I went to Tripp’s Theology Beer Camp last fall and found myself saying, “I feel like ‘all are welcome’ unless you are a conservative MAGA Christian. Something seems very off here….” I just wasn’t articulating the social justice element, but that’s exactly what it was. Or better yet, “all are welcome as long as you agree with us on the current hot topic issues and don’t have a different opinion.”
Over the past year I’ve found myself really understanding your post-progressive leanings. I’ve found myself identifying that way more and more with this extremist puritanism of the left.
Thanka for this series, Richard. So much insight. I'm struck by how a number of folks never left "purity culture" at all - they just changed the subject of purity.
“The final way becoming woke caused the emerging church movement to fail has to do with what I describe as 'the mystical-to-moral shift'….. [W]hen Christianity becomes reduced to social justice activism then politics, rather than God, becomes the binding agent of the community…. Churches are replaced with spiritual seekers who are social justice warriors.”
This is what has happened to many American Quaker meetings, beginning with the Vietnam Era in the 1970s. Because of our peace and equality testimonies, many meetings have been flooded with committed social activists. Good people, but people who did not understand (or perhaps even notice) our centeredness in collective, Spirit-led worship and decision-making.
“Peace and social concerns” became the driving force among these new Quakers. But, increasingly, meetings lost their groundedness in Spirit. In the 21st century, Quakers tend to stumble over all those conflicting identity-based "purity" demands.
Traditional Quaker social action always begins in worship. A meeting only takes action in the larger world when its people have clarity about which particular action (usually a local ministry or witness) they in particular are called to attempt. And Quakers always return to worship to evaluate the outcomes of action and to listen for clearer leadings from the Spirit.
"Religion is what binds a group together."
Yes. Fortunately more and more local Quaker meetings and their regional "yearly meetings" are reawakening from merely ideological "correctness." Instead, we are more truly "woke," in the sense that we know we have to center down in group worship first, and only then act locally and compassionately with specific people whose lives personally intersect ours.
I wondered where exactly this piece was going, then I thought you nailed it with this:
Personally, as someone who now describes themselves as a "post-progressive Christian," I work to retain a social justice emphasis, supported by a liberationist hermeneutic, while resisting the impulse to reduce God, church, salvation, and faith to political activism.
I thought, that’s exactly the “sweet spot” where I see myself and my church. At the same time, I see the dangers of activism creeping in all the time, especially in this election year.
Wokeness reminds me of Peter exclaiming that he will never allow Jesus to turned over to the authorities--or when he chopped the ear off a soldier. The woke want to stand up tyranny, but they're embarrassed of Jesus. Better to cling to Jesus and let the culture condemn you than to cling to culture and weep in shame when rooster crows.
I like to make a distinction between wokeness and wokism. As Psychologist Michael Karson describes it in “Psychology Today,” wokism is —a system of thought and behavior characterized by intolerance, policing the speech of others, and proving one’s own superiority by denouncing others.
On the other hand, to be woke in the traditional sense is a good. Being woke to the evils done in the name of Manifest Destiny, or capitalism, or Christianity is important and necessary for our moral health.
..and the question remains.... what should the church be? Maybe it should be constantly changing, constantly questioning, never stagnant... with the coming and going of movements for cleansing. Hm.... It's easier for me to know what I don't want it to be...
This has been an excellent analysis Dr. Beck . . . but being a white dinosaur with the genetic defect of a Y chromosome who, to make matters worse, actually identifies as "male," my opinion means nothing, of course. https://themjkxn.substack.com/p/crazy
This is such an absurd misunderstanding of sociology, ecclesiology, American culture, and...reality? Title revision suggestion: "I'm not sure why but I'm definitely going to make this thing about how I'm a victim of wokeism." And I'm sure even this comment will trigger a host of emotions that will inevitably reinforce your fear that you're on the verge of being canceled! Oh no! 😂
I went to Tripp’s Theology Beer Camp last fall and found myself saying, “I feel like ‘all are welcome’ unless you are a conservative MAGA Christian. Something seems very off here….” I just wasn’t articulating the social justice element, but that’s exactly what it was. Or better yet, “all are welcome as long as you agree with us on the current hot topic issues and don’t have a different opinion.”
