Avoiding the Faith-Shakers

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here is some truth to the fears of some Christian fundamentalists concerning the dangers of deep biblical studies. Like others, I have experienced the mix of emotions that come from looking at the Bible through the writings of early manuscripts. Some of those emotions include fascination and awe, while others are among those feelings that could ultimately be refered to as faith-shaking.

Recently at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, the faculty led a Saturday seminar called “Seminary or Cemetery”, which focused on the dangers of deep theological studies and how some seminarians risk the danger of actually losing their faith.

I believe I have some insights into how to avoid this danger.

Just as most Christian denominations accept the belief that Jesus is both human and divine, God’s Word is also humanly and divinely written. As for his humanity, Jesus grew in stature and knowledge (Luke 2:52), and, since the invention of Guttenberg’s printing press, God’s Word has evolved from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek into the vernacular of nearly every nation in less than 600 years.

As Jesus, who is the Living Word (John 1:1), grew and developed into the man and rabbi who would fulfill Old Testament prophesies and prove to be God as Messiah, so has the Bible gone through many written developments until it has reached its full ability to speak to all people today.

We know how Jesus learned and grew. He grew and learned as a human being. But how did the Bible grow?

The Bible has gone through many processes to reach us where we are today. Scholars like Bruce Metzger, Gordon Fee, Kurt and Barbara Aland, and even the very controversial Bart Ehrman have done a spectacular job of giving those who want to know the ability to discover how the Bible came to be.

When doubt creeps in to the mind of a well-meaning student of God’s Word, it does so through the very human side of the Bible’s development. For example, when one looks over an early scriptural document and sees the scribbling of a monk in the margin of such an important manuscript, it is easy to think, “Oh my God, a normal person wrote this!” And suddenly, the awesomeness of the written words begins to be stripped of their mysterious power.

I suppose the same thing would happen, if we were to travel back in time to a point in the life of Jesus when he needed a diaper change. We would have to say, “How could God produce something that smells that bad?”

Being human is not anti-God, but the exact image of God without divine perfection. The written words that we read and trust as the very Word of God sometimes include the human stench of flaws produced by the careless hand of a scribe.

The flaws are caused by both human error and intentional changes. Scribes have been known to have problems with their sight and hearing, and they have also made errors in judgment. Among the reasons for intentional changes include spelling and grammar issues, alterations for reasons of doctrine, and the desire to smoothen word flow. All of these are well-known and documented by textual critics who work diligently to correct such flaws and restore the orginal meanings of the text.

And just as Jesus may have stumped his toe or gotten a cold, the scribes were not always completely careful when recording the musings, stories and wisdom of the many men and women of the Bible.

The Word of God is flawless, while the written form of God’s words must be constantly inspected and cross-checked as new manuscripts, historical facts, and the social cultures of biblical stories and people are discovered.

I am not threatened by textual flaws, but encouraged to know that God uses imperfect vessels, like you and me, to share the most important message ever given, even though we may not always pass it along with perfection.

In His dust,
Johnny

Works Cited:

Bruce M. Metzger and Bart D. Ehrman The Text of the New Testamen: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration (4th ed., New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005), pg. viii.

Writer: Capt. Jonathan Gainey was born in Jacksonville, FL in June, 1969. He has been married to Staci, the daughter of retired Salvation Army officers, for twenty years and they have four children ages 18, 16, 12, and 4. Jonathan was commissioned as an officer in June of 2002, and is currently serving in his third appointment in New Bern, NC, USA. He is working on a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is the creator and manager of the Flocks Diner website, where his passion for learning and teaching is expressed and shared through writing and a weekly podcast.

Much Ado About… | The Rumpus Blur!

I was a teenage fundamentalist - #11

Barry Gittins asks us what we mean when we plot out ‘the end of the book’.

Happy, sad, good, bad - new or trad?

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n Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (shot and released in 1983, when I was 15) we followed a hapless French waiter down streets and lanes with the now-ubiquitous one-shot to camera.

His philosophy? ‘The world is a beautiful place. You must go into it and love everyone. Try to make everyone happy, and bring peace and contentment everywhere you go. And so I became a waiter…. Well, it’s not much of a philosophy I know, but well…’

I laughed my head off in stunned surprise at the Frenchman’s anguished, voluble and abusive conclusion to his homespun wisdom (the F-bomb was a fairly novel weapon for comedians back then). The waiter intuits that his belief is rejected by we, the audience, as inadequate - his angry defence suggests that both he and we know there is more to the tale of ‘life’.

