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Roger Wolsey February 10, 2022Wait. Haven’t we seen this before? There are certain dynamics taking place today that may remind us of dynamics that took place early in the last century. I suggest that pondering such similarities is not only warranted - but needed. Let’s begin by defining some terms. Progressive Christianity is the post modern influenced evolution of historic mainline Protestant liberal Christianity (and an heir to the Social Gospel movement). Liberal Christianity was a theological response to modernity – to the modern era, especially in light of Darwin’s theory of the evolution of the species, i.e., embracing science. Fundamentalism, of course, was the other modern era response to modernity – and especially Darwin; i.e., rejecting science. Liberal Christianity held a high view of humanity and believed that humans could effectively manifest and live-out Jesus’ prayer for God’s Kingdom to come “on earth as it is in heaven.” Liberal Christianity was wedded to the Social Gospel movement and many needed reforms to labor conditions in the West were implemented (e.g., promoting unionizing of workers, worker safety, worker rights, the creation of the 40-hour work week, etc.). New laws were also put into place to put an end to the “robber baron” era of corporate fat cats exploiting the masses and monopolizing the financial sector and the economy. Real progress took place and there was a high spirit of optimism for humanity and the world. ….But then…. the world was rocked by the truly senseless and utterly barbaric World War I – a war in which 10 million soldiers were cruelly killed – often in trenches via caustic mustard gas; and 10 million civilians were also killed. And many more people survived suffering profound trauma. In the last year of that that four-year war, the world was also hit by a devastating influenza – the so-called “Spanish” flu which wiped out an estimated 50 million people across the globe. That pandemic was perceived by some as God’s wrath against sinful humanity. Soon after that war, a marked rise in zealous nationalism arose including a growing populist trend toward favoring authoritarian strong-man leaders – culminating in Hitler, his genocides, and yet another world war. The former spirit of optimism was challenged, and Christianity experienced a theological crisis. A response to this intellectual crisis arose and has since been referred to as “Neo-Orthodoxy.” Prominent figures in this movement included Karl Barth and Reinhold Niebuhr. Key teachings of this movement included: a reduced estimation of the essential goodness of humanity; increased emphasis on original sin, human sinfulness, and a need for Divine intervention to properly address this problem of sin – i.e., Jesus’ death on the cross and the exclusivity of Christianity as the vessel of salvation in the world. Moreover, God was presented as “wholly other” from humans. A case could be made that these teachings fostered a renewal of Calvinism (humans viewed as utterly depraved) and Gnosticism (enfleshed humans viewed as the opposite of the transcendent glory of the Spirit Divine which loathes the worldly realm). The wake of that movement lingers in contemporary evangelicalism which would have Christians be focused more on believing the right things in order to go to heaven (“the better place”) when we die, rather than be focused on, or even concerned about, temporal matters on the earth in the here and now. Progressive Christianity has been around for roughly 30 years and it shares the high regard of humans and our essential goodness. Most progressive Christians either reject the doctrine of original sin, and the substitutionary theory of the atonement – or hold that belief in, and subscribing to, those things isn’t required for Christianity. Many progressive Christians instead believe in original blessing and embrace the moral example theory of the atonement. We embrace the way, teachings, and example of Jesus as our way of experiencing salvation – understood as wholeness, well-being, and healing – far more than understood as the rectification of “the sin problem.” Progressive Christians often do speak of sin, but the focus tends to be far more on systemic sins such as racism, homophobia, misogyny, financial exploitation, and poor stewardship of planet earth. Many progressive Christians also value mysticism and spiritual practices which help us to experience the Divine within us. Many of us thus embrace panentheism and reject notions of God as “wholly other.” Finally, progressive Christians don’t believe that Christianity has a monopoly on God or salvation. We honor and celebrate other religions as valid and effective vessels of God’s love. …. But then… the world was hit by: 20 years of warfare between the West and fundamentalist Islamist terrorists (or put another way, 20 years of the U.S. seeking to maintain superpower status and to maintain its effective empire); the rise of Trumpism - renewed populist movements around the globe whereby many people are rejecting the “spirit of hope” Obama sought to convey – and instead favoring authoritarian strong-man leadership and rejecting experts and scientists. There is a collective denial about the reality and gravity of human aggravated global warming and there is a similar collective denial about the reality and seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic – which has killed nearly 6 million people so far. Déjà vu. What I’m suggesting is that there are certain dynamics in our contemporary world at the start of this new century that are in some ways reminiscent of dynamics at the start of the last one. I’m also suggesting that there is a theological crisis at hand – and there are likely to be some similar responses to it. One possible response is a rejection of progressive Christianity and the rise of a new neo-orthodoxy, perhaps in the form