Cowardly Pastors

A bit of a storm has been raised by some comments, apparently made, by Mark Driscoll from Marrs Hill Church in Seattle. I say apparently because I did not hear the original interview and can't seem to even find it now but I did see his blog which seeks to clarify what he said he said and make some criticism of the manner of the interview.

Now if the interview had been conducted and reported by one of the British "red tops" I would have had definite sympathy but it was in "CHRISTIANITY" hardly a rag looking for mass circulation. CHRISTIANITY, in turn have set out their view, making the point that they saw no disrespect.

Whenever someone makes a criticism which I believe to be way off beam I have a number of responses in my head-one is to think "What a tosser. They have no idea of what things are like here or of my part in them", the second response is to wonder if they have been reported correctly or is this person out to make a name for themselves and the third response is to ponder if there is any truth in what they say, even if they say it in an inappropriate or even unpleasant way.

Mark Driscoll, or Pastor Mark Driscoll as he likes to be referred to as the title gives respect, is a pastor in Seattle in Marrs Hill which began, I understand, with a handful of people in his living room and now has thousands every week in a massive building full of young professionals. He sees his ministry to be to the post-Christian generation who have long since stopped attending any church. he has a radical style but an orthodox theological perspective based on a reformed systematic theology, is against the ordination of women into the preaching ministry but likes to remind the congregation that Hell is a definite reality waiting those who do not follow Christ.

He is well-known for making controversial statements which place him in the spotlight yet he says in his blog that people should not be blogging about Mark Driscoll as Jesus Christ is the centre of the faith. In this most recent interview with a British evangelical journalist he is reported to have called British evangelical pastors, "cowards" who wear dresses and speak to elderly women.

There are so many questions that this raises that I wonder how anyone could say them and then say that people should not be talking about him-they are bound to when he says or is said to have said such things. You might be thinking, as I am, that given his propensity for the outrageous "has he not learnt yet that he needs to be very careful about what he says"?

Here are some of my questions-
1. There is the culture question. By that I mean that the press scene in the USA and in Britain are very different. In this country it is expected that a leader will be challenged whether they be politician, celebrity or churchman (hardly churchwoman in this case as Mark (hope he doesn't mind me calling him that)

2. Why, Mark, do you think in a post-modern society you should expect journalistic to show reverence to you? Forgive me for putting it this way but precisely who do you imagine yourself to be? I know of no evangelical denomination which had a pope who is answerable to no one.

3. I question why we, in Northern Ireland anyway, outsold desire more testosterone leaders in politics or church. We have had them before and still have some who have just led us up dead allies

4. Where does grace appear in the way of the outrageous-if I am throwing out insults and slandering people, and they are within the church-but do you consider these people to be brothers at all?- can I really say, as Mark Driscoll says in this blog that he "loves" the British evangelicals?

5. I know that my parish (that description in itself is outdated but its the short hand that is mostly used)is a place which has suffered from this kind of mentality. The people in this area do not need to be hammered over the head with a sledgehammer of disapproval and be told they are going to hell every day. They know tghat they have sinned, what they need to hear and to know is that there is a way back and that redemption is possible but the gospel has been pushed down their throats with a lump of hypocrisy and a dollop of arrogance. Most ministers (that is the description that we prefer to use but it seems to be impossible for some
Americans to get over what they think is right and consider it might not be right)

6. Is his problem with the Church of England? He talks in his blog about pastors (but surely he means priests and vicars or clergymen/women) wearing dresses and preaching to old women (I guess he is talking about vestments and usually it is the Anglican and Catholics who wear them although it would appear to this Irishman that many American Baptists choirs were these dresses also.

7. Has he allowed the heady atmosphere of the adoring thousands, as we would say, to loss the way of himself? It is very much easier to say the bold things to the crowds than to say the same things when eyeballing the people in a small number or even more so when talking to an individual whom you know and has some level of accountability to

8. Who is Mark Driscoll accountable to? Who actually ordained him? When I was ordained I had to go though theological training, having graduated in another discipline altogether. I had to go through a selection process and then be called by a congregation and was ordained by the local presbytery. I do not, for a single second, believe that we have it all right but I do believe that everyone should have some person or body to whom they are accountable

Then I ask myself, "is there even a smigon of truth in the criticism?"

