Today, I got around to listening to
the October 25, 2013 edition of Wayne Jacobsen's podcast, The God
Journey. Now, it seems to me, after listening to a number of this
series, that when there is some really notable truth that comes out
in one of the programs, it appears near the end, after going 30+
minutes of no particular direction, which one can get by with in a
podcast. On this, Wayne retells a conversation he had with a woman
who came to faith in Jesus later in life, and asks a question about a
certain (unnamed, as almost all would fit the situation)
televangelist. Wayne tells that he deflected the question back to
her, to which she replied that he seemed (after 5 minutes) arrogant.
To me, that clicked. I've been trying
to put a finger on what it is among, not just radio and TV Christian
speaking personalities, but also the huge amount of institutional
church pastors. I will be kind enough to not specifically charge the
persons with arrogance, although assuredly in some cases it must fit,
but the system, albeit unintentionally breeds arrogance, in the sense
that the idea that one person who, according to his/her position, is
largely disconnected from whatever our “real world” is, has all
the edifying, and the large number of other believers who do live and
work in the largely unbelieving world have none of the answers,
should reasonably come across as absurd.
Now, I recognize that in a large number of cases called
denominational churches, such as the one I went to when I was a teen,
only authorized, approved leaders (i.e., graduated from their
seminary) are allowed to speak to the congregation, following a
tradition that goes back to the 4th century. It is so
ingrained that most, including myself up until a few years ago, and
on both sides of the artificial clergy/ laity divide, just accept it
as status quo. In those churches in which it is not an enforcable
rule from some headquarters, it still happens to varying degrees.
Still, that one or a small number of persons have all the answers,
and have them without even having to ask what questions the others
have, should come across as ridiculous. Now, to go back to the story
Wayne tells, the persons on radio and TV are insulated, usually first
by geography, and when in their general presence by a layer of staff,
from actually dealing with what questions people have, and, of
course, the problem that it takes time for any one of us to truly
trust even fellow believers to give, as Francis Shaeffer wrote
sometime in the 1960's or '70's, “honest answers to honest
questions.”(1)
1) The phrase appears in one of his
books; at the time of this writing, I wasn't in a position to look
up which one or where.
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