Beware: not a funny blog. boring, actually, but for a small section, perhaps interesting.
Most of my Christian life I have been afraid of “L”
It is similar to when I was in grade school, and more than anything I did not want to be a sissy. I don’t think a worse epithet could be hurled at me. So great was my fear that I not only did all I could to avoid that label, but I of course avoided those who were identified as sissies. But what exactly is a sissy?
When I first became a Christ follower in high school, the only Christians I knew were very conservative evangelicals. I am really grateful for the bible training I received, but the constant fear of “L” is a lingering effect. The threat of “L” is still a weapon used today, and the ramifications can be painful.
Liberal was the worst category of people, for they were bright, educated, and wrong. To be liberal was wrong in moral or willful ways, not simply ideology. While in Bible College and seminary I was taught it was the greatest threat to the cause of Christ and the kingdom of God. But what exactly is liberal?
I understand that politically some who would prefer to see a more equitable distribution of wealth via government action are liberals. But by any definition they are the enemies of conservatives. I have always been on the conservative team, and thus my enemies were liberals.
Here is what happens then in real life: I am confronted with an issue regarding politics, sex, money, heaven, etc. Responding was never really very difficult because I used to know exactly what my team thought. I could give a “right” answer, and I knew it was right because it was agreed to by all my friends and it was conservative. Ah, so comforting. But what happens if you start to think a thought that you know is not conservative? (think, what happens if I cry on the playground?)
Fear. Fear that my conservative friends will think I am liberal. And then I won’t have any friends.
I am in new phase of life, where I want to think thoughts that scare me, and might not be conservative. But I am afraid I will be without friends. Long story, old message. We all want friends, and that desire clouds much of what we do. I miss the clarity. It was so much easier. I don’t really want to have to make all new friends. Can it be okay to have a just a little bit of L? I can already hear the voices “it’s a slippery slope…”
Or maybe I just need new friends?
that’s the line i’ve heard the most in the past couple of years from my conservative friends…that’s a slippery slop, marty. but, i’ve found the friends i want to have are those who won’t put me in a slippery slope box or any box for that matter. so, you have at least one friend and i promise not to make you cry on the playground. marty
I’m just back from a weekend in the bastion of conservatism, where anything that leans towards L just can’t be right! (Do what you will with the pun). Where anyone who thinks outside of conservative lines surely has an integrity issue.
I’m pushing the boundaries these days too, and I am thinking some thoughts that aren’t so conservative now.
I think we all need a little bit of L, and I think (and hope) we’ll always have a gaggle of us on the playground!
good post, karl! i think i slipped off the slope a while ago & even though sometimes it feels like we’re in a free fall i know somehow we’re not. some of these questions are so worth asking & have brought me closer to the heart of Jesus & his ways and further and further from theo-political-mumble-jumble (do you like my new word?). jose calls it the company koolaid. i got tired of drinking it. anyway, you can count on us to be your friends on the playground but just warning you (well it’s not like you don’t already know!) we used to be cool but now we have naughty-christian cooties & they might rub off.
A slippery slope indeed. But is that a bad thing? The most difficult part of conservativism (is that a word?) is the absolute nature of the answers. There really can be no unanswered questions, because if there is then there is a belief that the whole house of cards crumbles. But I don’t think that’s true. I am discovering that the true beauty lies in the questions, especially the unanswered ones. Those are the ones that spark deeper thought and creativity.