of the hyper Calvinist, macho theology of Mark Driscoll, et al. Another response might be a call for a “course correction” within progressive Christianity to help it better align with facts on the ground - at least half of the public don’t care if people die of COVID (or suffer handicapping long-term conditions if they do survive it; and we clearly aren’t doing anything significant to combat or mitigate Climate Change. Perhaps we’d do well to lower our expectations of what it means to “be our brother’s keepers” and to “love our neighbors.” Perhaps we’d experience less cognitive dissonance and inner turmoil if we simply embrace compassion fatigue and give our blessings to the mess of a status quo and “go along to get along.” Perhaps we should say, “It’s God’s will that people are failing to do right be each other and the planet. And “only God” can save us – and only if ‘He’ wants to.” And still another response might be a redoubling of our efforts to deepen into the values and perspectives of progressive Christianity – boldly going against the grain and swimming against the current currents. I don’t have “the” answer here, though I happen to lean toward the aforementioned “redoubling” option. What I feel called to do is to lift-up the parallels of our present socio-political climate and point out the need for intentional, mindful, and prayerful response by those of us who embrace progressive Christianity. I’d like to invite the readers of this forum to please weigh in with your thoughts about all of this. We need as many caring minds addressing this as possible. What do you make of these apparent similarities? How do you think progressive Christians might best respond? Yours in hope, optimism, and non-exclusive, inter-faith mystic connection to each other and the Divine,Rev. Roger Wolsey Read online here About the Author Rev. Roger Wolsey is a United Methodist pastor who resides in Grand Junction, CO. Roger is author of Kissing Fish: Christianity for people who don’t like Christianity and blogs for Patheos as The Holy Kiss and serves on the Board of Directors of ProgressiveChristianity.Org. Roger became “a Christian on purpose” during his college years and he experienced a call to ordained ministry two years after college. He values the Wesleyan approach to the faith and, as a certified spiritual director, he seeks to help others grow and mature. Roger enjoys yoga; playing trumpet; motorcycling; and camping with his son. He served as the Director of the Wesley Foundation campus ministry at the University of Colorado in Boulder for 14 years, and has served as pastor of churches in Minnesota, Iowa, and currently serves as the pastor of Fruita UMC in Colorado, and also serves as the "CRM" (Congregational Resource Minister/Church Consultant) for the Utah/Western Colorado District of the Mountain Sky Conference. | | | | | | | | Question & Answer Q: By A Reader The 'broken' language I hear from other Christians sometimes has never felt right to me. Are we all really broken?” A: By Rev. Mark Sandlin Recently the above question from a reader prompted me to share this perspective on social media. Based on the responses, it clear there are a lot of folks whose spiritual journey would benefit from hearing this. So, I wanted to share with you my answer. A lot of Christianity has it wrong. We are not broken. We are not fallen. We are not flawed. We are simply fragile. We are beautifully distractible. We are self-invested because of love but that love also gives us a slight bias toward justice. We are so deeply invested in life that we can, at times, deny the larger good for the experience of the moment. We are not broken. We are human. We are flesh and blood, and we are experiential. Sometimes that makes us better. Sometimes that makes us worse. It never makes us less. Or sinful. Or unredeemable. It means we are real. It means that life has a relentless hold on us. The struggles, the stumbles, the seemingly endless short-fallings simply point to our humanity not to our unworthiness. They mean life is difficult — but they also mean life is vibrant, pulsing with potential, ripe with possibility, constantly presenting lessons from which to grow. YOU — you are not broken. You are a unique expression of God here on Earth. You are bursting with potential that has not yet been expressed. You are God’s beloved. You are NOT broken. You are in process. You are love hoping to not only be expressed but to be recognized. ~ Rev. Mark Sandlin Read and share online here About the Author Rev. Mark Sandlin is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA) from the South. He currently serves at Presbyterian Church of the Covenant. Mark also serves as the President and Co-executive Director of ProgressiveChristianity.org. He is a co-founder of The Christian Left. His blog, has been named as one of the “Top Ten Christian Blogs.” Mark received The Associated Church Press’ Award of Excellence in 2012. His Podcast The Moonshine Jesus Show is on Mondays at 4:30pm ET. Follow Mark on Facebook and Twitter @marksandlin. | | | | | | | | Please continue to send us your feedback… we are listening. We aim to give voice to many different perspectives that are relevant and inspiring along this spiritually progressing path. We are not here to tell you what to believe or how to act. We are here to support your journey, to share and learn together.Thank you for being a part of this community - join us on Facebook! | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | As a non-profit ProgressiveChristianity.org/Progressing Spirit rely heavily on the good will of our donors to help us continue to bring individuals and churches the messages of progressive Christians, Weekly Newsletters, along with the many other resources we provide. For years, the majority of our fundraising came at the end of the year. Looking at various ways to create a more reasonable amount of cash flow we decided