I think I would be very foolish to say there was no truth at all in what he is reported to have said. It is clear to anyone who has eyes to see that the church in the UK is in real decline and has been for some time. Even in the once religious Ireland we have noticed decline and in the part of the city where I live and work too many people have turned their backs on the church. It is also very clear that we have a shortage of men in our churches but we all know that and we do not need someone from outside making harsh criticisms as there are many faithful men and women seeking to proclaim the name of Christ in some extremely difficult places. In my part of Belfast we have experienced the pain of terrorism up close and personal. we have seen the destruction of communities and the ruination of family life by murder, bomb and hatred. Some people have been standing up for the principles of Christ and His Gospel for 20 and 30 years. I firmly believe that this ministry is not for everyone and I would take some convincing that some of the mega church leaders in America or the UK or Ireland would be able to work in these situations. If they could why, then , have they not given their active support? why have they not come alongside us to get the work done and help us to take the courageous decisions?

Have their been times when I have been a coward? Yes there have or at least there have been times when I have asked myself if I have taken the easy road but there have also been times when i have stood up and taken the hit and done, what I thought, was the right thing to do. I am really tired of getting lectures from people who see their ministry as destruction-I have no need to be told when I am failing-I wake every day with that feeling. What I need is to be told that my brothers and sisters care and are prepared to support me and help me instead of doing, what i consider to be, doing the evil one's work for him.

Is there any truth in this "cowardly" charge? Of course there is. We are ALL weak, damaged human beings who need the grace of God to get us through each day but God has called us to this place at this time and we do not accept that God's blessing is always and only seen in the crowds that flock through our doors. I see no need to elaborate as there are other massive congregations which Mr Driscoll would have little time for. None other than the Apostle Paul said that the "foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom"

When I hear the apparent words (to some extent the actual words matter little as I and others are left feeling the damage is already done)I just feel let down. i have given 25 years of my life to the work of ministry and for several years before that I worked knocking on student's doors asking them if they would like to hear about Jesus Christ. I think that Pastor Mark would have been about 6 when i was doing that! There is nothing wrong with youth, and I could tackle is chronological snobbery but will leave that for another day, but please remember that the church of Christ is made up of all ages, both sexes and the rich and the poor and we work with those who are interested to work with us.regardless of sex, colour or age.

I cannot help but think that a little real contextualisation would have been rewarded. I fear all that teaching in England, Scotland and Ireland, did not include talking with the people of Inner-city, loyalist/nationalist Belfast-we welcome anyone who wants to come and see our situation as both they and us might learn something.

There is a tendency to feel beaten up when people from privileged situations speak critically and I can imagine what Paul was experiencing when he said "we are hard pressed on every side, but not in despair; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed"

We have the word of God, we have the power of His Spirit and we will endeaver to be faithful. Only God can make me a hero and only God will judge whether or not I ever attain that status in any way at any time.

So, for all those who think like Mark Driscoll appears to be thinking; will you stand with us and pray for us and support us in practical ways? Please don't allow your critics to say you are all mouth. What I say will hardly make any impact on the Christian media but what you say will always be picked up and reacted to so will you use your words carefully and use them to heal and restore that the work of God's kingdom can prosper.

New Name

The name of this blog has been changed to "PostNoan". Let me explain why this is so and the significance of the name change. For over six years I have listened to "The Nolan Show" on Radio Ulster. I listened because I wanted to hear what ordinary people were saying about current affairs in Northern Ireland. This show provided a show case for the ordinary person to have their say. I was aware that the presenter had a style which is typically Northern Ireland: we like to insult each other,it's a sign that we like you if we insult you-sometimes he presents a caring face and can even deal with things in a sensitive manner. A few years ago, for example, there was a fire in the town of Omagh in County Tyrone, in which a whole family were killed. This was a situation which really touched him. at one point he issued an invitation to anyone who could tell him where God was in the situation. on the back of that I did write and suggest that I would talk to him, off the air, but the silence was as palatable as the silence he creates when a institution fails to respond to his overtures to make a comment on something they are charged with doing or overlooking.

Over those years I was prepared to overlook the way he treated people at other times and the delight he takes to sneer at Christians or at anyone who might take an alternative view on the Gay debate. But now I am no longer ready to make allowances, now the time has come to withdraw-I have never been a fan and yet my listening will have added to his number of listeners and encouraged him to brag about being the "Biggest Show in The Country". If there are people out there like me, who leave the radio on all the time then they too are not fans even though they are, technically listening. At this time in our history I want someone to help us to create a better society and the questions I want to ask are positive questions. I want us to talk positively about how knowing God informs the way we live without that making us superior or patronising. Most of the time I have ended my listening with great frustration. this show simply gives a platform for complaining and the blame culture and it encourages people to come on to the radio without thinking through what they really want to say and that means some Christians say things that lack wisdom, yet I still need to respect them and not insult them and treat them as fools-there are times when Nolan simple unplugs the people he disagrees with especially when it is dealing with the homosexual issues-while I do not agree with every Christian I will not listen to people who malign and twist their words.

