Unfundamentalist

Above All, Love

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Flags, Guns and Christians

by in Christian Issues, Current Events

Last Friday the Confederate flag came down in South Carolina, the result of a national debate prompted by photos of Charleston shooter Dylann Roof proudly holding that flag.

I fully support the exclusion of the Confederate flag from public life. It’s a symbol of hatred, violence, and divisiveness that has no meaningful place in modern American society. When a symbol becomes a constant reminder of the worst of human behavior, when it instils fear and incites violence, when it divides and provokes, then it’s time to relegate it to the dustbin of history.

But amid all the hullabaloo over the Confederate flag, we’re ignoring a far more important issue. How is it that nine innocent people can be brutally gunned down by someone who shouldn’t have had a gun in the first place, and we end up talking more about a flag than the murder weapon?

The decision to ditch the Confederate flag is a small concession that, though symbolically important, overshadows the far more significant issue of gun violence in America. We’re living through an alarming rise of gun-related violence, yet as a society we remain frustratingly divided on the issue of guns.

Why haven’t the shootings in Aurora, Oak Creek, Newtown, Charleston, and myriad other locales across the United States spurred us to action?

Why aren’t Americans united in an effort to pass tougher gun laws, to plug legal loopholes, to develop better mental health resources, and to end the epidemic of gun violence?

And why aren’t Christians… [Read more…] about Flags, Guns and Christians

Marriage Equality — What Have Christians Lost?

by Chuck Queen in Christian Issues

Should Christians who are celebrating marriage equality empathize with those who are grieving over the Supreme Court ruling?

A call for such empathy recently came from a colleague in ministry who wrote,
Whether or not you agree with those who weep, they are still weeping today. They are experiencing loss. The world that they anticipated living into has changed. It’s not going back. It will never be the same. I’m not making any arguments about whether that is good or bad. . . . What I want to say today is that there are those among us who are mourning. What are we going to do about it?
My colleague quotes Paul who says to the church in Rome, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15). He claims that “our first responsibility is to try to empathize with each other’s experience,” but the thrust of his admonition is aimed at those of us who are celebrating, not grieving. He challenges us to be “wounded healers” (Henri Nouwen’s phrase) to those who have encountered marriage equality as “a train wreck” and have experienced “genuine loss and trauma.” He points out that we are all members of the body of Christ and he encourages us to empathize with those hurting so we might be “avenues of healing and conduits of grace.”

So what is it exactly that our sisters and brothers who are weeping have lost?

According to my friend, they have had to say good-bye “to something that was supposed to be there… [Read more…] about Marriage Equality — What Have Christians Lost?

Why We Shouldn’t Say "Modest is Hottest"

by April Kelsey in Fundamentalism

Modest is hottest. It’s a phrase that was coined a few years ago to convince Christian women that dressing modestly is sexy and attractive. Because that’s what women care about, right? The male gaze. Knowing that they’re considered pretty and desirable despite ankle-length pants and neck-high collars.

“Modest is hottest” is a phrase that needs to disappear. Immediately. It needs to be completely erased from the Christian lexicon—because it plays right into the secular objectification and hyper-sexualization of women.

Let me explain.

Growing up as a woman in a fundamentalist evangelical community meant that I was often the target of modesty teachings. Men were visual, I was told, and a spaghetti strap, a too-short hemline or a too-thin shirt might cause them to look at me in a sexual way. Never mind that I was in elementary school. Never mind that I lived in Florida with 100+ degree summers and 90 percent humidity. Never mind that my body was about as flat and unexciting as a porch plank. Someone might still try to sexualize my body.

Except that my church had already sexualized my body by teaching these things.

As young as 6, 8, and 10 years old, my friends and I were viewed by our parents and leaders as potential objects of lust and temptation. The fact that a teen or grown adult man could become sexually aroused by our uncovered knees and shoulders was viewed as normal. While we were told… [Read more…] about Why We Shouldn’t Say "Modest is Hottest"

Biblical Marriage and Biblical Justice

by Chuck Queen in Christian Issues

Are you growing weary of the outcry of angst, fear, and frustration over marriage equality from Christians who claim to believe in biblical marriage? What if more Christians who say they believe in biblical marriage would actually practice biblical justice?

