Consumer Christianity
God Bless America.
If Obama can figure out that health care situation, I will renounce my citizenship immediately. Until then, I will play it safe and remain in Canada while working on obtaining dual citizenship. But I will always save space in my heart for the US of A.
If you have ever visited One Nation Under God, you may have noticed something I picked up on almost immediately. There is no other country in the world that can compare to its selection and variety (of food chains).
In ‘N Out Burger. California Pizza Kitchen. Hardee’s. Johnny Rocket’s. All of these and more are noticeably absent in the True North Strong and Free. Even those that we do have are significantly inferior in comparison to their American counterparts.
If nothing else, America can pride itself on its abundance of choice.
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I spend a lot of time on the internet. Probably too much.
Nothing sinister, but there is a lot of interesting stuff I check out online. The other day I ended up looking at some church websites. I started locally, with my home church, and moved onto churches throughout the area and the world. I searched a small church in Northern Ontario, an emerging church in Seattle, and a mega church in Texas.
It felt wrong.
Not at the time, which may or may not mean something, but it felt wrong afterwards when I was thinking about it. And here’s why.
We live in a world of unparalleled choice, selection, and variety. Nothing evidences this more than the Internet. You really can find anything on there. Hugely successful companies have thrived on this principle. Personally, I have nothing wrong with this trend. In fact, I am all for it. More choice for the consumer ultimately makes shopping much better.
But what happens when we apply this principle to the Church?
I ended up looking at the websites of dozens of churches, from various denominations, and from all around the world. Congregation sizes varied, worship styles were different, and overall the churches were very diverse. As I was checking out the sites, I found myself rating the churches. It was already considered successful if I had already heard of it before seeing the website. Points were added for number of services, facility capacity, and overall size of congregation. The size of the pastoral team was also a big factor, with an advantage being given to those with a larger staff. Programs were also huge indicator, with an emphasis placed on student-oriented ministries. By the end of my ‘research,’ I was confident that I could accurately assess the status of each church. If I had to, I could probably create a ‘ranking’ of the churches. All of this from a couple of websites.[1]
I believe that Christians, myself included, have started to view Church as a product. We shop around, find what we are looking for, and pick up a copy. If it doesn’t meet our needs, we return it or exchange it for something new. After a little while, we upgrade our purchase church for a better model. Meanwhile companies churches are constantly trying to compete in order to stay profitable successful.
How did we get to this point?
I think the West suffers from what I call “Consumer Christianity.”
It makes sense.
Consumerism is a defining feature of Western culture. Inevitably, it also influences the Western Church. In America, the abundance of food chains testifies to this consumer-driven society. For a long time, nothing was more “American,” than a milkshake, fries, and a cheeseburger. But now, the popularity ratings for fast food are somewhere between cancer and water boarding. Fast food is being publically condemned by Oprah, Obama, and everyone in between. In the US, food is easily accessible. Prices are cheap and portions are large. Meanwhile, the quality and nutritional value of food has diminished. And all the while, Americans are getting fatter.
Maybe the Western Church has gotten fat too.
In the West, it is easy for us to attend church. Freedom of religion grants us a secure and safe environment to worship freely. We will march on the White House when our definition of marriage is threatened, when our tax breaks are being cut, or when we can no longer pray in our schools. I can’t imagine what would happen if we risked jail or death for simply owning a bible.[2] Being a Christian in the West is a real bargain compared to the cost of living your faith elsewhere. But the best deal belongs to our western churches. State of the art facilities, cutting edge music, modern technology, and contemporary cultural “techniques,” all contribute to a model of church that is easily repackaged and duplicated.[3] Meanwhile, the quality and value of my church experience is steadily diminishing. The preaching is superfluous, the teaching is nearly extinct, and the worship is merely a manufactured emotion.[4] And all the while, the Western Church is becoming ineffective and inconsequential. In fact, I would not take much for me to label the Western Church as unhealthy.
But then, what does a healthy Church look like?
As always,
You tell me.
[Chapters One and Six Coming Soon]
An admittedly uneducated postscript
It should come as no surprise that obesity is attributed to a sedentary lifestyle as much as an unhealthy diet. There is no substitute for exercise in the quest for a healthy life.
Christ once asked his disciplines to pick up a cross and follow Him.[5] If we can’t get our “diet” right, maybe a good place to start would be with the rigorous demand of carrying a cross around. A little exercise is good for the soul.
[1] My first stop at every website was the section titled “What we believe” or something similar, but a discussion on theological differences/the fragmentation of the evangelical church is perhaps best saved for another time.
[2] At this point I would like to point out that the “fastest growing” Churches in the world are not in the West.
[3] A friend of mine, who possesses zero ministerial training recently proclaimed that he could start a church today, and in less than 4 years he would have over 1000 members. The sad thing is that his claim might have some merit.
[4] As always, I exaggerate to make a point. But the exaggeration might not be as stretched as you might hope.
[5] Matthew 16:24