Needs of Ministers/pastors

Recently I received an email from someone who had read my blogger page, www.jackdrennan.blogspot.com where I have sermon notes and some thoughts. Hw wanted to ask the question, "what encourages the minister?" in his/her ministry. That is a good question given that we rarely hear about the good things and the encouraging things in moinistry. Everyone needs those people who ghet alongside to encourage- people like Barnabas who was such a supporter of St Paul. Here are some things which I find encouraging: * those who show themselves to be dependable and faithful * those who demonstrate loyalty * those who can see the big picture and not just their own little corner * those who can add to your work and are not always out to kill and destroy anything which has not originated with themselves * those who share your vision * those who are teachable * those who show that they care about you as a person and they care also for your family and make it quite clear that they do. I think the sumation of all this is that working as a team with a team can only be helpful and encouraging.

Fear of loosing

Do you think it’s true to say that everyone is afraid of something? Is there anything you have realised that you are afraid of? When I was much younger I used to fear my parents would have a fatal accident or I would die of some awful disease. Fear is a God-given part of our make-up which protects us from danger, so we learn not to touch the fire or the electric ring of the cooker. But taken to extremes it makes us paranoid and is only destructive. It can paralyse us into inactivity and make us ultra conservative and cautious. Master Yoda, in the latest Star Wars film, says to Anakin Skywalker, “The fear of losing leads to the dark side”. At the heart of the story Anakin feared loosing his wife in childbirth just as he lost his own mother. He became consumed with protecting her and in his paranoia he became susceptible to the manipulation of the evil chancellor who wanted him to cross the line from light into darkness to further his plan to take over the Republic and become the Emperor. In the end he became the very thing he had dedicated his life to resisting and lost the very person he wanted to save by crossing the line from light to darkness. Fear is a very potent emotion which leads people to do and to act in ways which they would not normally. Fear can lead them to take violent action to defend their community or their home or to exhibit other negative qualities which later they regret. In the heat of emotion they think they are acting for those they love only to find that they too have crossed that line in the sand which makes them part of the problem rather than the solution. The New Testament makes it clear that the way to be free from fear is to trust in Christ. The Apostle Paul says that “nothing separated us from the love of God” and asks: “If God for us, who can be against us?” Who indeed?

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How To Avoid Becoming A Christian!