If more Christians who say they believe in biblical marriage would actually practice biblical justice, then more Christians would realize how they have all been impacted by racist biases and pursue a course of repentance and restitution. They would  intentionally advocate for policies that would correct a criminal justice system where blacks and other minorities are much more likely to be stopped by police than whites, much more likely to be incarcerated for the same offenses as whites, and then be underrepresented in their trials.

They would recognize our equality and oneness in Christ (Gal. 3:28) and strive to break down walls of division by opposing voter suppression laws and by removing symbols typically identified by our African-American sisters and brothers as signs of oppression, such as the Confederate flag. White Christians would reach out to all races in concrete, tangible ways to express hospitality, generosity, and kindness.

If more Christians who say they believe in biblical marriage would actually practice biblical justice, then more Christians would actually take seriously the numerous biblical instructions about caring for widows… [Read more…] about Biblical Marriage and Biblical Justice

"40 Questions For Christians Now Waving Rainbow Flags"

by Buzz Dixon in Christian Issues, LGBT

The Gospel Coalition website has posted the following questionnaire and commentary from Kevin DeYoung, senior pastor of University Reformed Church in East Lansing, Michigan:
“[P]erhaps what’s been most difficult is seeing some of our friends, some of our family members, and some of the folks we’ve sat next to in church giving their hearty ‘Amen’ to a practice we still think is a sin and a decision we think is bad for our country. It’s one thing for the whole nation to throw a party we can’t in good conscience attend. It’s quite another to look around for friendly faces to remind us we’re not alone and then find that they are out there jamming on the dance floor…

“If you consider yourself a Bible-believing Christian, a follower of Jesus whose chief aim is to glorify God and enjoy him forever, there are important questions I hope you will consider before picking up your flag and cheering on the sexual revolution. These questions aren’t meant to be snarky or merely rhetorical. They are sincere, if pointed, questions that I hope will cause my brothers and sisters with the new rainbow themed avatars to slow down and think about the flag you’re flying.”

Fair enough, Kevin. I’ll take you at your word that you are sincere in your desire to understand why we believe what we believe.

1. How long have you believed that gay marriage is something to be celebrated?

From the moment I realized that sexual orientation was either innate in most human beings from birth; or… [Read more…] about "40 Questions For Christians Now Waving Rainbow Flags"

Be Ye Kind One to Another

by Jill Crainshaw in Christian Spirituality

The media is noisy these days with opinions about controversial issues. People on both sides of these issues advocate for something they call “kindness.” Earlier this month, I was in the presence of death three times in six days. I was also in the presence of extraordinary kindness. This kindness has made me consider: what sort of kindness cultivates Gospel justice and mercy in the midst of contention?

A friend’s uncle died first. He was a kind man. Many people said so at his funeral. I knew that about him too. He and I had shared few conversations. No matter. Hands leave impressions that linger, and kindness lived in his hands. His were hands trusted by puppies and people and plants that welcomed his touch. William taught people to fish and to grow a salad in their backyard. He cooked breakfast for his beloved of more than 50 years and “had tea” with his grandchildren and their dolls. Kindness—God’s kindness—lived in William’s hands.

They said Cynthia was kind too. I am a volunteer on-call chaplain at a local hospital. I was called in on a Sunday, the same day as William’s memorial service. When I arrived at the hospital, Cynthia was near death. “She is the kindest person I have ever known,” her daughter said. “I want my daughter to be like her.” Cynthia volunteered for several organizations in town, and she had owned her own business. But what Cynthia will be remembered for, her husband insisted, is her generous spirit. She was kind to family members and friends. Her… [Read more…] about Be Ye Kind One to Another

Breaking Down Southern Baptist Rhetoric Against Same-Sex Marriage

by Chuck Queen in Christian Issues, Current Events

While Southern Baptists have been vocally repenting of their support for slavery and Jim Crow since 1995, they have done virtually nothing to actually make amends. One of their own members, an African American pastor, noted that if the SBC was serious they would champion policies that would actually make a difference, such as criminal justice reform, education reform, and the alleviation of child poverty (and we could add others like immigration reform and confronting voter suppression laws).

So, did Southern Baptists make any attempt to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance when they met in Columbus for their annual meeting (the hate killing of the Emanuel Nine took place after their convention)? Oh no, it was oppositional energy that fueled the fire, not a vision for the common good.

