Searching for Sunday

As someone who has grown up in the evangelical tradition, had an awesome upbringing, and since I have been in college has found a love for liturgy and the mainline traditions I have found that Rachel Held Evan's new book Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church was an incredible and refreshing read. This was an incredible read that was beautifully written and probably Rachel Held Evan's best book so far! I was not able to put the book down and found myself reading it every where I went. I loved how she so authentically shared her journey of leaving and then finding a church where she can belong and feel loved simply for showing up. Sometimes it can be so easy to get caught up in how the worship is or what kind of music they play, but at the end of the day it is completely about the people there. It is about the community and how loving they are. This past Sunday I visited a church in town and I was overwhelmed (in a good way) about how friendly and welcoming they seemed to be. I could tell that the church knew that my fiance and I were visitors and they wanted us to feel welcomed and as if this was a place we could return to and belong at. From the very beginning people told us that we should come, get involved, become members, and find our niche in ministry. We could tell that this was not a place of just coming to church on Sunday, but that it was a place we could belong to. We could tell all of this just from the people we met that day. It felt like such a blessing I almost cried--which granted is not a big deal for me, but still.

 The book did an excellent job at showing that she still loves evangelicalism and would never completely give it up. I felt this book emphasized the importance of denominations, the sacraments, and unity without uniformity. Searching for Sunday helps one gain a better appreciation for the sacraments of: baptism, confession, holy orders, communion, confirmation, anointing of the sick, and marriage. There were chapters I cried in, laughed at, and underlined in at least 10 times in. Most of the margins have notes and scribbles affirming what was read in the book. This may be the best book I have read in awhile and it is a great one for anyone questioning how they view the Church or even how the church should be. There are examples of so many types of churches. This is a call to not leave the church--or even to leave a particular denomination, but to find the beauty in the Church universal. To realize that the Church is messy, confusing, and ongoing, but it is the Bride of Christ. As Rachel so eloquently writes, "All we have is this church--this lousy, screwed-up, glorious church--which, by God's grace, is enough."

Interested yet? Searching for Sunday comes out on April 14th, tomorrow, so order it now at www.searchingforsunday.com 

Communion.

Christ's blood shed for you.

This is what I found myself saying to hundreds of college students as they walked down the aisle, took the small piece of bread, and dipped it into the grape juice filled chalice in my hands. I said it a hundred or so times and yet each time the words rang in my ears. This small act had so much significance to it. I saw some dip their bread and then rush back to their seats as soon as possible, some slowly take their time taking everything in, some looking me in the eyes and thanking me--as if the act of holding this cup and saying these words was something I was giving to them. It was an incredibly humbling process to help serve communion at my school's Cooperation in Grace Chapel Service. It reminded me of my love for the sacrament of communion.

Growing up I went to your typical Evangelical church where we took communion once a quarter and all the kids got excited because they got to get out of junior church early to try new bread and dip it into grape juice (like all good Nazarenes, we did not use wine)--at least I knew I got excited. I had no idea that there were whole traditions that took this sacrament on a weekly basis until I got to college. Since then I have attended and observed many different types of churches--Mainline, Evangelical, Liturgical, and Contemporary. I have attended large church services where they spent loads of money to have rain fall on the Worship team as they played in the spot lights, and I have been to small churches where the most expensive thing they had was a PowerPoint Projector and slides. I have been to churches that practice communion monthly, quarterly, and weekly. It was honestly not until I began attending the church I regularly attend now that I began to really appreciate The Eucharist for what it is.

When I was beginning my Sophomore year of college I knew that I had to decide what church I would be attending, because I had a scholarship that required I work for a church. Having been disappointed and disconnected with the church I attended all of my Freshmen year I was in need of finding a "good fit" for myself. Following the advise of a good friend I decided to email a small, local, Nazarene church that met in a storefront and called themselves Shepherd's House. It seemed pretty non-threatening and I had heard only good things about it. My first Sunday visiting I immediately noticed that they had more of a liturgical feel to them than a typical Evangelical church. It was evident that the worship was more than just music; the congregation participated through having people throughout the crowd reading the Scripture readings, they used the lectionary, they all recited the Apostle's Creed and Lord's Prayer together, and took communion. I was very impressed and then to top it all off, everyone was incredibly friendly and invited me to stay for a meal afterwards. We ended with communion for more communion. I would later find out that was their way of welcoming back the college students, but that every Sunday evening they had home groups and would eat dinner together before discussing the morning's sermon. This is what kept me there. It was not phenomenal preaching, it was not the free coffee I could get before church started, and it was not even the amazing worship music. It was the loving community, the fact that it was intergenerational, and it was the act of taking communion every week.

