After 4 years of playing together as a band it looks like we can’t shake each other off and we’re destined to do more m/ m/ worshipping. We threw naming the band over to 100 thousand girl guides last summer but nothing seemed to stick. In one last throw of the dice we asked twitter. Twitter was fruitful. Twitter heard our plea and sent @revdrach who said “Metanoia“. @Duttyo says this shall be the sign…
There is a lot of talk in the UK press about whether we can be ‘overtly Christian’. People want to wear a cross around their neck, a ring on their finger, a bracelet around their wrist and a t-shirt that trades upon the branding of the latest must have item. It is what Jesus would do – “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, for you have a WWJD bracelet”. For those who buy in to the Christian brand these are must have items and those who do not buy in are seen as “de-christianising” and are therefore vilified. People must be ‘overtly’ Christian or they are “ashamed of the gospel” and are removing our Christian presence.
There is an episode of Friends where Joey finds the keys to a Porsche and uses this to spend time with the ladies. At one point he no longer has the car but wants people to recognise that he is a Porsche owner. To achieve this he is wearing all of the Porsche gear. Hat, jacket, keyring… if they make it he has it. When his friends see him the response is
“What happened Joey? It looks like a Porsche threw up on you!”
Personally, I ride a motorbike. There seems to be a broad consensus among bikers about the Harley Davidson brand that they market to two different types of people. There are those for whom the primary focus is the bikes and those who like the logo. The bike lovers buy a Harley and ride it. The others buy a t-shirt. It is a much cheaper option. You do get the warm fuzzy feeling of brand loyalty without actually having to do anything about it. The added benefit is that you don’t get cold or wet as when the weather is bad as you don’t actually ride a bike. This type of merchandising is concerned with one thing, making money from people who can’t or won’t make the bigger sacrifice and buy the bike.
So how does this play out for the church? I agree that it is time for people to stop being “ashamed of the gospel” and to “re-christianise”. However, I suspect that merchandising is not the best way that the church can show that it is not ashamed. May I humbly suggest that “re-christianising” does not involve buying a t-shirt but by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and those in prison. This is the mission the church has been sent on. As Emil Brunner said,
“The Church exists by mission, just as a fire exists by burning. Where there is no mission there is no church”.
You can tell a Harley a mile away because it oozes Harley from every pore. If we focussed upon following the way then we will have a real christian presence in our communities. Our “Christianity” will ooze Christ from every pore.
Christmas is a big moment for the Church. This is the time of year in which people are more likely to visit us than at any other. This is the point where people come to see what the church have to offer to their communities and the world around them. We have some wonderful news to share, God’s heart was breaking so much that he was born as a baby boy and placed in the hay the animals were eating. He was born into a world of pain, war, hunger and poverty to show us how it could be different. He was born into a world to show us how to love and care for each other and to tell us to look after the least in society. Mary understood this before he was born as she sang:
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
Every year I agonise about the music we use at Christmas. To pick something that people know well enough to sing. Something that speaks of the incarnation that can be played with integrity in a band is a difficult task. People often talk about popular “secular” music not speaking of the “true meaning” of Christmas. For example, if we were to sing this Chris de Burgh song as we try to tell the world God’s story, I’m sure the extra terrestrials would confuse the issues.
Over the past month I have attended many carol services and I have come to the conclusion that I have been mistaken in the role the church are to play at Christmas. Whilst I thought we were trying to give account of God’s incarnation, all around me people are singing “O Little Town of Royal David’s City”. We are happy to perpetuate the Victorian ideals and social engineering of past centuries. I need to know my place within the created order and must not step outside of my defined social background. Children must be seen and not heard. “Christian children all must be, mild, obedient, good as he”. Unfortunately this myth does our children no favours as it places unrealistic expectations upon them. It also facilitates those who want to complain about young families in church because “in my day…” Unfortunately this also portrays Jesus in an unrealistic manner. A baby who was born on a silent night without crying who lived a life so meek and mild that they nailed him to a cross.
It was recently pointed out to me that “people outside the church don’t take the Christmas story seriously, they treat it like a fairy tale”. I disagree. The people inside the church don’t take the Christmas story seriously, they treat it like a fairy tale. Is it any wonder that the people who hear us singing “I love Thee, Lord Jesus! Look down from the sky” and “when like stars His children crowned all in white shall wait around” spend the rest of the year saying “pie in the sky when you die”. Who can blame them? They are just repeating our story as we have recounted it.
Next year I think I may include A Spaceman Came Travelling in the repertoire. It is easier to try and explain aliens than to try and recant your previous explanation of the afterlife. It is certainly more believable.
St Paul’s Art’s and Media in New Zealand have produced a new Nativity video. I showed their old one last week and everyone loved it.