The Modern Day Pharisee

2007-10-28T21:19:00.000-07:00

The New Testament is filled with commentaries on the Pharisees of the age. And, if you've been in the Church for awhile, you've probably heard the comparison of the old Pharisee to the modern "legalistic" Christian. Though, there is some truth to that comparison; the Pharisees, indeed, focused religiously on the law. However, the comparison, I believe, falls short in its expression of the realities of modern day Christianity. The modern day Pharisee is not the "legalistic" Christian, but, in fact, it is modern day Christianity as a whole.

Separation of the sacred and the profane has always been at the core of Christianity. And, I have no problems with that; it makes complete sense. But, it seems more and more that the modern Church has taken this separation to an extreme, and this extremity works to create a unique subculture that alienates all of those who do not belong.

This Christian subculture has developed into a seemingly hegemonic apparatus. With the rise of specialized products, such as Christian books, Christian music, Christian clothing, and so on, the gap between "Christians" and the "lost" begins to spread wider and wider apart. The advent of these subcultural artifacts has made it possible for Christians to never engage with the world outside of the "Christian" bubble. And, that, I feel, is what most modern "Christians" are stuck in.

The body gets so focused on the inward that it neglects the ones that are yenning for something much more than the secular can offer. The "Christian" community caters to itself with the production of inwardly focused products. It has been conditioned into us that once we decide to follow Jesus we must start listening to Christian music, reading Christian books, and attend Christian events. And, I refuse to accept that.

Jesus called us to go out. He did not call us to create an alienating subculture that neglects the ones who so desperately need Him. And, just like how the Pharisees in Jesus' time focused so much on themselves, the modern "Christian" so often neglects the lost due to their own inward focus.

The Dialectical Faith

2007-10-01T02:25:00.000-07:00

Life is all about conflict, conflict of ideas, perspectives, and it is these various conflicts in both the world and our personal lives that spur the initiation of progress. With no conflict, life will remain in a constant state of stagnation. Though the theory of dialectics applies mainly to history, it seems that the same thoughts concerning conflict and collision appear to be integral to the Christian faith as well. And, it is the lack of proper acknowledgment of the notion of conflict that stymies the growth of an organized institution, whether it is a church or fellowship. of Christianity.

Conflict, in fact, is at the heart of Christianity. The very ideas that are taught by Jesus collide with the beliefs of the world. However, through years and years of the institutionalization of the teachings of Jesus, the notion of conflict has seemingly been extracted. No longer do we strive for conflict with the secular, but we now strive for comfort. Essentially, a good majority of Christians assimilate themselves into the world. And, it is this act of assimilation that eliminates any possibility of progress.

Personally, I feel as if AACF has focused too much on the comfort rather than the conflict. And, with the elimination of conflict, there is the resultant loss of progress. And the cost of a loss of progress is the eradication of any sort growth. And, that pisses me off

Ugh. My thoughts aren't very coherent. It is late.

I Think Way Too Much

The Modern Day Pharisee

The Dialectical Faith