Putting the "X" Back in Xmas!

It may be a silly post for our first ever, inaugral blog in the newly redesigned website, but I was asked to blog about this, so here we go...

Earlier this week I was caught using the shortened version of Chirstmas, namely the infamous "Xmas," and the response was jokingly along the lines of, "Really!? You're a pastor, you can't do that!" In the insuing conversation it was brought out that many of us were raised believing that the use of this abbreviation was "taking Christ out of Christmas." Indeed, the Reverend Billy Graham is quoted to have called it "a war against the name of Jesus Christ." Although in his defense, I think he was also speaking about a larger movement to celebrate Christmas without the religious aspect.

But that holds it's own ironies... the church tradition in which I grew up did not believe that Christmas should have a religious element, because it wasn't to be found in the Bible. So we were taught that Christmas was NOT Jesus' birthday. We said "Merry Christmas" and did all the fun stuff with presents, but no one was ever caught wearing a "Happy Birthday Jesus" button. (Those things still make a little uncomfortable, lol.)

No, in fact this week was not the first time I heard someone state the opinion that using "Xmas" was a departure from a pure, orthodox Christmasanity. But really, the arguent just underscores the wholefully shortened view of history in general under which most Westerners labor in their day to day lives. And evangelical Xians are usualy the worst... at best, the acceptable evangelical church history only goes back about 500 years before, well, we'll leave it there.

"X" is arguably one of the oldest traditions we have for writing the name of Christ, especially among the mostly illiterate masses who lived more than 500 years ago. Dates vary and the usage has had it's own ebb and flow, but some scholars claim to trace the use of "X" (or the Greek letter Chi, hehehehe) all the way back to the First Century! Whoa! That's like there, man!

I've used Xians and Xianity and Xmas for quite a while. Really, my attention span was that short even before Twitter came to dominate our communication patterns. The truth is, I figured that if Paul says we can choose any day of the week to be set aside as special for gathering and worshipping God, we can probably use our choice of ways to spell Christmas, too. (Yeah, I did just say that, lol. And so did Paul in Romans 14.) Paul actually makes a great argument for diversity and the idea of us having different ways to think about a host if issues.

And let's be real, like friends. We live in a pluralist society, and that's a gift. Yes, Xianity was right there at the start, in the hearts and minds of many if not most of those whom we call our Founding Fathers, along with many other great women and men who shaped our nation's early years. Still, even as Xianity was the religion of choice for the vast majority of our citizens in our country's youth, they still crafted founding documents which set the stage for our greatness in diversity today. I think it was the liberating ideas of Xianity which opened the door for such meaningful diverisity in our country. So, what else are many in our society to do with a holiday like Xmas today, if they don't self-identify as Xians? They'll engage it as much as they can, and probably fashion something of their own that's very close to what you and I associate with Xmas, but not quite. And that's OK. Someone's non-religious practice of Xmas does nothing to lessen the meaning of our practice of the season. But X's have nothing to do with it, at least not historically. History is on X's side.

Here's my point... the reason someone uses "X" for Christ is a more a matter of taste than orthodoxy. And in this richly diverse, pluralistic society in which we live today, we need to remember the humility of a Savior who came to us in weakness and grace. In the interview we previsouly quoted the Rev. Graham also mentions that people [Xians] "are fighting back now," but that's a problem, not a solution. This season, of all seasons, is not about domination, winning and deafeating, even in an argument about the meaning of the season.

Jesus came annoucing his intention to free, to help, to heal and to share some good news with his neighbors. And we have the same opportunity. (That reference is about Jesus in Luke 4:16-21 using the words from Isaiah 61:1-3 to present himself and his ministry in his hometown Synagogue in Nazareth.)

So, put a big X in the box! I choose X! For me, it all comes full circle... I am of the infamous Generation X, I self-identify as a Xian, and I LOVE XMAS! And when people get knocked senseless in cartoons they have x's for eyes, and that's cool, too!

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Some Reflections on 9/11

Hey church family... this is a blog entry I write for Bethesda.patch.com

I have been thinking this week about the approach of the tenth anniversary of the September 11th tragedy in 2001. I recall vividly where I was, and I recall the shock and horror of watching the towers fall one by one on my little TV screen. There were the reports of a plane hitting the Pentagon, and rumors of a plane headed for the White House. It seemed like a day of horrible uncertainties. Early death tolls projected a loss of 50,000 lives.

