We have seen the dangers of religious extremism across the world. It has led to the subjugation of huge parts of societies, the oppression of millions and horrible violence and death. There are more, subtle dangers present as well, especially to our souls and the soul of our nation.
The intolerance of other beliefs and social mores comes from a dark place. It is not of the light of God, for it judges, divides and may ultimately destroy people.
Extremist views come from extreme thinking for some and from the extreme of lack of critical thinking for those who would follow them, a prerequisite for belonging to extremist cults. Adherents are required to turn off their brains and blindly obey those who have convinced them that they are true believers, even while ignoring the sacred texts that they claim to be dear to their hearts.
When, for instance, people who claim to follow Jesus are convinced that faithfulness to God means being more pure and holy than others, they abandon the teachings of Jesus altogether to cling to ideologies born of false Christian theology. Making all faithfulness about being more "righteous" than others leads to judging, something Jesus commanded against. Embracing ideologies of purity and holiness as one's justification before God lead people to walk away from Jesus, rather than follow Jesus, who likened faithfulness to the living of unconditional love and active commitment for "sinners" and "the least" among us.
Ideologies born of bad Christian Theology have led to the ideas that a "righteousness" born of purity and holiness, ecstatic worship and praise and tithing necessarily bring adherents to favor with God and material blessings. They further lead practitioners to the necessity of "saving" others to this ideology and confronting anyone not on board with it. They lead to folk being intolerant of others who do not believe in or adhere to their extremist views.
Ideologies born of bad Christian Theology lead folk to look to the magical thinking of supernatural interventions or deliverance, rather than faithful use of the "spirit of power, love (agapeis) and self-control" (II Timothy 1:7) that God gave us in order to live healthy practices, practice good stewardship of the creation, endure struggles and pain, and build sustainable lives and communities. The belief is that if we are (self) righteous, God will deliver us from all calamities. The belief is also that God will absolve us from any responsibility in the destruction of our own lives, the lives of those around us and the planet. These are patently false notions.
They may also lead to people disassociating their faith from how they live in the world, justifying their exploitation of others economically and/or abuse of power over others politically. Worse, they may lead people to believe that their value for Democracy is at odds with their extreme religious and social views, causing them to embrace instead a theocratic fascism as political ideology.
This all begins with blind loyalty to and belief in unscrupulous, false preachers, teachers and their devotees rather than belief in the fulfiller of Law and Prophets, the giver of the Good News, and the teachings, commands and examples of the one they claim to follow.
Because of that blind devotion to them and their false theologies, they are easily manipulated by the leaders of these false strains of the faith into supporting the ideology for the gain of those who have gained status as leaders, providing them with more power and more wealth. Among the many problems with this are the divisions caused within society and family, the breakdown of critical thinking ability and the killing of their souls and the potential death of the soul of the nation in which they live.
For some, it is a false Christianity based on purity and holiness. For others it is American Civil Religion. For yet others it is a religious devotion to White or Male or Anglo or Straight Supremacy, Laissez-faire Capitalism and/or Bigotry. Blind loyalty to these destroys critical thinking, the celebration of others, the ability to love unconditionally and actively commit to others' well-being and therefore the willingness to follow Jesus in how one lives. It leads to love for wealth, power and status for oneself above love for our sisters and brothers. It leads to the death of community and the soul. It destroys Shalom.
I have loved ones who break my heart regularly. They claim to believe in and follow Jesus, but their hearts are far from what Jesus taught, commanded and modeled as we have that in the Gospel witnesses, because they have been influenced by false teachers over the years and have adopted extreme religious (and political/economic) ideologies rather than follow Jesus. Because of this, they are at odds within themselves and with God, and naturally with others around them.
I am often at odds with people around me as well. I resist the evils of empire and strive to live the Agape Love Way that Jesus taught, commanded and modeled for those who would be Disciples of Jesus in the world. I am much more pugilistic than I ought to be in my desperate attempts to confront the lies with the truth, which in itself does not help to create Shalom. So, I strive to find a different, better "package" for the Gospel I share, though there is none better than the words of Jesus in the Gospels, for any who would engage their minds, hearts and souls in loving God and Neighbor.
"Love (agapeiseis) the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind . Love your neighbor as you love yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and Prophets." Jesus, according to the Gospel of Matthew (22:34-40)
It is all about the living of Agape Love - "active commitment on behalf of the other, even stranger and enemy, and especially the most vulnerable", which produces Shalom - "completeness, wholeness and well-being" for ALL in the world. THAT is God's Will and our only Mission.
Pastor Jamie
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