Argue. Argue. Argue.
People are good at that. Seems like our ability to enjoy something is dependent on our ability to analyze it. To critique it, and we hope above hope - our ability to undermine it and find a flaw.
I listened to an interesting talk on culture recently and in that talk a letter to the tutor of roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Diognetus was quoted. The letter described some habits and traits of 2nd century Christians and a line in it struck me - "Unlike some other people, they champion no purely human doctrine." What a strange statement to make! But as I've thought a bit more about it, I've come to realise the value of it.
Argue. Argue. Argue.
We are good at that. Our ideology is king. It stands high above all other things, including people. We bulldoze over all personalities, preferences, emotions and needs as long as ideology is communicated. Ideology is king and rationality is his queen. To the extent that we will gladly fight for ideas which we barely have the slightest understanding of. Case in point, the creation vs evolution debate.
Now, I know I'm stepping on dangerous ground here. But it just serves as an example of the Churches "championing of purely human doctrine". You will have a whole host of Christians getting into a debate in which they discuss over intelligent design, creation, evolution and so forth and not have the slightest clue what they are talking about. They know fancy words like micro and macro evolution and then run with those until kingdom come (quite literally!). And because this has now become not just a debate on how the world was established but more a question of faith vs science, if anyone stands against them they hold this as a testament against their own foundation of life and meaning, itself. Therefore, science has now become an evil thing amongst certain Christian circles and we get bogged down on ideas that only a few Christian scientists really understand and is mostly fueled by ridiculous sensationalism, and by doing so alienate anybody who stands on the other side of the fence.
That is my little rant on that specific topic over with. But it's just an example of how a very worldly debate, one that doesn't need to make the difference between an integrated community member and an intellectual pariah, can leave Christians passionately fighting for something that really is not our battlefield. I'm not saying, don't argue, don't debate, but what I am saying is that these are "human doctrines" and we are not here to promote human doctrine, we are here to offer a completely new paradigm.
The issue really seems to be a question of labels. There are many Christians who see culture as evil! It's part of a world that will one day roast in the eternal fires of the pit and therefore must be shunned. However, that again leaves us in a war that does not concern us. We are not fighting culture. We are here to regenerate it. Culture is the essence, the fragrance of a community. You can't fight culture as much as you can't fight gravity, the exercise would be quite futile and might leave you as a big bloody blob on the ground.
I love debates and I love arguments. I love taking each rational step of an idea and scrutinize it. It's what we do these days. But let me say, that when it comes to ideology, it's not king. Love is king. And if ideology gets in the way of loving someone then I fully intend to drop it. Because I'm not interested in championing human doctrine, but channeling a revelation of love so above any human constructs that those who are sick are healed, those that are broken are mended and those who are lost are found. This is not an intellectual, ideological argument - this is action, this is culture, renewed.
Another section of the letter to Diognetus explains it nicely.
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