As a teenager I had the luxury of time; I could study, grow and learn. I also exhibited the more-than-occasional arrogance of youth.  At the risk of repeating that youthful presumption, not an unprecedented occurrence, I have to say that the closing phrase of our 11th doctrine strikes me now as arrogant in itself.

‘We believe,’ the doctrine states, ‘in the immortality of the soul; in the resurrection of the body; in the general judgment at the end of the world; in the eternal happiness of the righteous; and in the endless punishment of the wicked.’

Most people I have spoken with about spiritual matters in my life, be they Christians or Jews, Muslims, agnostics (and even some rather confused atheists), Buddhists or New Agers, believe that there is an essential element to us - the spark that drives our bodies, the breath of life that gives us hope, sentience, laughter, joy and deep, existential pain.

What do you believe? When it comes to resurrected carcasses, do we get zapped back into existence or do we trade up? Most Christians I know who live within The Salvation Army’s tradition don’t express a belief in bodily resurrection. What was a matter of deep significance to the early Church does not seem to be of great merit to 21st century Christians.

Many bereaved Salvationists of my acquaintance rarely or never return to the graveside of their partner, or the place where they scattered or buried their ashes. Perhaps the rise in the popularity of cremation suggests that the notion of bodily resurrection falls into the discarded theology pile, or that we don’t have any problem believing in a God who can reconstitute bodies from disintegrated atoms and nothingness. Personally, I’d much rather upgrade to a ‘heavenly body’ than stay put in my current model, especially if I live to enter senescence -incontinence, arthritis and the rest of decreptitude’s ensemble (as Bill Shakespeare memorably put it, ’second childishness and mere oblivion, sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything’).

More significantly, do we, will we, wait for the umpire’s celestial whistle? In the cosmic scheme of things a final reckoning seems called for. The mass killings, enslavements, rapine, petty tyrannies, horrors of war, cruelties of neglect and abuse - the random acts of unkindness - all seem, like Abel, to call out to God. Spilt blood bears witness to our fallen state.

Jesus said that we will face a judgment; judging by his descriptions it is one that will surprise many of us who feel we are safely encamped among ‘the righteous’. Like many people, I take great comfort from the ‘eternal happiness of the righteous’ (Revelation’s chapters 5,7, 21 and 22 being among the most aspired to, hopeful and inspired writings of any religion).

Like many people, I also find great discomfort in the 19th century take on biblical writings that follows; the anticipation of ‘the endless punishment of the wicked.’ Ultimately, that does not sound like God. Ultimately, torture, pain and revenge don’t sound like Jesus. Ultimately, endless punishment doesn’t come from the same place as love, joy and peace.

It does not sound like it is God’s call; yet it is a call made clear and recorded in various scriptural passages. It comes back full circle to the first doctrine; that scripture is inspired by God and ‘constitutes the Divine rule of Christian faith and practice’. Do you believe that, knowing the passages we struggle with? The Scriptures record that God started this whole business going and state that God is said to be ready to pack it all in; in God’s good time.

If God exists, and I believe God does, then the brutalities of human existence happen because God permits them to ensure our free will, or because God is powerless to prevent them. A powerless God cannot, by definition, be God. A God who surrenders power or stays His hand points to grace. But blood, the stuff of life, cries out to the maker of life for justice.

Christianity, as with Judaism, believes that it duly follows that the desecration of life by natural disasters (we used to call them acts of God) that indiscriminately strike ‘the just and the unjust alike’ occurs because the world is ‘fallen’. All creation groans, the Apostle Paul wrote, waiting for deliverance.

Without dragging this article into the mires of eschatological second-guessing or the mazes of prophecy and parable, it is enough to accept that we don’t know. We speculate, we ponder, we pray and hope for grace and forgiveness because of Christ’s life, death and renewed life through his body, the Church.

God’s will is not our will. Judgment, if it comes, will come from God.

In this final doctrinal jaunt let’s consider this ambiguous entity we call The Salvation Army (complete with its self-important capital T in the definite article, but nowadays missing much of the zealous self-belief and drive that led to its inception).

What does it profit a non-profit to save the world? Bear with me here, because this deliberation has direct relevance to our 11th doctrine and its notions of the righteous and the wicked.

Option A: Do we finally see our way clear to owning our part in the broader church and retreat fully into numerical insignificance (at least in the West)? Do we go about shunning ‘evil companions’?

