Grace For Ignorance

Shining a light on our past will lead to a brighter future

Christianity has a problem. In fact, many have left the tribe and stopped calling themselves Christians because the term has become almost meaningless due to the various definitions, denominations and creeds that have come to encompass that label. Some characterize this disconnect as fundamental vs. progressive. Others deride it as intelligent vs. stupid, with each side claiming the “intelligent” label for themselves, of course.

It is common knowledge that many of the things that most disturb us about another person are qualities that we see in ourselves, but do not want to admit. One example that has been documented frequently in the past few years is the pastor who constantly rails against LGBT+ people, yet is hiding a secret desire for other men himself. Only when he is caught or confesses, does this truth come out. In life, our experiences lead us in directions that we probably never thought we would go. Our plans change. Things we did not expect to happen, do happen. We learn from our experiences, especially the bad ones, pick ourselves up and move forward. The problem arises when we see others in the mindset of our former selves and criticize them for not understanding what we now hold to be our current state of mind, what we might refer to as “the truth”. It is easy for us to condemn an earlier stage of development in ourselves. When children find out that Santa Clause is not real, they sometimes make fun of the younger kids who still believe. This is, of course, considered highly immature. What mature adult would berate a youngster for believing in Santa? This behavior is analogous to Christians who rebuke others who differ with their current position or theology, even though they may have held the same beliefs earlier. I would like to suggest an alternative way forward that doesn’t vilify anyone’s viewpoint and creates a more respectful space for everyone — Integral Theory, sometimes referred to as a “Theory of Everything”.

Most adherents of this perspective have studied the writings of Sri Aurobindo or Ken Wilber. My first introduction to this line of thought was Wilber’s book “A Brief History of Everything” which examines the evolution and unfolding manifestation of the Spirit (what Christians identify as the Holy Spirit) and codifies the different levels of human stages of development by color — amber, red, green, purple, etc. In a similar vein, the popular Christian writer and Franciscan priest, Richard Rohr, shares thoughts about stages of human potential and spiritual growth in his books, “The Immortal Diamond”,”Falling Upward” and others. Former pastor Robb Bell has also joined the integral-themed chorus lately as evidenced in his latest podcast episodes and “Everything is Spiritual” tour. The common denominator in all these proposals is the exercise of inclusion and transcendence. In simplified terms, human evolution is not an US vs. THEM sort of tension, but an evolving understanding of our place in the world — as individuals, but part of a whole — united to all creation. The discovery of quantum physics also illumines what we might call “the connectedness of all things”, but that is a subject for another day.

The significance of these proposals is that personal growth is achieved by embracing the errors of our past in order to grow. Include and transcend. We can see where we are going because we see where we have been. Nothing is thrown out. Our former selves are not looked down upon or reviled, but understood as a step on the path to further growth and enlightenment. In this awareness, nothing is considered wrong or divides us. Each life experience serves as a step in our continued maturity. We all have to go through this process. This is the reason Jesus places such ultimate importance on forgiveness, not only for others, but for ourselves. Our lives are analogous to a flowing stream of consciousness instead of a cemented mental certainty of shame for past deeds. Growth is a maturing journey that lasts a lifetime. Change is necessary and unavoidable, leading to an eventual oneness of purpose and thought. Father Rohr would call this the Universal Christ. The Apostle Paul would call it “the mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col. 1:27).

We can recognize this growth within the biblical canon as well. Written several hundred years before Jesus was born, the Old Testament scriptures, which the Hebrew scholars called the Tanakh, make mention of sacrifice and genocide as a God ordained activity during the time of Moses and the Hebrew Kings, yet this same God was later recorded as stating “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice…” (Hosea 6:6). Jesus, in his sermon on the mount in Matthew’s gospel states plainly — “You have heard it said, but I am telling you…” (Matt. 6:21–48). The Apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthian Church that he “fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it” (1Cor. 3:2). These statements are evidence of evolutionary teaching in action but it does not stop with the last chapter of Revelation.

It is important for us to understand that the scriptures were written ABOUT the Word of God (John 1:1), filtered through the lens of human understanding at the time. They are not THE Word of God (John 5:39) or the idol we have made it today. Remember, this collection of writings was not codified and collected until the third century and could not have been widely distributed until the printing press was invented. There are, in fact, several versions to choose from because there exists no unified consensus around which writings should be included. When we declare that “God is unchanging” and then assume that the book we have designated “God’s Word” must be unchanging as well, we are faced with a God that many today will not take seriously. Taken literally, without understanding the Greek and Hebrew (i.e. human) origins, as well as the original audience they were written for, the scriptures are forced into a nonsensical tangle of conflicting writings. The literalist fundamentalist mind has a problem with paradox so “problem” passages are frequently ignored. But taken as an evolution of thought and understanding, the Jewish writing style and intention creates greater understanding and actually increases faith. Just because something did not literally happen does not mean it is not gospel truth.

Relying on intentional mistranslations of scripture has been the main source of misunderstanding between Christian factions for centuries. For instance, most Christians think that the word “church” is in the bible. It is in most English translations, but not the original documents that they are supposedly based on. “Church” is a political construct created to keep rulers (e.g. Constantine, King James, et al.) in power. The original word that was mistranslated from the Greek is ekklesia, which means “called out ones” or “gathering”. It would not do for a Catholic Church, in collusion with a monarch, to reimagine “church” as a mere gathering of Jesus followers that loved each other. Something needed to be done, so they inserted a word not in the original documents to perpetuate their control. Since the common man or woman at the time did not know Greek (including Augustine) and the majority of the populus was illiterate, this subversion was an easy con to pull off. The man responsible for most of the first English translation of scripture, William Tynsdale, was burned at the stake, in part, for his accurate rendering of ekklesia. Thankfully, the Catholic Church has evolved beyond this heinous practice today, but the deception remains. The hierarchical, building-centric, corporate version of this “gathering” today is modeled after this tradition, and is far from Jesus’ original intent for His ekklesia. “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:10).

