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How Osama bin Ladin Led Me to Anabaptism (Part 3 of 3)

Chris — June 20, 2011

You should catch up on Part One and Part Two.

These questions begged a much bigger one:

Could the Church be involved in politics at all?

Here we were, responding to a jihad by declaring a crusade. I began to wonder how any of the words that Jesus ever said, especially in key teachings of the Sermon on the Mount that could warrant even the most just war. Moreover, could a Christian even be an American (or a Brit or Afghani or Brazilian)? What if we went beyond politics to lifestyles? Could a Christian pursue the American dream? Buy products produced unethically? Eat food slaughtered violently or grown in a way that endangers the environment? Prize safety and good neighborhoods over proximity to the poor?

These are questions I still struggle with today. On one hand, I believe that there is value in cultural engagement. The church cannot abandon culture. Yet history and experience teach us that in our attempts at relevance, we quickly take up the morays of the culture, and become something much less than the Church.

The Anabaptist movement, for centuries, has stood for unpopular things. They were martyred for their belief that an adult chooses their faith, not their family or the State. Even today, their mennonite and amish and christoanarchist descendants fight against the constant creep of civic religion. During Vietnam, Mennonite Conscientious Objectors were sent to staff psychiatric hospitals. Their humanizing treatment of the mentally ill has led to many advances in patient care.

When I asked an mennonite preacher what their hermeneutic was, he responded “The Sermon on the Mount.” As a person wanting to live like Christ in the midst of the longest war in American history, their way of life just makes sense.

My dream is to be a part of a community shaped by the story and teachings of Christ. The Church does this both in spite of the world, and simultaneously for the world. This may mean abandoning the comfort and structures that America has to offer, and living as a stranger in one’s own land. It may be that this countercultural, underground radical community grounded in obedience to the teachings of Christ is the best hope of us, our churches, and our neighborhood. We can thank Osama bin Ladin for teaching us.

Part 3

In Church, Culture, God, Life anabaptist, Bin Ladin, Bush, Harding University, hauerwas, just war, mennonite, niebuhr, pacifism, Peace, War

How Osama bin Ladin Led Me to Anabaptism (Part 2 of 3)

Chris — June 13, 2011

I have never understood how the Church and the Republican Party became synonymous. The Religious Right was nothing new, but it seemed like the culture wars reached a new high during the 2000 election. I often felt alone when I tried to explain why I believe that single issue voting does not make you a better follower of Jesus. The blurred lines between pop-Christianity and the Bush administration, as well as the enormous flag greeting us every morning, the imminent wars produced a new message: Being a good Christian meant supporting your country in war.

This began to churn something inside me. I could see why understand dismantling Afghanistan, but chasing WMDs in Iraq was harder. It seemed that whenever such concerns being voiced, it resulted in one’s patriotism, and likewise their faith, being called into question.

My graduate studies in theology began in the midst of the 2004 election. There were wars of two fronts. About the time John Kerry was being demonized for his participation in anti-war protests, I was taking an ethics class.

We read Reinhold Neibuhr, the father of modern Just War theory. Then we read Stanley Hauerwas’ The Peaceable Kingdom. For the first time I encountered a way of being the church, in the midst of a war torn world, that seemed completely in line with the way of Jesus.

This wasn’t about individual morality or proper ecclesiological structure. It was a vision that

the church existed to stand with, and alongside the lost world,

as an inviting example

of what the universe would look like when the Kingdom of God was complete.

This was a different way to answer the questions that had flared up since bin Ladin had interrupted our lives. What if, instead of railing against the prevailing culture, we lived lives that showed how it was lacking? We could respond to abortion by setting an example in adoption. We could respond to marriage and sexuality discussions by working on our own marriages and standing in contrast to the American divorce epidemic. We could respond to violence by addressing the root issues of hatred and inequity.

This question begged a much bigger one:

Could the Church be involved in politics at all?

In Church, Culture, God, Life anabaptist, Bin Ladin, Bush, Harding University, hauerwas, just war, mennonite, niebuhr, pacifism, Peace, theology, War

How Osama bin Ladin Led Me to Anabaptism (Part 1 of 3)

Chris — June 8, 2011

(Because of the declarative and perhaps even controversial nature of this post, I’ve sat on it for a few weeks. I hope you’ll read it in its entirety, and in it’s spirit of seeking how Christ-followers are to live in a time of war.)

In the midst of the news of the death of bin Ladin was the story of the reactions of the millennials. Across the country, college students who have never known anything but an America at war with a shadowy religious army exploded into celebration.

My parents, surprised by the stories of young people taking to the streets in celebration, asked if bin Ladin’s death meant anything to me. I was a sophomore at at my small Christian college, on my way to chapel, when I overheard people talking about the first tower falling. I hadn’t really thought about the question. So, after a long pause, I responded:

“Bin Ladin is why I’m an Anabaptist.”