Instead they passed a resolution against same-sex marriage asserting that traditional marriage is the clear teaching of Scripture. In a statement supporting the resolution issued by current SBC President Ronnie Floyd and signed by 16 past presidents they affirmed, among other things,
What the Bible says about marriage is clear, definitive, and unchanging. We affirm biblical, traditional, natural marriage as the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant for a lifetime. The Scriptures’ teaching on marriage is not negotiable.
Ronnie Floyd, addressing the Convention said,
Our first commitment is to God and his word – nothing else and no one else. And I want to remind everyone today, humbly,… [Read more…] about Breaking Down Southern Baptist Rhetoric Against Same-Sex Marriage

Love Doesn't Really Win (or does it?)

by Chuck Queen in Current Events

View image | gettyimages.com
On Friday, June 19, Dylann Roof, charged with nine counts of murder in the shooting deaths that occurred at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, appeared before a bond hearing court. Family members and friends were permitted to speak to the suspect. Roof could hear them, but he couldn’t see them.

Chief Justice James Gosnell powerfully set the tone before inviting statements [these statements can be read here],
 Charleston is a very strong community. We have big hearts. We’re a very loving community. We’re going to reach out to everyone, all victims…

We have victims, nine of them. But we also have victims on the other side. There are victims on this young man’s side of the family. Nobody would have ever thrown them into the whirlwind of events that they have been thrown into. We must find it in our heart, at some point in time [the judge here perceptively knows that forgiveness is a process], not only to help those that are victims, but to also help his family as well.
What a great example of how a magistrate can create a context for grace to prevail over condemnation.

Anger was clearly acknowledged, but in redemptive, not destructive ways. Felicia Sanders, mother of Tywanza Sanders said,
We welcomed you Wednesday night in our Bible study with open arms. You have killed some of the most beautiful people that I know. Every fiber in my body hurts … and I’ll never be the same. Tywanza was my son … my hero … may… [Read more…] about Love Doesn't Really Win (or does it?)

Compassion for the Charleston shooter

by in Current Events

View image | gettyimages.com

As I learn more about the shooter, even through my anger, I can feel compassion for him.

How? Why?

Because he’s a screwed up kid who had a shitty life who clearly never had the love he needed to be nurtured and whole. And who, in that void, filled his life with destructive things.

So let’s talk about white culture … and how it throws children away.

Let’s talk about how heterosexual marriages of one man and one woman aren’t some utopian panacea of ideal parenting.

Let’s talk about the lack of family counseling, the lack of human knowledge and understanding of human psychology, the lack of healthy communication and relationship development.

I’ve asked myself, “who am I angry with?”

And it’s us. I’m mad at us. I’m angry that in 2015, with all that we know and all that we have — the vast resources available to us as a country — we still can’t get our shit together to have a better society than we do.

And I’m angry with people who don’t get it, people who don’t understand, who can’t see the big picture, and who return to their self-protective ego defenses of denying, defending, deflecting, minimizing and rationalizing in matters such as these.

If you don’t understand racism — don’t act like it doesn’t exist.

If you don’t understand human psychology – don’t act like it doesn’t exist.

If you don’t understand why we’re so upset “this time” — you haven’t been paying attention to the cumulative effect of all the other times.

As mothers, we… [Read more…] about Compassion for the Charleston shooter

Christian Fundamentalism's Grand Illusion

by Chuck Queen in Fundamentalism

I recently wrote two pieces published at Baptist News Global (“A Scripture Lesson on Fundamentalism” and “What does a progressive Christian statement of faith look like?) that ignited a response I repeatedly hear from conservatives.

Their claim is that progressive Christian faith is based on subjective criteria not rooted in any objective reality. Of course, their objective reality is their inerrant Bible.

One frequent commenter on my articles said:
“The authority for what is written begins and ends with those that wrote it. . . . These so-called progressives don’t use the term infallible but in reality they see what they wrote [the reference here is to the Phoenix Affirmations] as correct without any authority except themselves.”
Another who is also a frequent contributor of articles on the website said:
“I fail to see how on the progressive worldview any of these [the Phoenix Affirmations] can really be taken as more than mere expressions of personal preference . . . How do we decide which is right and which is wrong? . . . how do we know what is true and what is not? Surely you have defined truth for you, but without an objective standard, how do we know that your truth is any more true than any others? [emphasis mine]”
My response to this line of argument is that all religious belief and experience is subjective – all of it.

The above critic continued:
“If all spiritual truth is subjective, then it’s not really spiritual truth. It’s spiritual opinion . . . you… [Read more…] about Christian Fundamentalism's Grand Illusion