I stood in my office in far away Montgomery, Alabama, comforting my secretary whose son was in New York City, and praying hard for the people surely hurting and dying. For many Americans, citizens of diverse ethnicity, religion, and experience, life changed and can never be the same. So I reflect on their loss and pain, today. And I pray that such killing and war on innocents might happen less and less around the word until this type of terrorism is a thing of history books.

Ten years later we are still seeking some meaning and understanding to put those events in perspective. As a country we responded with unity and collective mourning. And we responded with years of war, violence and pursuit of an illusive enemy.

Our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, wives and husbands, friends and neighbors, have gone to war and died in a sacrificial effort to divert threats to us and to secure the last ten years of peace for us. And today I am so mindful of their gift, and their families. Violence has bred violence in our world, and so many families have been left broken and hurting in the wake of the wars. I pray for those families, and with profound respect for their warriors lost, I reflect on their service to and love of our country.

I am grateful for the leaders of our nation who have done what they could to protect us. I am grateful for Presidents Bush and Obama. I am grateful for Secretaries of State Powell, Rice and Clinton. I am grateful for all who have labored to secure our freedoms.

Finally, I am reflecting that the tragedy of that day is a reminder to me that I must not ever allow myself to fall to the demands or to the allure of hatred. The day should remind us all that our nation’s values and our respective faiths have called us to secure the greatest peace, dignity and hope for the whole world and for all nations, ours included. And in the diverse society of the United States today, we have daily opportunities to show welcome, respect and appreciation for our beautiful variety of neighbors.

An injury to a nation and it’s psyche such as the events of 9/11 could easily propel us to withdraw, to hate and to fear. Those events can also move us to a greater care for our friends and neighbors, a greater need to understand the world around us and a driving desire for establishing a peace which breeds peace which breeds peace…

May the good in us always shine. May we with wisdom defend, forgive, lead, follow, act or refrain, serve and receive in a world better arranged to bless our neighbors here in this great country, and around the world.

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Oh, Be Careful Little Lips What You Say!

“Oh, Be Careful Little Lips What You Say!”

Biblical Foundations for Civility in Discourse

          Talking about civil discourse has been an undercurrent at CiB for a couple of years now. Our tagline on the website says, “…followers of Christ, good neighbors in the world…” The idea behind that identifying statement is a focus of seeking God and seeking life through the person of Jesus Christ, and therein becoming the best neighbors anyone could have. We believe that our being Christians should directly benefit our neighbors. In our daily discourse, it means that Christians should be the safest people to talk with, even in moments of disagreement. Though followers of Christ may in fact hold very strong convictions about a range of topics, we are taught to conduct ourselves in ways that will support the dignity of all people around us.

            Our scriptures give us very clear instructions on how our discourse is to be shaped. The question that we each face in our own lives is to what extent we are willing to be transformed by the scriptural witness. Too many times we allow our desires for winning arguments and establishing dominant positions within our culture to override the biblical voice. Or maybe it’s a fear that we are somehow changed ourselves when we are not exercising cultural dominance? Whether from fear or for competing desires, we too often use negative tactics in our speech and actions that do not help our message, but render it ineffectual and unheard.

            Did you ever sing, “Oh, be careful little lips what you say! Oh, be careful little lips what you say! For our father up above is looking down in love, so be careful little lips what you say!” If you grew up in a church, you probably did. It’s one the great “adult hypocrisies” perpetrated on our children that we instruct them from a very young age that they should not “call people names” and should watch what they say. The hypocrisy is that we are in fact reserving the right of name calling and general verbal naughtiness as an adult pleasure. How do we so completely forget the lessons of our childhood?

            If you wonder about some of my wording as I reference passages, I am reading from the New Living Translation, Today’s New International Version, and the New Revised Standard translations as I write.

General Discourse

            What I’d like to do in this first section is to explore some passages about our discourse as people of faith: Matthew 5:21-26, Ephesians 4:22-5:5, Colossians 3:1-17.

            Matthew 5:21-26. Christ truly sets the bar high with this teaching on discourse. Admittedly, it’s an interesting and sometimes difficult passage to understand, but probably only because we so enjoy calling one another fools. The passage we normally call “The Sermon on the Mount” is challenging in its use of hyperbole and its higher calling to ethical and moral behavior, but we shouldn’t let the message be lost because we wonder sincerely if we can live it! Most of us would agree that murder cannot be condoned. But we do love name calling. Of course we most enjoy the insults when we’re not on the receiving end. When Jesus speaks in a way that places murder, anger and insult on rather equal footing we immediately move to figure out “what Jesus really means.” In other words, we want to keep murder murder, and leave the others in a more accessible position for our use. We really hate to think that we can’t call someone a fool. And we feel far too often justified in offering insults to give up that easily.

