Ecclesiblogging

I rarely post on church topics here, for two reasons. The first is that I rarely attend formal services while at university, although I attend Bible study faithfully. The second is that I already find it difficult to maintain a constructive attitude toward the visible church; I do not wish to make things more difficult by being especially critical.

I believe firmly in the principle of Christian fellowship. I do not believe, however, that the Sunday morning listen-to-the-pastor-plagiarize-Peanuts hour is the only (or even the best) way to accomplish "the gathering together of ourselves." Do not misunderstand; I am not hostile toward traditional church services per se. But I am tired.

Today, I blog as a means of catharsis. I went to my family's Southern Baptist church again. My Sunday school lesson was difficult to sit through. I wanted to laugh. I wanted to shriek. Somehow, we managed to cover most of the controversial topics of church politics in one lesson. Our discussion ranged from blind faith to civil government to the role of women in the church. I say "our discussion"; it would be correct rather to exclude myself.

I did speak up at the beginning of the lesson. I cautiously furnished the term transubstantiation. Other members of the class had been fishing around for a while, but hadn't come up with anything closer than "tranminification." I thought that an ill omen.

After that, the tone for the discussion was set by a class member who announced his determination to believe what he believes, right or wrong, and hope for the best. He figured that it will all work out in the end; the important thing is to believe something. I found this odd, coming from a conservative Baptist. Then again, it was also very familiar. I think I've been spoiled over the last couple of years. In any case, that is a horrible beginning for a discussion of doctrine.

Our teacher provided a refresher course in using Strong's Concordance -- for the third time this summer. One of the ladies told him, "As many times as we've gone over this, it still baffles me." When the teacher asked the class to "remind" him what Strong's is, one student bravely suggested, "It's like a big book, right?" This was a class for college students.

The class felt quite willing to be adamant about its doctrine, of course. I've never seen anyone more certain that women cannot lead men in church; the matter was sealed by consensus within thirty seconds. It took even less time to conclude that the American War for Independence was "probably" a violation of Romans 13.

To the teacher's credit, he was willing to disagree with the official position of our own church, refusing to interpret 1 Timothy 3 as excluding all divorcés from the position of elder. He also questioned the congregational model of church government, arguing that the presbyterian model is a closer match to that of the early church. I have a lot of respect for the biblical integrity of this teacher. He tries very hard not to say what cannot be supported scripturally, and to amend his own views if he finds biblical warrant. Nevertheless, the insularity of the class is painful.

I was not upset just by the general level of ignorance, nor by the fact that I disagree with a few of the doctrinal positions of this church. I was upset by the fact that a church that makes such a big deal of doctrine, would have so many people with no sound capability of arriving at or defending their doctrine. They are willing to divide over issues of which they have only a dim comprehension. The leadership of this church is fairly well-educated. But the members of my class today represented the intellectual future of the congregation.

I do not want to spend my time at this church in debate. We wouldn't get anywhere, and it would thwart the purpose of going. I do not want to do or say anything that might come between me and the believers there.

My friends and I have had similar problems at school. More than one hundred congregations are rumored to be in the county, but I know seniors who are still shopping. After sitting in class with professors who actually know what the word "context" means, and living in close quarters with hundreds of other Christians, it can be difficult for us to brook what passes for either exegesis or fellowship at the local churches.