Posted by Helen on: 07.24.2006 /
In Bumper stickers and T-shirts, Jim commented that he started Off The Map “so we could help Christians learn how not to be jerks”.
In comment #40 Rachel responded to Jim this way:
And we need that, Jim! Growing up in the conservative, fundamentalist church, I basically learned that we are supposed to be “Jerks for Jesus.” That’s what it means to “not be ashamed of the Gospel.”
It’s actually a pretty nice set-up. If somebody doesn’t like what I say or do, I don’t have to take any personal responsibility for it. I don’t have to ask myself if I was being an ass. No, I can smugly reassure myself that I am being “persecuted for my faith.” It’s not me they don’t like, it’s Jesus. I can simply shake the dust off my feet and walk away with a self-satisfied feeling of martyrdom. And if everybody can’t stand me, then that must mean that I am a “prophet” - after all, prophets have always been persecuted.
Comment by: Karen
1 07/24/06 1:17 PM | Comment Link |I became an atheist! ;-)
Seriously, I didn’t at all recognize what a jerk I was and how many jerks I was supporting until I got out of the Christian mindset. I had to get some distance from the “in the box” thinking before I could look at the situation objectively.
Comment by: NCxian
2 07/24/06 1:46 PM | Comment Link |I guess there is a definition issue first. What is a jerk? I will go with what I think is implied in Rachel’s comment. That is, a jerk is somebody who can not understand, or just does not care, how what they say or do affects the people around them. (”can not understand” being the more sympathetic view, “does not care” being the more critical). And thus, they are completely “self”-ish.
The picture I get of Jesus from the Gospels is of a person who very well could understand and cared very much how what he said or did affected other people. Sometimes it looks like he did intend to disturb people, but it doesn’t look like it is from ignorance, bad people skills, or meanness. Also, as a teacher, it appears that Jesus’ goal was to teach people, not to teach a lesson (to heck with whether they learned it or not). Which is not jerk-like, I think. So if you take Jesus’ own behavior as a model, I think he must not have meant for his followers to be jerks.
Comment by: Julie Marie
3 07/24/06 1:49 PM | Comment Link |my old church worked hard at teaching people how to share their faith effectively, and certainly wouldn’t have condoned more of the ‘jerky’ behavior I’ve heard about. But still the expectation that I would actively search for ways to share my good news in every relationship was there, and the fact that I didn’t do that a whole lot caused me to feel like an evangelical failure. Like I didn’t care about people enough, I cared more about my own comfort zone, because I wouldn’t step outside of it to save people from eternal damnation.
If we could somehow manage to convey that a persons eternal salvation is between them and God…and allow people to respect appropriate boundaries and beliefs that would help with the jerk factor, even among people who remain FE, I think. If we could debunk the interpretation that Gods plan of salvation for the world is wholly dependent upon YOU going out with the message. At least that’s the message I got, loud and clear. There’s no plan B. If you don’t do it…it won’t get done.
Yeah. I sure am all powerful, aren’t I?
Comment by: Eliza
4 07/24/06 2:08 PM | Comment Link |We’re using “jerk” to mean someone who’s annoying - but thesaurus suggests that “misfit” is similar, and that means “someone unable to adapt to their circumstances”, & it seems that aspect is part of the quality of “jerkiness”. Also, the verb form of “jerk” means “to give a sudden pull”.
Seems like the “jerk” impression comes from 3 things: (1) a viewpoint among some evangelicals that “the end justifies the means” (means being their behavior, interaction, etc), and (2) belief that the endpoint is crucially important (bringing people to Christ), and perhaps (3) enough immersion in Christian culture & in a manner of interaction that’s different than non-Christians would consider “normal” or “non-jerk”. So at least in part it seems like “jerkiness” is from someone not adapting their approach to match with the expectations of non-Christians, while they try to “give a sudden pull” to bring the non-Christian toward Christ.
