Breaking the mould

There are many schools of thought when it comes to the question of how best to communicate what it means to be a follower of Jesus. The one thing everyone agrees on is that at the end of the day, our activities should leave people feeling more inclined to explore further, not less!

I am amazed, and frankly depressed sometimes, at how often we generate precisely the wrong response by the way we relate to people, and, to each other.

Ekklesia this week have put it like this: "Church arguments miss the global challenge, says think tank".

Last week I was at a conference where Brian McLaren spoke similarly about how the polemic debates of our day, including debates between Christians, echo the setting of Jesus' day. The Roman Empire had its dominant narrative, and there were various popular counter-narratives from the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, Zealots and others. But did Jesus take sides?

Or was there something about the way Jesus acted and spoke that made people stop and think; called them to think differently, more deeply. As millions watch on over the coming days and weeks as the Anglican Communion struggles with complex issues, will the discussions be characterised by humility? And shot through with a unique, compelling love?

And will people be able to relate any of what is said to the big issues they face in their lives? As Brian McLaren says, we might be in danger of specialising in dealing with "spiritual" needs and personal "holiness", to the exclusion of social and physical needs; in danger of focusing on "me and my eternal destiny" and fail to address the dominant societal and global realities of our lifetimes: systemic injustice, poverty, and dysfunction.

Shouldn't a message purporting to be the best news in the world be doing better than this?