Death, Resurrection, and the Church’s Future (eCrozier #161)

On January 11, 2013, in Anglicanism, discipleship, Resurrection, young adults, by bishopbenhase

Christianity has died many times and risen again, for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave. – G. K. Chesterton

The Anglican Communion News Service reports that West Africa’s new Anglican archbishop, the Most Reverend Solomon Tilewa Johnson, has identified “the threat posed by new churches” as one of the top priorities for the Anglican Church there. He expressed a concern that the Anglican bishops of West Africa share about losing young people to other churches or losing them from church altogether.

Archbishop Johnson stressed: “We need to be relevant in the first place. I would want to work with my fellow bishops to see what strategies we could come up with to make our message understandable enough for people to respond.”

The above should sound at all too familiar to us in the American context. Reports out of Africa for the last generation have informed us of the significant growth of the church on that continent. And that growth continues. Still, as Archbishop Johnson states, the Anglican Church is facing a struggle now for how to respond to the new challenge of the loss of young people from the church.

Parts of Africa are now going through what we in our context have been going through for a generation and what Europe has gone through since the middle part of the 20th Century: the church losing its influence and relevancy in people’s lives. This should concern us, but I do not see this as a problem to be solved as much as I see it as an opportunity God is giving us to, as the Chesterton quote above suggests, to die and rise again.

So, let me provoke here: What in our church needs to die so that we might rise again? Another way of framing that question might be: What do we need to give up, or give over, or let go of in order to receive the new life of resurrection as a church? Going forward, what is essential for us to take with us and what can we declare to be adiaphora (look it up, if that will help)? A classic Anglican answer might be: we take with us the Scriptures, Creeds, Sacraments, and Holy Orders, the so-called four pillars. My hunch is we unconsciously pile a lot of other things on top of those four pillars that don’t need to be included. That is what we need to wrestle with as a church right now.

But let’s bring this to an individual level. What are each of us willing to let go of or give over that we might participate in this resurrection? This is called repentance; the act of turning around, changing our way of thinking and acting, and letting go of our past practices so that we might receive the new gift of resurrection. It is easy to suggest to the church, or even to criticize the church about what changes it should make so it can live into this resurrection. It is a far more difficult task to confront ourselves with a fearless spiritual inventory. So, what are you willing to give up, give over, or let go of in order to participate with your fellow disciples in the resurrection of the Church?

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Maintaining Spiritual Discipline (eCrozier #160)

On January 4, 2013, in discipleship, Spiritual Disciplines, by bishopbenhase

In the wonderful movie Up, a talking dog is a prominent protagonist. Even though he talks, he’s still very much a dog. Like most dogs with whom I have shared habitat, this dog has significant attention-deficit issues. One of the recurring conceits of the film are scenes where the dog is talking to one of the humans and in the midst of speaking, his head pivots quickly one way or the other and he yells “squirrel!” as a squirrel runs by somewhere off screen. He then immediately resumes whatever he was saying.

My guess is that this image resonates with most of us as we seek to deepen our relationship with God.  We have our own “squirrel” proclivities when it comes to our spiritual lives and practices. Our practices are hard for us to maintain because there are so many “squirrel” distractions grabbing our attention. It is not that we are necessarily spiritually lazy. The longing for a closer relationship to God really is our desire, but we lack the discipline needed to focus our practices.

As we begin a new year, many people will make resolutions to change something about their lives. Some of those same people will focus the attempted change on their spiritual lives and practices. While this can be a good thing, my hunch is too many people will bite off more than they can chew, set unrealistic and unmanageable commitments, fail to keep those commitments, then give up, and be back where they started, only full of, if not self-hatred, at least a profound personal disappointment that they cannot seem to grow closer to God.

From my own experience, there are five keys to keeping any spiritual practice. First it needs to be specific. We should be able to say clearly what we’re going to do or not do. Next, it needs to be realistic. It should be something we can really manage given our lives as they are (and not as we fantasize them to be). Thus, it must be flexible enough to fit our current schedule and experience. Rigidity will only lead us to the spiral down to self-disappointment. Still, the discipline or practice must also be sacrificial. In other words, by engaging in it, it should cost something of our time and energy. And, so we don’t go off on wild tangents, the practice should be responsive to the claims of Jesus on his disciples, as the Church has received them.