            But Jesus makes it hard to dismiss his injunction against our verbal abuses. He goes further by placing reconciliation with another person above obligations of worship and even places the burden of reconciliation completely on our own shoulders when a problem is perceived: you go quickly and make amends.

            So, what happens to make us so comfortable with sharing insulting and demeaning slander? How does online gossip and slander come to be shared and forwarded by Christians every day? Yes, I’m talking about mean-spirited gossipy emails and demeaning pictures on Facebook. (Really, who doesn't know by now that Snopes.com will let you know that the email and picture is fake?) What raises our comfort level for calling someone a fool? Is it a feeling of righteous indignation? If so, then we allow our feelings of righteous indignation to cause us to act in unrighteous ways. When we allow ourselves to begin issuing insults and indulging in name calling, we break with the will of Christ for our behavior.

            Ephesians 4:22-5:5. We are taught that Christ is a mitigating presence and influence in our daily lives. Because of what Christ has done and shared with us, a “new self” is created which operates in new ways. This passage is beautiful in it’s way of not just pointing out behaviors which are to change but it also points to deeper things in us that should be rejected.

            Behaviors that should change are things like stealing, lying (speaking falsely), and an emphasis should be placed on dealing with anger (instead of just simmering) and sharing with those need. But at the root of our behaviors are the interior things that we remove as listed in verse 29: bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander and malice. We live not to grieve God’s Spirit; we live to fulfill Christ-like kindness, compassion and forgiveness.

            No where in such a passage is there a place for the “Angry Christian” who lashes out at a neighbor, insults and demeans a political opponent, or speaks to destroy instead of building up. Paul gives us an expectation of those things being left behind as the “old way of life.” And this Christian is definitely not giving up something of the vital essence of being a Christian! Their own thoughts, beliefs, and convictions are very much intact. It is that very mitigating presence of Christ which gives us the ability to speak and act so differently, so positively and constructively.

            Colossians 3:1-17. This is one of my favorite New Testament passages. I love the continued imagery of new life, or a “raised life” in this specific instance. This raised life is one that would “rise above” darker movements of the human soul: anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language and lying. In the place of these things we are to choose a better set of internal movements: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness and love.

            Once again we are presented with a clear picture of a person who leaves behind the darker negativity to live in brighter world of positive drives and goals. And look at the way the last verses of this passage present a picture of how the Christian message spreads: Christ’s peace ruling your heart + Christ’s message dwelling in you = teaching and admonishing with thankfulness!

            What a beautiful way to imagine our participation with God in this world! And it must be the only way that we can continually speak and act in the name of the Lord in all things with an abiding thankfulness as expressed in verse 17. Once a desire for insulting and degrading another person is given power in our life we break with the idea of a “ruling peace” and an “indwelling message.” That kind of peace and message are incompatible with the anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language and lying of the previous verses.

Our Defensiveness

            Too often I have heard Christians retaliate in harsh and insulting language when they feel attacked or demeaned in some way, or when they just don’t like what someone says. It’s very human to want to retaliate or “fight fire with fire” as we sometimes say. I can’t help but think of Bugs Bunny drawling, “Of course you know, this means war!”

            Next come some passages about suffering as a Christian. While I honestly don’t think any of us in America are “suffering” anything for our faith as others have in the past or as some of our sisters and brothers around the world are at this moment, it’s still a good exercise to review them: Luke 6:27-31, 1 Peter 3:8-17, 1 Peter 4:12-19.

            Luke 6:27-31. I wonder what Jesus would think of Western Christianity’s lack of seriousness to deal with this passage. I fear we’ve basically followed the lead of popular culture and allowed the “turning of the other cheek” to be little more than a standing joke. We’ve allowed it to mean only meekness in the event of a physical attack upon our person, and we’ve rejected the teaching in daily practice. Do we really think that Jesus isn’t serious about his followers being a group of people who do not respond in hatred, even to attackers? Jesus was speaking to an audience in a politically charged time. That audience knew exactly who the enemy was: Rome. And if Romans weren’t handy that day, there were other still other enemies to fight, there always are. Jesus stands up and declares love for the enemy and a repudiation of revenge. Gutsy.

