Controversy

*sigh*

Being a Christian does not mean I'm better than you. Ever.

Means I acknowledged that I wasn't good enough.

Being a Christian does not mean I'm against legalizing abortion.

I'm opposed to the concept of abortion, sure. I think most people are.

But I do think that people are going to be irresponsible.

And I do think that women get pregnant even if sex wasn't their choice.

And I think that if abortion isn't legalized somewhere, people who are desperate will find a method that isn't legal.

And I'm pretty sure that if abortion is illegal, you can't have standards set for abortion clinics. I'm very definite about this one - you're working with a particularly sensitive area of someone's anatomy, and there's a lot that can go wrong. This needs to be made safe, or at least, a lot safer, and we can't do that if the entire concept is outlawed.

But, I also think Obama's wrong, and I honestly think that this issue (along with the concept of gay marriage) is one that should be decided at the state level. Not, definitely not at the federal level.

Being a Christian doesn't mean that I think that a particular candidate is the one who should be in power, simply because he's also a Christian.

The job of our leaders is to be just, to be fair, to keep the promises they've made, to always work for the good of their people.

One of the greatest points of our nation's creation was that it was not designed as a safe haven for Christians and for people who follow the God of the Bible, but instead was intended to be a place of religious freedom. Our Constitutional right is, for every American citizen, to believe what we choose to believe. Our officials have the job of upholding that freedom.

Being a Christian doesn't mean I have a bone to pick with homosexuality.

I am of the rather matter-of-fact opinion that God made some people gay.

I'll acknowledge that it's a minority, but where I went to school, being brunette made me the minority. Choosing numbers as a basis for morality is a mite silly, dontcha think?

I honestly think that if you can't serve God with your orientation, then neither can I with mine.

I do think the Bible's pretty clear on promiscuity, that your sexuality is a gift from God with a purpose in mind, and a few other thoughts on that*. I think that abusing this particular gift is against God's plan, but I don't think it matters what your orientation is.

On a somewhat unrelated note, I don't think my gay friends are at all more promiscuous than my straight friends. I do, however, think they're more vocal, but that might just be the ones I hang out with.

Being a Christian doesn't mean I dislike atheists, pagans, agnostics, muslims, puppies, the Schwann man, zebras, cacti, strawberry push-ups, calamari, or daisies.

If I dislike you, it's because you annoy me. It's got nothing to do with your beliefs. :P

Sorry. Needed the silly note. Seriously, Christ came and changed everything. We're not called to wipe out, attack, or deliberately make life harder for people who don't believe in him. We've got two missions: love, and serve.

We are told to 'make disciples'. Okay, yes. This is true. But, among my friendly (and aggressively friendly) Bible-thumpers, has anyone encountered the phrase, "People will never care how much you know, until they know how much you care?"

Honestly, some of the churches I've encountered seem far more concerned with filling a quota than offering a hand, or even knowing a person. We have the ability to help, what are we doing? We're in a fallen world, and our record has been trashed by people believing more than caring. I don't care if you're not the one who trashed it - if someone else littered in your park, you would still pick it up.

Being a Christian doesn't mean it's my job to run your life.

For the record, my sisters are pretty good about bringing me up on when I'm getting overbearing in their lives. I can get a little hurt and defensive about this at times, but I do appreciate this. I can have the opinion that some particular pursuit is destructive (say, heroin), but at some point I'm pretty sure I remember one of the New Testament writers telling us that it's a bit ridiculous to expect someone who doesn't follow God...to follow God's law.

The analogy I've used would be that if my British friend came over to the States and started getting visibly annoyed with me because I break some of England's laws. Yes, at one point, we were under England - but we declared ourselves separate some time ago. If I elected to move to England and somehow gain citizenship, then it would be appropriate for my Brit friend to be annoyed with me for breaking English law, and call my attention to it.

Being a Christian doesn't mean I'm a vegetarian.

'nuff said.


A number of people, including a bunch of the people I know, have started using the term "Christ-follower" to describe themselves. I like it. It's a reminder of what we're supposed to be, that this particular term has a purpose, beyond going to church or, as BK says, "checking the box". But I think it's also us wanting to get away from what Christians have done in the past. Because we've done some horrible things to people and to humanity. Sometimes trying to convince everyone to follow God. Sometimes trying to use God for our own purposes.

We've done some good things, too. Schools, a fair amount of the early roots of medicine, taking down music so that it could be read again later, all things that the church did.

We don't want you to think that we're lukewarm in our faith, just checking the box. We don't want you to think that we're going to force you to convert the minute you let your guard down. We want you to see the way we live, and see Christ, and understand this is who we follow.

But, oh, we screw up. I know how I want to live, and how I want to carry on my relationships, and I'm still so, so far below the standard I desire, the image I want to project. And so I have to ask your forgiveness.

I seriously considered taking on the name of "Christ-follower". But, for me, that's not right. Because I'm still not ready to give up on saving the name of "Christian". And, yeah, there's been a tremendous wreck through history of what's been done under that name. And, yeah, I recognize that I'm just one person, with a pretty spotty record, lacking a degree in Bible study, missions, theology, or anything else that would indicate I've spent some pretty college credits on learning about this.

 

So, I'm a Christian.

 

That means that I believe in Christ. Christian, by definition, "Little Christ." I believe he's the son of God, and to make this paragraph a lot shorter, I believe in the Bible. I do believe that there are parts of the Bible we have today that were not in the originals, or that were difficult to translate from Hebrew to English, but I don't believe that those parts cancel out the great truth of God's love, what he said we were worth, our sin, or what he did for us.

 

That means that I want God as the first love in my life. First love, greatest leader, and my foundation. Means that I spend time getting to know the Bible because otherwise I think it's very easy to get led off track by well-meaning teachers. Means that my goal is to live a life that makes God look good. I mess up. A lot. I haven't given up yet.

 

This isn't supposed to be a theological discussion. This is just...I'm tired of what we act like, and what people think we are, and I wish I had a way to fix it all. This is some stuff I've been thinking about for a little while, and it needed to be said. I suppose, to conclude, this is what I believe.