Which kind of begs the question, is it effective to come across this way? My impression would be, no, but I also recognize that my point of view may not be widely shared. (My husband shares it; he was approached by two evangelicals on the campus of our local university one lunchtime last week, & he fumed and stewed about the experience for days afterwards. Definitely didn’t result in him being edged closer to Christ - if anything, farther away!)
Comment by: Rachel
5 07/24/06 5:04 PM | Comment Link |I’m curious to know more about the encounter. Did your husband know these guys? What did they say to him?
Comment by: Helen M.
6 07/24/06 5:31 PM | Comment Link |Eliza wrote:
I share it ;)
Some Christians believe that to be effective a) they must share what the Bible says about salvation b) God’s Holy Spirit must make the hearer receptive.
Christians who believe this see their responsibility as getting out the right message, not being nice to the hearer. In fact if being nice means not sharing Bible verses because it annoys the hearer, being nice prevents the Christian fulfilling their responsibility and is therefore sinful.
These Christians don’t have to look to their own behavior if the right message is rejected; they can assume it was because God didn’t make the hearer receptive.
Comment by: Rachel
7 07/24/06 5:32 PM | Comment Link |I totally agree, NCxian. And I think that so often the problem is that Jesus’ behavior has NOT been our model. Arrogance and self-righteousness have replaced Jesus’ example of humility, love and servanthood. Too many of us who claim to follow Christ have used our faith as a tool to judge and condemn others.
But we aren’t supposed to be focusing on what others are doing; we are supposed to be focused on what we should be doing. The judgmental attitude we Christians so often fall into reminds me being a kid at the dinner table, when one of us would point an accusing finger at the other and announce, “He had his eyes open during prayer!” Hmmmm…
I learned something from my Sunday School teacher a while back that has really stuck with me. He said that in Jesus’ time, there were many prominent rabbis and the different rabbis would have disciples. A common blessing to say to a disciple was “May you be covered in your rabbi’s dust.” In other words, may you walk so closely behind your rabbi that you are covered in the dust from his sandals. That is what I aspire to do with my rabbi, Jesus. And if I am walking that closely behind him, my eyes are on Jesus, not everybody around me. I won’t be busy looking to see who didn’t have their eyes closed during prayer.
Comment by: Marty
8 07/24/06 6:53 PM | Comment Link |Lovely sharing Rachel - thank you.
Comment by: John
9 07/24/06 8:07 PM | Comment Link |Someone asked Eliza,
Well, I’m the husband.
I didn’t know these “guys,” who were in fact two very pretty young (caucasian) women, and a young man who seemed nice enough initially (but was built like a refrigerator).
The three introduced themselves to my companion and me, and asked a question that you hear frequently on campus, “hi, do you have time for a little conversation?” My friend and I said, “okay, a couple minutes.” And one of the young lovelies asked, “do you know where you’ll go when you die?” I was immediately baffled by the question; for a moment I thought she wondered if I knew whether I was going to be buried or cremated. But I figured it out, and politely, but firmly explained my (atheist’s) belief that when I die, I die. This “conversation” went on for a while, and I got madder and madder because:
(a) it wasn’t a conversation at all; it was pure proselytizing. It was them trying to persuade me that Evolution is bogus, that heaven exists, etc. and
(b) if they were attempting to “save” me, then it was only fair if I got to try to “save” them back? By persuading them that you don’t need to believe in god to be a good person, that Evolution is an incredibly robust theory of why life is like it is, and that there is no credible alternative to it. And other silly things, like Pascal’s Wager came up.
When my friend and I turned out to be able to easily resist the charms of these sweet young things, and perhaps even dent their happy worldview with our rapier wit, well then Young Mr. Refrigerator started scowling and flexing his biceps, sending a message that was a little more Old Testament than New.
The point here is not that I minded someone trying to convert me. But I did mind the fundamental dishonesty of their approach, a “conversation” which was so one-sided.