Above all, our spiritual practice must be something we actively do, regularly and repetitively. In a sense, it is kind of like breathing. Passivity will sabotage us every time. For example, many people believe they will grow closer to God by reading the right books. I know from my own experience that expecting to grow deeper in my relationship with God through reading books about the spiritual life is like expecting to become physically fit by reading books about exercising. Now, reading books on the spiritual life (or reading eCroziers, for that matter) are hopefully edifying, but the Saints of the Church remind us we grow closer to God through actively engaging in concrete spiritual practices like daily prayer, serving others, showing hospitality to strangers, making Eucharist, and tithing (yes, tithing). When we engage in practices like these regularly and over time, we will find ourselves deepening our faith and growing closer to God.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Creating Disciples, Forming Leaders, and Sustaining Healthy and Vital Churches (eCrozier #148)

On September 28, 2012, in discipleship, leadership, Spiritual Disciplines, by Diocesan Staff

Clergy and lay leaders can have enormous impact on the health and vitality of the congregations they lead. But often the day-to-day “running” of the parish gets so much of their attention that they have little time or energy to work on the practices that lead to such health and vitality. This is the triumph of the urgent over the important. Yet, I believe that grounding people in the spiritual practices of discipleship, practices we have so amply available in our tradition, must be the leader’s main priority.

So, I suggest a refocus. Rather than a prime focus on “running” the parish, let’s place substantial energy and resources toward discipleship formation, which would include: (1) grounding people in the faith and practice of the Church; (2) growing the leadership base and skill of the parish; and, (3) disciplined listening to the Spirit through the people, things, and circumstances of the congregation. Here is what that might look like, broadly speaking, in a congregation.

1. Hold a recurring class that cycles about every 6-8 weeks. The class would teach people how to engage the spiritual practices the church. Sessions ought to include: What is the basic Christian narrative, how to pray the office, what does sacramental living look like, how do we keep Sabbath time, what does being a steward of God’s blessings mean, where can we exercise our Christian service in the world, etc. This is not a newcomer’s class, per se. Invite new and existing members. This builds up in everyone the basic skills of living their discipleship in the world. Over time, it develops a critical mass of lay leaders who are mature practicioners of our faith. It also connects new and old members. Nothing is more welcoming to new folk than to help them get proficient at being a disciple.

2. Regularly meet with existing leaders to identify future leaders and then nurture those folks. Done right this does not threaten current leaders, especially if you enlist them as mentors for future leaders. Enroll them in the Church Development Institute or other leadership training programs. Send them to diocesan Saturday workshops for parish leaders. Then, invite them to lead an initiative in the congregation that has a clear beginning and a clear end to it with an opportunity for them re-enlist. Congregations who are constantly developing leaders, and equipping them to be good at what they do, will always have people in place who have the energy and the smarts to lead.

3. Twice a year, in addition to the official Annual Meeting of the parish, have open church-wide meetings. These meetings need to be well-planned and designed to elicit feedback from people for the how the congregation is doing. It is a time where people can share their hopes, raise concerns, and offer their thoughts on ways to make things better. It is human nature to want to be heard. Often times brewing low-grade conflicts can be addressed before they get larger simply by respectful listening and clear response. This also has the benefit for leaders in that they get to see where the energy is in the congregation. What ideas or hopes seem to have the most enthusiasm? Go with those. If there is no energy around the annual (fill in the blank), then let it go.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

eCrozier #141

On June 28, 2012, in Body of Christ, discipleship, leadership, mission, by bishopbenhase

Ron Ashkenas, whose latest book is Simply Effective, says that many organizations over time develop what he calls learned helplessness. This occurs when leaders in the organization slowly create a list of excuses and explanations for why the organization can’t change or improve as it seeks to accomplish its mission. Ashkenas says that rather than finding ways to make things better or generating ideas for how things might be different, leaders instead gradually accept the status quo and blame external forces to explain and then to excuse the “stuckness” of the organization.

Learned helplessness can become viral in any organization and the Church is no exception. As our Church prepares for General Convention next week where we will address major issues of restructuring, I’m aware of how this virus has infected us. In our congregations, I hear regularly how what happens at the national Church level inhibits local mission. This is no doubt true to some extent, which is why we need to radically restructure our Church’s organizational life to focus on the mission of making disciples. But it’s also an excuse for congregational leaders to do little to proclaim the Gospel in their communities by treating themselves as victims of the larger Church’s actions or inactions, as the case may be. This is learned helplessness in its most clear form.