Unfortunately though, it can be irritating, because there is no end of the road, no exact answer. At least, I’m hoping, not until we die and get to be in the presence of God. Boy that’s a little depressing. Or is it hopeful? Either way, I’d rather take life with understanding friends than ’slippery slope’ ones. Jose
Thank God for you, Karl! Thanks for your honesty becuase it allows all of us secret “L”s to be honest and open too (why do i feel like i’m coming out of the closet suddenly?) I slipped down the slope when I attended this church in Thornton, and learned that they believe its Biblically unallowable for a woman to be a pastor or elder. Why should I care? I was raised as a “C” by my parents and they were always right! But something about this seemed wrong to me after meeting people like Kathy and other women leaders who I know God put in leadership! After researching the issue myself I have determined God has more important things on his mind than worrying about the gender of who is getting ordained these days…
The conclusion I constantly come back to is realizing that neither side is always right. And often the answers lie somewhere in the middle, if there even is an answer. I think our badge of honor as “L” christians is not in loving all those people the conservatives hate - that’s the easy part. The challenge is in loving on the conservatives themselves, showing them what they are missing, rather than continuing a cycle of hate. =) Meg
Hi Karl:
Glad to read of your honest wrestling with L. I too once wrestled with L, though at the time was too scared to talk about it. So bravo to you for bravery.
The thing that got me when I felt the ground beneath me getting slippery was the devotion and love of my L. Christian friends. They spent an hour a day in prayer. They rode bikes as a spiritual discipline to stand for non-violence and compassion. I found a whole gaggle of them that worshiped together. They were really L. —Calling God she, and dancing around the altar and protesting the death penalty in front of the governor’s mansion. Wild. It was their sense of humor and deep love for one another as well as the way that they stood for the marginalized that made me see the light of Christ shining through them.
And before I knew it I was dancing and laughing and worshiping God right along with them.
I did loose some friends. But I found new ones who were much much more fun.
It is a slippery slope. But maybe that’s not bad. It is like falling into a whirlpool But when I emerged from the whirlpool I was in a new land. The whirlpool had taken me somewhere I wouldn’t have gone on my own. What I found was that God makes whirlpools. And no matter how far down or away I went, God had already gone there and met me when I arrived.
My own fear of Liberals was just one more of the “monsters,” one more way to shore myself up from ever asking too many questions, from ever looking inward too much.
The writer, Annie Dillard has a brilliant quote in Teaching a Stone to Talk, that comes to mind. You could even replace “psychology” below in the quote with “conservative Christian teaching” and monsters with “liberals.”
“In the deeps are the violence and terror of which psychology has warned us. But if
you ride these monsters deeper down, if you drop with them farther over the world’s rim,
you find what our sciences cannot locate or name, the substrate, the ocean or matrix or
either which buoys the rest, which gives goodness its power for good, and evil its power
for evil, the unified field: our complex and inexplicable caring for each other, and for our
life together here. This is given it is not learned.”
Count me in as a new friend.
Blessings,
Carol in Tucson
marty- thanks for not making me cry! you are the best, and i know you have “L” friends!
amy- welcome home from the bastion, is that by any chance the plural of bastard? see ya on the playground
kathy and jose- that explains everything, the cooties, especially the “the rash which cannot be scratched in public” and as i hope you both know, your friendship means the world to me, sissy or not…
meagan- no, you the pookie! i do so love your heart and passion and i am glad you are not listening to those who say you cannot be the person God has made…
carol- we do have similar paths, and your kindness and perspective is so helpful! lots of love to you both!
It is too bad that C has turned into such an exercise in robotic groupthink. It is a recent (15 year old) phenomenon, but those of us who are under it’s shadow (L or C) can’t help but be influenced by it.
Here is a two paragraph review by Wade Burleson, SBC pastor from Oklahoma, on John Dean’s (remember the Nixon administration?) book ‘Conservatives without a conscience’. which just nails it. -
“John Dean’s thesis is his book Conservatives Without a Conscience is that since the early 1990’s an authoritarian conservatism has infiltrated American politics. Rather than maximizing freedom, authoritarians demand conformity in all nuances of ideology. When fellow conservatives refuse to tow the line, the authoritians go into ‘attack’ mode and will use all means, both foul and fair, to bring down ‘the enemy.’ These authoritian conservatives are so sure that they are not only right, but holy and pure, that they are bursting with indignation and a desire to smite down their enemies.