I have learned throughout my life that there are very different understandings and interpretations for the Eucharist and I have found that I tend to fall under the belief that it is something we should do whenever we remember. When we remember the good news of the Resurrection, when we are thankful to God, and when we re-member back together as a group. This act of remembering has become a vital part of worship and whether or not I can explain how, I believe Jesus is present especially in the taking of communion and it is an amazing place for all who come to the Table to receive grace. This sacrament that so many people just view as a "part of worship we sometimes do" is a beautiful, constant reminder of the eschaton, of the time when Christ will return and make all things new inviting all to a feast where no one is hungry and everyone are companions. In her upcoming book Searching for Sunday, Rachel Held Evans puts it perfectly when says, "The church is God saying: 'I'm throwing a banquet, and all these mismatched, messed-up people are invited. Here, have some wine" (Held, pg. 153). No matter what our background is, we are all invited to the Table and should all celebrate it as often as we meet. We are all invited to cooperate with grace, to accept this grace that is given to us and then go and show it to others; but first we must accept it.

Which brings me back to the Cooperation in Grace service I was a part of. This particular chapel service consisted of worship through music, confessions, anointing, Scripture reading, hand washing (in replace of foot washing), and finally communion. It was an incredible service and a reminder of how much we need God's grace. It did, however, make me wonder how great this would be if we regularly practiced receiving and giving grace. If instead of having one chapel service where we do multiple forms of cooperating with grace, what if we always cooperated with grace each time we gathered together. I wonder how much more fulfilling and grace-filled our lives would be if we made it a normal act to have communion through meals together with those we know, don't know, and even those we don't agree with. What would it look like to practice thanksgiving and grace in our lives today? 

Why Left Behind should be left behind.

I just returned from seeing the Left Behind remake and I am reminded of many memories of my childhood. This poorly done remake focuses solely on the plane ride of those who were left behind after the rapture. This movie was laced with horrible acting, awful implications (such as an elderly woman with Alzheimer's disease getting left behind or the one Arab in the movie being a Muslim who gets left behind), horribly cheesy Christian merchandise on the items of all the Christians, and simply put horrible theology. If that was not bad enough the movie ends [SPOILER] with the plane finally landing, everyone embracing, and the three protagonists, Ray, Chloe, and Buck holding hands as Mark 13:33 plays across the screen. As the credits played to Jordan Spark's rendition of I wish we'd all been ready I could not help but, see the evangelistic theme of the film. It was clear that this horrible theology was turned into a movie to draw in people so they will be scared into Salvation. This worries me and is not how I believe Salvation should work. It may have worked before but, it hardly works now and seems pretty manipulative.

This idea of the rapture comes from Dispensational Premillennialism theology which did not even originate until the 19th century by a Revivalist known as John Nelson Darby. As cheesy as this film was it worries me. The fact that Hollywood finds a need to remake this film makes me worry that people will see this and buy into the theology of escapism. Left Behind and these ideas of the rapture lead to thoughts of the earth--which God created and said was good in Genesis--being evil and meant to be destroyed and that we should be taken from it. This line of thinking can lead Christians to believing we should not care for the earth because one day we will leave it. I find the words of protagonist Chloe Steele in this new adaptation to accurately describe how we should view this theology when she says, "The God my mother talked about would never do this!" 

Instead we should view Revelation as liturgy for what has happened filled with allegories, metaphors, and symbols. We need to view Revelation as we would view the entirety of Scripture: out of a hermeneutic of love. The point of Scripture is God's love and his saving grace. Scripture tells us Jesus is coming to renew this earth that He said was good and building the Kingdom of Heaven here. This is not escapist theology. This is a theology of caring for creation, of loving your enemies and neighbors, of showing everyone what God's love looks like and how we can better build God's kingdom here. A Kingdom without violence, terrors, hate, isolation, exclusion, and destruction. A Kingdom where people are not Left Behind.

For more great resources on this see:
Reading Revelation Responsibly: Uncivil Worship and Witness by Michael Gorman 
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/thepangeablog/2014/06/05/a-raptureless-theology/
Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright

Tanner's Top 10 Non-Fiction Books

Many of my friends and colleagues that know me well know that I try to be very well read. My room contains a large bookshelf that is filled and I also have three shelves filled with books. I have developed a "library system" of sorts so that I can loan out my books to others. Along with that, I am often asked by friends for book recommendations and so as the year comes to an end I've decided to give a "Top 10 non-fiction books I would recommend for the new year." These books aren't in any specific order, but are simply books that I would recommend. 

1. A Year of Biblical Womanhood: How a Liberated Woman Found Herself Sitting on Her Roof, Covering Her Head, and Calling Her Husband "Master" by Rachel Held Evans

I recently had the privilege of reading this book and more often than not I found myself exclaiming, "amen" to the book. I find this book to be very enjoyable and informative on what it means for women to be "biblical." I would recommend this to men and women alike especially those who are tired of hearing "women should be silent". Overall this was a book that reminded me that importance of women all throughout scripture and is a great reminder to everyone that men and women are equal. I recommend this to all who want an enjoyable read. 

