An Indictment of “the church”

I wish to indict “the church” for sins against God’s people. By “the church,” I mean organized religion and nominal Christians who have done massive damage to the souls of God’s beloved children. I do not mean The Church, the Body of Christ, those genuine Christ followers who are the real deal, the authentic disciples who are doing God’s work in the world. Are we straight?

Here are two examples of why I bring an indictment of “the church:”

1.      A while back, I wrote about the Freedom From Religion Foundation (http://21stcenturydiscipling.blogspot.com/2014/10/freedom-from-religion.html). On their website, they have a video of Katie, “an out of the closet atheist.” She encourages other atheists to come out of the closet. If you listen to her, you will hear her say, “When I was in grade school I had to go [to church] five days a week and once on the weekends” (http://ffrf.org/video-landing). This is part of the reason she’s an atheist today. She was forced to go to church.

2.      I teach a course called “Faith and Human Development,” and my students’ very first assignment is to write a Spiritual Autobiography. In some of those papers, I have encountered some tragically heartbreaking stories of deep spiritual damage done in the name of “the church.”

For example, one student wrote, “I have witnessed firsthand where these people were treated so poorly in the church that they would go outside and sit during the service and cry. This is not what is supposed to happen in the church. We are all there to help each other grow in their faith and develop into the people that God would want us to be. If this is how the church was going to be I would rather stay home and do my own thing than sit there and witness things like this.”

This, and many similar stories, remind me of what Jesus said about those who turn people away from God: “If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea.”

- Mark 9:42 (NRSV)

There are three kinds of teaching in the church:

1.      Explicit. These are the intentional teachings we do through organized classes, worship services, etc. Perhaps best represented by printed curriculum and lesson plans.

2.      Implicit. These are the unintentional teachings that happen by the way we do our organized classes, worship services, fellowship meals, service projects, etc. For example, a smiling face and a warm welcome to visitors.

3.      Null. This is the unintentional nullification of our Explicit and Implicit teaching. An example would be forcing a child to attend church six days a week; or snarling at a crying baby during worship; or asking a visitor to move because they are sitting “in my pew.”

How many acts of love and reconciliation would it take to heal one act of Null Teaching? Ten? Fifteen? Twenty? Probably.

And how many souls have been lost to the Kingdom because of Null Teaching? Thousands? Millions? The damage done by “the church” is breathtakingly stunning.

Disciplers – let us resolve to be aware of our Explicit Teaching, our Implicit Teaching, and our Null Teaching. Let us strive to reduce and eliminate all Null Teaching. Let us not put any stumbling blocks in the path of these little ones.