I Want to Be a Sheep (Part 4 of 5)

So, feeling sufficiently satisfied that the true Jesus does in fact exist, I continued googling. Cerebral masochism perhaps? Google was happy to oblige.

Apparently there is a movement in Christianity which calls itself “emergent”. I have heard the term “emergent church” now and again, but have not given it much attention. Now that I know a little more about it . . . well . . . a hem.

As an aside, I’m not a big fan of denominations, but I do understand why they exist. We are human. As such, we are flawed. We disagree, we divide—sometimes painfully, but also sometimes peacefully, agreeing to disagree. As humans we are also diverse. Some of us like classical music. Some of us like traditional hymns. Some of us like pop music. Some of us like silence. Some like dim lighting and candles, others prefer bright lighting. Some are talkative and out-spoken, others are quiet and reserved.

Christ’s church reflects this diversity. The various denominations disagree on surface issues, like how to conduct weekly church service, but for the most part they agree on the core issue—that as fallen humans we are saved, not through works, but by God’s grace, which is gifted to us when we make the conscious choice to accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. When I envision the Christian church, I do not see divided denominations, nor do I see a Catholic/Protestant divide. I see a unified group of people who have decided to follow Christ, however uneven and winding the road may be.

Now, back to the emergent movement, and more specifically, to the leaders of the emergent movement. They desire to reach postmodernists, a group of people who are not easily defined but who, for the most part, believe truth is subjective or further, that it is unknowable. The emergent leaders ask a good and valid question. Can we “send” postmodernists the gospel in a way that it reaches them rather than becoming hung up on the postmodernist’s skepticism and distrust? The emergent leaders acknowledge that this skepticism and distrust is often rooted in legitimate grievances with the church. So, they seek to deconstruct the traditional ideas of “Sunday church” and “the Christian walk”, and reconstruct them in ways that are more comfortable and welcoming to postmodern seekers. I have absolutely no problem with this.

I do have a problem with the way some emergent leaders seem to be deconstructing Jesus’ message and reconstructing it to fit harmoniously within the postmodernist’s worldview. In his book, The Secret Message of Jesus, Brian McLaren states, “What if Jesus' secret message reveals a secret plan? What if he didn't come to start a new religion—but rather came to start a political, social, religious, artistic, economic, intellectual, and spiritual revolution that would give birth to a new world?” Sound familiar? (If not, reread Parts 1 and 2. Quiz later.) Further, to make postmodernists feel comfortable, some emergent leaders seem to be teaching a kind of universalism—that is, Jesus came and died to save all of humanity regardless of whether an individual accepts His gift or not. Which means, although a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is encouraged, I guess it is not required. (My bad.) Which means, many paths DO lead to the top of the mountain. I’m OK, you’re OK. It’s all good!

Wait. What just happened?

I smell a rat.

Stay tuned.