A few years back the Australia Southern Territory’s corps programme department conducted research of its members (soldiers) to discover that the vast majority of those surveyed live in a Salvationist enclave. They don’t evangelise, because it’s icky, uncomfortable and feels forced. That’s largely because they don’t genuinely know and engage with anyone who is not like them already. They live, breathe and sometimes work in a Salvation Army frame of mind that doesn’t include others.

Option B: Do we continue with our holistic mission as a paramilitary Christian body, caring for body and soul (mind you, not always catering for the ‘mind’) and treating ‘the least of these, my brothers and sisters’ as if they were Christ himself?

This ‘Option B’ is my obvious preference and prayer; yet it flies in the face of the reality (in my home country of Australia at any rate) that those who statistically comprise The Salvation Army (soldiers, adherent members, junior soldiers) still have a marked chasm between their everyday lives and the social welfare conducted by mostly secular people (good, caring people) in their name.

Finally, the dreaded but not by any means inevitable Option C:  do we see - as has been warned against by several credible Salvation Army prophets in Australia - the Army rapidly shuffling off its older generations (as comrades are promoted to glory and younger, potential Salvationists vote with their feet), sloughing off its holiness skin and emerging as a social welfare agency with quaint Christian antecedents?

Despite the rear guard raging against the dying of an earlier generation’s light (as has been seen in a Salvation Army magazine’s letters to the editor pages in recent years in the Australia Southern Territory, manifesting a willingness to kick the social workers who slog away on a shoddy yet superannuated and salary-packaged wage for ‘not being Salvationists’), it is the service of our rapidly turning-over workforce (Salvation Army social workers have an annual 20% attrition rate) that actively presents Christ’s compassion to ‘the least of these’.

Like that elusive, tick-marked Greek goddess, social program staff members out in the territory ‘just do it’; helping others without judging or condemning them. It is a witness to Christians, delivered by people who are often not Christians, yet act in accordance with the light they have been given. Ain’t no bushels over their lamps, thank God.

The 11th doctrine has been used by some, and is in danger of still being used by all of us, as a spiritual ‘get-out-of-hell’ card. That approach ignores the central message of the gospel: God wants us to be rescued, and wants us to rescue others. If we adhere to the mindset of this doctrine concerning the secular, unchurched staff doing God’s work as per Christ’s instructions - work for which we happily accept the applause - then we put ourselves into the seat of judgment and ultimately see both our staff and the folks they help as hell-bound, unlike saintly lil’ us.

What incredible, colossal hubris. ‘Judge not so you are not judged.’

We need to wrestle with that mindset; a worldview that puts people in different camps. We need to live the ‘Sheep and Goats’ message of Christ. If we declare that we are righteous and others are wicked, if we value our rep or our sovereignty at the risk of neglecting those around us in despair and crises, then we are no different from the Levite and the Priest who left the aggravated assault victim to wait in pain and brokenness, suffering until he received the unwanted ministrations of a despised foreigner who wasn’t in the club, let alone the approved theological mix.

Grace came to town in the person of Jesus. Grace would suggest we don’t label ourselves or our fellow creatures. Grace calls us to bind wounds, apply unguents and dispense medicines. Come to think of it, that Pythonesque waiter’s philosophy of service ain’t that far removed from Christ’s golden rule.

The challenge for all who call themselves Christians, and all who embrace the ethos of The Salvation Army, comes in the thinking behind our doing.

If we pause for honest reflection the answers to these re-cast ‘action points’ that follow our doctrines (below) will be at best ’sometimes’, at worst ‘never’.

Always, throughout all time and beyond, we are covered by a preserving grace that calls us to chase these dreams in the name of a Father who calls us on, the example and passion of a Son who walked the walk, and the power and peace of a supernatural Spirit who calls out to us from the mountains tops, the streets, the beaches and deserts of our lives.