Dean says that conservatives hyperventilating about liberalism is surprising, because it is so unnecessary. Liberalism is a straw man conservatives love to attack, in fact, there are not enough liberals to be a true threat to conservatism. A recent Harris Poll found that only eighteen percent of Americans called themselves liberals. In truth, says Dean, conservatives attack liberals, or those they label or perceive as liberal as a means to rally the troops. The exaggerated hostility also apparantly satisfies a psychological need for antagonism toward the ‘out group.’ “
Personally, I think that authoritarian C’s are practicing religious syncretism by smashing “greed is good” capitalism and “prosperity” consumerism into the faith, as well as absolute loyalty tests to ideology and authority of man, not to Jesus the Messiah.
I’ve got your back on the playground, Karl.
Sage H
Karl-
100 years ago if you believed that the country should provide your children with an education, you were liberal. If you believed that the government should have a pension for its elderly, you were liberal. Today they are taken for granite.
What it comes down to is are you a classic liberal, or a “new liberal”. when it comes down to free education etcetera I think most of us are classic liberals.
Keep in mind that whatever debate “L” or “C” is conditioned by the current time that the discussion is in. You can be a liberal and still be a Christian (ahh, I just spoke heresy!!)(LOL)
If you believe in Jesus, believe his commandments, let him guide you and condition your thoughts you might be a liberal because people do not understand you. They are quick to label what the do not understand. Emergents are still getting that tag even though we have provided much to consider to the church. 50 years from now Emergents could be the new “C” class and a whole new issue will arise and we will be calling them the “L”s.
I just knew I’d find something helpful on this blog! I just read a response to a comment I left on my pastor’s blog…a comment from a fellow reader “warning” me about Brian McLaren. Here it is:
Doug:
Denise and I enjoy talking after services about what we heard. You are absolutely right. There are a ton of people out there who fill their heads with Biblical knowledge, but do not apply it. There are scholars who can wax eloquently about the verses in the Bible, explain the contextual origins, and quote things word for word, and yet have no charity, no repentance, and no action. Excellent call.
At the same time, what we often do not talk about are people who focus on action, warmth, and the experience in Christ, but lack foundational scriptural knowledge. I spoke with a young girl last week, for instance, who was convinced that she had the gift of tongues. I asked her if she compared her experiences with what the Word of God had to say about tongues. She asked, “Why would I need to do that?” I explained that just like a pilot that cannot rely on feelings to navigate an airplane, we need our own instrumentation through the Bible.
Both of these have to be in harmony for a Christian to be truly following the Will of God. Great preaching.
Erin:
It is great to see someone with the zeal you have in our church. I know that my wife would like to be in a women’s group to learn more about the Bible, and good leaders like you, who are willing to step forward, are always needed.
As an aside, I recommend against books like The Secret Message of Jesus by Brian McLaren. He is a false teacher of Christianity, and his messages, although sounding good, are scripturally devoid. You can look up his quotes on our faith, where he calls the cross, “A cosmic form of child abuse,” and denies the literal existence of Hell as proof of that.
God Bless.
–
Christian
Yes, that is his name: Christian.
Sighhhhhh. I have been feeling liberal lately. But then I gasp and think, no surely not! I must be radical, not liberal. But what the heck is the difference? Why are people so mad at Brian McLaren? Are they scared? I’m so confused!
thanks erin, of course it is fear, but not fear of God, it the fear refection!
so sad, we continue the cycle of in and out, our team vs them…
karl
I remember my husband & myself driving into the parking lot of the church we used to attend & automaticly turning the radio down, lest someone hear our less than conservative choice in music. The irony is they didn’t even have to tell me they wouldn’t approve, I just instinctively knew! What a “fearful” liar I was! I hate labels, liberal, conservative, moderate, religious, etc… Do I beleive there is rock solid, unwavering Truth? You bet your sweet patootie! But there is also a LOT of gray areas. God is so amazing, nothing He does is w/out purpose or meaning. Without the gray areas there would be no need “NOT” to judge, to do unto others or to stop focusing on things that don’t really matter & start focusing on Him & the things that do! The Holy Spirit would also have a lot less to do…