Over the past year I’ve found myself really understanding your post-progressive leanings. I’ve found myself identifying that way more and more with this extremist puritanism of the left.
Thanka for this series, Richard. So much insight. I'm struck by how a number of folks never left "purity culture" at all - they just changed the subject of purity.
—
“The final way becoming woke caused the emerging church movement to fail has to do with what I describe as 'the mystical-to-moral shift'….. [W]hen Christianity becomes reduced to social justice activism then politics, rather than God, becomes the binding agent of the community…. Churches are replaced with spiritual seekers who are social justice warriors.”
This is what has happened to many American Quaker meetings, beginning with the Vietnam Era in the 1970s. Because of our peace and equality testimonies, many meetings have been flooded with committed social activists. Good people, but people who did not understand (or perhaps even notice) our centeredness in collective, Spirit-led worship and decision-making.
“Peace and social concerns” became the driving force among these new Quakers. But, increasingly, meetings lost their groundedness in Spirit. In the 21st century, Quakers tend to stumble over all those conflicting identity-based "purity" demands.
Traditional Quaker social action always begins in worship. A meeting only takes action in the larger world when its people have clarity about which particular action (usually a local ministry or witness) they in particular are called to attempt. And Quakers always return to worship to evaluate the outcomes of action and to listen for clearer leadings from the Spirit.
"Religion is what binds a group together."
Yes. Fortunately more and more local Quaker meetings and their regional "yearly meetings" are reawakening from merely ideological "correctness." Instead, we are more truly "woke," in the sense that we know we have to center down in group worship first, and only then act locally and compassionately with specific people whose lives personally intersect ours.
I wondered where exactly this piece was going, then I thought you nailed it with this:
Personally, as someone who now describes themselves as a "post-progressive Christian," I work to retain a social justice emphasis, supported by a liberationist hermeneutic, while resisting the impulse to reduce God, church, salvation, and faith to political activism.
I thought, that’s exactly the “sweet spot” where I see myself and my church. At the same time, I see the dangers of activism creeping in all the time, especially in this election year.
I felt the same, although my church is not there with me yet, but we are making progress. Just hope the election year doesn’t further divide us.
Thanks for this Richard. I think the entire series is, to my mind, insightful, solid, and helpful. Grateful for you.
Wokeness reminds me of Peter exclaiming that he will never allow Jesus to turned over to the authorities--or when he chopped the ear off a soldier. The woke want to stand up tyranny, but they're embarrassed of Jesus. Better to cling to Jesus and let the culture condemn you than to cling to culture and weep in shame when rooster crows.
I like to make a distinction between wokeness and wokism. As Psychologist Michael Karson describes it in “Psychology Today,” wokism is —a system of thought and behavior characterized by intolerance, policing the speech of others, and proving one’s own superiority by denouncing others.
On the other hand, to be woke in the traditional sense is a good. Being woke to the evils done in the name of Manifest Destiny, or capitalism, or Christianity is important and necessary for our moral health.
..and the question remains.... what should the church be? Maybe it should be constantly changing, constantly questioning, never stagnant... with the coming and going of movements for cleansing. Hm.... It's easier for me to know what I don't want it to be...
This has been an excellent analysis Dr. Beck . . . but being a white dinosaur with the genetic defect of a Y chromosome who, to make matters worse, actually identifies as "male," my opinion means nothing, of course. https://themjkxn.substack.com/p/crazy
This is such an absurd misunderstanding of sociology, ecclesiology, American culture, and...reality? Title revision suggestion: "I'm not sure why but I'm definitely going to make this thing about how I'm a victim of wokeism." And I'm sure even this comment will trigger a host of emotions that will inevitably reinforce your fear that you're on the verge of being canceled! Oh no! 😂