A Salvationist says they will: be responsive to the Holy Spirit’s work and obedient to His leading…growing in grace through worship, prayer, service and the reading of the Bible; make the values of the kingdom of God and not the values of the world the standard for my life; uphold Christian integrity in every area of my life, allowing nothing in thought, word or deed that is unworthy, unclean, untrue, profane, dishonest or immoral; maintain Christian ideals in all my relationships with others: my family and neighbours, my colleagues and fellow Salvationists, those to whom and for whom I am responsible, and the wider community; uphold the sanctity of marriage and of family life; be a faithful steward of my time and gifts, my money and possessions, my body, my mind and my spirit, knowing that I am accountable to God; abstain from alcoholic drink, tobacco, the non-medical use of addictive drugs. gambling, pornography, the occult, and all else that could enslave the body or spirit; be faithful to the purposes for which God raised up The Salvation Army, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ, endeavouring to win others to Him, and in His name caring for the needy and the disadvantaged; be actively involved, as l am able, in the life, work, worship and witness of the corps, giving as large a proportion of my income as possible to support its ministries and the worldwide work of the Army; be true to the principles and practices of The Salvation Army, loyal to its leaders, and show the spirit of Salvationism whether in times of popularity or persecution.
So, just quietly, between you and me, how do you rate your life measured against these aspirations? In all honesty, in terms of fulfilling all these expectations, I don’t do so good.
SuperChristian is a role that I will never measure up to. I need God’s grace and strength to get closer to who God actually wants me to be.

Writer: Barry Gittins is a Melbourne-based writer, lifelong Salvationist, husband (to Trudy) and father(to Emily and Benjamin) who seeks God in everyday encounters. A frustrated poet and playwright, he has worked for the Salvos’ Australia Southern Territory in various roles since 1991: as a journalist (for Warcry, The Young Soldier/Kidzone, The Musician),technical writer and CD-ROM author in corps program (mission development), senior review editor (Warcry) and editor (On Fire). He currently works as a social program and policy consultant (writer/researcher) for the social program department.

Be You!

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arly on in my Christian walk I met some people who wanted me to change who I was. The way I dressed, the way I spoke, the way I viewed things. And because of my need, my desire to know Jesus and know his people, I obliged them and began to chip away at the fabric of who I am, who God created me to be.

I began to mimic and copy mannerisms and the “Christianese” of the people around me. I wanted to make everyone happy. Until I woke up one day, and realised I was nothing more than a carbon copy of this idea of what a Christian should look and dress and act like. And it horrified me.

There was nothing authentic or real about who I had become, it had nothing to do with who Jesus was moulding and shaping me to be but was more about who the people I had surrounded myself with were comfortable with me being.

The problem is that besides being completely demoralising for those within the church, those people outside of the church are pretty good at smelling a fake. They can tell when we aren’t being authentic. Our non christian friends (I’m assuming you still have some of those) and non Christian co-workers notice that some of us appear to undergo a lobotomy after becoming a Christian.

That maybe for a good number of us there is this beautiful honey moon period where we give our lives to Jesus and we are pumped and passionate and excited and they can see a genuine difference in us, but that over a period of time where we avail ourselves to the church we slowly become desensitised and civilised and lose the things that made us most uniquely us.

Unfortunately  those outside of the church a lot of the time look and see that Christianity seems to be more about cloning than it is about authenticity and a relationship with Christ. No wonder they are saying “no thanks”.

I said “no thanks” for so long because I was scared of what I would become should I say “yes”. Because I saw people go into the church as interesting, exciting, passionate individuals and come out like robots, no longer allowing anyone to have a difference of opinion, or having their delicate church sensibilities damaged by our worldly ways.

Our church’s should be the most colourful, diverse, alive, interesting places because they are full of people, individuals from all walks of life. People who speak and act and look different from each other. People with different thought patterns and outlooks and interests. People with different abilities and passions and talents. And thankfully some of them are. Thankfully there are some church’s out there that nurture a creative environment, where people are free to be themselves and express themselves and be most vibrantly who they were created to be.

The Bible tells us in the well known passage of Scripture, Psalm 139 that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Crafted in the womb by God himself. He made you who you are, he made you with your quirks and your interests and passions and outlook on life, your particular taste in art and music and your communication skills. He created you that way for a reason and he called you to a destiny based on the person that you are, that he created you to be. Don’t change who you are to fit an ideal or a century old copy of who others deem a Christian. Just endeavour to become the best version of you. Endeavour always to grow and learn and allow Christ to work in you and challenge you and soften you…don’t allow yourself to be a clone of another,.. be unashamedly, unabashedly, unusually, unorthodoxly, uniquely you.

The Kingdom of God will benefit more from one individual in relationship with God than a church full of clones doing and saying all the ‘right’ things but failing to be who God has called and created them to be.

“Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken.” - Oscar Wilde

Writer: Sally Joy Morgan’s life maxim is, ‘Dream, Risk, Create’, in fact the entirety of her passions and hopes both past and present can all be summed up in just those three words. Determined to always walk the road less travelled, Sally is passionate about two things, God and humanity and endeavours to give her life for both. Sally is a keen preacher and writer and looks forward to investing more time in these areas in the future. After serving for two years at Gympie Salvo’s as the Assistant Church Leader and Youth Pastor, Sally is back home with her family and friends in Brisbane where she attends North Brisbane Salvo’s.