And, I suppose I should be irritated with the use of sex to sell Jesus, too. Those girls were just lovely. Although they weren’t employing the more explicit tricks involving bare navels, thong underwear, etc., which so brighten our days at the university, … Let us just say that these sirens wore excellently tailored, sheer garments which, had I accepted Jesus that afternoon, might have left me with a significant misunderstanding of the nature of my eventual reward.
Comment by: Todd
10 07/24/06 9:04 PM | Comment Link |i saw a t-shirt recently that read:
Front: “Jesus is Lord”
Back: “DUH!”
hm, while this person and her friends likely thought this was funny, she looked like a real jerk.
Comment by: Ordinary Attempts - with Bruce Logue » Anybody welcomed….
11 07/24/06 9:41 PM | Comment Link |[...] Both signs had judgments built into them. If I thought of myself as an anybody or a backslider, I’d not feel particularly good about either of those signs. I’d know for sure that the people inside those buildings set themselves apart from me in status. Read what Rachel wrote about jerks. [...]
Comment by: JG
12 07/25/06 3:44 AM | Comment Link |“And, I suppose I should be irritated with the use of sex to sell Jesus, too. Those girls were just lovely. Although they weren’t employing the more explicit tricks involving bare navels, thong underwear, etc., which so brighten our days at the university, … Let us just say that these sirens wore excellently tailored, sheer garments which, had I accepted Jesus that afternoon, might have left me with a significant misunderstanding of the nature of my eventual reward. ”
Being English I can’t comment on what goes on in Amercia having had no experience of it myself. What I can say is judging by people who have approached me here in England, most turn out to be from cults.
One thing I do want to pick up on though. This discussion is talking about jerks and linked to this is the impression that Christians are old fashioned, geeks, ugly, attend “vicar’s tea parties” where they pass “the cucumber” sandwiches and yes, jerks etc etc.
How do people react when their traditional views, stereotypes etc get challenged. Is the mere idea that someone can be a Christian AND attractive really so offensive?
We should have an open mind about everyone we meet and not so easily jump to conclusions, put them in a box, stereotype them etc etc just because of the clothes they wear, the faith they appear to belong to etc etc.
Comment by: Helen M.
13 07/25/06 5:15 AM | Comment Link |John, welcome to CatE! I hope we will hear more from you - I love your sense of humor!
Comment by: Helen M.
14 07/25/06 5:33 AM | Comment Link |JG wrote:
Thanks for your thoughtful comments, JG. I absolutely agree about not being quick to stereotype or judge people. There can be many reasons why people dress the way they do and believe what they believe.
I do think young women can be naive about how distracting their physical appearance is to men. From what I hear, men are much more visual than women in regard to what attracts them sexually. I expect many young women may not have found this out yet. Especially Christian young women who have successfully been sheltered from certain kinds of conversation and experiences.
My guess is that these young women are probably naive in that way rather than they were deliberately trying to use their physical attractiveness to incline him in favor of their arguments.
If Christians were able to be more open and honest with each other, perhaps the young man with them could have told them what a man is likely to be thinking about while they’re having a ‘little conversation’ with him . Or perhaps a Christian leader could have told them. But in my experience, Christians either avoid such topics or would make too much of a big deal of them and end up making the young ladies feel guilty for being physically attractive. Whereas what would be helpful would be simply educating them about how distracting their appearance is to men, which might help them make more informed clothing choices when they go out on ‘evangelism’ missions.
Comment by: JG
15 07/25/06 5:45 AM | Comment Link |Details of something which I have reservations about can be found at:
http://www.servantevangelism.com/index.cfm
I would be very interested to know how others react to this concept. How would you react if you were on the receiving end of one of these “random acts of kindness” and were then given a card saying “This is our simple way of saying God loves you” ?
Comment by: JG
16 07/25/06 5:57 AM | Comment Link |Helen,
Have just seen your post - I fully agree with your comments. It is a difficult one - if a Christian leader did comment about “young ladies” in the congregation dressing inappropriately he or she would probably be severely criticised for doing so and accused of being out of touch with the world today. If the “young ladies” subsequently left the church, they might well cite this as but one example of how they weren’t made to feel accepted by the church.
