A Great Speech: “Men Have Forgotten God” by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

“Men Have Forgotten God” – The Templeton Address
by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn 

More than half a century ago, while I was still a child, I recall hearing a number of older people offer the following explanation for the great disasters that had befallen Russia: Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.

Since then I have spent well-nigh fifty years working on the history of our Revolution; in the process I have read hundreds of books, collected hundreds of personal testimonies, and have already contributed eight volumes of my own toward the effort of clearing away the rubble left by that upheaval. But if I were asked today to formulate as concisely as possible the main cause of the ruinous Revolution that swallowed up some sixty million of our people, I could not put it more accurately than to repeat:  Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.

What is more, the events of the Russian Revolution can only be understood now, at the end of the century, against the background of what has since occurred in the rest of the world. What emerges here is a process of universal significance. And if I were called upon to identify briefly the principal trait of the entiretwentieth century, here too, I would be unable to find anything more precise and pithy than to repeat once again:  Men have forgotten God.

The failings of human consciousness, deprived of its divine dimension, have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century. 

The failings of human consciousness, deprived of its divine dimension, have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century. The first of these was World War I, and much of our present predicament can be traced back to it. It was a war (the memory of which seems to be fading) when Europe, bursting with health and abundance, fell into a rage of self-mutilation which could not but sap its strength for a century or more, and perhaps forever. The only possible explanation for this war is a mental eclipse among the leaders of Europe due to their lost awareness of a Supreme Power above them. Only a godless embitterment could have moved ostensibly Christian states to employ poison gas, a weapon so obviously beyond the limits of humanity. 

The same kind of defect, the flaw of a consciousness lacking all divine dimension, was manifested after World War II when the West yielded to the satanic temptation of the “nuclear umbrella.” It was equivalent to saying: Let’s cast off worries, let’s free the younger generation from their duties and obligations, let’s make no effort to defend ourselves, to say nothing of defending others-let’s stop our ears to the groans emanating from the East, and let us live instead in the pursuit of happiness. If danger should threaten us, we shall be protected by the nuclear bomb; if not, then let the world burn in Hell for all we care. The pitifully helpless state to which the contemporary West has sunk is in large measure due to this fatal error: the belief that the defense of peace depends not on stout hearts and steadfast men, but solely on the nuclear bomb… 

Today’ s world has reached a stage which, if it had been described to preceding centuries, would have called forth the cry: “This is the Apocalypse!”

Yet we have grown used to this kind of world; we even feel at home in it.

Dostoevsky warned that “great events could come upon us and catch us intellectually unprepared.” This is precisely what has happened. And he predicted that “the world will be saved only after it has been possessed by the demon of evil.” Whether it really will be saved we shall have to wait and see: this will depend on our conscience, on our spiritual lucidity, on our individual and combined efforts in the face of catastrophic circumstances. But it has already come to pass that the demon of evil, like a whirlwind, triumphantly circles all five continents of the earth… 

By the time of the Revolution, faith had virtually disappeared in Russian educated circles; and amongst the uneducated, its health was threatened. 

In its past, Russia did know a time when the social ideal was not fame, or riches, or material success, but a pious way of life. Russia was then steeped in an Orthodox Christianity which remained true to the Church of the first centuries. The Orthodoxy of that time knew how to safeguard its people under the yoke of a foreign occupation that lasted more than two centuries, while at the same time fending off iniquitous blows from the swords of Western crusaders. During those centuries the Orthodox faith in our country became part of the very pattern of thought and the personality of our people, the forms of daily life, the work calendar, the priorities in every undertaking, the organization of the week and of the year. Faith was the shaping and unifying force of the nation. 

But in the 17th century Russian Orthodoxy was gravely weakened by an internal schism. In the 18th, the country was shaken by Peter’s forcibly imposed transformations, which favored the economy, the state, and the military at the expense of the religious spirit and national life. And along with this lopsided Petrine enlightenment, Russia felt the first whiff of secularism; its subtle poisons permeated the educated classes in the course of the 19th century and opened the path to Marxism. By the time of the Revolution, faith had virtually disappeared in Russian educated circles; and amongst the uneducated, its health was threatened. 

It was Dostoevsky, once again, who drew from the French Revolution and its seeming hatred of the Church the lesson that “revolution must necessarily begin with atheism.” That is absolutely true. But the world had never before known a godlessness as organized, militarized, and tenaciously malevolent as that practiced by Marxism. Within the philosophical system of Marx and Lenin, and at the heart of their psychology, hatred of God is the principal driving force, more fundamental than all their political and economic pretensions. Militant atheism is not merely incidental or marginal to Communist policy; it is not a side effect, but the central pivot. 

The 1920’s in the USSR witnessed an uninterrupted procession of victims and martyrs amongst the Orthodox clergy. Two metropolitans were shot, one of whom, Veniamin of Petrograd, had been elected by the popular vote of his diocese. Patriarch Tikhon himself passed through the hands of the Cheka-GPU and then died under suspicious circumstances. Scores of archbishops and bishops perished. Tens of thousands of priests, monks, and nuns, pressured by the Chekists to renounce the Word of God, were tortured, shot in cellars, sent to camps, exiled to the desolate tundra of the far North, or turned out into the streets in their old age without food or shelter. All these Christian martyrs went unswervingly to their deaths for the faith; instances of apostasy were few and far between. For tens of millions of laymen access to the Church was blocked, and they were forbidden to bring up their children in the Faith: religious parents were wrenched from their children and thrown into prison, while the children were turned from the faith by threats and lies… 

For a short period of time, when he needed to gather strength for the struggle against Hitler, Stalin cynically adopted a friendly posture toward the Church. This deceptive game, continued in later years by Brezhnev with the help of showcase publications and other window dressing, has unfortunately tended to be taken at its face value in the West. Yet the tenacity with which hatred of religion is rooted in Communism may be judged by the example of their most liberal leader, Krushchev: for though he undertook a number of significant steps to extend freedom, Krushchev simultaneously rekindled the frenzied Leninist obsession with destroying religion. 

But there is something they did not expect: that in a land where churches have been leveled, where a triumphant atheism has rampaged uncontrolled for two-thirds of a century, where the clergy is utterly humiliated and deprived of all independence, where what remains of the Church as an institution is tolerated only for the sake of propaganda directed at the West, where even today people are sent to the labor camps for their faith, and where, within the camps themselves, those who gather to pray at Easter are clapped in punishment cells–they could not suppose that beneath this Communist steamroller the Christian tradition would survive in Russia. It is true that millions of our countrymen have been corrupted and spiritually devastated by an officially imposed atheism, yet there remain many millions of believers: it is only external pressures that keep them from speaking out, but, as is always the case in times of persecution and suffering, the awareness of God in my country has attained great acuteness and profundity.