Postmodern Parables #1

An Introduction to a series by Mark Braye

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arables are stories told to teach, elicit thought, strike hearers visually and conceptually, and deliver a message in an artistic structure.

Parables throw ideas alongside life; they illuminate an idea in a fun form; and they connect elements of faith with elements of the everyday.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus Christ used parables as a medium for more than one-third of His teachings. We know them well. The parables Christ told explicitly or implicitly delivered messages of hope, love, and grace; they showed hearers what a new/better way of living should look like; they illustrated, in terms people could understand, elements of the divine and elements of faith. Parables were, and still are, important; vital even, to communities of faith.

We love stories. We’re very narrative-centric (”What’s your/her/his/their story?” “Is this a news story?” “I liked the special effects but not such a great story”). From the moment we’re born, parents and grand-parents and other friends and relatives are telling us stories and reading us stories. From early ages we’re watching and learning from the stories of Sesame Street, Dora and Boots, and Thomas the Tank Engine. We read fiction and non-fiction. We read stories about Sam-I-Am, The Hardy Boys, a dog named Cujo, and Holden Caulfield. We read biographies and experience the true stories of Wayne Gretzky, Pierre Trudeau, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lebron James, Clint Eastwood and Barack Obama. We enter the worlds and stories of Narnia and Pandora through the special effects of movies and the imaginations of writers and filmmakers.

I love to read and I love to hear stories, but I love films. I might be a movie geek. Motion Pictures are my favorite forms of story. I love how film incorporates written word, visuals, music, and human hands to tell a story.  

In his book The Great Movies, Roger Ebert writes: “We live in a box of space and time. Movies are windows in its walls. They allow us to enter other minds - not simply in the sense of identifying with the characters, although that is an important part of it, but by seeing the world as another person sees it.”

Movies allow us to see a lot. Movies say a lot to us. Movies say a lot about us.

I believe films are postmodern parables. I think they teach, make us think and converse, strike us visually, and deliver a message in an artistic structure. With postmodern[1] parables I want to look at a movie or a writer/directors movies or a genre of film that:

• a.) displays themes we can connect to our spiritual journeys or ministry
• b.) has a story of redemption or a character(s) learn something along a journey of discovery
• c.) eludes to Christian scriptures or elements of faith and theology
• d.) contains “glimmers of the gospel”
• e.) explores themes and tells stories of social justice, ethical dilemma, liberation, and the battle of good vs. evil

I’m going to write about movies and I want us to think and talk about movies and how they are more like parables than we give them credit for.

Get your popcorn ready.

Writer: Mark Braye and his wife Nancy are officers in Essex, Ontario, Canada. They have two children, pictured above, Hannah and Micah. The four of them love to play and watch Sesame Street.

COM 2 COM 3 - Unsung Heroes!

 Joe Noland continues his virtual conversation with Comm Jim Knaggs

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ne of the questions Commissioner Jim Knaggs planned to ask me (but didn’t have time to) in the isalvos.com interview was, “Who are your heroes?” I answered it, in part, under question #2.  (See http://therubicon.org/2010/04/comm-2-comm-2-no-boundaries-yes/).  

Now let me take this opportunity to expand upon that answer, in addition to those three divisional commanders and one territorial commander previously mentioned. First and foremost would be a corps officer, the then Lt. Ed Henderson, who influenced the direction of my life more than any one person ever; one who modeled for me risk-taking and adaptive, aggressive evangelism big time. In fact, that influence is documented in the film, “Altars in the Street,” available over at www.joenoland.com - the “Creations” page. I also honor he and his wife, Eleanor, in several of my other books. 

Since that time, spanning almost 50 years of officership, there are countless other Corps Officers who have been added to my ‘Hero List.” They are too numerous and there is not enough space to mention all here, most of them Corps Officers to the very end, never having their names listed in the much sought after “Staff” section of the Dispo, or “Officers on Active Service” section in the Year Book. 

