly music hear a clear, concise, loving and balanced Gospel message
• To nurture parents by giving them practical support, encouraging the parent/child bond through our music time and providing an environment of networking for parents

Mainly Music's web site: http://www.mainlymusic.org.nz/

"Stop the violence" and other bad tactics

The problem: Children abused

The current trendy solutions: (1) stand still and keep quiet for two minutes
(2) send an email asking people to sign a petition to say "stop the violence" (all the more effective if there are some gruesome autopsy photos)

My take: Pathetic. This is like the story of the good samaritan. The people who do 1 or 2 are like those that walked past the hurt man and went "tut tut" took a photo on their cell phone to share with friends who also say "how awful."

Who are the emails for? What will silence achieve?

There isn't a politician (local or national) who doesn't want to stop the violence - so the message can't be for them. If you are convinced that there are things politicians should be doing then go and see your local MP and/or join a party and give some practical input.

Is the message for those who commit the violence? Possibly, yet they have plenty of evidence already that society doesn't like what they do.

The real answers are community based and attitudinal. Neighbours have to be nosy. More than that, they have to care - care enough to befriend a young couple and show them how to parent. The people signing these positions need to get off their butts and dig into their pockets. There are numerous groups calling out for volunteers and money so that they are able to provide the support and training for those families most at risk. Samaritans act.

(ps anyone sending those autopsy photos should be ashamed)