            By the way, I submit that we have rejected this in daily practice because it seems Western Christians are indistinguishable from any other group in our country vying for their own rights and retaliating against any perceived insult, slight or even genuine attack. We show too little out of the ordinary in our behavior when insulted or slapped; we go on the war path. I often hear Christians bemoaning the idea that Christianity is the only religion open to attack and insult in America. They feel that all other religions are defended while insults and attacks on our own are condoned. In the case of such perceived imbalance and unfairness they feel justified to “fight back.” But fighting back is exactly the opposite of what Jesus is directing us toward. The truth might be that Christianity is tailor made to be the only religion it’s ok to attack, because our Lord has taught us not to retaliate. Tough luck, huh?

            So, what if we didn’t retaliate? What if we turned a cheek, offered a coat, and demanded nothing back when we feel someone has taken advantage of us? If you read a few verses on in Luke 6 you will see that we would actually fall into a promise of reward from God. In other words, not having earned or defended what we value and own, we make a space for God to do bigger and greater things for us.

            We are invited and called into an opportunity to break the cycle of only love for love and hate for hate. Repaying hate with love introduces the seed of transformation in ourselves and the world.

            1 Peter 3:8-17. I bet you think I’m going to jump immediately on verse 9, “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”While this is a nice verse that speaks directly to issue at hand, I rather prefer verse 11, “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” Verse 11 seems to present a foundational idea: we are about peace in this life. Such a thought may not always be compatible with competing ideas of a contemporary “culture war” and its messages of conflict, combat and triumph.

            And yet this passage from Peter so completely supports an active understanding and application of the teaching of Jesus in Luke 6. What if we refuse to repay evil for evil and insult for insult? We become inheritors of a blessing. According to the latter half of verse 9 we open the door for God’s work in us and God’s blessing of our lives. Maybe if we stopped fighting for what we believe we need or are entitled to receive, we’ll actually allow God the space needed to bless us with what we really do need. Seems worth a shot to me. 

            1 Peter 4:12-19. Whoa. It’s almost like Peter must have hung out with Jesus. Oh, wait…. that’s right. He did. And so Peter has an amazing perspective to share with us on the question of suffering, having witnessed what Christ voluntarily submitted himself to experience and then sharing the trials of the earliest followers. Out of all that experience he counsels Christ followers to commit themselves to God and keep on doing good. That’s the plan, and we’ve seen that it’s a plan with a promise attached to it as well, an inherited blessing of God.

            One of my favorite things to say about today’s highly publicized “culture war” is that there isn’t a war if we choose not to fight. To combative Christians who are charged up to fight for what’s theirs and regularly defame, insult and attack their enemies to achieve that goal, this sounds like defeat. It sounds like surrender. But I contend that to the ears of a person watching for the promised blessing of God, having devoted themselves to doing good and pursuing peace as called for in 1 Peter 3, it can sound like a beautiful submission to the ruling peace and indwelling message of Colossians 3. It all seems to fit together. We are called to repudiate the shameful tactics of hatred, slander and malice, and we are called to embrace a stance of kindness, concern, love and forgiveness, even in times of persecution, opposition and disagreement.

            At times like this, when thinking about the fact that I have not only have committed myself to answer the call of Christ personally, but I have also given myself vocationally and professionally to the call of Christ as a pastor and spiritual friend, I can only echo the prayer of the earliest followers, “Lord, increase my faith!” I don’t know how well I will live up to this call. I know I have failed many times. But I want it. I need it.

Summing It Up

            Finally, there is the entire chapter of Romans 12. I’ll end on this passage, even though it could have been included in either of the two sections above. We’ve really only scratched the surface of these passages. Romans12 is a great treatise on empathy and redirection. We are taught in Romans 12 to put aside insincerity and falseness to better position ourselves to be what another person needs us to be. Thank about that in light of the ministry, life and death of Christ. Can we live our lives in such a way that we are what others need us to be? We could mourn with the mourning, share with those in need, shun the ways of evil and embrace the harmony, forgive and feed. What a vision of life! What a great alternative to fighting a “culture war.”

            Oh, but wait! There’s the whole “burning coals” part! Man, we like that! And it is true that having an enemy come to your help in a moment of need can be like having hot coals poured over your head. But since we are reminded in an earlier verse that we are to love sincerely, we obviously cannot take joy in the discomfort of our enemies, and it’s not Paul’s intent to make us laugh at their discomfort. Another person’s discomfort is not the goal.

            We are pursuers of peace. We are called to embrace a scriptural concept of “overcoming evil with good.” And that will look appreciably different than the Angry Western Christian who “fights fire with fire,” and who believes that an insult match can be won in righteousness.

With all peace, Todd

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