Isolation in the Digital Age

I shouldn’t be appalled, but I am. I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am.

Whether it’s the conversation about race, policing, immigration, or just about anything, the tone is downright ugly. Every discussion is polarized. It’s either/or and black/white. There is little nuance. If you try to bring nuance you’re seen as soft one way or the other.

Why is that?

Why can we not have real and nuanced conversation? Why is it that each of us are only looking for opportunities to shout down our “opponent”? Where is the real conversation? Where is the honest back and forth where people are willing to learn from one another? Where is the humility in the conversation?

I think a significant part of this is that there we are isolating ourselves. We live in a time when people are supposed to be more connected than ever. The problem is that we are also in a time when we can insulate ourselves from people who disagree with us. We have so many choices in our media and information intake that we can choose to only hear the voices that agree with us. We can filter our “friends” on Facebook and who we “follow” on Twitter. There are news sources all over the spectrum and we can choose to only engage with those whom we agree with.

This isolation and insulation from differing perspectives hardens us. We become like Plato’s cave people. We are largely losing our ability to engage with people who disagree with us.

When this happens nuance goes out the window. When this happens we begin to shout down our opponent. We lose real conversation and have no desire to learn from one another. We become arrogant.

I challenge you to open your information streams to those who disagree with you. Engage with them. Learn from them. Begin to learn the nuances. Don’t be satisfied with either/or, binary perspectives. You’re better than that.

Go deeper.

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Dogmatic Truth and Grace Part 4

I wrote about the most important thing I learned in Seminary, dogmatic grace. One of the people who commented on the post asked how this jived with St Paul’s statements of judgment in his epistles. There are places where Paul really brings some tough words about people and their belief (or lack thereof).

How does dogmatic grace connect to dogmatic truth? How do we apply these issues to our contemporary society?

A Thought on Application

How might we apply dogmatic truth and grace? In my post, Dogmatic Grace I wrote in general terms about a pastor who has written some things that have some people, rightly, concerned about where he stands theologically. How might we apply dogmatic grace and dogmatic truth to this particular situation?

First, after (it saddens me that I need state this, but there were denunciations based on the promotional snippet) reading the text one would write a review. Challenging the text where it needs to be challenged and also commending the text where the author was correct.

Second, after others have reviewed the text and giving appropriate time for the person to be challenged by those closest to him, you watch and see if he changes his position.

Third, after it becomes clear that he does not change his position then in private discussions you disavow him. In public you simply “have nothing more to do with him, know that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.” In other words, you ignore them. There is no need to engage further.

One of the great struggles for us is the immediacy of our current media culture. We see things in our stream and feel the necessity to comment on everything. We are too often reactionary when, if we have decided that someone has been “given over” we need to simply ignore them. In that case, we need to engage the original poster privately and share our concerns with them (ie Paul to Timothy) so that they avoid the pitfalls of the one “given over”.

A Final Pastoral Thought

As social media continues to be a part of our lives we must learn to use the public and private aspects of each platform. We must grow in our discernment regarding which conversations are fit for a watching world and which are not. When you go to engage with a post ask yourself, “Am I about to make a challenge that is helpful for the public discourse? Is this comment better served as a private conversation? Do I truly understand the context from which the original poster is coming from?”

Over the years, I have learned to private message someone and ask for greater context. This has helped my discernment greatly. I think this approach has also helped me to maintain friendships and relationships that may have been lost.

This is part three of a four part series:

• Dogmatic Truth and Grace Part 1


• Dogmatic Truth and Grace Part 2


• Dogmatic Truth and Grace Part 3


• Dogmatic Truth and Grace Part 4

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Lord, Have Mercy

Every day we hear more about ISIS, terrorism, and torture. Every day we are faced with new realities regarding race, class, and politics. Every day we hear about first responders losing their lives in the line of duty.

Every day.

It feels daunting. It feels overwhelming. It feels like there is little hope.

When we feel this way we need to remember something. We need to remember the humanity of Jesus. I like this tweet…

We lose touch with our humanity when we deprive God of his humanity. #advent

— Eugene Peterson (@PetersonDaily) December 11, 2014

Part of what causes us to lose hope is the loss of our connection with humanity. Advent is this great reminder of the fact that God took on flesh in God the Son.

When we remember the humanity of Jesus, we are reminded that he is not one who cannot empathize with our world. We know when we cry out, “Lord, have mercy!” He hears us as one who says, “Yes! Mercy, mercy to you! I know your pain, your heartache, your joy, your world. Have hope! Mercy, mercy to you!”