Another instance of misunderstanding forces the obviously analogical and coded writings in Revelation, which was written in the first century CE, to interpret current events. If we claim that Revelation reveals events happening all around us today, we might have missed Rev. 1:1 and Rev 22:20, which LITERALLY bookend the book and say that these things are happening “soon”. Can anyone confidently say that the word “soon” equates to 2000+ years later unless it is translated in such a way that mangles its original (i.e. literal) meaning? If I told my wife that I was taking out the garbage “soon” and then used some elongated “biblical” meaning to avoid doing it, she would think I was either a fool or a liar.

Evolution of thought continues today, past the time when the original documents that the English bible is based on were penned. Slavery was accepted and taken for granted as a part of life in the Apostle Paul’s day but has been rejected as a barbaric practice since at least the middle of the 19th century. Humanity needed to go through the institute of slavery to be able to evolve out of it and realize it as an atrocity, even if much of the bible can be interpreted as an endorsement of it. This is not to say that slavery does not exist today, just that it has been declared illegal, which required an evolution in mindset for a majority of humankind. The scriptures require constant interpretive translating, based on current cultural conditions and human thought evolution — what Jewish interpreters would call Midrashim. Should we return to “biblically” endorsed slavery today because the Apostle Paul says it is acceptable? Hundreds of years later the revered Protestant theologian John Calvin approved the public burning at the stake of Michael Servetus in 1553. The terrible crime Calvin thought deserved such punishment was a disagreement over the doctrine of the Trinity. Thankfully, Calvin’s solution in dealing with a person who had opposing theological ideas is illegal now, even though many Christians today call themselves Calvinists and follow his other thoughts and teachings religiously. This doesn’t negate everything that Calvin proposed however. He said and wrote some important things that should be preserved, included and debated. As a human being, however, he was less evolved than most first graders in the 21st century. We are growing and evolving as a species. We no longer boil cats in bars for entertainment anymore and over half of the states in the U.S. have abolished the death penalty while others have reduced exercising it. Past experiences are needed to guide us to greener pastures of thought, leading to better experiences of life and a more inclusive humanity. Include and Transcend. Learn from the past, but don’t live in it.

Stasis, or resistance to change, is an especially concerning issue for the institutional church today. A recent survey conducted by the Fuller Institute, with George Barna and Pastoral Care, Inc., reported that the number one reason that pastors leave the ministry today is that church members are not willing to change direction when the pastor wants them to follow a new path. In other words, the church is losing its leaders because the people in the pews desire engraved-in-stone traditional certainty rather trusting their pastors to lead them in spiritual growth and freedom from static doctrine. Presently, between 1000 and 1500 pastors are leaving their jobs every month. Why would arguably the most informed or schooled person in the church seek to leave and find a new job if what they found through their advanced study and contemplation was not compelling? Once truth is seen, it can never be “unseen”. The pastor will either lie to the congregation to support their desire for certainty, leaving them in spiritual infancy and keep receiving a paycheck, or be forced move on. The only institutions or people that achieve true stasis in this world are those that are dead. In this light, it is plain to see that the “church”, as it is known today, is performing willful and unintended yet inevitable suicide.

In closing, I came across the concept of Hanlon’s Razor a few years ago, found it enlightening and endeavor to include it in my toolbox for living, although I would never claim perfection in this regard. It goes like this: Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by ignorance. In other words, it is possible that the person with whom you have an argument and may be angry with you is not your enemy. He or she may just be YOU, at an earlier time, or pre-cognition of your current self. Ignorance is not synonymous with stupidity. It just means that decisions are made without enough knowledge. We are all guilty of that, whether we acknowledge it to not. With an inclusive or integral mindset, we can help others move forward in non-judgmental fashion. No one is ever convinced to change their mind by berating and name-calling, although much of Christian discourse and dialog is enveloped in this milieu today. Let us transcend the temptation to be superior and accept and embrace the truly searching spirits in our current stage of development. This will give hope for the age to come instead of despair over some perceived future judgement. Help each other grow. Accept correction when it is given. Admit our errors and be humble when it is apparent that we are less informed. Be kind. Be graceful and try to live in unity, with love as your guide. In the end, what I am really trying to say is this: Follow Jesus (literally) in his instruction to treat others the way we would like to be treated and love everyone including our enemies — two commands that seem to have slipped the mind of many Christians but what Jesus calls the sum of all prophecy and law (Matt 7:12).

If you are curious and willing to explore new thought beyond the echo chamber of your current beliefs or what your pastor has told you, a few Christian writers that might help guide you to a more mature spiritual path include Peter Enns, Barbara Holmes, Howard Thurman, James Cone, Ilia Delia, Soren Kierkegaard, Richard Rohr, Hildegard of Bingen, David Bentley Hart, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Bede Griffiths, Cynthia Bourgeault and Rene Girard. I am not claiming that all of these writers agree with each other or that I agree with all of them either, but they will give you a lot to think about and hopefully help you on your journey. Test every idea that you discover. Seek out a variety of thinkers and writers. Read them at the risk of overturning your certainty. Do not get your news exclusively from the New York Times or Fox News. The philosopher Immanuel Kant once proclaimed that “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as they appear to us, and perceived by the lens of our consciousness”. Try different “lenses”. Pray for wisdom. If we follow these basic tenets we will receive the precious gift of living peacefully in a world that has been created for us all, without duality or division. To be continued…