Keeping Christ in Christians

I saw the MIME for the first time the other day. Since then, it’s been reposted by several friends on Facebook. When I read it, I paused to think about it. I was surprised to realize it stayed with me for a few days.

Responding to what some conservatives in the United States refer to as “the war on Christmas,” the MIME refocuses the issue in a startling way. A picture of a smirking Santa with a sideward glance is captured, “Put ‘Christ’ back in Christmas? Ho, Ho, How about putting “Christ’ back in Christian?”

I am among those who often find it embarrassing to admit that I am a member of the Christian faith. The embarrassment has nothing to do with Jesus or his teachings. I strive to embody the way of life modeled by Jesus and recognize the challenges I face in doing so. Instead, it is the action and attitudes of Christians around the world that is a great cause of embarrassment to me. It’s evident to even the most casual on-looker that the behavior, attitudes, and prejudices of many Christians share no resemblance to what Jesus referred to as the greatest commandments: loving God and loving others. Instead, judgementalism, bigotry, and hatred often characterize the noticeable statements of Christians today.

Just in the last month, there are noticeable examples of the ways prominent Christians demonstrate judgmental, prejudicial attitudes that are far from the teachings of Jesus:

• Televangelist Kenneth Copeland and David Barton claimed in early November that if soldiers had the proper faith in God, they would not experience PTSD. Their claim is based on a very odd reading of Numbers 32: 20-22, which states that the soldiers of ancient Israel are guiltless before God. This claim is made despite the high rates of PTSD and suicide in the US military. The mental health issues military members face is very serious. Copeland and Barton are putting the lives of people at risk by their baseless claims.

• In an interview on Meet the Press on December 1, Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York claimed that marriage equality is advancing in the United States because the Catholic Church has been “out marketed” by gay rights groups. This follows the exorcism of the demon of gay marriage held in Springfield, IL, by Bishop Thomas Paprocki on November 21. I understand that Roman Catholic hierarchy is not able to consider the possibility that they could be wrong on any issue. After all, it took the Roman Church 400 years to admit its error on Galileo. Yet, what I find particularly perplexing is that in the wake of child sex-abuse scandals and financial mismanagement, the Roman Church fails to grasp that it has squandered its own moral authority. No amount of PR can fix the damage done by the Roman Church around the world in the last several decades.

• Finally, there are the frequent and regular claims that other followers of Jesus are not “Christian” if they don’t hold the same views as most Evangelical Christians on matters of abortion, inter-faith dialogue, human sexuality, the validity of science, the role of women, and many other issues. These claims are regularly made about President Obama and leaders of progressive Christian denominations like the United Church of Christ and the Episcopal Church. Simply, there has always been a diversity of opinion within the Christian tradition. It seems to me that conservative Christians are attempting to claim the authority to have a new kind of inquisition that permits only their own unique (and generally non-Biblical) beliefs.

Indeed, I’m all for putting Christ back in Christians. For all the claims of churches having Bible studies and preaching from the scriptures, I honestly don’t believe that most Christians in the US today have read the gospels which record the teachings of Jesus. Instead, it seems to me that they mostly pick out some tidbit here or there to support their own prejudice which they sell as some kind of God-given revelation. In the end, they worship their own interpretation of the Bible and miss the living and life-giving message of Jesus who welcomed all people without regard to any aspect of their lives. The gospels are clear: the only people Jesus condemned were religious hypocrites. He made those condemnations with great virulence.

Christmas is a time to celebrate life, birth, hope, and giving. Yes, it’s been corrupted by commercialization. I do find that to be a serious problem. But even the traditions of Santa Claus bringing gifts to children is rooted in the life of St. Nicholas of Myra who provided dowries for poor girls so they wouldn’t be sold into lives of prostitution. How generous is that? The real-life St. Nicholas was someone known for caring for the poor in society. So, celebrate Santa Claus and gift giving, and jingle those bells. The world can be harsh and lonely. The message of Christ is a gift of hope for the world. Such hope is given not in words but in actions. What matters are generous hearts that show respect to others and not some set of magic words that somehow prove your faith.

After all, it was James – the brother of Jesus – who wrote, “Faith without the works to prove it is dead! If someone claims to have faith but doesn’t show it in their deeds, it’s not going to save them!” (James 2:14) Isn’t that what keeping Christ in Christians is really all about?