There’s something beautiful about the reality that when we draw near to God we draw near to one who knows what we’re going through. He is not aloof or uncaring. He truly empathizes with us. He truly walks alongside us in love, grace, and mercy.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14 ESV)

It’s Advent. Draw near to the one who dwelt among us.

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Care for the Other

One of the things that I like about living where I do is that there are so many different kinds of people. It’s probably my favorite part of Doubt on Tap every Tuesday night, the diversity that surrounds the table.

A number of years ago I would not have been able to sit around the table at Doubt on Tap. Why? Because I would have been trying to “win”. I would have been looking for opportunities to “win the argument”, I would have been baiting people into making philosophical or logical errors to beat them in the “debate”.

I would not have been there to listen and learn. I would have been there to win.

I didn’t really care about other people. I only cared about myself and being right. If you asked me whether or not I cared for others, I would have said, “Of course! Why do you think I want them to know the truth?” But, I didn’t care.

A few years ago that changed. I stopped worrying about winning. I started to care about other people, legitimately. I wanted to learn from them and hear what they thought. I really wanted to deeply understand their view of the world. I asked questions and I sincerely wanted to hear the answers.

When I began to care about others, a whole new world opened to me. I began to see the beauty in the other. I was no longer afraid of them.

I wonder if people who are different from one another might realize that the other is a person of infinite value if they would begin to do this one thing, care.

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Repentance is Freedom

I have been teaching through Luke during our worship gatherings. As I prepare each week I’m surprised by how often repentance is brought to the fore by Jesus.

I shouldn’t be. But, I am.

Why do you think that is? Why are we surprised by Jesus constant and consistent call to repentance?

Could it be that we don’t really think that we need to repent? I know that’s true for me. You see, I was sold a bill of goods when I became a Christian that it was just about praying a prayer and then I was “saved”. I was, spiritually “all better”. But, I wasn’t. I was still messed up on the inside. I was still angry, hurt, and sin was running rampant in me. I was “saved” but I wasn’t experiencing salvation. I had work to do. I needed to “work out my salvation in fear and trembling.”

This fear and trembling is the work of repentance and faith. It’s the hard of dying to self and coming alive in Christ.

As sin is exposed in our life we experience guilt and shame. Repentance frees us from guilt. Repentance allows us to raise our heads and look up in faith. As we repent and turn back to God in Christ through faith we are freed from guilt and shame.

I need to repent. Every single day. Over and over and over again. Why? Because I’m still working out the sin issues in my life. I’m daily working out living into the faithfulness of God on my behalf in Christ.

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The Problem of Scale

Nearly every day I see posts about how other countries do things so much better than the United States. Whether it’s education, the environment, law enforcement, or just about anything else it seems that there is a country out there that does it better than the US.

I started wondering why that was the case. Why do we do so many things wrong? Why is it so hard to change?

One word: scale.

The United States of America has a problem of scale. We have too much of it. There is too much diversity. There is too much land. There are too many people. There are too many states. There is just too much.

People have heralded the free university education provided by Germany. Did you know that Germany is basically the size of Michigan if you include the Great Lakes and bits of Indiana and Ohio? Germany is also largely homogeneous ethnically. Did you know that a city in Michigan has been offering its residents a free college education for much longer than Germany? Do you know why a city could do that before a country? Scale. Do you know why Germany could pull off something like this before the US? Scale.

A speed boat is easier to turn than a cruise liner. Do you know why? Scale.

I think this issue of scale applies for the Church as well. When our communities become too big we lose the ability to change easily. Why? Scale. There is power in staying nimble and intentionally just the right size. It’s better to have many smaller communities of faith than one large one. When we have neighborhood level faith communities we can easily change and adapt to the needs of the people.

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Giving Is Always Offensive

We were working on moving from Canton, MI to Ypsilanti, MI and we were getting rid of stuff. I was amazed at how much stuff we had that we never used. Around the corner from our neighborhood was a Goodwill thrift store. We dropped our stuff off there, knowing it would be sold for pennies to people who needed it way more than we did.

I made the fateful mistake of checking in on Foursquare that day. The check-in posted to Facebook.

All hell broke loose.

People were upset that we went to Goodwill. Then other people were upset at the people who were upset with us.

All we wanted to do was give some things that still had value to a place where people who needed them could get them. I was shocked to see the back and forth and anger that was caused by something like giving.

When Cru officially changed its name from Campus Crusade for Christ to Cru lots of people stopped supporting the missionaries because of it. To some, giving to Cru was a capitulation to the world. They were angry and offended that you would continue to give to an organization that took "Christ" out of its name.

I'm learning that giving is always offensive. Whether you give of your time or talents or treasure it will offend someone. Giving is risky business. If you give, you'll probably take some heat.

But, hey, do it anyway.

