Time for a Change

          As I sat reading the powerful and moving words of Martin Luther King in his "Letter from Birmingham Jail," there were dozens upon dozens of quotes that jumped out at me. Some brought me encouragement, some brought me hope, some brought me absolute grief. I could have easily chose one of those, but I thought, “Nah.” Instead, I went with a rather obscure quote, a quote that many readers would pass over and dismiss without a second thought – and rightly so. It is plain. It’s nothing extraordinary. It’s not a quote of King’s that one looks at and says, “Wow, that is one for the record books.” Perhaps that’s why I love it. I can relate to it. I can feel what he is feeling. I can taste his disappointment. Here it is: “…I must honestly reiterate that I have been disappointed with the church. I do not say this as one of those negative critics who can always find something wrong with the church.” 

Dr. King, I agree completely.

        Now although a bit unorthodox, I am going to begin by speaking about the second half of his quote. I want to make it clear that I am not some incessant critic of the Christian church. Actually, I am an active and happy member of this church. I have such a huge passion for Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, and I would be lying if I said that it wasn’t a blessing to have a church home that allows me to enter an environment where everyone has this same conviction. Plus, the Christian church consistently does tremendous and often time-consuming work for people who are in need. There are countless outreach missions, soup kitchens, fundraisers, and mission trips to distant third world countries. Clearly, the church does not sit back and bask in its own glory.

        However, I do believe that the church often becomes wrapped up in its own agenda. At the time of King, the churches were too concerned about losing a large portion of their white members to stand up for the rights of a mistreated and broken group of people, a group ripped to pieces each day due to the color of their skin. While today this is not really the case, the church still manages to turn potential believers away, and it makes me furious. The other day in Ethics class, we were talking about excommunication from the church and what causes there may be for this. The examples given were of an unmarried couple who was living together and someone who was homosexual. Many denominations in the Christian church see it as their job to remove these members from the congregation, as though they’re protecting their other members from some sort of infectious disease. Try as I might, I cannot for the life of me make sense of this logic. Is this not the exact opposite of what Jesus Christ would have done? He hung out with tax collectors and prostitutes and thieves and traitors. So by calling Christ their example and then turning “sinners” away, the church appears to be nothing but a bunch of hypocrites, a bunch of self-righteous judges. And it’s sad. It’s sad because the message of Christianity is an astounding one of incomparable hope, and we’re turning people off. We’re pointing fingers instead of pointing out the way. We’re calling names instead of calling to Christ. We’re making people feel like outsiders instead of making people feel welcome. We’re emphasizing the Law instead of emphasizing the Gospel. And it has got to stop.

       I may be disappointed in the church – myself included in this church – but in the same breath, I must say that I am a firm believer that change is possible. Heck, change is pivotal. Though the times have changed a great deal since King’s quote, the message is still applicable. It is time for a change, a revolution. Swallow the selfish pride and move forward in unwavering love.

Love for all.