I think of Major’s John and Mary Rocheleau, slugging it out year after year, Christmas after Christmas right up until retirement. When I was Territorial Youth and Candidates Secretary, we averaged 60 + cadets per session over five years, John and Mary holding the record for those coming in from their corps. It was a sight to behold, and all because of their Christ-mentoring spirit, grass roots style. These are two of my heroes! 
Then there’s Brigadier and Mrs. John Bawden, spending three quarters of their officership career in two corps appointments (Imagine that!): Great Falls, Montana and Albuquerque, New Mexico, she proudly wearing five silver stars, one for each child. And now their son and daughter-in-law, Majors Ron and Marilyn Bawden, retiring as Corps Officers out of Glendale, Arizona, she sporting two silver stars representing each child. They are four of my heroes! 

Most recently, Major’s Tom and Sylvia Petersen, retiring out of Reno, Nevada, where Doris and I had the privilege of conducting their Retirement Service. They gladly, without reservation, accepted some of the most difficult corps appointments in the Western Territory - Compton, Boise and Reno, among others - never slowing down one iota. And now they volunteer happily, full time, no compensation, no complaining, whatever the C.O. asks of them, in the Spokane Corps. Definitely two of my heroes! 

And the list goes on. Unfortunately, in our system, “Corps Officer” resides on the bottom rung of the hierarchical scale, sometimes even viewed and treated as second-class citizens. Were it not for them, where would we be? They represent the life-blood of this Army! (Along with their Soldiery) Most of them UNSUNG! - The best kind of hero. 

This is how I would have answered the question had there been enough time. 

Writer: Commissioner Joe Noland’s ministry can be summed up in three words: chaos, creativity and controversy - three elements implicit in any successful innovative endeavor. Cecil B. DeMille, renowned producer of Biblical epics, once wrote, “Creativity is a drug I cannot live without.” Joe’s mantra reads, “Creativity is my drug of choice.”  Access Joe Noland’s complete bio, among other things, by clicking into his website.

FIRE AWAY!

by Terry Camsey 
 

“… children are a heritage from the Lord…Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them.”

Psalm 127: 3-5 NKJV 
 

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 am not an archer trying to hit a target or kill an animal (neither of which I have ever tried to do!), but I do feel that this passage has something very important to tell us. 

Firstly, arrows are the tools of a warrior. They can accomplish much if skillfully used…they can accomplish little or nothing if the archer is not skilled in their use, or the target is not in clear sight.. 

So, if the target is missed by the arrow we can conclude that either the arrow was faulty (bent) or that the archer - even with the best bow and arrow in the world - is not skilled enough in using the arrows to full advantage. 

I read of someone who rode into an old Western (cowboy) town and, in passing a barn, noted there were several targets painted on the side wall each with an arrow  in the bulls-eye. He looked across the road and saw who seemed to be the village idiot standing there with a bow and quiver full of arrows. He asked the boy who had fired the arrows dead center into each of the targets. The boy said, “I did!” So the man asked, “How did you do it?” The boy replied, “It’s simple, I fire the arrows first and then draw the circles around them!” 

Does that have a familiar ring? 

This has played on my mind for a long time, it having possibly much to say to the Army in these days: 

The Army “fathers” of today do indeed have a quiver full of arrows…keen, young, energetic, creative young people who know our times better than anyone of a previous generation or two. The question is whether those “arrows” which, hopefully are the “heir force” of The Army’s future, are used to the fullest extent of their capability. Do our “archers” have the skills necessary to fire these “arrows?” 

To be used to maximum effect, our “arrows” need both a clear target to be fired at. In our context that would be a vision of what our “archers” want to accomplish for God through the Army international. Not just a Mission Statement (that is just a purpose what we do) but a stirring vision of what the idea future will look, sound and feel like when being accomplished with excellence.  

It should send shivers of excitement and down our backs when we read it realizing that to accomplish it, if we do our part, God will do his through us. 

Those “arrows” should also be released by the “archer” if they are to be of any use at all. 

Is there such a target?  I’m not talking about “we shall be…” statements but, “With Gods help we shall see…” (followed by a sensual - of the senses - description of it what it will be like when actually being achieved. Just as God’s vision is recorded in Revelation with all tribes and nations worshiping before the throne). What an exciting event that is to work towards. 

Yes, we have, in our quiver of arrows today, our “Sons of Issachar” who know our times, just as in Biblical days the Sons of Issachar knew their times. Since they bring a point of view we sorely need, they should surely be represented in the development of a compelling vision of God’s preferred future. They stand, I am sure, ready to seek and hit the target if and when the archer sets up the target and releases those “arrows” to do so. 

What say you?