Because I'm also learning that doing something worthwhile typically means you're offending someone, somewhere.

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Between Pain and Pain

I live in a city where black folk and white folk live together, work together, and play together. I see in the conversations and faces around me that the things that are happening in our world are not disembodied, it's not just out there. The pain is real. The fear is real.

I live in a family where my brother and closest friends are police officers. I know that most police officers are good men and women. I know that most police officers are sickened by what they saw on that tape where Eric Garner died. I know that most police officers will never discharge a weapon and that most would never do the things that a few do.

Yet, something that a friend said Tuesday rings in my heart and my head,

"This legal system was not originally designed 2 deliver justice 4 black men, cause we were only considered 3/5 of a man." -- me last night

— Tyler St. Clair (@TylerpKCC) December 3, 2014

I've never thought about things this way. Our country was founded on the basis that some of the people in our country were less than. At some point, if we're going to embrace the pain of our brethren we must come to terms with the reality that we must also speak for them.

I also must speak for the good men and women who wear blue. They rush in when others rush out. It's easy for us to judge when we've never faced the evil they face daily.

If we are serious about justice, racial harmony, and above all, love; then we must be able to speak for both.

We must speak against the injustices experienced by the minority cultures in our country. We must also speak against the violence and crime that police officers must face every day. It cannot be either/or. It must be both/and.

We are standing between pain and pain. Our voices rise from between fear and fear.

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Overwhelmed By It All

Overwhelmed. That's how I often feel when I log into Facebook or read my Feedly. Every day there is an article about what the Church "should" be doing. Which means every single day there is another article about what I "should" be doing.

We are supposed to be about social justice.

We are supposed to be about racial reconciliation.

We are supposed to care for the poor.

We are supposed to care for orphans.

We are supposed to do evangelism.

We are supposed to help animals.

We are supposed to....

This list just goes on.

It leaves me with a sense of feeling overwhelmed. It creates in me a sense of guilt and shame. Am I not doing enough? Are we not doing enough? How do we do one more thing? There are so many problems in the world and issues that we're supposed to care about, how do we possibly engage with each and every one?

All these things are important, no, they're all very important. The Church does need to address them all and be a part of creating solutions. Here's the thing though, me as an individual, you as an individual, don't have to.

Have you ever heard the little parable, "How does one eat an elephant? One bite at a time."  It is true. Here's what we're called to do, come alongside and be a cheerleader for the our brothers and sisters in Christ as they engage in the different things they're called to. As we do that, we are to remain faithful to the issues that God has called us into.

What is your piece of the puzzle? Share it below. I would love to pray for you and be your cheerleader.

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Conversation Makes A Difference

On Tuesday nights I hang out with a group people for something called, Doubt on Tap. It's a great time each week talking about issues that are important. We discuss politics, religion, and current events. Basically all the stuff you don't talk about in polite company.

This week we spent some time talking about issues of race. It was intense. It was so good though. People from all different backgrounds around a table being honest and being real creates something beautiful.

I was reminded last night that these conversations make a difference. They make a difference because ideas, concepts, and ideologies become people. People have names and stories. It is really hard to hate a person.

It is easy to be snarky and condescending behind a computer screen. You're just being mean to pixels. But, when you're face to face with someone, it is really hard to be simply mean.

If nothing else happened last night at Doubt on Tap I know this did: black people and white people talked about race and our world and that these folks will now have faces and names to put together with the events of our day. For those of us at Doubt on Tap the events in Ferguson are no longer disembodied images on TV but they tie into stories of real people around a real table in Ypsilanti, MI.

 

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Embrace Another's Suffering

One of the things that has struck me over the last week is how unwilling we are to embrace the suffering of another. A friend of mine, Tyler, wrote an amazing piece about race. He's taken a lot of heat. I've seen friends write things and I've heard friends say things about race that have a lack of empathy.

Paul says,

If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. (1 Corinthians 12:26 ESV)

Are issues of race hard? In some ways yes, some ways no. But, this is the place to start. We must start here within the Church. We must start with Paul's statement, an indicative, that if one member of the body suffers, all suffer and its converse.

There is a sad reality in our country that our black brothers and sisters must face things and experience things that us white folk do not. We can't fix it by dwelling on the past or trying to display our "white guilt". What we can do is embrace the reality of suffering and listen and love well.

As another friend said, "Par for the course, I'm afraid, but the level of tone-deafness is appalling." Tone-deafness is the lack of entering in with another. We shouldn't expect the world to get this. Church, I expect you to get this. I expect more from us.

Our unwillingness to listen and embrace the suffering of one another is catastrophic.

Jesus said,

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35 ESV)

This week it may have been a little hard for people to know us. "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

 

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