Allegories - Here and Now
~ Once acknowledged, this self-denial is as simply fixed as the Emperor’s New Clothes. ~
“Unless you become like a child,” Jesus said, “you cannot enter the kingdom.” The take-away is to maintain a posture of humility and curiosity, to be open to new ideas and correction, and to admit that our perspectives may be wrong.
In truth, when people question our beliefs, the last attitude we tend to display is childlike curiosity. “They don’t understand,” we say. “They’re deceived. We must be right because we’re Christian.”
Have we forgotten that religious people — not pagans — were the subjects of Jesus’ fiercest reproach? He told stories like the Good Samaritan to remind us that at times, worldly people are more enlightened and compassionate than people of faith. Are we so prideful as to believe we can dismiss Jesus’ warnings?
In fact, religion may be the greatest deception of all.
The popular Christian narrative says that we are the enlightened ones and worldly folk are deceived. We occupy the high moral ground. That’s why Christian sources can be trusted while secular ones cannot. Undergirding this is the proud assumption that our outlook on life, while not perfect, is far superior to the world’s perspectives.
We see this prideful deception in action when Christians say, “You can’t trust secular media.” The first mistake is the unspoken claim that we can trust Christian-endorsed media. And yet the breeding of Christianity with politics have spawned un-Christlike offspring that disseminate fear, alienation, self-protection, love of power, greed and a weaponized bunker mentality. My career as Senior Producer for the most-listened to Christian radio broadcast in America put me in close contact with un-Christlike men who were labeled “trustworthy,” simply because they checked our family-friendly boxes. In truth, the uncompassionate “culture war” approach to imposing morality is in opposition to Christ’s call to lovingly engage all people.
Today, more than ever, we need to be humble enough to admit that we might be wrong. We need to be courageous and childlike enough to listen to our enemies, to build bridges with those whom we fear, to listen to and learn from the gays and trans people we condemn, to share meals with “suspicious” strangers and to embrace those who are marginalized. We need to demonstrate love and forgiveness toward so-called enemies. These are not fringe issues in the Bible! God’s word is filled, cover to cover, with commands to lovingly engage even enemies and strangers.
Where are the Christian leaders who would warn us to reject false conspiratorial claims that lead Christians toward violence? Under the guise of defending our families and our prosperity, we justify greater oppression of the weak and even violence against all who oppose our values.
We cannot be so naïve as to trust everything the “Christian” media says. Neither can we trust secular leaders who claim to support Christian values. Words are cheap. History is fraught with examples of believers who have been led astray by lies and propaganda. We must be wise as serpents and gentle as doves.
An honest search for truth compels us to listen to — and test the claims of — all viable channels of information, including our “trusted” sources. When leaders say, “You can’t trust that media so don’t listen to them,” call this claim out as propaganda. Secular media has its flaws, as does Christian media, but it also has a solid track record for improving people’s lives by bringing harmful issues to light. Moreover, secular media has for decades been putting Christians to shame in its compassionate treatment of the plight of oppressed people in natural disasters, war zones, refugee camps, gangs, ghettos, exploitative trades and much more. It is rare to hear a Christian program or podcast dedicated to helping the widow, the orphan, the sick, the imprisoned, the poor and the displaced foreigner, and yet these are daily themes in secular media.
Some Christians criticize compassion in the secular media, claiming it is a means toward an ungodly agenda. This is pharisaical! It’s the claim of a religious hypocrite who would rather see a suffering man die than allow a “godless” Samaritan to save his life. Stop criticizing and start helping!
While many Christians fear a secular political agenda, they conveniently ignore their own pious political agenda. If you don’t believe we have an agenda, be brave and childlike enough to ask people from “the other side” about it and you’ll get an ear full. If all we do is complain, we leave a moral vacuum. Better to roll up our sleeves and enter into conversation with strangers while helping the hurting.
We must also learn to think critically and test all claims. This is impossible if we only believe one news source. Listening to one source illustrates the Apostle Timothy’s warning about having “itching ears,” which turns truth into fables. As in a court of law, we must listen to all sides. We must break the Christian habit of criticizing specific news sources and commentators, rather than analyzing the content. Be skeptical of those who criticize the speaker, rather than speaker’s claims. This happens constantly in Christian media! If anything, a controversial claim is strengthened when critics can’t think of a good argument against it so they attack the speaker.
Where would Jesus land in this debate?
He would be walking the streets, sharing meals with strangers, binding up wounds and playing with children in the projects. Sure, he’d speak out against unjust laws and agendas, but he’d lovingly engage those who hated him. Rather than equipping bunkers with food and weapons, he would share generously with his neighbors.
The greatest Christian deception is right in front of our faces. It is religion; a religion that Jesus did not demonstrate; a religion that eclipses agape love. It is our “rightness.”
The greatest deception is our perceived inability to be deceived.
Unfortunately, many of us are not childlike enough to get it. We are too arrogant and narcissistic. Of course we have to be right because of our narcissistic need to feel good about ourselves. Compare our actions to the love of Jesus and we see how unloving we are. He showed us how the greatest commandment — the summation of all the law — is to agape-love those whom we despise, even at great cost to self. And how have we responded? We have said that agape love is not enough. We have placed a higher priority on religious words and a moral crusade than we have upon sacrificial love.
Here’s an idea: The next time someone accuses us of wrongful actions or motives, let’s say, “Tell me about it.” Invite them over to explain their grievances. We don’t need to agree with everything but we need to listen. We need to apologize for how Christians, by and large, have portrayed themselves as arrogant know-it-alls. Like children, we must confess that we have been wrong. We need to admit that the “other side” knows things that we need to know. By doing so, we will turn enemies into friends. We will demonstrate God’s love. Best of all, we will know the unspeakable joy of meeting Jesus in the messy margins of life.
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It’s the easiest thing in the world for a man to deceive himself. — Benjamin Franklin[1]
Of all forms of deception self-deception is the most deadly, and of all deceived persons the self-deceived are the least likely to discover the fraud. — Aiden Wilson Tozer[2]
Image by Andi Graf, Pixabay.
[1] Benjamin Franklin Quotes, AZQuotes, www.azquotes.com/quote/1418599.
[2] Aiden Wilson Tozer Quotes, AZ Quotes, www.azquotes.com/quote/712423?ref=self-deception.
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