Saturday, March 22, 1997

Saying is not necessarily believing

We're not going to church the way we used to. At least the Texas Poll says we're not.

I don't doubt the poll results. I know I don't go to church as much as I used to - mostly because I don't have to. Since I quit preaching, I have worked most Saturdays at the newspaper and often find that I'm prone to sleeping late on Sunday morning. My family does its best to get me going, but I use the tiredness excuse anyway.

What surprised me about the poll results was that while we're not going to church as much as we used to, we insist that we believe the Bible is God's word and that what it says is true. We have a dichotomy here, or a paradox, or whatever it's called.

You see, in the New Testament at least, religion and worship take place in community. Paul wrote mostly to churches, and when he writes to individuals, the church is a central theme in the letters. Everywhere he goes, Paul either encounters a church or establishes one. Christians are admonished to be careful not to neglect assembling themselves together. Even the last book deals with the church and churches.

So if we believe the Bible so much, how come we don't go to church?

Well, according to the analysts the poll takers talked to, we lack religious commitment. Huh? We have another paradox, or maybe it's a conundrum. We believe the Bible is God's word and yet we're not committed. In fact one analyst said church is more about social connections nowadays than it is about faith.

And that, gentle readers, is completely out of whack.

The simple fact is, if we say we believe something but are unwilling to act on that belief, we don't really believe it. James tried to make that point to Christians who claimed that because they lived under grace, they could act anyway they wanted.

"I'll show you my faith by my works," he said. Martin Luther had problems with James, but he missed the point. If we say we believe the Bible, then we'd best be committed because the book says we have to be committed. We'd best attend a gathering of believers somewhere because the book says it's vitally important we do so.

We'd like a nice, comfortable religion that lets us embrace beliefs we don't have to act on. Then we can sound sincere and religious without actually having to be sincere and religious.

"Oh, yes, I believe in forgiveness," we'd be able to say, all the while holding grudges against everyone who ever wronged us.

Or, we could say that we'd follow Jesus anywhere, as long as he didn't try to lead us into loving the unlovable or into feeding the poor, or visiting the sick and imprisoned, or giving drink to the thirsty or nourishment to the hungry or clothing to the naked.

If he did, we might have to admit that maybe we don't believe the Bible as much as we say we do. And then we'd know why we really don't attend church.

Michael O'Connor is Online Editor for the Abilene Reporter-News and is and ordained United Methodist minister. He can be reached by e-mail at religion(at)abinews.com.