Now to be fair, I’m probably jumping the gun in describing myself as an Anabaptist. I neither grew up in an Amish or Mennonite church, nor have I really wrestled with the writings of theologians like Yoder (it’s on my list, I promise.) However, I always have felt a sense of camaraderie with the anti-mustache peace lovers. The tradition I grew up in placed a high value on adult baptism, and even stood against the Civil War. I remember family members saying they would have rather gone to Canada before he than be drafted. So Third Way thinking has always been in my blood.

A day or so after September 11, a giant American flag was draped across the back wall of the stage of our chapel. Everyday, when we came to chapel for a time of worship, the flag filled most of our vision. It remained there for months to come, and made frequent appearances in the coming years.

Part 2

In Church, Culture, Life anabaptist, Bin Ladin, Bush, Harding University, mennonite, pacifism, Peace, War

Can Harding University Change?

Chris — March 8, 2011

This post is a follow up to one I posted yesterday Will Harding University Face Up to it’s True Sexual Dysfunction?

If Dr. Burks gave me an audience to discuss how to change Harding University, here are the suggestions I’d make.

1. Admit that Harding University Has Bought Into the Lies of the Culture. Harding’s mission statement say that it is committed to integration of faith, learning and living. However I experienced other commitments. Primarily, to a self preservation of a model of Christianity rooted in the Bible Belt of the 1950s. Students were expected to fit into cookie cutter molds, get married and climb the ladder, and make enough money to give back to Harding. Harding seemed more concerned with being a successful university that helping people become more like Christ.

2. Focus less on maintaining Church of Christ traditions, and more on helping people live like Jesus. So much energy was spent on having proper a cappella worship and keeping women off the stage. What if that energy was redirected into innovative ways of teaching students how to actually do the stuff Jesus said to do?

3. Create Opportunities for Students to Be Heard. The HU Queer press is the result of ignoring the sexual realities of Harding for decades. If Harding is going to continue to succeed as an institution, especially one in an era when a homemade blog can make national headlines, Harding must create public space for students voices to be heard.

Although my life and faith has changed drastically since I went to Harding, I know I would not be the person I am today had I not had those experiences. My prayer is that the school will realize the dangerous culture they have, repent, and learn a new way of being a Christian Institution.

In Church, Life College, dysfunction, Harding, Harding University, HU Queer Press

Will Harding University Face Up to it’s True Sexual Dysfunction?

Chris — March 7, 2011

Last week my Alma Mater caused a stir. Officially, the administration has responded gracefully and by the book. But behind the specter of homosexuality lies a deeper set of problems that have led to this most recent explosion.

A Harding professor once told our class a story about the school’s strict “NO DANCING” policy. A couple decided to get married over a break. With a deep desire to honor their commitment to the school, they asked the administration’s permission to dance at their reception. The request was denied.

So apparently, once you’re married, it’s okay to have sex, as long as you don’t dance.

I believe there is a mixed up sexual culture at Harding University. In making these statements, I am only sharing my own reflections based on four years of participation. Harding is where I met my dearest friends and learned much of what I practice today as a Christ-follower. It is because of my gratitude for the good things that I write this, hoping the school can continue to contribute to the mission of God.

The HU Queer Press is a result of a dysfunctional system which fails to address the reality of mankind’s broken sinful nature, and Jesus’s command to make disciples. The following is a short list of elements which contribute to the problem.

1. Southern Hospitality. When I moved from Denver, Colorado to Searcy, Arkansas I learned that the phrase “Bless Your Heart” actually means something much more sinister. Buried deep within the Bible Belt, Harding has bought into a culture where no one truly speaks their mind and everyone pretends to be okay.

2. Endless Pressure Toward Marriage. For many people, you go to Harding to get married. This is normal. You’ve got a bunch of teenagers in a rural town with nothing to do. It’s a green house. But there’s also the constant stories from staff about how they met at Harding and special couples Bible Classes. There’s the the campus swings (three swings and a ring!) and the ring ceremonies (ring by spring!), club functions (fifty minor dates!), etc. It’s an obsession.

3. An Underground Sexual Culture. Now the air has been cleared about the underground homosexual culture. But there is also an underground heterosexually dysfunctional culture. The combination of the pressure to get married with the guilt associated with premarital sex creates an entire culture whose purpose was to push virginity to it’s limits. Everybody participated in a little NCL, but who knows how many jumped into marriage out of sexual guilt? Would it be going to far ask how many abortions took place to maintain the air of chastity?

4. “Church of Christ” Style Exclusivism and Legalism. Some Churches of Christ are notorious for their lack of grace on certain “key issues” and an unofficial belief that everyone who disagrees is going to hell. The problem is, this means that if someone ever has any doubts or feelings of guilt, they have nowhere to address those realities.

These combined ingredients create a ticking time bomb. The pressure toward marriage inadvertently creates a sinful backlash. The legalism leaves no room for discussion. The southern hospitality makes you pretend that everything’s okay.

The end result is a bunch of kids who end up living more sinful lives, feeling guilty about it and not knowing where to discuss it. Harding has chosen to block the website, and Dr. Burks made a good case for why. But the question remains, how can Harding deal with the real problems?

Tomorrow, I’ll share my thoughts on how Harding could address these dysfunctions and focus on the mission of God.