“The challenge as I see it is what I call the unbinding of Christianity that shifts its meaning from beliefs, creeds, and doctrines to the values Jesus actually talked about… I am not suggesting that there are no normative beliefs in Christianity, only that history and diversity of their development don’t justify using them as tests of faith or fellowship. They can serve as statements of faith, which interestingly enough was the original purpose of church creeds. Conformity of beliefs has never served the church well, mainly because it divides rather than unites Christians. Christianity is quite capable of being examined and challenged and reevaluated, if it understands itself to be about values instead of beliefs.”
–Jan Linn, Unbinding Christianity: Choosing the Values of Jesus over the Beliefs of the Church, p. xvii & xix
This piece is yet one more contribution to the “Jesus of history/Christ of faith” conversation. For me, the two are inseparable. I find it impossible to even think about following Jesus’ ethical teachings and example without the transformative experience of encounter, in some form or other, with the living Christ. What the Apostle Paul calls the “natural man” in me simply can’t bring that off. He/I lacks the necessary strength, will, and determination. A radical change is necessary for me, for all of us, to be faithful followers of Jesus’ Way. And that transformation can happen for us, as it did for Paul, through an encounter with the Risen Christ.
My spirit quickened upon reading this! I grew up in the Church of the Saviour . When I moved to NC, I found my way to the Episcopal church. It appealed to me because it did not define life in dualities. The people were broad-minded and kind, and the music transformed this elementary teacher’s energy. Years later, after I retired, I considered taking an ordained path. In fact, Gordon Cosby supported me in prayer and phone calls during that time. There is a part of the ordination service where you declare that the scriptures and the creeds are all that I will ever need. I could not limit myself like that. I told Gordon that he had ordained me when I had joined the church at 18 and I did not need to be ordained again. He responded that God had ordained me before I was born! Since that time, I have continued to be a follower of Jesus and affiliate with the Espiscopal family and other paths as well. My life feels expansive. I believe the world needs less division . Thank you for sharing this reading!
Christianity is quite capable of being challenged and examined and reevaluated? Not the first thing I think of when I ponder my own beliefs about Christianity and those of my church of origin . . Christian – Lutheran – Missouri Synod to be precise.
Conformity of beliefs has never served the church well . . because it divides rather than unites Christians? This brought to mind a conversation I had with my cousin who like me was raised in the Lutheran church. She asked me if I believed that Jesus died for our sins so that we could go to heaven. I said, “no, I don’t believe that. Upset she said, Mary, I need you to believe so that we’ll be together in heaven. It made me happy that she wanted to be with me in heaven but I also thought we rarely see one another or even talk on the phone here on earth?? What’s that all about?