Writer: A published and recorded composer; cornet soloist of international fame; Terry Camsey was a Salvation Army officer for over twenty years mostly in the area of Church Health and Growth who in retirement is a church growth consultant. He studied with Carl F George (of the then Fuller Institute of Evangelism) as a church growth “doctor” (Diagnosis with Impact), Lyle E. Schaller, Charles and “Chip” Arne and trained as facilitator with Covey Institute (Seven Habits and  First Things First), and The Edward de Bono Lateral Thinking Course.

Terry has traveled as Church Growth teacher around the world including Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, Australia and New Zealand, Philippines, Germany.

He is writer of “Slightly Off-Center” (Crest books) and regular columnist in New Frontier (The Salvation Army USA West’s periodical) for over two decades.

© Terry Camsey, May 2010 (Used with permission of the author)

Politics #5 - Politics Happens

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wo people, of any age or background, enter a space, and politics happens!

Politics works out the power relationships among a group of people, and whenever we meet with another person we are engaged in politics.

Politics decides who gets what; how the money is allocated and who has the influence.

We have choices around how we do our politics, and whether we do it well or badly, but unless we live an entirely solitary life we are always involved in politics.

Those who are clear in their values work their politics so as to give shape and substance to their convictions.  We all ‘do’ politics, and we do politics well when we bring our most deeply prized convictions into effective action.

Jesus engaged in politics. He “set his face steadfastly” in the direction of the values of the Kingdom of God, refusing to live any other way. The church and the state were each threatened by the politics of Jesus, and they formed an alliance that eventually crucified Jesus in an attempt to silence him.

Jesus did politics well, aligning his action with his most prized values.  And it killed him!

The Gospels do not hide the politics between the disciples.  Throughout Mark’s Gospel the disciples consistently fail to understand the values and the ways of Jesus.  They struggle for power within the group and Jesus contrasts this struggle by setting a powerless child in the middle, to demonstrate the ways of God.

Jesus also rebukes his followers when they try to dismiss other people who have no power - women and foreigners, those who are different.  Consistently Jesus embraces and cares for those whom society tries to forget.  It takes a lot of time and a lot of grace for the disciples to learn the ways of God.

So, is TSA in politics?  Of course it is!!  By being part of society we are part of society’s politics.  Even if we remain silent on an issue our silence speaks.

The better question is: Does TSA do politics well?  And that depends on how clear we are about our core values, and how effective we are in bringing these values into effective action.

The Australia Southern Territory declares it mission values as Human Dignity, Justice, Hope, Compassion and Community.  These words and the actions that flow from them express the ways of God through TSA.  Enacting these values leads to transforming lives, caring for people, and reforming society.

When our politics are driven by these values we do politics well.

Remember, it’s all level ground before the cross.

Writer: Married to Laurel and with two adult daughters, Dr Craig Campbell was for 27 years a Salvation Army officer. During this time he completed Doctoral studies, with a research project Emerging Images of Mission in The Salvation Army.  Prior to officership Craig practised as a civil engineer, and over the last four years has managed a youth service that offers an individualised and educational response with disengaged youth.

Politics #4: A Scary Divide! (Joe Noland)

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n America there is a divisive, unhealthy divide, politically, within the Christian community. In fact, the church tends to align itself with a particular political party based upon its orthodoxy, liberal or conservative, TSA included. And that’s not only dangerous; it’s downright scary!

For example, there is a church in the Deep South with a sign on its front lawn: “No homo mayor.” Or one in the Northeast who lost its tax exemption for taking out an advertisement in major newspapers during an election claiming that the presidential candidate was a “sinner” and that people who voted for “sinners” were “sinners” too. The illustrations go on and on, really scary!

The quintessential example of a Christian leader for whom there is no political divide is the Reverend (Dr.) Billy Graham, one of my heroes. He has been the spiritual mentor for every U.S. President since Harry Truman, political leanings, whatever they are, so unimportant in the grand scheme of things.

In the news recently, President Barack Obama met with Billy for spiritual counseling and prayer. Google the response to this meeting and you will be astounded by the results. It was a hot topic for discussion on my Facebook page, one of my professing Christian brethren commenting, “Will the praying do any good, after all, he’s a Muslim?”  And another saying, “What’s he doing meeting with Graham, he (Obama) isn’t even an American citizen!” This said in the context of praying for our leaders, even if we don’t agree with them politically. In other words, “I don’t have to pray for him, because technically and constitutionally, he is not my leader.” And these are supposedly Christian Brethren weighing in, some of them Salvationists. Scary!