As you say, all too often, either the topic is avoided or its made into a really big deal. I like your balanced approach.
Comment by: DoableEvangelism » Blog Archive » Evangelism through kindness and “God loves you” cards
17 07/25/06 6:21 AM | Comment Link |[...] JG wrote the following in comment #15 on Jerks for Jesus on CatE: Details of something which I have reservations about can be found at: [...]
Comment by: Helen M.
18 07/25/06 6:23 AM | Comment Link |JG, I posted your question in comment #15 on our Doable Evangelism blog:
Evangelism through kindness and “God loves you” cards
I also posted my response there.
Comment by: Helen M.
19 07/25/06 6:26 AM | Comment Link |JG - I love ‘balance’! (Although I’m not sure I achieve it much in my own life ;))
Comment by: Rachel
20 07/25/06 9:04 AM | Comment Link |Oh, no! I’m used to hearing that in the context of a joke, “And you don’t just walk up to a total stranger and ask them where they will go when they die!” I didn’t think people actually still said that.
And the sad thing is that I’m sure those kids really do love Jesus as they understand him and it probably took lots of guts for them to do what they did. And no doubt, they were following a script (I’m 90% sure which group sent them out). I can’t imagine anyone responding favorably to that type of approach. It must be pretty discouraging for them.
Comment by: ncxian
21 07/25/06 11:24 AM | Comment Link |.
That’s an interesting perspective. What it must be like to be somebody who feels some compulsion to be a “Jerk for Jesus”.
Comment by: DoableEvangelism » Blog Archive » John’s Experience of Being Evangelized
22 07/25/06 1:03 PM | Comment Link |[...] John, in comment #9 on Jerks for Jesus on CatE, shared the following experience of being evangelized by some “guys” on campus: I didn’t know these “guys,” who were in fact two very pretty young (caucasian) women, and a young man who seemed nice enough initially (but was built like a refrigerator). [...]
Comment by: Helen M.
23 07/25/06 1:06 PM | Comment Link |John, I reposted your comments on our Doable Evangelism blog:
John’s Experience of Being Evangelized
Comment by: John
24 07/25/06 9:52 PM | Comment Link |Some are gently hinting that I was a bit shallow to be moved by the, hmm, Chaste but Want To Be Chased looks of these young women. Well, yes and no. I have it on good authority (a young woman friend) that the dress of some young women is (*gasp*) intended to provoke the Male Gaze, even though it is anathema to suggest such things.
Second, as a middle aged, North American male, I have been swimming through a media environment which is redolent, pungent with visual pheromones, with advertisements that earnestly hope that my gonads have their own credit card.
Third: I have no reason to doubt the earnestness and Belief of my two fair temptresses. My derision is reserved not for them, but for the Upper Middle Aged Male White Sexist who propelled these gorgeous young creatures into my path. These are wonderful young people, trying to figure out how their minds work, what the nature of Sin is (and as an Atheist, let me tell you, I believe in the concept of Sin), and what these Awesome Hot New Curves On My Bod are for.
Quite frankly, these young women were Good To Go. They should have been hanging out on the beach with hunky boyfriends (or girlfriends — hey, works for me), sneaking a kiss, and maybe discretely checking in their purses for some birth control items, …
The thing is, I don’t have *any* problem with a Christianity that says, “hey, try to be good, life is tricky, God gave you some hot hot bods, and well, exercise a little restraint, but maybe Go For It with someone you know and trust, and it’s gonna be okay. Come to church on Sunday, we’ll talk, establish that interesting Scriptural rhythm in your life, you’ll learn that it’s comforting, and that will be a pleasant surprise as you grow older.”
Instead, “Fascist Christianity” sent me a couple of Hookers for Jesus and their Pimp, out wasting their young lives, and mine, on a lovely summer afternoon, when they could have been making out with their lovers rather than taunting an old fart like me.