2. Simply Christian: Why Christianity makes sense by N.T. Wright 

At the end of this past summer I had the privilege of reading this book. For those who enjoyed Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis this was a 21st century look on what it means to be Christian. If you ever need a way to best explain this way of Jesus to a postmodern world, this is the key book to read. It's engaging to readers and helps even age old Christians get a fresh look at Christianity. 

3. Love Wins: a book about heaven, hell, and the fate of every person who ever lived by Rob Bell

I read this book my freshmen year of college and since then it has been one of my favorites. Rob does a brilliant job at asking the tough questions that people seem too afraid to tackle. I feel Rob's website description of the book describes it well, "Rob Bell addresses one of the most controversial issues of faith—the afterlife—arguing, would a loving God send people to eternal torment forever…? With searing insight, Bell puts hell on trial, and his message is decidedly hopeful—eternal life doesn't start when we die; it starts right now. And ultimately, Love Wins." So instead of jumping on the bandwagon of what people have told you, pick up a book, and read for yourself. 

4. Love Does: discover a secretly incredible life in an ordinary world by Bob Goff

This past January I spent a month in the country of Belize and I could not have picked a more fitting book. Goff is an inspiring and incredible man who does not just talk about life, but he actually lives life. Love is so much more than a thought or idea it is something that we were intended to do. Love Does tells beautiful stories of what can happen when we love in our actions. I have never met someone who had disliked Goff's book. I recommend this to everyone who can read. 

5. Blue like Jazz: Nonreligious thoughts on Christian Spirituality by Donald Miller 

I had the privilege of reading this book near the end of my freshmen year and I could not put it down. Miller tells stories from his life to show that God is still present and moving in our postmodern world in ways that we might never have guessed. It is a fresh, lively perspective on life, love, and redemption. I suggest you read it to find out why Don says, "I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. I used to not like God because God didn't resolve. But that was before any of this happened." I recommend this to anyone. 

6. A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Own Life by Donald Miller

Upon reading Blue like Jazz I highly recommend reading Don's follow up book. I read this book on my adventurous summer working for the Non-profit YouthWorks and decided it is a great book especially for those in the twenty something's range. Don explores what it means to create a good story for your own life. Read about Miller's life as he edits it and reinvents his life while providing ways for you to reinvent yours. I recommend this book to anyone who are trying to figure out what to do with their lives. 

7. The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical by Shane Claiborne 

This is one of the most inspirational books I have ever read. Though there are moments that Shane goes farther than I would, he has become one that I see Jesus in and hope that I could be like one day. Shane tells his stories of communal living, serving under mother Teresa, starting up a non-profit known as the simple way, feeding and living with the homeless, and striving to live as a peacemaker for Christ. This is an inspirational book on changing the world with little acts of love. I recommend this book to all. 

8. Insurrection: To Believe Is Human To Doubt, Divine by Peter Rollins

This book has been monumental in my philosophical thinking. Written by a Christian, postmodern, philosopher which there are few of. Rollins explores what it truly means to doubt. Rollins is less concerned on discussing life after death and more concerned on life before death. Amazon describes this conquest by saying, "In order to unearth this truth, Rollins prescribes a radical and wholesale critique of contemporary Christianity that he calls pyro-theology. It is only as we submit our spiritual practices, religious rituals, and dogmatic affirmations to the flames of fearless interrogation that we come into contact with the reality that Christianity is in the business of transforming our world rather than offering a way of interpreting or escaping it. Belief in the Resurrection means but one thing: Participation in an Insurrection." I was blown away by this book and it really challenged me to work towards transforming the world for Christ. I recommend this book to Christians who feel they are strong in their faith.

9. Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Cross the Road?: Christian Identity in a Multi-Faith World by Brian McLaren
We live in a very blended culture filled with many religions. It can be hard discerning, as Christians, how we should interact with other religions. Having read the short story prequel, the girl with the dove tattoo, I decided to give this book a try. It is a wonderful look at how we should treat others in other religions. McLaren presents many personal stories and examples on what we should do. He proposes a new faith alternative, one built on "benevolence and solidarity rather than rivalry and hostility." I felt McLaren beautifully shows us how to better live Christ-like lives with those around us. I recommend this book to all.

10. Velvit Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith by Rob Bell

My list would not be complete without one of the very first theology books I have ever read. I may have read ones before this, but this book is what got me reading others. This was a great look at theology and how many follow a form of Christianity called "Brickianity" and how we should instead treat Christianity like a trampoline with many springs that hold it up. Bell is well-versed in Jewish teachings and draws from rabbinic wisdom and stories freely. If all that is not enough, also know that it is an easy book for anyone to read. So even if you don't enjoy Love Wins I would greatly recommend you try out this book. 

Well those are my top ten non-fiction books for the new year. I hope that at least one of these books leaves an impact on you. As you read them I pray you will have an open mind that is willing to learn from these great authors. You may not agree with everything they say, but you might still get great insight from them. 

Next blog post: "Tanner's Top Ten Fiction Books."