So you would rather not become a Christian. Well then I have some very important advice to give you. If the rest of the world is anything to go by you will need some very good advice in resisting the power of God. I suppose that is the very place to begin- at the back of all my advice I would say the place to begin is to deny, as strongly as you can the very existence of God-that way he is stripped of all his power and authority. But that is very difficult for a couple of reasons: we live in a God believing, if not God-fearing, society and its hard to swim against the flow the logic and the evidence seems to be too strong- how can you blame God for things if he doesn’t exist in the first place I think we need to be more pragmatic that that- lets begin accepting that some kind of God does exist and loom for ways to ignore him- here are three broad principles: 1. Lesson one is to BECOME VERY RELIGIOUS That may seem an odd way to ignore him but Jesus Christ told the religious leaders of his day that they had never see God, heard God or allowed His word to dwell in their hearts even though they had him before their very eyes- he told the that even though they had all the benefits of being the people of God they had missed him altogether.. I think the best thing is for you to become as religious as is possible- go to all the meetings under the sun Carry out all your religious duties- without much thought and always remember that what is important is that you do what is required- never miss church or reading the bible, stay away from those people who are not religious. Leave your friends and family firmly I second place- or even third. Stick rigidly to the letter of the law and never mind the reason for that law, never mind the spirit of the law. Get to know the slightest minutiae of the law- know all 600 rules about the Sabbath but forget about the importance of people. 2. Lesson two is Don’t even try to understand the bible properly Always take it at face value- forget about the context of the verses in the promise box or on the pictures on your walls-that will only require you to think for yourself. Forget all that and those so-called paradoxes that Christians speak of will confuse you and frustrate you that you will want to give up and go back to your old life. Don’t concern yourself about how all the verses fit in with the rest of the Bible- e.g. The NT says- Love your enemy and the OT says An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. It would also be good to forget about what the Bible really is- it is God’s way of pointing to Jesus Christ Heb 1:2 “…in these last days God has spoken to us by His son…” and John 5:40 “these are the scriptures which testify to me”…. If you could get to the place where you begin to worship the Bible- see the actual words as the word of God it will help. Begin to see that there is only one translation that would also be good. Keeping your eyes on the wood will mean you fail to see the trees-anything to confuse you. 3. Third lesson is to keep looking at other people and NOT JESUS. Let’s face it- it is pretty safe to look to and compare yourself with other people- they are sinners just like you and looking at them means you can blame them for not listing to God. How often have you heard it said of someone – I could never be a Christian if they are all like old Jones down the road? There are many reasons for rejecting Christ if we only ever look at the Christians: There is Mr. A who never tells the truth on the Income Tax form- or so we believe Mrs. B who is among the greatest of gossips in town Mr. X who is plain mean Mr. Y who beats up his wife on Saturday and then goes to church-to be forgiven on Sunday morning. And was it not the Christians who persecuted the Jews and attacked the Muslims in the Crusades? And what about all those pedophile priests? That’s the way to look at God- through the filter of His people- that will keep him at a safe distance. It is fatal to look at Jesus Christ- take a serious look at him and you are well on your way to faith- to giving in to His power. Forget that Mr. C has really changed since he gave way to God and became one of his people. Forget that the local fellowship of believers down the road are helping the poor and the down cast and empowering the people of the community- that is negative thinking and leads to a negative step-BE WARNED. Listen very carefully- 5:36 “…I have a greater witness [than john] – my teaching and my miracles. They have been assigned to me by the Father…” BE WARNED 4. Lesson four is to IGNORE THAT INNER VOICE We call that the voice of conscience and Christians say it is the voice of God. You can’t afford the luxury of listening- it will lead to doubts- so keep busy and never think. If you allow yourself the time to listen and think about it he will draw you to his side and that would be fatal to the person wishing to remain independent of God. You can accept that he exists but that doesn’t mean you have to follow him. Spend your time with the religious people, if you have to- they will leave you alone to your own devices. You see they are only concerned with the things of today- those things which are here and now- they have no time for this voice of God. Jesus says in v44 If you do all this then you should be safe On the other hand if you want to know God for yourself it will involve every part of you. Jesus says that faith includes: 1. Seeing God 2. Hearing God 3. Allowing His word to dwell in your heart. Jesus did not need any human witnesses but because he wanted them to be saved the destruction of sin he did appeal to both John the Baptist and Moses. In arguing the Hebrew way he was giving them three witnesses and they rejected all three. They thought of themselves as a privileged people who had the scriptures and spent their lives on studying them but they missed the point- they were so busy looking at the jot and titles of the law that they missed the spirit of the law and the whole point- the whole point was that they pointed, like signposts, to Jesus Christ, God’s messiah. Paul had the same background as they had yet he came to faith- Phil 3:5 “If anyone thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh I have more: circumcised on the 8th day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legal righteousness, faultless.” Presbyterians have a great spiritual heritage also- with the right commitment to the Bible but we do not worship the bible, we allow it to point us to Jesus. Its too bad when people reject what they think is the truth when, in fact, it is a parody of the truth- they reject Christianity because they think it is the same as religion when it is nothing of the kind- religion is all about rules and regulations, Christianity is about a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Jesus tells these religious leaders that it was his relationship with his father which empowered his work and that is the key for us also. Knowing Jesus Christ is the key and that is more interesting and more fulfilling than any religious practice. If you want to be left alone: Stay away from Christ Stay away from the Bible Stay away from the still small voice Jesus Himself says- “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest”

Human Beings-who needs them??

Human Beings? Who needs them?

955 dead; 2,436 injured; 56,885 houses destroyed!

It all happened as the result of a couple of air raids by Hitler’s Luftwaffe in 1941. Crumlin road Presbyterian Church http://presbyterianireland.org/congregations/crumlinroad.htmlwas one of a number of building destroyed in North Belfast. At a time when the collective memory is taken back to VE and VJ Day we are reminded of the pain caused by National Socialism but carried out by ordinary men and women just like us.

On the other hand this time of extreme violence was a time for heroes and community spirit. There was the story of Lance Corporal Gordon Cowell of the 5th Royal West Kent Regiment. On the 5th August 1941 he, along with Sergeant William Chick rescued the pilot of a spitfire which had crash landed in minefield.
Without any regard for themselves they headed towards the minefield. People were standing by the railings, shouting, 'Don't go in there, you'll get blown up,' but the only thought they had was to reach the stricken pilot and get him out. They reached the smouldering plane, and after a struggle with the pilot's straps, got him out of the cockpit. The soldiers could see his leg was badly injured. They carried him back over the minefield and when they got back to the railings, the Spitfire blew up. Each one of us is capable of being heroes one day and villains the next

In a recent edition of the London Times Dr Jonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi in the UK, said that

“God does not want us to cease to be human, for if He did, He would not have created us”

Jesus is the complete man, the second Adam who was at peace with His heavenly father and with men. Becoming a better human being means becoming more like Jesus.

Human beings? Who needs them? We do, when they are like Christ. After all Jesus was a man. Hitler destroyed our church and all our records and he butchered many millions of people but he did not, he could not, destroy the work of Jesus Christ.

“Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin, another person did it right and got us out of it”