An Outdoor God

I prayed at the opening ceremony of the Sandwich Fair today. It is the 100th anniversary of this traditional country fair in New Hampshire. The early morning ceremony was held at a flagpole on a windswept hill. As I write these words, I still feel the chill of the brisk breeze on my face.  The flag was raised, the anthem was sung, the pledge was made, and a prayer was offered.

I like public prayers. It is the closest I come these days to open-air preaching. I had the opportunity to do some real outdoor preaching this summer. I proclaimed the gospel from a rocky pulpit that had been regularly used for outdoor services two hundred years ago. I can’t wait to do it again.

There was a time in this country when it was common to hear a preacher voice words to, and about God, in the open air. Circuit riders and traveling evangelists would hold camp meetings and tent revivals that would go on for days or weeks. Street preachers would take their stand on the town common and draw a crowd. Now you need a permit.

I was baptized by immersion at an outdoor service at the mouth of a river that opened into the Atlantic. The parson preached a short sermon to gawking sunbathers and swimmers, and then ceremonially dunked me into the cold water. Maybe that is the reason for my nostalgia.

The days of outdoor worship are mostly gone – except for carefully orchestrated and ticketed stadium affairs. In my last parish I insisted on having at least one outdoor worship service each year, but that is all I could muster the support for.

Nowadays God is kept safely within thermostat-controlled boxes. The God preached in these comfortable structures is comfortable as well – a designer deity accommodated to the tastes of those who prefer padded pews.

The God preached these days is a tame divinity – tolerant and accepting, gentle and mild, multi-cultural and ecumenical. He is nothing like the fearsome jealous Jehovah of biblical times. The Father God of Jesus had rough edges. Christ’s parables were not comfortable Aesopic fables.

But the rough-hewn gospel is gone, replaced by a message of self-esteem and family values. The contemporary God of both liberal and evangelical Christianity is definitely an indoor deity.

No wonder the churches are emptying! The God of Churchianity is boring. Where is the excitement and danger? The Bible is an extreme book. The pages are filled with real people living sinfully and confronting a holy God. The Bible is scary and exciting, confusing and awesome (in the original sense of that word.)

The Hebraic God of the Bible is an outdoor God. He is a God of the desert and the wilderness. He is the God of fiery mountain and the parting sea, thunder and smoke. Moses never preached indoors. Jesus was kicked out of the synagogues and took to preaching on mountainsides and from boats.

The Scriptural God could not stand closed places. He scolded David for wanting to confine him to a temple. Likewise the theological descriptions of God in the Bible are wild and unpredictable. He is not a God of systematic theology, much less politically correct ideology.

He cannot be packaged and marketed. He is the God of nomads, pilgrims and prophets. Now we have settled pastors with $100 haircuts preaching on multi-million dollar campuses. What would John the Baptist think?
_____________
Photo is sunrise at Mount Sinai

Unmasked

I opened my Bible at random today, and it fell open to these words: “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.” Hypocrisy is one of the sins that Jesus was most adamantly opposed to. Nothing could get Jesus so riled up as the hypocrisy of religious folks.

The word “hypocrisy” is a word picture that depicts a person wearing a mask. It is wearisome to think about all the masks that we wear. I don’t need to describe them all. You know them. You are wearing one now, and you will wear a different one in a few minutes when you do something different with different people.

When Christian theology speaks of the triune God as three “persons,” the word is “persona,” which means “mask.” God wears masks. Joseph Campbell wrote a series of books on the mythology of the world called “The Masks of God.”

We wear masks and worship a God who wears masks. The spiritual life is the process of unmasking - revealing who we are and who God is. The Biblical word for this is revelation, which means “unveiling.”

We peel away masks like chefs peeling onions. The more we do it, the smellier it gets, and the more we cry. When we get to the center of it all, there is nothing. Yet that is the substance of it all.

The Bible opens, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep.” That is what is at the center. Buddhists call it sunyata, or emptiness. But it is full emptiness.

It is the full emptiness of a seed. In every seed there is the plant. Yet when you open the seed, you find nothing. In that nothing is the potential for the plant. In the emptiness of the human soul is the seed of the human being. That is what we find behind the masks.

In the Genesis account God spoke into emptiness, and universe began. Out of nothing – ex nihilo – came everything. When we unmask ourselves, we return to that primordial beginning. When we unmask God, we find the Source. Behind the masks, we find ourselves hiding from ourselves, hiding from God.
_________________
Painting is “Sad Masks” by Lidia Simeonova

The Second Coming of John Lennon

This Saturday would have been John Lennon’s 70th birthday. His widow Yoko Ono was recently asked by the Associated Press, “One hundred years from now, what do you want people to know about John Lennon?”

She replied, “First of all, I'm not sure if I'm not going to be there. Things are changing in this world so much, and it might be like we're all going to live as long as we want to. And also John might come back. We don't know anything. So I'm not going to answer that question.”

John might come back?! What? How? When? In what form? A resurrected Lennon? Lennon coming in the sky with diamonds? It brings to mind Lennon’s famous quip that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus. Now Lennon’s widow is trying to make her dead husband into Jesus.

