Why I Hate Word Games, but Love Jesus

 Everybody and their mom has seen the video Why I Hate Religion, but Love Jesus. It has got quite an incredible amount of views, attention, and flak. I watched it and loved it, but when I looked at some of the reactions to the video I had to change position. This isn't cause I think he is wrong, but the word games he plays are harmful. I don't think people can see past the wordage to see the heart of the message. So let me try to explain the heart of Jeff's message and tell you why the message may not have been done the best way.

I think we have to consider Acts 17 when Paul is in Athens when we talk about religious people. Paul tells the men of Athens that "in every way you are very religious." Of course they believed in false gods, but he calls them very religious. From the way the Athenians lived their lives you probably wouldn't have been able to tell that they had any sense of morality. So although they are very religious, they're lives didn't reflect it. I think this is the kind of thing Jeff was trying to address. So to avoid the horrific word games, and debate over terms, I would like to rephrase his point. Why I hate being churchy, but love being the church.

I understand the desire to play these word games, but they are easy to see through and leave the point behind. Religion has gotten a black eye, and that's why all of us get uneasy when mentioning "religion." Religion has brought pain, bigotry, elitism, ignorance, violence, hatred, factions, war, crusades, 9/11, and on-and-on. So many horrible things have been done in the name of religion. I understand all that, but all that stuff is a result of corruption. Because of religion's poor track record, we feel the need to protect ourselves by disassociation. I understand completely, but word games are not the best solution.

I think we can all admit (it is obvious in my life) that we are a highly cynical bunch. We live in a time where criticism is all we offer- vague compliments and specific criticisms. It is a cardinal rule of the Christian walk that if you have a criticism, you offer a solution. So let's solve the problem.

If we are defining terms, and being real about it, Jesus was a religious figure. I think Jeff would never argue against that. Strictly speaking Jesus is religious. However, he brought forth such a different kind of religion. He broke the status-quot of religion by initiating in a relationship with man. The whole "it's not a religion, it's a relationship" idea is what I think Jeff is going for. I don't like cheesy little sayings like that, but Jesus was really a game changer. The religious people of Jesus' day were his biggest problem. The sinners acting like sinners is understandable, but the religious? There lies the heart of the issue. Jesus doesn't require us to be religious, per-say, but he does require us to live by a set of moral standards (which is part of a religion). Religion is seen nowadays as something much different than a lifestyle; rather something that you can put down and pick back up when convenient. That doesn't mean we have to throw away the term religion, but we do have to redeem it.

I think the biggest thing people are worried about is the church. A lot of criticism towards Jeff comes from people who think he is anti-church. It is obvious from his other videos and sermons that he is not against the church. We are all anti-mediocrity. Churches have been fairly underwhelming, but again that is something to be redeemed. Accountability to the church is not debatable whatsoever. The rogue Christians like Bono are an alarming reflection upon the corruption of churches. However, such churches that leave seekers jaded are likely becoming just a cultural tradition (like most Islamic and Hebrew traditions) and can hardly be considered a church in the first place. Or perhaps people just don't like the authority of the church, in which case it's a sin issue. The church is God's plan A and I find it very humbling to be a part of that. Thank God for the redeeming agency called the church.

I think there is great encouragement to be found in this new video. Firstly, the fact that this video has so many views so fast. Secondly, that although there is so much criticism, there is a lot of critical thinking happening as a result. People obviously care about this issue! Check out what he has to say for himself on Facebook. There is just a lot of emotion and mess involved when word games get involved. It can really betray the heart of your issue. That is why I hate word games, but love Jesus. Grace and peace to you all.