Think about it historically, when a church with a particular orthodoxy (persuasion) assumes control over a nation. It never works, thus the founders of this nation wisely insisted on the separation of church and state, constitutionally. Ah, but certain religious persuasions in this country would have it otherwise, some of my Salvationist brethren included. Beyond scary!

When we allow the government to step into the pulpits of America, or anywhere for that matter, the free exercise of religion is endangered, and the government plays the role of a religious monitor. As the Supreme Court stated in 1943, “If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in … religion.”

I wonder whom God has chosen to follow in the footsteps of Billy Graham; a role model to help us monitor the balance? Whoever it is, you can rest assured he/she will not be influenced politically. Peter learned this lesson, unmistakably, during his God encounter, Acts 10: “In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality (Vs 34 NKJ).

It’s a lesson that many of us in the Christian community have forgotten, and that’s what’s really scary! 

Writer: Commissioner Joe Noland’s ministry can be summed up in three words: chaos, creativity and controversy - three elements implicit in any successful innovative endeavor. Cecil B. DeMille, renowned producer of Biblical epics, once wrote, “Creativity is a drug I cannot live without.” Joe’s mantra reads, “Creativity is my drug of choice.”  Access Joe Noland’s complete bio, among other things, by clicking into his website.

Politics #3 : Polichristians (J. Gainey)

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he list of passionate differences among the people of this world seems to be limitless. We all have our soap boxes and points of frustration that we have a hard time not talking about. I’m as guilty as the next person, though I have begun to purposely avoid many conversations and subjects in these days of exaggerated tempers and disagreements.

Topics of public opinion have always been important to humanity. They are the discussions of our hearts, though not always rooted in our most compassionate thoughts toward the one(s) with whom we are speaking.

Wherever there is a television, radio or internet connection, heated monologues and dialogues of religious and political differences are being discussed, even by Christians. The political atmosphere is filling pulpits and facebook pages with followers of Jesus humiliating themselves and their family (the Church), over their political opinions.

Jesus’ monarchy was misunderstood by many, including Jews and non-Jews. Jews argued with Jews, non-Jews argued with non-Jews, and Jews and non-Jews had their arguments as well over the subject of Jesus’ kingdom and how he should run it. But Jesus made it a point to remind those who questioned his kingship that his kingdom was not a part of this world’s politics.

When Jesus’ kingship was questioned, he said to Pilate,
“My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place” (John　18:36　NIV).

In this statement, Jesus is not saying that the Kingdom of God cannot be found in the world. He told his disciples, “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick that are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you’” (Luke 10:8-9).
The point of Jesus’ claim that his kingdom is not of this world was to say that his kingship was not received by way of votes, assignment, or human birth.

The kingdom of Jesus was one that was not of a divided kingdom or a bickering nation, but a kingdom of unity and peace. It is not the loudest or the richest or the greatest number that made him a king, but by the hearts and minds of those who desired peace in their world, not more divisiveness. And yet, many of us who call ourselves Christians speak of and to our brothers and sisters with disgust and disdain.

I agree that many subjects that involve citizens within a nation are important to discuss and even vote on. But the way in which we discuss and the purpose for which we vote, must have the Kingdom of God always before us, if we call ourselves Chrsitians. We cannot claim to be Christians and hurt others with our heated words, no matter how important and personal the oponion or view.

“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness” (James 3:9 NIV).

Jesus’ is the King of a kingdom that makes no sense to the world. He is a King who only divides those who refuse to come together and love one another in a world full of confusion and turmoil.

As followers of the Messiah, we are called Christians; people whose kingdom is built on a system that did not come from this world. When we get involved in the hate-mongering and verbal bashing that is so common to the politics of this world’s system, we should not call ourselves Christians and prove ourselves to be poor examples of godly images.

I think we should separate ourselves from the confused believers who dive head-first into the painful and stress-filled bloviating of useless political banter by calling them “Polichristians.”

Now that sounds like a kingdom that is of this world.

In His dust,
Johnny

Writer: Capt. Jonathan Gainey was born in Jacksonville, FL in June, 1969. He has been married to Staci, the daughter of retired Salvation Army officers, for twenty years and they have four children ages 18, 16, 12, and 4. Jonathan was commissioned as an officer in June of 2002, and is currently serving in his third appointment in New Bern, NC, USA. He is working on a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is the creator and manager of the Flocks Diner website, where his passion for learning and teaching is expressed and shared through writing and a weekly podcast.