What's Wrong With The Church?

On this Sunday morning I sit in my townhouse wondering why I even bother with going to church. Now I know better than most that Jesus has told us to gather together and that the author of Hebrews admonished us not forsake the assembling together of ourselves and I am in total agreement. But why do I have to go to a building and deal with all that comes with the participation in the institution known as The Church?

I have discussed the meaning of "church" in the past and I think that most Christians know, at least intellectually, that "church" or "eclessia" is an organic gathering of believers. It is a sacred assembly to be technically correct. But in practice we trudge down to a building and give money to an institution and take orders from denominational leaders and we call this The Church. But it is not The Church.

My favorite philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard, was a theology major and had studied for holy orders in the Danish Lutheran Church. He became so disillusioned with the institutional church that at the end of his life he sat at a coffee shop across from the cathedral and drank coffee and read the morning news to mock the parishioners who were "going to church." I'm not saying he was right or wrong, but I can certainly understand why he felt the way he did. The institutional church had become absorbed in politics and other issues that really had no connection with the true meaning of the Gospel. Sounds familiar doesn't it?

As a priest and a self-styled theologian I have kept track of the current debates in the institutional church. While the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches continue to insist on closed communion and argue about a male-only priesthood and whether or not using birth control is a mortal sin, the Anglican Communion is wrestling over the ordination of homosexuals and same-sex marriages, and many Protestant churches debate the use of sacramentals and whether there is a Hell, the rest of the world is going to hell in a handbasket and The Church doesn't seem to care.

I deal with people everyday who are literally lost, floating through life with no direction, and are battling addictions that range from drugs, alcohol, pornography, etc. They don't care whether your priest is a male or a female. They don't care whether your Orders are valid or not. They don't care what your stance is on abortion and birth control. They are dying and they need help! And I've discovered that they don't care where that help comes from as long as it comes.

How is it that The Church has lost the heart of the Gospel message? Do we even know what that message is? The heart of the Gospel is the heart of Jesus and Jesus was all about Grace. Grace isn't a theological concept, it is a divine reality. Grace is a completely outrageous love that gives freely without qualification. It is unmeritted and undeserved and that is what The Church is supposed to be offering to the world. Is your "church" offering that to you and others? For 99 percent of the people answering this question I already know the answer and the answer makes me sad.

Theology is important, but its not more important than the central message of the Gospel. I would gladly chunk all of my theology to find a place that practices Grace. Personal responsibility is important but its not more important than the fact that God shed his grace on me even when I fail at my responsibilties. If you have any doubt what Grace looks like look at Jesus hanging on the Cross to save you from your sins and you will see Grace. He died to save you as you are and to help you become who He created you to be. He didn't look at your failures, He looked at your potential. That's Grace!

What's wrong with the Church? The Church has forgotten Grace. I became an Anglican because I found Grace in their practice of Open Communion. Any "church" that excludes any Christian from the central Sacrament of our Faith isn't practicing Grace. Any "church" that refuse to baptize a sinner isn't practicing Grace. I'm not trying to convert anyone to Anglicanism because it has just as many faults as any other "church." What I am saying is that I am tired of those "churches" that claim any from of exclusivity. Your "church" doesn't have a monopoly on the Word and Sacraments. Your "church" doesn't have a monopoly on the Truth. St. John said that only Jesus came into the world full of Grace and Truth. Any place that proclaims Him as the Truth and offers His Sacraments to His people in love and grace is the true Church.

Church, stop guarding your turf and enforcing your dogmas and share the love of God with those around you. The world doesn't need your truth. The world needs the Truth, which is Jesus Christ.

Fr. Rick

Where is the Mercy?

As most who read this blog know, I'm not only a priest but a deputy sheriff. Today, while working my law enforcement job, I had to respond to the suicide of a 30 year old man who had hanged himself. As if this were not bad enough his mother, who found him, was a Roman Catholic. Roman Catholics believe that suicide is a mortal sin.

I prayed with this woman and her family and then she began to weep uncontrollably as she lamented the fact that her son had committed a mortal sin. She asked me to bless him so I signed him with the cross and prayed for his soul. She then begged me to explain to her why he would have done this and why God is going to punish him for killing himself. I told her that only God and her son knew the reason why and that just because he had committed suicide it did not mean that God would not forgive him.

Once again the verse in the Book of James crept into my mind, "God's mercy outweighs his judgement." In the movie "Luther" there is a scene where Martin Luther is preaching the funeral of a young boy who has committed suicide. The parents were distraught because they, too, believed that their son was damned. Luther makes a powerful statement to the parents and the entire congregation, "God isn't angry anymore..." Because of what Jesus did on the Cross God isn't angry with us anymore. We have been reconciled to Him and God has declared a truce with a sinning humanity.