rather than having a BIG ask at the end of each year, our more frequent asks give folks a chance to contribute when their funds are more flexible. We think that's a win for everyone. We also want to highlight the opportunity to become a sustaining supporter. If you are looking for the best way to help us continue to provide progressive Christian resources, become a sustaining supporter by choosing Recurring Donation. Help keep ProgressiveChristianity.org online and going strong - click here to donate today! * Another way to support us is to leave a bequest in your Will and/or Trust designating us a beneficiary. | | | | | | | | | | | This Week's Featured Author Moonshine Jesus Show With Rev. Mark Sandlin and Rev. Dr. Caleb Lines Weekly on Mondays at 4:30 p.m. EST, streaming live, a weekly podcast on our Facebook and other social media called “Moonshine Jesus Show”! The podcast is hosted by our Co-Executive Directors Mark Sandlin and Caleb Lines and brings Progressive Christian perspectives on pop culture, theology, and politics while having a lot of fun. We hope that this will be an entertaining, yet meaningful way to deepen your Progressive Christian journey! READ ON ... | | | | | | | | | Bishop John Shelby Spong Revisited My Second Great Mentor: David Watt Yates (1904-1967) Essay by Bishop John Shelby Spong January 12, 2012His name was David Watt Yates. As an Episcopal priest he fought for the integration of the races in North Carolina in the 1940’s! He was a conscientious objector during World War II even in the face of such compelling moral issues as theories of the “Master Race” and the reality of the Holocaust. He was a rare tee-totaling Episcopalian, who did not even honor the Anglican clerical tradition of “a bit of sherry” at cocktail time. He was unmarried and, as far as I knew, was never significantly attracted to a permanent relationship of any sort. He possessed an authenticity that was breathtaking, a character that was uncompromising and a devotion to the priesthood that was uncommon. His bishop in North Carolina, Edwin Anderson Penick, who was under constant pressure from this man’s critics who were always seeking to have him silenced, declared him to be “the conscience of this diocese” and this bishop never wavered in his support of this priest. When I first met him he was the rector of the Chapel of the Cross, a large Episcopal Church in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, located between the Morehead Planetarium, the Arboretum and a female dormitory called Alderman near the center of The University of North Carolina campus. He was a powerful presence and as influential a priest as I have ever known. During his years as rector of this parish, more young men (women were not then admitted to the priesthood) became Episcopal priests from this university than from any other university in America. Some of them went on to become theological professors, deans of theological seminaries, bishops and outstanding parish priests. David Yates was undoubtedly the primary reason for this. He was certainly a role model and a powerful influence on me. This week, let me introduce you to David Watt Yates in this column – my second significant mentor.David was born in Charlotte, N. C., on September 4, 1904. He grew up in St. Peter’s Church in downtown Charlotte, a church I would join before my 12th birthday. Its rector was Edwin Anderson Penick, who while still in his mid-thirties, would be elected bishop of North Carolina. David’s life, Bishop Penick’s life and my life would intertwine again and again. David graduated from Central High School in Charlotte in 1928. I would graduate from that same school in 1949. He did his undergraduate work at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, a flagship college of the Episcopal Church in America, famous in that day for producing more Rhodes Scholars per the size of its student body than any other institution of higher learning in the United States. He received his degree at the height of the depression in 1931. A tall, well coordinated, graceful man, David lettered in baseball, playing for the Sewanee Purple Tigers varsity team and was known to wear his purple sweater with the attached letter “S” in white for many years after his playing days were over.Desiring to become a priest, he went to the Virginia Theological Seminary, receiving his Master’s degree in Theology in 1934. Of personal interest to me is the fact that his sister Claire Yates Owens, remained in Charlotte, became a school teacher and was my teacher in the fifth grade. I recall vividly that she started each day with a Bible story and a prayer. That was quite legal in North Carolina in the 1940’s. She also required her students to memorize the Ten Commandments in the long form! David and Claire were made of similar stuff. David was ordained deacon and priest by his former rector, now Bishop Penick, who would ordain me priest 21 years later. He was then assigned to be an assistant at Calvary Parish and its surrounding missions in Edgecombe County, North Carolina, where he served for two years. Twenty-three years later, I would be rector of that parish, so David’s ghostly presence was quite familiar to me. In 1935, he moved from Tarboro to become the rector of St. Philip’s, the downtown Episcopal Church in Durham, where he remained until the end of World War II in 1945.There was a popular story that I have never been able to verify, but believe to be true since it is so in character. On VJ Day in August of 1945, the people of America took to the streets to celebrate the end of World War II, pouring into the churches across this land to give thanks. David met the assembled host in his Durham church and, true to his pacifist stand, instead of prayers of thanksgiving he offered prayers of penitence for ever having gotten into the war. The crowds entered St. Philip’s in a celebratory mood, but left seething with