Okay, okay

So I was probably a little hard on Burke. You know it's difficult for me to abide people who have no respect for our rituals. I feel like they just don't get it.

Anyway, so far nothing Burke is saying is all that original. Barth talked about chucking religions, and Lewis talked about opting out of grace (rather than it being an opt-in situation).

But what bothers and frightens me is this new hostility to the church. I've seen it also in the people from the church plant. It's this rejection of everything, and it's quite easy to lump in ritual and dump it without realizing what you've lost. Or worse, bring it back in little pieces that don't relate or have meaning or power because they're out of context and divorced from history.

I don't like it. Sure, lots of churches are messed up. I grew up in a particularly sick one. But I didn't leave the religion altogether - I found a well one. Several, actually, and even my old sick one seems better nowadays. If the church isn't working for you, there might be something wrong with that particular community or there might be something wrong with you. I don't like how the first thing is to say we need a whole new kind of Christian that's not stuck in the mire of cultus. No, no, no, why can't we trust that God works in the church - it's his body after all, his presence on earth - and figure out where things are going right and encourage that rather than leave altogether?

I know, I am sounding more and more Catholic. Salvation only found in the church. Only I'm not really talking about salvation...except in the sense of it being reconciliation and intimacy with God which yes, I do believe is found most successfully in community (primiarly, but not exclusively, Christian community).

The thing that I think Burke is missing is that ritual is something that young people love. It's by no means a deterrent to their faith. In fact, many would chuck out the deeds and beliefs and keep the pure aesthetic performance. And you know, I feel like those rituals - especially of course the sacraments - have power in them that will work to transform despite the intentions of those performing them (all - leaders and otherwise). There I go with the Catholicism again.

Anyway, let's just lose the misconception that so many boomers are laboring under that young people are turned off by rituals and church services and prayer and even, yes, propositional truth. In fact, you know, I think these movements out of the churches are just today's seeker sensitive approach. They think they have to water Christianity down, this time not into a snazzy worship service but instead into the deeds and words of the good teacher Jesus. Jesus is no longer Christus Victor who is celebrated at Eucharist, but rather a nice man who healed and fed and taught, so we go out and do likewise.

And we miss, in the process, so much of what our transformational journey is about.

In my research for the universalism paper, I've found a really wonderful book written by two Quaker pastors. It says a lot of the same stuff as Burke, BUT they are not abandoning the church, and they approach the questions Burke raises with grace and humility rather than the rather shock-jock, sensationalist attitude the self-proclaimed (and proud) heretic offers. They advocate universalism, but they present it as very good news and maintain the urgency of spreading the gospel (something that many critics claim is impossible for universalists). Burke falls back on Lewis's ideas about it being possible to reject grace, and that's fine. These pastors don't believe it's possible forever, though, and their book is about why that is.

The book is more pop than scholarly and relies heavily on personal experience and stories. But it's beautifully written and speaks well of what's been on my heart in regards to this whole issue. So no more suspense: it's called If Grace is True: Why God Will Save Every Person and it's by Phillip Gulley and James Mulholland. I highly strongly deeply recommend it.