Inside the malls of America, we can find contemporary culture defined. You can choose to be cool. You can choose to be Republican. You can choose to be wild. You can choose to be a Democrat. You can choose to be subdued. You can choose to be conservative. You can choose to be sexy. You can choose to be gothic. You can choose to be s8rboi (or girl). You can choose to be bold. You can choose to be an iZod or Docker poster child, and on and on I could obviously go. We become billboards for the fashion world and we make a statement, or better said - we define ourselves with our garment choices. There are labels on our all of our clothes. You cannot find a single piece of clothing in your closet that does not have a label, unless you made it yourself! You are labeled! You wear identity garments! This is where malls in America give us the option of choosing a pre-set group of clothing, whereby we can choose our identity. This identity that we will choose will be a life-style choice that we make.
Steve Taylor comments that . . . “you pick and mix your lifestyle” at the mall. He continues on and points out that the “selection is not as individual as it sounds. The choices are still pre-selected by powers outside of our control.” In the christian organizational world, we have identity garments as well. The CMA is wonderfully relaxed about an actual dress code (Thank you Jesus!) but we have other identifiers. But in the world that I grew up in as a kid, a pastor could never, ever, ever wear shorts for instance. He could not preach without a tie (do I even own a tie?). In the world I grew up in, we added to the bible all the time. Communion for instance. We decided that Jesus turned the water into grape juice and that now we were supposed to use grape juice in communion. No serious biblical scholar in the world holds that position, but I’ll be a monkey’s uncle (is that too evolutionary for you?) if we don’t all use grape juice in communion! (Only in North America I think . . . here we use wine, which of course we aren’t suppose to drink) What is wrong with us? Why has the temperance movement of the early 1800’s still having such an influence in our churches today? I think it simply became one of the identity garments for religious folks. It has no biblical basis. You think I am having a fantasy about religious garments? Oh no, my African-born wife will tell you that it is not permissible for an African pastor to preach without a suit! (Hopefully this is changing since my wife was a kid there). And we have our religious identity garments in the CMA too.
All of this brought me around to the place where I am doing some soul searching and trying to see which identity garments I am wearing; clothes or religiosity. Where I have added to the scriptures in my life? Why do denominations have rules about holiness? Doesn’t making a rule, automatically nullify any possible element of holiness about the proposed action or behavior? Isn’t holiness something that springs from the heart, not a set of things I don’t do? (1 Samuel 16:7?) It seems to me if we are legislating holiness (which then could only be the appearance of holiness), then we surely must have an adolescent clergy. Because no one frequents the malls and purchases their identity garments more than teens.
Steve Taylor comments that . . . “you pick and mix your lifestyle” at the mall. He continues on and points out that the “selection is not as individual as it sounds. The choices are still pre-selected by powers outside of our control.” In the christian organizational world, we have identity garments as well. The CMA is wonderfully relaxed about an actual dress code (Thank you Jesus!) but we have other identifiers. But in the world that I grew up in as a kid, a pastor could never, ever, ever wear shorts for instance. He could not preach without a tie (do I even own a tie?). In the world I grew up in, we added to the bible all the time. Communion for instance. We decided that Jesus turned the water into grape juice and that now we were supposed to use grape juice in communion. No serious biblical scholar in the world holds that position, but I’ll be a monkey’s uncle (is that too evolutionary for you?) if we don’t all use grape juice in communion! (Only in North America I think . . . here we use wine, which of course we aren’t suppose to drink) What is wrong with us? Why has the temperance movement of the early 1800’s still having such an influence in our churches today? I think it simply became one of the identity garments for religious folks. It has no biblical basis. You think I am having a fantasy about religious garments? Oh no, my African-born wife will tell you that it is not permissible for an African pastor to preach without a suit! (Hopefully this is changing since my wife was a kid there). And we have our religious identity garments in the CMA too.
All of this brought me around to the place where I am doing some soul searching and trying to see which identity garments I am wearing; clothes or religiosity. Where I have added to the scriptures in my life? Why do denominations have rules about holiness? Doesn’t making a rule, automatically nullify any possible element of holiness about the proposed action or behavior? Isn’t holiness something that springs from the heart, not a set of things I don’t do? (1 Samuel 16:7?) It seems to me if we are legislating holiness (which then could only be the appearance of holiness), then we surely must have an adolescent clergy. Because no one frequents the malls and purchases their identity garments more than teens.
2 comments:
How right you are! Another excellent post. Thanks for having the courage to challenge us to remove our religious garments and stop legislating holiness. Sometimes it seems like the church is saying that Jesus wasn't holy enough--we have to raise the standard even above His. Talk about pressure!
I've told my younger daughter over and over that the way a person chooses to present themselves outwardly can say everything about them or nothing. It is extremely unfortunate from my book that she overheard a Christian parent of a girlfriend whose Sweet Sixteen party she attended yell at her daughter for inviting "Goth" people. My daughter is one of the most loving and genuine people I know, a friend anyone would be lucky to have.
I had to restrain myself from wanting to punch this mother in the face, yet I realize that it took raising children with their own very unique identities to help me be less judgemental, and I'm guilty of having my hackles raised for the same reason. But here's a twist-being prejudice against people who like ties and suits. It goes all directions, and the heart is always the heart of the matter.
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