When a person commits suicide we have no way of knowing what is happening in their mind and spirit. Only God knows and only God has the right to judge. If a baby or a mentally defective person merits God's grace what makes us think that a distraught person doesn't merit that grace as well?

We cannot generalize what is sin and what isn't. What may be a sin for me may not be a sin for you. Don't take my word for it but rather read the writings of St. Paul who said that "...our conscience will be our judge." With this in mind all I can say is that one person's suicide may be a mortal sin and another persons may not. Only God knows the heart and only God can judge.

Pray for this family and the families of those who have lost loved ones to suicide. I have lost some very dear comrades in law enforcement to suicide and I, too, have struggled with this question. God is a merciful God. Let His mercy be upon those who could no longer cope with the trials of life.

Fr. Rick

Peace, Love and Understanding

I've always been a huge Elvis Costello fan. One of my favorite songs of his is "What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love and Understanding?" Well, to answer the question, nothing is funny about these things. These are deadly serious issues. As a matter of fact, whether Costello knows it our not, these are biblical mandates. We Christians are called to practice peace, love God and our neighbor, and to use discernment and understanding.

But I'm afraid many of my brethren have misinterpreted these concepts, in particular the concept of peace. Most of the Christians I talk to nowadays seem to think that peace is simply the absence of conflict. If that is the case the Bible must be mistaken in telling us that we can experience peace in this life because we are never going to be without conflict. Whether it be personal conflict or international conflict (known otherwise as War) we are always in the midst of some type of chaos. Such is the nature of life in a fallen world. The so-called Peace Churches believe that by being pacifistic they can change the world. My question is, how is that working out for them? To answer in the words of the great redneck philosopher, Larry the Cable Guy...Not too good!

The biblical concept of peace is rooted in the Hebrew word shalom. Shalom denotes well-being and, believe it or not, justice. It is a word rich in meaning. To experience shalom is to experience an inner well-being rooted in doing the right thing, or to put it in biblical terms, living a righteous life. It is wholistic and internal, not temporal or external, as the English word tends to denote.

The same people who belong to the Peace Churches also seem to misunderstand the concept of Justice. They think that making everything communal (quite literally communist) is the answer to all of our social problems. These people tend to be advocates for criminals, scoundrels, and politicians. They are usually anti-authoritarian unless the current regime happens to be socialist or communist in thinking. They believe that the biblical mandate to visit the prisoners and to care for the widowed and orphaned is a call to socialism straight from the pages of the Bible. They use this to justify government hand-outs to those who refuse to care for themselves or their families. They use this to beg for clemency for thieves and murderers. The problem is that they ignore Scripture that says that those who refuse to work should go hungry. They also ignore the comparison in the Bible of the man who refuses to provide for his family as being worse than a thief or murderer.

If the mandate to visit prisoners and to care for the widowed and orphaned is taken in context, it will be seen that the prisoners spoken of were political and religious prisoners being held on the grounds of their conscience, not thieves and murderers. The book of Acts makes clear that the widows spoken of were Christians whom the Church had an obligation to care for if they had no family. And no one will dispute the fact that the Church should care for those who are poor or orphaned through no fault of their own.

But why is it that these same Peace Churches never want to help the widows of slain police officers or the victims of crime? Why is it that they will defend a genocidal potentate but protest against a president or prime minister who tries to stop the genocide by the use of force? Selective usage of the Scriptures to justify political motives is wrong, whether you lean to the left or right.

Peace and Justice go hand in hand. But understand the concepts properly before you try to impose your version of either on someone else. Peace, love, and understanding are important. But knowing what they mean is ultimately more important if we wish to experience any of them for ourselves and others.

So I say to you, Shalom! Be whole and well in Jesus Christ. Serve Him in Peace and Justice.

Fr. Rick

The End of the World as We Know It!

Well, according to Pastor Harold Camping of Oakland the end of the world is this Saturday, May 21, 2011. Since "The Rapture" will occur then I thought I had better get in one final blog before doomsday.

I am constantly amazed at how many of these idiots come along and how many more follow them. And, of course, the media gleefully follows the story to lump in all Christians as buffoons such as these. Since Christ ascended into Heaven people have been predicting the end of the world and the very unbiblical "Rapture."

I am also amazed at the gall it takes to predict a date that, according to Jesus, He Himself doesn't know. He said that only the Father knows the time of the "Parousia," the Great Appearing of Christ in the skies with the host of Heaven and the angels. Pastor Camping must feel himself to be a very special person, indeed.

I don't know about you, but I plan on being here on Sunday to worship the only One who knows the times and dates of all events in human history. The only way I won't be here is in the event of my premature death, and if that occurs, I'll still be worshiping God on Sunday!

So, in the words of the great musical prophets, R.E.M., "It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine." I hope you feel fine as well. May the ingnorance of a few not taint the name of the many.

Fr. Rick

A Holy Week Meditation

What does it mean to be "innocent?" The dictionary says that to be innocent one must be "free from guilt or sin especially through lack of knowledge of evil." With that in mind who amongst us is innocent?

It's funny that when you go to a court of law everyone talks about their innocence. But no one is innocent. That is why if you win a criminal court case you're found "not guilty" rather than innocent. We are all guilty of something. To be found "not guilty" in court just means that you don't have to pay the price for the wrongs you have done.

The only person in the Bible who is said to be truly "not guilty" and innocent from birth is Jesus Christ. In Isaiah 50 the prophet prophecies about the innocent Jesus standing in front of His accusers during the Passion. Jesus asks, "...who will declare me guilty?" In St. Matthew's Gospel narrative of the Passion, Pilate's wife is said to have dreamt about Jesus and she warns her husband to "have nothing to do with that innocent man..." Even Pilate, who examined Jesus at His trial asks the crowd, "...what evil has He done?" Obviously the answer to the question is "nothing." Jesus never has nor ever will do anything wrong. He has no sin and He has no guilt. He is innocent. But we are guilty. Pilate was guilty of murdering Jesus even though he proclaimed himself innocent of His blood. The crowd was guilty. The Pharisees were guilty. We are all guilty. Think of every sin you have ever committed as a hammer blow to the nails that hung an innocent Man on the cross.

But even as human beings condemned Him to the cross He was using the cross to proclaim us "not guilty." Even as our sin murdered Him He was using His death to set us free from the punishment of sin, and as St. Paul tells us, that punishment is death. Christ chose to die in our place. He died a horrible, gruesome, physical death so that we wouldn't have to die spiritually.

Do you understand that Jesus, the One Who died for you, is also the One Who will prosecute you in the court of Heaven. God the Father will be the Judge and He will hear your case. If you have been baptized into the Faith Jesus will stand before the Great White Throne and say these words, "Your Honor, I do not wish to prosecute this person. They're Mine and I've already paid the price for their sin." Then the Great Judge will say, "Not guilty! You're free!" That is what the Passion of Christ is all about. The Prosecutor of your soul died in your place. He took your punishment so that the Great Judge would declare you "Not Guilty."

Let our tongues sing His praise for what He has done for us. How could we do anything less?

Fr. Rick

Come On In, The Water's Fine

This is the second chapter of my book in progress on my pastoral ministry.

Enon Church is a historic church. Founded in 1760 as an independent congregation it eventually became a part of the fledgling Methodist movement that had migrated from Georgia. It had belonged to the Wesleyan Methodist connection, the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church (South), and eventually the Southern Methodist Church. The original building and cemetary were located on what is now the Fort Jackson Army Training Facility. The U.S. government moved the congregation before the outbreak of World War II. The log cabin church building is gone now, but the cemetary is still there and maintained by the Department of the Army.

The new building was built on Percival Road in Columbia, South Carolina in 1948. A parsonage was added in 1950. It hasn't changed much since it was built. Some new carpet, vinyl siding, and an electric sign are about the only updates to the tired old building. The parsonage remains virtually unchanged.

This was the ship that I had been called to captain. She was weather beaten and worn. Her crew was undisciplined and spiritually starved. The task ahead was truly daunting, but I was too immature to realize it at the time. If it hadn't been for the grace of God the ship would have sunk years ago with all souls aboard lost.

My first year contract with Enon was, believe it or not, an improvement on the arrangement I had with Faith Community Church. At Faith Church I literally lived in the church and paid rent on it. I was paid 20% of the weekly offering as my salary. The average offering was $25.00 a week. You can do the math. No one could accuse me of being an overpaid pastor. At Enon I was given $50.00 a week plus the use of the parsonage. All utilities were paid by the church, except for the phone bill. I thought I had died and gone to heaven!

The congregation was made up of mostly elderly couples and miltary retirees. There were a few young adults and virtually no children. A Sunday School program was in place but it was poorly attended. There were three services during the week: Sunday morning, Sunday evening, and Wednesday evening prayer service. Enon's programs were all smoke and mirrors. A Sunday School existed on paper, but no one taught or attended it. The first Sunday morning service I conducted was attended by seven people although there were over a hundred people listed on the membership rolls. The Sunday evening service was little more than a song fest. The Wednesday night prayer service consisted of conversation and very little praying. Enon Church looked good on paper, but the reality was drastically different.

Enon had a lot of things going for it; history, location, facilities, etc. Unfortunately she was lacking one thing - the Spirit of the living God! A plan was needed to salvage what was left of this congregation. The problem was that I didn't have one. I had very little experience in these matters. The last church I had pastored folded like a piece of paper. What formal education I had was all theological. I had recieved no formal education in running a church. I had no one to turn to but God Himself. Thankfully God was listening and answering when I cried out to Him for guidance.

Before entering the ministry I had been the chief of a small, rural police department. God revealed to me that building a church was a lot like building a police department. First, goals must be set. People need a vision, a dream, something to strive for. So with this in mind I announced to the congregation that we were going to have at least 50 people in attendance on Sunday mornings before my first anniversary as pastor. Secondly, God showed me that the people needed to be trained in order to obtain their goals. An ongoing program of systematic training needed to be instituted in order to sustain the membership. Thirdly, the group needed to tap into their available resources in order to maximize efficiency.

With these three things in mind I formulated a plan of attack. I began by preaching expository sermons from the pulpit. On Sunday evenings I held classes on Church doctrine and history. On Wednesdays we formulated a prayer list and then we actually prayed. Sunday School classes were consolidated so that only the most experienced were teaching. On top of that each Sunday School class was given the task of contacting inactive members in hopes of bringing them back to the church.

With God's help the plan worked. By my first anniversary at Enon we had an average attendance of 55 on Sunday mornings. People were being converted and baptized. Sunday School classes began to swell. As an extra bonus the weekly collections even went up. Life was good at Enon, at least for the moment.

Heresy: The Problem With The Truth

Do you know what the problem with the truth is? Sometimes it hurts! We Christians sometimes skirt the truth or just flat out lie about it so as not to offend anyone. This is just wrong. The prophets, apostles, martyrs, and Our Lord died for the truth. What makes us think that we should do any less if need be.

I want to believe that everyone is inherently good. The truth is that they're not. I want to believe that the world is a safe place to live. The truth is that it is not. I want to believe that my government has my best interest at heart. The truth is that it doesn't. I also want to believe that everyone will go to Heaven when they die. The truth is that they won't.

Heresy is defined as a system of thought which contradicts true doctrine. One of the most popular heresies during the course of Church history has been Universalism. Universalism is the false doctrine that teaches that everyone on the earth has been redeemed by Christ and will go to Heaven. This doctrine has reared its ugly head once again in evangelical circles. The popular evangelical minister from Michigan, Rob Bell, has just released a book entitled Love Wins. In this book Bell expouses Universalism.

Over the years I have studied Universalism and its claims. I will be the first to profess that the claims are attractive. I have looked at all of the Scriptures related to the topic and used as a defense by adherents of this heresy and I find them wanting. Taken in context the verses claimed to substantiate Universalism actually refute it.

The key argument of evangelical universalism is that Christ's love is so great for all of mankind that He would not send anyone to Hell. I agree with this statement, but I must place it in its proper context. Jesus' love is so great that He would never send anyone to Hell. And He doesn't. He became one of us to keep us from going to Hell. He preached about Hell so that we wouldn't want to go there. He suffered an agonizing death to keep us out of Hell. He rose from the grave and conquered death so that we wouldn't have to go to Hell. Jesus doesn't want anyone to go to Hell! But He won't stop us if that's where we choose to spend eternity.

We are creatures created in the imagio Dei, the image of God. Thus we are creatures with free will. God never, ever supercedes our free will. He has done everything He can to keep us from Hell. The choice is ours. The way out is there. All we have to do is make the right choice. Hell was not created for human beings. It was created for the demonic hoard who followed Satan in the rebellion against God. But when human beings choose Satan over God they also choose to dwell where Satan will abide for eternity.

Sometimes the truth hurts, but this is the truth. Some of you will get angry with me for telling you the truth, but so be it. My job as a priest is not to make you feel good. My job is to tell you the truth.

May God enlighten those blinded by heresy and bring them back to the truth. My God open the eyes of those led astray by false prophets and may they see them for what they really are. And may God help you to see the Truth, who is Jesus Christ, and follow Him to eternal bliss, rather than following Satan to eternal perdition. Amen.

Fr. Rick