Seriously. I’m an atheist, but yet I want very badly for the right kind of Christianity to succeed. There is some cultural baggage associated with Old Tyme Protestantism that is, in fact Good. I weep, weep, weep for the Episcopalians of North America, the ones who are trying to come to grips with the Gay Thing and the Woman Thing — they are doing the Lord’s work. For Christ’s sake, and I do mean “for Christ’s sake,” I hope the North American Epsicopalians can survive.
Comment by: Helen M.
25 07/26/06 5:29 AM | Comment Link |John wrote:
John, much of what you wrote makes sense to me, but in the above paragraph I feel that you’re stereotyping young female college students who happen to be physically attractive.
Perhaps some of them would rather be in the library studying than on the beach with friends.
Wow - interesting.
Thank you for recognizing the wide spectrum that comes under the umbrella of ‘Chrisitianity’.
Comment by: Rachel
26 07/26/06 7:47 AM | Comment Link |John, I personally do not find your observations shallow at all. In fact, I find your above description spot on. When I worked with high school girls at our church, modesty was an often discussed topic. I was shocked and scandalized more than once at the extremely tight, thin, skimpy clothes the girls wore. I would encourage them to think about the message they were sending with their attire and consider whether it was consistent with their beliefs and values. I was amazed at their lack of understanding and deliberate thought.
One girl said to me, “I should be able to dress however I want and if some guy looks at me that way, he’s a pervert!” I explained that, no, he’s not a pervert, he’s a guy. We talked about the autonomic nervous system and how it activates sexual response and how it is controlled by the environment, not by the conscious will.
It seemed that the girls wanted to have it both ways. They wanted to be perceived as chaste and virginal, but they also wanted the sexual attention that comes with dressing provocatively. They wanted to drive guys wild with their itty bitty outfits but then get indignant and outraged if a guy gets “the wrong idea.” They wanted to dress like a hooker and be treated like a princess. It really caused me, as a feminist, to question some of the messages we send to young girls.
Comment by: Helen M.
27 07/26/06 8:32 AM | Comment Link |Thanks Rachel. It’s interesting to hear that what high school girls told you at church lined up with how the two college students were perceived by John.
As I thought, girls do need educating about guys. Guys probably need educating about girls too…this goes on my list of ‘very useful things to know that most people are never formally taught’. Except when youth groups are fortunate enough to have leaders like Rachel!
Comment by: Rachel
28 07/26/06 8:58 AM | Comment Link |Though my personal understanding of my faith and what it means to share it have changed, I can understand where those kids are coming from. They genuinely believe that they have found something wonderful and beautiful. And when you have found something wonderful, you want to share it with others. They really feel that they are helping people by spreading their message. I struggle with both their understanding of the message and their approach to sharing it. But I know that they believe they are doing good.
It takes courage for them to do what they are doing. And they probably feel hurt and confused that others find their behavior offensive. While others will, understandably, find their “witnessing” to be insulting and disrespectful, they consider it a demonstration of love and caring.
Comment by: Eliza
29 07/26/06 9:55 AM | Comment Link |Rachel said:
I’m curious - how much of wanting to help people by sharing the message is sharing the positive, wonderful news - and how much is wanting to save them from eternal damnation? Or, are they inextricably tied together? These young ladies opened with “do you know where you’re going when you die?” - I’d have guessed that salvation from hell was right on the top of their minds in opening the “conversation”…
Comment by: John
30 07/26/06 10:00 AM | Comment Link |Helen suggests that I was stereotyping young pretty women as lacking intellectual interests. It’s a fair criticism of my remarks. Let me elaborate a bit, in a way which I hope will dilute the vinegar…
Several months ago I served on a panel to allocate graduate fellowships for the National Science Foundation. The resumes of these students were astonishing, just amazingly jam packed with stunning accomplishments and Good Works. Believe it or not, a significant amount of weight in evaluating applications for NSF Fellowships goes to what would, in this forum, be called Good Works — tutoring disadvantaged kids in math and science, starting a program to recycle computers from businesses into low income families, developing clean water sources for people in rural Africa … pretty inspirational stuff!