It is more likely she is thinking about cloning John. But who knows? She did not want to elaborate. But she clearly has been giving it some thought. 

Lennon’s famous humanist anthem “Imagine” was based on one of Yoko’s poems. It clearly sketched their beliefs: no religion, no countries, no possessions. No heaven, no hell – no afterlife. Imagine there’s no Lennon.

So I think it likely that she is planning to undergo some gene therapy that allows her to live forever. She probably also has in mind some “Jurassic Park” type of experiment using her husband’s DNA that will return the extinct Beatle to earth.

In any case, it sounds like Yoko has the all-too-human tendency to deny the reality of death – both hers and her husband’s. It is a natural instinct. Some think it is the impetus behind all religion.

I think it is eternity in our hearts. Three thousand years ago, Solomon wrote, “Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end.”

There is an instinct for eternity in human beings. Scientists have recently labeled it “the God gene.” If denied the normal religious channels of expression, it will find other ways to make its presence known. I call it the natural revelation of God in the human soul.

According to the Bible, John Lennon is coming back. All of us are. Physical death is not the end. It is called Resurrection Day. “The dead shall be raised.” What that means is anybody’s guess. Yoko dreams of being reunited with her deceased loved one. She’s a dreamer; but she’s not the only one.
________
Photo is the John Lennon Imagine Memorial in Central Park.

Faith and Being

I enjoy Public Radio’s “Speaking of Faith with Krista Tippett.” This summer the name of the show changed to “Krista Tippett on Being.” The name change from Faith to Being reflects a change in the cultural discussion of spirituality.

In our society the cultural change began with the “spiritual but not religious” phenomenon, composed of those who had abandoned “organized religion” and the “institutional church” but still felt a spiritual longing.

But that adolescent rebellion against religious authority has run its course. In its place is a form of spirituality that transcends the normal categories of religion or spirituality.  It bridges atheism and theism; it connects science and faith.

While many churches and denominations are still fighting the old battles of evolution versus creation, people have moved on to the spirituality of science. While aging congregations are still fighting the “worship wars” of contemporary music versus traditional hymns, young emergent congregations are reenvisioning spiritual community.

While baby-boomers are still building “big box” churches and chasing the idols of bigger buildings and bigger crowds, people tired of warehouse religion are thinking outside the box.  Outside the box of religion and spirituality is Being.

I love the word Being. I have loved it ever since I first read Paul Tillich’s Christian philosophy back in the 1960’s. Being is bigger than Faith. It does not exclude faith; it envelops faith. Before there was faith, there was Being. After there is faith, there is Being. During life there is faith and Being; after death there is Being. 

After I die, I will no longer have faith in God. I will be in the Presence of God. In heaven there is no faith; there is no need for faith where there is sight. As the apostle says, “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”

But we also participate in Being now… by faith. Our present experience of the God who is Being is partial. There are glimpses, episodes, and experiences of Being. There is even an underlying awareness of the constant presence of Being.

But my attention wanders from Being into existence. I live between two worlds. But in truth there is only one world – the world of Being – of which existence is a shadow cast into time and space.

But until that day when there is no shadow (because there is no sun) we live in the shadowlands of faith. Conscious of Being, we exist by faith. Faith and Being walk hand in hand until the day dawns.
_________________
Image is a cartoon by Saul Steinberg, included in the original edition of the book “My Search for Absolutes” by Paul Tillich.

Older Than God

I am filled with awe these days. Maybe it is colors of the autumn season, but that is not the way I usually respond to fall. I normally begin to settle into a mild case of Seasonal Affective Disorder this time of year. Now I am being affected positively.

Maybe it is the new grandson I have, and the joy of seeing him each day. Maybe it is the daily renewal of old friendships here in New Hampshire. Maybe it is because I have been preaching again recently.

It can’t be the spiritual reading I am doing. I have been reading books by atheists these days, but even they seem to be inspiring holy awe in me. How is that possible?

If I had to name it, I would say that I am experiencing Mystery. I am in increasing awe of the complexity and the beauty of God’s creation. There is a sacredness and holiness in life that speaks directly to my spirit. It is as if the depths of Creation speak to the depths of my soul.

I am connected in a way that cannot be denied or ignored. It is eternal and permanent. It is the Ground that underlies everything. It feels deeper and older than God.

Older than God? What am I saying? How can there be anything older than God? My Christian theology rebels at such a concept. It is impossible. There can be nothing older than God; I know that. It is just older than the human concept of God.

My soul knows that this connectedness is older than me. It is older than humankind. Billions of years before a creature known as Homo sapiens sapiens walked the earth, this Sacred Ground was. I think this was what the prophet Daniel called the Ancient of Days.

Man peered into the sacred depths and saw God. But what he looked into was older than what he saw therein. It is like the woman who saw a picture of Jesus in a grilled cheese sandwich. The image is in the eye of the beholder. The image of God is in the eye of the worshipper. The true God is older than the imaged God.

