I read this excerpt from Frederick Buechner this morning and thought it was worth passing along. I'd be curious to hear what you all think of what he says.
"Some think of a Christian as one who necessarily believes certain things. That Jesus was the son of God, say. Or that Mary was a virgin. Or that the Pope is infallible. Or that all other religions are all wrong.
Some think of a Christian as one who necessarily does certain things. Such as going to church. Getting baptized. Giving up liquor and tobacco. Reading the Bible. Doing a good deed a day.
Some think of a Christian as just a Nice Guy.
Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me"(John 14:6). He didn't say that any particular ethic, doctrine, or religion was the way, the truth, and the life. He said that he was. He didn't say that it was by believing or doing anything in particular that you could "come to the Father." He said that it was only by him--by living, participating in, being caught up by, the way of life that he embodied, that was his way.
Thus it is possible to be on Christ's way and with his mark upon you without ever having heard of Christ, and for that reason to be on your way to God though maybe you don't even believe in God.
A Christian is one who is on the way, though not necessarily very far along it, and who has at least some dim and half-baked idea of whom to thank.
A Christian isn't necessarily any nicer than anybody else. Just better informed."
courtesy of Erin
Sunday, February 24, 2008
What is a Christian?
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5 comments:
Since I'm one of the only people who comment - I'm going to comment on my own post!!!
I really like what Buechner says here. For me, it's one of the best descriptions I've heard of what it really means to follow Christ.
I've recognized that since I've adopted this broader view in my own life that I'm much more accepting of others and where they may be in their spiritual journey. It has made me not only curious about what others believe and why but much less arrogant about my own beliefs.
I want to second your comment Erin. I have started to understand, I think, that God isn't interested in the politics of our time but in a much larger and greater context in our lives.
I appreciated Cassy's relaying what her mom told her last week..."you're making it too complicated...it is all about love." While I like the open-mindedness Buechner's Christian, my first thoughts are to complicate it. In order to follow Christ and His teachings, I need to know what they are, what they mean, and how to apply them. Are there expiration dates on old rules? Do we do the best we can or do rules even matter if we have direct access to communicate with God? If rules do matter, are we responsible for all of them? for ignorance of them? for our interpretations of them? .... If being a Christian is just about loving God and finding your way to him somehow, then why does routine and tradition matter so much to so many people? And if any path is ok, which one is and why take the narrow one?
Nicole I completely relate to what you're saying. I've struggled alot with most of the same questions. I don't really have great answers other than what I've experienced. When I first started embracing this broader view of following God it was pretty scary to me (and still is at times). It was hard to step outside the system, the black and white, the rules I had accepted all my life. It was so easy for me to excel at following all those rules - in fact I had become an expert at it. It was comforting in a way to know that if I read my Bible and prayed every day that I would qualify as a "good" Christian and that I could feel better about myself because of this. Problem was, I didn't feel any better or closer to God. Mostly, I felt ripped off and pretty angry that my life wasn't perfect despite all the effort I was putting into it. So for me the freedom I've felt since ditching the rules and formulas is priceless. I feel like I'm being truer to myself and in turn truer to God.
I think your right about tradition and routine mattering to most Christians. I don't necessarily think all tradition and routine is bad but I do think it's easy to focus too much on that and miss out on God showing up in different ways. I've begun to think that maybe the narrow path is after all the path I've recently begun to try to follow. I think it's easier in many ways to follow the same old rules, and basically sleepwalk through life than to face oneself and God in a real and honest way.
All I've got to say is, "My wife is friggin' brilliant.". It seems she said it better then I could.
Nicole, I assume your questions are retorical?
I'm both freaked out by all this and excited by it at the same time. As frighten as it sometimes is to buck the system, it's feeling right.
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