The December 3rd issue of Time contains a story that caught my attention. It is located the religion section and titled “Sunday School for Atheists”. The article begins by outlining some perceived advantages for non believing people on Sunday morning, writing about how they were making brunch, shuttling around kids to soccer games, running errands, or the ultimate, sleeping in! It then asked the question, without religion, is there a need for church?
The answer seems to be maybe. Some nonbelievers are beginning to think they might need something for their children. The article reveals how Atheist parents are beginning to realize that co-workers or friends have church groups to help teach their children values as well as provide support. Slowly, groups are forming and meeting on a regular basis for atheist Sunday school. A profiled Sunday family program in Palo Alto, California, uses music, art and discussion to encourage personal expression, intellectual curiosity and collaboration. Rather than a Bible story, the group read Stone Soup, a book about a traveler who feeds a village by making a stew using one ingredient from each home. Older children gather around a conversation centered on the role persuasion plays in decision-making.
Time reports, “it is estimated that 14% of Americans profess to have no religion, and among 18-to-25 year olds the percentage increases to 20%. Atheist parents want an environment where their children can learn that it is ok to not believe in God and gives parents a place to reinforce the morals and values they want their children to have.” Yet, interestingly, they are using a format modeled by the Christian church to accomplish this.
We are embarking on some great Solomon’s Porch type discussions in our community about faith, life and how faith and life connect in places outside our worship spaces. In this instance, how does God call us, as people of faith, to respond to groups like this one being formed in our communities? Would God want us to condemn them for meeting in a perceived Christian way and calling it something else? Would God want us to applaud the teaching of ethics and values, whether or not they are labeled Christian? Would God want us to shun them if we saw them meeting? Would God be in favor of one good “We told you so”? As Christians, should we be determined, or some would say arrogant enough in our faith to dismiss the thought that God is present in meetings such as the one described, without limitation? Or, would God, who sees all people as His children, call us to be in conversation with people who are nonbelievers? Would God call us to have honest dialogue, respecting each others beliefs, yet pointing out what we have in common and acknowledging what separates us? Would God want us to be on a journey together, challenging each other and discovering though these discussions ways to strengthen our faith as we explain it to others? Let me know what do you think? This topic will be the basis of our next Solomon’s Porch coffee house meeting at First Cup this Thursday from 7-8 pm.
I pray for each of the readers of this blog on Friday mornings. How can I pray for you this week?
PB
Attention I-pod users:
Our weekly message podcast is now available on I-tunes. Open your I-tunes, search St. John’s Lutheran Church Blogcast and sign up. It is free! If you sign up, each week our podcast will download directly into your I-pod when you sink it to your PC.
Green Tip of the week from Ideal Bite:Ready to hang your holiday lights? Aren't you just dying to know how to be more green this Christmas season? Easy: LED holiday lights. LED stands for light-emitting diode - a heavenly little bit of technology that lights things up using very little energy.
The Benefits
· Watching energy bills flatline. LED bulbs use 90% less electricity than traditional holiday bulbs.
· Killing off holiday hassle. With their 20-year lifetimes, you don't have to replace LED light-strings as often as conventional ones.
· More cash on the other side. Burning 10 strands of lights with 100 lights per strand, eight hours per day for a month costs $175 for incandescent bulbs vs. about $1 for LED mini-bulbs.
· Seeing the light, not heating it. Incandescent lights give off as much as 90% of their energy as heat, leading to fire concerns. LEDs barely warm up.
Prayer Points
-for all those who do not believe in God, that we could find a way to be in productive dialogue.
-for all those who suffer from depression
-for those who serve in our local police, fire and rescue stations
Date Book
Thursday, November 29th Solomon’s Porch Discussions at First Cup Coffee House 7-8 pm
Sunday, December 2nd Faith in Film Night featuring The Nativity Story followed by the short film Resisting the Occupation. 6-8:30 pm
Tuesday, December 11th at St. John’s “Little Christmas” concert and Silent Auction beginning at 6:30 pm.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I'm following the blog reactions to this story with great interest, and yours is the first Christian blog I've seen that has raised the "common ground" question. It is also the first I've seen that has not responded to the story with the kind of jeering mockery that atheists are so often accused of.
Thank you for raising such thoughtful questions. It makes me want to return the favor.
Dale McGowan
Editor/co-author, Parenting Beyond Belief: On Raising Ethical, Caring Kids Without Religion
Dale:
I appreciate your comments and thank you for them. As with most challenging issues, I am convinced that if we begin with mutual respect, process how we share common thought and move toward where we differ in ideology the discussion could be informative, valuable and aid in building connections with people who will challenge/center our own thoughts and make us understand/appreciate why we believe what we do in a deeper way. I am confident this type of discussion is what God is calling people to engage in. I look forward to continued dialogue on this topic. Discussions about issues like this one are so important and could serve as reference points for folks who do not believe the dialogue could/should happen.
Peace
Bob
I read the article in Time with interest when it came out. I also follow the subject with our close friends, who are professed athesists. What I find most interesting is that every atheist I have met has their own faith, whether they choose to label their faith with religious terminology or not. I also find that our atheist friends are always glad to hear about our church, not so much about God, but about the community which surrounds the church. As these discussions continue, I find there is much common ground among almost every religion and all persons regardless of religious (or non-religious) preference have core beleifs which are similar to religious beliefs. I would hope that through this type of discussion there is better understanding of similarity rather than difference.
This is a great topic to talk about. I was talking with a guy this past Sunday after worship about a similar thought. A video about this very topic was shared at our worship on Sunday where a guy named Larry who claimed to be an agnostic, but believed the church played a vital role in helping raise kids to live a valued and morale life. The pastor talked about how can we be engaged in the lives of people who have these kinds of beliefs and still be a light of Christ.
Questions like; as Christians are we to make judgments and keep them away from "our values" or is there a way to engage in dialog that honors 'Christian values"? A question I raised; are they really "Christian values" in the first place? It is my understanding that there are similar values in many religious forms. These understandings go way back and many of these were adapted by the early Hebrew people from where Christians get them from in the first place.
So... Bob your point is a good one. I'm of the mind to say, "who's to say how God is working in the world." Perhaps, it would be better if Christians did not claim to hold the key to what is moral and valued!
First of all, let me say that I wish I could be at the coffee house for this discussion. Being part of this discussion and listening to the wisdom from everyone's perspectives would be a wonderful experience.
I believe that we all have a strong sense to belong and try to fulfill that according to our belief system. So, in that regard, good for them. To me, it seems as if they are trying to do what is best for their children. They are trying to be the best parents they are capable of being. They are trying to broaden their children's horizons. If I read the article correctly, they are exposing their children to other religious belief systems. That can only be a good thing considering that many wars are begun due to religious beliefs.
To me, God is everywhere and in everything we do and experience. Whether we are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, etc... a greater being is there and accepting of who we are.
There is a big difference between tolerance and acceptance. Sometimes, we tolerate others for their differences. I think, rather, we need to accept others for who they are and meet at that common ground.
Thanks Pastor Bob. Peace.
Post a Comment