It is here that we see the dawn of hope: for no matter how formidably Communism bristles with tanks and rockets, no matter what successes it attains in seizing the planet, it is doomed never to vanquish Christianity.

The West has yet to experience a Communist invasion; religion here remains free. But the West’s own historical evolution has been such that today it too is experiencing a drying up of religious consciousness. It too has witnessed racking schisms, bloody religious wars, and rancor, to say nothing of the tide of secularism that, from the late Middle Ages onward, has progressively inundated the West. This gradual sapping of strength from within is a threat to faith that is perhaps even more dangerous than any attempt to assault religion violently from without.

Imperceptibly, through decades of gradual erosion, the meaning of life in the West has ceased to be seen as anything more lofty than the “pursuit of happiness, “a goal that has even been solemnly guaranteed by constitutions. The concepts of good and evil have been ridiculed for several centuries; banished from common use, they have been replaced by political or class considerations of short lived value. It has become embarrassing to state that evil makes its home in the individual human heart before it enters a political system. Yet it is not considered shameful to make daily concessions to an integral evil. Judging by the continuing landslide of concessions made before the eyes of our very own generation, the West is ineluctably slipping toward the abyss. Western societies are losing more and more of their religious essence as they thoughtlessly yield up their younger generation to atheism. If a blasphemous film about Jesus is shown throughout the United States, reputedly one of the most religious countries in the world, or a major newspaper publishes a shameless caricature of the Virgin Mary, what further evidence of godlessness does one need? When external rights are completely unrestricted, why should one make an inner effort to restrain oneself from ignoble acts? 

Or why should one refrain from burning hatred, whatever its basis–race, class, or ideology? Such hatred is in fact corroding many hearts today. Atheist teachers in the West are bringing up a younger generation in a spirit of hatred of their own society. Amid all the vituperation we forget that the defects of capitalism represent the basic flaws of human nature, allowed unlimited freedom together with the various human rights; we forget that under Communism (and Communism is breathing down the neck of all moderate forms of socialism, which are unstable) the identical flaws run riot in any person with the least degree of authority; while everyone else under that system does indeed attain “equality”–the equality of destitute slaves. This eager fanning of the flames of hatred is becoming the mark of today’s free world. Indeed, the broader the personal freedoms are, the higher the level of prosperity or even of abundance–the more vehement, paradoxically, does this blind hatred become. The contemporary developed West thus demonstrates by its own example that human salvation can be found neither in the profusion of material goods nor in merely making money. 

This deliberately nurtured hatred then spreads to all that is alive, to life itself, to the world with its colors, sounds, and shapes, to the human body. The embittered art of the twentieth century is perishing as a result of this ugly hate, for art is fruitless without love. In the East art has collapsed because it has been knocked down and trampled upon, but in the West the fall has been voluntary, a decline into a contrived and pretentious quest where the artist, instead of attempting to reveal the divine plan, tries to put himself in the place of God.

Here again we witness the single outcome of a worldwide process, with East and West yielding the same results, and once again for the same reason: Men have forgotten God.

With such global events looming over us like mountains, nay, like entire mountain ranges, it may seem incongruous and inappropriate to recall that the primary key to our being or non-being resides in each individual human heart, in the heart’s preference for specific good or evil. Yet this remains true even today, and it is, in fact, the most reliable key we have. The social theories that promised so much have demonstrated their bankruptcy, leaving us at a dead end. The free people of the West could reasonably have been expected to realize that they are beset · by numerous freely nurtured falsehoods, and not to allow lies to be foisted upon them so easily. All attempts to find a way out of the plight of today’s world are fruitless unless we redirect our consciousness, in repentance, to the Creator of all: without this, no exit will be illumined, and we shall seek it in vain. The resources we have set aside for ourselves are too impoverished for the task. We must first recognize the horror perpetrated not by some outside force, not by class or national enemies, but within each of us individually, and within every society. This is especially true of a free and highly developed society, for here in particular we have surely brought everything upon ourselves, of our own free will. We ourselves, in our daily unthinking selfishness, are pulling tight that noose…

Our life consists not in the pursuit of material success but in the quest for worthy spiritual growth. Our entire earthly existence is but a transitional stage in the movement toward something higher, and we must not stumble and fall, nor must we linger fruitlessly on one rung of the ladder. Material laws alone do not explain our life or give it direction. The laws of physics and physiology will never reveal the indisputable manner in which the Creator constantly, day in and day out, participates in the life of each of us, unfailingly granting us the energy of existence; when this assistance leaves us, we die. And in the life of our entire planet, the Divine Spirit surely moves with no less force: this we must grasp in our dark and terrible hour.

To the ill-considered hopes of the last two centuries, which have reduced us to insignificance and brought us to the brink of nuclear and non-nuclear death, we can propose only a determined quest for the warm hand of God, which we have so rashly and self-confidently spurned. Only in this way can our eyes be opened to the errors of this unfortunate twentieth century and our bands be directed to setting them right. There is nothing else to cling to in the landslide: the combined vision of all the thinkers of the Enlightenment amounts to nothing. 

Our five continents are caught in a whirlwind. But it is during trials such as these that the highest gifts of the human spirit are manifested. If we perish and lose this world, the fault will be ours alone. 

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, “Godlessness: the First Step to the Gulag”. Templeton Prize Lecture, 10 May 1983 (London).

My Personal Thoughts on Division in the United Methodist Church

3 Sections

1. Where I Am Coming From
2. The Church and Our Divide on Scripture
3. The Beginning is the End is the Beginning

Where I’m Coming From

God called me into the United Methodist Church only 10 years ago. I was reading a lot of John Wesley and had read a bit of the discipline. I had observed the polity and practical theology, and seeing that the movement was geared towards getting people into mission for Christ through a great network called Connectionalism, I joined the family. Being a history guy, I became fascinated by the movements of reform in Methodism and how it has continued reviving hearts; especially in the United States post Revolution and into the greater Pentecostal movements as great-grandchildren of the revival from the Anglicans. The doctrines seemed clear enough and I read the Book of Discipline 2012, delving into the continuing movement with wide eyes looking forward to contribute to this work of the Spirit stretching back a few hundred years.

Backing up a bit, I was baptized and came to faith in the Assemblies of God, a Pentecostal denomination emphasizing the charismatic gifts, especially the gift of speaking in tongues. I had never experienced the outpouring of these most visible gifts; but rather, in my reading of the Scriptures found other gifts of God in me for the eventual work of ministry. I found it refreshing that there isn’t a hierarchy or a “Queen of the Gifts” in Methodism. I believe this is more in line with the scriptures. I remember leaning into Mercy, Teaching, and Shepherding – all deeply embedded within and tested as a youth ministry volunteer then as a lay minister pre-ordination. I’d also discovered the issues with congregational government in the Pentecostal church, and the harm politics could inflict on a church at the local level. Later I would work at a “mega-church” in New England which had Wesleyan emphasis but also was congregational in government and without a wider connectionalism though with more of a global, theological, and historical lens. I noted the polity was still a bit harsh at times with meetings that could be condescending between “parties” who felt strongly about cultural issues.

When I entered the United Methodist Church, the polity didn’t feel so heavy and I could be Arminian, affirm women as Pastors and leaders, teach and experience robust Trinitarian worship and theology, have episcopal accountability in leadership, be focused on the work of the Holy Spirit in mission to all in a parish, and there were resources to do it across this network – it all was incredible! And as I breathed it all in, I was completely naive to the politics of the greater church as I joined. I started working as a Youth Director and joined the denomination on a literal island. The disconnection was good for the trenches of ministry, but I eventually entered the ordination track towards Elder. That is when the issues of the denomination began to percolate to my attention (especially human sexuality and marriage) and the modern world’s power struggles between liberal and traditional positions. I’d not known until I took my Methodist courses that the denomination had been experiencing battle after battle since the merger of the United Bretheren/Evangelical Association and The Methodist Episcopal Church in the 1960s –my eyes were opening.

This naivete was a great shield as I did ministry in the trenches as a youth minister on that island but as then I began to live stream the General Conferences starting in 2012. My eyes opened wide, and today, I’m an Elder at a 3 point charge. I’m responsible to people who have lived their entire lives as Methodists, some who have recently committed and are doing ministry with us, and some who are testing us out. I hear and feel their questions about what is happening at the larger institution and I pastor in a rural context yet incredibly adept at knowing every detail of what is going on – because they love their churches. The pain of the battles became more real and I have sought to understand so I might pastor well through these storms. I did a lot of research, and now I teach Polity for the District Lay School for love of this frail yet fascinating system that I believe God is still using in so many lives. In my own Methodist Studies courses for ordination, in the midst of the academic and personal study on the organization at the church, district, Annual and General Conference levels, I still believe what is practically built in Methodist Connectionalism is a great ideal for how we might govern ourselves in a way that Wesley intended. This Revival Movement that inspires, equips, then sends ministers for mission and equips the laity to own their common ministry as an outpouring of their baptism. I’m still in awe at the potential and on the ground in our churches I see how much life comes from the Spirit enlivening us. The faith within our people is robust. Then again, there is quite a bit of bloat in the structure, as anything that has been around for a while naturally gets “gamed”. Language gets learned and definitions change slowly over time. Sometimes the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. This is too true in our case.

I make my observations as a pastor mostly through my own experience with the ordination process and personal observation of the overall polity. I’ve read every news article I can about the nature of the church’s dilemmas as well as her celebrations and victories. I love data and have a deep seated belief that wisdom is essentially seeing patterns and making good decisions based on them, and that ultimately the Spirit gives us discernment and leads us when we begin to surrender and give God glory rather than glorifying our own system or our history or our own selves. I know, even as an outsider who came into the family, it seems that Connectionalism has broken down. It is a painful and a slow motion tearing of the parts and it is so excruciating to the connection because the relationships are the lifeblood of the Wesleyan – Global – Methodist – Holiness – Revival – movement/s. It is how the family tree helps grace to grow and gives life to its members – through accountability and the very connection that is now being ripped into pieces.

I also believe it will be the connectional strand of catholicity posited within Methodism by John Wesley’s own theology that might eventually be a balm for the pain. Perhaps when some sort of schism occurs, the connection will not be completely severed and the “Oneness” that Christ which calls us to in this emerging Post-Denominational world, will still be possible through our prayers, our presence and our service. We will all still be members of the world-wide body of Christ, though in deep disagreement with one another of how to live in fidelity to the Lord. There may be new ways to work out the mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. As rural kinfolk might – in households across the street from each other with mutual fields all around their homes. We have lots of family compounds like that in the agricultural areas of South Carolina, and though family members may disagree on many things, the common work and the mission to grow something that brings life remains the same. I do not believe those differences should be minimized or the truths conceded, but merely recognized and presented charitably when needed and when appropriate for differentiation of theological method, Biblical interpretation, and understandings of the nature of our mission have opened chasms that have us looking at one another as enemies rather than siblings in the household of God.

The Church and Our Divide On Scripture

I have slowly realized and watched this dividing and experientially have run into the reality that there really are several factions, but mainly there are two vocal and major tribes warring each other within the family called The United Methodist Church. This is obvious and I barely need to state it. Though I hate the terms, for brevity’s sake, they are called Progressive and Traditional branches of the tree. I’ve struggled with the meanings of these terms, and I recognize that there are people who associate with these camps but because of the depth of connectionalism and common love in the family, many are wary of associating with a “side”. These folks have been called Centrists, though it mainly means that they do not want to break up the family so they try to keep quiet or encourage both sides.

The last General Conference, as I’ve been grafted into this family, I’ve felt the pressure of being from a Residency group with friends on all the different angles on these issues. Having friends on the ends of the issue of sexuality has caused a lot of pain all around. Spiritually, mentally, even physically in some cases. Even as I prayed over General Conference, I saw the behavior of delegates at the microphone and the intentional chaos which was openly spoken by some caucus groups… my body became literally sick. I delved into prayer for this family that has welcomed me but I’m now in the midst of a civil war which I at once was not aware of but now actively have a stake in as a shepherd with a group of people who ask me, “What is going on up there? Do we need to do something?” I’ve done my best to encourage, teach, truth tell, speak from the scriptures, and be pastoral all at the same time.

I’ve had to wrestle with my own responses, and for full transparency, I fall into the “Traditional” understanding. I cannot minimize the importance of seeking to understand the entirety of scripture and I push back on those who say we all only “pick and choose” what portions of scripture we live out or teach. I may not know all things, but the goal is to be so thoroughly immersed in the study and reading of scripture, and then to live it out so fully, that we delve deeper into the life of God. In the wholeness of deep and time intensive hearing and responding, the Spirit transforms us as the text witnesses to the saving power of Jesus Christ – and our own frailty and sinfulness fades in the sanctification process. I do not see any evidence that we should not take the whole revelation of scripture as we grasp at it and apply all the themes and courses within it into the ordering of our spiritual, physical lives, and relationships.

On the issue of marriage from the beginning there is a purpose for sexuality which is to bond a man and a woman together for life-long commitment to one another. The redefinition and opening up this union to same-sex spouses is something from the greater culture and is nowhere in either the Old or New Testament portions of the canon. Scholar after scholar notes how many forms of sexuality were practiced in Egypt, Canaan, Rome, and this same spirit continues today. N.T. Wright, in a recent podcast clearly debunks the conception that our modern ideas of sexuality are completely novel by citing the “Symposium” by Plato, and Roman writings on Juveniles as sources that obviously show the kind of same-sex relationships we are seeing today. We don’t give the ancient people enough credit for dealing with the same issues humanity has always been dealing with. We simply should not drift from the revelation of God simply because we we want people to feel accepted. The truth is, they are accepted by God – salvation is free – but the sanctification process afterward asks all of us to put our conceptions of self including our own sexuality on the altar and to seek God’s plan for each of us called into the Christian community. This may not be what we had originally or conceptually intended in our own imaginations.

The desire to make sexuality primary in our identity (which should rest primarily in the Spirits work within us by Christ) is not new. Monasteries in the ancient church have had to address monks who were attracted to men, and they called those celibate people to reside in their identity in Christ. Of course they were celibate anyway but it has import for us in an incredibly sexualized material world. The Bible has one line of argument of what an ordered marriage is, that those not bonded in it are to be celibate, and that sexuality is not our chaos but part of the Lord’s grand design. Dr. Kevin M. Watson, Assistant Professor of Wesleyan and Methodist Studies at Candler School of Theology, who in a debate with a former professor of his, Dr. Kendall Soulen, in a civil debate, stated;

“‘Simply put, the Bible is concerned with sexual ethics. Deeply concerned with sexual ethics. The well-known Jerusalem Council, where the early Church agreed to remove as many burdens as they possible could from Gentiles who were coming to faith in Jesus, particularly circumcision, so that as many people could follow Jesus as possible, still emphasized right living when it came to sex. The Jerusalem Council concluded: “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.’ (Acts 15:28-29) The consistent concern expressed for sexual ethics in the Old and New Testaments from passages like Acts 15 cannot be cut away from the other passages in the Old and New Testaments that concretize what particular sexual practices Christian are to abstain from.”

Full video of this debate is on youtube here: https://youtu.be/XkNCmsatTlE

The debate was civil, and I enjoyed listening to the two take questions and answers from folks afterwards, both Dr. Watson and Dr. Soulen being very pastoral in all things – it was very Christian in nature – I couldn’t help but notice that Soulen’s positions on becoming more laid back on divorce were grounds for our continual cultural accommodation. Just “one more thing” [not his words, my summary of the ethos]. I don’t believe his framework and the foundation of many modern Christian’s view of Biblical interpretation are taking the revelation of the scriptures serious enough nor do they plunge deep enough into the depths of their context, morals, or teachings. This view doesn’t take into account that our hardness of heart to one another in divorce and the laxity on marriage in our culture is a condemnation of our modern world and should not be a virtuous rule! We should be repenting of the implosion of marriage in our culture because it is a covenant made before God. The evil which spouses have beat upon each other due to our sinfulness need corporate and individual acts of repentance rather simply losing all of our Christian ethics and then redefining what a marriage is.

Dr. Watson, grounded in the scripture, began with a deliberation of the passages in Genesis where man and woman are brought together to become one flesh and states, “the witness of Scripture regarding marriage consistently describes marriage in terms of a union of one man and one woman. And it never describes marriage as between two people of the same sex.” As I’ve delved into the texts, this is always apparent without much study and under scrutiny it holds up, which makes me wonder why the Methodist world is succumbing to the fallacy of losing all Christian teachings simply because they are from antiquity and they’re really hard to live into.

I don’t worship the Bible nor hold it up as an idol between the Lord and His ability to speak but I do hold it as the inspired Word of God. It contains God’s road map and revelation for us to be lead into salvation. It is how we come to know Jesus Christ in a very personal way and then are conditioned to hear His word by the Spirit which we have living within us. I also hold to the scriptures as a standard by which we can judge extraneous revelation, in which our experience and interpretations of the workings of the Spirit within us and without us must be brought into focus by this ruler, the Word of God, and of its plain understandings.

The Beginning is the End is the Beginning

Overall, I was encouraged by some movements at General Conference 2019 to affirm the teachings of the church which at a point long ago had been codified in The Book of Discipline -long before I was even born. Recently I watched in shock and awe at our South Carolina Annual Conference 2019, and seeing not one traditional clergy going to General Conference (one to Jurisdictional). I saw how gamed the system was. Local Pastors wondering why they had no say in their denomination, computers with spreadsheets out analyzing coordinated votes, and realizing that the polity had simply moved the messiness of Congregational polity from the local church, to the higher echelons where the same pettiness reigns. It was a somber realization of the pendulum we are on and how our congregations are constantly being gaslighted by obvious political maneuvering. I’ve seen both sides consolidate a power base and retreat into echo chambers. I don’t necessarily condemn having groups for support – we are human and need to support one another. I am guilty myself of having stronger relationships with those I doctrinally align with. But the lack of charity is intense right now, and I really wish the power brokers would lay down their power, repent, and allow the streams of Methodism to be free to go their own way. Build a new connectionalism in a Global sense but lets let go of the vicious bear hug.

Personally, I feel strongly that there is a right interpretation of scripture, and I strive to grapple with that through the Spirit and in the accountability of community. I also desire that our denomination would continue to acknowledge the teachings of the church through the ages which are in line with the witness of scripture and connected to apostolic witness. My heart is still hurting and I feel the brokenness of the denomination even though I wasn’t born into it. I think the Holy Spirit as a person is bringing these pains to the fore in all of us because folks on the ground level are feeling all the stages of grief as we mourn what was and in a clumsy way, envison what might be – even though most like myself do not have the power to really guide us to a new horizon. We can simply keep following Jesus Christ and remain humble as we minister to those we are entrusted to do ministry among.

While I feel a separation is coming, I hope that those with power will be gracious with each other, speak kindly to one another, and stop the shame game and marketing that comes with this kind of warfare language. This is a major disagreement, but we are not enemies. This is not the way John Wesley would have us walk and talk. I’m new to this, but seriously, if I was making a call I’d say, “let’s make a decision and find a way to live with it.” That’s called leadership, and the world needs to see leaders stick their necks out and say what they’re thinking whether they lose their jobs and their pension or not. Actually, that’s why this mess has gotten so large. Some folks who think very differently than I do decided to lead. Unfortunately they’ll find a stand still until a real conversation about our differences and chasm of how theology is done is clearly on the table and because of the hardness of our hearts -a mutual separation is negotiated under truce. We need more transparency, more humility, more thinking and listening and less warfare on the grounds of the Holy Conferences. I’m praying for The United Methodist Church and I will keep my vows. Whatever happens we will all make our decisions. Let’s not manipulate ourselves into a dystopian future.

I think institutions as large organisms can be saved but the heart needs to be malleable. If a division occurs, may we send each other in peace. It seems the problems of Congregational Polity have found their way to General Conference. The system like any is gamed over time. I preached recently on King David’s census and the plague that ensued. It seems like we want the same sense of control David wanted and I fear that there is a path to failure if we fight over control, resources, and power. I’m still an outsider mainly because I’m still learning this whole system. I still know where I stand, which is in line with the Book of Discipline as it is today. My hope is that we continue to uphold the teachings of Christianity and find a way despite the current culture. I know that one “side” eventually will be discouraged enough to leave if the table doesn’t have good actors looking each other in the eye. It doesn’t have to be this way. If amicable division costs money, it is what it is. I saw a figure for an Annual Conference that it would cost $18 million dollars to deal with pension liabilities and then the line was “That’s impossible.” Are you kidding me. I know we are frugal, but if something needs to happen you make it happen. Are we fighting over treasure or releasing each other for fruitfulness in ministry? There is a way. It seems to me that we’ve just stopped talking to each other and are now trying to destroy the reputation of the opponent in order to take all the marbles. That’s not Wesleyan, it is certainly not Christian, and that’s not the way of the Spirit. I’m here to see what happens and I’m praying for wisdom in the years to come. But in the meantime – back to ministry! The trenches in this world need workers to preach and spread scriptural holiness. May I be faithful, and may the Lord bless our work. May we all be humble servants who wash each other’s feet and look at Christ and kneel. God is with us and always will be. May we be with the Lord. Amen.

Less Stress: The Big Picture Belongs to God

Stop stressing: Leave the big picture to God

By DANIEL GRISWOLD

Published Monday, March 7, 2011

Sometimes seeing the big picture is hard. I once heard a story, and I will tell it how I remember it, about a newly married woman. Her husband made enough money so she felt blessed that she would be able to be at the home to keep up the house, take care of future children, cook meals and do the day-to-day business of the family.

One day her husband returned home and noticed half a bag of potatoes sitting around the kitchen sink. Hearing sobs, he followed his wife’s voice until he found her. He asked, “What is wrong? What happened?” She just continued in tears unable to speak. The husband felt terrible and figured he had done something wrong.

When she composed herself and was able to speak, the woman told her husband what had happened. As she was peeling the potatoes, she started thinking about all the years she would be married. She multiplied how many potatoes she had by an approximate amount of times she would have to peel potatoes over the years. Millions of potatoes filled her mind and she was simply overwhelmed by the enormity of her commitment.

When we look at the big picture on any project or the human condition around the world it’s easy to be overtaken by a sense of helplessness. Big is big — no way around it. We want to count our lives in minutes, and then realize as we age it’s easier to tick off decades. If we counted each minute and accounted for everything we have put our hands to, we would simply shut down. While it is nice to reminisce, spending too much time on the past can leave you stuck there.

The Prophets weren’t well-liked in the old country of Israel. I think it was simply because they told people what was going to happen, and it often wasn’t good news.

God saw the end of an age and in sorrow allowed a few people to tell their friends that faith was dying and self-dependence had replaced a prayerful dependence on the Lord. Isaiah spoke God’s word, “I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me.” God calls them to seek justice, end the evils among them, and turn back toward their original love for God’s goodness. In foreknowledge he knows of that the destruction of their nation was on the way.

I am thankful God never leaves us to wallow in our distress. Though we have times of trouble, God speaks blessings such as this, also from Isaiah’s book: “Zion will be redeemed with justice and a promise is given that in the last days,” the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.”

After all the potatoes have been peeled, even after we have spent eons tending to our world, God promises to shore up our efforts with His strength. So we do all the good that we can, but also are assured that the greatest good is still coming. We remember that God walked among us 2,000 years ago, and His spirit is with us today.

This promise is for everyone who has been worried about the big picture. Anyone who has lost sleep because they see the world ending in a great fire with all lost to chaos.

God is saying to all of us: “Leave the big picture to me. I am your strength.”

Daniel Griswold is the director of youth at St. Andrew By-the-Sea United Methodist Church. Follow him on Twitter @dannonhill.

The Depth of Marriage

Marriage is [and can be] AWESOME

If someone only listened to popular media outlets and read the statistics about marriage, it would seem that marriage as an institution is dying out.  And then, if one spent some time watching films about marriage and other television shows, one would think that those in marriage tend to be unhappy with the arrangement.  Adultery, spousal neglect, and idiocy that makes comedy work – also creates an accepted norm for marriage that devalues the relationship.

We’re talking about “love” in our youth group, and I’ve been thinking about how our culture sees love in a 1 dimensional way.  Love is often seen as merely a feeling, and it can come and go.  If I hear someone on television say, “I just don’t love your mother anymore,” or “He doesn’t make me feel like he used to,” I’m going to walk out of the room.  Love is more than a feeling.

After 7 and a half years of marriage, Amanda and I are still finding new ways to be in love.  In fact yesterday we had another “first” as we bought a second bike, and for the first time, took a bike ride together around the neighborhood.  At the end of the evening we were both talking about some other “firsts” we could do together – and I realized that every day there are more firsts, more exciting adventures, and more things to discover about my amazing wife – who I value because she grows into a more amazing person each day right in front of me.  I just have to keep my eyes open and my mind aware to recognize it.  I realize also that the second that I stop paying attention to her, is also the moment that I stop treating her like she deserves.  If I truly LOVE my wife, I will know her, and connect with her each and every day in every way that I can.  Other than my relationship with God, she should be (and I try to make her) my highest priority.  Its amazing what a bike ride together can remind you of.  Hopefully our next first together will be going on a vacation out of the US together. That’s a dream of hers.

More than my own opinion, in 1 Corinthians 13,  love is presented by the Apostle Paul, as more of an all encompassing worldview rather than an emotion, or something that comes and goes on the wind:

1 Corinthians 13,  (NIV, Emphasis added)

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.  For we know in part and we prophesy in part,  but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.  When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.  For now we see only a 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.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Here is the same scripture read for you if you would like to watch as a moment of devotion:

Honestly, if love, as presented in 1 Corinthians 13, became the foundation for marriages, it would remain the rock of a strong culture as it has been in the past.  Unfortunately, like all things, we forget over time what the simplest of things mean.  Living a life in LOVE, and not for oneself, is a difficult task – it is more than a task – it is a process.  A process of perfection, in which we realize our imperfections and realize that we are not always loving and course correct ourselves, rather than continuing to drive towards cliffs that will inevitably destroy our relationships.  A marriage that is not making progress towards the goal of being better is going to disintegrate.  It is always a work in process, as we prioritize our lives [God -> Spouse -> Family ->Work/Church/Education/Friends].  Our order of operations need to flow from the strength of God’s love, and not our own.  One day, working on our own, we will run dry and that is why we must go to the source of life itself to replenish ourselves for the “other” person in our lives that we have promised to be One with.

The fact is – Marriage is [and can be] Awesome.  But like all things, there is daily maintenance that needs to be done.  Doug Fields, a youth pastor in California, recently talked about marriage and how couples really want to connect more (as opposed to just talking all the time).  In order to connect, you have to set aside good portions of time with no agenda other than your spouse.  Put aside the “To Do” lists, stop thinking about your kids or your job for a while, and look into each others eyes.  Hold each others hands.  Feel the wedding rings click together and remember putting them on one another and promising to live your life together.  And ultimately, rely on God’s strength by praying for one another and caring about needs without asking anything in return.  Connect and remember how to love.

Its Not a Debate About Religion or Keeping Government Out of Religion – Its a Hate Fest

I grew up reading the Union Leader, and I still have a fondness for New Hampshire paper’s positive news reporting.  I particularly remember the Hometown Heroes section, and I loved reading what was going on around the state I lived in.  I Google track the term “Derry” in GoogleNews now, and I noticed an article about a church that has been meeting in West Running Brook Middle School (of which I am a graduate of).  The church is named North Ridge, and the article is great.   Its about the church wanting to raise some funds for a building to worship in, and they did a creative media campaign to raise $1 or more from a million people.  That’s a good deal, and people can decide what they give their dollars to.  No big. Its a neat story, but many would probably pass it over.

The part that really got to me, however, is the comments on the article.  Many years ago I vowed not to read comments thanks to an AOL experience that showed how bad anonymous humanity can be to one another, but since it was a small town article, I read the comments.

What quickly develops is two camps.  (1) Those who have attended the church and are glad to read an article about their pastor’s idea.  I imagine they think its affirming that the paper took the time to tell their story.  Then (2) the voice of those who really do not like religion at all.  A quote: “I guess anyone can start a church today and call themselves a “pastor”.  Nice way to avoid work, live off other people’s hard earned money and avoid paying taxes.” There is an open disgust with churches and those associated with them, and regardless of whether they know anyone at the church – they lambaste whoever comes to its defense.

Next, something even more troubling happens.  People not associated with the church come to defense of the church.  By this time the argument has become so convoluted, that it eventually becomes a Religion vs. Anti-Religion debate. Personal attacks on argument style ensue, and people forget the actual article and just duke it out.  This happens in every article that has a Religious association.

I’m trying to understand the other position on this, but this is what the argument looks like against religious folks:

(1) “Separation of church and state” means total and absolute non-existence of a religious world view in the public sphere. Especially government.  There is no consideration that religious word views are core to many people’s lives, so technically every decision they make, and the very way they think is wrong.  Thus, it should be erased with shame, maiming, and personal attacks.  Sounds a bit like fascism to me.  Several concerns were about how the town of Derry should not support a church.  They don’t seem to realize that these churches rent out the space and pay their way based on availability (at a time the school would usually be not used at all – in fact, those complaining are probably asleep).  But perception, and lack of knowledge combine to create the griping.

(2) The church is a mooch. The pastor lives off of fools who give money, and there is no benefit in return.  Its a numbers game, tricking as many people into your flock as possible, getting as much out of it as possible, and doing silly things to make them think its worthwhile.  But many pastors are people who could have gone into another field and have made millions more doing something else, and yet they have chosen, on faith, to come to a community, and serve people by performing marriages, caring for the sick, praying for the people of the church, and deal with community strife, among trying to build consensus among very strong personalities to bring about Good in this world.  There are bad pastors, but most are trying to do good – and are accomplishing it!

(3) Believers are all ignorant and uneducated. I can see where if you don’t believe, church would seem somewhat silly sometimes.  But the religious texts, histories, traditions, and beliefs have been around much longer than any of us and need at least to be considered.  While some religious trappings may seem odd to those who don’t practice (even to those of faith looking at another way to celebrate the same faith) – we still should respect another human being – AND respect their Human Dignity and allow them the benefit of the doubt that if they choose to have faith – that there is some rationale to it.  Faith and Reason certainly can go hand in hand.  And a word to Christians – we know we look like Fools to others.  Accept it, and stop fighting fire with fire.

It is unfortunate that online we think we are allowed to be like animals.  Tearing into each other will only leave everyone wounded, laying on the ground, unable to make a move.  This no win game wastes energy, and distracts us from some very human goals that those of faith, and those without could be doing together.  I think that is what sickens me the most, and I hope that we can begin to realize that the people on the other side of the internet are humans too.

The Hate Language Has Got To Go

Extreme Home Makeover Builds More Than A House

‘Extreme Makeover’ builds more than a house

By DANIEL GRISWOLD

Published Monday, January 24, 2011

Few things get entire communities excited these days — but the television show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” has a way of blowing into a neighborhood like a fresh wind.

Rallying people around families in need of proper housing and telling their stories to the world make for a stirring occasion. Honestly, I have a hard time watching episodes of “Extreme Makeover” because I get emotional and my wife likes to look over and see if there are any tears.

Two recent local builds, one in Savannah and the other in Beaufort, have highlighted the power of this production to bring together people from all walks of life to reach out and make heaven on earth a reality for some very deserving people.

We all need a place to call home. The desire for safety and comfort away from trouble is deep-rooted and always has been necessary for us to feel truly human. The hidden reality of the Garden of Eden in the book of Genesis, in which Adam and Eve made the first family, is that the garden was a safe place. It was not only a place where there was plenty of food and water, but it was a place filled with God’s presence, and the love that God had for his creation was stated over and over, “It is good.”

Since losing that perfect safety, people have cultivated the earth to rebuild paradise, and success is sometimes fleeting, depending on the times.

People do have a global outlook now more than ever, with access to information in every corner. It is easy to lose oneself in the data, as it is obvious that multitudes of people are not in safe situations and need help.

“How can I do anything to bring hope to the world, when I am such a small person?” we might ask. But outfits such as “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” and its energetic crew, remind us that a few people with strong vision, lots of energy and the attitude of “We’re going to do something good” can actually bring about change in a modern version of an Amish barn-raising.

Ty Pennington hasn’t started something new with his show. The needs that his crew addresses have been met by many in the past and in the present. The churches of the world and the good people who have seen the call to “go out” to the world have been building homes, orphanages and lives for centuries, out of pure love for God’s diverse people across the globe.

When the cameras leave town and those in the community reflect on what has happened, hopefully they see a symbol of what all our communities are capable of.

With or without a television program, there’s still more work to be done.

Daniel Griswold is the director of youth at St. Andrew By-the-Sea United Methodist Church. Follow him on Twitter @dannonhill.

Read more: The Island Packet

Big Thinking Can Lead To Even Bigger Doing

Big thinking can lead to even bigger doing

By DANIEL GRISWOLD

Published Monday, December 27, 2010

At a recent youth ministry convention in Nashville, I had the opportunity to attend a small group led by a man I had never met before, Shaun King. I went to hear King’s talk on how social media can change the world. I was interested in hearing more about this topic because I see Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Foursquare and other similar sites as potential resources for ministry.

Our youth group, for example, has its own page on Facebook and a profile on Twitter. I wanted to find out how we could use these sites for the greater good. Instead of simply learning, though, I became inspired by King’s stories. What struck me most wasn’t just that he had started the site http://www.twitchange.com, which used celebrity endorsements to raise money to purchase tents for people in Haiti, or that he has raised tons of money for causes in urban Atlanta — both of which are awesome achievements, of course; it was his almost pathological ability to think BIG that blew me away the most.

Big ideas, regardless of practicality or available resources, have the potential to change the world. Without big ideas, we wouldn’t have mass distribution or massive poverty relief agencies like World Vision. Shaun King, like other big thinkers, basically asks, “What is the need?” and then begins the process of coming up with unique and creative ways to provide for that need. As humanity becomes more globally aware, big dreams become more and more necessary, and we need to talk about how these ideas come about.

Big ideas often start in small places. There was a time when the billionaires behind the computer revolution were garage hobbyists on the fringe of mainstream ideas. Steve Jobs and Bill Gates were once eccentrics with a vision for something new — and their dreams are what fuel our “Tron”-like lifestyles. Because of big thinkers like them (and electrons), grandparents can talk to their progeny across the world through Skype and Facebook.

Big ideas come from unexpected places. Plato’s “Myth of Metals” speaks about how everyone has a sort of metal mixed in their soul. Some, fit for ruling, are mixed with gold. Others, the warriors, are mixed with silver; and the last, the producers, are mixed with iron or bronze. The philosopher pointed out that no one knows which metal a person has until they have been observed. While the myth seems classist, it is quite revolutionary in ancient paternal societies, in that it emphasizes the potential of every person to prove his or her worth by quality and merit. The takeaway is that the lowliest person, even those living in abject poverty with no attributed merit or rank, can rise above and bring about the transformation of the immediate community, and, through time, the entire world.

A final thought on big ideas: All big ideas mean sacrifice. If something is worth anything to a person, it has to become a passion to spread to others. When changers of the future tell stories, you hear in their voices that they have given up much for what they believe in. I sometimes wonder how the president feels when he wakes up and realizes he can’t play with his daughters as often as he likes because he has to build relations in Asia. And I’m going to guess Shaun King would probably like to spend more time with his wife, but tents need to find their way to Haiti. In the gospel of Luke 14:33, Jesus says, “Those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.” If that seems tough, one must ask, “Do I believe in the cause?”

Missionaries and aid workers around the globe sleep in bags rather than on a mattress in solidarity with those they care about. And from sacrifice, wells are built, food is delivered and young people are educated. All these things help build a foundation for a better world for future generations. At last we ask ourselves: What are the Big Ideas for us? Who will dream them up? And how much are we willing to sacrifice in order to transform the world?

Daniel Griswold is the director of youth at St. Andrew By-the-Sea United Methodist Church.

Follow him on Twitter @dannonhill.

People need to be together, but more than just online

People need to be together, but more than just online

By DANIEL GRISWOLD

Published Monday, November 1, 2010

I remember the first time I saw someone using a social network. It was in the college library, and a cool kid was using a site called MySpace. I noticed a box in the lower righthand corner labeled “friends,” and every once in a while this girl would click on the picture of a person, then leave a comment. It was almost like collecting baseball cards of your friends.

I was fascinated, so I immediately sat down to create an account. It was about connecting with friends and I loved it. Quickly, I found 50 friends online through their e-mail addresses and became part of an online group.

The heart of social networking is about being together. While it starts at the computer, conversations soon spill into real life. Even when you are face to face, you talk about what you posted on Facebook. And when a phone call comes through, you laugh at the latest YouTube video that your friend found, or you comment on a Scripture verse someone posted from your pastor’s sermon last Sunday.

Suddenly the notion of being together is remade.

Being together isn’t a new concept, but I think that in our busy lives, we forget how to do this simple thing. Two words we need to look at: “being” and “together.”

Often, we think that “being” means getting all our “to dos” done, or working a lot of extra hours, basically the idea that we are what we do. It’s good to make a name in the community, but when the end of the day feels like a whirlwind, and we lay down in bed just barely gaining breath, there is a problem.

“Being” is bigger than our “to dos” — it is the sum of everything that makes a person a person and not a tree or a chipmunk. It is the thoughts, the stories, the emotions, the places visited, the images of oneself, the choices we make and the people we love. “Being” is a conversation with ourself — and to understand it, we need quietness, and brief moments (or long sabbaticals) of time to remember who we are. A life not reflecting on itself will act on impulse and fall apart in its inconsistencies.

The second word is “together.” It is when you venture from the refinement of solitude to give from what God’s given you, back to God and to others.

Growing up in a warm and caring church, I knew what togetherness meant in full. Jesus himself talked about “The Kingdom of God,” and I believe one of the greatest outward expressions of the love of the church (at least that I knew as a child) was the pot luck.

Basically, everyone who was able to cook would bring something to eat to the church table. There would be three types of baked beans, four types of casseroles, macaroni salad with and without onions, green beans, squash and an infinite supply of chocolate chip cookies as well as my favorite — pink ambrosia.

To a growing kid, there was no greater expression of love than the chocolate chip cookie and pink ambrosia, and being surrounded by the adults who were able to make such glorious creations. Being together at the church is necessary because, while you can entice someone with a picture of a cookie on the Internet, you have to be face to face in order to give it to that person.

God bless the ladies of the church.

How interesting that MySpace isn’t the dominant social network any longer. A recent bottom line analysis was made of MySpace, saying “the emphasis will be on entertainment and celebrities, rather than friends.” How unfortunate, as they have missed a basic understanding of why social networking is popular. The core need is this: People just want to be together.

Whether at church, online or at the coffee shop — we need each other.

Read more: http://www.islandpacket.com/2010/11/01/1428317/people-need-to-be-together-but.html#ixzz14HsCtpzs

Pastor’s Corner – Sometimes the world needs a reminder there’s good news

Sometimes the world needs a reminder there’s good news

By DANIEL GRISWOLD

Published Monday, October 18, 2010

Some countries get a lot of news coverage: Russia, China, England, Australia and Canada, to name a few of the major ones. But Chile? I hadn’t thought much about that nation until recently when news media began focusing on what seemed to be just another run-of-the-mill mining tragedy. A mine had collapsed and rescuers were frantically searching for survivors. It wasn’t until it was discovered that miners had, in fact, survived the collapse and were trapped deep below the surface that it became a different story.

For the weeks that followed this discovery, global audiences watched the news each night to see how the effort to save the men was progressing. The suspense gripped us because we know that people rarely survive these types of disasters. Was it possible the miners could go crazy, like in an episode of “X-Files”? How would their hope hold out? How could they be saved when they were so far below the surface? After seeing how quickly stories can go from bad to worse — such as the Gulf oil spill — one had to wonder what the future held for the trapped miners. We all hoped for the best, but there was a very real possibility this could turn to horror.

Then these men were saved.

A drill reached the miners and created a hole big enough to send down a container to save the crew, one man at a time. Chile celebrated, the families of the crew rejoiced, and the world watched as prayers from across the globe were answered. Who ever thought these hard-working men would have their faces in every home with a television? They’re now famous for remaining patient while waiting to be saved.

I remember someone once saying why the musical group The Carpenters was so well-received at their debut: “The world was ready for something good.” After so much angst, so many failures, so many disasters — from Hurricane Katrina, to the great loss of life in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to the harm the spilled oil has done to the Gulf — we were all in need of good news.

All bitterness in the past is put aside for now, because the world has found goodness — a reminder of our beginnings, when God made man and woman and felt satisfied with what he had created.

We were made in God’s image and we need reminders that despite the threat of the walls collapsing, and darkness overwhelming us in our ordinary lives, there is something within us that helps us get through tough times. It is in our makeup, and though we have screwed up in the past and continue to make mistakes, we are also capable of great things.

Our faith in a good future is an important thing.

Jesus rocked the disciples, when he said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).

In commissioning them to do greater things, Jesus told them they would perform miracles; they would speak a new message of hope to the world, of a place where God’s goodness is shown, and people work together to end evil and destroy the darkness.

It is good to have heartwarming stories like the rescues in Chile because it gives us hope.

It is also a good reminder to the people of the church that the world is still looking for good things, and the love of Christ is the greatest thing of all.

Read more: http://www.islandpacket.com/2010/10/18/1412275/sometimes-the-world-needs-a-reminder.html#ixzz130VJ4yRq

Whether You Are a Churchgoer, or a Child, We Are All Theologians

Theology (from theologos), in bits and pieces, means “a word about God.” We talk about whether we believe or do not believe, and either way we decide, we are theologians.

I bet you never thought of yourself that way. At some point, unless you have somehow numbed yourself to conversation and shunned your community, you have probably talked about the “G” word.

You are not the first, and you will not be the last. When thoughts become words and words become actions, big changes become possible. It is no wonder that the first commandment to Israel was “Love the Lord your God.” It is when they thought about him that they could prepare a better way, and could conceive of life together in a land filled with milk and honey.

When someone brings up the word “theology,” what do you think? Some might think of debating professors with stacks of old books, or a television personality speaking about the latest religion statistics. Perhaps images of clergy in the pulpit are conjured from the past, with the patience of a long sermon following in memory. Or is it a conversation between friends, or with family, over a warm dinner, over coffee, on a cold rainy day? Do you remember the moments when you began thinking and talking about God?

Every human at some point becomes a theologian. It is natural for a being coming into existence (without any knowledge about the process of life) to begin asking questions of ultimate origin: “Where do I come from?” the little one asks. “Mommy and Daddy, of course,” someone answers.

Then, “Where do Mommy and Daddy come from?” and so on until the genesis of humanity is invoked. That is when we hear about our beginnings, and we begin to decide what we believe about our origin. Some may not have this conversation, but children are persistent, and answers are found in books, at the schoolyard from a friend, from grandparents, or from a movie with a good story. We are born theologians, and we begin searching in conversations that direct us toward our Creator.

In our worship, we are reminded of goodness and justice. Great men and women who change the world often start their conversations about changing imperfection, with the idea that someone more perfect than us is looking upon us and demanding that we change to better mirror the beauty of perfection. The Kingdom of God as a conception of order and justice is inspiration to the Martin Luther Kings and the Mother Teresas of our own age.

Our pondering on God breaks us from what is and brings us to what ought to be. And we are brought back to the image of a land flowing with milk and honey, a place where justice is supreme and what is good is placed on a pedestal to be seen and adored. When I think of Christ as King, and the hope that this invokes, I want to make my world a better place. And as theologians, we should talk more and more about these things.

Daniel Griswold is the director of youth at St. Andrew By-The-Sea United Methodist Church. He can be reached at danielgriswold@gmail.com and followed at twitter.com/dannonhill.

Article Originally Published on http://www.islandpacket.com, and in The Bluffton Packet.

Read more: http://www.islandpacket.com/2010/06/15/1275117/whether-youre-a-churchgoer-or.html#ixzz0r2VzauwC