Brian McLaren and A New Kind of Christianity

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This past year was a sort of “spiritual roller coaster” for me. I entered 2011 in a spiritual funk. I ended the year with renewed passion for ministry and hope for our faith. The difference for me was the writings of Brian McLaren.

For a long time I had been dissatisfied with interpretations of Scripture that make Christianity look judgmental, mean-spirited, and anti-intellectual. In particular, I was angry and discouraged about the way that Christianity was being portrayed in the news. You might recall that Harold Camping was getting lots of attention with his prediction that the rapture would happen on May 21, 2011 followed six months later by the end of the world. His description of these events made us Christians seem at the same time harsh and silly.

In the midst of my malaise my brother, Dayton, a pastor in California, suggested that I read Brian McLaren. The first of his books I read was "A New Kind of Christianity, Ten Questions that Are Transforming the Faith." In it McLaren describes his ten-year struggle between his sense that there was “something real” in the Christian faith while he also sensed “something wrong.” He put into words what I had been feeling for a long time. McLaren’s reexamination and critique of what has been taken for granted by many is well-researched and solidly grounded in scripture.

First McLaren asks, “What Is the Overarching Story Line of the Bible?”  He describes the standard answer as a "six line narrative."  (See image at right.)  This narrative begins with the perfection of the Garden of Eden. Next it descends by The Fall to a "trough of living in condemnation."  Then the narrative splits with one line (Salvation) ascending to the Heaven line while another line descends to Hell/Damnation.  This story line condemns the vast majority of people to what McLaren calls "eternal conscious torment."  For me this is not good news.

Then McLaren offers an alternative.  This narrative is three-dimensional instead of linear.  It has God's creative activity as one axis and God's redemptive/liberating activity as the second axis.  The final, third axis is the "peaceable kingdom" of God, described by the prophets Isaiah, Joel, Hosea and Micah, a realm of "blessing, justice, and the shalom of God."  (See the image at left.) This narrative is open and filled with possibilities as God's on-going creative, liberative power enables us, as ambassadors of God's love, to work together with God for a better future.  With this narrative we can really pray the Lord's Prayer like we mean it! Yes, God! Your kingdom come! Yes, God! Your will be done!

This is a gospel that excites me and that I can preach with enthusiasm and passion.  This is a gospel that truly is good news!

Phil Sloat is pastor of Decatur and Tekamah UMCs.