And yet I was depressed and angered by it. Whatever happened to letting kids grow up, by spending time simply messing around, lying in the grass under a shady tree, thinking about everything and nothing? I’m reminded a little of Thoreau’s lament,
I really worry about the driven kids of today. I hope that Miss Sweet Young Thing will be enriched by the Library, I really do, and I really do hope that she’ll show up in my graduate course on electromagnetic theory.
But I sure hope that she’ll have some fun this summer. That’s all I meant, and I’m sorry for being so saucy about it.
Comment by: Helen M.
31 07/26/06 10:16 AM | Comment Link |John wrote:
Thanks for explaining. Now I see where you’re coming from, I absolutely agree. It concerns me too how much we expect of our children and young adult students. They can get so overprogrammed.
My kids (11 and 13) seem to be the exception among their peers because they aren’t signed up for camps during the summer. Neither of them wanted to do camps, which is fine with me since their music lessons do continue through the summer (mostly) and I figure that’s enough structure (plus a little math which they both chose to do this summer)
Comment by: Helen M.
32 07/26/06 10:18 AM | Comment Link |Eliza wrote:
I think they’re inextricably tied together.
They were probably taught to say what they said and to open that way.
Comment by: Rachel
33 07/26/06 12:38 PM | Comment Link |I don’t think they are inextricably tied together. Many Christians, including myself, do not believe in a literal hell or place of fiery torture, but do consider the gospel message to be good news for all. We always hope that more people will choose to follow the way of Jesus. And we would feel honored if our interactions with people pointed them in that direction, though we respect others’ beliefs and choices and would not try to “convert” them or make them the target of a sales pitch.
Comment by: Rachel
34 07/26/06 12:53 PM | Comment Link |John, were they trying to argue that Evolution is not true? (sigh) It really makes me sad to see this continued battle between Science and Faith, as if they must be mutually exclusive. The other day I was watching the Religion and Ethics show on PBS and they were interviewing this guy who was the head scientist for the Human Genome Project and an evangelical Christian. He was talking about how he doesn’t find any conflicts between science and his faith. And he talked about how it saddens him to see so many young people taught that they must choose between belief in Evolution and belief in a Creator God. I guess these are some of the kids he was talking about.
Comment by: Karen
35 07/26/06 3:28 PM | Comment Link |This thread has been really interesting, but it’s tended to focus on “jerk” behavior pretty exclusively in terms of the more “in your face” kind of evangelism that John was so lovingly treated to. Heh, heh… :-)
I wonder, are there other behaviors that make some Christians come off as “jerks”?
How about the Christian whose house was spared from damage in the last hurricane (or tornado or earthquake), and who goes around “testifying” about how his prayers for safety were answered by a gracious god - all the while ignoring the fact that thousands of others around him (surely including other Christians who were also praying for safety) were killed or ruined? The same example could be made about the religious person (not only Christians, certainly) who tout answered prayer for illness, financial troubles, etc.
I never thought anything was wrong with that when I was in the FE church, but as an atheist it strikes me as incredibly arrogant and self-centered. Sure, “god answered your prayer” - but what about everyone else? Are you better than them? Did they not pray hard enough, or with the right words? Too often, it seems that the compassion is missing when the answered prayers are being celebrated.
Comment by: Julie Marie
36 07/26/06 4:27 PM | Comment Link |you are so right Karen. There was an awful accident down here in Charleston, a local media celebrity backed into the 18 month old son of her co-anchor. The child lived, actually is not expected to suffer any permanent damage…and people were singing the praises of answered prayer. There was a letter to the editor from a physiciian gently chidiing this tendency, reminding us there are many good families, with wonderful support systems and lots of prayer whose children die every day at the medical college.