Ashkenas offers two ways to get beyond learned helplessness and I will apply them to our context. He says that organizations should first name clearly what is going on. He suggests making a list of initiatives people say they want, but have not done. Then put together a list of the ten most common excuses for why there has been inaction. Creating dialogue helps everyone become aware of their complicity in learned helplessness. So, in the Church, we hear things like: “We don’t have enough people. We don’t have enough resources. We don’t have enough time. We tried something new before and it didn’t work.” These are all the words of people infected with learned helplessness.

A way to get the organization “unstuck” from the virus of learned helplessness is to find one initiative that, as Ashkenas says, can show even in a small way that the organization can accomplish something. I know this to be true. In a congregation where people have adopted the passive resignation of learned helplessness, too often church leaders try large, bold initiatives. This has the tendency to scare people and make them even less likely to become unstuck. What works is to find one simple thing that the church can do together, that’s likely achievable, and then to do it. Once it’s achieved, celebrate the success. I remember in one of my former parishes where we wanted to grow the Sunday School. We had one child and when we got a second, we celebrated that Sunday School attendance had doubled in just one week!

It is time to give up our excuses for not engaging in God’s mission to make disciples and, by doing so, to make a difference in our communities. No more passive resignation, please. If your congregation has become stuck with the virus of learned helplessness, then call it what is and then find one first thing you can do together for God’s mission. Take that first small step to become unstuck and then celebrate your way to the next.

+Scott

 

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

I’m not afraid of the Girl Scouts – except maybe their cookies during Lent! (eCrozier #125)

On March 2, 2012, in culture, discipleship, fear, by bishopbenhase

This year is the centennial of the Girl Scouts founded by Juliette Gordon Low, who was a native of Savannah and a beloved member of Christ Church. All Girl Scouts make the promise: “On my honor, I will try to serve God and my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout Law.” Their slogan is: “Do a good turn daily.” This is a great organization that for 100 years has helped girls gain confidence and abilities in outdoor activities, has provided a place for girls to learn the importance of working together, and has helped instill in them the virtue of citizenship for the common good. My only complaint with them: They sell those tempting cookies during Lent every year.

So, one can only wonder why Mr. Bob Morris, an Indiana State legislator, wants his legislative colleagues to defeat a nonbinding resolution honoring the Girl Scouts on their centennial. An old Hoosier friend of mine sent me a copy of the letter he sent to his colleagues referring to the Girl Scouts as a “radicalized organization” dominated by “liberal progressive politics” and committed to the “destruction of traditional American family values.” He points to the fact that since Michelle Obama is the Honorary President of the Girl Scouts, this proves his case. Oh please!

Now, it seems, the Girl Scouts are the next thing we are supposed to fear. A culture of fear is stirred by incessant talk radio, 24-hour cable news, and internet blogging (Mr. Morris claims he arrived at his conclusion about the Girl Scouts after doing a “small amount of web-based research”). The daily fear-mongering we endure has transformed conversations about the common good into shouting monologues where each voice vies to make more outrageous claims than the other. Modern communication technology, rather than providing opportunities for greater community, has moved us farther down a tribalist path. We’ve been instructed to fear these other tribes. Such tribalist fear affects our moral lives because it deforms our discernment, character and judgment.

In some ways, this is nothing new. It is only hyper-actualized in our contemporary culture. Appealing to people’s fears has always been a tactic used by some to control the lives of others. You will recall that Jesus in the Gospels spends a good part of his teaching ministry with his disciples telling them: “Do not be afraid.” You see, Jesus clearly recognized the corrosive capacity of fear, understanding profoundly how living by our fears would lead us away from the traditional spiritual practices of hospitality, generosity, and bearing one another’s burdens. Thus, living in a culture where fears are repetitively stirred up and then served up for us to consume, we will find it increasingly difficult to practice the Christian virtues of those who attend themselves to discipleship in Jesus.

One of our important roles as church leaders is to help people develop the habits, practices, and virtues that correspond with following Jesus. We can only do so effectively if we are clear about what prevents people from doing so. My hunch is that people’s fears are on the top of the list. So, I will not let Mr. Morris make me afraid of the Girl Scouts. And, if I buy their cookies, I will save them until Eastertide.

