Sunday, April 05, 2009
The subtle barrier of "God Talk"
Perhaps I'm sensitive to this because of my background--the first thirty years of my life, I was totally unchurched, agnostic/atheist. As a result, perhaps my ear is better tuned to the culture we're in. But some years after my conversion a perceptive friend asked me what my reaction was to God Talk in church, and it still makes me a bit uncomfortable.
It's natural. Every group develops its own specialized vocabulary. We doctors are famous for producing unintelligible sentences for patients and families. Lawyers are just as bad. Accountants? Mix numbers and letters together! 401-k. 501-c-3. IRS 1099. You name it.
We do it in church, too. Sixty years ago in an essay to the Anglican Priesthood, CS Lewis wrote about the problem in terms that sound very familiar today. It's Essay 10, Chapter 10, Christian Apologetics, in the book God in the Dock. Here are some examples from 1945:
Creature. Means a brute or beast to the Modern, NOT a "created being."
Atonement. Not used by Moderns.
Charity. Means giving money or goods to others. Does not imply anything about Love or any link to Faith or Hope.
Dogma. Means unproven assertion enforced in an arrogant manner, not "truth."
Morality. Simply means "chastity" (or actually, boring lack of fun.) Usually associated with "sexual inhibition." Has lost
any implication of "doing what is right."
Last week we had Walt Larimore and Bill Peel deliver "The Saline Solution" to a group of docs, allied health, students, etc. One of the pages in the book talked about Red Flags that kill discussions of faith. Do any of these sound familiar to you? (I plead guilty to some of them...)
It's a proven fact that...
That's just the way it is...
There's no question that...
The Bible says...
You're not serious?
All of us need to relearn to continue conversations, to extend them. Did we not have training in this in school? It is disrespectful to lecture another of God's Creatures (see above.) Ask questions. Laugh. Avoid closing off conversations, avoid the killer phrases. Listen. People these days are fascinated by the spiritual and may be willing to hear your story if delivered gently.
It's natural. Every group develops its own specialized vocabulary. We doctors are famous for producing unintelligible sentences for patients and families. Lawyers are just as bad. Accountants? Mix numbers and letters together! 401-k. 501-c-3. IRS 1099. You name it.
We do it in church, too. Sixty years ago in an essay to the Anglican Priesthood, CS Lewis wrote about the problem in terms that sound very familiar today. It's Essay 10, Chapter 10, Christian Apologetics, in the book God in the Dock. Here are some examples from 1945:
Creature. Means a brute or beast to the Modern, NOT a "created being."
Atonement. Not used by Moderns.
Charity. Means giving money or goods to others. Does not imply anything about Love or any link to Faith or Hope.
Dogma. Means unproven assertion enforced in an arrogant manner, not "truth."
Morality. Simply means "chastity" (or actually, boring lack of fun.) Usually associated with "sexual inhibition." Has lost
any implication of "doing what is right."
Last week we had Walt Larimore and Bill Peel deliver "The Saline Solution" to a group of docs, allied health, students, etc. One of the pages in the book talked about Red Flags that kill discussions of faith. Do any of these sound familiar to you? (I plead guilty to some of them...)
It's a proven fact that...
That's just the way it is...
There's no question that...
The Bible says...
You're not serious?
All of us need to relearn to continue conversations, to extend them. Did we not have training in this in school? It is disrespectful to lecture another of God's Creatures (see above.) Ask questions. Laugh. Avoid closing off conversations, avoid the killer phrases. Listen. People these days are fascinated by the spiritual and may be willing to hear your story if delivered gently.