It was very sobering and very very impactful.
Comment by: Pam Hogeweide
37 07/26/06 5:10 PM | Comment Link |yes, my sentiment, too. It is a mystery why some are spared and some or not.
My son was diagnosed with a life-threatening birth defect, mortality rate at 50 percent. I was asked to consider terminating the pregnancy to spare me from the near certainty of his death. He lived. He thrived. He was pronounced a miracle from the head neonatologist at the hospital.
Last year I read in a Christian newspaper from my region about a young couple in full-time ministry who lost their infant son to the same malady. They prayed. People around the world prayed for their unborn son. They had far more prayer coverage than I did, but their son died.
I wrote them a letter. I told them about my Jeremy, now a robust, healthy 9-year old. I told them, “Perhaps the greater miracle is not that my son was healed but that you still have faith in the goodness of God.” It is a mystery to me.
And yes, I agree that it lacks sensitivity and compassion to declare our victory through prayer when many others choke on defeat. It humbles me and reminds me that sometimes my prayers go unanswered as well.
This thread has obviously morphed into so many directions. I guess, though, it boils down to what jerks for Jesus we can sometimes be.
I wonder if there are jerks for Buddha? Or jerks for Allah (oh, um, I guess we all know about them).
Are there any jerks for atheism?
Comment by: Rachel
38 07/26/06 5:45 PM | Comment Link |As a person of faith, the hardest question for me is why does God allow so much suffering in the world? And I simply don’t have an answer. In my most agonizing moments of doubt, that is the question that haunts me.
In light of all the pain and injustice, I think people come to one of two conclusions, either “there is so much suffering in the world I CAN’T believe there is a God” OR “there is so much suffering in the world I HAVE to believe there is a God.” I’m in the latter group but I certainly can understand people in the former. The only people I can’t understand are those who don’t give a damn.
Comment by: Rachel
39 07/26/06 7:05 PM | Comment Link |I used to think that atheists were being jerks when they tell people of faith that their religion is a crutch for the weak. It wouldn’t bother me much these days because, for one thing, I’m not so easily offended anymore. But I also wouldn’t necessarily dispute that assertion…
Back to the topic of suffering: Several months ago I had nightmare in which a man was being mercilessly beaten. The beating went on and on and the man kept screaming in agony. I woke up suddenly but I didn’t have the usual feeling of relief at realizing it was only a dream. Instead I was overwhelmed with the sense that the suffering in my dream was real and multiplied countless times over. I was filled with a profound sense of grief. I lay in bed, crying and praying. I said, “Jesus, you have to help me because otherwise I can’t stand to live in this world.” Eventually I was able to fall back to sleep.
So am I weak and is my faith a crutch? All I know is that I need to believe in God’s dream for the world, as Desmond Tutu calls it. I find that as I learn more of the Way of Jesus, I feel more broken-hearted about the suffering in the world, not less. My faith doesn’t give me neat and tidy answers for why. But it does tell me what God wants me to do in response - feed the hungry, visit the sick, comfort the hurting, be a voice for the defenseless. I need to believe in a gospel that is good news for the poor and the oppressed. If someone wants to be a “jerk for atheism” and call me weak, I won’t try to argue.
Comment by: John
40 07/26/06 10:56 PM | Comment Link |Pam writes:
Of course there are. I’m perfectly willing to own up to my own share of being The Atheist Jerk. I probably ought to admit to being a Jerk today — but I have been worse.
Just as some Christians make the profound error of asserting that Atheists have no reason to be Good, many Atheists make the critical error of denying the human impulse toward spirituality. I don’t have to believe in god to appreciate the necessity of god to so many people. In fact, I think that the fact that I take Belief so seriously is what led me to become an atheist.
—–
Madeleine Murray O’Hair is probably not someone that I would have enjoyed dinner with. But Jimmy Carter, or John Spong, well: I think I might enjoy their company quite a bit.