Christianity is under attack! Danger! Danger!

Too often folks who purport to speak for the whole of the Church decide to point the finger at all the alleged external dangers to our faith.

NBC aired an offensive parody movie trailer about Jesus coming back from the dead – out for vengeance.  
Christianity is under attack!
Spencer Gifts is selling ‘Fifty Shades of Grey” themed merchandise in their stores.
Christianity is under attack!
Health insurance companies will be forced to give women access to birth control medication.
Christianity is under attack!

Don’t stay silent while the networks, retail operations, and the government attack our faith and values!

If we don’t protest.  Our faith will wither up and die!

Malarkey.

• Many Christians have a sense of humor – and don’t see humor, even biting and offensive humor, as an affront to their faith.
• Many Christians have read and really like the Fifty Shades trilogy.
• Many Christians use and support the use of birth control.

Let me be even more cynical.

The fake danger campaigns aren’t about saving Christianity.  They’re about raising money.  They’re also about trying to gain more power.

Perceived danger campaigns are based on scare tactics and fear. There’s no real danger prior to the campaign.  But in the campaigns themselves, there is danger present.  Perceived danger campaigns threaten both the well-being of the Church as well as others’ ability to see the Church as a genuinely welcoming community of Jesus’ Love.

In this week’s Bible reading from Luke 13:31-35, Herod was out to kill Jesus.

That was real danger. It wasn't manufactured. 

There is a real danger to the Church today. But it's not from the kinds of places from the beginning of this post. It comes from within. Folks fight with folks from other denominations about who does it right. We argue with one another about doctrine and we forget to welcome people from north and south and east and west. We forget that the little chicks,  the ones Jesus talked about in this week's reading, and who represent the marginalized and vulnerable members of society like the widow, the orphan, and the stranger. Any who are among the excluded must be welcomed and valued in our church communities.

Make that your action alert item -