The Church Is an Alarming Failure and Always Will Be: The Church Is an Amazing Success and Always Will Be

If you study the Christian church, along with other religious counterparts, they stand as failures. There is no way to justify the Crusades and other wars that have been fought on Christian Pretense. The church has constantly failed live up to be what it claims to be, the visible body representing Christ here on earth; ambassadors of God. The church has shoved its particular cultures down the throats of others in the context of spreading the faith, not respecting indigenous cultures and their people. The church is an abject failure in being responsible for others as their brothers and sisters and fail to see others as members of God’s family. The church continues to be legalistic and condemning ignoring the spirit of the law as summarized by Jesus and scripture to love God with our total being and to love others as ourselves. The church constantly rips verses out of context in order to justify immoral behavior such as bigotry, slavery, sexism, racism and the lot. The church has been led by leaders with feet of clay who embarrass the institution and do harms to others. The church has often acted like brainless sheep that are unwilling or incapable of thinking for themselves, expected others to do their religion for them. The practitioners of Christian and all other religions are hypocrites.

This list goes on and on, but I’m am beginning to spiritual puff and puff and run out of steam.

So why is the church such a failure? Is God completely inept and incapable of creating an organization that is worthy of its calling? God is God, and capable of anything, so, I reject that possibility though others would concur, or just plain reject the notion of a deity at all.

I think the explanation is simpler; the church is a corrupt failure because it is run by people. And while we people may pride ourselves about all manner of things our history does not show we are much of a species. Supposedly given responsibility for caring for our planet we seem hell-bent on its destruction and upon destroying each other either physically, mentally, socially, psychological or spiritually. I stand with St. Augustine, the Apostle Paul, John Calvin, Martin Luther, and countless others that maintain that human beings are totally depraved whose natural predilection is to go counter to God’s will and intent. Even if you believe human beings are mentally capable of enlightened thought, it is still in their self interest and not naturally altruistic. Frances Hodgson Burnett’s Good Little Lord Fauntleroy was an illusionary wishful a piece of fiction and William Golding’s Lord of the Flies more aptly reflects our true nature.

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Enough said, now on with the paradox; the Church and its counterparts, is an amazing success and always will be.

Why?  Because of God. The Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition has continued for thousands of years because God’s divine, creative, guiding hand created and leads it.

Throughout the years the Church has done great things. The church has captured imagination and hope for countless believers. The church has preserved knowledge down through the ages. The church has encouraged and produced art to give God praise and to enhance human vision. The church has reached out to others with love and caring and compassion sharing the gifts of God with others. The church has enabled people to come together with a larger sense of family and connection. The church has continued to change to meet the needs of people as cultures as societies change. The church realizing its earlier evangelical mistakes has sought to be more helpful and more open to the cultures they seek to share with. The church has provided sanctuary for those persecuted. The church has been integral in the development of education institutions such as our own country. The church has sought to maintain standards for believers to agree upon and yet remain open to new ideas and thoughts as God continues to be revealed in our history. The church has provided moral standards that have enhanced human life throughout the world. The church has be an agent of change for enhancing the lives of those who have been society’s victims. The church has lead in battles against racisms, sexism, and those isms that place one human being beneath or above another. The church has acted as ambassadors of Christ and made visible God’s love throughout the world. The church has done all these things and many more. The church has done this because the God who inspired people of old still is involved in human life today inspiring today’s believers. The same Spirit of God that gave voice to the prophets gives voice to modern preachers to reveal God’s intent for disciples. The same God who unplugged the ears of the faithful to hear God’s word unplugs ears today to hear God’s word afresh. God is as active and dynamic today in the church as God has always been.

Sesame Street may teach that two things that are different cannot be the same but in the world of faith that is absolutely possible. Paradoxes exist and provide vitality for the world.

Can I prove any of the statements made above? Not exactly as all things we human beings do and believe reflect our presuppositions. Can I even prove the existence of God? No, God is beyond human comprehension. Do I know God exists? Yes and no, depending upon how God dealing with me at any existential moment. The most I can claim is that I am a believing agnostic, who by God’s grace can see things I am unable to grasp and yet do.

As for others, that is between them and God.