Scott+

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Virtuous and Godly Living Matters But Not for Demagogic Reasons (eCrozier # 122)

On February 10, 2012, in culture, discipleship, scapegoating, by bishopbenhase

Charles Murray in his new book, Coming Apart, addresses the growing cultural and class divide our country has experienced in the last 50 years. Innovations in technology and manufacturing have transformed the work place and business practices. This has meant one gets rewarded quite well in our economy if one has the technological smarts to compete. But for those who do not, their ability to earn a living wage has declined. As Murray writes: “just about all of the benefits of economic growth from 1970 to 2010 went to people in the upper half of the income distribution.” Even though we rightly criticize former Senator John Edwards’ immoral behavior, he was right about there now being “two Americas.”

As this has occurred, there has also been a change in marriage practice. The number of American adults who are married has fallen from 72 percent in 1960 to barely 51 percent, and the number of new marriages fell 5 percent between 2009 and 2010. In working-class America (30% of the country) this is even more acute. Marriage rates have gone down steadily during this time while out-of-wedlock births and divorce rates have dramatically increased. This is not so for the upper-class (20% of the country) where only 7% of children are born out-of-wedlock. Among the working-class it is 45%.

In the upper-class (20% of the country) nearly every man age 30 to age 49 is working, but in the working-class (30% of the country) this age group of men has been leaving the labor force in a continual flow even when the economy has been better. Murray states from his research that people in this class, representing nearly one third of our country, are much less likely to get married, are less likely to be active in their church, less likely to be involved in their neighborhoods and schools, are more likely to watch a lot of TV, and are much more likely to be unhealthily obese. To avoid distractions to his analysis, Murray limited his study to white America. His alarm bell is about class not race.

From Murray’s argument, it is easy to see why both the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street movements have struck such deep chords in people. People sense this “coming apart” of our culture, but are not sure how to mend the rift. Demagogues pick up on people’s anxieties (as they always do) and offer up scapegoats to blame. The scapegoats du jour are immigrants and the gay people. But the truth is neither one of them can be honestly blamed for the lack of virtuous behavior in the nearly third of white America that Murray has described.

We in the Church need to hear what Charles Murray is saying. We have a pastoral challenge here. The Church is not only a hospital for sinners. It is also an academy for saints. We need to teach people about “virtuous and godly living” such as life-long monogamy, the spiritual discipline of weekly Eucharist with the Body of Christ, and the duty we all have to be meaningfully involved in our neighborhoods and schools. We also need to instruct folk in the virtues of family life where we discourage sloth, gluttony, and the like. That will take a deft pastoral hand from our leaders, but we need to do it to mend what is coming apart.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Declining Violence?, Walmart Pepper Spray, and “Myside Bias” (eCrozier #114)

On December 2, 2011, in culture, discipleship, humility, by bishopbenhase

In his new book: The Better Angels of Our Nature: the Decline of Violence in History and Its Causes, Harvard professor Steven Pinker contends that violence has steadily declined in the world since the end of the Cold War. He makes this claim based on lots of data and his belief that we as a species are growing up, morally speaking. I found his argument interesting, but impossible to accept, even with all his supporting data. If I had the time, I am sure I could find just as much data to make the opposite point. It all depends on how one defines violence. He is right if one means world wars, but not so much if one means violence in general. Even then, the violence of war did not end with the Cold War. It continued in the first Gulf war, the Balkan wars, Rwanda, Chechnya, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Added all up, they are significant. Pinker barely refers to them. He focuses on the developed world and its sustained peace.

But even in the developed world, we aren’t all that developed, when it comes to being violence-free. As Rod Serling would say in an episode of The Twilight Zone, “submitted for your consideration:” Last week, at 10:10 p.m. on Thanksgiving night (or Black Friday Eve, as it will soon be known) twenty shoppers at a Walmart in the San Fernando Valley had to be treated for injuries after a woman fired pepper spray at them. Los Angeles Fire Captain James Carson said the woman was “competitive shopping” and was apparently attempting to “gain preferred access” to some sale-priced electronics. Dr. Pinker, I rest my case.

Dr. Pinker, I believe, suffers from what economist Daniel Klein calls “myside bias,” which is the tendency to judge ideas or information according to how conveniently they conform to a person’s already settled view of the world. Dr. Pinker set out to find a decline in world violence and he did. He even found evidence to support it. But he had to ignore a lot of other evidence to get there.

I suffer from “myside bias” and so do you. We all do (except Georgia Bulldog fans who are completely free from it). Pure objectivity is thus a myth. We all bring to every idea or piece of information a subjective interpretation of that idea or information based on how we have come to see and comprehend the world. So, anybody who insists to you that they are unencumbered by this, I strongly suggest that you be wary of them. These are dangerous people (or maybe I’m just exhibiting “myside bias” against Cable News?).

Our common admission and confession of “myside bias” has the benefit of helping us become humble before the Truth of God in Jesus Christ, while at the same time, compelling us to acknowledge that we are finite, limited creatures who get things wrong, often frequently. It can also aid us in our empathy toward other equally finite and limited creatures; the ones the Bible calls our “neighbors” (as in, “love your neighbor as yourself”). Such humility and empathy will help us develop and maintain generous hearts and open minds as we seek to follow Jesus in a world full of people like us. We will learn to judge less and love more. It will aid us in the ongoing work and practice of the forgiveness of one another. Put simply, it will help us be better disciples of Jesus.

+Scott

 

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Ann Tyler’s “Saint Maybe” and getting clear on Jesus’ Gospel (eCrozier #112)

On November 11, 2011, in culture, discipleship, forgiveness, gospel, by bishopbenhase

As a Church, we face many external challenges from an increasingly post-Christian culture. Those challenges include, but are not limited to, a growing ignorance of just what the Christian Gospel means. A generation ago, if someone referred to another as a “Prodigal Son,” then many people would’ve known that term referenced Jesus’ parable about a father who forgave his son. I don’t think we’re there anymore as a culture. I believe, however, our internal challenges are even greater.  It’s also more pressing that we address them. Besides, we have very little influence over the larger culture. And we can deal with how the Gospel is taught and lived out in our Church.

Ann Tyler, in her book, Saint Maybe, tells the story of Ian Bedloe, who as a 17 year-old mistakenly tells his older brother that his brother’s wife is having an affair. His brother angrily drives away recklessly in his car. Soon after, Ian learns that his brother has died in a car wreck, apparently from being so distraught over the accusation. His brother’s widow is shattered by the loss and a few years later, consumed by the grief, she dies leaving three young children. Ian is racked with guilt over what he seemingly caused. Seeking forgiveness for his sins, he visits a storefront church called the “Church of the Second Chance.” There he learns there’s no such thing as cheap forgiveness. He must do something particular about the lives he has devastated. The church’s pastor counsels him to take responsibility for raising his dead brother’s three children.

Ian does this. The story comes to an end when he’s middle-aged and all three children are grown. As he reflects on how his life turned out, he wonders if he’ll ever experience forgiveness and absolution for what he did. As a young man, he sacrificed his own dreams in order to raise his brother’s children. In an apocalyptic moment, he realizes he hadn’t been doing penance all along. Having the privilege of raising the children into fine adults was a gift he never could’ve expected. As this comes to him, he experiences the forgiveness he has longed for. It was in the actual practice of the Christian faith that Ian discovered the truth of what he was taught at the “Church of the Second Chance.”

Tyler’s book calls into question some of the misguided assumptions many people have about forgiveness, grace, and what it means to live the Christian life. And that continues to be an internal challenge for us as a Church. The Church needs to be abundantly clear about Jesus’ Gospel of forgiveness and grace and then preach and teach it consistently. Jesus’ Gospel demands a response from us not passive assent or thoughtful intent.

Many people in the Church today want to be tended and serviced, not served and led. We don’t lead and serve them truthfully if we somehow convey to them that being a disciple of Jesus can be reduced to church attendance, a few bucks in the offering plate, and just saying we’re sorry when we sin. Discipleship must engage our whole being. It’s who we are, what we do, all the time, even when no one else is looking. Internally in the Church, we must teach people that. Rather than bemoan what our culture has become or seek to use it as an excuse for passive resignation, let’s get clear on what the Gospel demands of us and then let’s respond.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Making Disciples by Learning from our Failures (eCrozier #96)

On July 1, 2011, in discipleship, by bishopbenhase

In the book, Adapt: Why Success Always Starts with Failure, the author, Tim Harford, brings the disciplines of psychology, evolutionary biology, anthropology, physics, and economics to make a profoundly simple argument: life cannot be lived well if all we seek are easy solutions or even expert opinion. Our world is way too chaotic and complex for such facile approaches or with an over-reliance on ivory tower pronouncements. Harford rather contends that it is all about how we adapt and respond to our failures through trial and error.

Harford’s basic lesson is this: We have to design our efforts to make effective use of our failures. We have to design into our life’s efforts a way of making use of trial and error. Most efforts, he argues, succeed by stumbling and adapting, not by meticulous planning or grand schemes. He lays out a three-point process: (1) Discover new ideas and new ways of doing things; (2) Try them on a small scale so if you fail you can survive the consequences; and, (3) Establish a feedback loop so you can find out what is failing and what is working. He argues this process works in almost all contexts from business to war to writing.

The author is an economist, so he doesn’t write about the spiritual practices and the disciplines we need to live with trial, error, and adaption. But if we translate some of his terms into our language of faith, then he describes a useful road map for people trying to live as faithful disciples in the world as it really is. In our congregations, as we seek to develop faithful efforts at evangelism and thus fulfill the Great Commission “to make disciples,” Harford’s approach is right on target. We have to be willing to try new approaches to reach people with the Gospel that we have not reached before. And we will have to be open to failure in these efforts because some of them will fail. As Harford reminds us, failure is not the problem. It is not learning from failure through a feedback loop.

What would our congregations be like if we opened ourselves to such a stance that welcomed trial, error, and adaptation? My hunch is we would be less concerned with phrases like: “we never do things that way here” or “we tried something similar ten years ago and didn’t work.” We rather would be constantly trying new approaches, learning from how those approaches worked or didn’t work, and then trying new variations on our successful efforts.

Let me be clear: I am not suggesting a new Gospel. The one we have now is perfect in every way. So the content of our message is without flaw. It is our approach to sharing the message that needs constant scrutiny and a willingness to adapt as we learn from our mistakes. I don’t know about you, but I find this to be an exciting and stimulating approach to our common life and ministry. Clearly, making disciples in the 21st Century will require our best creative efforts. I believe the success we will have will be directly related to our willingness to listen to people like Harford, for he and others have a lot to teach us about how we will achieve success in making disciples.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Reebok, and the False Gospel of Self-Reliance (eCrozier #95)

On June 24, 2011, in discipleship, by bishopbenhase

I imagine most of us in high school were assigned the essay, Self-Reliance, by Ralph Waldo Emerson. In his essay, Emerson glories in the power and authority of the self. Emerson told us that our creative consciousness was our one source for truth and the one arbiter of our values. Emerson wrote: “Insist on yourself,” and “never imitate” – phrases which challenge Jesus’ teaching. There is an amazing amount of flattery in these words. It’s wonderful to hear that being so self-focused is actually good for you. People have soaked up Emerson for last 150 years and it has distorted the way we read and understand the Gospel.

As some churches have learned from Emerson, you can always draw a crowd when you flatter and entertain your audience (see: Osteen, Joel) while refraining from telling them that the Gospel of Jesus makes demands upon their lives. There’s always a market in the church for snake oil versions of the Gospel that promise the bliss of heaven without the demands of the cross. H. Richard Neibuhr described this snake oil Gospel this way: “A god without wrath, brought men without sin, to a kingdom without judgment, by the ministrations of a Christ without a cross.”

Emerson preached the authority of the self, but in the process we are left with simply the resources of our own selves. With this in mind, it shouldn’t surprise us that those who advertise on TV have picked up on Emerson. Awhile back, Reebok, a company that makes athletic shoes, ran a TV ad quoting Emerson’s essay, Self-Reliance. In the ad, a fairy godmother, with Reeboks on her feet, shouts quotes from Emerson, “Insist on yourself, never imitate!” And the ad ended with the slogan: “Reebok, lets you be you.” The flattery of the self was obvious. But there was also irony. Reebok didn’t actually want people to insist on themselves. They wanted everyone to imitate because they wanted everyone to buy their shoes. The advertising execs at Reebok knew that flattering the self is successful in America, since the self is almighty. It’s ironic that Emerson, the one who preached the self and individualism, was used to serve a sophisticated ad campaign to manipulate consumer tastes for profit in a mass market.

This is the larger context in which we live and in which we hear Jesus. We’ve been taught to focus on the self, and if we just did that, then we’d discover universal truths for moral, spiritual and communal life. But what we actually find when we focus so much on ourselves is simple selfishness and the desire to acquire more things to please ourselves.

St. Paul tells us that the only truth we will discover by fixating on the self is the truth of sin. He writes: ” Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?” This fixation on the self, this “selfism,” only makes us slaves to sin – the sin of being left to our own devices. And we will only find the truth by spiritually dying to our old self – one that’s fixated on itself and exists only for itself. Then and only then will we truly find ourselves to be loved by the grace and mercy of God.

+Scott

 
0 Comments
Leave A Response

« Previous Entries Next Entries »
Go To Top »