Seven hundred years ago Christian theologian Meister Eckhart called this the “God beyond God.” He wrote: “God is ‘No-thing’ – but rather the Being that undergirds all reality – and we must become no-thing to be one with God.”

Twenty five hundred years ago Lao Tzu said, “It is hidden but always present. I don't know who gave birth to it. It is older than God.” That sounds about right. But in the end it doesn’t matter if I understand what I am experiencing. Understanding is overrated. It is more important that I am aware … and awed.
_______________________
Image is The Ancient of Days, Watercolor etching by William Blake (1794)

Presidential Faith

On Tuesday, September 28, in a backyard in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a teacher’s assistant asked President Obama, “Why are you a Christian?” His response (Click here to watch the video) is the most articulate and clear response he has made so far on the controversial topic of his faith.

First he answered, “I’m a Christian by choice. My family didn’t -- frankly, they weren’t folks who went to church every week.  And my mother was one of the most spiritual people I knew, but she didn’t raise me in the church. So I came to my Christian faith later in life.”

Being a Christian is a choice. It is not something you are born into. Obama was not “born a Muslim” as Franklin Graham said. He was born into a home where his father was a non-practicing Muslim and his mother a non-practicing Christian. But Obama chose Jesus Christ. That makes him a Christian, even by evangelical standards.

He even got the Christian understanding of salvation right. He explained, “And I think also understanding that Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility we all have to have as human beings, that we’re sinful and we’re flawed and we make mistakes, and that we achieve salvation through the grace of God.” Salvation is by grace. That is the Christian gospel, and the president clearly believes that. 

Obama did not use the opportunity to proselytize, but he did say, “But what we can do, as flawed as we are, is still see God in other people and do our best to help them find their own grace.” Not too bad. That is more than most churchgoers do.

When it comes to other people’s faith, Obama says, “Part of the bedrock strength of this country is that it embraces people of many faiths and of no faith -- that this is a country that is still predominantly Christian.  But we have Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, Buddhists, and that their own path to grace is one that we have to revere and respect as much as our own.  And that’s part of what makes this country what it is.”

I would not phrase it in those words. The idea that Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, Buddhists have “their own path to grace” is a judgment I am not willing to make. I do not presume to know the mind of God on that matter. But I understand the point he is trying to make. He is affirming the religious plurality of America and the importance of respecting everyone’s faith or non-faith. That sentiment I applaud.

In short, the president got it right. And he got it right without a script written by his White House speechwriters. He spoke from the heart on the spur of the moment about his personal faith in Christ while respecting the religion of others. In this regard he was both presidential and faithful. He did much better than the average Christian could do, if asked the same question at a backyard barbecue.

Religiously Dumb and Dumber

A new survey by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life tells us what we already know – or rather what we don’t know. Americans are profoundly ignorant when it comes to religious knowledge.

The survey had 32 questions that covered the core teachings, history and leading figures of major world religions. It covered things like whether the Dalai Lama is a Buddhist and whether Martin Luther was part of the Protestant Reformation. On average, Americans got only half of the questions correct. That is a failing grade, even in American public schools.

Of all religious groups, atheists and agnostics scored best. They knew the most about religion, even though they are not religious. (That is fodder for another blog post!) Jews and Mormons were the next most knowledgeable groups.  Mainline Protestants and Catholics were the least knowledgeable. Evangelicals were about average in their ignorance.

Stephen Prothero already told us about this phenomenon in his book “Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know - And Doesn't.” Not only are Americans ignorant of religion, they are also very opinionated when it comes to the subject. Even though they know next to nothing about other religions, they are certain that their religion is right and others are wrong.

Some are certain that all religions are basically the same and equally valid – a view that reveals even greater ignorance of religions. I call it the Lazy Man’s Philosophy of Religion. Prothero addresses this pseudo-intellectualism in his new book, entitled “God Is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions That Run the World - and Why Their Differences Matter.”

As a lifelong student of the world’s religions, I am aware of how diverse the spiritual traditions of the world are. Even those religions that worship one God do not worship the same God. Allah of Islam is not the Triune God of the Christians or the YHWH of Israel.

When President Obama made the statement (as he did recently on September 11) that all Americans worship the same God by different names, he was revealing his lack of knowledge of theology. His actual words were: “We are one nation under God. We may call that God different names, but we are one nation.”

His motives were commendable; he was trying to unite the nation and express tolerance of Islam. But he only succeeded in giving offense to all religions, including Islam and his own Christian faith. No Muslim would say that Allah is the same God as Jesus Christ or even the Father of Jesus Christ. They call that shirk – idolatry and blasphemy.

Knowledge of religion is now as indispensable as knowledge of language and culture in international affairs. It is essential to know religions in this complex world where wars are enmeshed in religious tensions. Governments are naive if they think they can ignore religion and still have a viable foreign policy.

The teaching about religion has been omitted from public education because of the fear of crossing the line into the teaching of religion. They are not the same. Teaching about religion is legal; the teaching of religion is illegal. The fear of the latter has hindered the former. When even our president makes public misstatements, it is time to address this serious problem of religious illiteracy in America.