rage.I do not know that this end-of-the war experience led to his departure, but the record shows that later in 1945, he moved twelve miles away from Durham to Chapel Hill, known by those who live there as “the southern part of heaven.” UNC’s school color is sky blue, which has caused its graduates to assert that God is surely a Tar Heel fan since God has painted the sky Carolina blue. He stayed in that Chapel Hill post until 1959, long enough to assist students to become conscientious objectors in the Korean War, helping them to adjust to a desegregating world and in both instances creating anger. I was a student during those years, entering in 1949 and receiving my degree in philosophy in 1952. David Yates was all over my UNC experience.David offered rooms in the parish house to poor boys at the university who were Episcopalians. I qualified on both counts and lived for all of my years at UNC in that building. Six of us shared two rooms. In exchange for our rooms, we did the Sunday bulletin on an ancient linotype machine, answered the phone after office hours and provided security at night. Of my seven roommates over my years there five became Episcopal priests, one became an art historian and one went into public relations. Both of these non-clergy roommates, however, became active lay persons serving the church in major leadership roles.As students we spent a lot of time making fun of David. His sermons were long and always had three points, which he regularly illustrated with three fingers. The second point usually made him look like he was giving the finger to his congregation!When the University Episcopal students would meet with David at what we called the “Canterbury Club,” we would begin with a hymn sing. Someone always insisted on singing the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” to taunt David’s pacifism. We also made fun of his stark, almost puritan churchmanship and would buy him presents like a biretta he would never wear and a thurifer for incense that he would never swing. The university was racially segregated in those “separate but equal” days with black students going to North Carolina College in Durham, which was certainly separate, but it was radically unequal. Even our basketball team had twelve white players and was such low status on campus that people barely followed it. We know today of the UNC star named Michael Jordan, but no one remembers Nemo Nearman, who was our star center in the late forties. David spoke out against this prevailing racism, but it was too deeply entrenched for many to notice. He was dismissed as a dreamer or visionary. David, however, lived what he believed with enormous skill and with visible integrity. We laughed about him in public, but admired him in private and we were shaped by him more than we could admit.David presided over my marriage to a Carolina co-ed named Joan Lydia Ketner (who died in 1988). He followed me through seminary, was a presenter when I was ordained a deacon and priest and, early in my priesthood, invited me to return to Chapel Hill to speak to the Men’s Club at his church. My assigned topic was “The Message of the Prophet Habakkuk”! Even as a seminary graduate I barely knew where to find Habakkuk in the Old Testament and I could not imagine that the men of the Chapel of the Cross would have any more interest in that subject than I had. What fascinated me about this evening, however, was that in this audience of Episcopal men was Professor Louis Kattsoff, the head of the Philosophy Department and my faculty advisor as an undergraduate. Dr. Katsoff was Jewish by ethnicity, but an atheist by persuasion. When he learned of my plans to major in philosophy as preparation for a career in the priesthood, he was quite disdainful, dismissing Christianity as an “outdated medieval superstition that needed to be removed from the modern world!” Needless to say, I did not find him supportive in the pursuit of my goals. Now, however, four to five years after I had graduated from this university, I discovered Dr. Katsoff in the audience I was addressing at the Episcopal Church. I was amazed and asked him how he happened to be present. “I have been baptized, confirmed and am now active in this church,” he said. “Louis,” I responded, “When this is over may I come by your home and hear your story?” “Of course,” he said. Shortly after I had forgotten everything I had said about Habakkuk, I was in his home listening to his story. “It was David Yates who got to me,” he said. I found that almost unbelievable. “Louis,” I said, “I know both of you well and David Yates is not in your intellectual league. You can think rings around him.” To this Louis Katsoff replied, “David did not outthink me, he outlived me.”That was his power. He outlived us all, not in length of days, but in character, in devotion, in honor and in commitment. David left Chapel Hill in 1959 to become rector of the parish church at Sewanee, Tennessee, where he remained until 1966 and then went to St. Timothy’s in Columbia, South Carolina where his ministry was interrupted by the sickness that was to claim his life within a year. If this man had objected on moral grounds to World War II and Korea, we can only imagine his response to Vietnam, Granada, Iraq and Afghanistan. He died in Charlotte in 1967 at the relatively young age of 63, leaving a trail of people deeply in his debt. I am one of them. I am glad I knew him. I am a better person because I did.~ John Shelby Spong | | | | | | | | Announcements The Gift of Black Students to Graduate Theological Education. Register now for a special Black History Month virtual event Feb. 17 at 4pm Eastern Time with The Very Rev. Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas in conversation with The Rt. Rev. Dr. Nathan Baxter discussing The Gift of Black Students to Graduate Theological Education. Read on... | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |