Solutions for Good Religion?
As I read through the pages of “Bad Religion”, a comment from our last chat haunted my thoughts. It was remarked how we as Christians can stand back and criticize without really making significant world changes. Ironically, this seemed to sum up “Bad Religion”, where the author lived up to his title. He seemed bent on finding everything bad about religion or religious leaders. This book read a bit like a gossipy tabloid eager to spill dirt on past and current religious leaders, as well as showcasing a modern-day witch hunt in an attempt to expose heresies with minimal quotes and one-liners from current religious leaders. The author’s words dripping with cynicism and sarcasm when describing leaders embodying New Thought beliefs and Prosperity Gospel concepts, displayed his obvious bias. His limited attention and passion to viable solutions only contributed to the despair of our current religious environment.
Both sides of the coin…
I applaud those using creative techniques and hopeful modalities for people to reconcile with God, and I wonder if we as the church and Christians couldn’t learn something from our modern day spiritual leaders. In counseling others, I am faced with hopeless people who are looking for comfort and are struggling to find healthy communities full of acceptance and peace. Courageously, many are recovering from the spiritual, physical, and emotional abuse they received from their religious upbringing or unhealthy communities, and they are timid to approach the doors of church. I am pleased when they find a Christian leader, pastor, or entertainer giving them hope to look beyond their circumstances to something better, and bring them peace and reconciliation with God, themselves and others. When lives and relationships are seriously at risk, I have lost the luxury to be so picky as to who and where they receive their hope and inspiration to heal.
Conversely, I am also grieved at the shame premise deeply rooted in the Prosperity Gospel and New Thought teachings, provoking people to feel responsible for their losses and hurts. For instance, it is insensitive and insulting to say to a family who suddenly lost their 8-year-old daughter from a seizure, “You didn’t claim healing” or somehow they willed this to happen due to their inferior faith. Or to say to the children living in garbage dumps in Guatemala, “You must have done something to deserve this kind of poverty existence”. God is still God and we are still humans no matter how much we try to convince ourselves we have power over what happens. Our gospel is grounded in grace, built with love, progresses with faith, and establishes community, yet we struggle to know how to operate in the beauty of the gospel. I want more conversation and understanding of what our gospel looks like to implement in our marriages, families, churches, and communities, and less emphasis on the ones who are messing it up while trying to profit from the chaos or are misguided in their attempts to change the world.
Concentrating on solutions…
In the psychology field, there is an emerging field called Positive Psychology, where optimism and hope are used to facilitate change. The therapist capitalizes on the strengths of an individual in order to foster change, while the diagnosis plays a small role in treating the individual. Viewing the person through their strengths versus their diagnosis or inadequacies dramatically impacts the dynamics of the whole therapy process, as the focus is on the solution versus the problem. Having practiced both techniques, I have found it fulfilling and rewarding to diagnose the presenting problem then move to the plausible solutions or technique to solve their problem. Otherwise, I find myself and the client getting stuck in this quagmire of guilt, hopelessness, defeat, hurt, and unresolved shame, which only contributes more to the common presenting issues of anxiety and depression.
Through the pages of this book, I found myself asking 2 questions: #1. “Who is developing viable solutions for our hurting world and facilitating change?” I want to hear from them, and take a positive psychological approach at healing our religious culture. To continue to discuss and diagnosis the problems is a circular conversation with no detour to hopeful solutions. #2.”Will the real Jesus please stand up?” I want Him and only Him. No false images, distorted views, and heresies. I just want Him, and whatever or whomever He uses to bring God’s good news to His people. May I have the discernment to know who He chooses and the wisdom to deflect the imposters. Despite the confusion and infiltrating heresies, I still believe the church is the best solution to offering a healthy community for those in need. Now if we could just concentrate on a productive discussion on how to create healthy community and develop good religion, maybe we would be making greater strides in changing our religious environment and our world.
About the Author
Jennifer Dean-Hill
12 responses to “Solutions for Good Religion?”
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Jen, great assessment. The book was kinda entertaining for me since I was born in 1951 and lived through all those changes!!
But I have the same question – “Who is developing viable solutions for our hurting world and facilitating change?”
The author went from being a Pentecostal to a Roman Catholic. I went the other way. I’m wondering if going from a Holy Spirit rich religion to a humanly hierarchical one as Douthat did impacted his analysis of religion?
Just curious.
Good question Mary. It is interesting he went more conservative. I wonder what provoked his religious change.
Well written Jennifer!
Jim Collins writes: “Confront the brutal facts but maintain a vital sense of optimism.” Douthat writes of his own book that it is a fairly pessimistic piece, though he seeks to offer some solutions. I do think his writing is very heavy on diagnosis (brutal facts) and much thinner on remedies or reasons for hope (a vital sense of optimism). I do agree with much of his diagnosis however – I think he he is right about the prosperity gospel and that he is right about the God-within-me gospel of Oprah Winfrey and Rob Bell and Tolle and co.!
Thanks Geoff! Yes, there is a lot of focus on the “God within” piece, but I see it as a remedy for people to recover their fractured selves from the shameful and oppressive role religion has played in their lives. Accidentally or purposely, religion has often encouraged people to go against their hearts, minds, and feelings. Might not be the best remedy, but Oprah and Bell remind us of our relationship with ourselves and the free-will we were made with to do whatever we want. They remind us that we were made in the image of God so we should strive to emulate Him. Although I see them both offering very different messages, with their strengths and weaknesses, they could reference the power of the Holy Spirit to strengthen the Godliness and love in each of us.
Like a reoccurring dream, they just keep popping up…Oprah and Bell!
Jennifer, I agree with your second paragraph. While there are plenty of good churches in America preaching a Biblical Jesus, your second question hit the nail on the head…
“Who is developing viable solutions for our hurting world and facilitating change?”
Here is where our culture holds us captive. To meet needs in peoples lives takes time and effort (and sometimes money). I believe that we have “orthodox” Christians who would love to do this, but they are over booked and in debt. Therefore, they are ineffective.
Interesting thought Stu, about orthodox Christians. Dr. Cho’s church has been referenced many times in my readings. I’d be interested in visiting his church.
“This book read a bit like a gossipy tabloid eager to spill dirt on past and current religious leaders, as well as showcasing a modern-day witch hunt in an attempt to expose heresies with minimal quotes and one-liners from current religious leaders.”– This. Has to be one of the best lines I’ve read all semester.
Like you, as much as the church frustrates and pains me at times, “I still believe the church is the best solution to offering a healthy community for those in need.” Thanks.
Aww Katy…you just made my week! Thank you.
“Who is developing viable solutions for our hurting world and facilitating change?”
This is a great question, Jen, and one that I didn’t feel Douthat was very interested in addressing. He holds a pretty myopic view of what is happening in Christianity today. Your post reminded me of the statement “All truth is God’s truth.” I’m not saying that the people Douthat calls out speak all truth, but there are bits of truth that pull people in and make it easy to manipulate them. It is those little truths that people are craving. I think rather than blast Oprah, Rob Bell, and Joel Osteen, we should be saying, “Joel is right that God loves you and wants you to experience joy, but you will only be disappointed if you expect God to make you rich simply because you trust God.” We can engage positively without joining the “gossip-fest.”
Well said, Kristin! I weary quickly of talking about problems and criticizing those attempting to make changes. I just want to be making the changes the best I know how.
Jen so much to chew on in this post! “Our gospel is grounded in grace, built with love, progresses with faith, and establishes community, yet we struggle to know how to operate in the beauty of the gospel.” Yes absolutely! Amen! I do agree that we need to talk more about this gospel and discern together in community how we live it out cooperatively with the Holy Spirit.
Also, there should never be any shame, condemnation and blame attached to blessings or God provision. This is one of the dangerous pitfalls with upholding a prosperity gospel.
Jen, I absolutely love your ‘2 questions’
1 – Who is trying to come up with solutions & 2 – Where is the real Jesus….. These could be standard questions as we engage with the world around us.